I have not been a fan of many Disney live action remakes.
To me, they have never exceeded the originals and mostly feel like cash grabs rather than like they trying to actually do something meaningful.
This looked to be the case with the new Aladdin remake where the world let out a collective, “AW, HELL NO!” after seeing Will Smith’s Genie.
I cringed when Genie was first shown in the trailer but he is not that bad in the movie.
However, after seeing the film, I can say that, while it is still not as good as the original and is still a cash grab, it does actually do some meaningful things.
Directed by Guy Ritchie, Aladdin 2019 adds new parts to the story that I actually enjoyed, and the musical numbers are all greatly performed.
This is especially the case when it comes to Genie and Naomi Scott’s Jasmine.
Their new storylines in this film are actually pretty good and nice changes.
Sure, Genie does look a little off-putting at times, like in the trailers, but you do get used it and he does spend a lot of time in human form.
Will Smith has nothing on Robin Williams’ portrayal of the character but he still does a good job.
Scott is also the best singer in the movie by a wide margin, giving one fantastic solo performance near the film’s end with “Speechless.”
They actually made Jasmine a better character than in the original.
Naomi Scott is probably my favourite part of the new Aladdin with her giving the best performance and voice.
Aside from them, there are other welcome additions, including a created similarity between the titular Aladdin and the villainous Jafar, which makes their dynamic more interesting.
Mena Massoud does a decent job as Alladin, however, the same sadly cannot be said for Marwan Kenzari who is not threatening as Jafar.
Along with this, even though there are many added storylines I do appreciate, there are also plenty that I do not.
For example, the climax of the film feels very toned down and less epic than it could have been, resulting in a pretty anticlimactic end.
The film also drags a few times with some of its jokes going on for way too long.
All in all, though, Aladdin is still a surprisingly good film with a few very well done features.
It may not top the original but it is still worth seeing.
When I started watching Chernobyl, I had not heard the amount of praise it was getting, especially not that it had become the number one rated show on IMDB.
However, after watching the five episode miniseries, I can honestly say I am not surprised it achieved this. Chernobyl is nothing short of an absolute masterpiece that is incredibly crafted from start to finish.
Covering the aftermath of the Chernobyl disaster, the miniseries is directed by Johan Renck, and written by Craig Mazin.
Mazin is surprising because because he has written some of the Scary Movie films, both The Hangover sequels, and The Huntsman: Winter’s War, to name a few, and these are not very good in my opinion.
So, it is great to see him go from writing films that I do not like to writing this incredible miniseries.
I felt so many different emotions across all five episodes from horror, to anger, to sadness, to flat out disbelief at what was happening.
Chernobyl evoked many emotions in me as its characters desperately tried to stop the disaster from escalating further.
I remember watching a documentary about the Chernobyl accident a while back, so I did know a bit of the story going in but I was still not prepared.
The first episode, “1:23:45”, details the immediate aftermath of the explosion at the power plant and the beginning of Soviet attempts to suppress what was happening while even they do not know the full scale of the event.
The next three episoes, “Please Remain Calm”, “Open Wide, O Earth” and “The Happiness of All Mankind” showcase the struggles of officials Valery Legasov (Jared Harris) and Boris Shcherbina (Stellan Skarsgård), and nuclear physicist Ulana Khomyuk (Emily Watson) to prevent further catastrophe.
The final episode, “Vichnaya Pamyat” is a court case about the causes of the disaster and the push to expose the truth.
All of these episodes are thrilling, with every actor giving a fantastic performance.
Everything about Chernobyl just comes together, including the cinematography, the music, the CGI and the make-up effects.
Speaking of, boy, are those make-up effects horrifying, with them detailing the extent and extreme agony the victims of radiation poisoning go through in excrutiating detail.
Watching the effects of the radiation on the human body in episode three was nothing short of horrifying.
If I had to sum up Chernobyl in one word it would be terrifying.
The way the miniseries shows the effects of radiation poisoning is terrifying.
The absolutely nail biting sequences where people work in extremely radioactive conditions, with only the sound of their Geiger Counter’s exploding with noise to be heard, are terrifying.
The mistakes and incompetent decisions, not just before the disaster but also in the aftermath, causing further tragedy, are terrifying.
The scene that will inevitably stick with me the most, though, is at the end of episode one when the deputy chief operational engineer of Chernobyl, Anatoly Sitnikov (Jamie Sives), is sent to look at the reactor from the roof.
I will not say what happens during to this scene, or to Sitnikov, but it is such a gut punch of a moment with Sives’ expression selling the tragedy of the scene perfectly.
The scene where Sitnikov is sent to look at the reactor is haunting and will stick with me for a while.
As for whether Chernobyl adapts the whole truth of the disaster, there obviously had to be some liberties taken, and things cut out, to adapt the story in this format.
Khomyuk’s character, for example, is completely fictional but used as a representation of all the scientists who helped after the accident, which is nice.
I also doubt that one of the main contributors to the disaster Anatoly Dyatlov (Paul Ritter) was as cruel as he was made out to be here.
Then there are the accents, with no attempt to sound Russian or Ukranian being made.
However, the explanation for this is definitely valid because it was better for the accents not to be addressed rather than risking getting terrible fake sounding ones.
As for Dyatlov, his unlikable nature does not affect the miniseries in a negative way, even though I wish they had made him a bit more relatable.
So, overall, the changes to history are well done with the magnitude of the event and those affected by it being treated with respect. Chernobyl is an absolutely fantastic miniseries.
It will make you feel sad, angry, and often horrified, with you being left on the edge of your seat throughout.
It is easily deserving of all the awards once the time comes.
If you have not seen Chernobyl yet then I must ask you “where have you been?” before advising you to go and watch it.
I came into “The Basement” expecting it to be one of my favourite episodes of Attack on Titan. This is because I thought it would be adapting my favourite chapter of the manga, Chapter 86 “That Day.”
However, this episode instead chose to add new scenes and lengthen the remaining ones, causing it to only go so far as to adapt the first few pages of that chapter.
While this was a little disheartening, I still cannot deny that “The Basement” is a great episode of Attack on Titan that changes the entire direction of the show, finally revealing what the anime has been building up to all these years.
The reveal itself was phenomenally adapted, with it paying off all the build-up, especially in its fantastic post credits scene.
As for the rest of the episode, it is good but has nothing on the ending.
We get to see the aftermath of “Midnight Sun” with Armin grappling to understand the reasoning behind Levi’s choice.
Armin, Levi and Hange all stand out in this scene with their interpretations and reasonings behind the events of the previous episodes.
Before all this, however, there is a creepy scene that Armin experience, which, even as a manga reader, I have no idea what it means.
Whether it is real or just a dream will be interesting to find out as the series progresses.
For the music of the episode, I will say, it is once again amazing.
Most of the episode reuses many musical tracks from the first season in its nostalgic scenes, which was very welcome.
Then there is the music of the post credits scene, which almost brought me to tears with its hopeful notes because I knew the disturbing things this hope would bring.
As for the animation, it went up and down a bit in terms of quality.
The beginning of the episode has animation that looks like it is from season one but I cannot tell if that is an intentional callback or because of the budget.
Despite this and few other limitations though, “The Basement” is still a great episode with a phenomenal ending that changes everything.
And in the end, I am actually happy this episode did not fully adapt “That Day” because I can tell from the preview that, not only will the next episode do that, but it will also mostly adapt the following chapter “Borderline”, which is fantastic as well.
That means, if all of this is adapted well, then the next episode will have a very good chance of toppling “Midnight Sun” as my favourite episode.
Spoiler Review:
“I come from a place outside the walls where humanity lives in elegance. Humanity had not perished.”
With these words, the entire story of Attack on Titan changes forever.
I remember first reading this in the manga and being in complete shock.
I thought the basement would hold a cure or something cliche like that but, no, instead it holds what is my favourite twist of all time.
Grisha left a series of books revealing that the entire world outside the walls is completely fine.
Well, fine is not really the right word to describe it, as will be shown in the next episode, but you get the idea.
And not only is the outside world intact but it also incredibly technologically advanced compared to life inside the Walls.
In the post-credits scene, where we get a brief look at Grisha’s childhood, we see an airship, a clear sign of the 1940s setting the rest of the world is in.
It only gets better though because the twist is not over yet.
I consider the entirety of Grisha’s backstory to be one giant collective twist, and the reveals we will get in the following episodes will leave everyone’s jaws on the floor.
The set-up for this, with the opening part of the twist, is phenomenally handled.
At first, we are fooled into thinking the basement is a misdirect.
Twice in fact because Eren’s key will not fit in the door and, when they eventually break in and open the cabinet the key unlocks, there is nothing inside.
Thankfully, this is just Isayama messing with us because Levi quickly discovers a secret compartment where the books containing the truth are held.
The slow reveal that follows is masterful, with Eren and Mikasa both opening the book in a touching moment, before it cuts to a flashback that reveals what question Erwin asked his father all those years ago.
Him asking how they could really be sure that all humans had been eaten outside the walls was foreshadowed in the previous episode, with Erwin deliriously asking that question in his dying state.
“The Basement” then cuts to the others learning Erwin’s theory was correct, and humanity is thriving outside the walls.
Eren also finds a photograph, another technological achievement they knew nothing about, and on it is a picture of Grisha with a mysterious woman and child.
It is important to take note of this for the next episode.
Then comes the post-credits scene where we meet a young Grisha and his little sister Fay.
It is is severely hinted at by the armbands they are wearing, which are reminiscent of what the Nazi’s forced Jewish people to wear in World War Two, that they are living under oppression.
Grisha then grabs Fay’s hand and runs outside the wall so she can see the airship which, despite the happy music, will have disastrous consequences.
This first part of the reveal was an amazing ending and I cannot wait to see it continued.
As for the rest of “The Basement”, it mostly expands on things from the manga to stall for time.
Despite knowing this, the scenes are still very nostalgic and do serve a point with Eren and Mikasa remembering their life in Shiganshina before it was invaded.
Aside from the ending, the beginning is the most interesting part of the episode though because it has a scene that is still not explained in the manga.
Upon waking up, Armin sees briefly sees the Colossal Titan with a half skeleton face that has Bertholdt’s voice.
So, what is this?
The Colossal Titan power transferring to Armin, a dream or a hallucination?
We will just have to wait and find out.
Overall, “The Basement” seems like a standard episode at first until that phenomenal ending happens and starts the twist that will change this series forever.
I watched the first two John Wick films the week before I went to see the third installment, Parabellum, and found them both to be non-stop adrenaline rides.
This is thankfully continued in the latest film, once again directed by Chad Stahelski and starring Keanu Reeves as the titular John Wick.
Picking up right from where Chapter Two left off, Parabellum sees Wick attempting to flee New York after being excommunicadoed from the Continental, and receiving a massive bounty on his head.
What follows is gripping action sequence after gripping action sequence that left everyone in the audience on the edge of their seats.
With so much of this it would have been very easy for it to become repetitive and redundant but, just as you begin to get tired of the relentless action, a new gimmick is thrown in to keep you engaged.
Every action scene in this film adds something new, creating a fresh experience in every bout of action.
Such was evident with the audience I was viewing the film with, which was a very interactive crowd.
There were many gasps and cheers at how vicious and violently exciting the action was.
On top of this, there are many human moments as well with Parabellum going deeper into Wick’s backstory than either of the previous films.
It makes me wonder how they will continue to expand on him in the next film.
The acting is also good with Reeves, Halle Berry, Ian McShane and Lance Reddick doing great jobs.
However, the film does have its flaws, which keep it from being perfect.
There are a few eye rolling moments where Wick’s opponents deliberately leave him alive for no reason.
Then there is this pivotal scene where Wick is in a desert that feels kind of pointless in the grand scheme of the film.
John Wick’s journey of self discovery in the desert feels pointless by the film’s conclusion because of how quickly it is reversed.
Finally, there is the final few minutes of the film, which had something that completely broke my suspension of disbelief and drew me out of the ending.
Still, despite these flaws, I found John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum to be an exciting thrill wide that every action junkie will enjoy.
Be sure to check it out.
After Zeke’s dramatic return at the end of Chapter 117 of Attack on Titan, I thought Chapter 118, “Foul Play,” would end with him screaming, turning all those poisoned by his spinal fluid into Titans.
While this does not happen in the latest chapter, “Foul Play,” it still offers some fantastic moments in its action but most of all in its character development.
There is so much development in this chapter that it is honestly a testament to how great of a writer Hajime Isayama is because it did not make the story feel bloated.
Mikasa, Armin, Jean, Connie, Gabi, Falco, Onyankopon, Nile, all of them got some great moments in “Foul Play.”
My favourite piece of character development this chapter would have to be Gabi’s because she finally acknowledges that the Eldians are not devils but people just like her.
I was glad to see Gabi finally reach this realization because many feared that, when she met up with the Warriors again, she would revert back to her old personality.
Thankfully, she does the opposite of this, even stopping Colt from killing Nile when he runs over to give Falco back to them.
This really shows how far she has come since her introduction because, when we first met her, she would have allowed Colt to shoot Nile without hesitation.
After rescuing Falco, the three hide in a building where Falco admits that he delivered letters for Eren when he was in Liberio, and that he likes Gabi.
This is a surprising moment because Isayama does not usually write romantic scenes so to see him write an intentionally awkward love declaration is both funny and a nice change of pace.
Falco’s declaration also leads Gabi to rip off his armband in a callback to when Falco did this to her in an earlier chapter, once again showing how far she has come.
Gabi and Falco are not the only ones with great development this chapter because Mikasa gets a scene that is clearly a turning point for her character.
She actually leaves Eren’s scarf behind.
The thing she has been carrying around since the beginning of Attack on Titan; the very thing which symbolizes her relationship with Eren, and she left it behind.
However, the way Louise looks at it when Mikasa leaves makes me think it could work its way back to Mikasa through her.
All of the scouts really had defining moments in this chapter, with them all being released by Onyankopon, which I predicted months ago.
Connie is quick to distrust him because he is sick of being betrayed, first by Annie, Reiner and Bertholdt, and now Eren.
Armin, however, wants to hear him out, and Onyankopon says he was never told about the wine and is against the euthanasia plan because “children are the future.”
I believe that he is on the scouts side because, as Armin says, Onyankopon believes they were all created for a reaon so he would not support the euthanasia plan, which is why Yelena did not tell him.
As for Jean, his development is small but pivotal nonetheless because he actually admits to being envious of Eren all the way back in training.
Likewise, Armin points out what we have all been suspecting, that Eren would never be in favor of Zeke’s plan to euthanize the Eldian race because he believes in freedom.
This leads to Armin remembering what Eren said when they reached the ocean in Chapter 90, which apparently makes him realise what Eren’s actual plan is because he says, “no way,” in apparent denial.
This has me concerned because, in that chapter, Eren wondered if they would be free if they killed all of their enemies across the ocean.
If this is what Armin is remembering, then it hints at Eren initiating the rumbling and destroying the entire world outside of Paradis, leaving only his people on the island alive.
This is a very dark theory and it will be interesting to see if Eren would go as far to murder billions of people to keep his friends safe.
Either way, the rumbling is a chekov’s gun at this point and it is obvious it will be fired by the end of the series.
It is just a matter of whether or not that rumbling will be world ending or not.
Speaking of chekov’s gun though, Colt seems to have one of those himself with an apparent Titan killing gun.
Isayama seems to be hinting that this gun will kill a Titan but who is anyone’s guess.
Colt is heading towards Zeke to try and dissuade him from screaming by telling him about Falco being infected but we all know Zeke will not let this stop him from trying to achieve his goal.
This may result in Colt trying to kill Zeke with it but I doubt it will work.
In fact, I find it likely that Colt may die soon because he is near the infected Falco and, if he turns into a Titan and eats his brother, it would make for a very tragic death.
As for Zeke himself, it is getting a little sad how Zeke gets pretty much destroyed in ever battle.
In an admittedly genius moment from Pieck and Magath, they are able to shoot him off the wall, mortally wounding him.
Honestly, the amount of times both Zeke and Reiner have been beaten up in this series is a little embarrassing for them, and another thing they have in common besides their backstories.
At least Zeke got a moment to shine when he destroyed the airships at the beginning of the chapter, which resulted in the glorious panel of the Queen of Crazy Yelena spreading her arms out and marveling at the destruction caused by her god.
Yelena continues to be a very interesting character, due to how absolutely insane she is.
The panel of her glaring at Armin makes it look like she wants to eat his face.
It reminded a lot of Sister Krone from The Promised Neverland series.
Both characters are crazy and have nightmare inducing facial expressions.
Overall, “Foul Play” is a great chapter, where its character development manages to somehow be even more interesting than its action.
With the story looking to set the stage for Zeke’s scream in the next few chapters, I cannot wait to see what the horrific effects of this will be.
In my review for the shocking Issue 191 of The Walking Dead, I said I had mixed opinions about the possibility of Rick Grimes dying.
On the one hand, I did like the idea of his death being reminiscent of assassinations of other historical figures but, on the other hand, I thought it was stupid that it was Sebastian, of all people, who killed him.
Overall, I decided to reserve judgement on the death until it actually happened in Issue 192, “Aftermath.”
Well, the chapter was released yesterday and we finally got to see the great Rick Grimes die, and, I have to say, I am disappointed.
My main criticism lies in how Rick’s death honestly does not feel like the death of a main character.
Seriously, this chapter is named “Aftermath,” we should be seeing all the people Rick helped reacting to the news of his death.
Sure, we do get Carl’s reaction and that is handled very well but we get almost no reaction from the other characters.
What about Michonne?
She was Rick’s best friend and she does not even shed a tear over his death.
Maggie, Sophia, Eugene, Jesus, Aaron, these are all characters who Rick has helped survive and we do not see of their reactions apart from brief mourning shots as they go to his funeral.
And that’s another thing, we don’t even see his funeral.
Carl collapses from grief on his way to Alexandria and says he does not think he can do this without his father then the issue just ends.
It honestly feels like the death of a minor character instead of the lead of the entire series.
What’s more, it looks like the comics are going to be quickly moving on from Rick’s death.
The next issue looks to be entirely Negan focused, and the issue after that is introducing a new character Sheriff Kapoor, who looks almost exactly like Rick.
I should not have to say this but, since Rick is the main character, his death should feel like a massive event that will affect the future of the series but it honestly does not feel like that.
I’m not going to act like there aren’t some great things about “Aftermath” because there are.
Seeing Rick get repeatedly shot by Sebastian had me screaming out in shock.
Not only this but the scene where Carl confronts Sebastian in prison is magnificent.
It shows how Carl has been influenced by both Rick and Negan because, while he decides to let him rot in prison like Rick would have wanted, he also promises to hurt him if he ever gets out, quoting Negan as he leaves by saying “ta, ta.”
However, while this is a great moment that points towards an interesting future for Carl, it does not make up for how poorly handled Rick’s exit feels.
He was killed by one of the most annoying characters the series has ever had, there is almost no reaction from the other characters to his death, which ultimately feels like that of a side character rather the main one, and the comics already look to be moving on from it in the next issue.
In my opinion, Robert Kirkman really dropped the ball with this.
The Commonwealth Arc has been downright bad in my opinion.
There were various great moments in it that made me believe it could get better but, overall, it was poorly plotted, structured, and resulted in a disappointing death for the main character.
I will keep reading to see what the series is like without Rick but, unless it has picked up by issue 200, I will think the series has officially jumped the shark.
Another year, another biopic.
Only according to Rocketman‘s lead star, Taron Edgerton, the film is not a biopic but rather a “fantasy musical.”
Well, having seen Rocketman, directed by Dexter Fletcher, I can firmly say that it is indeed a biopic but one that is different from the rest because of this “fantasy musical” status.
Following the life of the singing legend Elton John, the film details his rise to fame, substance abuse and recovery in a way that feels fresh and new compared to other movies of the genre.
This is helped by a magnificent performance from Edgerton who, while not sounding quite like the singer he is portraying, is still fantastic, especially in his vocals.
It makes me wonder if another biopic could be up for a Best Actor award again?
Last time, Rami Malak won for Bohemian Rhapsody now it could be Edgerton’s time with Rocketman.
Taron Edgerton is amazing as Elton John, pulling off his dramatic musical side perfectly.
It is not just him though because every actor and performer does an amazing job here.
Jamie Bell is great as John’s long time friend and lyricist Bernie Taupin, and he has great chemistry with Edgerton with both perfectly portraying the two’s friendship.
However, The real scene stealer, alongside Edgerton, is Richard Madden in his sociopathic portrayal of John Reid.
It is interesting to see the difference in his portrayal from Bohemian Rhapsody because in that film he seems like a normal businessman, while in this one he is as an uncaring sociopath.
Richard Madden is unlikable in a good way as the abusive and cruel John Reid.
Along with the acting, the musical numbers of Rocketman are also great, being very energetic and fantasy-like, which separates it from other films.
Whereas previous biopics have usually felt realistic in their use of music, Rocketman’s usage is more fantastical and shows both the good and dark side to Elton John.
Edgerton’s portrayal of him is very sympathetic, relating the loneliness and depression he faced despite his fame.
The fantasy elements of this film causes Elton John’s success and internal struggles to come across to the audience perfectly.
This does unfortunately tread Rocketman in with the typical biopic tropes we have seen time and time again but, thankfully, the fantasy element keeps it from getting stale.
As a result, Rocketman feels fresh and engaging throughout, with its fantastic performances and musical numbers keeping the viewers both emotionally engaged and entertained.
I can honestly say this is my second favourite film of the year so far.
Well, it took a while but my favourite episode of Attack on Titan, “Warrior”, has finally been overtaken.
I was looking forward to this episode the moment I read the chapter of it last year, and “Midnight Sun” does not disappoint.
The story picks up in the aftermath of the almost as amazing “Hero” from last week, and centers around what has to be one of the most difficult choices in anime history.
If Attack on Titan was an RPG, and I was playing Levi at that moment, I would have no idea what to do.
This choice makes for the most emotional moment of the entire series, with me crying not once but twice.
What makes these emotional scenes so great is the spectacular voice acting.
Literally every member of the cast brings their A game to this episode, especially Yûki Kaigi and Yui Ishikawa who give their best performances as Eren and Mikasa so far.
What makes their performances even more powerful is the almost complete lack of music, which is very striking because it allows the emotion behind the characters’ pain come through greatly.
As far as I can remember, there are only two instances of actual music being played and both are superb.
The episode does not even play the opening, which is how you know it means business going in.
Along with all this comes more hints to future episodes of the season, with me believing the next one could even top “Midnight Sun” because it will be adapting my favourite chapter from the manga.
We will have to wait and see though and, at least until then, Midnight Sun will remain my favourite Attack on Titan episode with its fantastic story, acting and emotionally gripping scenes.
Spoiler Review:
Rest in peace, Erwin Smith.
You were the best commander the Survey Corps ever had and you have the best death of the entire series.
Yes, we had to say goodbye to this great leader in “Midnight Sun”, and in a perfect way too.
Even with the manga long having passed Erwin’s death, his is still the best of Attack on Titan so far, with it resolving his character arc brilliantly and the impact of his death still being felt.
Erwin was a selfish person but, in his final moments, he threw his dreams away for the good of humanity, finally becoming what he had always pretended to be.
Coming into the episode, I thought this death would not hit me as hard because I had already read it in the manga but, boy, was I wrong.
Erwin’s death hit me like a tonne of bricks emotionally, just as the build-up to this event did with Levi’s big choice.
“Midnight Sun” finally shows those who only watch the anime what Eren and Mikasa’s fight with Levi in the season three part one cliffhanger was about.
Levi can only save one person by turning them into a Titan and feeding Bertholdt to them but he wants to save Erwin while Eren and Mikasa want to save Armin.
This leads to the serum bowl, with the three of them, and Floch, fighting over who should get it, before Hange and the others arrive to stop the chaos.
It is these scenes that deliver the most emotional gut punches of the episode, with Eren and Mikasa’s desperate attempt to save Armin leaving me on the verge of tears.
The dam eventually burst for me when Hange revealed Moblit had died saving her.
Moblit’s death will definitely be overlooked by fans because of Erwin and Bertholdt’s but he was still a great side character who died doing what he was doing the moment we met him, protecting Hange.
It is her speech about this that finally gets Mikasa to mournfully stop fighting, while Eren still struggles to save his friend.
Kaigi’s performance is the best it has ever been in this scene as he tries to convince Levi to save Armin by telling him about the ocean.
This appears to not work though because Levi demands everyone leaves so he can turn Erwin into a Titan.
With Eren being dragged away by Floch, Levi goes to inject Erwin and experiences a series of flashbacks from hearing Armin’s speech about the ocean, to Kenny giving him the serum, to him telling Erwin to die for them.
The integration of these flashbacks into the shot, with them overlapping Levi’s face is amazing.
The best one of all though comes when Erwin, in a dazed state, slaps Levi’s hand away and the shot quickly transitions to the moment Erwin raised his hand as a child to ask his father about if humanity could survive outside the walls.
It is through this that Levi realizes Erwin is a slave to his dreams and it would be cruel to bring him back into this hell so he saves Armin.
Bertholdt’s final moments as he is devoured by him is both gory and tragic, leaving me feeling sorry for him despite all he had done.
The big death of the episode still goes to Erwin though, with music finally coming into the scene when Hange announces his passing, bringing me to tears once more.
Erwin may have been a devil, like Floch said, but he was an inspirational one.
I am also personally glad that Armin is the one who was chosen because, again, he is my favourite character.
Now, he is also the Colossal Titan, which is sure to bring many exciting moments because the scouts now have two Titan Shifters on their side.
Along with these emotional scenes, there are also many hints to future episodes.
The first one comes when Eren meets Zeke for the first time and it is revealed Zeke knows Eren’s father, believing him to have brainwashed them.
How exactly he knows Grisha is not revealed because of Levi’s interruption but, as a manga reader, I can tell you that when it is revealed it will be shocking.
Then there is Reiner, who is rescued by Zeke shortly afterwards but, before this, he begs Hange to deliver Ymir’s letter to Historia.
This means a certain moment from the manga is coming soon and I am very curious to see how it will be changed because I think it needs to be.
Anyway, next episode is the one the entire series has been building to, “The Basement” where the truth will be uncovered.
I cannot wait to see if it will top my new favourite episode of “Midnight Sun.”
I have been a fan of the Godzilla series for a while so I was very excited to see the adaptations.
I found the first of them, Godzilla from 2014, to be good overall but with a lot of problems.
Sadly, Godzilla: King of the Monsters, directed by Michael Doughtery, also has many problems but less good things with the film largely focusing on boring, exposition spewing characters.
I was concerned about this right from the trailers, which were genuinely fantastic but also showed there were a lot of characters in the film, maybe too much even.
My fears were unfortunately realised yesterday when I went to see the film.
Picking up five years after the original, King of the Monsters follows the experiences of the Russel family, including Gary sue Mark (Kyle Chandler), his ex-wife with confusing motivations Emma (Vera Farminga) and their daughter Madison (Millie Bobby Brown), who I honestly forgot was in the film at times.
Sadly, the Russell family does not hold that much emotional value. They did have potential but it is bogged down by the exposition.
Speaking of forgettable characters, Charles Dance plays the villain Alan Jonah whose character feels unneeded and, much like Emma, has very confusing motivation.
There are some returning characters like Ishiro Serizawa (Ken Watanabe) and Vivienne Graham (Sally Hawkins), who are just as forgettable as in the first Godzilla.
Say what you want about that film but at least it had one interesting character in Bryan Cranston’s Joe Brody. Godzilla: King of the Monsters does not have one interesting character, and almost every scene has them sprouting exposition in ways that are not at all interesting.
I already got sick of them saying Godzilla was a beacon of hope in the first film, I did not need to hear it multiple times in this one.
Thankfully, the film does get entertaining when the monsters do show up and fight.
These battles between Godzilla, Mothra, King Ghidorah, and Rodan have some very spectacular moments.
Whenever the monsters are on screen the movie gets exciting, with King Ghidorah looking especially threatening.
There are even some points when an updated version of Godzilla’s original themes plays and this is my favourite part of the film, as it left me grinning from ear to ear.
Sure, the shots of the monsters are not as good as they were in Gareth Edward’s original film but they are competent enough here.
It is just annoying that they kept cutting to these boring characters, the worst offender being Emma because of the lack of connection between motivation and goal.
Emma’s goal makes absolutely no sense based on her motivation. Not only this, but it is never explained why the human villains have their goals either.
Whenever the monsters appeared on screen I was entertained, which is good because they have more of a screen presence than in the first film, but whenever it cut to the human characters I was bored out of my mind.
What makes it worse is that these boring humans took up most of the screen time.
Overall, Godzilla: King of the Monsters is a disappointing film.
There are some good moments of monster action, but you have to sit through scenes of boring, unrealistic characters who spew useless exposition to get to it.
Going to Anime Club at my university, I was not sure what to expect.
I was especially curious to see what kind of anime we would be watching, expecting to see some over the top action.
So, imagine my surprise when we started watching Barakamon, a slice of life anime that I found to be both heartwarming and hilarious.
Directed by Masaki Tachibana, and based off the manga by Satsuki Yoshino, The story follows calligrapher Seishu Handa (Daisuke Ono) who takes the idea of everybody hating critics more than a little too far when he punches an old curator who criticizes his work.
This results in Handa being sent to Goto Island to reflect on his actions and gain new inspiration for his calligraphy.
Hana is surprisingly relatable, given one of the first things we see him do is punch an elderly man.
On the island, he meets a cast of equally colorful characters, including the young girl Naru (Suzuko Hara) who joyously annoys him with her admiration every chance she gets.
The bond that grows between her and Handa is great to see play out, surprisingly so considering Handa’s actions in the first episode.
Not only this but Barakamon is also incredibly funny from start to finish, with every episode being jam packed with laughs.
One recurring joke of the yaoi obsessed Tamako (Rumi Okubo) falsely believing a romance is going on between Handa and another character Hiro gets funnier every time.
I honestly cannot count how many times we all burst into laughter with the constant great jokes, as very few fell flat.
the comedy of Barakamon is spot on, proving numerous laughs. Every episode you will be laughing at something.
The anime also has some great cases of music, especially with the opening “Rashisha” by Super Beaver, which is very catchy. This combination of great characters, jokes and music made for a very fun experience over the span of twelve episodes.
My only criticism is that some characters were not as fleshed out as they could have been.
Otherwise, Barakamon is a hilarious, good time and I suggest you watch it, especially if you are a fan of the slice of life genre.
THE REVIEW MONSTER 