Making Takoyaki (japanese octo-balls)- clueless

[Lord Herr]

Recipies are available at Takoyaki.org forums and Bento.com, which is referenced at Takoyaki.org. I think I'll be using with the latter as a guide.
As an assignment for class I'm preparing this dish and an instructional video. It looks very straightforward, but I've rarely cooked and I'm pretty sure that I could screw up a can of Campbell's on a bad day.

I'll have access to the special pan, and the ingredients shouldn't be a problem- we've got some good asian stores in town. I'm fishing for advice if anyone has experience with this dish (or a variation), or with batter/baked goods in general.

The thing I'm worried about is trying to turn them over- I am told there is a specialized utensil for this purpose, but I'm sure a gingerly applied toothpick will suffice.

I will, of course, have plenty of documentation for this project, and can post updates late next week, when I plan to do the deed.

[antheus]

i was in osaka this past semester, the utensil was basically like a short skewer...a toothpick should suffice, i may have actually seen some of it made like that. Other than that, i can't give you much advice...i hated the things =)

[Dashfire]

You don't need any special instruments besides chop sticks. (And the pan, but you already have that)
After the batter and ingredients are about half way cooked, test the batter by pushing an area that has only had batter onto it to see if it's gooey, or if more batter runs into the area you've just created. If not, you can continue.
You then have to sort of "find" where the indentations are (because the whole pan is covered (or should be). Find the edges of the indentations and make a circle around the area so that you can move the batter without moving the other holes.
The next part is the tricky bit.
Take your two chop sticks and have them just act as one big one. Push down on the edge of the takoyaki you've chosen, you should see the other end rise up a bit. All you have to do is get your push right (and do a little... flip motion with your hand sometimes), and with enough practice it should turn all the way upside down without much effort. If you don't get it in the right place, you can use your chop sticks the normaly way and sort of nudge it in the right place.
I hope that helps!

[Lord Herr]

UPDATE
Well, here's the video on Youtube, just under 6:30 and with duck noises on the scene transitions, it should give a pretty good demonstration of all the steps I took: http://youtube.com/watch?v=YGeDdxVwFZI
You'll probably have trouble hearing it, but it's in Japanese anyway. I'll put up some choice screen caps with some more explanation in the next few days (cramming tonight) to save the trouble of sitting through the video, but there's not much I can tell you outside of what's in here already and this recipe: http://www.bento.com/tr-tako.html
For now, I will say that I had trouble with the flipping part because they turned out lopsided or with a large cavity on one side, and my methods were somewhat less expert than what Dashfire suggests, as you can see in the video. I fixed the first problem with strategic applications of additional batter. Repeat as desired until formed and browned to enjoyment. Keep in mind they are supposed to be rather doughy when finished.
Mine tasted great with the sauce and bonito flakes on top (I used the same ones I boiled), can barely taste the octopus but I think that's because I didn't put enough in. I didn't use any extra goodies either, they suggested some onion/scallion type veggie and leftover fried bits from tempura, that probably would have helped as well. They were still good however, the sauce (a special kind for takoyaki that you can buy) is kind of a mix of BBQ and soy sauce, most of the flavor came from that.
Unfortunately, no one liked them except me, and the dog even threw up. Go figure.