'The ultimate game of cat and mouse'

I've long been a fan of Namco's arcade classic, Mappy--for proof, read through my "Great Gaymathon" review of its Famicom port--so it shouldn't be too surprising to hear me come out in support of the following print, produced by the über-talented Zac Gorman.

If you're in the mood for game-related illustrations, by the way, I'd highly recommend heading over to Gorman's site, Magical Game Time, to check out this compilation of doodles--which features a Bub (or is it Bob?) design that's miles better than the one currently used by Taito--as well as this recent-ish EarthBound comic.

If only I had my dad's gambling gene

Actually, the headline above probably should read: "Thank God I don't have my dad's gambling gene."

After all, if I did have that particular gene, I'd likely spend way too much time trying to figure out how I could acquire the Japanese Bubble Bobble slot machine that's being sold via this eBay auction.

I mean, this contraption is nearly worth the price of admission (currently $499.99) just for its adorable marquee--which features a winking Bubblun--alone, don't you think?

Also worth at least a portion of that admittedly hefty price tag are the Stoners (no, not that kind) that appear to take up space between the cherries and oranges and other fruits.

Another enticing aspect of this particular auction: The slot machine in question currently resides in Tacoma, Washington, which is just down the road (well, sort of) from Seattle.

All that said, me buying this adorable one-armed bandit is about as likely as someone sending me an FM Towns Marty and a copy of that system's Bubble Bobble port free-of-charge, so don't hold your breath waiting for another post on this subject.

See also: 'Let's Play: Which Box Art is Better? (Bubble Bobble edition)'

Who else hates how Bub's and Bob's designs have changed for the worse in recent Bubble Bobbles?

You may not be aware of this, but the dynamic dragon duo known as Bub and Bob--or Bubblun and Bobblun, if that's how you roll--haven't always looked like they single-handedly inspired the "herp derp" meme.

Yes, they've always been a bit cross-eyed. And, yes, they've always had buck teeth. Still, Bub's and Bob's earliest designs (see flyer below) were pretty darn cute, if you ask me.

Sadly, they weren't that cute for long. In fact, Bub and Bob somehow caught a serious case of the duhs between the release of the Famicom version of Bubble Bobble and the NES version.

Bubble Bobble Part 2 wasn't any better, with Bub and Bob appearing the definition of "dorky" both on that game's box art and within its gameplay.

You've just got to love Mighta's beady little eyes (and hands and feet and everything else)

Mighta isn't the only Bubble Bobble character with beady eyes and other features in the photo below, of course. Bobblun (Bob), Bubblun (Bub), Monsta, PulPul and Zen-Chan are all a bit beady, too--thanks to the Perler Beads that make up their bodies.



The creations above were made by artist and blogger Kasey Tararuj, by the way. Check out her wonderful blog here, and check out a post about one of her previous creations--a three-dimensional Bubble Bobble-themed painting--in "For once, Bobblun gets the spotlight."

The green-and-yellow dino on this t-shirt design isn't Bub, but I like it anyway

When I first came across the following t-shirt design last night (as always, click on it to take a closer look at it), I was sure the dino that serves as its focal point was supposed to be a Ren & Stimpy-esque re-imagining of one of my favorite game characters of all time: Bub (Bubblun, to some) of Bubble Bobble fame.

Sadly, that's not the case. Instead, the green-and-yellow character's name is "Hablaah the Magic Crocogator." Oooooookay.

Rather than let my disappointment get the better of me, I decided not only to vote on the design (at threadless.com) but to give it a good score to boot. (Note: I believe this may be the first time I've used "to boot" on this blog.)

I did that because I'm hoping the design will garner a high enough score to be "printed," as the folks at Threadless call it. Shortly after, I'll buy one of the shirts and then proceed to tell people that the puking creature at the center of the image is, in fact, Bub (or Bubblun, if that's your thing).

Should you want to support this endeavor, would you please go here and give Aaron Jacob Willman's whimsical design an appreciably high score?