Aikatsu Stars (movie)

First aired on TV Tokyo in the spring of 2016, Aikatsu Stars is the successor story of the hit Aikatsu franchise and it centers on a brand new story of friends Yume Nijino and Rola Sakuraba as they are going to fulfill their quest to become the school's finest idols in the same way the four elite students, called the S4, did with their pride and prestige. Using their Aikatsu Cards, the stage is theirs to amaze the spectators. While the little girls have been enjoying the whole Aikatsu Stars show for 18 weeks and it continues to progress, there is now a movie version of the hit TV series that will serve as the turning point to the tale of Aikatsu Stars.

Aikatsu Stars (movie)

Of course, fans like you and I got the whole Aikatsu Step song that Yume performed in the TV show stuck in our heads and on this movie, no one can escape the rhythmic whim of the Aikatsu Step song if you progress through the brand new storyline that sets as a turnaround from the hit TV series. In the movie; Yume Nijino, Rola Sakuraba, Koharu Nanakura, Ako Saotome, and Mahiru Kasumi are on the wonderful Aikatsu Island not just for the fun and show of it but this is where their friendship are put to the test and how far will they go for the legendary dress audition the academy, even the S4, is talking about lies beneath theirs. 

Anyway, no time to chitchat about that now because even though this show is still fresh off the Aikatsu franchise since the recently-concluded original Aikatsu, this show picked up lots of fans in spite of a small share in the world of anime idol girls, even little girls aged 8 and below got into the fun with the Aikatsu Stars gig. You can trust them on this because while this is plainly a girly kiddy show and made for family viewing, even the most astute of idol anime addicts can get fallen to the trap of kawaiii-ness this movie get just like in the hit TV show because, well, this is idol anime stuff and we know it about five hundred idol girls ago.

For those who missed the Akari generation of Aikatsu, don't fret because before this movie starts, there's a movie short featuring the girls from the original Aikatsu anime, which was recently concluded since late March. In the short, Aoi Kiriya, Akari Ozora, Ran Shibuki, Ichigo Hoshimiya, and the gang are on a new adventure about the magical Aikatsu card. No time to explain that but it's great to have the original Aikatsu gals returning on a short clip before their successors became the main event every little girls with their mommies and daddies waiting for. This is going to be the ideal Aikatsu experience they don't wanna miss.

Now, let's all sing the Aikatsu Step song that is now stuck on everyone's heads now while watching this film! Idol girls...

My rating: 3.1 out of 5.

Rio 2016 Highlights - Day 8

August 12, 2016 - DAY 8

At this day at the ongoing Rio 2016 Olympics, the main events are Archery, Athletics, Boxing, Cycling Track, Equestrian, Fencing, Judo, Rowing, Shooting, Swimming, Tennis, Trampoline Gymnastics, and Weightlifting.

At the Men's Individual Archery, the winner of the Gold medal goes to Ku Bonchan from South Korea while the silver medal goes to Jean-Charles Valladont and bronze goes to Brady Ellison from the USA.

Ethiopia's Almaz Ayana and Tirunesh Dibaba made a 1 and 3 finish at the Women's 10,000m dash while Vivian Jepkemoi Cheruiyot from Kenya placed 2nd. In the Men's 20km Race Walk, meanwhile, China made a 1-2 finish thanks to Wang Zhen and Cai Zelin while Dane Bird-Smith placed 3rd.

Two boxers took home the bronze medal this day; Joahnys Argilagos from Cuba and Nico Miguel Hernandez from the USA for the Men's Light Fly Semifinals.

China wins the Women's Team Sprint Finals followed by Russia, placed 2nd, and Germany, placed 3rd. In the Men's Team Pursuit Finals, meanwhile, Great Britain wins the gold while silver goes to Australia and bronze goes to Denmark.

Team Germany won the Dressage Team Grand Prix Special followed by Great Britain, silver medals for the team, and the USA, bronze medals for them.

At the Men's Foil Team Fencing, the United States and France were concede to the controversial Russian fencing team. As I said controversial, that's because they are one of the Russian players cleared to enter the Olympics amid the doping scandal that battered them.

Emile Andeol from France wins the gold medal at the Women's 78kg judo match while the silver medal goes to Cuban Idalys Ortiz and bronze goes to Yu Song from China. Meanwhile, at the Men's 100kg, Teddy Riner from France wins gold while Hisayoshi Harasawa from Japan gets silver, and bronze medals go to Israeli Or Sasson and Brazilian Rafael Silva.

Female Dutch scullers, Ilse Paulis and Maaike Head and male French scullers, Pierre Houin and Jeremie Azou, are the winners of the LWT Double Sculls.

Henri Junghaenel from Germany wins the 50m Rifle Prone Men's Shooting followed by South Korea's Kim Jonghyun, silver, and Russia's Kirill Grigoryan, bronze. At the Skeet Women's shooting, Italians Diana Bacosi and Chiara Cainero won gold and silver while Kimberly Rhode from USA won bronze.

Swimmers who won gold medals are Madeline Dirado for the women's 200m backstroke, Joseph Schooling from Singapore for the Men's 100m butterfly, Katie Ledecky for the Women's 800m Freestyle, and Anthony Ervin from the USA for the Men's 50m Freestyle.

Spain's Marc Lopez and tennis superstar Rafael Nadal won the men's doubles tennis against Romania's Florin Mergea and Horia Tecau while USA's Steven Johnson and Jack Son won the Men's Doubles Bronze Medal Match.

At the Women's Trampoline Gymnastics final, Canada's Rosannagh Maclennan won the gold medal while silver goes to UK's Bryony Page and bronze goes to China's Li Dan.

North Korea's Rim Jong Sim obliterated Darya Naumava from Belarus and Lidia Valentin Perez at the Women's 75kg Group A weightlifting while Iran's Kianoush Rostami crushed Tian Tao from China and Gabriel Sincraian from Romanian at the Men's 85kg Group A. Those gold medal athletes belonged to two nuclear states starting to get fired up following their win, though. Hold on, I did mention about a North Korean winning their first gold medal at the weightlifting competition in Rio. Can I consider it as a "threat from North Korea"? Although unsure about it, I'll just let it go for now since this is the Olympics and this is no time for telling what's North Korea up to.

Anyway, onto the medal tally, USA still leading with 20 gold medals, China bagged 13 golds, both the United Kingdom and Japan got seven gold medals, and South Korea got six golds.

For full schedule and results: https://www.rio2016.com/en/schedule-and-results

Francis Aglabtin is Lola's Playlist Ultimate Winner

Source: Official EB
Facebook Page

Over the months, we've seen kids from across the nation serenading us, even Lola Nidora, with hit songs from the 50's, 60's, and 70's, in a segment titled Lola's Playlist on Eat Bulaga. On this day, this is the grand finals of the competition that gave us the LSS or Lumang Song Syndrome, enriching our newfound love for hit classic songs from the last century.

The grand finals pit three young boys; Francis Aglabtin, Benedict Aboyme, and Joshua Torino, for one last time in the ultimate battle to be crowned as the ultimate winner in the grand finals.

In the end, although unsure about what plot twist Lola Nidora said yesterday, there can be only one and the winner is...Francis Aglabtin!

Congratulations to Francis Aglabtin for being the ultimate winner in the grand finals of Eat Bulaga's Lola's Playlist!

#BubbleGang - August 12, 2016

On the August 12, 2016 episode of Bubble Gang...

- Dungeon gags

- A new marketing plan involving perfumes...

- A not-so-unanimous decision between the two hosts!

- Time to get wet, buddies!

- Another Buhay ng Bakla song coming at ya.

- Bystander, Bystander in the Inside, English Language Today Will Be Applied, Our Song Will Be Understand Worldwide, It's Because Our Friends Are...STATESIDE?!

- Drug addicts reluctant to give in to authorities!

- Road rage gone wild!

- Basa-basa-pik!

Let's Do The News! (August 12, 2016)

- Onto the upcoming Marcos burial, President Rodrigo Duterte insists that the law does not prohibit the burial of late President Ferdinand E Marcos at the Libingan Ng Mga Bayani whether he was a hero or not. He said that while the cemetery's name bares a qualifier "bayani", it is merely a "generic title" and not all who are buried there are heroes.

- Meanwhile, former president Fidel V. Ramos, acting as a special envoy to China, met with his old friends in Hong Kong to discuss the relationship between the two countries. Ramos met with former Ambassador to Manila Fu Ying and China's National Institute for South China Sea Studies President Wu Shicun to discuss ways to resolve the dispute between the two countries.

- A submarine belonged to the Royal Australian Navy has arrived at the Subic Bay Freeport Zone, Olongapo Friday morning. The Philippine Navy said the Australian submarine arrived 0900 hours local time for a port visit and will be there until the 27th of August. PN delegates rendered the customary welcome ceremony on the ship and crew, headed by Commander Jason Cupples.

- Libyan forces say they have captured the Islamic State's headquarters int he coastal city of Sirte. The US-backed forces said on Wednesday that they captured a convention center that served as the Islamic State militants' base in the city center. The militants had once controlled hospital and university buildings in Sirte as well.

- Tensions between the Russians and the Ukrainians are worsen following Moscow's detention of people it calls Ukrainian saboteurs in Crimea. Russia's security service FSB said on Wednesday that it captured saboteurs who had been preparing to target Crimean infrastructures. It added that a Russian soldier and an FSB worker were killed during the operation.

- New Pokemon Sun and Mon info on the radar. The latest information involves a group of bandits known as Team Skull, new Pokemon as well as new Alolan forms to familiar Pokemon such as Raichu, Marowak, and Meowth. That's right!

- The Code Geass franchise will celebrate their 10th anniversary this year with a special event happening at the Maihama Amphitheater on the 27th of November.

- The 2nd DL Live for the PS4-exclusive THE IDOLM@STER Platinum Stars, called "Sweet x2 Live!" will be available on the PlayStation Store on the 17th of August. Prizes for clearing this DL live include high-ranking accessories including the brand new "Sweet Pop Flower" costume, set to the highest rank!

- Patrick Stewart announced that he will be reprising his role of Professor X in an upcoming Wolverine sequel, due 2017, but presumably, this will be the last time reprising his role in the world of X-MEN.

TTFN!!!

Rio 2016 Highlights - Day 7

August 11, 2016 - DAY 7

Archery, Artistic Gymnastics, Canoe Slalom, Cycling Track, Fencing, Judo, Rowing, Rugby Sevens, Shooting, Swimming, and Table Tennis are the highlights of this day at the ongoing Rio 2016 Olympics.

Focusing on the gold medal winners, here are the list of the gold medalists at this day;

• Chang Hye Jin from South Korea for the Women's Individual Archery
• Simone Biles from USA for the Women's Individual All-Around Gymnastics
• Ladislav and Peter Skantar from Slovakia for the Canoe Double C2 Men Final
• Maialen Chourraut from Spain for the Kayak K1 Women Final
• Team GBR for the Men's Team Sprint Finals
• Team Romania for the Women's Epee Team Fencing
• Kayla Harrison from USA for the Women's 78kg Judo
• Lukas Krpalek from Czech Republic for the Men's 100kg Judo
• Team Germany for the Women's Quad Sculls
• Eric Murray and Hamish Bond from New Zealand for the Men's Pair Rowing
• Magdalena Fularczyk-Kozlowska and Natalia Madaj from Poland for the Women's Double Sculls
• Martin and Valent Sinkovic from Croatia for the Men's Double Sculls
• Team Switzerland for the LWT Men's Four
• Team Fiji for the Men's Rugby Sevens
• Ma Long from China for the Men's Singles Table Tennis
• Ryan Murphy from USA for the Men's 200m backstroke
• Barbara Engleder from Germany for the 50m Rifle 3 Positions Women's Shooting

On the medal tally as of now, USA bagged 16 golds, China got 11 golds, Japan got 7 golds, Australia and South Korea got 5 golds.

Full schedule and results: https://www.rio2016.com/en/schedule-and-results

Let's Do The News! (August 11, 2016)

- Onto the imminent burial of the late Ferdinand E. Marcos, Palace officials expect the late dictator's burial "fit for the president". Marcos is set to be laid to rest at the Libingan ng mga Bayani in Taguig City, under the direct order of President Rodrigo Duterte. The plan has been met with protests by groups recalling his atrocities during the martial law years.

- Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Perfecto Yasay Jr. and Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida urged China to respect the rule of law and maritime security in disputed waters. They made the statement on Thursday at a press briefing in Davao amid recent news of China's rapid construction of hangars to house fighter jets on some parts of the Spratlys.

- In New York City, police apprehended a male who climbed through the Trump Tower with his suction cups. The climber aimed to meet up with Trump personally, although Republican presidentiable Donald Trump's not here because he's been at battleground states, continuing his attack against his rival Hillary Clinton. The attacks, this time, involves recently leaked e-mails regarding connections between the State Department and the Clinton Foundation as well as the sudden appearance of the father of the slain Orlando mass shooter at a Clinton rally somewhere in Florida.

- Delta Air Lines has cancelled about 2,000 flights globally due to system error caused by a power outage earlier this week. The US airline says a power outage in Georgia hit its computer systems on Monday, forcing them to cancel about thousand flights on the day. Delta also cancelled additional flights on the next day as it failed to recover the systems completely.

- In Pokemon GO-related news, the Philippine National Police issues safety tips for those who are playing the hit smartphone app game.

- Mercedes-Maybach is teasing a coupe concept ahead of its Pebble Beach premiere.

- Skoda showcased its first teaser for its upcoming flagship SUV, the Kodiaq.

- Hyundai Motor Company teases their third-generation i30 hatchback, previewing its new design.

- Former Daily Show host and comedian Jon Stewart is creating an animated comedy show for HBO. The series might be schedule to air as early as September but could debut later in the fall. The idea of the show will be an cartoonish spoof of a cable news network with an Onion-like portal, according to HBO programming president Casey Bloys.

- James Reid and Nadine Lustre are currently at Greece for the shooting of their new drama, Till I Met You.

- Today marks the 56th Weeksary of AlDub. Anyway, while we're not talking about Kalyeserye stuff because AlDub are still on their Moroccan vacation, there's good news because a TV drama starring themselves is in the works! Finally!

TTFN!!!

Rio 2016 Highlights - Day 6

August 10, 2016 - DAY 6

On that day of the ongoing Rio 2016 Olympics, the main sporting events of the day includes Artistic Gymnastics, Canoe Slalom, Cycling Road, Diving, Fencing, Judo, Shooting, Swimming, Table Tennis, and Weightlifting.

Kohei Uchimura from Japan wins the Men's Individual All-Around Gymnastics while Oleg Verniaiev gets the silver medal and Max Whitlock from the United Kingdom gets the bronze.

At the Kayak K1 Men Final, Great Britain's Joseph Clarke is named the champion while 2nd place goes to Peter Kauzer of Slovenia and Jiri Prskavec from the Czech Republic,''

Kristin Armstrong from the US wins the gold medal at the Women's Individual Time Trail Cycling Road while silver goes to Russia's Olga Zabelinskaya and Holland's Anna Van Der Breggen. At the Men's Individual, Fabian Cancellara from Switzerland is the champion followed by 2nd placer Tom Dumoulin from Holland and 3rd placer Christopher Froome from the UK.

At the Men's Synchronised 3m Springboard Final, UK's Jack Laugher and Chris Mears are the winners of this match, trumping the likes of USA's Sam Dorman and Mike Hixon and China's Cao Yuan and Qin Kai.

Inna Deriglazova from Russia wins the Women's Foil Individual Fencing while Hungarian Aron Szilagyi wins the Men's Sabre Individual.

Japan scored double wins at the judo match with Haruka Tachimoto wins the Women's 70kg judo followed by Mashu Baker wins the men's 90kg match.

At the 50m Pistol Men's Shooting, South Korea's Jin Jongoh defeated the likes of Vietnams Hoang Xuan Vinh and North Korea's Kim Song Guk for the gold medal while at the Double Trap Men's match, Fehaid Aldeehani from the Olympic Refugee Team wins the gold medal while silver goes to Italy's Marco Innocenti and Britain's Steven Scott.

Ding Ning from China defeated her compatriot Li Xiaoxia and North Korean Kim Song I at the Women's Singles Gold Medal match, Kazakhstan Dmitriy Balandin wins the Men's 200m breaststroke, Spain's Mireia Belmonte Garcia wins the women's 200m butterfly, Kyle Chalmers from Australia wins the Men's 100m Freestyle, Yanmei Xiang from China for the Women's 69kg Group A weightlifting, and Kazakhstan's Nijat Rahimov for the Men's 77kg Group A.

For full results and schedules: https://www.rio2016.com/en/schedule-and-results

THREATS FROM NORTH KOREA: UNSC won't issue N.Korea statement

Sourced from NHK World:

The member countries of the United Nations Security Council have failed to agree to issue a statement condemning North Korea's ballistic missile launch, due to Chinese opposition.

North Korea fired what are believed to be 2 Rodong-type medium-range ballistic missiles last Wednesday. One of them apparently flew about 1,000 kilometers east, and landed within Japan's exclusive economic zone about 250 kilometers off Akita Prefecture.

Japan called an emergency Security Council meeting to discuss the matter. UN diplomatic sources say the United States presented a draft press statement criticizing the launches. But China is reportedly reluctant to endorse such a statement.

Other Security Council members that have criticized the missile firings are also suggesting that they want to avoid sending the wrong message to North Korea.

Other diplomatic sources say China's foot-dragging reflects its strong opposition to the deployment of an advanced US missile interceptor system, called THAAD, in South Korea.

Let's Do The News! (August 10, 2016)

- The Malacanang officials has allayed fears about President Rodrigo Duterte's statement on martial law, which is an offshoot of Supreme Court Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno's serious concerns on the inclusion of some judges in the administration's anti-drug campaign. Communications Secretary Martin Andanar noted that Duterte has tapped the executive powers he has under his disposal to pursue the drug campaign, added that the president is careful about undermining any institution in the government. 

- Meanwhile, Chief Justice Sereno chose to mum about President Duterte's remarks against her, saying there is no need for her to respond. Duterte oppose Sereno on Tuesday saying the issuance of warrant takes months and the resolution of criminal cases also takes years or forever.

- The bereaved families of 2 Americans killed in the 2012 attack on a US consulate in Benghazi, Libya, have sued Democratic presidentiable Hillary Clinton. They say the-then secretary of state is responsible for the incidents. About four years ago, a group of militants attacked the US consulate, killing the US ambassador to the country and three others. It was also referred in one of Clinton's e-mails regarding the locations of the ambassador and others. A Clinton campaign spokesman said there have been nine different investigations into the attack but no connections of her and the attack.

- Meanwhile, US Republican presidentiable Donald Trump, meanwhile, criticized his rival Clinton in a North Carolina speech on Tuesday, saying that she wants to abolish the Second Amendment. Referring to the presidential power to nominate Supreme Court judges, Trump said "If she gets to pick her judges, nothing you can do." Trump then added, "Although the Second Amendment people, maybe there is, I don't know." The US Second Amendment guarantees the right to bear arms." US media describing his latest remark another gaffe that appear to urge gun rights supporters to attack Clinton. The Clinton campaign also criticized the remark as dangerous and they state that the person seeking to be the US president should not suggest violence in any way.

- Russian and Turkish leaders have agreed to restore bilateral ties damaged by Turkey's shooting down of a Russian warplane last November. Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan visited St. Petersburg on Tuesday and met Russian leader Vladimir Putin for the first time since last year's incident. Erdogan apologized for the incident in a letter he sent to Putin in Jun. Putin suggested at a news conference that Russia will gradually lift its economic sanctions.

- Meanwhile, in Pokemon GO-related stuff, the first Pokemon GO master in the US, Nick Johnson, arrives in Japan for a media tour, courtesy of Expedia. Then, developer Niantic Labs begin removal of controversial PokeStops such as the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park and the US Holocaust Memorial Museum while adding PokeStops at Toho Cinemas across Japan. Lastly, they launched a campaign to attract tourists in quake-hit Japanese prefectures, including the Kumamoto Prefecture.

- Retired Lamborghini test driver, Valentino Balboni, has set up his own aftermarket parts company to supply aftermarket parts specifically for Lamborghini. His first product, a titanium exhaust system for the Lamborghini Aventador LP750-4 SV, will debut at this year's Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance.

- Hot on the heels on the upcoming Death Note movie, there's a three-part mini series airing on Hulu Japan next month. The three-parter highlights more on characters such as Tsukuru Mishimi, Ryuzaki, and Yuki Shien.

- The first teaser trailer for the final installment of the live-action Resident Evil/Biohazard films, titled Resident Evil: The Final Chapter, has now gone live. This movie will hit Japan this December and then globally this January 2017, starring action starlet Milla Jovovich as Alice who sets to end this nightmare by going back to where it all started; The Hive at Raccoon City. Expect zombie-slaying, BOW butt-kicking, thrills in this film.

This January, Evil Comes Home. #ResidentEvilMovie in theaters 1/27/17. https://t.co/equUerpJr5

— Resident Evil (@ResidentEvil) August 9, 2016

TTFN!!!

The list of the remaining non-turbo hot hatches

Some say the Swift Sport is the last
NA hot hatch in car history

A certain Top Gear article says that the current-generation Suzuki Swift Sport will be the last naturally-aspirated hot hatch in automotive history and its successor model, to be based on the next Swift coming soon, will be turbocharged. Yes, this model will go down in automotive history as the last non-turbo hot hatch ever made...or is it? If they do some fact checking right now, there are some few hot hatches in history that still hasn't gone turbocharged since then, well until their replacements came into view or got discontinued at some point. Aside from the Swift Sport, what other hot hatches that still has naturally-aspirated engines?

2015 Toyota Vitz

Here, we have the Toyota Vitz RS. The first-generation model had a turbocharged variant before but here on its current-generation state, there's no sign of turbo since then, unless if there is a Mazda-based replacement for the Vitz in the works right now, which will spell doom to this hot model. Anyway, this hot Vitz comes with a 1.5L 1NZ-FE engine which produces 109PS of power and 136Nm of torque, while mated with either a CVT or a 5-speed manual. A five-speed manual, get it? Although not as fast as any other today's hot hatch go, the Vitz RS still has its practicality charm that its normal Vitz would do day by day. Let's not forget, this car is priced at 1,883,127 Japanese Yen.

2015 Toyota Vitz RS G's

Don't forget that this Vitz RS model even comes with an available G's model packed some stylish aerokits, sport-tuned suspension, and a sporty dark interior that suits its sporty character. This is as hot as any hot hatches can get.

2014 Honda Fit RS

The current-generation Honda Fit RS is also a non-turbocharged hot hatch. Although it has the same 1.5L petrol engine as the Vitz RS, it has 23PS more than the Vitz RS and if you gone for the manual, it has one gear more than the Vitz RS as well. Because this is a Honda, speedo boys love to make things with this Honda, especially when it gets fitted with optional aero kits courtesy of Mugen or Modulo. Although fun to look and drive at, the pricing is somewhat of a slouch because it's around 43,000 Yen more than the Vitz RS. Still, it's value well spent for a non-turbo hot hatch that is built for some business and leisure for the rest of your lives.

2014 Nissan March NISMO

Although, the current K13 Nissan March will soon be replaced, this March NISMO reminds us that this non-turbocharged hot hatch is still defiant in its last breath. There are two kinds of NISMO March models to choose from such as the entry-level model which comes with the HR12DE engine mated with the XTRONIC CVT, which is a bit of a nonsense for performance-oriented enthusiasts, and the driver-focused March NISMO S model which comes with a HR15DE engine specially tuned for this model, producing 116PS of power and 156Nm of torque, while mated with a 5-speed manual gearbox. We like the S model with the 5-speed gearbox on it because this is by no means one of the sportiest variants in this generation and despite this model is fading away soon, there are still speedo boys who are feeling jelly because they haven't drive this thing in ages, even video games.

Nissan Note NISMO

Another one in the list is the Nissan Note NISMO. Apart from the base NISMO model which comes with the 1.2L DIG-S engine and a CVT, there's the NISMO S model which uses the same 1.5L engine from the March K13 NISMO and it's mated with a 5-speed manual gearbox. It may sound unfair to have a smaller, supercharged variant mated with a boring CVT instead with a manual but that's fine by us because the Note NISMO S model, with its non-turbocharged 1.5L engine and a 5-speed manual, shows that you don't need turbos for a hot hatch that can live up to the fullest, unless you had a bucket list to spare.

2016 Hyundai Veloster

The Hyundai Veloster has been with us for five years now and even though it even comes with the hotter Veloster Turbo D-Spec packed with an improved 1.6L T-GDi engine producing 204PS of power and mated with either a 6-speed manual or a 7-speed double-clutch gearbox, this naturally-aspirated version is one of the main reasons why we love the Veloster five years on...even in the wrong barrels. Even though it performs poorly as any other hot hatches I know and love, the Veloster is still considered hot in a unique way, apart from the unique three-door design where the additional door is on the passenger side. It comes with the Gamma 1.6L Gasoline Direct Injection engine, which produces 140PS of power and can be mated with either a 6-speed manual or a 6-speed automatic (with an additional DCT Pack that comes with Sport Mode on it). It's priced at 18,450,000 Korean Won and despite being unloved by its weird behavior, it's still a hot hatch in its own right.

We are very thankful that there are still living non-turbo hot hatches right among us up till now but sadly, these endangered species won't last to live until one of them is sent to the great highway in the sky or be reincarnated with a turbocharged consequence. As long as they're living right now, be sure to pick them up right away like there's no tomorrow for these non-turbocharged hot hatches.

Rio 2016 Highlights - Day 5

August 9, 2016 - DAY 5

Today's events at the ongoing Rio 2016 Olympics include Artistic Gymnastics, Canoe Slalom, Diving, Equestrian, Fencing, Judo, Shooting, Swimming, and Weightlifting.

Starting with Artistic Gymnastics, Team USA won the Women's Team Final while Russia earned silver and China earned third, which is kind of a coincidence with USA came 1st, Russia came 2nd, and China came 3rd, is like in hierarchical order as presumed but this is not the time for that regarding these three world superpowers because this is the Olympics after all.

Denis Gargaud Chanut from France wins the Canoe Single Men FInal against Matej Benus from Slovakia and Takuya Haneda from Japan.

At the Women's Synchronised 10m Platform Final, China's Ruolin Chen and Huixia Liu won gold while Jun Hoong Cheong and Pandelela Rinong Pamg from Malaysia won silver and Meaghan Benfeito and Roseline Filion from Canada won bronze.

In Equestrian, the winning team for the eventing team jumping final goes to France followed by Germany and Australia. In individuals, German Michael Jung wins gold followed by France's Astier Nicolas and USA's Phillip Dutton.

At the Men's Epee Individual, South Korea's Sangyoung Park is crowned the victor, defeating the likes of Hungarian Geza Imre and Frenchman Gauthier Grumier.

At the Women -63kg Finals, Tina Trstenjak from Slovenia wins the gold while silver goes to Clarisse Agbegnenou from France and bronze medals go to Anicka Van Emden from Holland and Israeli Yarden Gerbi, At the Men's 81kg final, it's a catastrophic loss for Travis Stevens from America as Khasan Khalmurzaev scored another gold for his Russian compatriots, which remain controversial following doping reports that ruined their image and spectators viewed them as arch-enemies at this year's Olympics. Behind the US-Russia rivalry aside, even in judo, Japan's Takanori Nagase and Sergiu Toma from UAE took home bronzes.

At the 25m Pistol Women's shooting, Anna Korakaki from Greece wins gold while Monika Karsch from Germany wins silver and Heidi Diethelm Gerber from Switzerland won bronze.

Team USA scored two gold medals at the 200m Freestyle Final with Kathleen Ledecky and star swimmer Michael Phelps emerged as champions. Meanwhile, at the 200m individual medley, Katinka Hosszu from Hungary defeated Great Britain's Siobhan-Marie O'Connor and Madeline Dirado, while Team USA won the Men's 4x200m Freestyle Relay against the British and the Japanese.

In weightlifting, Wei Deng from China wins the 63kg Group A match against North Korea's Hyo Sim Choe and Karina Goricheva from Kazakhstan while Zhiyong Shi, also from China, won the men's 69kg Group A against Turkey's Daniyar Ismayilov and Kyrgyzstan's Izzat Artykov.

Onto the medal count, USA's in the lead with 9 gold medals, China scored 8 golds, Hungary and Australia scored 4 golds, and annoyingly, Russia scored just 3 golds.

For full schedules and results: https://www.rio2016.com/en/schedule-and-results