In case it’s not very obvious from the title, this article will contain many spoilers for last night’s episode of Supergirl. Read at your own risk.
Part 1 of the CW’s crossover for this season aired last night, and boy did they start off with a bang. There is no slowly introducing the problem and gathering the group. We’ve been doing that all season during Flash & Arrow. From minute one the Monitor gives us the background we need to set-up the rest of the story, and then it’s game on. I love that they didn’t waste any time in throwing our heroes into the fire. The rushed pacing gives us a sense of the danger they are in.
I had a lot of theories going in as to the role of certain characters and what would happen to some of our stars, but after part 1 I already have to rework all my preconceived notions. First off, I figure this version of Harrison Wells we’ve been seeing in Flash recently was working for or somehow connected to the Anti-Monitor. I guess I was partially right, but it never occurred to me he would be playing the part of Pariah. That reveal had my jaw drop. I’m excited to see what they do with his character.
The other thing I was surprised about is that they seem to have killed Oliver Queen at the end of the first episode. I figured if he was dying in a series other than his own it would be on Flash. The two shows have always been tied more closely together than the others, plus it makes for a great cliffhanger just before the break. Ollie dies, everyone looks shocked, cut to credits and we wait a month to see his team’s reactions. Who knows, maybe future Ollie whom we saw while they rescued baby Jonathan will have a role to play in everything. Only time will tell.
I’m going to try to keep posting these updates the day after each episode airs, so stay tuned tomorrow when I give my thoughts on Batwoman and Wednesday for my review of Flash (plus speculation on what will happen when we return in January for the thrilling conclusion).
This Crisis has been six years in the making, by my count. Ever since we first saw headlines about how the Flash would disappear during Crisis they have been planting the seeds to what looks to be their best crossover yet. I am simultaneously very prepared and not at all ready for what comes next.
Two blog posts in one week?!? The universe might not be able to handle me posting on a regular schedule, but it’s happening! Got a quick one for you about the Christmas EP that Backyard Superheroes is putting out this Friday the 13th: Let’s Get Elfed Up.
First of all, I love the album title! It’s clever and fun, as is the album art. There’s two tracks on it that are both upbeat and catchy, which makes it perfect for a quick run to the store to buy some eggnog and cinnamon (or whatever else gets you in the holiday spirit). Plus all proceeds are going to Toys for Tots, so you get to listen to great music while also spreading some joy this season. That’s a win all around, in my book.
“So where do I go to purchase this festive music?” you ask… The EP will be available on Bandcamp, as well as Apple Music and Spotify. Personally I love Bandcamp and even use it myself for Lonely Atom Records.
I know you’re tired of the same old Christmas Classics, so don’t snooze on some new holiday tunes to add to your playlists this year.
If you frequent Twitter, you may have noticed #DragonAgeDay has been trending. That is because today is the unofficial holiday fans of the video game series celebrate their love for it and what it means to them. I tweeted a little something myself and have been sharing other people’s posts, but I actually need way more characters to express my love for this series than Twitter will allow me. Which brings me to the rare and mystical blog post you never expect from me anymore. I always say I’m going to try to be better at posting and never do, so I’m not going to do that this time. I’m just going to talk enthusiastically about a video game for a few minutes then say see you again in a few months, probably when the new season of Doctor Who starts.
My Dragon Age story happens a little out of order. My partner and I were looking for games to play together, but a lot of multiplayer games we are into are online and not split screen, and since we live together and share a tv and console that doesn’t really work. He knows I’m super into fantasy (seeing how my other obsession is Critical Role), so he wanted to introduce me to Dragon Age. In an effort to still be able to play together, we have a system where he does the fighting but we make choices together. He started me on DA2 and I immediately fell in love with every single companion I met. The story is great, the banter and dialogue is fun, and the world completely sucks you in. I romanced Merrill and struggled with every choice I made involving her story (I’m going to try to keep this as spoiler free as possible just in case someone hasn’t played the games but I make no promises about my comments section). I’m currently on my second play-through and romancing my pirate queen Isabella this time. No matter what my main story will always be the same – pro-mage until the day I die.
My play-through of DA2 the partner had already played the game, so he knew what happens and just didn’t tell me. Inquisition we both played for the first time together. We experienced every up and down not knowing what would happen. He chose a Qunari because it was the first time Bioware made it a playable race. I’m currently starting my second go round and playing an elf mage. Planning to romance the heck out of Dorian, but the first time I didn’t really romance anyone. Dorian was the only character I super loved, and he only likes dudes, even if my female Qunari was super buff and could kick most guys collective asses.
Isn’t he pretty (but also a badass)?
There’s so much to do in Inquisition it’s hard to focus on anything other than what the collective fandom is obsessing over – that ending and what it means for DA4.
#TheDreadWolfRises
While we all patiently wait for the new game to arrive, I’m just grateful that not only did the series give me something to share with my partner, I was also able to pass that joy up the latter to my dad. I grew up playing games on the computer with him when I was a little girl. He recently started getting into everything Steam has to offer and asked me for suggestions. I immediately told him to go download Origins (which I skipped over, but I promise I went back and played it eventually and yes of course romanced Zevran). This Thanksgiving, while visiting my parents, I asked Dad how the game was coming. He’s still working out some of the fighting mechanics and was stuck on the fight when the Crows ambush you. I gave him a few pointers and helped him pick the best equipment and party possible and he finally made it through. Enjoy hanging out with my virtual boyfriend!
This very long post was mostly to say thank you to everyone at Bioware who made this game that I get to enjoy with my family. Thank you to DA twitter for sharing your art and enthusiasm with me. And thank you, dear reader, for letting me ramble about one of my favorite things for a few minutes. I promise I’ll update you when DA4 finally comes out and tell you who I romanced.
*Heads up: I talk fairly frankly about anxiety and a death in the family. I promise this is a very hopeful/happy post but you have to fight your way through some clouds to see the sun sometimes.
Anxiety is a tricky thing.
It makes it so, for people like me, it’s very hard to talk to strangers without feeling like you’re making a complete ass out of yourself when really you’re being perfectly charming and wonderful, if maybe a bit weird. This is what I need you to keep in mind as I tell you about my day yesterday.
It all started with a series of dreams that I do not remember but had me wake up with a knot in my chest and a general sense of unease. Since my grandfather passed away a week ago I have had a couple mild episodes, so it didn’t feel all that odd but also very much did, if that makes sense.
I start my day every morning by hopping on twitter to see a mix of the latest news and what’s new with my favorite online entities. I haven’t been online for several days being too busy with family and such, but something had me jump on yesterday. This is how I found Victoria Schwab promoting an event she was participating in at my local bookstore. I immediately looked up their events calendar, and after reading a description of the book that Sarah Gailey was launching (and doing a conversation with one of my favorite authors) I knew I had to check this out. I am so very glad that I did. Normally going to events by myself makes me extra anxious (I’m an awkward human at the best of times), but everyone was super friendly. I met a fellow critter and got complemented on my D&D Pride shirt by 3 or 4 people. I walked away feeling rather proud of myself as I talked to both Sarah and Victoria (and they both seem like lovely humans).
HOWEVER
I also feel like while I had a perfectly lovely chat with Victoria, I also had a million more things I wanted to say but didn’t want to be the weirdo coming on too strong at an event that wasn’t even for them in the first place. So, in the interest of getting my brain to chill out and stop screaming “missed opportunities,” here’s a little story about my discovery of Victoria Schwab and her series “A Darker Shade of Magic” (ADSoM).
I at this point can’t remember how I found ADSoM, but it was definitely recommended to me online somehow. Either a “if you like this, you’ll also like” type thing or someone I follow on Twitter mentioned it. Whatever the story, I had been reading a lot of nonfiction, some about the long ago past and others about our current President, and thought it sounded like a nice change of pace. I reserved the first book in the series from my local library, and by the end of the novel I had ordered the box set on Barnes & Noble’s website. I had not immediately fallen in love with a fictional world this quickly since 11-year-old me had first discovered Hogwarts School of Witchcraft & Wizardry. I devoured this series, and it wasn’t until I started thinking about why that I realized the nonfictional world I had been residing in had probably starved out the imaginative and hopeful parts of my brain. We live in scary times, my friends, and sometimes we forget how nice it is to escape for even a few brief hours.
I had certainly forgotten.
ADSoM was like medicine for my weary soul. It was like treating my brain to dark chocolate after a bad brain day. (True facts, dark chocolate is a good mood booster if you’re having a mildly depressive episode. Try it sometime.) ((Disclaimer: I am not a doctor, but some problems not even chocolate can solve. If this feels true for you, maybe try therapy.))
*ahem* back to my point. Schwab’s books mean the world to me. Not only did they get me through some troubling times, but they also introduced me to a new human who I follow on Twitter and see parts of myself in frequently. We seem to have some of the same triggers and fears and quirks. It makes me feel so much more *normal* to know I’m not the only weirdo who likes wearing cat ears but also finds speaking in front of crowds exhausting. I wish I could’ve found a way to say all that, but it was also nice to just say “thanks for helping me be here today” and leaving it at that. Which, listening to Sarah speak made me feel like I maybe found another author to love and respect and who knows what else. I’ll just have to read the book and see what comes of it.
*Sarah Gailey’s book “Magic For Liars” came out today. They read the first chapter at the event and it sounds like an interesting read. Pick your copy up today at your Friendly Local Bookstore, and maybe I’ll write a review here 6 months from now when I finally have time to read it.
Warning: there will be spoilers abound in all my Doctor Who reviews. Continue at your own risk.
After what seemed like forever, we finally got to meet the new Doctor this past Sunday, and… I have no words other than BRILLIANT. I mean, just look at her running around in Capaldi’s old close, looking a bit mad.
That’s her making a new sonic out of scraps she finds on Earth because she’s brilliant and can do anything.
In case you can’t tell, I really loved our Lady Doctor and the episode she gets introduced in. Throughout the extended season premiere we get to meet who will become the new companions as they get sucked into a mystery involving what else but aliens and the Doctor. I think my favorite of all of them was Grace, who unfortunately does not make it to the end of the episode. As Ryan points out in his ending video to his YouTube followers, she died the way she lived – helping people.
The companions we are left with are nothing to sneeze at, however. I love how Ryan is curious and unafraid from the start, but feels bad when he realizes his curiosity maybe got people hurt. I hope he keeps being curious while maybe being a little smarter about it in the future.
Then there’s Yasmin (Yas to her friends), the rookie police officer who wants something more exciting than parking disputes and gets a little more than she bargained for. She’s another one who is prime companion material – looking for a challenge and a way to make a difference.
Finally there’s Graham, who reluctantly goes along with everything even though he doesn’t even believe in aliens at first, and if they do exist they certainly aren’t in Sheffield. I love his skepticism, and I love his faith that the bus drivers will know if anything weird is going on (which he’s not wrong), and I love the fact he goes along with things no matter how doubtful or scared he is of this very unfamiliar situation. I look forward to him going waaaaay outside his comfort zone while he travels across the stars.
I could keep going, but there is not a single moment of this episode I did not wholeheartedly love. I think Jodie Whittaker is perfect as the Doctor so far, and I think she has the perfect companions for her version of the Doctor. I love that she’s just as confused by her situation as we are. She wants to know who she is and where her TARDIS went just as much as we do. I love that rush of adrenaline as she’s facing the Big Bad that finally jolts her memory. I love the speech that is both classic and unique where she reveals “I’m the Doctor” before defending the Earth yet again from an alien threat. I love everything about what I watched Sunday, and cannot wait to get to know her better. She is my Doctor, and I will follow her to the edges of time and space for as long as she asks me to.
Editor’s note: This review should have gone up sooner but thanks to technical issues (and other life stuff) it has been held till now. Better late than never, am I right?
The following ares my stream of conscious thoughts (with mild edits) while listening to Backyard Superhores’ latest album, Never Give Up, Never Surrender. Now available on Spotify, iTunes, and Bandcamp (personally I like Bandcamp best for my music-buying needs).
This album doesn’t grab me up front in the same way their previous record did, but it definitely gets me immediately curious. “Where is this going?” I think as two songs later we jump into an upbeat, fast-paced jam that I am all in for. I don’t listen to music at home much, but when I do I’m looking for something I can workout to or that inspires me to get stuff done. While NGU doesn’t immediately start that way, it certainly gets there by track 3 and does a good job of bringing the energy up and down throughout the rest of the album in a way that feels right.
I think my favorite song on the album is “The Weekend”. Not only is it a really catchy ear worm of a tune, but I love the little bit of video game music at the end. The song after it, “Tangerine Drive” isn’t bad either. It’s got a short but sweet horn riff I enjoy that gets repeated a couple times. I also love the way it breaks down towards the end then picks back up again before closing and jumping into the next song. Then there’s “What if,” which asks “what if life were like the comics?” something I ask myself All. The. Time.
Another thing worth noting with NGU is how very ska the horns and rhythm are, but without hitting you over the head with it. I love how they find that balance of being THE MOST SKA but not at the same time. Some bands get classified as ska when they’re really just rock bands with horns. Backyard Superheroes are a ska band, and very much ok with that.
Overall I would say I prefer their previous album, Let’s Get Dangerous, but definitely enjoyed this one and can see myself getting more attached with repeated play-throughs. Listen for yourself, and see what you think. And while you’re at it, think about what your life would be like as a comic book, and leave a comment with what your super power would be. I definitely would want some telekinesis so I could move things from across the room that are too far away from me. Also, the possibility of being able to levitate myself is pretty cool.
The following is a review of chapter 2 (!) of The Hotel Avira Haunting, which is available for public consumption as of today. You can find my review of chapter 1 here. I think I did a pretty good job of staying vague and spoiler-free, but if you’re worried just skip to the end where I say I love it and you should go throw these people your money for the awesome thing they created. And with that, gentle reader, let’s dive in…
First, a recap (spoilers for chapter 1): When last we left our hero, he was looking to debunk the infamous Hotel Avira only to find that the ghosts were very real and very active. Sebastian was warned not to interact with the spirits, but of course he didn’t listen. Now his spirit is trapped in the hotel circa 1970. And that’s where we pick up with…
Chapter 2: Claire
Sebastian handles being in ghost mode about as well as you expect a person who until today didn’t even believe in them. While floating around the hotel and adjusting to his current situation he finds Claire, but as a live person, not the ghost he meets in chapter 1. This leads to lots of stuff happening that I don’t want to spoil for you. The story is great though, as is the art. It ends on a nice, juicy cliffhanger, which we’ll pick up on in the third and final issue. I look forward to seeing where the story takes us as ghost Sebastian has some big stuff to deal with and not a lot of time to do the things that need doing.
That’s my short and sweet review of this beauty. I could squee about some of the details I breezed over, but I want to leave a few things for you to discover on your own. I’ll simply end this with some shout outs to
Damian Simankowicz – the creator and writer of this series;
Marcelo Salaza – the artist;
and Mike Stefan – colorist.
The story and art are both wonderful and make for an enjoyable reading experience. You can pick your copy up TODAY on Amazon. For other platforms, stay tuned for release dates on the Facebook page.
This post has been on the back burner for a couple weeks now, but I think it’s still worth talking about. During Star Wars Celebration it was announced that the upcoming season would be the last for Rebels. While this makes total sense based on where they’re at in the story, it’s still disappointing. In case you thought it was just some kid show on Disney, check out this trailer for the new season.
Yeah, there are plenty of things that kids can love there, but it’s got enough action and heart to make adults happy too. I simultaneously look forward to this final chapter and dread what’s going to happen to these characters I’ve fallen in love with over the past three years.
I’m going to start by saying that in my brain this article started with how different shows have different fans and how the fanbase can add or detract from the enjoyment of a thing. It quickly turned into the story about how Critical Role changed my life and became one of my favorite things on the planet – and how that was just as much about the people involved in the show as the content of the show itself.
Where to begin? I guess I should start by telling you a little bit about my current obsession (and the subject of this article) – Critical Role. It’s a show on Geek & Sundry’s Twitch channel about a bunch of nerdy voice actors who play D&D together (Dungeons & Dragons for all the non-nerds in the room). Each episode seems like a commitment as they range anywhere between 3-5 hrs long, but as they say, “Time flies when you’re having fun”. I don’t think I’ve ever watched an episode that felt like it dragged, even a little. The show is a ton of fun. You can tell that even the cast is having a blast. There have been many nights where even though it was getting late and some of them had early call times for other projects, they still get disappointed when they have to wrap up for the week. This is thanks in equal parts to the fact they are all a bunch of friends getting paid to have fun, and their DM Matthew Mercer is a great storyteller. This last fact is another part of the reason episodes fly by, despite their lengthiness.
Now that I’ve given you an idea what the show is about and how much I love it, I would like to talk about their fanbase (or Critters as we call ourselves). Critters are some of the best group of people on the internet. They have formed a community that communicates on a Facebook fan page as well as their own subreddit. Every week on Thursday night they gather together to watch the show and talk about what’s happening. True there will always be some bad eggs on the internet, but for the most part they are the kindest and most supportive group of fans I’ve ever met. It got me thinking about the last thing I obsessed over – Doctor Who. Don’t get me wrong, I’m probably one of the few people left on the planet that has zero complaints about this show, but the fans have never been the best. Maybe it’s just the negative ones are louder in this group where the positive Critters rise to the top in that circle, but I definitely have noticed way more negativity in the DW community than the Critter nation. Thinking about this made me appreciate the Critters even more, because it’s so rare to see a bunch of strangers be this nice to each other.
I want to close with one last reason I appreciate CR so much, and that is the effect the positivity surrounding it has had on the fans’ lives. I know that when I’m having a bad mental health day my first thought is to throw on an episode of CR. They recently put together a fan video where people sent in snippets of what Crit Role meant to them, and I was brought to tears at how many people said it literally saved their lives. This community has given people with no hope something to look forward to and a reason to keep going – one week at a time. That in itself is amazing, but what’s even greater is how much the cast truly cares about the fans and are truly happy to be making a difference. Obviously this was not their intention going in, but now that they see how much power they have to make a difference they actually try to use that to make good things happen. Whether it’s a charity drive during a stream or reaching out on social media, these people don’t just hide from the world when they’re not on stream. It makes me feel warm and fuzzy inside to know there’s this thing that connects a bunch of strangers in a positivite way, and that there’s a corner of the internet where a majority of people don’t suck. Times being what they are, this is needed now more than ever. With that I have only one thing to ask:
If you follow me on Twitter (and haven’t been chased away by all the political posts) you know that for awhile I spent a lot of energy talking about the voice actors strike that started in October of last year and is still ongoing. Due to the nature of video game schedules, this is a battle that will probably last a long time before we see any results. In addition to that, we also have another writer’s strike looming. I shared a thread on twitter that in very simple terms laid out why that one is happening. I thought I’d expand on my thoughts and feels about both strikes, why they are important, and what we can do to help.
First, let’s look at the voice actor’s strike. Why is this happening? Simply put, voice actors were renegotiating contracts to include getting better compensated with residuals. They also wanted to include better safety precautions to avoid vocal stress for certain roles. Video games have come a long way from watching a couple dots bounce around a screen. People expect not only better graphics, but to have interactive moments with characters in-game. This is why the hashtag “performance matters” has been the rally cry for voice actors participating in the strike. People expect more in their games, and many gamers would be disappointed if less qualified people tried to bring these characters to life. Voice actors just want to get better compensation that shows how valuable their contribution is to the games they lend their voices to. They also want protection from damaging the most important tool in their work environment (their voice) for games that might require more strain (for example, the various shooter games that the brunt of their voice work is lots of screaming). I don’t think it’s too much to ask these people get properly taken care of in their jobs. Some video game companies disagree, hence the strike. There is currently a petition on change.org that people can sign. I honestly don’t know how much help it will do, but it can’t hurt either.
Next up, let’s look at the pending writer’s strike. Like I said, there’s a great thread on twitter that I shared with the basics of what’s going on here, but I’ll give a brief summary here as well. Remember the last writer’s strike? That one was about how the times were changing and people were viewing tv differently and writers wanted to make sure they didn’t get left with less than they were worth just because cable was seen as a fad and they were writing for a cable show so they were worth less than someone writing for NBC. Obviously cable tv was not a fad, proof being that Walking Dead is on AMC and one of the highest rated shows currently. This is where the problems is, because if, for example, I get paid per episode but NBC guy gets paid more per episode than I do for Breaking Bad or Walking Dead then I’m getting paid less even though I wrote a more successful show. This writer’s strike is just cleaning up a bit and also trying to give pay raises since networks tend to ask for smaller orders per season (13 episodes instead of 22 or 23), so if I get paid per episode I’m now getting less money than I maybe deserve. Since we all saw what happened with the last strike, I think it’s fair to say that writers are important and deserve to be paid what they’re worth.
One thing I will say about the writer’s strike that works in our favor – even though we might have to deal with a season of repeats or terribly written filler episodes, we also might get another Dr Horrible’s Sing-A-Long Blog. Not literally, unless everyone suddenly has lots of free time thanks to the strike and wants to revisit it. What I mean is, Dr Horrible was a result of Joss Whedon having lots of free time and energy and putting that into this stupid little internet thing just because he could. Who knows what we’ll get with some other great writer’s free time if it comes to that. Obviously I want everyone to work things out before it comes to that, but the possibilities of what side projects could come from this are a bit exciting.
What would you like to see happen if the writer’s do strike and have extra free time? Let me know either in the comments or on twitter/facebook!
PS – bonus points if you figured out what my title was referencing this time
