Spike's Interests


Last updated 10 October 1997

Martial Arts

I've had a long-time interest in all martial arts and in 1986 began practicing the Japanese martial art known as kendo - The Way of the Sword. I've trained on and off (mainly on) over the following years as well as a couple in Japan.

While in Japan I also took up a style of karate known as Shorinji (the Japanese pronunciation of Shaolin) Renshinkan Ryu--a Japanese (as opposed to Okinawan) style that unfortunately is not practiced (other than by me) here in Australia.

Sports

I love all sport (with the possible exception of golf) and am an avid player of tennis, touch football, squash, soccer, table-tennis, rock-climbing etc. etc.

Roleplaying

I've been roleplaying since I was quite young and followed the "traditional" path of starting with "Dungeon and Dragons". The way I like to think of roleplaying is as co-operative storytelling: a bit like a play (with no audience other than the players themselves), a bit like a book (where the players are the authors who are writing as they go along) and a bit like a movie...all combined with the social aspects of getting a bunch of adults together to have fun.

These days I play intermitently with my wife and friends my age (difficult when you have young children) and our style emphasises characterisation, drama, and adult enjoyment. We have a wide range of genres we play including horror, suspense and romance, using such systems as In Nomine, Delta Green, Feng Shui, Pendragon and FUDGE.

Boardgames

I quite like fun, social, multi-player (often known as beer-n-pretzels in boardgame circles; i.e., games you can socialise rather than compete over) boardgames, though I rarely get the chance to play much these days. Favoured examples include RoboRally, WizWar, _Once Upon a Time_, Cosmic Encounter and games of that ilk.

Computer Games

As for boardgames I prefer multi-player games over a single-player. I have a Sony Playstation which I bought while in Japan. My favourite games for it include Twisted Metal 2, Tomb Raider and Carnage Heart.

HK Action Films

I love films of the Hong Kong action genre from such directors as John Woo and Tsui Hark. These style of films are now starting to enter the Hollywood mainstream--take a look at Woo's "Face Off" which has all the panache, imagery and slow-mo destruction of the best HK flicks.

Even more than modern action I prefer the period, swords films which go by the title of wuxia, which roughly translates as Wandering Knight. These have flashing blades, seductive ghosts and daoist sorcery and despite lots of wire work ("flying people") still contain some of the most athletic and talented actors and martial artists.

If you're interested in the modern action movies I'd suggest most any Jackie Chan film, as well as the classics Hard Boiled and The Killer (both starring Chow Yum Fat). If you're interested in period films then I'd suggest the work of Jet Li such as the "Once Upon a Time in China" series, the film "The Swordsman", or the "Chinese Ghost Story" series.

Anime

Anime is the japanese abbreviation for animation and is used to refer to the distinctly Japanese style "cartoons". Despite popular media images in the west, which portray anime as merely mindless violence and tentacle rape flicks, there is a whole gamut of experiences. Anime is a massive industry in Japan and both weekly shows and feature length films are produced for audiences ranging from young children through to adults.

To witness the true quality and heart-warming aspects of anime I suggest you take a look at any of Miyazaki's classics (e.g., Tonari no Tottero or Kaze no Naushica). Unfortunately anime is still quite rare here in Australia (ocassionally SBS shows some) but fortunately I brought back episodes of many of my favourites (Jungle no Oja: Ta-chan, City Hunter, Lupin Sanze, Yu Yu Hakusho, DNA, Ninku, etc.).

Mythology

The legends of cultures the world over are full of rousing tales, at least the equivalent of any modern best-seller or "literary great". Heroic adventure, comradeship, exploration, loyalty and honour, desire and greed, retribution, all these themes and more can be found in archetypal tales still of relevance today.

However, regardless of inner messages for the modern person they're also simply a darned good read!



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