How Cute Is Your Character? - Mog

Deep in hearts of our studio, I had an obsession...

I LOVE CUTE CHARACTERS.

Each week, a bureau will present me with something cute in bid to make it into the top of my CUTENESS RANKER leaderboard as I asked...and sorry if I had to borrow something from Brainiac's How Hard Is Your Thing...

HOW CUTE IS YOUR CHARACTER?

Today's cute character is...

Mog

Is Mog one of the cute characters in the world of Final Fantasy, and one of the playable characters in the spinoff game, Chocobo Racing? All right, it looks kinda cute but HOW CUTE IS MOG?

Each week, a cute character must face three separate tests. The cuteness of Phineas and Ferb's Isabella, the very tightening of being "huggable", but first, the impact of getting kissed.

Some say that a Mog is friendly but if you poke its sides, the Mog will get angry. However, how "kissable" is the Mog? 3...2...1...Mog from the Final Fantasy franchise is kissable but being kissable doesn't last for long. This gives Mog a "kissable" rating of: 8 out of 10.

What happens when you hug Mog? Well, an average Final Fantasy fan would take a few minutes to hug Mog but for a non-FF fan, that's hard. Since I love that Mog character when I was a kid, I just love Mog's cute squeals. I just wanna hug Mog to the death. For that, Mog's hug-me-to-the-death rating is: 8 out of 10.

Last test, resistant to Isabella's cuteness. If you saw the Meapless in Seattle episode, then you will know that Isabella's cuteness outcute the evil alien who kicked poor Meap's butt. However, is the Mog resistant to the cuteness of Lady Isabella herself or will her cuteness outcute Mog? The answer...not quite as good, giving Mog a wimpy Isabella-resistance rating of: 3 out of 10

After three "sweet tooth" tests, Mog from the Final Fantasy series scored a not so bad 19 out of 30 points.

CUTENESS RANKER:

1) Mog - 19/30

How cute do I rank it? Not Bad. HOW CUTE IS YOUR CHARACTER?

VIDEO: See how 2014MY Wagon R's Radar Brake Support works

Weeks ago, Suzuki launched a 2014MY update for the fifth-generation Wagon R range which not only improved the fuel economy to 30.0km/L but also featuring a clever safety system similar to Volvo's City Safety system. We're talking about the new Radar Brake Support system with a clever system that can automatically brake the car in a near-collision scenario.

Wanna see how it works? Here's a clip courtesy of CarniftyTV and find out...

Gran Turismo 5: Classic Fiat Panda

Sometimes though, even the world of Gran Turismo can be a bit too notorious for featuring so many bangers in the franchise, one of those bangers was this, the first generation Fiat Panda. By the time I drove one of those, the first thing that came out in my mind is simple...What am I doing in this old banger anyway?



First of all, let's talk about how it looks like. The first generation Panda, launched in 1980, was styled by Giugiaro, which seems to be an interesting name because he's the man behind numerous works including the first generation VW Golf, the Lancia Delta, and the Maserati MC12. It's not quite bad for a Giugiaro-designed car even though it looks kinda resemble to the Fiat Uno, the car I rarely saw one in the streets when I was a kid. However, let's get back to the question...



What I have here is the one with the 1.0L engine, complete with electronic fuel injection. This engine develops a very disappointing 44HP of power and when I take my foot down on the pedal...that noise from its engine which has the same capacity as a 1-litre bottle of Coke is about as similar as a vibrating chair, only a bit too dull. So, when the noise is too dull, how about cornering? When careful, the cornering of the Panda seems a bit generous but no. The handling is not generous. If I was an old lady, most of my spine will shred every time I turn round a corner in the Panda. Painful, isn't it?

Understeer-wise, I could get likely be crashed. Yep, this banger is all horrid to me. I wonder how did the owners of this old Panda handle this so seriously?

Another thing about the first Panda that since its discontinuation in 2003, about 4.5 million units were produced, making it one of the most common cars you can expect one not just in Italy but in most parts in Europe. By the time the Panda is good to drive in the past, it garnered so much recognition and oh, it was placed 2nd in the European Car of the Year awards in its first full year of production.



For stupidity, this car has been in the butt of stupidity. I saw Clarkson made a limo out of it from an episode of Top Gear and then it got split into two. Also, this Panda got flipped over by a bunch of rockets for some Brainiac experiment about stuff NASA never tried. Remember those? Me too...

But still, despite being too horrid for today's world, the Panda is still one of the most memorable rides made by the Italians. Even though it's all crud, I still appreciate how the Panda gave it all it had for the drivers.

Top Gear S20E05

Top Gear S20E05

In episode 5 of BBC Top Gear Series 20, we saw Jeremy and James investigating crossovers (with some caravan carnage involved) and then using the Volkswagen Tiguan and the Mazda CX-5 as their basis to spend a couple of days living like the kind of person who would buy one.

Lamborghini Sesto Elemento

Meanwhile, Richard Hammond gone berserk in Italy, driving the Lamborghini Aventador Roadster and then the track-only Sesto Elemento. Yes, the Sesto Elemento is track-only and it does not count on the POWER LAP BOARD even though it set an impressive lap time of 1:14.0.

Oh yeah, also, James May tries to show his love for 911's by driving a modern recreation of the classic Porsche 911 called the Singer 911.

In that episode's SIARPC segment, Aerosmith lead vocalist Steven Tyler was the guest and he set a rather disapproving lap time round the Top Gear Track in the Vauxhall Astra Tech Line in 1:51.

Next week will be the Season 20 finale of BBC Top Gear as the boys are bringing on the big guns...THE BEST OF BRITAIN!

F1 2013 Hungarian GP

In the Hungary GP of the F1 2013 season, Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton made his first win for this season despite the struggling tyre wear from his F1 machine. From Hamilton's pole position, that gave him a huge advantage right until his struggles as this race went on and on until his victor that makes Hamilton one of the few who won the Grand Prix for Mercedes-Benz.

However, after the race, Ferrari was fined for Fernando Alonso's misuse of the Drag Reduction System and they charged them 15,000 euros by the Hungarian GP committee.

Story: http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2013/7/14855.html

So far, Vettel still leads with 172 while Raikkonen advanced ahead of Alonso with 134 to 133. The next match will be held at Belgium this August 25, 2013.

Super GT 2013 Round 4 Sugo

#8 ARTA HSV-010

It's raining in Sugo, making round 4 of the 2013 SUPER GT season more challenging for the Super GT racers in both the GT300 and GT500 class. In a surprise twist, two ARTA-liveried Honda racers took the checkered flag in the rain. For the first time in 3 years, the #8 ARTA HSV-010, driven by Ralph Firman and Kosuke Matsuura, won round 4 while in the GT300 class, the #55 ARTA CR-Z GT, driven by Shinichi Takagi and Takashi Kobayashi, won the round, making it a double ARTA win in the wet Sugo racetrack.

Story: http://supergt.net/pages/pg:news_detail/device:pc/ln:en/id:13149

Next round is on Suzuka Circuit for the 42nd International Pokka Sapporo 1000km match. This happens this August 17-18, 2013.

What's in our Car Town garage today? (July 28, 2013)

What's in our Car Town garage today?

1959 Cadillac El Dorado Convertible

The Biarritz, named after a posh French resort town patronized by the likes of Napoleon and Queen Victoria, is the open-top convertible version of the legendary Cadillac El Dorado, which redefined the term "land yacht" because of its unique tail fins and the rocketship-style taillights at the back. Powering the El Dorado Biarritz was the 345 horsepower triple-carbureted 390 V8 engine, which bring this land yacht to a top speed of 130 mph. No wonder Elvis Presley had one for him.

1959 Cadillac El Dorado Convertible

2001 BMW M3

Based on the E46 3-Series coupe, this M3 Coupe incorporates with BMWs concept of being "The suspension must always be faster than the engine" because of its clever suspension system which compensates the power of its 3.2L straight-6 engine. Since its launch,  this generation was mated with a Getrag 6-speed MT but later, BMW added an SMG II, the company's double clutch semi-automatic transmission.

2001 BMW M3

2011 Ferrari 458 Spider

When taking a roof of a normal car, it somehow loses its rigidity and then resort to making it heavier than its coupe equivalent by any means of stiffening needs. For the 458 Spider, that's a different agenda. It maybe slower than its hardtop equivalent because of its 198mph top speed thanks to its added weight but when you take it for a spin, you'd never feel its heaviness. It packs the same fun as expected from its hardtop model. You may remember that in the 3rd episode of Top Gear Season 20, the 458 Spider revealed as the choice for the cost-conscious convertible fan. It's the convertible supercar we're all agree on.

2011 Ferrari 458 Spider