Screenshot of Chris Evans as Captain America. Copyright goes to Marvel Entertainment and Disney.
Hi! It’s Annie!
The first thing that I want to say is that my above statement has nothing to do with one particularly amazing Sam Wilson. Not only do I think that Sam Wilson was a fantastic choice for Captain America, but I also wish that Disney would acknowledge him more. I feel that Disney refusing to acknowledge him as the new face of Captain America is absolutely awful and I’d rather have Sam meeting at the Disney Parks than Steve. What I do mean by the above statement is that Marvel is not even close to what it used to be and, on a weekend where the last thing I want to do is celebrate this country, I love that this character actually stood for the people. Definitely not a pro government character. And I also miss all of the Captain America storylines, including a character that I still consider to be a major breakthrough for women in action films. These are all of the reasons why I miss Steve Rogers. And, obviously, if you somehow haven’t finished watching all of his storyline, there will be MAJOR SPOILERS ahead!
Captain America: The First Avenger:
I actually went back recently and watched the first two Captain America movies and one of the things I feel like we’re missing from newer Marvel is the origin stories. Lately Marvel has taken to either jumping headfirst into group movies such as ‘The Eternals’ or introducing major superheroes in non-origin movies. Lately they’ve been attempting to remedy this by having series on ‘Disney +’ as origin stories to varying degrees of success. But I don’t feel it quite has the same impact. A series doesn’t have the same format nor the same general impact as a movie. And a series makes more sense when you give an audience something they are already familiar with when you’re dealing with something like the MCU. ‘Hawkeye’ really seemed to work, but part of that may have been the fact that it was more about the passing on of a name because Clint was there. Steve Rogers was not familiar before this film, but you warm up to him almost immediately. How could you not? He’s basically a golden retriever puppy. But Steve wasn’t just that, he had an influential story and a message to go with him. In my recent rewatch, Erksine’s conversation with Steve particularly struck me. He says something about how only a weak man knows the value of strength and compassion and it hit me that this could be said about anything. From physical strength, to emotional strength, and even to mental strength. While I’m never a fan of some of the propaganda in movies like this, there was already a message that the movie was trying to run with. And I wish we would have clearer messages in the movies we’re getting now. The diversity in Marvel now is by far better than anything we’ve gotten before! But a lot of the more recent movies such as ‘The Eternals’ and ‘Multiverse of Madness’ are completely devoid of heart. This origin also includes the amazing Peggy Carter. One of the first superhero love interests to be actually shown to be capable. Peggy is still one of my favorite Marvel characters!
Captain America: The Winter Solider:
I came to the recent realization that this is probably my favorite Marvel film. Everything from the story, to the music, to the iconic scenes are anything but forgettable. Can we all agree that the elevator scene is one of the best action scenes in any action movie ever? Anyways, when people talk about the best Marvel movies created there is a reason why this one comes up. The way Bucky is added into the story is seamless and the movies is insanely good at character development. This is also the first movie we see Sam Wilson! Yay! I feel as though the movies where Steve appeared in between this movie and the last, we see a version of Steve who at least attempts to appear more put together than he feels. But this really strips him down to how he actually feels in this new time period and it is a gorgeous look into his character. Steve misses his best friend, his girlfriend, and everyone he knew and cared about. But more than that, he doesn’t quite know who he is in the new world. He just knows what he’ll compromise on and what he won’t. And that means having to go up against a large government force. This becomes a thing for Steve. But what I like about this movie the most is how he finds himself through his relationships to other characters. This is the first movie to actually focus on Natasha’s actual character and give her something to work with. We see her just as vulnerable as Steve and no less badass. Another breakthrough. And Sam adds a necessary level of humor and relatability. This movie is practically perfect for a superhero film and I will never be over this. Will the multiverse and everything feeling out of control it’s difficult for Marvel to take accountability for any of their storylines anymore. They can just declare whatever doesn’t quite work to be no longer canon. This movie is all about taking accountability in your story, whether it be with past plot points or current character development, which results in an amazingly well-crafted story.
The Wrap Up:
‘Captain America: Civil War’ is not my favorite of the Marvel movies. I still like the fact that Steve remains firmly untrusting of the government, but this is barely a Captain America film. This is more like an ‘Avengers’ film and has very little in the way of character development to back up many of the characters and their motives. But that’s just my opinion. I personally wish we would gave gotten a little bit more of what ‘Winter Soldier’ started for Natasha as well. I digress. Skipping to the very end, I’m glad that Chris Evans finally got the out that he wanted. Chris Evans was never expecting the fame that went with this role and he very understandably wanted a break from everything that came with this role. It will be difficult to find actors this endearing, but I’m so glad that they passed it on to Sam. I never questioned whether it should go to Sam or Bucky, I think Sam deserves movies to himself. And I hope those movies are so much better than Marvel movies lately have been. I personally haven’t been the biggest fan of Marvel films in the new phase. The last one I really liked was ‘Shang Chi’. Don’t get me wrong, the newest Spiderman movie has it’s good points. But I liked the other Spidermen and wasn’t a huge fan with what they did with Tom Holland’s version. I’ve also been vocal that I think Steve’s wrap up could be better. While I think Steve and Peggy are always cute, I think there are things to consider that makes it feel not as cute when you get into it. I have an entire post about that if you want to check it out! But I don’t hate this ending. And I don’t hate that Steve’s story ended. A good well-rounded story is better than drilling a character into the ground! But I will miss Steve. And with the way things have been going, I have a feeling I’ll be revisiting his story more often than not. Not only for Steve but for Peggy, Natasha, Sam, and Bucky who all got amazing story arcs in this storyline as well.
I’m going to go back to devouring all of the media that goes with Steve Rogers and his storyline. Including ‘Agent Carter’ which still needs far more recognition than it currently gets. It’s the first female led media that Marvel released and it is still one of my favorite series that they’ve ever done, and yes that definitely includes recent series. Because this July fourth weekend, unless something has changed and a certain law gets rightfully back where it should be, I will be wearing all black and mourning my right to choose. So might as well watch a superhero that with every storyline and with every character fought for exactly that. And if you think Steve would at all be conservative, just listen to what he says about project insight and his disagreements with Nick Fury in that scene. Anyways, I miss Steve and Peggy. Maybe they are a perfect match considering how much I miss both of them.
Screenshot of Melissa Navia as Erica Ortegas, Babs Olusanmokun as Dr. M’Benga, and Anson Mount as Christopher Pike in episode 7 of ‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’. Copyright goes to Paramount Pictures and Roddenberry Entertainment.
Hey! Hallie here!
I promised more ‘Star Trek’ so here it is! This group of episodes was so much fun. In fact, ‘The Elysian Kingdom’ in particular is some of the most fun I’ve ever had with a Star Trek episode. It’s clear in both of these episodes that the cast had an amazing time putting them together. Pair that with some excellent representation in ‘The Serene Squall’ and you have ‘Strange New Worlds’ at its best. Although, it’s hard to argue that ‘Strange New Worlds’ hasn’t already been at its best for the majority of its episodes. I’ll be going over plot points below so here’s your SPOILER WARNING. And just your general warning that, once again, I don’t have many negative things to say this time around.
‘The Serene Squall’:
Spock: We have another Spock-centric episode and this one takes an interesting turn for Spock’s romantic relationship. Given that a few episodes ago T’Pring was insulting Spock’s humanity, it’s really nice to see her actively trying to remedy that by embracing it in their relationship. But as we all know from pretty much every Star Trek adaptation, Spock isn’t quite comfortable with his humanity. His uncertainty puts him in the perfect position to be manipulated by Dr. Aspen, who I’ll get into a little later. Claiming that they have experience with Vulcans because of a personal attachment, they propose to Spock that maybe he’s so human and so Vulcan that he’s something else entirely. While the episode doesn’t fully lead to his discovery of what that might be, it’s a really interesting take on Spock that will clearly come into play later in his story. However, just as interesting as all of his character development is his relationship with Christine Chapel. He’s shown still going to her for advice when he’s troubled, and in order to trick Aspen into believing they can’t use Spock as blackmail against T’Pring to get a prisoner released, he kisses Christine. We all already know how much that means to Christine, and it’s heartbreaking to see her attempt to brush it off. But then we see Spock hesitate when T’Pring tells him she knew about the ruse because he could never have feelings for her. This love triangle very much seems to be another example of his human and Vulcan sides warring with each other and it’ll be interesting to see what role that plays in his self discovery.
Dr. Aspen/Angel: First off, hats off to Jesse James Keitel, the lovely trans actress who brought Dr. Aspen, or Angel, to life. Angel was an extremely likable character from their first moment on screen. They were so intriguing that I didn’t really begin to suspect them until about halfway through the episode, when it’s revealed that the pirate crew that took Pike and the rest of the crew captive is waiting on their captain to return. To be honest, the octopus tattoo around their eye should have given everything away. Still, they play just as good of a villain as they do an innocent doctor and some of the advice they give Spock was extremely helpful regardless of their morals. It’s taken way too long to get good trans characters directed by good trans directors on screen, but I’m so glad we get to see that in this show.
Pike and The Crew: This is the secondary plot of this episode and it was funnier than I expected it to be. I mean, it starts out with Pike getting beaten up for information and ends with the crew starting a mutiny to overthrow the acting captain. The glee in which Pike and the rest of the crew execute the plan had me smiling throughout the episode. The plan which Una identifies as “Alpha Braga IV” gives us not only Pike impromptu cooking a meal for the entire pirate crew, but also various scenes of the crew using blatant sarcasm and witty humor to manipulate the crew around them. Even better, the crew does manage to take over the ship and save the day, but DURING the mutiny they caused. It’s such a fun mess.
(This note is just to say that I’m just as confused about Sybok as you are, but I don’t want to judge the show for it yet.)
‘The Elysian Kingdom’:
Doctor M’Benga: I was so excited for a completely M’Benga centered episode and now that we have one, I’m just sad we didn’t get it sooner. His storyline has always been a sad one. His daughter has a deadly illness and so he’s forced to keep her in a transporter until he can find a cure. This episode gave that storyline a surprisingly lighthearted and whimsical ending. M’Benga finds himself in the story he frequently reads his daughter with the crew playing the characters. M’Benga himself is the main character, the king who in the book must make a decision between preserving a powerful, sentient weapon which he loves, or saving the princess and the kingdoms being overtaken by an evil queen. It’s pretty clear how the episode is going to play out the moment they mention that decision. He will have to sacrifice his daughter for the crew. However, getting there is really fun. Aside from Hemmer, M’Benga’s the only one who knows that the fantasy story isn’t reality. and some of the characters grate on him. But despite some of his grumbling, he mostly embraces the story and enjoys it. It’s nice to see M’Benga enjoy himself after all the depressing storylines he’s been given. The ending for his daughter also manages to be a happy one. The alien who caused the story to come to life offers to let M’Benga’s daughter live with it, promising that if she does she’ll be cured of her disease. M’Benga lets his daughter make the decision because he’s a good dad, and when his daughter agrees and returns to him seconds later as an adult, he’s happy for her even though he didn’t get to keep raising her. M’Benga really needed to let his daughter go and I’m glad he got to do so in a manner that was more happy than sad, even if a few tears were shed.
The Crew: ERICA ORTEGAS. What a badass! She owned every minute of every scene she was involved in. She even got a choreographed sword fighting scene! Another stand out was very clearly Uhura. Celia Rose Gooding gave me chills as a villain, which is so surprising considering how warm and likable Uhura is. And she looked absolutely stunning. Also, two shout outs go to Anson Mount and Christina Chong who flexed their comedic muscles this time around and clearly had a blast doing it. Seeing La’an Noonien-Singh turn into a ditzy princess obsessed with her dog was hilarious. And Pike as a sniveling, power-hungry advisor? Somehow Anson Mount makes that transition seem seamless. Lastly, Hemmer was adorable this episode. Instead of playing a role, Hemmer’s telepathic abilities make him immune to whatever the alien being is doing to the crew. But despite his general grumpiness, Hemmer has a blast tricking the people around him into believing he’s a wizard by using science. There isn’t one character, or actor, who doesn’t seem like they’re enjoying themselves this episode. It’s impossible to watch everyone have this much fun and not have fun yourself.
And that’s it! My next review for this season will be my last. I just learned that this season only has ten episodes. I’ll miss it so much! Hopefully they don’t wait too long to give us season two and even more amazing Star Trek content. I know I’ll be rewatching this season over and over again until they do. Also, all the people who worked on costumes and sets in episode eight deserve applause and another episode in season two to flex their skills. Please. Episode eight was so beautiful.
Promotional photo of (from left) Park Seonghwa, Jeong Yunho, Jung Wooyoung, Kim Hongjoong, Kang Yeosang, Choi Jongho, Song Mingi, and Choi San. Copyright goes to Ateez and KQ Entertainment.
Hi! It’s Annie!
Ateez has been one of my go-to groups for a good couple years now and it’s been an amazing couple of years. I’ve never seen a group this dedicated to performance and storytelling, and as someone who has always been fascinated with multiple different kinds of storytelling, they blew me away immediately. I was a part of the fandom when they went from being not as well known to blowing everyone away and internationally selling out arenas. As I joined the BTS fandom later into the game, this is the first time I was with a group through all of that. And it has been nothing less than an unforgettable experience! Right now Atinys seem to be in the middle of a really exciting time in Ateez’s career and the amount that they’re doing seems to be stacking up by the day. I’m going to go over what we will see from Ateez in the near future, some fan theories, and also what’s been making them an absolutely irresistible group in any music industry.
Ateez Schedule:
It’s become very clear to everyone over the last couple weeks that Ateez will have a very hectic summer schedule. While we don’t know the exact dates for some things, which I’ll get to in a minute, this is all of the stuff that we know! As of today, Ateez has already boarded a plane to Saudi Arabia to perform at the Jeddah KPOP Festival and just yesterday Ateez performed ‘Utopia’ on ‘The Show’. This event specifically made them one of the only groups to perform an entire album track list of songs on a show like this! Later this month they will be performing their postponed concert dates in Japan and we also now know that next month they will be attending Kcon LA! The first day of the concert is already sold out, and Ateez will be one of the headliners. I do feel it necessary to say that headlining acts at Kcon usually only perform four songs. I only say that because I want everyone who may be considering buying resale tickets to know that you may want to be a fan of more than one group for this concert to be completely worth it for you. Ateez was also the first group to completely sell out their hi-touch and interview slots, which really wasn’t surprising seeing how much they’ve shot to international fame lately. I decided not to spring for tickets and we’ll have to see if that’s a decision that I regret. I almost went for the entertainment package, but I decided to save my money in case they do a comeback tour. Which brings me to my next point…
Ateez Comeback:
I am so excited for this comeback for so many reasons. Not only are we in a pretty integral point in the Ateez MV storyline, but they’ve possibly been teasing this part of the storyline for a while now. ‘Kingdom’ killed off Halateez, though we could still see an alternate Halateez or a pre-death Halateez. Their performance of ‘Rythm Ta’ on ‘Kingdom’ was actually a look into what this new comeback album will most likely focus on. ‘THE WORLD EP. 1: MOVEMENT’ (the official name of this new comeback album) will most likely take place in a world where the arts and music are illegal. This is why the marketing for this album so far has been pretty underground. Ateez has had a few posters and billboards in major cities with nothing much on them but a QR code. Earlier today a QR code was dropped on Ateez’s social media for a very short amount of time before it was immediately deleted. This QR code leads to a snippet that is audio only and features an epic backing track that may just be a preview of a new song. It also features what sounds like a radio skipping and morse code at the end that people have deciphered to mean “EYES ON THE SKY”. I can only assume this is reference to the flying pirate ship that Ateez stole back in the MV for ‘Don’t Stop’. The QR code was labelled ‘PROPAGANDA’, which makes me wonder if it was just a name for the teaser or if it will be the name of one of the album tracks. I personally love all of this. The marketing makes the world of this album feel almost immersive and just adds to the impressiveness of Ateez’s storytelling abilities. And I absolutely loved the concept for ‘Rythm Ta’, so if this is anything like that I’ll be all over it! Though let’s be honest, I’ll be all over whatever they decide to do concept wise. And I loved the characterization they were showing in the ‘Don’t Stop’ MV. The pirate crew has always been one of my favorite elements of all of Ateez’s concepts and I adored all the hinting in ‘Don’t Stop’. Ateez is one of the only musical groups that can make you excited for an album both for the music and the story. I can already tell that I’ll love this!
Clearing the Board:
Ateez’s stages in ‘Kingdom’ have undoubtedly brought many more fans and the fandom is still growing. And part of it is the story that attracts people to them! Along with the amazing music. I’ve mentioned it briefly, but my parents actually like Ateez now. While both of them were at first only familiar with ‘WONDERLAND’, they both got into them mostly because I got them (maybe semi-forced) to watch some of their stages. And they were also impressed with their storytelling abilities and choreography. I’ve been plaguing them with BTS forever but Ateez convinced them because of some of the additional elements that only Ateez adds. And while BTS is still my ult group; I think it is clear that there is no group even similar to Ateez. I am so glad that more and more people seem to be fully realizing and appreciating the one-of-a-kind uniqueness of this group. And I think ‘WONDERLAND’ may be one of my favorite songs of all time. It’s so catchy! But what I also love about them is that lyrics are important to them too and always hold an important message. For example, ‘WAVE’ may sound like an uplifting summer song but it’s actually also a hopeful song that encourages those struggling to keep going. They are not afraid to talk about mental health and the issues with becoming an adult and finding your way in the world. It seems as though the groups who go to lengths to discuss mental health are always my favorites. Ateez is already at a level where no other group can touch them, it’s just that they’re getting the recognition for being that more recently. They already had what makes them so special and I’m so glad that Atiny is such a quickly growing fandom. The boys deserve it! Especially because they work so hard!
Ateez really seems to have constant schedules and I’m kind of hoping that they’ll get a break soon. It feels like they’ve been constantly moving ever since their debut. But I’m also wondering if they’re going to tour this year with their comeback album. Especially because Hongjoong said they’d come back to LA this year at their concert in January and I have a feeling they weren’t quite talking about Kcon. But we’ll have to see! If they really are planning a tour, this is going to be an extremely busy year for them! I hope that they’ll enjoy every minute of it and I hope that growing popularity doesn’t make them feel too pressured.
Screenshot of Ethan Peck as Spock and Gia Sandhu as T’Pring in episode 5 of ‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’. Copyright goes to Paramount Pictures and Roddenberry Entertainment.
Hey! Hallie here!
Vacation has put me a bit behind on these reviews, but I adore this show and I want to catch up to recent episodes as fast as possible. So expect a lot of ‘Star Trek’ reviews in the near future. For now I’m going to cover episodes five and six, which I have very different opinions on. ‘Spock Amok’ is a nice change of pace, with a comedic storyline and some really fun crew bonding. ‘Lift Us Where Suffering Can’t Reach’ is much darker and delves into a classic Sci-Fi story that may alienate some viewers. Both have good moments and bad, which I’ll get into. Either way, if you also aren’t caught up on this show, I highly recommend catching up! This series is so good so far! So SPOILERS AHEAD, as always, and let’s get into this!
‘Spock Amok’:
What I Liked:
Christine Chapel: This episode may be about Spock, but Christine is the real stand out here. Not only is she at the center of the storyline focusing on the crew taking a day off, which is always fun because we get to see the characters let their hair down and hang out with their friends in a non-professional setting, but she has her own complicated arc in this episode. She starts out the episode sharing with Erica Ortegas (I love their friendship) that she’s going on a date as part of her off-time. However, right after the credits we see things go very wrong. Her date wants to know where their relationship is going and she quickly gets distracted when she sees a morose Spock at another table. She then abandons her date to give Spock encouraging advice about his own relationship. Christine helps Spock throughout the rest of the episode figure out his relationship with T’Pring and bridge the gap between his Vulcan and human sides. And through all of it, she’s also clearly hiding romantic feelings for Spock. Which is only further cemented when she discusses her commitment issues with Erica later in the episode, telling her that she could only see herself committed to the “right guy”, clearly implying Spock. It was really nice to get a deeper look at Christine this episode. I always love her sense of humor and I’m interested to see how Christine’s feelings for Spock will affect her story moving forward.
Spock: While I favored Christine this episode, I did really like Spock as well. The main purpose of this episode is to see Spock put in a hilariously awkward position and watch how he reacts to it. It’s a simple premise, but it works really well. It’s ultimately very funny to see Spock as mortified as a Vulcan can be when he realizes he’s stuck in T’Pring’s body right before he’s needed for important negotiations. And going back to Christine, all of his scenes with her are excellent. It’s adorable how genuine he is with Christine even though he doesn’t always understand her. He also shows his human side around her more than anyone else, which winds up in him decking a Vulcan he needs to negotiate with when Christine is insulted for her human qualities. This isn’t the deepest dive into Spock’s character, but it’s still fun.
Christopher Pike: Pike isn’t a main character in this episode, but I still really like whenever he’s around. His face when he discovers that T’Pring and Spock have switched bodies alone is worth his presence. It’s also really cathartic to watch the scene where Pike has to subtly defend Spock’s actions and point out the sacrifices he makes to T’Pring while she’s in Spock’s body. And while not the point of the plot, it’s always fun to seek Pike solve a mystery and save the day at episode’s end, even if the mystery is only about what negotiation tactic will convince another alien species to join Star Fleet.
Una Chin-Riley and La’an Noonien-Singh: This is just a really fluffy, fun side plot. At the beginning of the episode M’Benga quite adorably lets slip that the majority of the crew think that these two lovely ladies are a buzzkill. Which is a valid criticism considering they both decide not to take the day off and spend time with the rest of the crew at the beginning of the episode. Slightly offended and wanting to prove everyone wrong, these two quickly discover a game the rest of the crew has called “Enterprise Bingo”. The game involves doing random tasks such as using the transporter to return the flavor to a piece of gum or signing their name on the Enterprise’s hull. It’s so fun to see these two let loose and even get competitive over the game. Sometimes these types of storylines are the most rewarding to watch in all of Star Trek.
What I Disliked:
T’Pring: This episode didn’t do a whole lot to endear me to T’Pring. Firstly, T’Pring starts out this episode criticizing Spock’s humanity as a reason for their strained relationship, which is both untrue and awful of her to do. Yes, he has issues with putting his work before his relationship, but his humanity has nothing to do with that. Then, she is the one who suggests pretending to be Spock during negotiations in order to get a better understanding of him, but instead uses the opportunity to criticize Spock in a high stakes situation in front of everyone, forcing Pike to step in. Clearly I’m just not a big fan of this character.
Body Swap: Generally the point of body swap episodes is to see two characters acting completely different to how they would regularly act. It gives the actors involved the opportunity to stretch their comedic acting abilities by interpreting a character they don’t usually play. That…doesn’t really work with Spock and T’Pring. They’re both Vulcan. On principle they don’t show much emotion, which makes them seem very similar. In other words, there were only subtle differences between Spock and T’pring for the actors to work with and that made this concept a lot less enjoyable.
‘Lift Us Where Suffering Cannot Reach’:
Ok, I’m going to review this episode a bit differently. I didn’t like this episode. But my dislike of this episode is mostly up to personal preference, so I want to review it as more of an explanation as to why this episode was written the way it was and why some people, like me, probably didn’t enjoy it despite the good writing. First off, I don’t tend to like the classic “pretty ex” episode most captains seem to get. Most of the time I feel like jumping head first into a random romance because two characters already “have history” is awkward. But it’s a classic formula for a ‘Star Trek’ episode, so I can’t say it’s surprising. Still, most of the time these ex-girlfriend characters don’t have the best intentions, and this episode is no different. This ex comes from a society that thrives on service and sacrifice to the planet. Which already sounds pretty shady. Then we get introduced to a little boy from said society who holds some kind of place of honor and is actively being protected from several kidnapping attempts. Every storyline, even the side stories of Uhura and Doctor M’Benga, wind up following the mystery of why this kid is under constant threat of being kidnapped. They all eventually discover that it’s his dad that’s trying to kidnap him and manage to stop his final attempt at trying to spirit away his son, but they frustratingly turn him over to his planet before they even figure out why his father did what he did. And that’s when we get to the point of the episode. It’s essentially a retelling of a Sci-Fi story that poses the idea of a society that operates on the suffering of children. Essentially, the child chosen serves as the life force of the planet and is slowly and horrifically drained of all life in order to keep the planet healthy.
The worst part? Our heroes don’t get to save this little boy. Pike figures out what’s going on far too late (Guess it doesn’t pay to trust someone you barely know because you “have history”) and as enraged and heartbroken as he is, he can’t interfere in the society per Star Fleet rules. Meanwhile his ex tries to reason with him, telling him that there’s no other choice for her people and many societies turn a blind eye to the suffering of children for the supposed “benefit of all”. Of course, we all know she’s pure evil. Pike also knows she’s pure evil. But as much as we the viewer want to rage at the screen and yell that no one could ever do that to a child, this episode aired right after another school tragedy in the US where politicians continued to send thoughts and prayers instead of reforming some dated, ridiculous laws. And that makes this episode topical for shining a light on our own society that ignores the suffering of children for personal gain. This episode was well thought out in many aspects. It was also awful to watch. I couldn’t ever watch it again and I can’t say I enjoyed watching it at all. I also can’t say that its attempts to show hope at the end of the episode really work, especially because the little boy’s dad giving M’Benga something that might be able to save his daughter winds up being irrelevant a few episodes later. But despite some imperfections it has a very well put-together message.
That’s the end of this review. In a few days I’ll come back with my reviews on episodes seven and eight, which I’m so excited to talk about. I really needed the delirious fun these two episodes provided after how depressing episode six was. I say this after every review, but ‘Strange New Worlds’ blows me away every week. I can’t get enough of this show or of how much the actors seem to be enjoying every episode as much as I am. It’s a pleasure to watch it as it’s airing and I recommend it if you still haven’t checked it out!
Cropped image of the front cover of ‘Tokyo Ever After’ by Emiko Jean. Copyright goes to Emiko Jean and Flatiron Books.
Hi! It’s Annie!
Today I need all the distractions that I can take. And while my day began with my main distraction being Ateez; I have now remembered that I haven’t reviewed this amazing book. I saw this book while I was at Barnes and Noble and immediately looked it up after I found the back of the book to describe an incredibly interesting plot. When I then saw several people saying this book was a cross between ‘The Princess Dairies’ and ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ in the reviews, that sealed my fate. I had to have this book. And it was not at all disappointing! This is another one of my favorite books I’ve read in a while for so many reasons. One of them being the intense deep dive into what it is to be a young woman. Another being the way Jean tackles how the media universally treats young women. If you haven’t picked up a copy of this book, I highly recommend you do before continuing this review. This is a SPOILER review, because I have so much to say about this book. On top of gushing about one of the most adorable romances I’ve ever read in fiction. So I’m just going to get right into it now!
Summary: Izzy is a Japnaese-American High Schooler who is constantly confused about her place in the world and obsessed with a piece of herself that she swears is missing. Everything starts coming together when she finds out that her Father is actually the Crown Prince of Japan, but being a royal may be far more difficult than she anticipated. And through it all she finds out that the real question lies in getting to know herself. Who is she really?
Royalty:
Main Female Character- Izzy was not only relatable but was also the focus of this story in such a beautiful way. This book felt like a love letter to young women still trying to figure out who they are. It is also a love letter to women of color who feel torn between two worlds. Izzy is not popular and she doesn’t try to be fashionable, something I highly identify with from when I was in High School, and she only relies on her small close group of friends and her Mother. When she finds out that her Father is actually the Crown Prince of Japan, she feels like she finally has a shot at fully figuring out who she is and where she came from. And her journey to find herself is absolutely what’s most important in this book. It’s not just about her learning how to act like a Princess, it’s about the mistakes she makes and how the mistakes are natural and more impactful to who she is than if she hadn’t taken the chances that she does. Though romance is a big plot point in this book, the real love that this book explores is self love. And Jean keeps you on the edge of your seat simply with a story of self growth. Izzy’s sass and intelligence is more than enough to make her a fun narrator to follow along with as well.
Main Male Character- Akio made me melt every time. I’ve always had a soft spot for the bodyguard romance trope and this is the softest and sweetest example of that trope that I have ever found. Akio is adorable. From attempted seriousness to an absolute fondness for Izzy that he can’t seem to help. And his own backstory with his parents is just too heartbreaking and adorable at the same time. He’s one of those tough characters with the softest personality after you only begin to chip off the rough edges. And I smiled from ear to ear when he came back at the end of the book. He has that effect with all of his appearances. He doesn’t just make Izzy feel safe; it gets to the point where all of his appearances make you feel safe too. I always love it when an author can create a character so convincingly comforting that it makes me feel that way, so I knew I adored this book because of this fact alone not far into getting to know Akio.
The Romance- It’s not just a bodyguard trope, it also starts out almost enemies to lovers-ish. Though not completely, they do start out on the wrong foot. He doesn’t think she’s very responsible and in turn, she becomes very angry when she finds out he put a tracker in her phone. But either way, they completely trust each other from the beginning and only learn to put more trust in each other as the book goes on. And yes, I absolutely swooned when he covered her during the shooting scare. (Don’t worry, it wasn’t actually a shooting.) It’s also a travel to a different country and meet the love of your life trope, which is another trope that I’m head over heels for. This romance is almost too perfect for me as a reader. The fact that the book was also semi-realistic about them having to sacrifice in order to be together was a nice touch. I liked that he resigned both for himself and for their relationship! I was in love with this romance for the entirety of the book and this is quite possibly the main reason why I haven’t read the sequel yet. We’ll see if I eventually get around to it, but I’ve never been a fan of love triangles. And I love Akio so much! I may not be able to resist the sequel in the end, but the romance in this book is perfection and will not be beaten in my eyes!
The Friendship- Izzy has her own girl squad in this book and, though none of the characters appear a lot, I loved this friendship. I’m always a fan when a book or show takes the time to explore a female friendship. I was delighted when Izzy texting her friends was something that came up multiple times and I found myself falling in love with each member of the friend group for their different and complementary personalities. I loved the female support system!
The Family- This was another one of the most important pieces of the book. I loved Izzy’s relationship with her Mom and how amazingly cool her Mom was. I loved the fact that she wore all of those feminist T-shirts! It actually reminds me of my Mom! I was so invested in her getting to know her Dad and how open he was to her and who she was as a person. I absolutely adored the end of the book where her Dad stayed with her and her Mom in the states for a while. Especially how understanding and just happy he was even when she and her Mom stopped traffic to get to him. And the Grandfather and Grandmother blew me away in their understanding too. I especially loved her conversation with her Grandmother. Seriously, the women in this book have the best advice, are badass, and amazing. I adored the depiction of women in this book; but the men in the family were pretty cool too.
Japan- As much as this is a love story about Izzy finding herself, it’s also a love story between Izzy and Japan. Not only was Japan painted in such a magical light in this book, but the significance of it being a part of Izzy was beautiful. I loved when Izzy truly found she could connect with Japan and that she truly belonged there in some sense. Those moments were some of the most satisfying in the entire book. And you also truly fall in love with Japan through Izzy’s eyes.
Media- The author is not kind to the way the media treats famous people and I am always all for that. I have talked several times on this blog about how much the media intruding into the lives of famous people gets on my nerves, and she perfectly demonstrates that this is also incredibly bad for royalty. And even worse for royal women. In a recent interview Emma Watson talked about living up to impossible standards and paparazzi sexualizing her in the media the minute she came of age. This book sharply looks at how willing the media is to tear down young girls in general, especially if they are in the spotlight. Unless you literally save a baby, everything that you do is perceived by society to be completely wrong. And that’s a monstrous way to treat young women, or really anybody.
Peasant:
The Language- I think the only issue I had with the way the book was written was some of the teenage language used in it. Some of it would sometimes feel overly slang-y or a little outdated. Slang is changing so quickly now, especially with social media, so I understand it to a point. But there were still times where I felt some of the sentences said by Izzy or her friends felt a bit unnatural.
The Cousin- One of the main twists of this book is that Izzy’s trusted cousin for the majority of the book ends up selling her out and releasing the information that she’s dating her bodyguard. Though this was an interesting twist, I would have liked to see a little more leading up to it. Other than the fairly inappropriate way that he treats his own bodyguard (I liked that Izzy stole her for herself at the end), it feels like there’s not a lot that foreshadows the sudden change. I really liked that it wasn’t the twins that sold her out, but I would have liked a little more lead up and explanation as to why it was him.
The Twins- I had to talk about this, especially as a twin on this blog. This depiction of twins was too much of a stereotype to me in this book. They didn’t ever act independently of each other and they seemed to act as the same character in two different bodies. It really bugged me and I would have had more of a problem with it if they had appeared more. I know that the new book has more of them in it, so I hope that the sequel is much better at writing them individually!
Though I do have a few issues with it, I overall really loved this book. It captured my heart after only a few chapters and it is a perfect lighthearted read. I also loved how all the wisest characters were women. That especially feels like something I wanted to highlight today. A lighthearted read is a commodity for me right now and I can’t get enough of these adorable romances I’ve been able to pick up over these last couple weeks. Between my anger from today and my anger over people not getting the hint and leaving BTS alone, I have a lot to escape from right now. I really hope that some of you might be able to pick up this book and feel like I did reading it. Like you’ve found the perfect escape at the exact same time that you found a book that covered topics that just felt so relatable. I can already tell you that this is going on my list of comfort reads for those exact reasons. Once again, I highly recommend this book and feel like you should pick up a copy if you haven’t. This is a love letter to women, especially women of color, and I will gladly read several more books like that.
Screenshot of Ewan McGregor as Obi-Wan Kenobi in ‘Obi-Wan Kenobi’. Copyright goes to Lucasfilm and Walt Disney Pictures.
Hey! Hallie here!
‘Obi-Wan Kenobi’ just came to the end of its six-episode story and damn. This was really good. Not only was this a great character study of Obi-Wan and Leia, but it was an excellent celebration of the prequels whether you enjoyed them or not. Each episode found a way to take my breath away, and though this series had a few issues, they really didn’t compare to the amount of joy I got watching each episode. I’ve reviewed the first three episodes before, so I’m only going to be focusing on the last half of this series in this post. This is a SPOILER review so if you haven’t watched this series, I highly recommend going to do that before reading! You won’t regret it!
What I Liked:
Obi-Wan: To be honest here, the main thing that continually sells me on Obi-Wan from episode to episode is his relationship with Leia. I can’t get over how caring and gentle he is with her. From rescuing her in episode four to his adorable praises and encouragements at the very end of episode six, he so clearly has grown to care for her throughout this series like his own daughter. I also liked that their final interaction at the end of episode six implied that it didn’t take all the way until ‘A New Hope’ for the two to reunite. Leia was simply told to be cautious about sharing anything about spending time with Obi-Wan, and so she very likely was. It was nice to see Obi-Wan grow to trust Leia, too. He goes from being overprotective of her in the first few episodes to trusting her to take up difficult tasks on her own, and he didn’t even need her to tell him that she didn’t give Reva any information when she was captured. This relationship was the heart of the show, and it was written to perfection. But another major part of Obi-Wan’s arc is his relationship with Anakin. The entire show zeroes in on his guilt over creating Darth Vader, and because of that he throws himself in the way of Anakin any chance he gets in order to fulfill the moral obligation he feels. That gives us excellent sequences like episode five, where Obi-Wan and Anakin essentially play a game of chess that’s mirrored by a flashback lightsaber duel. Anakin is aggressive, sending troops to attack before he comes in to kill Obi-Wan himself. But Obi-Wan is smarter, using Reva’s hatred of Anakin and a well timed illusion to buy himself and the people around him time to escape. And then we get their final battle in the last episode. It’s a joy to see Ewan McGregor come back to his classic ready position and all of the mesmerizing lightsaber flourishes. Beyond just the fighting, it was truly satisfying and heartbreaking to see Obi-Wan come face-to-face with his padawan and realize that Anakin created himself. There was no better way to round out his arc than that.
Leia: Our other star of the show. Leia never disappointed me. In fact, I never felt prouder of her than while I was watching Reva interrogate her. You can tell that Leia does at least partially believe Reva when Reva tells her Obi-Wan is dead. After all, he left her alone in pursuit of something dangerous and no one had come to rescue her. But, despite that, she still refuses to give any information away and never lets Reva belittle her intelligence. She’s even partially responsible for the entire escape that occurs in episode five thanks to her tech skills. Beyond that, her emotional intelligence is still very much on display here. For one, she holds Obi-Wan’s hand to comfort him which nearly made me cry. But, more importantly, she lets Obi-Wan go to fight Anakin, regardless of the fact that she’s upset he isn’t going to take her home himself, because she sees how much it means to him. She also makes him promise to come back alive which ultimately gives him the strength to do so. Though she isn’t as active in the latter half of the series as she is in the first half, she still shines and has a huge impact on the story that I love. By the end of episode six she’s already wearing a blaster holster (Obi-Wan sadly didn’t give her a blaster), she has plans for the future of Alderaan, and she still won’t let anyone tell her how to live her life. In short, she’s already on her way to being Carrie Fisher’s Leia and I couldn’t be happier.
Reva: I expected to like Reva, but I wound up even more interested in this character than I expected. The reveal that Reva was one of the younglings in the opening sequence of the show was no surprise. Most people on the internet had guessed that. But the fact that she was basically masquerading as an Inquisitor in order to get close enough to Anakin to kill him was surprising to me. She was only interested in Obi-Wan because she knew she could use him to get to Anakin, and her ruthlessness in killing Jedi in the hopes of finding Obi-Wan was a glaring sign of how far she fell. Of course, we didn’t get to see her fulfill her goals. In fact her fight with Darth Vader, unsurprisingly, didn’t last long. But I’d argue her story got even more interesting when she decided to go after Luke in episode six. Because she can’t kill Anakin and feels like a failure because of it, she learns about Luke and decides to kill a youngling, essentially trying to prove to herself she can be just as powerful and ruthless as Vader. But she can’t do it. And because she can’t do it, and because Obi-Wan convinces her that she’s a better person than Vader, she has every opportunity to come back in future projects. She remains alive by the end of the series, she already has the beginnings of a redemption arc going for her, and her absence in the ‘Star Wars’ movies means that she could pretty much do anything. I really like this character and I hope they decide to utilize this opportunity.
Darth Vader: I always find it difficult to critique Darth Vader, partly because Darth Vader perfected intimidation long ago and partly because he doesn’t really change much from project to project. I can say though, I really liked the merging of Anakin and Vader that was done by this series. You get more of Anakin’s rage and recklessness here than you do in some other projects. Obi-Wan really does bring out a desperation to Anakin you don’t often see. His final appearance in the show completed this merging perfectly by breaking his mask. It was really cool to hear Hayden Christensen’s voice mixed with the classic James Earl Jones voice, and getting to see more of Hayden’s face in the Vader makeup made Hayden’s Anakin finally feel like the same person as Darth Vader.
Qui-Gon Jin: I actually got up from my seat and screamed. It’s a small cameo, but come on. Liam Neeson returning to the role? What more is there to say?
What I Disliked:
The Non-deaths: So both the Grand Inquisitor and Reva had a moment in this series where they were fatally stabbed. Except they weren’t and both are apparently completely fine and uninjured. I get that Vader was keeping that the Grand Inquisitor was alive a secret in order to catch Reva in her lie, but the Grand Inquisitor was stabbed by Reva. Reva wasn’t pretending to stab him. She was actually intending to kill him. So how did he live? Also, Vader completely ran Reva through. And from what I know of Vader, he doesn’t usually leave a murder unfinished. So how did Reva survive? How did she even get to Luke after receiving that bad of an injury?
Tala: I wish I got the point of this character. I really do. But I didn’t get why she had to be there. To not follow Obi-Wan’s directions when he asked her to keep Leia safe? To be really bad at pretending to be an Imperial officer? To needlessly sacrifice herself? The most she does is help Obi-Wan when he’s injured in his first fight against Vader, and almost any other character could have done that.
Sacrificing Reva: In episode five, part of Obi-Wan’s plan in order to get everyone away from Vader is to rile up Reva. He does this because, if Reva attacks Vader as he hopes she will, it’ll buy everyone time to escape. Except, I really can’t see Obi-Wan thinking that convincing Reva to fight Vader would be a moral solution to their problem. Obi-Wan knows Vader’s more powerful than her. On top of that, as much as he fears Anakin, he still sees his old friend in Vader at this point in the story and wouldn’t want Reva to kill him even if she could overpower him. So what was his plan here? To let Reva die? Why would he be cool with sacrificing the last surviving youngling?
I’m going to end this review here. I do have some criticisms, but overall I thought this series was so well done. I’m a huge Leia fan and I’m thrilled that we got yet another version of Leia for me to obsess over and gush about. Leia is quickly rising in my list of favorite characters of all time. I also walked away from this series with something unexpected. A new appreciation of the prequels. I’m not someone who thinks the prequels are completely awful, but I don’t think they’re good movies either. But now that we have a bridge between the prequels and the original trilogy, I feel like I can see them as one cohesive story. Although, ‘Clone Wars’ did already contribute to my appreciation of that part of ‘Star Wars’ canon. Either way, I love ‘Obi-Wan Kenobi’ and I can see myself rewatching it many times in the future. It was a joy to see Ewan McGregor step back into the role of Obi-Wan and I’ll miss him immensely now that it’s over.
Promotional image of (from left) Kim Taehyung, Min Yoongi, Kim Seokjin, Jeon Jungkook, Kim Namjoon, Park Jimin, and Jung Hoseok. Copyright goes to the members of BTS and HYBE.
Hi! It’s Annie!
It feels like everything happened when we were away! I don’t think this blog has ever missed this much news before! But, as my sister covered the hiatus, I will mostly be talking about ‘PROOF’, the various new songs on it, and some of the demos as well. This won’t be a full album review because, well, a lot of the songs already speak for themselves. This album is called ‘PROOF’ for a reason! But I’ll talk about the songs that are newer or we possibly weren’t expecting from this brilliant anthology of their work. Now with their hiatus, this album is beginning to feel more and more like an incredible gift from them to us as a reminder that we’ll see them again. Their best is yet to come.
Born Singer:
I wanted to talk about this one because it’s never been on a BTS album before and it was a very needed addition that none of us were expecting. It’s especially touching that this is the first track on their album. This song is very dear to them and something that they’ve all gotten emotional over before, so it’s a wonder we haven’t seen it for so long. It’s a beautiful piece filled with raw lyrics and I don’t think BTS or ARMY can look back at this song without feeling a blast of emotions from their first concert days.
Yet to Come:
This is their main solo off of the album and it is very clear why they chose that one now. While a lot of groups choose their main solo based on what will sell the best, this one was chosen because it was the message they most wanted to get across. This is the end of chapter one for them. But even with the recent announcement, this is by no means the end. For any of them individually or for them as a group. And I think that was the message that was most important for ARMY to know here. This isn’t the end nor have we even seen the best from them yet. This was a promise of blowing our minds both partly during and after they get some much needed healing and re-centering. This song is packed with comfort. And the MV is packed with just as much nostalgia. There are various references to almost all of their music videos. Finding all of the Easter eggs is still a process for some (including myself), but there’s obvious nods with the bus from ‘No More Dream’, props from ‘Spring Day’, and the train car from ‘Run’, to name a few. It’s a blast of nostalgia to remind all of us where they’ve come from and how much they still have to do.
Run BTS:
Of all of the new songs, I think this one might be my favorite. Just by a small fraction. I think there’s something that shows off all of their honed skills here. The entirety of the rap line gets to show off how their styles have improved since they last did songs like this. This song was created to invoke their debut style and has lyrics that are meant to invoke how they viewed themselves as a group then. Like their determination to move forward, or rather run forward, and their “live fast, die young” theme that showed up in many of their songs and MVs then. A mantra that they don’t really ascribe to that much anymore, but something that they pay homage to here. I think it’s a serious power move to do a song in your old style with your new skills. This single song is incredibly powerful in every element and I was absolutely blown away when I first heard it. Am I expecting them to do more songs in this style in the future? Only if they want to. They’ve changed and we all should understand that! But this song is nothing less than absolute perfection.
Jump (Demo):
This version of ‘Jump’ is really interesting, specifically because it is rap only. This demo track has a far more toned down chorus and even more rap, going back and forth between verses by Namjoon and Yoongi respectively. A lot of the rap featured here does end up in the final product, but it’s interesting to hear this as a rap track. It does give a feeling of one of the Cyphers because of it and it’s a really enjoyable track to listen to!
Young Love:
For those of you who, like many of us, were hoping for an eventual Namjoon and Jungkook collaboration; it’s here! I am in love with this song; I listened to it two more times after I heard it the first time. This is quite possibly the most pure love song ever written. It’s this mix of very pure and innocent love and the nervousness to approach the person and pursue it. Jungkook’s vocals only get more beautiful with every passing year and Namjoon’s smoother style of rap really works with Jungkook’s vocals. I was so delighted to hear this collaboration between the two of them and it has possibly become one of my favorite songs on the album.
Boy in Luv (Demo):
This is very close to the song we know and love, but there are a few differences. The main one that stood out to me was the more grungy musical backing sound. It feels almost like ‘Danger’ in how the musical backing and vocals feel even more raw and edgy. It’s definitely an interesting sound that I very much liked!
Quotation Mark:
This song is a collaboration between Namjoon, Jungkook, and Hobi! This is another love song that focuses more specifically on whether or not the object of the song likes the singer back. Though this song is more upbeat, I think it’s another example of the perfect marrying between Namjoon’s calming and simultaneously hardcore rap style and Jungkook’s clean vocals. But this time the bright and unmistakable Hoseok rhythm is also there to bring an entirely new flavor to the song. The three work well together and give the song it’s own unique character with their three distinct styles.
I NEED U (Demo):
The ‘I NEED U’ demo consists only of the rap line and Jungkook with vocals. This is definitely an early draft of what we know now, to the point that some of the parts for Taehyung, Jin, and Jimin are done by other people for them to fill in later. Though the backing melody is pretty well in tact, the lyrics and the lyrical melody are almost completely different. Raps are in very different spots and the chorus sounds completely different, though still good! There was controversy specifically about this demo in particular because there were people laughing at Namjoon’s vocals. My view on this is pretty in the middle of what appears to be the two sides. It’s clear to me in this demo that it was done only to guide, so Namjoon is attempting to give a feel of how he wants the vocals to go. And that means him attempting to show singers other than Jungkook, such as Jimin, how high he wants the vocals to go. Namjoon’s singing voice is amazing and I love it! But I don’t think Namjoon meant for his vocals here to sound good. He was trying to get his ideas across and that meant singing out of his natural vocal range. I personally find it to be kind of adorable! If you’re laughing at Namjoon because you think that’s what his singing voice is actually like and you’re making fun of that, that’s pretty messed up. But if you’re laughing because Namjoon is singing for Jimin and it’s cute; I personally think he probably also thought it was funny. Either way, I love this demo to pieces.
‘Boyz With Fun’ (Demo):
This is another demo version of a song that made a lot of people laugh. Not only does Namjoon take Hobi’s “eenie miney mo” verse and go completely off from there in a heartwarmingly Namjoon style he uses when he’s messing around, but the song also opens with Taehyung going “woah woah woah” in the funniest voice. We all already knew just by the sound of the song that they had so much fun recording it, but the demo is only further proof of it. BTS even talked about this demo specifically on a Vlive, laughed about it for a while, and jokingly asked Namjoon what he was doing in making that demo. To which he sheepishly laughed and declared that he liked it. I like it too Namjoon! It’s the most hilarious perfection and the album wouldn’t be the same without it. It still gives me instant serotonin when I see videos of ARMY reacting to it for the first time and laughing at Taehyung’s adorable noises.
Tony Montana (With Jimin):
I think I speak for all of ARMY when I say I was dying to get this on an album since I discovered it’s existence. I was never expecting that we would actually get it and now I can’t stop listening to it again. I know that Jimin was a bit self conscious of his rapping on this song, but I personally think he sounds like a complete badass! The fact that he added his own style and flair with the beat and lyrics makes it even more impressive for someone who doesn’t regularly rap. Yoongi definitely had a vision when he chose Jimin as part of this. And, obviously, Yoongi is brilliant. ‘Tony Montana’ has always been a badass bop and I loved having it here.
Young Forever (RM Demo):
In Namjoon’s most recent interview, the interviewer described this demo track as feeling like it came off of his mixtape, ‘Mono’. I can’t help but wholeheartedly agree. Though I do think he goes more raw and angry in his rap style here than with most of ‘Mono’. And that is for a reason. The lyrics are less about the love of performance and the connection between the group and the fans here. These lyrics are angry at the world for treating young people the way it does. For placing young people in an odd state of being between self destruction and self love. The lyrics seek to console the listener by telling them that they will have their young ideals forever and the world won’t be able to break you down. There’s a despair and desperation in the song that’s very touching and so very Namjoon in how poetic it is. This is one of the demo tracks that hit me the hardest because of that.
Spring Day (V Demo):
This demo is only a portion of “Spring Day’ and goes from Namjoon’s rap that is in the original to Taheyung’s chorus idea. It is absolutely beautiful. I have always found Taehyung to have some of the most calming vocals that I’ve ever heard, but this feels like another level even to that. This shows off Taehyung’s full range, from his soft and calming lower register to his soaring higher register. There are so many Taehyung songs that I’ve said I could fall asleep to in a good way because his voice is that relaxing. This would be one to add to that list. I would have been happy with Taehyung’s version of ‘Spring Day’ too!
DNA (j-hope Demo):
This sounds like it came right out of ‘Hope World’. Not only that but I was able to draw so much more of a connection between Hobi and ‘DNA’ after this. That song feels so much more like Hobi to me now! The song has the quirky beat and the high flying melodies that are so prominent in a lot of Hobi’s work. I don’t think there’s a rapper in the music industry who can recreate what any of the rap line does, but Hobi’s sound is almost alien in the way it’s so unlike any other rap style you’ve probably ever heard. And now I know why ‘DNA’ always felt like it suited Hobi almost too well.
Epiphany (Jin Demo):
There is no version of ‘Epiphany’ that I would ever be able to even remotely dislike. The original version in this demo has more testing lyrics than anything finalized though. The lyrics here are a pretty typical, though very adorable, love song. Very cute, but it doesn’t have the hard hitting love yourself message that we eventually got. I love those lyrics so much! But the real stand outs here are the melody and, most importantly, Jin’s gorgeous voice. His voice is so focused on in this demo that you can hear every note so clearly. It’s nothing short of beautiful. His range is so well showcased and I almost cried multiple times because his voice invokes so much emotion. It doesn’t matter what he’s singing about, Jin will always make you feel the lyrics of the song with just his voice.
Seesaw (Demo):
There were a lot of people who were disappointed that Jimin didn’t get a demo version of a song. Well, that’s because his never before shared work was shown in ‘Tony Montana’. Which is also the only Yoongi centric piece you’re going to get on this album with his vocals in it. This is a work of art created by Yoongi. He doesn’t sing or rap in it. You don’t hear him at all. What you hear is his work. This is a gorgeous soundtrack piece that showcases how much of an artist Yoongi is with sound and melody. I think he has the talent to create an entire movie soundtrack! He’s just so good at his use of melody and how to use it to evoke certain feelings. This piece has depth while feeling light as air. I loved every moment listening to it.
Still With You (Acapella):
As if we needed another reminder that Jungkook sounds like a literal angel. ‘Still With You’ has to be one of my favorite solo works that any of the boys have released, and it’s all due to the soft, calming, jazzy feel with Jungkook’s impeccable vocals. It’s both gorgeous and calming! This singles out his voice without the backing track to show just how amazing his range is. His voice is so crisp and clear. There are not many people with the control that he has, probably from singing everywhere at any time for so long. His voice is too good to be true. It makes me want to cry.
For Youth:
So this is the song that finally made me break down in tears on this album. It wasn’t ‘Yet To Come’, because I did and still do find that song to mostly be hopeful. But beginning this one with the audio of ARMY surprising BTS at their concert by singing ‘Young Forever’ completely broke me. I still have trouble watching the performances they’ve been doing for this song. It’s so clearly made for us and so touching and emotional that I won’t be able to properly describe it in words. They call us their home in the song and their best friends. And they talk about how we’ve helped them just as much as they helped all of us. I know for a fact they’ve helped me through so much. Even thinking about this song and writing about it is making me want to cry! So let’s move on while I grab for the tissues! Just…thank you so much BTS. For everything. And we’ll all be right here when our boys get back!
Performances:
They decided to do an actual comeback with this, which makes sense now. They’ve seemed to be trying their best to be happy and goofy, but also breaking down a bit at times. I think we’re all on the same page here! But there’s also a freedom I’m feeling from them too, especially with how much they’ve been messing around with their ending fairies. I really think this break will be good for them and it’s so nice to see them having fun! I know there were people who were hoping for choreography, but I’m glad that they didn’t go that route. Namjoon said that their hearts wouldn’t have been in it and this version of performing feels more raw and real to me. It feels like they’re having a conversation with us every time they sing ‘Yet to Come’ and ‘For Youth’. I appreciate this style so much, especially for right now, and I sincerely hope that they’re enjoying finally hearing the cheers from their Korean fans.
Oof! I’m still so emotional over this album! It really is a beautiful slice of perfection and a wonderful summary of chapter one of BTS. I’m glad that they’re more confident now that we’ll be here when they come back. Right where they left us. And I think it goes without saying that if you are attacking any one of them for this hiatus, you aren’t a real ARMY. There have been people weirdly pinning the blame on Namjoon saying that they were only on hiatus because he was struggling. Firstly, that’s an awful reaction to someone struggling. Secondly, it is absolutely nobody’s fault. Jimin even said that they never thought Namjoon’s ideas didn’t reflect the group when he expressed this concern. They all talked about struggling! Let’s give them the room and space they need to heal without pouring unwarranted accusations onto their plate. And we just got a teaser for some of Jungkook’s solo work! Look out for “Left and Right” by Jungkook and Charlie Puth! Let’s start supporting all of their solo work and collabs!
Professional photo of Kim Seokjin, Kim Namjoon (RM), Kim Taehyung, Park Jimin, Min Yoongi (Suga), Jung Hoseok (J-Hope), and Jeon Jungkook for ‘Proof’. Copyright goes to the Hybe Corporation and BTS.
Hey! Hallie here!
We’re back! We’ve been on vacation for the last two weeks, which explains the lack of posts recently. And, of course, just when we left we got some major BTS news. My sister will be talking about the ‘Proof’ album soon, so I’m not really going to focus on that. I’m focusing entirely on the FESTA dinner and all of the confusion that followed it. While there were plenty of warning signs for a bit of a BTS break in all of the ‘Proof’ promo, the news that the members would be focusing more on solo content and less on group content blind-sided many fans. And the large amount of opinions being shared on the internet as a result only seemed to get more hectic once Hybe’s preceding statement added to the confusion. There’s a lot to talk about when it comes to this situation, so I’m just going to get right into it!
FESTA Dinner:
These dinners happen as part of the yearly FESTA celebration that surrounds BTS’s debut. It’s usually an occasion for the members of BTS to goof off with one another and speak in depth about their feelings on each other, ARMY, and BTS as a whole. And we definitely got all of that this time. However, a lot of it was really heartbreaking to hear. Amidst the fun jokes and heartwarming thanks to ARMY, the members confessed how much they’ve been struggling with burnout. Namjoon and Yoongi even said that they don’t feel like they have anything to say in their writing anymore as a result of not having the life experience they feel they should have. Even more heartbreaking, all the members spoke at length about how nervous they have been to share these feelings with ARMY. Namjoon cried during the conversation, saying he felt as though he was letting ARMY down. Fortunately, we had members like Taehyung reminding him that true ARMYs would be understanding. In any case, all of it came down to one announcement they wanted to make. They will be focusing mainly on their solo work for an unannounced amount of time. J-Hope put it best, they need to spend time apart before they can become one again. They need to work on themselves individually in order to form a stronger group later down the line. They’ve clearly needed this kind of break for a long while, and I hope they know how much ARMY admires them for taking it. I’m only sad they felt they were disappointing ARMY by taking said break.
The Signs:
During the FESTA dinner we learned that BTS has been considering a break from group work since before the pandemic. Knowing this timeline makes a few things make sense. Starting with the most obvious, ‘Proof’ has always felt like a farewell album. It’s an anthology of their greatest hits, their main music video is a call back to all of their past music videos, and the members have frequently regarded it as an end to “chapter one”. Then there’s their “Permission to Dance” concerts, which were announced very suddenly and never fully developed into a tour before the members said with a finality that the “Permission to Dance” era was over. These concerts also focused on their most popular songs and the songs the members wanted to perform for ARMY the most, which now seems like something equally influenced by their inability to do concerts during quarantine and the incoming period where they wouldn’t be doing concerts as a group. There’s also the breaks BTS took from ‘Run BTS’ and from their crazy schedules in general, which helped their mental health but couldn’t solve everything. There are smaller hints to look at too. Hobi told ARMYs that his next album would likely be out earlier this year, but right when it felt like he was starting to promote it, it was pushed back again. That decision could very easily have been made in order prepare for the announcement that all the members would be releasing solo projects in the near future. There’s also quotes being passed around by ARMYs that hint at BTS trying to subtly console ARMY that their separation wouldn’t be permanent long before the announcement was made. And then there’s various member’s individual comments in interviews about how difficult it’s been to find purpose in their work recently. Which, rightfully, concerned many ARMYs. They really need this break and I’m so glad they’re getting it.
Confusion and Hybe’s Statement:
After the FESTA dinner there were a lot of upset ARMYs, although the reason for their distress varied from person to person. Some were upset that BTS had suffered for so long on behalf of ARMY. Others feared that BTS would break up completely despite the fact that Yoongi stated they wouldn’t be disbanding. Part of the panic was the fault of an English subtitle on the dinner video that changed a Korean word that meant “off time” to the English word “hiatus”. The word hiatus in particular scared US ARMYs, who are used to a music industry where a hiatus is sometimes the same thing as disbandment. And US ARMYs weren’t the only ones. Hybe stock tanked after the announcement as though stock holders didn’t trust BTS to return. While ARMYs were at work trying to remind each other that BTS said they would come back together, Hybe saw their stocks plummeting and made a quick announcement, telling everyone that BTS would not be going on hiatus and that they would still be doing group activities. Which made it sound like they wouldn’t be taking any sort of break at all. At this point you had ARMYs who were convinced that BTS would still be making music together as usual fighting with ARMYs who were angry at Hybe for making a vague announcement that didn’t quite seem to align with what the members themselves said. Honestly, Hybe really should have put more thought into the way they would respond to the reaction to BTS announcing their break, because they did not at all seem to know what to do. So everyone remained confused until the members stepped in.
Jungkook and Namjoon:
These two are the sole reason why I’m now pretty positive I know what’s going on with BTS. Jungkook, seeing the chaos, went live to clear everything up (And also mess around because he’s Jungkook). He clarified that BTS will be focusing on solo work, but they still have some group activities planned including a return to ‘Run BTS’. Essentially, BTS won’t be doing as many group activities together, and they won’t be releasing a lot of music together either, but we will see them get together on occasion while they work on their solo projects. Then Namjoon chimed in with a long and rightfully angry letter on Weverse. Here he mainly criticized the media for taking the fear that BTS would disband and running with it. He felt it undermined a lot of what he was trying to get across during the FESTA dinner and he reiterated that BTS wouldn’t disband. Namjoon deserves to be angry, especially after how vulnerable he was with ARMY. I’m glad he seems to know that ARMYs understand his intentions even though the media doesn’t.
Hopefully I helped clear some things up for ARMYs who are still confused by this situation. A part of me is sad that we won’t have a BTS tour or album in the near future, but the boys are way more important to me than those things. They’ve all been having an incredibly hard time recently, which many of us can relate to, and they really deserve a break. After dedicating so much of their youth to BTS, I hope this time spent separate helps them discover who they truly are. I also hope that they don’t feel pressured by Hybe or the general public to come back together before they’re ready. Everyone experiences burnout, and they need to take a lengthy amount of time to overcome it rather than the short breaks they’ve tried before. I’m so happy that they’re putting their mental health first. They’ve encouraged ARMY to do the same so many times. It’s even more encouraging to seem them take action on their own advice. I wish them the best, and I can’t wait for J-Hope’s album to drop next month!
Screenshot of Hikaru Hitachiin from ‘Ouran High School Host Club’. Copyright goes to Funimation and Bisco Hatori.
Hi! It’s Annie!
Sorry for the late post! I think one major difference with the way I currently consume fictional content to the way I used to when I was younger, is my newfound appreciation for flawed characters. In this blog I constantly talk about how I love a flawed character, and that didn’t necessarily used to be the case. When a character showed a relatable flaw that involved them being somewhat rude to another character, I used to question their motivations and sometimes even become annoyed. So, re-watching some of my favorite shows that I haven’t watched for years now has given me a whole new perspective on them. And that means seeing a side of certain characters that I hadn’t before. Recently I’ve particularly been into watching K-Dramas and Anime, though K-Dramas is a new thing for me. So the only way I can talk about how my opinions of a character changed is to talk about Anime specifically. So that’s what I’m going to do! Here are some of my favorite characters from some of my favorite Anime, who I’ve been given a new perspective on when re-watching them.
Hikaru Hitachiin from ‘Ouran High School Host Club’:
Before: ‘Ouran High School Host Club’ was my very first Anime and has been one of my comfort shows for years. I think you might also be able to tell that this one majorly influenced my aesthetic. An elegant setting, pastel colors (mostly pink), a gorgeous and calming instrumental soundtrack, and the lighthearted goofiness of the show all fit right into my wheelhouse. Watching it again, it is very clear that some characters get more time to shine than others. We honestly don’t get a whole lot focused on either Mori or Kaoru. And this is because they usually share their stories with Hani and Hikaru respectively, both of which are usually the focus of the episodes those duos get. I used to not as much mind this with Mori and Hani, because Mori purposefully didn’t say much. But I couldn’t stand this with Hikaru and Kaoru. And while I wish both twins would have gotten equal time, there’s another explanation that made me realize the purpose of this. They, rightfully, decided that the brothers shouldn’t both have huge crushes on Haruhi, so they focus on the brother who does. Not a great explanation, but not a bad one either. However, the other reason why I used to hate this decision is because I didn’t like Hikaru. Specially for that episode where he insults Haruhi’s childhood friend. He’s pretty irritated for the majority of the episode and doesn’t truly apologize until the very end, though it is heartfelt. But the way he acts aloof and far off for most of the episode left me with a bad taste in my mouth.
After: Hikaru has recently become quite possibly my favorite character from Ouran. Why the massive change? Because I love flawed characters! And because I now find him incredibly relatable. Hikaru obviously has massive trust issues and is nervous of too much change at once. While Hikaru usually seems to be pretty out there and masks very well with humor, it’s his vulnerable moments that really break down what we occasionally see under all that. He’s worried that his friends will leave him at the slightest suggestion, he’s afraid of losing Haruhi who’s the only person who has ever been able to tell him apart from his brother, and he’s very afraid of being inconsequential to someone he considers himself to be close to. Because he’s a twin and he’s used to being thought of as not having much in the way of emotion and mostly just thought of as an act. And the episode I mentioned above is perfect at drawing out all of those insecurities that make him want to shut out everyone else in a desperate attempt to keep his heart safe and in tact. While Kaoru is much more well adjusted, Hikaru is still coping with his issues. Which is understandable. And I think it says a lot that as soon as he realized that Haruhi was not where he assumed she’d be; he went out searching for Haruhi in the rain for hours. No umbrella, no shelter. He only stopped when he could find her, help her with her own coping mechanisms for the thunder storm, and truly apologize for how he acted. Watching it again, it is a perfect example of a well written episode on a character flaw, complete with realization and redemption.
Satori Tendo from ‘Haikyuu!’:
Before: When I first watched ‘Haikyuu! a few years back, I wasn’t at all interested in the characters that weren’t from Karasuno. There were already so many characters to focus on there that I could barely even think about the massive fan base behind many of the other players from the other teams, except for maybe Nekoma. Obviously Nekoma has Kenma and some other gems, but the show purposefully makes them stand out. Especially because they are the closest friends and main enemies to the team at Karasuno. But the other teams and their players? Not so much. It felt like their time on screen was so fleeting and I couldn’t get all that invested in their stories. At least, not nearly as invested as I was with Karasuno winning that game and Nishinoya making those jaw-dropping saves. Upon my recent rewatch of ‘Haikyuu!’ I was absolutely certain that would be the case again. I mean, how could characters from other teams win me over when I’m already so busy trying to figure out my favorite character on the Karasuno team? And while I wasn’t won over by any team more than Karasuno, my appreciation for many characters went up while watching this show this time around.
After: No character caught my eye from another team quite like Satori Tendo. He first caught my attention on my rewatch when I was looking at dubbed scenes from ‘Haikyuu!’. The dub was the first way that I watched it and really got me into the show itself, so I miss some of the crazy hilarious comedy from the dub. It’s really difficult to find the dub now, so I usually have to watch the sub when I go back and watch it. But nothing quite grabs your attention like Satori’s demented and hilarious singing. “SMASH WHAT?” But when it actually came time for me to watch the match between Karasuno and Shiratorizawa, I was not expecting the emotional blow I would receive from the slightly creepy and demented appearing character. His tall stature and wide eyes do emphasize the intimidation factor, which he certainly uses on the court, but that doesn’t mean he’s respected for it off of the court. Satori was often made fun of for his looks growing up; continuously declared creepy, called a monster outright, and said to be too much to be friends with classmates and teammates alike. Something that he coped with by allowing himself to be true to himself on the court and showing that maybe looking creepy was good for something. Though he’s usually a fan of the looks of defeat on the faces of the other teams, it doesn’t make him a bad person off the court. He’s been known to comfort teammates when they cry and is overall a pretty fun guy to be around. His sense of loneliness only endears you more to him…and obviously the singing too. The singing is amazing. In the manga he becomes a chocolatier at the end; how cool is that? Though this isn’t like Hikaru where he became my new favorite character, that title still goes to the unbeatable Nishinoya, he actually became one of my favorite characters. Even ranking above a few Karasuno players, which is really saying something for me.
Ryuji Sakamoto from ‘Persona 5’:
Before: I know, I know, this isn’t necessarily an Anime. But they did make an Anime for it that I’ve watched and loved, so I’m going to say that it counts. Ryuji was my least favorite character on my first playthrough watch of this game. I don’t quite remember entirely why because I’m so in love with the character now, but I have some ideas. Ryuji is a bit of a delinquent who has absolutely no filter and will just say anything that comes to mind. That includes saying exactly what he thinks of Ann’s looks and also constantly getting into fights with Morgana that I found to be very irritating at first. Ryuji was a character that I just couldn’t come around to, no matter how long the game spent with him.
After: Ryuji is now my favorite character after Futaba. Part of that is the dub actor Max Mittelman who put so much heart and comedic timing into his performance of Ryuji. Often times I feel Ryuji is a needed foil to Morgana and I always appreciate his input. I am actually now firmly among the crowd of people who are not happy with the scene where he was essentially beaten up after the girls perceived him to be dead! I didn’t remember that from my first time watching my sister play the game. Seriously, that was so misplaced. But Ryuji feels so real to me now revisiting the game or the Anime. He’s this perfect example of a High School kid who was victimized by the schooling system. He doesn’t fight back just to fight; he fights back so that nobody ever has to go through what he did ever again. And he’s one of the most willing to speak out when something messed up happens. Ryuji not having a filter is something he uses to his advantage. It’s something he uses to advocate for a better world. And while not everything that comes out of his mouth is incredibly profound; it would be weird if not having a filter was a character trait only applied to him when it best suited him. I’m glad that he’s consistent and, most of all, I’m so glad that he’s Ryuji. A comfort character for me that I never knew I needed previously.
I would absolutely love to make another list like this and include more female characters, but unfortunately we still do struggle with seeing many female characters with development like this. I hope I’ll eventually find some to talk about in the future! But these three characters that I’ve listed above really have become very dear to me and some of my new favorite fictional characters of all time. When writing or watching media, we all have to remember that nobody is perfect. Nobody copes with things the same way. And showing a character who’s flawed or attempting to figure out coping mechanisms is not only relatable, but very much needed. We need to have examples in media that show people that it’s ok to be working through issues and trying to find the next step. It’s a part of life. And just like these characters, it doesn’t make you any less lovable to struggle sometimes.
Professional photo of Morgan Siobhan Green as Eurydice, Kevyn Morrow as Hades, Levi Kreis as Hermes, Kimberly Marable as Persephone, and Nicholas Barasch as Orpheus in ‘Hadestown’. Photo by T. Charles Erickson and copyright goes to Concord Theatricals.
Hey! Hallie here!
A little over a week ago I made a huge post about my experience seeing the touring cast of ‘Hadestown’. It’s my favorite theatrical show of all time and seeing it live was such an amazing experience! But now that I’ve talked a bit about what I like about the show and how much I adored the cast, I want to get more into specific details. Particularly because before I watched ‘Hadestown’, I was really eager to hear about the little things that happen on stage that I wouldn’t know from listening to the cast recordings. Now that I’ve seen these little moments and acting choices in person, I feel like I know the characters and their motivations even better than I knew them before. So for those of you who want to speculate about the characters with me, or are just as curious as I was about what goes on onstage, I’m going to go character by character through some of the little things that stuck out the most to me! If you don’t want to know anything about the show, there’s MAJOR SPOILERS ahead!
Orpheus: A lot of the things I list for him happen in most productions, but I still loved these moments. The first thing Orpheus did to make me fall in love with him happened just when Hermes introduced him in “Road to Hell”. He walks in and wipes off some tables, managing to completely turn his back to the audience right when he’s being introduced. I heard in the cast recording that Hermes calls Orpheus’ name twice, but I never realized that he was trying to get his attention because he was so distracted. Orpheus does eventually turn around, looking a bit dazed, and then he bashfully waves to the audience. Another moment I loved occurred at the end of “Way Down Hadestown” when Eurydice shows interest in Hadestown. As Hades and Persephone disappear, Orpheus grabs her around the waist and physically holds her back. A couple of things in act two also caught my eye. During “Epic III” he sings part of the song directly to Eurydice, which creates this beautiful mirroring effect where Orpheus is looking at Eurydice on one side of the stage, and Hades is looking at Persephone on the other side. And then there’s when Orpheus turns around. The blocking here is a bit awkward because Orpheus has to face the back of the stage in order to watch Eurydice disappear back into Hadestown, but the way he falls on his knees and stares blankly at where she disappeared for an entire song afterwards, conveys all the emotion it needs to.
Eurydice: Act one Eurydice was so much fun to watch. “Wedding Song” felt like Eurydice at her most confident. She seemed to own the stage as Orpheus sung after her, and the way she’d throw a sarcastic comment and then strike a flirty pose earned her lots of laughs. I also liked the brief point of time in “All I’ve Ever Known” where she shies away from Orpheus’ touch, emphasizing that she isn’t used to that type of relationship. Her trip down to Hadestown was a lot more heartbreaking as well. When she arrives in Hadestown toward the end of “Why We Build the Wall”, she very quickly becomes frightened of the mass of workers singing at her and flinches away from them. Afterwards, during “Way Down Hadestown (Reprise)” she actually goes over to Hermes as though to ask for help. Though Hermes looks like he wants to help her, her face falls when she realizes there isn’t anything he can do. Eurydice’s story had me close to tears more than I expected.
Hermes: The first thing that struck me with Hermes is just how much care and concern he directs at Orpheus. From the way he rolls his eyes at Orpheus when he immediately walks up to Eurydice and says “come home with me”, to the concern on his face when he watches over Orpheus as he’s trying to finish his song. I also adored his relationship with Persephone. Persephone spent a lot of time in his corner of the stage where the two would share drinks. The way they both walked on stage for “Our Lady of the Underground” immediately made the audience sit up in interest. Their position, arm-in-arm and laughing with each other, made me feel like we were missing some kind of inside joke between them. She kissed him on the cheek too, although she jokingly made a face beforehand. Hermes’ relationship with Hades grabbed me as well. The first time Hermes catches Hades’ eye in act two, they have a pretty intense stare down that’s only broken when Hades decides to walk away. During “His Kiss, The Riot” Hermes stands on one side of stage as a kind of blockade, representing the unavoidable decision Hades has to make. I didn’t expect him to actually be standing there when Hades makes his decision to let Orpheus and Eurydice go but with the caveat that she must walk behind him. It makes his understanding of the situation, especially knowing the conflict Hades is dealing with, that much deeper.
Persephone: She’s always been my favorite character but her little quirks really solidify that for me. She shines from the first moment she’s on stage at the beginning of the show. I loved watching her and Hades sitting in the balcony. The two seem so close and yet so far apart as they’re sitting there, both doing their own thing but still glancing at one another. When she leaves she goes to kiss him on the cheek but he turns away, and you can see on her face how much that hurts her. She kisses him on the cheek anyway, but she seems pretty disgruntled afterwards until she emerges for “Livin’ it Up on Top”. I thought it was a really sweet choice to have her caress Orpheus’ face and Eurydice’s shoulder after the song, as if she approves of their romance. But back to her relationship with Hades, the switch of her behavior in “Way Down Hadestown” alone is worth discussing. At the beginning of the song she collapses fully to the ground and struggles to get up, which conveyed to me both a serious depression and a serious level of drunkenness that was fitting for her opinions of Hadestown. But when he arrives they smile at each other, and she’s even quick to laugh off the way he gets temporarily thrown off by Eurydice. Which, in “Chant” quickly goes away when she’s taken to Hadestown and gets her first look at it from the balcony. She stares down at the workers in horror and you really see her disgust throughout the entire song. She outright storms off when Hades goes after Eurydice. But then, when Hades offers the flower at the end of act two, she bursts into tears and you see how much she genuinely loves him.
Hades: As I said above, there’s a lot of interesting moments between Hades and Persephone in the show, some of which are reportedly exclusive to the tour. The way Hades turns away from Persephone as she leaves, not to disregard her but as a clear act of hurt because she’s leaving, felt so important to both characters. But when he came back to get Persephone he was all smiles and laughter. When directed at Eurydice these things seemed very sinister, but with Persephone his happiness felt more genuine. I feel like that fact translated to the dance at the end of act two as well. Persephone and Hades laugh their way through the dance as if they’ve never enjoyed themselves more. These two really felt like a couple that had once gotten along very well but had fallen apart in recent years. I also thought that his attitude towards Eurydice in “Hey Little Songbird” was some of the most interesting bits of character work in the show. On the one hand, Hades is being sly and trying to lure Eurydice into a false sense of comfort. But on the other hand, he snaps at her whenever she goes off to consider his words, as though he lacks any patience for her at all. It made me think that Hades didn’t really want to be there even though he was enacting his own plan. And just, the way he leans his head on Persephone’s shoulder right before “His Kiss the Riot” made my heart melt.
That’s it! I wish I had more to write about because there was so much happening on stage that I very likely missed some things. I would love to get to see this touring cast again soon so I can fill in some of those gaps. In any case, I hope those of you that were curious about this are satisfied with these little details. Details bring the show to life in a way that can’t be replicated. This is also why I’m hoping the official footage of the original Broadway cast gets released so I can see the little moments in that production as well. Either way, I hope as many of you as possible catch this amazing show while it’s on tour! Don’t do anything fun until I get back!
Oreos & Peanut Butter 