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Some distributors and many subscribers received their copies of the last issue (PA #47) rather late. We are very sorry for this situation, but unfortunately there was nothing we could do to improve it. We did all we could to reduce the production delay, but we faced many difficulties and the magazine was late as usual. However, a large part of the delay in shipping was due to a Canadian Postal Service strike. After two weeks of strike we thought that our ordeal was over, but the mail back-log caused by the strike and the Holiday Season (a very busy time for the postal service) slowed down the mail delivery much more than expected. Additionally, for some reasons (unusual load of work or the fact that postal workers were unhappy to be forced back to work by a special law) there were many mistakes in the handling of the mail causing more delay. Once again, we are sorry for all the inconveniences you might have experienced and we hope that all our subscribers finally got their copy.
Dealing with this situation (to find alternate ways for shipping the magazine and to receive the payment from distributors and advertisers) was rather tiring. So we decided to use the Holiday for what they were for: rest -- and to work harder in early January to finish the last details of this issue (anyway, the printer was closed for the Holidays...). This was, of course, counting without the immense creativity of Murphy's law to make us late on our schedule! This time, fate threw us a gigantic ice storm that paralysed half of Quebec for several weeks. We ended up unable to work because the power was either too unstable to safely use the computers or simply out. We had a couple of cold and dark night...
The devastation was impressive. The trees were bending under the weight of ice, often breaking apart, loosing boughs, taking power lines with them and putting over one million families in the dark. The ice created a beautiful scenery, but also made the roads and sidewalks dangerous. It also caused many injuries when the ice broke loose from trees, tall buildings, bridges and started crashing down on pedestrians and cars. Many people were out of power for over a week, with no heat, no proper way to prepare food, no TV (have you ever noticed how radio can be boring?) and sometimes no running water. It really was a major disaster that revealed to be a trying experience for everybody (I did hurt my back by sliding down a slipery stair and I had to painfully break the six-inch thick layer of ice covering the sidewalk in front of my door!).
The time I've spent alone in the cold darkness allowed me to reflect on our changing climate and how we have become dependant on technology (a candle heats soup much slower than a microwave and why have we stopped building fire-places in our homes?). Anyway, it was a rather strange beginning for 1998. Hopefully, the rest of the year will be less catastrophic. I also take this opportunity to wish you all the best for the new year!
This issue is dedicated to silly shows like AKAZUKIN CHA CHA and THE VIOLINIST OF HAMELN (as the Japanese are writing it, but it is also known as The Fiddler of Hamelin ). We can include in this category anime stories on the latest CITY HUNTER movie and the series NIN-TAMA RANTARO. Following the release of the STARSHIP TROOPERS movie, we have also included an anime story on the OVA series of the same title -- which is much more faithful to Heinlein's novel since it includes the power suits! Finally, this issue offers a new instalment of "Anime Under Fire," tons of reviews (live-action movies, J-Pop CDs, Manga, model kits, anime videos) and the latest news (now divided regionally). Enjoy.
Jane!
Claude J. Pelletier