Photo Biography Update (04-23-2021)

Some notable photos taken during the period of July 1, 2020 to April 23, 2021...

'Jujutsu Kaisen' Is a Pretty Basic Battle Shonen, yet Brimming with Awesomeness

Jujutsu Kaisen was a huge hit when it debuted last Fall 2020.  In fact, many even considered it worthy of being Anime of the Year, even though its first season was only half-way done.  Personally, I preferred a couple of other anime over it in 2020, but I don’t necessarily think it didn’t deserve the hype.  And by remaining relevant in the loaded Winter 2021, in which it had to contend with many returning fan favorites and hot, new titles, Jujutsu Kaisen has cemented itself as a legit rival to Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba for the title of best battle shonen in recent memory.

'Bottom-tier Character Tomozaki' Is a Top-tier High School Anime

Powered by the hype of its manga fanbase, Horimiya turned out being the most prominent high school rom-com of Winter 2021.  However, while everyone was raving about it from the get go, I found myself gravitating toward Bottom-tier Character Tomozaki instead.  And though I ended up watching and liking Horimiya, too, I still believe Bottom-tier Character Tomozaki is the superior high school rom-com anime of Winter 2021.

'Horimiya' Is a Bit Overhyped, but Still a Genuinely Pleasing High School Rom-Com

Horimiya wasn’t one of the initial new anime I picked up at the start of the Winter 2021 season, but along with Wonder Egg Priority, I just had to start watching it mid-season, because it’s generating much buzz.  In the end, even though I thought it was a bit overhyped, I did thoroughly enjoy it.

Horimiya follows a group of high schoolers experiencing the usual stuff from your conventional high school drama anime – developing friendships, goofing around, bantering, the occasional angst, and of course, romance.  The title of the show is derived from the portmanteau of the main couple, Kyoko Hori and Izumi Miyamura.

'Heaven’s Design Team' Makes an Argument for Intelligent Design

Heaven’s Design Team is a fictional twist on the Creation story.  God, after creating the Earth, decides to outsource to a team of designers the task of creating the animals that will populate the planet.  For every job order, the designers must make a particular animal that meets the vague or enigmatic requirements that their Client has given for it.  A rookie angel named Shimoda serves as their liaison, and provides them invaluable emotional support.

‘Suppose a Kid from the Last Dungeon Boonies Moved to a Starter Town’ Is Hilarious, Even Though Much of Its Best Comedy Comes from the Same Formula

Suppose a Kid from the Last Dungeon Boonies Moved to a Starter Town follows Lloyd Belladonna, a teenage boy who left his village of Kunlun for the first time in order to pursue his life’s dream of becoming a soldier for the Kingdom of Azami.  Although he’s supposed to be the weakest in his village, he doesn’t want this fact to get in the way of achieving his dream.  He’s determined to become a proud member of the kingdom’s army.

Actually, Kunlun has the legendary reputation of being the hometown of the world’s most powerful heroes.  Located near an infamous dungeon in which the strongest monsters reside, the village’s inhabitants are actually extremely powerful in terms of magic and physical abilities.  That means Lloyd may be the weakest in his village, but he’s still terrifyingly strong by the standards of the outside world.  However, he doesn’t know this, since this is the first time he’s gone out of his village.  As far as he’s concerned, he’s a weakling, since he doesn’t measure up to the “normal” of his village.

'Cells at Work! Code Black' Is Better Than the Original

Cells at Work! Code Black is a spin-off series of Cells at Work!.  It has the same premise as the original, in which cells are anthropomorphized as human-looking workers performing jobs that are metaphorically akin to their functions in real life.  For example, red blood cells (erythrocytes) are deliverymen, and white blood cells (neutrophils) are soldiers.  However, in Cells at Work! Code Black, the main red blood cell character is male, and the main white blood cell character is female.  More notably, the setting of Black is in the body of a man with an unhealthy lifestyle.

Taking Advantage of an Extensive Runtime and a Centralized Creative Vision, 'Zack Snyder’s Justice League' Delivers a Superior Experience

While I did enjoy the DCEU’s Justice League back in 2017, I also found it to be messy and uneven.  And when compared to the MCU’s first Avengers film, it objectively comes off as an inferior product.

Most of the fault for its failure is attributed to the production woes behind the scenes.  Zack Snyder, grieving the sudden death of his daughter, had to step down during post-production, and Warner Bros. brought in Joss Whedon to finish the film.  The final cut of the film released back then apparently turned out being more Whedon than Snyder.  Thus, the unsatisfactory performance of the film – which eventually came to be referred to as “Joss-tice League” – was mostly blamed on Whedon.

Soon afterward, rumors of the existence of a “Synder Cut” – a version of the film true to Zack Snyder’s original vision – spread around the Internet.  While there was skepticism, the legitimacy of the Snyder Cut only gained more traction when people that were involved with the production started suggesting that it exists.  Thus, fans began the #ReleaseTheSnyderCut movement.  After years of campaigning, fans got what they want as Warner Bros. finally decided in 2020 to let Snyder realize his vision of the film.  Warner Bros. had to shell out $70 million to cover the cost of finishing the visual effects and reshoots.

GTWFSL Holy Week 2021 Special Numbers

Last week, GTWFSL released three virtual song covers in commemoration of the Holy Week and Easter.

For Good Friday, the teachers and some Junior High School students presented “The Power of the Cross” by Stuart Townend and Keith & Kristyn Getty—a moving, meaningful story hymn reflecting on the events of that day in which Christ was crucified.

'WandaVision' Is Alright

WandaVision is arguably the first MCU TV show ever.  Sure, there have been Marvel TV shows before from ABC (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Agent Carter, Inhumans), Netflix (Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Iron Fist, The Defenders, The Punisher), and others (Runaways, Cloak & Dagger) that claimed to be set in the MCU –  some of which even featured characters and elements that were introduced in the films.  However, the MCU films have never really acknowledged them in a meaningful or official capacity.  And thus, no matter how much these TV shows insist that they are also set in the MCU, their supposed link to the MCU totally feels non-canon.  WandaVision is surely the first true MCU TV series, because its MCU identity and association are instantly unquestionable.

'Monster Hunter' Is a Massive Bummer of a Hollywood Isekai

Monster Hunter is a science fantasy action film that’s loosely based on Capcom video game of the same name.  It follows a team of soldiers, led by Captain Natalie Artemis (Milla Jovovich), that is sent to search for another team of soldiers that suddenly disappeared into thin air.  Upon arriving at the last known place where the missing soldiers had been, Capt. Artemis’ team is caught in a mysterious storm that quickly drop out of nowhere.  Afterward, they discover that the storm took them to another world – the same fate as the previously missing soldiers, whom they discovered suffered grisly deaths.  For this new world they find themselves in are actually inhabited by many formidable and aggressive monsters.  In order to survive in this harsh and deadly world, Capt. Artemis and his troops must rely on their training, weaponry, and teamwork, although it looks like they won’t be enough to fight these unfamiliar enemies.

'Space Sweepers' Is a Blast

I don’t know if South Korea has made a science fiction blockbuster like Space Sweepers before, but it’s the first time I’ve personally encountered such kind of South Korean production.  Well, Snowpiercer was technically a South Korean production, but it didn’t really feel “South Korean” since it has a mostly Hollywood cast.  On the other hand, although it has non-Korean supporting characters, Space Sweepers are headlined by Korean actors playing Korean characters.  Thus, it feels like a legit South Korean production, and is the first of its kind that I’ve seen.

In 'Shadow in the Cloud', a Female WW II Flight Officer Takes on Misogyny, Japanese Fighters Planes, and a Gremlin

Set during World War II, Shadow in the Cloud follows Maude Garrett (Chloë Grace Moretz), a female Flight Officer who has been given a top secret mission to deliver top secret package from Auckland, New Zealand to Samoa.  In order to fulfiller her mission, she hitches a ride on a B-17 Flying Fortress named “Fool’s Errand”, where she’s assigned to its Sperry ball turret.  During the trip, the bomber meets a surprise ambush by Japanese fighter planes.  To makes matters worse, a gremlin appears to have attached itself to the plane, and has been gradually tearing it apart.

2020 Movie Catch-Up Roundup: 'The Croods: A New Age', 'Made in Abyss: Dawn of the Deep Soul', 'A Whisker Away', '#Alive', and MORE

There are 12 movies from 2020 that I watched last month but didn’t get around to reviewing.  To address the backlog, I decided to just do a roundup for them – similar to what I did in previous situations like this.  So, here they are, arranged from what I enjoyed the most to the least:

The Croods: A New Age

The Croods was one of my favorite animated movies of 2013.  I didn’t think it was going to be any good, but it turned out being heartwarming, thoughtful, and hilarious.  It took a couple of years before a sequel for it got made, and because the gap of time between it and the original, I didn’t have much hype for it.  I thought the window for an effective sequel had already closed.  However, similar with the case the first one, the sequel turned out being much better than I expected.  I extremely enjoyed the comedy, the narrative, the music (“I Think I Love You” is an absolute banger!), and creative creature designs.  Pixar’s Soul and Onward may be the best Hollywood animated movies of 2020, but The Croods: A New Age is honestly not so far behind them.

'Batman: Soul of the Dragon' Delightfully Brings Together Some of DC's Best Martial Artists in a 70's Martial Arts Caper

Batman: Soul of the Dragon is the second post-DCAMU film from the DCUAOM.  This isn’t set in the same universe as Superman: Man of Tomorrow as I originally thought.  I guess the DCUAOM won’t be doing a shared universe replacement for DCAMU anytime soon.