robinsonaustin-07490 Reviews

Nope (2022)

A Spectacle Alright

[7/10 · 26 July 2022]

So my full thoughts on Nope. Will be entirely honest, but I really liked the film, more so than Us namely because it doesn't suffer the issue of an exposition dump like the previous film did. I completely understand why some dislike the film or view Peele as overrated because, in some way, he is because some movie critics put him on that high a pedestal even when he refuses to identify himself as being close to the likes of John Carpenter. But I do enjoy his films for the most part because I can tell he is passionate about what he is doing.

In terms of the narrative, Nope is a simple story about two siblings trying to keep their ranch afloat by taking authentic pictures of a UFO but they are way out of their league when it comes to what the UFO truly is.

If anything, the story feels by the book and safe. But I don't see how anyone could come out of the film thinking it was boring. The first two acts of the film I felt were great but the third act is the one that is easily hit or miss. I loved the climax of the film, but I won't lie when saying the film felt incomplete/half-baked with the ending being abrupt. But that is more because I was truly invested with the film up to that point and I wanted there to be more to it.

If anything, the film is more a character study than a horror film despite having scary moments. Daniel's character OJ is vanilla at best. I disagree with the idea he is boring or uninteresting because he is monotonous, but I would argue that the film isn't entirely about him, but more that he serves as an outlet for more eccentric characters like Emerald, Angel, and Jupe. Even then, his stoic nature proves to be crucial when it comes to understanding the beast.

Emerald carries the movie with how she is more energetic than her brother and does have a semblance of a character arc where she tries to help snap a picture of the UFO not just because she wants to save the ranch, but also because she wanted to make it big herself. She also has some slight resentment toward her late father as well. In addition, she is funny.

Angel is an okay addition. He also has his humorous moments such as his musing of Ancient Aliens and he is by no means stupid.

Jupe I admit I was somewhat disappointed that he wasn't in the film for about 2/3 of it despite us spending time developing his character and childhood trauma. At first, I did dislike that, but I did feel like it was enough.

It all goes back to the underlying message of how people are willing to do anything to get that perfect spectacle even and how Hollywood treats its performing animals like living props that they chew up and discard. With that kind of disrespect, it leads to bad consequences for the people much like what happened with Gordy the Chimp which is definitely the scariest part of the film.

After surviving his encounter with the crazed chimp, Ricky believed that he was able to have some control over wild animals which I feel comes from the fact he was not looking directly at Gordy but instead looking at a shoe bizarrely standing on its heel. In my interpretation, the shoe is one of the "bad miracles" OJ was talking about. It saves Ricky at that moment but he did not take that as a cautionary tale instead doubling down on that due to his obsession with reclaiming his lost fame.

As for everything else, the soundtrack is excellent, and I did not think the acting was bad as there were several good performances to list. The cinematography is especially fantastic befitting the spectacle notion Peele was wanting.

So...I was satisfied for the most part with the film. Sure, I did want more in the film to make it feel more tightly wound, but I nevertheless did enjoy it.

Sasaki and Miyano (2022)

Cute show

[8/10 · 27 February 2022]

This is probably the second yaoi anime I had watched after Gravitation (though this one thankfully does not have any problematic moments like that one scene in Gravitation that repulsed me). This series is truly cute.

In the series, we have Miyano, a young teen with a feminine face who attends an all-boys school. Miyano loves reading manga, BL manga to be exact. One day, Miyano sees a fight between some students to which Sasaki intervenes and gets somewhat ruffled up in the fight. Around that time, Miyano introduces his upperclassman to BL. So, it begins with Miyano loaning Sasaki manga, and they would then talk about the different motifs of the genre. Through it all, the two become more aware of the increasing feelings they have for each other.

It is a simple story that I can see being done several times. What makes it good, however, is seeing these two boys pondering their feelings for each other and you could tell that they are confused about what they should do about those feelings. But at the same time, it felt right. I appreciate that the show does not rush to them suddenly falling for each other. Instead, it takes a slow-burn approach planting the seeds for their relationship until it started to bud.

The animation itself is also pretty simple, but it befits the soft, gentle atmosphere of the series.

The main couple is just adorable. Miyano starts off being hush-hush about his interest in BL manga, but when he gets Sasaki invested in it, he becomes very passionate about what he loved about the genre. It doesn't take painstakingly long for Miyano to recognize Sasaki's feelings for him, but he is conflicted about them because he held onto the idea that he liked girls due to a minor relationship with a girl he knew years ago (though someone should really tell Miyano about bisexuality). Joking aside, Miyano is a good protagonist.

Sasaki, the supporting protagonist, is the "delinquent" who takes a liking to BL when Miyano introduces him to it. I just love nearly everything about Sasaki. He treats Miyano with such tenderness, it is too cute. Unlike with Miyano, it doesn't take Sasaki too long to realize his feelings for his kouhai, but he's the type of guy who would allow the significant other to think about it instead of pushing for it which would make the other uncomfortable. It was also sweet to see him have moments of being defensive of Miyano.

The supporting characters are good. There's Taiga who also looks out for Miyano; Jirou, a "bad boy" who doesn't understand BL manga since his girlfriend was deep into that genre (even though she doesn't expect you to take part in her likes my dude) and is never without a sucker in his mouth.

Sound: The opening and ending themes are very good.

My Dress-Up Darling (2022)

Boy Meets Otaku

[9/10 · 27 February 2022]

Story: It is a pretty basic premise: a loner boy with a fascination for designing Hina dolls, meets a gyaru who wanted him to make her a cosplay outfit of her favorite character from an eroge video game series. Besides that, I really love the interactions between the two main characters, and I find some of the information on clothing and textiles interesting. With both characters being so likable, you'd want them to both succeed in their goals.

As for fanservice. It's definitely there considering the premise, but I'm not really too bothered by it. In fact, the fanservice goes hand in hand with Marin: she is depicted as a free spirit who does not care what others think about her and demonstrates clearly her passion for what she loves. But I also love the show because of how Gojo feels like a fish out of water. You can easily tell he was never exposed to anything like anime or pop culture which makes Marin the perfect outlet for Gojo to see through. For a story about an eccentric girl gradually pulling a boy out of his comfort zone, I think it is purely wholesome.

Characters: The characters are portrayed as being people instead of filled with anime rom-com clichés. Gojo starts off as being awkward and introverted, but there is nothing creepy about it. On the contrary: Gojo is a very endearing character who at first did not want to be despised for his interest in Hina dolls due to some traumatizing experience from his past. Because of Marin, he is able to feel validated in what he loved and open up more. I also commend him for being a true goat when he thought that the deadline for Marin's outfit was coming soon. He can be very determined when he wants to be.

Marin, to be frank, is the main reason I can see why several people watched the anime. Far from being a stereotypically cruel popular girl, she is instead kind and understanding not to mention patient with Gojo even when he tried avoiding her in one episode. She was fascinated by Gojo's hobby rather than creeped out by it and is so contagiously optimistic and preppy, it will rub off on you.

Supporting characters are also pretty good for the most part. I love Gojo's Grandpa and his reactions are hilarious. Sajuna, another cosplayer who is Marin's idol, off the top of my head, I do not like her. She establishes herself as bratty and even resorts to trying to blackmail Gojo in order to get a cosplay outfit off him. Normally in a lot of these shows, what keeps them from being masterpieces to me is when a third wheel is introduced oftentimes to combat with the other potential love interest in a Betty v. Veronica fashion a cliché that is overused and should die in a fire.

Animation: I love the attention to detail when it comes to designing the clothes or gathering the materials needed. The shading is also vibrant and lovely. The only minor nitpick I had come with a frontal view of a character: they have a noticeable black spot in the middle of their face. It is there to represent the tip of the nose, obviously, but it is distracting.

Sound: The opening and ending themes are bops, and everyone does a good job with the material they are given.

Ultimately, if you like anime about cosplaying and cute character interactions, this could be a show for you.

Arthur: Blabbermouth/All Grown Up (2022) Season 25, Episode 4

Goodbye Arthur

[8/10 · 21 February 2022]

Really will miss this series having grown up with it for years. This show had meant a lot for not just me, but other people as well.

In all that time, the series had taught the populace many things such as teamwork; honesty; and community. It had also tackled serious issues such as cancer; 9/11 through the lens of a school being caught on fire; Alzheimer's, and Asperger's, something that I have myself. The show treated these topics with such tenderness and gentleness, it was a perfect way for kids to learn about these important things that they will be learning as they become adults.

Through its ups and downs, the show will stand as one of the most influential.

Chucky (I) (2021– )

It's the Chuck

[7/10 · 3 December 2021]

Didn't think much on the Chucky TV series when it was first announced. But, I have to admit that I enjoyed the first season. Set some time after the events of Cult of Chucky, we find ourselves in Chucky's hometown Hackensack, New Jersey. Here, we follow the life of teenage Jake Wheeler who was making a doll-themed sculpture and happens to buy a Good Guy doll...but soon strange things start happening with the doll and the body count rises.

To start with: the characters. Jake was a pretty good lead: we have him being the "unfavorite" of the family in large part because he was gay, not helped by the fact that he had an abusive, alcoholic dad. I liked how they made Jake come across as a foil to Chucky himself: Chucky had an idyllic life with loving parents but chose his darker impulses, whereas Jake stays true to himself. While I did like the character, can't help but wish we got a little more of "dark Jake" because I started the series thinking that he would be Chucky's little lackey boy.

Next is Devon. He has his own amateurish true-crime podcast and is Jake's love interest. While I can appreciate the positive representation in the show, it wasn't at least until the middle mark that I bought into their relationship. Like Devon did slowly take an interest in Jake's life and offer him to join one of his episodes centered around bullying. But beyond that, didn't really get that whole sense they would eventually take the relationship to the next level. This was a little rushed to my liking, but you can argue that the development was there when Chucky gets into the equation.

Our third protagonist is Lexy, a character who took me on a joyride. Originally, I just hated her because she harassed Jake for no real reason and is just a nasty, toxic person in general to where even her parents didn't appear to like her, or let alone love her. That isn't even getting into that disgusting stunt she pulled at the Halloween party.

I was so pumped to see this girl get murked by either Chucky or Jake, and there were two significant times where it seemed we would be rid of her, but they were teasing us.

We do have her eventually develop as a character...but I got the impression they were doing a speed run. I get that she would slowly start to change after her run-in with Chucky, but the redemption wasn't "earned" IMO. Like how she goes to call Jake and Devon family which I understand the intent, I didn't completely get behind because sure they were "fire-forged friends" because they had to come together to take the killer doll down, but going so far as to call them "family?"

I appreciate the series' intent with Lexy, but they did a complete 180 with her character.

Lastly, there is Junior, Jake's cousin. He comes off as especially toxic towards his cousin when circumstances forced him to live with him due to Jake being gay. At the least, he did show disgust with Lexy's stunt at the Halloween party. Like Jake, he has his own stint at being darker, and understandably so because tragedy after tragedy befell his family so he would go off the deep end eventually.

With those kids accounted for, the main attraction is, of course, Chucky. As always, Chucky is the bomb. He cracks more jokes here that hit, but it also takes time to show that he can be manipulative as a corrupting influence and even charismatic whenever he tries to get any of the kids to kill.

And speaking of the killer doll, I loved how we were given his backstory. Sure, they are not complete flashbacks that go over everything that has to do with his childhood, but it focuses on the more prominent, defining moments that made him into the Lakeshore Strangler he is now (also glad that they acknowledged the fact that he was nicknamed that when he never really tries to strangle his victims in the other movies). I loved how some of the flashbacks appeared to be grainy like footage you'd see with an 8mm camera. The found-footage style just accentuated the creepiness.

How are the kills? They are amazing in the show, well maybe aside from the first one due to it being goofier in a way. My favorite one would be the knives in the dishwasher because of the simplicity to it. The practical effects with maneuvering the Chucky doll were also good. And like a true horror fan, Mancini employs a lot of references to different horror films but it'd take forever to list them all.

Lastly, I liked all the references that are made to other movies in the franchise. My favorite one has to be Jake having to check if his Good Guy Doll had batteries and later, holding Chucky up, demands that he talk to him to which Chucky gives him a good slap.

The only negative I can really think of is the finale. It was underwhelming because of the loose ends and unresolved conflicts. Had it not have been announced that we'd be getting another season, it would be a weak way to end the show.

But I enjoyed the first season and am looking forward to season 2 next year.

A Loud House Christmas (2021 TV Movie)

A Lump of Coal

[4/10 · 29 November 2021]

This was probably the worst thing I had seen in my life. It's been maybe two years since I had quietly tuned out from the show mostly since it didn't feel relatable anymore as it was employing more sci-fi/supernatural elements to it like ghosts; Flip being threatened with the notion of going into outer space; and recycled plots. Hadn't watched the Netflix movie so I can't really comment much on that.

Casagrandes...it was more or less just the Loud House but with Ronnie Anne Santiago with her extended family. It was more or less a skip for me. I do like Ronnie Anne as a character, but I fail to see how she was considered interesting enough for a spin off.

When I heard about there being a live-action Loud House special...I cringed mentally. I just hate live action adaptations of cartoons and anime largely because they fail to convey the visual creativity that the cartoons demonstrate. Instead of vibrant colors and lively animation, you would get a bland, mundane world.

This Christmas special was not good. In it, Lincoln is upset that his family is seemingly splitting apart when his sisters all have gigs for Christmas.

For one, the actors look nothing like the characters they play especially in regards to their hair. Sure, at the least the actor playing Lincoln has that small point in his hair, but for other characters like Lori, I initially did not know that was meant to be her because of the way her hair was done. I also couldn't help but feel some of the kid actors were miscast with Lisa and the twins looking too big. I mean, sure, I understand the reason for that, but it was distracting.

If anything...the actors all looked uncanny. Legitimately, I felt unnerved seeing all them act and move. Very, very creepy. Especially with Lucy, though I guess that was intentional. But Mr. Coconuts...I'll be sleeping with one eye open tonight with a frying pan beside me.

So how is the plot of the movie? Lincoln is simply the worst character in this film. I understand his concerns, but the lengths he takes in this special are purely despicable. Since I doubt no one really cares about spoilers for this: Lincoln convinces Luna that Mick Jagger was coming to town (even though she already met him before; albeit he was wearing a disguise but still) which causes Sam to break up with her; he and Clyde pretend to be senior citizens at a nursing home and sabotage Luan's chances of entertaining for the elderly folk; he steals Tanya the mannequin and fabricates some cryptid called a sharkidle and passes it off as being at Miami, Florida, driving a wedge with his family's plan of going to Miami on vacation.

Naturally, while Lincoln's plan seemingly goes well, the ramifications become apparent and his attempts at fixing his mistakes results in the news reporting that the aquatic monster was now in Royal Woods and they issue a curfew which ruins Lily's chances at lighting the town's Christmas tree.

Really, it reflects the problems some fans have had with the show where they paint Lincoln as a jackass. What's worse, Lincoln is hardly punished for his actions being given as much as a slap on the wrist. While he does break the fourth wall by saying he'd have to do 100+ hours of community service for the destruction he caused, that amounts to nil.

Mieruko-chan (2021)

She Sees Dead People

[8/10 · 15 November 2021]

We interrupt this program to bring you...Miko the Scaredy Cat Girl, starring Miko, the Scaredy Cat Girl! Cursed with the ability to see ghosts, she tries to ignore them while living her normal life with her best friend Hana, and her rival, Yulia! But creepy spirits fester her town. It's up to Miko to ignore them all!

Mieruko-chan is a horror-comedy anime featuring Miko Yotsuya, a young teenage girl who goes about her daily activities, except she kind of has a tiny problem. That is if seeing horrifying ghosts amounts to being a small problem. For whatever reason, Miko is able to see ghosts, yet ignores them. But, in truth, Miko is scared silly due to her predicament, but if she wants to avoid the consequences of her acknowledging the ghosts, she has to suck it up.

For the first few episodes, we do get a formula: Miko sees a scary ghost; sometimes scary ghosts would go after her friend Hana so she tries to pretend to not see the ghost. As more characters are introduced into the anime, we get more of the basic ingredients for the plot of the show. With this episodic flow, the show can get predictable as a result of the premise.

But, starting from episode 6, there comes a drastic change in the formula of the show which can potentially build towards big lore drops. For instance, we have yet to hear an explanation of how Miko was cursed with seeing ghosts, and what prominence this has over professional mediums. In short, the first few episodes do fall short because of the predictability, but episode 6 onwards does have the potential to improve on the world-building.

What also works for the show is that, while it is a horror-comedy, it is also surprisingly emotional and heartwarming. Believe me, I watched the show not expecting to be hit with the feels train. These moments are not contrived and feel genuinely earned and heartfelt my favorite one being the ending showing what happened with the scarred man and his pet cat.

The animation. It isn't necessarily visually eye-opening, but it befits the tone of the show. Of course, there are elements of it like fanservice often coming from lingering shots of Miko's legs or Hana's chest, but it does it in a balanced way where it is not distracting.

While the normal world is more or less bland/mundane, what makes it are the designs of the ghosts. The ghosts are truly terrifying and potentially mind-shattering to look like. They move in inhuman actions much like reanimated corpses; they are shrouded in darkness, and sometimes they even emit insidious fumes. Looking at the manga, it looks like they took a book out of the Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark movie by translating the illustrations over to the big screen. It should come as no wonder why Miko tries to ignore them at all costs.

As for the characters: Miko. Poor, poor, poor Miko. She does not deserve to suffer like this and sometimes, I am often compelled to give her a pat on the back and tell her that everything's okay. Yet at the same time, it is amusing to see her being scared. Just really cute whenever she is. Yet despite her fears, there are moments where she has to swallow her fears and put her foot down if it comes to possible danger Hana might face, or helping the ghosts in some way.

Hana. She is really the best friend that anyone would want. She is very loving and compassionate, and she has your back. With her, her immediate characteristic is that she is always hungry and she scarfs down several sweets frequently despite never gaining weight from them. Starting around the halfway mark of the anime, she is getting targeted by spirits as it turns out because of the excessive aura she projects. To think about it, imagine ghosts dropping tiny ghosts on a barbie and you'd get why ghosts single Hana out.

Our tritagonist is Yulia. She already appeared in earlier episodes and for the most part quietly observed Miko. As it would turn out, much like Miko, Yulia can see ghosts...but she is unable to see the larger and more potentially dangerous variants.

Yulia is a complicated character for me. I like her Gothic aesthetic and character design, and it is intriguing to have someone else being able to see ghosts except with one key difference. At the same time, Yulia can also be annoying and self-absorbed with believing that she is the big cheese when it comes to her medium abilities despite not being able to exorcise ghosts herself.

When she starts to suspect Miko as also having "the gift," she becomes the "rival" of Miko and completely misinterprets her actions as her trying to show off her skills when it is painfully obvious that she had her all wrong. This came to be after she locks Miko in the ballroom which led to the most memorable part of the episode where Miko chokeholds Yulia in order to protect her. While she is egotistical, it is explained briefly via flashback that she was bullied for her claims over clairvoyance. So it makes sense that she would want to believe that she was not alone. Hopefully, Miko will come around to clear up these misunderstandings.

For other characters, we have the Godmother of Downtown who is a fortune-teller with actual psychic abilities despite having the looks and attitude of a scammer but is willing to help Miko. Miko's parents appear and they are depicted as being your typical good parents to their children. But Miko's Dad's role in the story is such a huge twist, it makes you reevaluate what you had witnessed.

And then there's Miko's little brother Kyousuke who, for all intended purposes, is more or less the man of the house. He is introduced as being suspicious of the oddities happening with his sister and wants to protect her. He is a good boi.

With that, I'd say that Mieruko-chan is worth looking into. While it starts off formulaic, it shifts into high gear due to the one decision that Miko makes that could lead to more reveals down the line. Even then, I would also recommend it largely because of the designs of the ghosts.

My Senpai Is Annoying (2021)

Working Daze

[8/10 · 13 November 2021]

Just loving the trend of wholesome shows lately. My Senpai is Annoying is about the smol office worker Futaba Igarashi and how she is often annoyed by her senpai Takeda Harumi due to his loud, boisterous demeanor. He is also incredibly massive. Though, of course, everyone in the office is aware of her feelings for Takeda and often serve as shippers on deck for them.

The basic premise is episodic, so you could expect a few things: Futaba tries to make people take her seriously only for that to fail and only enhances her childish side. Or she would deny that she likes Takeda but then would perform actions that show that she does care for him. Takeda would be ignorant of her feelings to the point where it could be argued that he views her as a little sister or a "daughter." Or you would have side plots with a few of the supporting cast.

But while the show is simplistic, it is not a detractor from it. The cast of characters is endearing; its light-hearted tone; and its warm depiction of city life calls to mind that feeling you'd get coming home from a grueling day of work.

Animation is also great. It has vibrant colors that add to its feel-good nature. The character designs appear to have been crafted with a great amount of care. Add its piano score, and you have yourself a soothing show.

Speaking of characters, Futaba. She is the most adorable character this year (not counting other contenders like Kana or Illulu). She can best be described as a bit crabby. Because of her small stature, she is often mistaken for a child much to her chagrin. So, she tries to compensate for that with trying to be the best she could be at her job, and yet, her childish demeanor would betray her if she overexerted herself.

Futaba is that one character that you can't help but not only feel sorry for her, but also pet her head and hug her unless Takeda is doing that himself. Her Napoleon complex also goes into other things in her life such as envying her best friend or her coworker Sakurai due to their developed assets. But despite her snippy personality, she is truly a good person at heart: she once saw an elementary student was cold so she gave up her own scarf, or in other instances, she would help people with directions. That is not getting into how she actually does care about Takeda greatly, not that she would ever admit it.

Next is Takeda, who is, without question, the best man of the show, not best boy, best MAN. This dude is the goat. Heck, not even the goat even but the entire farm. He is as opposite from Futaba like the east and the west with being loud, somewhat obnoxious, and is a powerhouse. But even then, the dude has a huge heart and is caring as evidenced by his teasing of Futaba. The best episode demonstrating this is when he notices some creep taking an on-the-ground photo of Futaba and he seriously grabs him and throttles him. Given how this is known to happen a few times in Japan, this is cathartic.

Going into the other noteworthy characters, Sakurai and Kazama. Their chemistry is just as strong as Futaba and Takeda's. Kazama is the stoic type who hardly smiles, but it is obvious that he has feelings for Sakurai but is so self-depreciative, he believed that he had zero chance with a girl like her.

Sakurai herself, however, has eyes only for him and often delights in teasing him. But her problem, opposite of Kazama's, is that while she conveys her feelings through body language, she cannot spit it out that she likes him.

Then there's Mona, the most bizarre of the staff. She has a weird way of thinking that is incomprehensible to the others and carries out her decisions without a second thought. She also carries around a vodka bottle which she claims to be just water, but then she would go as far as to put vodka in everything so I think she is drunk on the job all the time yet still capable of performing her tasks. She even made chocolate loaded with vodka for Valentine's Day.

Hijikata is the Cassanova Wannabe who is pining for Sakurai because he knows that she would be too nice to turn him down despite her being Kazama-centric. Funnily, would ship him up with Mona for the lulz.

Lastly, there is the department chief called such because his name is not known. He is a benevolent boss in a lot of ways: he allows his employees to eat lunch outside of the office; values the emotions of his employees; ensures that everyone leaves the office before 8 PM; and allows sick leave without penalty. For someone owning a white color company, these are MASSIVE improvements due to the overwork culture native to Japan. Overall a good boss even if he has a toothbrush mustache.

While My Senpai is Annoying is not an immediate must-watch this season, its steady pace and lovable characters are sickeningly sweet and addictive.

Komi Can't Communicate (2021–2022)

The Art of Communicating

[9/10 · 11 November 2021]

: Really, what is there to say about Komi Can't Communicate? This is probably up there as being one of the best anime adaptations this year with each episode really improving over each one.

The animation is simply beautiful and polished. The lighting and fluid movements are also top-notch. But I especially love the character designs of each character so much so, it would be relatively easy for each character to be identified with a silhouette.

But the main story is also really relatable: the social awkwardness and the desire to want to speak with other people but there are things that inhibit that such as shyness. But, really, you do want friends, and yet, how will you even hope to relay that?

The characters are what really give the show life. Tadano is described as "hopelessly average," which is true. When you have a whole school of students with different quirks and personalities, Tadano feels rather "vanilla." And yet, I feel that it works out just fine. Really, because of how much the students at the school treat Komi as a goddess or put her on a high pedestal, their flaws come from being unable to interpret Komi's true feelings in part because of their outrageous quirks. They are in love with the idea that Komi represents, and yet ironically, they are so woefully ignorant of what she is really like.

So despite that, Tadano is able to look past Komi's beauty to see someone that truly wanted friendship and he voluntarily assists her in her goal to get 100 friends. He does this again not because he is trying to score with her, but it is because he understands her. He also congratulates her whenever she would try to step out of her comfort zone.

For what little words she actually does speak, Komi is adorable with the show doing a great job at adapting her "bug eyes." The main humor comes from the classmates misunderstanding her behavior or actions by filling in the blanks when she actually had something else completely different in mind. Her goal of wanting 100 friends is just cute even though it seems relatively simplistic at first. But it shows how lonely and desperate she is with wanting to speak and only makes her relationship with Tadano all the more wholesome.

Then we have my personal favorite the based Osana Najimi. They are the most hilarious of the main cast of characters with their bombastic personality and trolling nature. Oftentimes, they do try to put Tadano and Komi into a situation to make them closer, but they are a good friend.

Supporting cast. As I said, they also have their own personalities and are about as entertaining as the main characters. There's Agari, a nerdy girl who gets nervous anytime she has to speak directly to others (and later decides to become Komi's pet due again to misunderstandings). There's one who believes herself to be in a rivalry with Komi, but Komi does not even know she exists. And, of course, we have a chuunibyou who is convinced that she knew Komi from a past life.

While I love a majority of the characters, the one I absolutely loathe is Yamai Ren. She is your typical yandere girl who is greatly obsessed with Komi, but it tends to go too far and is not funny at all. Really, that one scene where she discovered one of Komi's strands of hair is scarring. Worse, she even goes to drastic measures to be closer to Komi that I really wanted the outcome to be that Komi would befriend the entire class with her being tossed to the curb like the hot trash she is. At least from what I have heard the manga has her appear less.

The voice work and sound need no complex reason as to why they are good. Just really, the show is nearly perfect in its themes; relatability; animation, etc. Definitely a must-watch.

Eternals (2021)

Loss for Words

[5/10 · 7 November 2021]

So...I did come out of the movie mixed. I don't completely love or hate the movie. For some positives, I did appreciate that the producers were willing to take a risk with this film as it greatly deviates from the standard formula for the MCU.

I did like the expanded world-building to the lore with learning more about the Celestials. On a cinematographic level, the visuals; creature designs; and action sequences were good. So, a well-crafted movie.

As much as I could admire their risks with changing the formula, they probably went too far. The film suffers considerably from exposition dumps making the pacing laborious to get through. Its 2-hour runtime further undermines it because there isn't much there to keep you invested.

As a more "serious " take on an MCU film, there is not much in the way of humor and even when there is, it's too dry and conflicts with the tone.

The introduction of the Eternals also presents issues. For instance, if they were around for thousands of years, then why did they do nothing to stop Thanos in IW? Sure, the film does try to say they couldn't get involved with affairs unless the deviants were in the equation. But...considering the fact that the Blip created the right circumstances for a Celestial to emerge, it feels counterproductive to just have the Mad Titan succeed since it would hinder the chances of the emergence from happening.

The team themselves. None stood out as interesting and were underdeveloped. Sure, some had their own personalities and quirks, they mostly fell under the generic character types like: the Leader; the Smart Guy; the Muscle, etc.

While the film does have moments where the characters have some "hidden depths," at best they are just informed attributes. The issue more seems that they could not decide which Eternal to focus on due to there being too many. Not helping that some characters make complete 180s with little reason.

But, ultimately, Eternals is a mixed bag. While not the absolute worst of the MCU films, it does seem that the writers were at a loss on how to convey the story.

I just felt empty after watching it.

Teenage Euthanasia (2021– )

What Even Was This?

[4/10 · 29 October 2021]

Honestly, can't really say much about this show...I just don't know what to feel about it. Basically, it takes place in some futuristic town called Fort Gator, situated in Florida, about some teenage mother abandoning their daughter and running off. But 15 years later when she was divorced by her wealthy husband and died of an overdose, her body is taken to a funeral home called Tender Endings, where a combination of a bolt of lightning; embalming fluid; and her daughter's tear resurrected her as a sapient zombie who is able to control beetles. Won't say where they come from.

This being an adult swim show, the animation is...subpar. The character designs aren't necessarily "bad," but at the same time, they are uninspired. For instance, nearly every character has about the same character build: a round, oval face; neck shape, etc. It felt like they were more or less the prototypes of what the characters would look like in the final product. Despite it taking place in the future, the setting also feels boring not fully taking advantage of the aesthetic.

The titular Euthanasia Fantasy. I get that she is someone who would be an underdog, or a loser character...but can't say I love her because of how often she self-pities herself. It is not funny, not quirky. Oftentimes, it is hard to handle.

Trophy, however, is likely the worst character in the series. For all the "has a second chance to bond with her daughter," what bonding does she actually do? In one episode where her daughter goes birdwatching, she blows her off by swapping bodies with a corpse. In another, she forces a potential boyfriend of Annie's to die and end up trapped in Heaven (where he cannot have sex) just to prove that there was no afterlife. How about the time she practically poked fun at Annie's wish of knowing who her father was?

Really, Trophy is likely the most selfish character in western animation who only looks to sate her hedonism with little to no care as to whether her daughter is hurt or not. She sometimes even goes as far as to tear her down whether it be her looks or her awkwardness. Sure there are moments where she can be nice or act relatively motherly, but those are not outweighing the bad.

If there were some explanation as to why she is like this like maybe some traumatizing scenario in her past, then the show fails to depict it. In short, Trophy is probably one of the worst characters I have ever seen who is negligent, sometimes even verbally abusive towards her own daughter who she abandoned when she was still a baby of all things, and cares only able pleasuring herself.

Pete, Trophy's half-brother. He is a total loser and coward who is basically the "momma's boy" and that is it. There is nothing about him that is remotely interesting or compelling. The only character that I do at the least somewhat favor is Baba, but even then her basic character is "sell embalming fluid" or "work, work, work."

Really, hardly any adult swim show nowadays is genuinely good with this one being mediocre. I wanted to like the show and it seemed to have a promising premise (come to think of it, how many times has the show actually focused on the fact that Trophy is a zombie?). Instead, it has subpar animation and does not take advantage of the fact that they are in the future. The characters are either flat or unlikable, and ultimately amounts to being a time-waster.

Halloween Kills (2021)

The Bogeyman Lives

[7/10 · 15 October 2021]

I will admit the screenplay isn't the best for those wanting a narrative to go in hand with the kills. The film also suffers slightly from the lack of a strong lead and the returning characters being fan service.

I did like the idea that Michael is such a poisonous monster, Haddonfield is tainted by his evil causing the citizens to revert into rabid animals with little rhyme nor reason. Though the side plot about it does kind of bring the film down.

And the last thing it does is sequel bait which makes the film end abruptly. Because of that, it feels like half of an incomplete film.

But it is an enjoyable watch nonetheless even when it amounts to being a bog-standard slasher.

Mother of the Goddess' Dormitory (2021)

An Ecchi That is Not Hot

[5/10 · 17 September 2021]

When junior high student Koshi is forced to live on his own after his deadbeat left when the house caught on fire, he finds himself as the dormitory mother for girls.

Mother of the Goddess' Dormitory is serviceable. As can be expected in these kinds of harems, there is a lot of fanservice even when there are moments it leans heavily on willing suspicion of disbelief. Aside from this, the show is pretty bland and repetitive.

The characters are fine. Kosi starts off trying to be the responsible caretaker of the women's dorm and getting easily flustered by the girls' lewdness. He does express empathy and we do get him feeling conflicted due to his fears of losing his new home if he were to act on his feelings for the girls, Atena in particular, but he is kind of boring as the main lead. It got to the point where I would forget his name so I'd have to resort to looking it up.

Atena is also pretty mediocre. She is established as the most normal out of the gang of girls beside her fear of men causing her to have excessive nosebleeds. The more she interacts and gets to know Koshi, much like him, she began to have conflicting thoughts primarily whether she'd view him as a brother or something else entirely. Their chemistry is fine for what it is. Though that is largely coming off them having a sibling-like relationship; keep in mind that Koshi is 12-years-old whereas Atena is around 19 years old a seven-year difference. No thank you.

As for the other girls, they are mostly one-note: Kiriya is a tomboyish martial artist who was raised in a dojo. She has the habit of punching stuff whenever she read romantic shonen manga.

Mineru is the stereotypical mad scientist who experiments around often resulting in an explosion or any other unsanitary conditions. She is flirty and lacks common decency.

Frey or Fley is obsessed with cosplaying and designing outfits to the point of forcibly dressing people up without their approval. She does have a meaningful moment with Koshi where she helped him get an understanding of his feelings.

By far my favorite is Serene, an odd young woman who asserts that she is an alien who gets her powers from the moon. Her first appearance has her asking Koshi to become her servant in return for using her lunar technology to clean up a mess Kiriya caused. She had an interesting little side story where she expressed hesitation with going to the beach with Koshi and the girls. Considering that she had apparently lived in the dormitory longer than the others, maybe there is a good reason why the show is called Mother of the Goddess' Dormitory.

Animation, once again, is serviceable. Given its adherence to fan service, the animation is top-notch in that regard meaning that, relatively speaking, it is drawn well, but there seems to be something horribly wrong in how it is conveyed. It's lackluster: the girls do sexy stuff, but there is no real appeal there namely due to the rest of the anime being boring and the characters being too flat and underwhelming. But, taking out that aspect, the show is pretty forgettable and doesn't have a strong draw to it. But it isn't bad, just mediocre.

Higurashi: When They Cry - SOTSU (2021)

The Never-Ending Nightmare Returns

[7/10 · 17 September 2021]

For the most part, I can say that this is better than Gou, but it is still with its issues. The first being that since we now know the killer, their motives, and the twists, it almost feels like a chore to rewatch the same arcs, albeit with slight alterations to recontextualize them. It doesn't help matters where one arc I had in mind would have still ended up in the same results.

The animation is still good, but it kind of feels like a waste to see them being reused for the sole purpose of adding context to them. If anything, I saw a lot of the scenes coming after seeing the events of Gou play out with a few genuine surprises that caught me off guard. But I do like the visuals of the opening theme and the ending theme which again resembles a watercolor painting of Rika and Satoko just living their best lives together.

Once more, the characters were placed to the wayside since the show is really more about the conflict between Rika and Satoko. And even then, I'm just getting bored with that as the driving theme.

I did like the OP and ED themes, though.

Straight Outta Nowhere: Scooby-Doo! Meets Courage the Cowardly Dog (2021 Video)

Disappointed

[6/10 · 14 September 2021]

I loved Courage growing up so was excited to learn the show was teaming up with the Scooby-Doo gang since it made sense. Both shows have a cowardly dog and do spooky stuff, so you'd have yourself the perfect crossover.

When I found out that Dilworth was not on the project, it made me slightly worried because it felt wrong to not have his vision. But I thought it could work as long as they are able to meld both worlds together.

The film is good...but not perfect. The script for the film could have gone through a few more rewrites and proofreading to make the two franchises flow better. It doesn't really help that there is now modern technology that served as kind of a tonal whiplash.

The animation is fine. Considering how Nowhere is literally off the map and to itself, the original characters from the show and new denizens are drawn to reflect the weirdness of the town whereas the Mystery Gang is drawn in the same fashion they always are to contrast the more cartoony characters of Nowhere.

But I felt that the film failed to truly take advantage of the concept of two cowardly dogs being in the same film and the overall mystery felt lacking.

Candyman (2021)

Good Build Up, Weak Ending

[8/10 · 4 September 2021]

To start with it is no surprise that the film is better than the two sequels that came out by a margin. With the 2021 film, I honestly really enjoyed it.

For starters, wouldn't call the film "woke" largely because the first film was also about the gentrification of Cabrini Green. Here, you see the logical conclusion of it. Would seem that some people had forgotten that notion. Is the 2021 film more preachy and less subtle about its message? Sure, but you cannot deny that it is still a relevant one.

I did like the first two parts of the film with how they expanded the Candyman mythos, and Anthony's fall into madness is done pretty well. I also loved the cinematography and soundtrack. It may not be as good as the original 1992 film's, but it is still good.

Where I felt the film suffered a bit from are the characters. Anthony is an okay character, but certainly a weaker lead than Helen. While his descent into madness is done adequately, I didn't find his relationship with his girlfriend genuine and it lacked depth. Anthony's girlfriend also had potential to be a more fully realized character due to a personal tragedy in her childhood, and you would think that it has relevancy in the story, but it's dropped the moment you learn about it.

The third act is where you can really tell that multiple people were writing it, and it felt empty. The first two halves were great because they helped to make the spine of the movie, but it rushed to its end without sticking the landing. The third act also goes into the main villain's evil plan, but it doesn't make sense due to it being a self-contradictory goal and I'd fail to see how it would work.

It is also less bloody and gory; while I appreciated the film depicting the kills the way it did because I felt it matched the tone it was going for, that would be disappointing to hardcore horror fans.

Overall, if you are able to put your political mindset away and watch the film for what it is on a surface level, you'd probably like it.

Amphibia: True Colors (2021) Season 2, Episode 20

The Plot Thickens

[9/10 · 25 May 2021]

An ultimately perfect way to end the second season. It was the most emotional and action-packed thing I have ever seen. Major revelations are exposed which make you question everything that you thought you knew about the show. But at the same time, while some characters have made bad decisions out of desperation, you cannot come to hate them because you can actually relate to their motivations.

Highly anticipating season 3 and how the main characters get themselves out of this mess.

Don't Toy with Me, Miss Nagatoro (2021–2023)

Bullying Love

[8/10 · 25 May 2021]

It comes as no surprise that Don't Toy With Me, Miss Nagatoro was initially heavily sought after to get its due. The series revolves around Naoto Hachioji, otherwise known as "Senpai," who is a second-year at Kazehaya High School who'd rather be by himself and draw his own manga. However, fate had different plans: after his manga is unwittingly shown to a group of popular girls, Senpai finds himself tormented by a tanned girl with a devilish smile.

At first it seemed that she was merely bullying him for sadistic reasons (which were true to some extent), but it becomes apparent that she actually had a crush on him.

The show is episodic; Senpai would be minding his own business, and then Nagatoro would waltz in, suggest something lewd, and pull one over on the poor guy. Sometimes, Nagatoro's friends would playfully mess with Senpai earning Nagatoro's ire.

The animation's nice. There are some shots that are well-crafted and detailed like one instance where the camera lingers on the shot of a small crab shuffling on the shore. Though the only dislike I have with the animation are that the background characters are all eyeless. Feels uncanny, but it was likely intentional.

There are really no characters that you can truly hate. Senpai does come off as being weak, but in some ways, he is really relatable. Some may have been that introverted student who'd rather be left to their own devices then have to have those awkward social interactions. When you see that he was bullied a lot as a younger boy, it makes a lot of sense that he would become that tense.

Nagatoro. Oh boy. At first glance, she comes off as being too much of a bully to Senpai to the point she made him cry twice and is arguably one of the most sadistic lead characters I have seen. But, it becomes crystal clear that she was in the same boat as Senpai. Underneath that teasing, bullying persona belies a shy girl who obviously has it hard for the MC but only feels that she can express it by playfully teasing him. But she does have standards such as defending Senpai when her friends were making harder hitting insults at him.

Her three friends, Gamo, Yoshi, and Sakura, are about as sadistic as Nagatoro tends to be and like trolling Senpai to his expense. Gamo is the tall leader of the group and the most mischievous of the group. She is the brains behind most of the attacks on Senpai and is fully aware that Nagatoro was in love with Senpai and is doing this stuff both to invoke some response from her friend, and to bring the two awkward kids together.

Yoshi is the more dim one who just parrots whatever Gamo says. She comes across as more or less "good," but is susceptible with going along with what Gamo is planning because she likes her. The opening theme, "Easy Love" is also rocking, and the ending theme is also good.

Overall, a good show. Very fun to watch.

Rent-a-Girlfriend (2020–2023)

Interesting Concept

[6/10 · 14 August 2020]

This one, oh boy. It is about Kazuya Kinoshita who is about to enter college only to discover that his girlfriend Mami dumped him after dating him for about a month. Distraught over that, he discovers a rather shady app where he can rent a girlfriend. So, he ends up meeting the seemingly perfect Chizuru Mizuhara. After their first date, Kazuya, despite knowing that this was a job, grows suspicious of Chizuru and gives her a low rating. Which makes her angry.

To make matters worse, Kazuya's grandmother collapses and she has the misfortune of meeting Chizuru, so they have to keep up the facade a little longer.

Characters. Kazuya himself isn't really likable. He's a pushover who everyone throws shade at. Everyone, including his own family. He can't stand up for himself; he's pretty much a loser. I get him wanting to have a real relationship, but as Chizuru pointed out to him, what she did was her job. That outburst in episode 1 was really unnecessary. He's borderline insufferable as a leading character. But a lot of that is intentional, so I can't really completely blame him for that.

The other characters are hard to really "like." Chizuru herself at the least is shown to at least see that while Kazuya can be foolish and an idiot at times, there are at least some good qualities about him. It is also good on her part that, while she is overly critical with Kazuya being the doormat he is, she does assist him with upcoming the visage of a relationship. She even stands up for him when Mami was talking smack about Kazuya. Which perfectly segues to...

Mami. Oy vey, Mami. What can I say about her? Out of all the shows I am watching this year, she is hands down the worst character in the show. On the outside, she looks bubbly and friendly almost like an angel. But on the inside, she is an utterly petty borderline sociopath.

For starters, she finds herself insanely jealous of Kazuya and Chizuru's "relationship" despite the fact that she herself dumped him in the first place under the claim that she met someone else she loved. It's her actions that led to him finding the rental app and yet she wants to destroy the (fake, but she doesn't know) relationship between the two because she cannot stand that Kazuya appeared to move on after her. She is a manipulative, verbally abusive young lady who tears Kazuya down with her words. While the show treats him as a punching bag, nothing about what she says is funny as not even the other characters humor her for it. Worse, she even forces Kazuya to apologize for her when she gets called out for her actions.

The worst part of her plot had to be when she was trying to tempt Kazuya when Chizuru was in a position where she likely would have died had it not have been for Kazuya's quick intervention. This just goes to show how much of a ruthless sociopath she is where she does not give a crap about whether someone lost their life because of her. Unlike with Chizuru where she has her own softer side, Mami doesn't have anything remotely redeeming about her. It's really because of her presence that the show feels especially cruel and I'd think that it would be better if she was written out. Maybe die in a car accident or some freakish scenario. She is trash plain and simple.

The friends of Kazuya are mostly one-note except for his childhood friend who does acknowledge that there are some good parts to Kazuya's behavior such as his determination. Kazuya's family...don't like them. His grandmother to me comes off as especially bad partially because of her trying to dip her hand between Kazuya and Chizuru. She has that snooty attitude as well which also makes her hateable in my eyes. Otherwise, characters are hit or miss.

Voice work is also fine as is the animation. It isn't amazing by any means, but it services the show well. Comedy is hit or miss because it revolves around the misgivings of the MC and if you don't care for that kind of humor, it can come off as painful.

Uzaki-chan Wants to Hang Out! (2020–2022)

A Fun Ride

[8/10 · 14 August 2020]

It follows the eponymous Hana Uzaki who is at first delighted to be at the same college as her classmate from high school Shinichi Sakurai. But when she sees that he has a rather mundane lifestyle, she decides to take it upon herself to hang out with him.

I get that there was some slight controversy of the series because of some moral guardians being critical of Uzaki's design. If not for her...assets, she would easily be confused for maybe a high school or elementary school kid. Her being short not helping matters. But...the show establishes that she is a young adult as in reaching her 20s at best.

Pushing the controversy aside, thus far the characters are very enjoyable. There's Uzaki herself for starters. She is energetic and preppy as well as a Grade A troll who loves to mess around with Shinichi. She has the potential to be annoying, but she squarely falls under the "not too obnoxious" side for me partially because it is a more funny kind of annoying wherein the character or characters are the ones being irritated by her antics.

But she also has her good side. There are moments where she does unwittingly drive Shinichi off the deep end and she apologizes. Ultimately she does have a good heart where she wants to ensure that Shinichi does live fully. Shinichi is a good foil. He tends to want to be by himself and enjoy that time and when Uzaki intervenes, you can understand his frustration with her. But he does find himself slowly enjoying being around Uzaki. Despite this, he does have a softer side such as loving cats and dogs. It's unfortunate that because of the perpetual scowl on his face, he comes off as imposing.

Supporting characters include Ami, her father, and Shinichi's only friend. Ami works for her father at his cafe where Shinichi works largely because of how attractive he is. Which comes across as interesting in terms of Ami: she lusts after Shinichi because of his physique, but much like her father, she is a passive watcher of Uzaki and Shinichi taking an interest in seeing their relationship bloom.

Sakaki is Shinichi's friend who is a ladies' man who also takes an interest in the relationship because he wants Shinich to get a girlfriend which puts him in conflict with Ami due to him wanting to take an active approach in getting them together. He's kind of sleazy to me, but that's from a minor glance. He may get better over the course of the series.

The animation and voice work is also good as well as the sound effects. Overall, a good watch.

The Invisible Man (I) (2020)

Revitalization of the Universal Monsters

[9/10 · 1 March 2020]

The film masterfully brings the story up-to-date with the original story. The acting's great; the sounds are eerie to go with that feel of paranoia that he could be anywhere.

Elisabeth Moss in particular does a fantastic job as Cecilia, a survivor of domestic abuse who escapes her abusive boyfriend Adrian Griffin, but she still feels trapped by him. You feel increasingly bad for her plight when everything starts to collapse around her.

The actions' also great. You get the sense that Elisabeth is genuinely punching at someone with brunt force rather than taking jabs at thin air.

Overall, greatly loved this take of the source material and actually I can say I want to see more from it.

Welcome to Demon-School, Iruma-kun (2019–2023)

BABI, BABI, BABI, BABI, BABIRU

[8/10 · 28 February 2020]

Really love this show. It dropped under my radar and I am catching up with the series. Needless to say, I am loving it. It is a series concerning a 14-year-old boy named Iruma Suzuki and how he was often made to do tasks for his neglectful parents who barely fed him, provided him with education, etc. Until one day...they sell him to a demon named Sullivan. From there, he learns that Sullivan was the principal over a school in the Netherworld and he adopts him as his grandson. Comedy ensues.

The opening and ending themes are catchy as heck, the voice work is good. Animation-wise, I like the designs of the different demon students such as aside from the typical horned, pointy-eared humanoid, you also have some based on lions, owls, dragons, etc. The only real downside, though, is that due to being demons, they all have wings that aren't surprising. It's just that the wings are indistinguishable from each other.

The main story is also pretty unique in some ways of a human being adopted and sent to a school populated by demons. So, he finds himself at first trying to lay low because of his fear of getting found out and eaten by his classmates (weirdly they believe that humans are myths but their school anthem talks about eating humans blood and meat and all). However, as the series progresses, Iruma finds himself developing his own aspirations and breaking out of his shell little by little. The story is good...but it has its flaws. For instance, it feels the need to continuously remind the viewer about what they're watching like how Iruma got into this whole mess. Recapping the events of a previous episode is common practice to help the audience catch up, but the repetition often gets annoying.

All of the characters are enjoyable in their own wonderful ways. Iruma starts off as a pushover with little desires along with his inability to deny a request. While this would make him less interesting, he starts to change towards the Cannonball Execution Arc where he decides to go up a rank. From there, he is slowly making a path for himself that I am very excited to see him go down. I can't overlook how much he looks like Izuku, however, but that's beside the point.

Then there's Azz who indebted himself to Iruma after he unwittingly defeated him in a battle. He's a loyal friend...even if he's a little too interested in keeping up with everything relating to Iruma. He also has cool fire powers. My favorite characters are kind of tied. There's Clara Valac, a weird (even by demon standards) demon girl who is overly energetic and can conjure up copies of items she had seen through a magic patch. She is hilarious and is the perfect blend of annoying and endearing. The other is Ameri Azazel, the president of the student council who ironically tends to use her natural prowess when administering discipline in the school. She firmly believed that humans existed because of some shoujo romance manga that she had in her family line and becomes enamored by Iruma when he can not only read the "forbidden text," but she has him read it to her.

There are the plethora of other characters to like such as Sullivan who comes off as a goofy devil who only wanted a grandson. As such, he dotes Iruma constantly and was a better parent all things considered than Iruma's actual ones. Opera is his stoical servant who hardly smiles. Sabnock who calls himself Iruma's rival for the throne of the Demon King and is a colossal, muscular behemoth who confesses that he wanted to be the king because he thought it was cool. Eiko who tries to get to know Iruma better but fails continually. Kalego the strict teacher who inadvertently becomes Iruma's familiar on the grounds of him being a human...the list goes on.

Overall, a great show that I am glad to have seen recommendations for on YouTube. It really brings a smile to my face.

Leaving Neverland (2019)

Feelings Over Reason

[2/10 · 27 October 2019]

I'm kind of late to this, but with the whole Leaving Neverland controversy, I'll just come right out and say it: I am firmly convinced that Wade Robson and James Safechuck are liars. In Wade's case, he lied under oath when he was a boy, and you'd have to be willfully ignorant to not think that him suddenly changing his mind after years of defending Jackson didn't stem from financial issues. In 2013 about 4 years after Jackson's death, Wade sued the Jackson Estate on accusations of molestation that spanned for a seven-year duration. But the judge threw that lawsuit out on the grounds of statutes of limitation as Robson waited too long to file the complaint.

However, the catch was that if in the events he didn't realize that he was molested at that age, he could pursue the lawsuit then. Hence concocting conflicting stories of him desperately trying to make the lawsuit work by the seat of his pants. What was it, Wade? Was it that you didn't know that it was abuse at the time but then later you realized it was wrong? Did you repress your memories of the sexual abuse? Or was it when you had your child that it dawned on you that what you and Jackson did together was wrong?

That's not even getting into Safechuck's claim of being molested at the train station at Neverland Ranch when said train station wasn't even constructed at that time. It's one thing to forget the day when you were sexually abused, it's a whole other thing to somehow forget that a train station wasn't built during the time of his alleged abuse. And, IIRC, Safechuck's family wasn't even in the country by the time of these molestation accusations.

Really, the whole thing started because of Evan Chandler, the father of Jordan Chandler whom he deliberately drugged into getting him to confess that Jackson assaulted him so he could get money from it. What many fail to realize was that Jackson paying the settlement was actually for the civil trial rather than the criminal trial. A criminal trial would've indicated actions that were considered harmful to society as a whole while the civil trial tends to compose of private disputes. It was a money extortion scheme. Evan wasn't looking to send Jackson under; he was after the money, and literally ran off with it after the settlement was paid. Jordan had since disowned his parents with Evan Chandler committing suicide presumably after remorse for what he put his son through.

And then you had one of the maids who tried to take what Evan did to make money, but she admitted to lying under oath with how she only saw Jackson enter the bathroom to shower. But what really strikes me the most about the documentary is the fact that some of the vivid descriptions actually eerily similar to the discredited book Michael Jackson Was My Lover: The Secret Diary of Jordie Chandler by Victor M. Guitierrez. The book was supposedly about Jordan Chandler's romance with Michael Jackson such as having a wedding ceremony in secret. The book more or less is propaganda that Guitierrez was rightfully sued for.

With that being said, I wouldn't call myself a "fan" of Michael. I only found out about him after he died back in 2009. I have listened to most of his songs and they were pretty good. I don't completely agree with the notion of "Michael is dead, let him rest" mentality because if there was something truly damning to incriminate Jackson, but from the looks of it, people seem to only latch themselves onto the two main accusers because of the grotesque descriptions they gave. Are people really that gullible to believe in a story just because of how descriptive they are with telling the story? If that's the case, then Stephen King's books all must be real, right? We don't convict people because you felt they were guilty. We base it off of evidence pure and simple. Feelings shouldn't overrun reason.

Joker (I) (2019)

Escapism

[8/10 · 27 October 2019]

When I first learned of an "origin story" for the Joker, I was at most worried because what makes the Joker an endearing comic book super-villain is his lack of a backstory. It added to the mystique of the character. That, and it wasn't too long after the DCEU had shown off their Joker in Jared Leto.

But, the film was actually surprising. This was probably one of my favorite films of this year, even though most of the hype overplayed it. Here, we have Arthur Fleck who was born on the poor streets of Gotham where he takes care of his mother and works as a clown performer, a thankless job. A majority of the film devotes much of its time to seeing the Joker's daily life. Because of his mental illness, he is mistreated by the populace and always looked down upon. Eventually, he would devolve into the Joker, becoming the most dangerous criminal that Gotham City would ever know.

There's no use comparing Joaquin Phoenix's Joker with that of the late Heath Ledger's or even Jack Nicholson's takes on the Clown Prince of Crime as they are all different interpretations. Here, Joaquin Phoenix did a great job at playing a broken man who was continually beaten down by society until he lashed out at his mistreatment. I feel what makes movies like Joker, A Clockwork Orange, and American Psycho insightful to many is the fact that at heart, some would want to be free to do what they want regardless of the consequences. I don't mean as in going out and robbing banks or anything horrifically evil, but these films serve as forms of escapism.

We would want to take sweet vengeance on those that mistreat us or to prove the naysayers wrong, but because of our convictions, we instead resolve this by watching escapist films much like Joker. I wouldn't have thought that perhaps outside of The Killing Joke that a film could make the Joker seem tragic. Phoenix does a good job at portraying the torn down, down on his luck and trying to make ends meet. It gets to the point where once he starts changing you can't help but feel for him. You have grown to love this man for the first acts of the film, that seeing him take that big leap into villainy is heartbreaking. But at the same time, there is some instances where you feel that he is correct in his actions. He's that dynamic of a character, that once he starts on his journey of no return, you are conflicted by it. There is a point where you stop sympathizing with Arthur, but even then, it goes to show how complex of a character he is.

Really, the only flaws I can think of is that the first two arcs are a little slow and less interesting. And Arthur laughing makes sense in the film as it is explained away as a result of the mental illness, but it can kind of get annoying at some points in the film. Aside from that, I can't really think much of any other flaws. An otherwise great film that was a pleasant surprise.

The Shining (1980)

Here's Johnny!

[9/10 · 22 October 2019]

The Shining was a 1980 horror movie directed by Stanley Kubrick and was the adaptation of the novel of the same name by the esteemed Stephen King. To me, the film is one of the undisputed best horror films out there...even if it does deviate a lot from King's novel, and at the time it was released, the reception was more mixed with King himself being the most vocal with criticizing the film.

The film is about a failed author named Jack Torrance who decides to become the winter caretaker of the Overlook Hotel in the Rocky Mountains to use the opportunity to get some of his writing done. Except, there have been cases where previous caretakers...kind of went crazy and killed their families before killing themselves. Oh, and it turns out that his son Danny has some psychic ability that he shared with the chef Dick Halloran called "the Shining" and has an imaginary friend that lived in his mouth named Tony who manifests as his finger. As the family gets snowed in, Jacko loses his mind and tries to "correct" his family. By axing them a question.

There is plenty to admire about the film. The ominous soundtrack including the opening theme; Jack Nicholson's performance as Jack Torrance; the impending dread of the scenes that are deliberately drawn out to incite those feelings; the ambiguity of whether the Overlook Hotel was really haunted or not or if the "ghosts" were all just manifestations of the family's growing madness.

A plethora of theories have arisen as means of explaining away the more abstract themes of the film. After all, the film is heavily dissected. Some believe it to represent the toxicity of the American Dream. Others claim that it's about the genocide of the Native American tribes in the name of the Manifest Destiny/White Man's Burden. Some cite Nazi-esque symbolism in some details of the film. Some even claim it to be evidence that Kubrick helped to fake the moon landing which is...stretching at best.

There was a analyst by the name of Collative Learning that had given some of his interpretations of the film that are intriguing such as the notion that Jack was sexually abusing Danny due to the similar positions of Danny being in the bathroom brushing his teeth to the scene where Wendy spots a man in a bear costume doing...something with a man. I'll let your minds come to a conclusion on that one. The theory's interesting, but...not accepting that as my head canon for what's going on. That, and the theory also feels reaching because it relies squarely on that scene and the one where Jack was reading a Playboy magazine. Jack in unquestionably abusive...but to say he molested his son as well? No thank you. For me, the main theme of the film is the endless cycle of abuse that started with Jack, and unless the upcoming sequel to the film Doctor Sleep goes against the concept, Danny himself has the potential of becoming his father due to him becoming an alcoholic when he grew up.

Overall, the Shining is a horror masterpiece that I love watching more than once because I pick up on something new whenever I re-watch it. I'm definitely looking forward to the sequel though I'm wondering how King himself would respond to it since it's clearly a sequel expanding on Kubrick's vision rather than his. True, King's hatred for the film lessened over the years, but he nevertheless does comment often that he never understood how Kubrick's version became such a beloved horror movie. Only time will tell, I guess.