The Toad's Burrow

      If you named this book "Sapphic Encounters in the Time-Space Continuum" it'd sound like a really campy 60's flick, but that's also how I'd describe this entire book. The reason I decided to read it for my one mandatory book of the month was because I had heard about it before, I had seen it's cover, and for some reason people were clamoring about it on Twitter. If you think I base too much of my hobbies on what Twitter recommends you're probably right but still. I vaguely recall it being described as "some people call it really great, others call it too pretentious." So imagine my surprise when I pick up this book from the library, only to find that it's not even 200 pages long, and it's labeled as "Science Fiction Elementary." Let's talk about it.     On that last point for a quick paragraph. I can see why one might describe this novel as "for kids." I mean when I say it's short I do mean it, not jus...

      I promise I am not becoming a Keke Palmer fan who will review all of her films, but what I will say is that I did in fact go to the theaters with my sister to watch another Keke Palmer film, and I enjoyed it. It's messy, it's flawed, and frankly it's a pretty confusing film, but it was funny. That comedy was sort of the main tentpole that held up the very large tent that is the film I Love Boosters , which tries to do so, so much, admirably so I might add. Yet I found myself leaving the film feeling as if it tried to do too much, it tried to fit so much under it's tent, and as a result it almost cheapened the true message, the beauty that was meant to be at the center of it all. Let's talk about it.     I knew about this film when it came out, partially because of a fun movie auction activity I had done with friends, but I in fact did receive some minor promo of this film. Mainly someone posting a GIF from this movie, and a reddit post apparently from dire...

    People, come around, for I have finished another comic book series, this time by the wonderful Jonathan Hickman. I wouldn't say I've read everything he's done, but I will say that I read both his  Avengers  and Fantastic Four  runs and I both loved them, particularly as they were the leadups/lead-in's to Secret Wars . So, when I saw someone post an image of East of West , it didn't take me much convincing. Not only did the premise seem super cool, not only was it in a compact and relatively digestible 45 issues, but it was by an author whose stories I enjoyed. And well, I must say, East of West  is really good, except for the ending. That is not to say I think the story ended incorrectly, it's just that it came to that conclusion significantly faster than I thought it would. Let's talk about it.     So, for the uninitiated, the gist of East of West  is basically this. Some time in the 1800's(?) America was hit with a meteor in a place cal...

    Certainly a film of all time. That's not to just say I thought The Drama  was bad or anything. In fact, I knew about the big twist prior to watching this film (thanks Twitter) yet still came away pretty pleased with how they handled the premise. If you (thankfully) haven't been spoiled yet, the big reveal is that Emma (Zendaya's character), planned and almost executed a school shooting. The semantics of it all are frankly just there to make you feel better about whatever judgement or choice you've made on her character. I will say that the film does really make you think about this moral quandary, and tests the limit of the idea that everyone gets a second chance. So let's talk about it.     I do think that this film is best enjoyed with other people around you. No offense to those who prefer to watch movies alone, but this is pretty clearly one of those movies meant to challenge your current paradigm on morality, and see if it needs to, or wants to shift. T...

      It has been nearly six years since I first watched Another Round . I remember seeing the trailer as a high-schooler who had very limited interactions with alcohol, thinking the premise was novel, but not really coming in with any sort of experience with the subject matter. Of course I had some preconceived notions surrounding the subject matter, mainly that I wasn't particularly interested in it because alcohol didn't taste good, and that it had a tendency to bring out some negative tendencies in some people. Of course now, I'm not saying I'm a regular drinker, far from it, but my stance on drinking has changed pretty substantially, and I think I understand the film better now. I do appreciate that it basically took the concept of alcohol as this social lubricant to it's (very apparent) maximum. So let's talk about it.     Perhaps when I'm 40 I'll be able to revisit this film once again, and think about how boring I've become, because this film...

    Throughout the background of the entire month of May, I have had a very good friend of mine telling me that I should read Chew . He of course knows that I am just an avid of a comic reader as he is, and so he was telling me that it was worth it. There was just one issue though, the premise of the entire comic is not particularly compelling. Let me spell it out. Tony Chu is a Cibopath, long story short he is a detective who can trace the memories of anything he eats, making him very good at his job, even if eating is disgusting for him. The story follows him in a world where chicken is banned, and it's up to him to balance both his work and his life, while figuring out the mystery behind chicken prohibition. Sounds a little ridiculous doesn't it? Not the biggest pull. But for a while, it actually works, and it's great. So let's talk about it.     One thing that Chew  must be applauded on is the fact that it sticks to it's premise so religiously. The FDA is on...

      I mean look, I've heard about this game for so long, I've wanted to play it for so long, so to finally have the chance to play it, it was tantalizing. But now that I've played it, I don't know what to make of it. That's not to say I thought Cyberpunk 2077 was a bad game, nor that I won't play a sequel, but this game felt less polished/cohesive than I would have thought from CDPR say compared to The Witcher 3. I mean this game is certainly getting at least an 80 from me, that's for sure, but does it belong in my pantheon of greatest open-world RPG's of all time? It's hard to say, so let's talk about it.     The first thing I need to get out of the way is that the current iteration of Cyberpunk 2077 , so post 2.0 with the Phantom Liberty DLC is basically two different versions of the game stitched to each other.  What I mean by this is that you'll see a lot of guides reference older versions of the game, and there are a lot of mechanics t...

      Hey look I'm doing book reviews again. Is this a sign of the end times? Possibly. Or maybe I'm just trying harder to expand what I read and so part of the way to keep me accountable is by writing reviews for said books. Regardless, I have indeed read this entire book, after waiting with bated breath mind you. I don't know how or why, but this book was in hot demand in my city's library system, and I actually had to wait a couple of weeks until I was in front of the line for this one. Why did I pick this specific book you ask? Well I'm single and have never been in a relationship, yet I couldn't stop thinking about a particular tweet claiming this book made them become polyamorous. So I thought, why not, I claim to be someone open to new idea's, so let's see just how open I really was. Let's talk about it.     A short disclaimer, there's only so much I could do realistically do to keep an open mind about this book, I'm not actually that ...

      Yes, I know. Why am I actually following through with my commitment to watching all of The Hangover  movies? I don't know, but sadly I am quite underwhelmed to say the least. This movie clearly understands at least a little bit what made the first one decent, if dated. It knows that it was fun the last time around to go backtracking around this city, finding out about all of these crazy, stupid they did the night before. Except this time, they're in Bangkok, and oooh it's so much more exotic. Except it's just all so much more contrived, and the end result is you laugh less, and then basically everything problematic about it just kind of screams in your face. Let's talk about it.     This film is trying to replicate a formula without putting in the work or dedication to what made it possible for viewers to feel even a little invested in the film. This time around it isn't Doug who is lost and potentially in danger, it's Teddy. And if you're like me ...