Secret Identities – akatsuki

What does Akatsuki mean? Story behind it? The name is Japanese. Depending on the kanji spelling, it has two meanings. The more prominent meaning is "dawn" or "daybreak" and would be spelled with a single kanji. If spelled with two kanji characters, the name could mean "Red Moon", which I think sounds more interesting. Akatsuki is the name of a group of mysterious ninja in the anime "Naruto", the name of a class of Japanese World War 2 destroyers, and the name of a mech in one of the Gundam anime series.

What type of counseling will you be specializing in? You mean what type of lawyer would I want to be? I am undecided. Both transactional law and litigation sound appealing to me at the moment. I also have an interest in environmental issues, energy technologies, fitness, and nutrition.

Around what time will you be taking the bar? Probably 2009.
Do you fwoosh daily?
Yes I do. Fwoosh is a great community and I love the wealth of information I get here.

Does your girlfriend fwoosh? Does she know about the fwoosh?
She doesn’t fwoosh, but I have mentioned the site to her.
When did the love for Iron Man start? I started liking Iron Man in the 1990s with the advent of the Iron Man animated series and Toy Biz’s great 5" action figure series. The shiny gold Hydro-Armor and silvery War Machine caught my eye first. I started reading Iron Man comics beginning with the Heroes Return re-launch, and I later acquired many Iron Man back issues. I also started reading the Avengers at this time.

Is it just Iron Man or is it all things technological and maybe
artificial intelligence? I have loved armored and robotic characters since I was a young child. European knights, Japanese samurai, Darth Vader, Stormtroopers, Boba Fett, and the B.A.T.s from G.I. Joe were particular favorites of mine. Iron Man is a natural progression from those characters.
Did the story arc of "civil war" do a good job of highlighting
ironman/tonystark? Did they stay true to the character (without
mentioning the rest of the story or universe?)
I think Civil War accurately presented the multi-faceted characteristics of Tony Stark. Throughout the character’s history, Stark has been particularly obsessed with taking responsibility for the use of his inventions. Ironically, this obsession with responsibility has lead Iron Man down occasionally moral dubious and irresponsible paths, such as during the Armor Wars. While Stark is an idealist when it comes to his own actions, he tends to treat others in a pragmatic manner. For example, he’s had no qualms attacking fellow heroes who were potentially using his technology; he lead an extermination squad to kill the Kree Supreme Intelligence; he wiped out the memories of much of the civilian population of the world when they discovered his secret identity; he’s killed particularly dangerous opponents, etc. Stark also takes pride in trying to think a few steps ahead, considering himself a futurist. Stark is also obsessed with control. For these reasons, I can understand why he’d act the way he did during the Civil War arc. There are also specific events that occurred in Iron Man’s book that helped sway him toward his Pro-Registration stance.

I liked the depiction of Tony stark in the illuminati book.
In other instances it’s too much iron man armor to meet his adversary.. .
Meaning a rampaging hulk would get the Hulkbuster treatment,
the Alien threat would get the outer space armor, that type of
thing..
I’m not sure what you’re asking here, but I do find Iron Man’s ability to prepare for his opponents and for different types of engagements, and his particular distrust of some of his allies quite amusing. One can compare Stark to Batman in this regard.

In the Illuminati he was stripped of his armor and then
fought back with gun he found (naked) the whole Illuminati was
fun for me anyway.
The Illuminati is a fun elitist book. I’ve enjoyed it so far.

Any opinion on the Iron Man movie to be released?
I am thrilled about the prospects this film presents. The cast collects a number of very talented individuals. Robert Downy Jr. is an inspired casting choice for Tony Stark. I think Downey will be able to add a lot of depth to the character. I have high hopes for this film.

Do you have a short list of Iron Man characters that have easily
defeated Iron Man and a list of character Iron Man has easily
trounced memorized in your head?

Not exactly memorized, but I do try to keep track of certain Iron Man battles. Without an opportunity to design equipment to counter a specific opponent, I’d rank Iron Man as a mid-tier heavy hitter. Given a chance to design unique weapons or devices for a particular scenario, Iron Man can theoretically reach top-tier heavy hitter levels of power.

To put it another way, Iron Man has fought on equal ground with Hulk and Namor (having defeated both characters in his Classic Armor), but he’d be unable to defeat Sentry or Silver Surfer without resorting to some sort of trickery or energy draining device, such as the weapons employed by Dr. Doom. For example, Sentry clearly had the upper hand against Iron Man until Stark tricked Sentry into believing horrible natural disasters were occurring simultaneously around the world, making Sentry panic.

Do you enjoy being the Iron Man expert on the fwoosh or is it
more of a burden?
I appreciate that complement. I try to research a lot about the character, but other fwooshers such as Kirk, Welshcat, thanos0341, Hiro Nogano, and Ash Talon know more about Classic Iron Man stories than I do. I try to make up for that by being fairly knowledgeable about 21st century Iron Man.

Do you have a favorite Iron Man legend? Do you have an armory
set up?
I have every ML Iron Man, thanks to some help from some very kind fwooshers. I’m biased, but I think Toy Biz consistently made the Iron Man figures some of the best figures in the line. ML 1 Classic Armor Iron Man was my first ML, and therefore is very special to me. In terms of amazing sculpts, House of M Iron Man is perhaps the best ML ever. And finally in terms of a blend of amazingly detailed sculpting along with an incredible range of motion and articulation, ML 8 Modern Armor Iron Man is king.

I do have all the armors displayed together.  

Can you cook?
I can, but I only attempt to make complicated dishes for my girlfriend. I eat simple, healthy meals when cooking for myself.

How often do you go to the gym or stay home and work out?
I try to hit the weights four times a week, and cardio 3 times a week. I only have some light-weight dumbbells in my apartment, so I head to gyms.
What else do you enjoy?
I also enjoy reading historical fiction, hiking, rowing, and playing video games. My favorite games include Tekken, Mech Assault, Halo, and Gears of War.

I am assuming you live(d) in California and attend college in Boston
MA pls. correct me if I am wrong.
Yes. I grew up in Los Angeles, CA. I attended college in Cambridge MA, met my girlfriend (a Boston native), and I then decided to stay in the Boston area for law school.

Did the cartoon networks propaganda fiasco affect your life at all?
As a pop culture consumer and lawyer in the making and a
 Bostonian I was curious of your thoughts on that whole episode.
Those light bright s were found in other cities and simply taken down.
This whole situation bothered me. My subway commute was delayed because of these strange ads. I feel that whoever placed the ads should have reasonably known that the suspicious placement of the devices would cause problems. Boston did not over-react. What if the devices had in fact been bombs? When people made fun of the Bostonian reaction, I was frustrated and started to get angry.

And what do you think about cold snowy winters?
I’m not really a fan. In many ways, I prefer Los Angles weather; however, I sunburn easily, so Boston is good for me in some respects. And my girlfriend is here, so ultimately I don’t mind the cold too much.

I notice you point out racial slurs very quickly and make your
displeasure known .Are you so
quick because of unfortunate experiences that happened to you
and around you?
I try to point out inappropriate behavior to make sure that others, especially younger posters, are aware that courtesy and respect should be the norm. I have a diverse racial background, and I grew up in L.A., perhaps the most diverse city in the world. Race is on a lot of people’s minds in L.A., and as a person of a multi-ethnic descent, I occasionally found myself implicitly excluded by some people. I think diversity should be prized, and all people should be respected for the unique perspectives they bring to the discussion.
You’re very quick in your responses! I would hate to be across from
a future lawyer you. Not only are your posts fast but they are thought
out and researched and worded in an intelligent precise way.. .
In real life would you describe yourself as pensive and humble and
passive? The opposite of my online interpretations of you?
Hey, thanks for the complement! I prefer expressing myself via the written word such as in papers and prepared speeches. I like the extra time writing grants me to formulate my ideas. I’m not passive by any means, but as a rule, I’m not fond of speaking extemporaneously. And I prefer more intimate settings. I probably come across as being on the quieter side.