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Earl Gray III

@earlthird.bsky.social

Some languish in obscurity, I prefer to lounge in it. Creator of the angle neck toothbrush. He/Him thingsyoumightenjoy.com

716 Posts216 Follower332 Folgt
Earl Gray III@earlthird.bsky.social · 4w ago

A local game shop is selling these TCG card storage bins. The real blast from the past is the product photo featuring the Marvel (and DC) Overpower card game, something I hadn’t encountered in the wild since about 1998.

The box for a BCW brand card bin for storing cards from your collectible card game of choice. The picture is focused on the product image, which uses cards from the OverPower Card Game. This is notable because the box is from 2026, and OverPower (as seen here) hasn’t really existed in over a quarter century. Granted, there apparently was a kickstarter a few years back that relaunched the game, but this Fleer and Marvel iteration is rooted firmly in the era of Wizard Magazine. One of these days I’m just going to get really into comparatively obscure TCGs from the 90s and hold tournaments in the name of performative anachronism.
Earl Gray III@earlthird.bsky.social · last mo.

Stumbled across this while at B&N for the Criterion sale, and I’m psyched to read it. I was unfamiliar, but it seems up my alley. Plus, we could always use more magazines based on regionally specific vernacular.

The Summer 2026 issue of Movie Jawn, a movie magazine for film lovers. The cover features Barbara Streisand and Ryan O’Neal as seen in What’s Up, Doc.
Earl Gray III@earlthird.bsky.social · last mo.

The Famicom bootleg parade continues with Mobile Suit Z Gundam: Hot Scramble. Dare I say it, the pale mauve coloring looks better than the official cart! It is kind of weird seeing a Bandai release in a standard Famicom style cartridge, though.

An unofficial (bootleg) release of Mobile Suit Z Gundam: Hot Scramble for the Nintendo Famicom. The label features the Zeta Gundam amidst a space battle, as well as the title. Beneath the Japanese lettering, the English words HOT SCRAMBLE are written. The cart’s color brings to mind taro bubble tea. Normally, this cart would be in a Bandai Famicom cart, black in color and with rounded edges. However, I love the look of this thing. Odd carts and colors are among the key reasons why o love bootleg games. As for the game itself? It’s decent. Think of it as a sort of proto rail shooter/Space Harrier imitation, but with a few side scrolling levels added in for variety. That being said, the game would be far better without said scrolling levels. Worth a look if you’re exploring Famicom games, or just love Gundam. Zeta Gundam is my favorite of the Gundam series.
Earl Gray III@earlthird.bsky.social · 2mo ago

I bought a box of bootleg Famicom games, and I think my favorite so far has been this extra tall, brilliant yellow Makaimura/Ghosts ‘N Goblins cart. That’s just the regular Famicom label if you’re looking for a sense of scale.

A video game cartridge compatible with the Nintendo Famicom, but not made in any official capacity. Specifically, this is Makaimura/Ghosts ‘N Goblins, the Capcom published and Micronix made port of the arcade game. It’s a shade lighter than banana yellow, and is roughly double the height of the average Famicom cartridge. It’s also pretty heavy, owing to the higher than average number of chips needed to replicate the official cart.
Earl Gray III@earlthird.bsky.social · 2mo ago

I picked up this paperback Robotech book at a used bookstore yesterday. There’s something charming about seeing Macross characters in the 1980s sci fi paperback style. More info in alt text.

A paperback copy of the fourth entry in Del Rey’s adaptation of Robotech from the late 1980s. Robotech is written vertically on the left side, and the cover notes that this is volume four of the first generation. (More on that in a second for those unfamiliar). The title is Battlehymn, with the description reading “Two years of fighting…and Gloval knew that it had just begun…”. The author is Jack McKinney, who I’ll have to look up later. The cover features Rick about to take off in his VF-1 while Zentradi forces make their attack. Front and center is the image of Breetai, making an expression as if he thinks he may manage a hole in one on a mini golf course. Miriya is also here, fresh from the local SDF-1 video arcade. The scene is brimming with protoculture. The “first generation” tag at the top refers to the Macross saga, which was the first of three separate animated series cobbled together to make Robotech in the US. Liberties were taken, and as such, things aren’t a 1:1 march to Super Dimension Fortress Macross. This makes things occasionally confusing for newcomers, in no small part due to the the licensing nightmare of watching this stuff in the west. Alas, all that glitters is not Harmony Gold.
Earl Gray III@earlthird.bsky.social · 3mo ago

This didn’t happen to me, but my dad has often told a story about how in shop class his teacher deemed his work so terrible that said teacher threw it into the furnace mid class. He then sent my grandparents a bill for the wood. My grandparents confirmed this happened and that they refused to pay.

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Earl Gray III@earlthird.bsky.social · 4mo ago

Before I turn in, here’s a mystery controller I picked up at Hard Off for ¥800. It’s an elongated SNES style controller with a 15 Pin connector and a switch like you’d see on a turbo controller. The controller itself feels like new plastic, but the buttons seem worn. More info in alt text as usual.

A SNES esque controller that is black with super Famicom colored buttons to the right, and buttons labeled C and D that would normally be start and select. The classic A/B/X/Y buttons are indeed A/B/TA/TB. If I had to guess, those mean turbo A/B. The shoulder buttons are labeled C. And D. There is a small switch to the right of the D Pad that is labeled C.D. with options for off and on. It’s all kind of baffling.The back of the controller. The label looks to say EI Games, an SEO nightmare. There’s also a QC pass label and a serial number. The controller seems to be made in the Philippines. It looks like the back panel can be removed, but I’m not currently near a small enough screwdriver to investigate. We can also see that the controller uses a male DB-15 pin connector. More info on the feel of the thing in the next photo.So two things: 1) This controller is unused, no doubt in my mind. The cord is wrapped in plastic, and the controller itself has that fresh plastic feel. However, weirdly enough, the buttons seem to be used? They have the release sign of being in a drawer with other plastics for years on end. Again, I won’t have a screwdriver small enough to open this thing up until I get home, so who knows what’s the deal with all of these quirks. The obvious answer is famiclone or something of the like, but the wild thing is how quality this plastic is. This isn’t famiclone quality, it’s legit as good as you’d find on an SNES. It feels like one of those Lodgenet controllers. I realize this is probably a whole lot of nothing, but isn’t this odd? I can’t wait to be corrected about how worthless this thing is. Maybe I’ll be lucky and it’s a Neo Geo controller in an SNES form factor. If so, I’m about to straight up conquer Magician Lord.
Earl Gray III@earlthird.bsky.social · 4mo ago

Heading out to the outskirts of Chiba today to do some game hunting with a friend. Hoping to knock off some of the more elusive obscurities off my list. Some Simple Series entries too, of course.

Earl Gray III@earlthird.bsky.social · 4mo ago

I’m both astounded and psyched that there’s a Tomica Hummer H2 Limo. It’s an absurdity tied to such an incredibly specific time. It’s like coming across Pimp My Ride gacha figures or a Uniqlo/MTV Room Raiders collab.

A Tomica toy car modeled after the Hummer H2, but in a limo form. I promise you these existed. I saw them. One showed up at my senior prom. Nobody liked the couple that emerged from it. There is no greater consumer symbol of American hubris in the early 2000s than the Hummer H2, and perhaps there was no greater foretelling of our descent into absurdity than the fact that someone looked at a vehicle that made around 11 miles per gallon and said “you know what, let’s make it bigger.”. Here it is, folks. A tiny monument to an America that could only be defined accurately in a mad libs. And it’s pink. They often were. No clue why. A+.
Earl Gray III@earlthird.bsky.social · 5mo ago

Happy Trans Day of Visibility to all my friends in the community. I’m happy you’re here! Both my life and the world at large is better with you in it. Don’t let the bastards grind you down.

Earl Gray III@earlthird.bsky.social · 5mo ago

The MSX port of hang on is one of my favorite looking cartridges ever, the red on red is gorgeous. Don’t let that Pony Canyon logo fool you, it’s actually a solid take on the the game. (Further info in alt text!)

A hand holds a copy of Hang-On for MSX. The cartridge is a rich red, and the label matches, so the colors make for a striking appearance. The blue Sega logo stands out boldly. While obviously the MSX can’t even come close to the speed and smoothness of the arcade original, there’s a lot to enjoy with this port, and it does an admirable job of capturing what makes the original such a classic. It’s functionally identical to the SG-1000 version (I can’t see a difference, at least), and what it lacks in speed, it makes up for in surprisingly good controls and a sense of flow that’s unexpectedly enjoyable. Outrun is often referred to as more of a driving game than a racing game, and I’m apt to assign the same designation to this version of Hang-On. It’s a bit on the easy side, and completing a loop of the race is pretty doable given how generous the game is with bonus times at checkpoints. My favorite part of any arcade racer is the nighttime cityscape scene. There’s something about a distant skyline rendered in limited pixels that I’ve always found to instill a sense of digital sondor for people that don’t actually exist. In the nighttime city scenes, the moon slowly becomes full with each passing loop, eventually smiling at you, which is a nice touch. Combined with the flow state the game induces, it’s all very pleasant. Give this one a look. I’d usually say pick up the MSX version due to it being easier to control than the SG-1000 joystick, but I doubt anyone’s going a non emulation route here (for good reason! Have you priced an SG-1000 lately?). Blistering, it is not, but you’ll certainly avoid driving through the worst parts of the Pony Canyon. -Picture originally from my instagram around 2015-2016. Write up original to Bluesky.
Earl Gray III@earlthird.bsky.social · 6mo ago

I posted recently about how I missed what instagram used to be, and how much fun it was to just talk about odd pieces I had in my collection. Using the powers of alt text, I imagine I could recreate the same kind of post on here. I may even repurpose some old pictures to enjoy the 2010s filtering.