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twistedtummies2 · 10 months

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Top 10 Looney Tunes Characters

This year is truly an auspicious one indeed. It marks the centenary of not one, but TWO of the greatest film and animation studios that have ever been. One of them, as many are doubtless aware by now, is Disney, and I do have some things planned for later this year to celebrate that. However, another studio that’s been getting less attention than I think it deserves for its own 100th Anniversary is Warner Bros.! WB started the same year as the Disney studio, and they’re still going strong. When one thinks of WB Animation, chances are good the first characters and cartoons that come to mind are the Looney Tunes. These cartoon classics were a staple of theatrical animation from the 1930s all the way into the early 1960s…and since those days, the characters have continued to pop up in all sorts of places. Movies, TV shows, video games, comics…you name it, the Looney Tunes have been there. These toons are some of the most recognizable characters in the history of animation, more than on par with Mickey Mouse and his allies, and I’ve always loved them. So, I decided it was time to pay them proper tribute! With that said, what better way than to talk about some of my personal favorites? That’s what we’re here to do today. So let’s waste no more time! Mind you don’t slip on any banana peels or similar slapstick cliches: here are My Top 10 Looney Tunes Characters!

10. Speedy Gonzales.

Speedy is one of a few Looney Tunes characters who has sort of faced some controversy over his career (I refer you to Pepe Le Pew, for example). Some people have complained he’s a negative stereotype, but thankfully, the majority of people seem to really love the character. I think the reason why so many love him is because Speedy is one of the most positive and genuinely good characters in the Looney Tunes canon: he’s a character whose able to be heroic while also genuinely being really funny and interesting to watch. The self-proclaimed Fastest Mouse in All Mexico loves to race, loves to play, and isn’t afraid to shoot down the absurdity of some of his more bonkers co-stars, just as he isn’t afraid to outrun and outsmart any cat that tries to harm him or his friends. He’s a lot of fun himself, and he loves to have fun, and that’s probably the best type of cartoon hero there can be.

9. Sylvester the Cat.

Sylvester is one of several characters on this list notable for his sheer versatility. Most of his cartoons do focus on the same basic setup, mind you: Sylvester is hungry, and trying to catch something to eat…but inevitably gets foiled at every turn. Sometimes his prey is the aforementioned Speedy, who - in Coyote-and-Road-Runner-esque fashion - Sylvester is just never quick enough to slow down. He’s also occasionally gone after a kangaroo named Hippety Hopper, whom Sylvester somehow keeps mistaking for an oversized rat. (My comments on him “not being quick” stand here, too.) Most famously, of course, he’s the “Bad Ol’ Puddy Tat” constantly trying to gobble up Tweety Bird…who you will NOT be seeing on this countdown. (I’ve never actually liked Tweety, save for a few appearances. I WANT that super-cutesy little PSYCHOPATH to be cat food someday, and I don’t care how heartless that makes me sound.) While all of these did follow some similar patterns and formulas, each of these opponents offered a different kind of conflict for Sylvester to overcome, and therefore a different set of gags that could be utilized, and a lot of different scenarios to allow for comedy to happen. He also popped up in a few cartoons with Porky Pig, which brought a new dimension to the character: in these appearances, a mute Sylvester is depicted as Porky’s pet cat, who constantly has to save his oblivious master from all sorts of dangerous situations. Whether he’s a well-meaning scaredy cat or a greedy predator, he’s always fun to watch.

8. Yosemite Sam.

One of the most renowned villains in the Looney Tunes catalogue. I like to think of this loudmouthed little cowpuncher as the WB equivalent to Disney’s Pete. Both are characters who are versatile in how they have been fitted into just about every sort of time period and setting imaginable, with just about every antagonistic role you can think of. He’s most famous as being a Wild West outlaw, naturally, but Sam has also played a Black Knight, a Hessian Soldier, a Space Invader, a Crooked Politician, a Pirate, a Prison Guard, and many, MANY other things. Each time, his personality is the same: wild, hysterical, ornery, scheming yet somehow gullible, and eternally frustrated, usually due to the efforts of “that lowdown, long-eared, carrot-eatin’ varmint,” Bugs Bunny. Sam’s personality is just such an easy one to handle, and so fun to play with, you can put him into just about any type of situation, and without needing to change him much, he can work just as easily. I actually feel really bad placing him so low on the list, but hopefully those above him won’t disappoint.

7. Elmer Fudd.

Elmer is another character, sort of like Sylvester, who can play either protagonist or antagonist just as easily as the other. In fact, he’s been both more often than Sylvester has! We know him best, of course, for his many attempts to hunt down Bugs Bunny (and Daffy Duck), and these stories already have plenty of fun reinventions, twists, and overall moments. Everything from putting Elmer in different time periods (like the Stone Age), throwing him into different settings (like chasing Bugs into an opera house), or just changing up his role in some crazy way (like making him a viking with a magic helmet). No matter what you do, these always end the same for Elmer: either he never gets Bugs, or he THINKS he does, and then immediately regrets it because he’s just too softhearted and slow-witted for his own good. However, Elmer’s played other parts as well: sometimes he’s not even hunting Bugs, he’s just the victim of that “Wascawwy Wabbit’s” cruel pranks. Sometimes he’s just trying to get by, and Daffy Duck starts causing chaos for him. Poor Elmer just can’t catch a break, and that’s kind of why we like him: even when he IS the bad guy, he’s far from the WORST guy. Add to that his iconic voice and mannerisms, and it’s no wonder he remains one of the most recognizable characters in this group.

6. Porky Pig.

Believe it or not, Porky was the first real superstar character in the Looney Tunes library. That’s one of the reasons the classic ending line we all know and love was given to him (it’s also why Bugs would later take it over a couple of times, when HE became a star). Much like Yosemite Sam, Porky is one of the most versatile characters on the team, but in a different way: while Sam is a versatile antagonist, Porky is a versatile protagonist. Porky is essentially the straight man to all the other totally bonkers toons around him. He’s sort of the Kermit the Frog of this universe: a guy constantly trying to keep his cool and be civil, but forever aggravated and tormented by the world around him. With that said, the way he bounces off different characters already has a lot of different ways of working: his most famous co-star is probably Daffy Duck, and even just with that one character, they’ve had a relationship that has gone in just about every direction it can go. Sometimes Porky is Daffy’s sidekick, who always proves to be more competent and level-headed than the vain and over-the-top Daffy could ever hope to be. Other times, Daffy is actually HIS sidekick, forever frustrating Porky with his goofy antics. And still other times, there’s no “sidekicking” involved, Daffy just…kind of shows up to totally ANNOY the pig until Porky inevitably snaps and goes berserk. Even Porky cartoons that don’t involve Daffy (and there are plenty of those) usually follow one of these three patterns: Porky is eternally an Alice in the Wonderland of the Looney Tunes…you know, if Alice had a stutter. And was a pig. And was no longer female-okay, that analogy didn’t work, but you get the idea.

5. Taz.

Taz, a.k.a. The Tasmanian Devil, is a rare example of a character whose star has risen over time since his initial appearances in the Golden Age of the Looney Tunes. Back then, Taz only showed up in five cartoons, between 1954 and 1964; the twilight decade, many would say, of these great cartoon stars. No one would have likely guessed that Taz would take off to become one of the most iconic and popular characters in the Looney library, with tons of merchandise, a TV show with him as the main protagonist, several major video game and film appearances, and so on. For some reason, however, this wild, ravenous, spinning-and-slobbering devil just kept being used, and the public kept eating him up just as fast as he ate…well…EVERYTHING up. He went from a pure villain who would devour anyone in sight, to suddenly becoming a slightly more heroic, albeit not always terribly bright, character. He can, could, would, and WILL just as easily play the role of an ally to characters like Bugs and Daffy, as much as their adversary. It’s hard to say exactly why Taz caught on, but I’m certainly not complaining about it, since he’s a ton of fun to watch every time. And again, that’s really all a great cartoon star needs to be. (Also, for anybody who may be curious...I do have a mild crush on this guy. I’m weird, shush.)

4. Wile E. Coyote.

It was actually really hard for me to choose between Taz and the Coyote, and I’m not honestly entirely sure if I made the right choice. It was essentially a tie between the two characters; on any given day, my mind could change. But, in the moment of making this list, I felt Wile E. deserved slightly higher placement, and thus here we are. (Also, yes, much like Taz, I do have a mild crush on the Coyote. Again, I’m weird, shush.) Having said all that, I imagine this self-proclaimed Super-Genius hardly needs an introduction. Much like Sylvester, Wile E. mostly spends his time trying to get something to eat. Usually, he’s found chasing the Road Runner and trying to trap him, but on a couple of occasions he’s bedeviled Bugs Bunny, and once in a blue moon he’ll have encounters with other characters. In most of Wile E.’s appearances, he’s a silent character, communicating solely through body language, facial expressions, and the occasional random sign he pulls out of nowhere. Whenever he DOES speak, he speaks in a smooth, slick, uppercrust English or Mid-Atlantic dialect. Whether silent or speaking, this Coyote’s basic trouble is always the same: despite his own confidence in his supposed superior intellect, a combination of clumsiness, shortsightedness, and his bizarre obsession with relying almost entirely on the ACME Corporation’s clearly faulty products always leads to him getting bamboozled. Over time, animators, writers, and directors have found new ways to spin off of Coyote’s usual formula, with stories like him taking the Road Runner to court, or turning into a fat slob due to an over-reliance on his own inventions. It’s the bizarre blend of brilliance and determination against poor planning and overconfidence that makes him such a fun character to see in action. He may never win…but I think a lot of us wish he could.

3. Daffy Duck.

While Porky was the first superstar character among the Looney Tunes (and Merrie Melodies), Daffy was really the first breakthrough character that was TRULY befitting of the title “looney.” In the early days, Daffy was a wisecracking, wild character, zipping about and causing trouble; a constant trickster who was a bundle of energy, causing mayhem for various hapless boobs. Most of the characters who followed suit on this idea - including his future rival, Bugs Bunny - essentially took their cues from Daffy’s book. Over time, the character crystalized into the mad mallard we know today. Daffy is still zany, but what he’s most known for today is his ego. Daffy is practically a narcissist, selfish in just about every way, as well as frequently quite greedy. Everything he does is for either the spotlight, cash, or both. He’s yet another character who has been the villain just as often as he’s been the hero…but even when in a more protagonistic role, he’s ALWAYS a flawed character, whose self-serving attitude leads to disaster for himself, and usually for many others. Just like Yosemite Sam, he’s also a character who has played many roles: any time the Looney Tunes want to parody a particular genre, it seems like Daffy is always the character who gets chosen. Whether he’s imitating Robin Hood or Sherlock Holmes, or going on high-flying escapades as the incompetent space hero called Duck Dodgers, you can go on a lot of different adventures with him. He’s been partnered up and pitted against nearly every character on the crew, and each and every alliance, rivalry, and so on is fun to see in action.

2. Bugs Bunny.

Just as it was hard to choose between Taz and Wile E. Coyote, it was also hard to choose between Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck. In the end though…maybe it’s too predictable, but I ultimately did feel I preferred Bugs SLIGHTLY over Daffy. What’s interesting is that, in the early days, Bugs was pretty similar to Daffy: in a lot of his earliest appearances, they’re almost the same character. Both were madcap tricksters who seemed to exist just to drive other characters completely insane for the sheer sake of it, and both had big egos that needed to be satisfied. (In Bugs’ case, this was most evident in encounters he had with the character Cecil Tortoise, who might be the only character in all of Looney Tunes to truly outmatch Bugs on the cartoon battlefield, over and over again.) Over time, however - mostly thanks to Friz Freleng and Chuck Jones - Bugs began to evolve. While still a trickster with a wild sense of humor, the character became more laid back, casual, collected. He was someone who went into situations with the confidence that he could come out okay, if he just thought fast and didn’t let it all faze him. And while he could be downright cruel in the ways he would trick and toy with people, the attacks became unprovoked less often: it was usually a case of others doing something wrong to Bugs, and he would finally lose patience and declare, “Of course you realize THIS means war.” That’s essentially the Bugs Bunny we know today: he still faces conflict and such, but it’s his approach and the way he reacts to situations that makes him such fun to watch. Once again, it also makes him quite versatile, as he can be anywhere and play just about any role, from the star of the show to more of a narrator or similarly peripheral character. He can be the everyman, the superman, and as long as it always sticks to the traits he started out with, it will always work. In fact, the only real question about his placement on this list is…why isn’t he number one?

1. Marvin the Martian.

I don’t know WHY Marvin is my favorite Looney Tunes character, but he is, and really always has been. He’s not by any means the funniest of the Looney Tunes, but there’s something about this little world-destroying gremlin I find endlessly endearing. Much like Taz, Marvin started out as a small fish in a big cartoon pond; in fact, just like the Tasmanian Devil, Marvin the Martian (originally called “Commander X2,” and later “Antwerp”) only showed up in five cartoons during the Golden Age of the Looney Tunes. He fought Bugs Bunny in four of them, and Daffy Duck and Porky Pig in another. And while he hasn’t become the merchandising mammoth that Taz has, he’s still got a very loyal fanbase and following, and has remained a mainstay among the Looney Tunes ever since. Just like Taz, creators just kept using him, and fans kept asking for more; somehow, this little martian never faded away. What I love about Marvin is that he’s essentially another straight man, much in the way Porky is…but now, he’s a straight man on the opposite side of the fence. He’s usually the bad guy, while Porky is almost always the protagonist: whether Marvin’s trying to abduct people, conquer worlds, or blow up the Earth (because it obstructs his view of Venus), he’s always an obstacle the other characters have to overcome. Yet he’s depicted as so loveable and so mild-mannered, it’s hard to be scared of him or dislike him. It also means the moments where his inner rage gets the better of him, and his temper flares, become all the more hilarious: seeing that pomposity and stiff-upper-lip nature get blown apart at the seams is always a ton of fun. It’s difficult to describe my reasoning, but regardless, Marvin the Martian will always be My Favorite Looney Tunes Character.

HONORABLE MENTIONS INCLUDE…

Foghorn Leghorn.

Michigan J. Frog.

Rocky & Mugsy.

Road Runner.

Lola Bunny.

Gossamer. “Th-The-The E-THAT’S ALL FOLKS!”

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evilscheme · 3 years

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hi! what are you using to study japanese? im interested in learning it too but i have no idea what the best way to go about it is

hi there! in short, i use a wide variety of resources for different aspects of the language. i'll go more in depth about what i use under the cut. it's going to be long.

for kanji, i use wanikani. it is a paid service that uses spaced repetition and mnemonics to teach you kanji, and various vocabulary words utilizing those kanji. like i said, it's a paid service, but they let you go through about 4 out of 60 levels for free. it doesn't sound like much, but i THINK it took me at least a few weeks if not a month to get through all that. i think that's plenty of time for you to decide if that method works for you before you ever have to think about paying. i'm currently on level 29 out of 60 and that's after a whole entire year of studying on there practically every day! it's a lot of kanji. there's also tons of userscripts and companion apps for your phone that other users have made to provide more quality of life features. you can find them on the forums. i feel i shouldn't need to say this, but i strongly recommend knowing hiragana and katakana before using this tool.

as for learning hiragana and katakana, i'm going to be honest with you. i learned hiragana when i was around 9 or 10 years old through a ds game called "my japanese coach" ... i didn't learn katakana until i was much older though, and i did that through duolingo. i don't recommend duolingo as your primary japanese learning tool, but it's helpful for learning hiragana, katakana, and picking up some basic vocabulary.

speaking of picking up vocabulary, i've used pretty much every free language app out there. duolingo and memrise were the ones that i personally liked the most. lingodeer also seems pretty good. however, i don't recommend any of them as being your primary learning resource. just use them in conjunction with other things whenever you feel like it. when i was starting out, i also read a lot of very simple japanese books i found online. my favorite site for this was here, but you can find plenty of different places that have free books like this if you search around. now that i'm more at a pre-intermediate level of proficiency, i've begun picking up more words by playing (simple) games like animal crossing in japanese, and watching a lot of japanese comedy shows. (the latter is also fantastic for listening practice, which is so important!)

listening practice is so important in fact, that i'm going to specifically say that you really really need to do that. even if you can't understand anything that's being said yet. it's essential to becoming familiar with the sounds of the language, and the varying ways in which real people speak. there are tons of japanese language podcasts for learners that lean towards beginners. you can find a lot of them on spotify. seriously, you need to do this.

there's a japanese man named Yuta Aoki who will email you free mini lessons on various aspects of the language. he also has paid lessons, but they're pretty expensive (because they're thorough and focused on real everyday japanese, rather than textbook japanese), so i haven't signed up for the premium lessons myself. but i find his free lessons quite helpful for things i don't already know, and i think it would be great for a beginner. you can find his youtube channel here, where he links the signup for his free lessons in the descriptions of pretty much every video he posts.

in regards to grammar, that is admittedly my weakest point of study. textbooks can be nice, but they're exhausting to read through on your own outside of a classroom, and they're often ordered in very bizarre and inefficient ways. many of them put complex ideas near the front, and too many basic essentials deep into the chapters. i'm still trying to find a way to study grammar that works for me, but so far i'm enjoying a program called human japanese. it is a bit structured like a textbook, but it's far more interactive and has quizzes, bookmarks, and other tools built in. it also has lessons about the culture, which is an often overlooked portion of study. it isn't free, but like wanikani, it lets you go through a nice chunk of the curriculum before it ever asks you to pay. no harm in trying it out to see if you like it!

and one last thing, once you get a basic grasp of things such as kana and a few beginner words, i would definitely recommend checking out an app called HelloTalk. it lets you talk directly with native japanese speakers who want to learn your native language! it can be very helpful and who knows, you might make some new friends through it too :)

i hope at least some of this was helpful, and gave you an idea of what kinds of options you have for learning the language. if you ever have any more questions just feel free to ask and i'll do my best to help you out ! i know it seems intimidating at the start, but i know you can do it!! 頑張れ！

#🧪#anonymous #asks

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wonderfulworldofmichaelford · 4 years

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Is It Really THAT Bad?

Cats has been a divisive show ever since it opened in 1981. Some people hate it for being a plotless spectacle that focuses more on the visuals than on music and story, while others love it for those same reasons, as well as for being utterly campy and fun. I’m firmly in the latter category, to the point I can’t really comprehend the opposition to the film. Stuff like the jab at this film in The Critic or the mockery of it in Hey Arnold just seem weird to me; what is it about this fun, silly musical about cats that makes people’s blood boil so much?

Perhaps all these people saw into the future where the film was released.

Cats had a long, troubled history getting from stage to screen. In the 90s, Amblimation was set to make an animated version of the movie, set during the Blitz of WWII. Unfortunately, the inability of writers to find a way to turn this episodic showcase of random singing cats into a cohesive narrative combined with the failure of Amblimations films caused the project to dissolve, leaving behind nothing but some really cool concept art.

But see, this perfectly demonstrates the problem with adapting Cats: the musical is a spectacle, a showcase, it’s all about the dancing, costumes, and the songs. It doesn’t have a story to speak of, instead contenting itself with showing us a bunch of different cats and having them sing about themselves for a bit before moving on to the next cat. Sure, there’s a bit of continuity and whatnot, but this really isn’t the sort of show that’s trying to deliver a deep narrative. It just wants you to have a good time, nothing more, nothing less.

No one told any of this to Tom Hooper, apparently. This director of the grounded, gritty, realistic adaptation of Les Mis was tapped to utilize this same style in a musical about magical singing cats, all while not even knowing what catnip is or how animation works. Hooper was apparently constantly butting heads with the VFX team due to his lack of understanding of how animating works. He tried to get the team to watch videos of cats performaing the stuff he wanted and forced them to give 90 hour work weeks, cementing Tom Hooprt as one of the biggest douchebags imaginable. On top of all this, the guy tried to weave this plotless showcase of felines into a cohesive narrative, and tapped a bunch of talent of various degrees of questionability to play parts. And what was the result?

An absolute disaster. The film was savaged by critics, with most positives being that the film was so bad it’s good. The film (of course) won a bunch of Razzies, and was the subject of mockery and memes before, after, and during its run in theaters. Hell, as soon as the trailer dropped, the film was mocked to death. Not helping was the rushed VFX which, again, was due to the team being under pressure from a draconian idiot who had no idea what he was doing. The film received an unprecedented bug fix, so to speak, in the form of an updated version with slightly better VFX that was shipped to theaters after the initial negative reaction. This obviously did nothing to help the movie’s reputation, of course. Hell, even in my initial review, I wasn’t super keen on the film. Most damning of all, though, was Andrew Lloyd Webber himself calling the film ridiculous, and even said "The problem with the film was that Tom Hooper decided that he didn’t want anybody involved in it who was involved in the original show."

But after ruminating on it, and after watching the film once more, I’ve decided to ask the usual question: Is it really that bad? It’s weird to ask this about a film that’s so new; I usually wait for hindsight to kick in, and look at older films considered bad. But even now, Cats is building up a reputation as a campy cult classic, with such figures as Martin “LittleKuriboh” Billamy watching the film with alarming frequency. And after reading the nightmarish behind the scenes and considering everything… yeah, I think this film deserves a re-evaluation.

This is going to be a little different, though: I’m sort of going to go through the film part by part, since this film has an interesting issue where, generally speaking, the first half is where the worst problems are, and the second half is where things start to pick up. So let’s get the bad out of the way first, then move onto the good.

THE BAD

So, I’m actually not going to pick on the VFX too much, and not just because of the horrible treatment of the VFX artists. In all honesty, the weird human/cat people, while not even remotely as cool as the insane costumes of the stage show, eventually stop being super distracting and kind of just become something you accept. Like, I’m not gonna pretend like this work is amazing, but I dunno, I think it gets harped on too much. There is some stuff that stands out as noticeably bad, though, and we’ll get to that.

A consistent problem with the film that I can’t even try to defend is the problem with the scaling. It’s seriously hard to tell how big these cats are supposed to be in relation to anything else. They honestly seem to change size from scene to scene. It’s seriously weird and baffling and there’s never any way to get a good sense of scale. Even when the cats are alongside mice and roaches, it just boggles the mind what size anything is actually supposed to be.

Mr. Mistoffelees, one of the most flamboyant and enjoyable characters of the stage show, is one of the biggest character issues with the film. Gone is the tricky, confident magician who prances and dances, and here is a meek, sniveling twerp who can barely do anything without tripping over himself. This is because the actor who plays him had a terrible audition that left him miserable due to a lack of singing and dance background. So, rather than find someone who could, you know, sing and dance, they decided to rewrite Mr. Mistoffelees into comic relief, which is just an insulting slap in the face. The cherry on top of course is how they straightwash the character and excise his homoerotic tension with Rum Tum Tugger, instead making him completely and totally straight and giving him a thing for Victoria. Out of everyone in the entire film, they did Mr. Mistoffelees the dirtiest.

Now, let’s get onto the actual “plot.” The film actually starts out fairly well, with some cool shots, good dancing, and some setup for Macavity, whose intro has a neat little nod to the fact he’s based on Moriarty. The issues don’t really start showing up until we reach the first of the Jellicle choices… Jennyanydots.

Jennyanydots is portrayed by Rebel Wilson, which is the first issue. Rebel Wilson is probably one of the worst actresses ever. She is just a horrendously, relentlessly unfunny human being, and she brings that exact quality to her role here. For her song, the vocal talent is secondary to the cringeworthy comedy Wilson puts on display. And yet, somehow, Wilson isn’t the worst part of the scene. No, that would be the horrendous CGI human-faced mice and roaches, which look like they came out of a PS3 game.

This horrendous spectacle is followed up with the appearance of Rum Tum Tugger, portrayed by Jason Derulo. I’m of two minds about this. On the one hand, I do think Derulo has the necessary egotistical celebrity swagger to play Rum Tum Tugger (especially when you consider he responded to negative criticisms of the film by calling the movie “one of the greatest pieces of art ever made”) and his design is actually one of the better ones in the film, but on the other hand, his singing and the musical choice for his song are not very impressive and really just doesn’t work all too well. It’s at least something of a step up from Rebel Wilson and her CGI abominations, but that’s not really saying much, is it?

Next up we have Bustopher Jones, played by James Corden and, if I’m being totally honest… he’s not quite as awful as he could be. Corden is basically the male equivalent to Rebel Wilson, but at least while he’s singing he manages to be somewhat amusing, whimsical, and enjoyable even. The problem comes when he throws in jokes, including one where he claims to be self-conscious about his weight… a joke that occurs in the middle of his song where he is bragging about how fat he is. Talk about sending mixed messages. I wish I didn’t have to be so harsh on Bustopher, but sadly he is bogged down by really bad shtick.

Bustopher Jones also highlights a problem with the cats in this first half. These minor roles – Jennyanydots, Rum Tum Tugger, and Bustopher Jones – are all being played by relatively big celebrities, and as such they’re going to want a lot of time to sing. As a result, songs that were ensemble numbers on stage become more one-man songs here, with Bustopher Jones being the most egregious example, turning this positive fat character into a walking James Corden fat joke as he sings his own praises rather than having his praises sung.

Following him up we have Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer, who are usually fun characters with a fun little pseudo-villain song, but alas, they manage to screw that up by using a slow, jazzy version of the song originally used in earlier London productions rather than the more up-tempo version from later productions, making the song sound awkward and forgettable. Topping it all off is the bargain bin Mr. M popping in at the end for some wacky shenanigans, but at this point, the movie takes a turn towards…

THE GOOD

So as soon as Dame Judi Dench shows up as Old Deuteronomy, the film gets a sort of inverse of what happened at the start. Where the film starts somewhat awkward and promising, it slowly gets stupider and stupider when Rebel Wilson, Jason Derulo, and James Corden botch their scenes in the ways described above. Here, things start a bit shaky and unsure, but Dench is a sign things are about to pick up. What makes her so enjoyable is how, despite how utterly silly things are, she treats her role with the dignity and gravitas of something out of Shakespeare. The only thing as good as an actor in a silly movie like this going full-on ham and cheese is an actor treating their role dead serious and injecting it with such class and dignity you can’t help but enjoy it. Thankfully, Dench isn’t the only person to take her role seriously.

Jennifer Hudson as Grizabella technically appears briefly in the earlier portions of the film, but here we get to hear her belt out “Memory,” and by god does she do a fantastic job. The raw emotion and passion she injects into Grizabella is phenomenal, and it’s even more powerful when it comes back for its reprise in the finale. Victoria gets a sort of response song to “Memory,” called “Beautiful Ghosts,” and it’s a decent song in its own right, but you can tell it was a more modern composition and it just doesn’t gel super well with the rest of the songs. Still, all this is good stuff, and the “Memory”/”Beautiful Ghosts” scene is a nice, refreshing bit of emotion after the incredibly weird and silly extended dance number that is the Jellicle Ball.

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The movie doesn’t stop pulling punches; shortly after Grizabella we are given Gus the theater cat, an elderly actor whose number is all about reminiscing of the old days of theater and his many stellar roles from days gone by. Naturally, the only actor who could possibly perform this role properly is Sir Ian McKellan. I am completely unironic when I say this: This is to McKellan what Patrick Stewart’s performance of Xavier in Logan is. This sounds ridiculous, but think of it: Gus is an aging thespian, clearly a bit senile and desiring to be reborn because he has reached the end of the line, and McKellan fills him with this genuine, incredibly honest performance that really makes you feel emotional. It’s powerful. It feels so personal and resonant, like McKellan has inserted some of his own feelings into his performance, which may very well be the case. Oh, and after his song Macavity kidnaps him with a big autograph book and apparates away while saying his name, which gets me every time.

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And now, my friends, the lord and savior arrives: Skimbleshanks.

This is, hands down, the best scene in the entire film. Everything comes together here: the music is absolutely fantastic, the dancing is choreographed extremely well, and it’s clear that everyone involved is having a blast. This is a concentrated essence of what Cats should be, and it’s really a shame Hooper didn’t understand that this is the energy needed for the entire production. The most crucial element, of course, is Steven McRae, who not only has a lovely singing voice and looks dapper as all hell in his red suspenders, but is a tap dancing maniac. This man has feet of fire, and his tapping adds a whole new layer of fun to the song. Overall, this is a perfect scene, and probably one of my favorite scenes in any film ever. For a brief four minutes, everything about this film works. I literally have no idea why this cat wants to be reincarnated, he is straight balling in this life.

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But the hits don’t stop! Right after this song, Taylor Swift descends from the ceiling, and we get “Macavity.” In the stage productions, this is a song sung by Bombalurina to describe how nasty Macavity is, since she’s traditionally a good cat; here, she’s reimagined as a villain, and so this song is basically her acting as Macavity’s hype man, singing his dastardly praises, and best of all, Macavity joins in at the end! I’m certainly not a Taylor Swift fan, but she really kills it here, and definitely makes this one of the best songs in the movie with her hilariously forced accent and insane energy. It’s just a shame that from here on out Macavity ditches his villainous pimp coat and is now a nude Idris Elba, but I suppose this is equivalent exchange for Skimbleshanks being so amazing.

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While not as incredible as the previous two songs and not quite as good as the stage version due to the removal of the latent homoeroticism, Mr. Mistoffelees’s song is actually okay. It’s nice that he gets to sing his own praises here, but it’s just nothing compared to the stage version, even if it has a fun little finale and it actually is genuinely heartwarming when Old Deuteronomy returns and sings along. It’s a sweet moment that almost makes up for how much Mr. M has sucked the whole movie. Oh, also, all of the Jellicle choices Macavity kidnapped fight back against their captor Growltiger, with Skimbleshanks aggressively tapdancing at him and Gus using his acting skills to make him fall into the Thames. This is so goofy that it wraps back around to being awesome.

The movie winds down in the goofiest way possible after the gorgeous reprise of “Memory,” with Macavity being caught on a big sculpture and apparently running out of magic, leaving him stranded like a regular cat. Then we get one final fourth-wall breaking song where Judi Dench directly addresses the camera that has the music swell up to the point where it seems like the song is ending numerous times without actually ending, and each time is funnier than the last. Really, what better way could you end such a silly film than with this?

Now, a general thing that’s great about the film is the choreography. The dancing in the movie is spectacular. I don’t really have a bad thing to say about it. And, in a broad sense, the music is good too, even if the singers aren’t always perfect, the backing tracks are great, and there’s a lot of fun in the tracks in the latter half of the movie. McRae and Taylor Swift’s contributions in particular are great, and Hudson’s version of “Memory” is incredibly powerful, as is McKellan’s take on Gus’ song.

Is It Really THAT Bad?

No.

Look, it’s hard to be like “Wow this is a fantastic masterpiece of film” or anything like that, because the movie has blatant and evident problems. But this is literally the reason I made this review series; I’m asking if the movie is really as bad as people say, and in this case, no, there’s too much genuinely enjoyable in the film for me to say it’s deserving of several Razzies and a spot on the Bottom 100 of IMDB that places it above Master of Disguise and The Emoji Movie. Like, seriously? This is worse than the 90 minute commercial starring the abusive dick who called a bomb threat on his girlfriend? Hell, this movie is rated worse than Artemis Fowl, which is definitely a contender for the worst film ever made (and amusingly enough also features Judi Dench in it). Artemis Fowl has next to no redeeming qualities in it, and it certainly doesn’t have Skimbleshanks, whereas Cats has several fun scenes and also has Skimbleshanks.

I definitely think there’s more of an argument for this film being so bad it’s good or camp at best, but it’s definitely more enjoyable than you’d think it would be. If you can learn to live with the weird CGI, it’s a fun, goofy romp that you might find yourself feeling for at times. After my second watch, I have to say… I’ve started to unironically enjoy this movie. It might even be one of my favorites of all time. I can’t even deny that it has a lot of stuff I don’t like, and it falls flat in a lot of ways the 1998 film soars, and it screwed up some of my favorite characters… but there are so many moments where the fun and heart of Cats shines through brighter than it has any right to, and all the failures of Hooper and Universal seem distant for a just a few minutes.

So yeah, is this movie good all around? No way. But is it fun, does it have value, and is there more redeeming qualities than the critics let on? Oh yes there is.

#Is it really that bad #IIRTB #review #movie review #Cats #Cats 2019 #Andrew Lloyd Webber #musical #so bad it's good #Tom Hooper #Judi Dench #Rebel Wilson #James Corden #Jason Derulo #Taylor Swift #Idris Elba #Sir Ian McKellan #Steven McRae

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davidanderson7162 · 3 years

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Cartoons for Everybody

It is not true that just children take pleasure in cartoons. Cartoons have been showing up in print media as well as television for decades. They are extremely entertaining and also are suitable anxiety busters for the worn grownup. For youngsters, animes can be academic in addition to enjoyable. It holds true that there are some that are violent, those are best prevented. It would certainly make good sense to pick intelligently what you desire your children to see Kids TELEVISION Online.Kids TV Network

Exactly how do they profit your youngsters?

- Some animes carry messages in social understanding. Cartoons almost always have stories that centre round a hero. The hero is always combating evil as well as victories. Happy endings are constantly great to have.

- There are those that develop vocabulary. Kids learn new words as well as enhance in their speech.

- An added advantage is that, those youngsters watching programs like these find out to focus. This helps them focus as well as educates them the ability to follow consecutive episodes.

- They learn life lessons, they discover sharing and exactly how to recognize right from incorrect. They find out that it is not always the large and also the solid who constantly win.

- Animations constantly obtain stored away as terrific memories and those pleased associations are carried appropriate into adulthood.

How do they profit adults?

- Viewing an anime when you're ill in bed is a splendidly recovery exercise. Remember those times when, as a youngster you did precisely that?

- Researches reveal that viewing cartoons lowers the danger of anxiety associated illness in adults. A great laugh launches endorphins in the mind. These endorphins make us really feel far better mentally and physically and are the best de-stressor that money can't purchase.

- Individuals like these find they associate better to kids as well as have a much better understanding of them.

- Obviously, this is a great way to kill time as it keeps individuals out of mischief. The still mind, as they claim, is the devil's workshop!

Throughout the years animes have actually advanced from one dimensional characters on the screen as well as paper to a three dimensional one. Modern technology has made cartoon personalities realistic. Both adults and children connect to the story Children TELEVISION Online.

Anime Vs Cartoons: What's the Difference?

In the "Anime" neighborhood, for most fans as well as fans, "Anime" is "Anime and also "Cartoons" are "Cartoons". For them both of the things are truly different from each various other.

Firstly, many individuals obtain puzzled between an Anime and also an Anime, even if both are animated that doesn't imply that they both are very same. There are a lot of differences in Anime as well as Cartoons. While both are caricatures that might be computer animated, anime generally has visually distinctive functions for characters. So, below I will certainly now clarify the difference in between these 2. Anime are Japanese computer animated production, that are available in various layouts like, television series such as dragon sphere z, Naruto, one piece etc., computer animated brief films, and also full-length films. However animations are two-dimensional illustrated visual art, non-realistic or semi-realistic illustrations.

Anime characters have distinct facial and also physical features that are extremely comparable to truth, their large eyes and tiny mouth are developed due to cuteness. On the various other hand, cartoons physical features are very much from reality than anime. Anime characters additionally reveal various kinds of distinguishable faces whereas animes do not.

Cartoons are normally made to make people laugh, so the style mostly is funny. Yet there are likewise several animes that are academic, showing something good to mainly young children and also youngsters in an enjoyable, interactive way. For example, mickey mouse, Donald duck, pests bunny and so on

. Unlike cartoons, anime does not adhere to just one or more genres. Anime programs and also movies are all based on some sort of story which proceeds through the whole series, for instance, bleach, one item, Naruto, etc. Anime is based upon real-life problems or something that are closer to human feelings and also have a lot more categories than cartoons such as, dramatization, school life, slice of life, love, activity, and so on

. However if you check out both of them as different entities, or as same, you will not be able to locate a clear difference between the two, which is why a lot of the people get puzzled in between both and wind up calling anime as well as animes are very same Children TELEVISION Online.

The initial animation was stated to be generated in 1499. It depicted the pope, holy Roman emperor, and the king of France as well as England playing the game of cards. However, Japanese animation began in the very early 20's, when Japanese filmmakers were trying out various methods. By 1930s, as an alternative to the live activity sector, computer animation was established.

As anime are two-dimensional numbers drawn and utilized in animations, as caricatures in papers, and also publications. If we were to define what Anime is after that the basic suggestion of several of the common as well as agreed upon notions would certainly be "Japanese, animation, vibrant layouts, as well as hand-drawn" would certainly be primary buzzwords.

Today, Anime only appears to refer "animations just from Japan" to make it extra understandable for individuals. After all this is human nature to like the important things which are conveniently understandable and conveniently categorized.

To make the distinction more clear, let's take the example of the tom as well as jerry and dragon sphere z. So, you may believe what's the difference in between both when they both are computer animated and have excellent visuals, histories, sound impacts as well as even the computer animated drawings behave. But, there are lots of distinctions in them which differentiate them from anime to animation. Like, their principles are absolutely different, as you know every episode of tom as well as Jerry is various as well as is not associated with any of the previous episode or continuing some sort of tale from a point but in dragon sphere z every episode is connected to the previous one, and proceed the story from where it stopped in the previous episode. And their categories are various too, as tom and also Jerry is purely based upon a pet cat and also mouse battle and made to make people laugh and their watch time enjoyable. On the various other hand, dragon sphere z is sort of a journey of a saiyan to conserve the Planet and also the universe from several dangers, he defends conserving every person, with the aid of his family members, close friends and fellow saiyans. Dragon ball z is can be categorized in various categories, like activity, experience, comedy, very power, etc

. An additional thing in which some individuals may unique anime as well as cartoon would certainly be that cartoons are for youngsters whereas reach of anime can be extended to many various other age and other locations Kids TV Online.

However what I believe is, cartoons are not simply children product, because as we can see in the newspapers, as well as on television also, there are many cartoons containing as well as targeting lots of political, spiritual sights. Most of these messages are concealed as well as indistinguishable for kids, to ensure that grownups can appreciate viewing them with youngsters. Whereas some of the anime consists of high grown-up material and thus are not secure or good for little kids to see. Those type of anime are made completely concentrating on adult target market. But there are likewise some anime collection which are definitely risk-free to enjoy with children. However nowadays, even normal anime's might have some scenes which are not meant to be enjoyed by kids.

So, I think, where cartoons are secure for kids to see, anime shouldn't be thought about secure sufficient for them. But despite just how old you obtain, you can still appreciate it as it is.

I really feel that, anime has much deeper thought in them, well created characters, broad story-line, a solid style, sensible background animation, the real world scenarios, discussions, expressions, etc. all of these things bound us together to view all the episodes (whether there are 12 or 24 or more than a thousand of episodes) of the anime collection. Whereas on the various other hand, animes, regardless of whether they are telling a story or simply going for funny, have superficial characters and themes.

Cartooning for Kids: 3 Books That Can Help You Get Started

Many children I understand love to attract eventually. Several of them love it a lot, they take place to produce video games, comics, cartoons, and comics. If you are seeking some exceptional books on cartooning for youngsters, below are three that can aid you get going.

Among the outright finest general intros allows Publication of Cartooning by Bruce Blitz. He starred in a public tv program for years, and I was able as a young person to learn from his techniques.

Guide covers whatever from basic cartooning abilities, like integrating various facial forms, features, and hairdos, to make various characters. It likewise demonstrates how to attract bodies and also add motion to them so they are funny and also dynamic, and not just stalling.

He does a terrific work of introducing animation results as well as devices. Those are the kinds of things that make animes enjoyable and bring them to life, like the wavy lines appearing of a piece of pizza, to show that it smells excellent. Or the lines on a pool of water or a mirror, to reveal they are reflective. And also one of the most enjoyable of all, those little grains of sweat or activity lines, like when someone has actually just thrown a sphere Children TELEVISION Online.

There is also a great deal of mention on just how to create cartoons, consisting of how to lay them out, invent jokes, as well as do your lettering. For kids who wish to attempt their hand at superhero-type comics, he covers different means to make your male go from dopey to wonderful, from absolutely no to hero. Likewise included are numerous positions you might utilize, like training, taking off, flying, and also boxing.

This extensive work additionally has an area on animation portraiture or caricature. In this way you can draw funny pictures of on your own, good friends, family members, as well as teachers, and offer those away as presents. You may even wind up offering your job!

An additional outstanding summary is Everything You Ever Wanted to Know concerning Cartooning yet Hesitated to Draw. The writer is a Disney-trained musician, so it's a perfect recommendation if you like that design. Yet it too covers every little thing from expressions and also drawing action presents, to cartoon format.

One specific area I such as is exactly how to attract your animes from various camera angles, like way down reduced. That way, if you are trying to attract something from the viewpoint of a very tiny character, like a computer mouse seeking out at an individual, you can obtain an excellent funny aim to your job.

Art for Children: Cartooning: The Only Cartooning Book You'll Ever Need to Be the Artist You have actually Constantly Intended to Be motivates youngsters to try out various techniques to obtain their own designs. The design hangs and also open, so it's easy for kids to comply with. There is also info on composing jokes as well as developing panels Children TV Online.

So if you have an interest in cartooning for children, these 3 books to help you get going are perfect. You will have 3 completely different designs to examine, and you will have great deals of suggestions on attracting fundamentals, plus information on how to put whatever together into your own anime creations. Delighted cartooning!

8 Memorable Youngsters' Anime Adaptations to Motion Picture

When a well enjoyed children's TV series makes the change from the little to the hollywood it normally spells a break from tradition and also an attempt to interest an entire new target market. Computer animation resorts to live activity, rough-and-ready image resorts to CGI, obscure commentary artists are replaced by prominent Hollywood stars as well as puppets are switched for real-life actors. To commemorate the incredible brand-new film of eponymous cult TELEVISION series Stories of the Riverbank [talesoftheriverbank.co.uk/ trailer], here are some motion picture gems that really improve their kids' TELEVISION starts, and also some stinkers that ought to have adhered to what they're best at:

Garfield (2004 )

On the one hand, Bill Murray seems like he's constantly been the voice of Garfield - his effortlessly sarcastic wit seems completely suited to the lasagne addicted fat feline. On the various other, pretty much whatever else regarding this movie sucks. The performing's not up to much and also the animation's nothing short of tragic. The initial comic strip as well as anime series didn't endeavor to far from Garfield's litter tray, so this attempt to stretch things to more than an hour just ends up a mess.

Little understood fact: Bill Murray recorded a lot of his audio for this in Italy while shooting "The Life Aquatic" on a watercraft.

Authorities Garfield website - garfield.com/.

Tales of the Riverbank (2008 ).

Though not a cartoon, this new motion picture is absolutely worth a mention: when Johnny Morris initially placed his voice to these shore pets in the 1959 TELEVISION collection of the same name, it could have been debatable. However it turned out that making pets appear like they were chatting was a huge success. Today the adorable Hammy Hamster once more joins GP, Owl as well as buddies in a fracturing feature length waterfront prance. With a winning, British voice actors and also an innocently jolly story, this motion picture is set to become a company family members favourite. Little understood fact: In the '60s TV program, the animals were adjusted to look like they were speaking utilizing peanut butter on the roofing of their mouth.

Official Website - talesoftheriverbank.co.uk/ trailer. TOTR on IMDB - imdb.com/title/tt1043748/.

Teen Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990 ).

There were the Samurai Pizza Cats and after that there were the Bicycle Rider Computer Mice from Mars - yet both were bad copies of what was undoubtedly the supreme animal/mutant based cartoon activity collection embeded in a drain ... including a speaking rat. "Teen Mutant Ninja Turtles" was a computer animated TELEVISION show in the 80s, a trilogy of live-action films in the 90s as well as more lately a computer system cartoon animation (TNMT). The films are mainly dreadful - however watch out for an instead snazzy-looking Vanilla Ice in Adolescent Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Glop. Traditional. Little recognized fact: In the UK the TELEVISION series was called Adolescent Mutant Hero Turtles as the word "ninja" was considered as well terrible.

Scooby Doo (2002 ).

Among the much better remakes, this is about as close as you're going to get to the original collection without returning to full animation. All the one linings are there, as are all the trademarks that made the original such a smash hit. There's additionally a healthy and balanced dosage of self mockery to make certain the grown-ups can enjoy it as high as children. Any person that located Scrappy Doo more than a little bothersome in the original will enjoy the spin at the end. The only secret that still remains is this - what worldwide IS a Scooby Snack ?? Little recognize truth: In a very early version of the film, a certain Jim Carrey was connected to play Shaggy.

Official Scooby site - warnerbros.com/sd_brand/index.html.

Thunderbirds (2004 ).

The initial puppets had lots much more magic and also personal appeal than the 'live' actors in this substandard remake. Creator of the initial TELEVISION series, Gerry Anderson, also contradicted a $750,000 deal to write an endorsement of the film for its launch. A substantial flop. Enough stated.

Little bit understood truth: The motion picture is routed by Jonathan Frakes that played Riker in Celebrity Trip.

Flintstones (1994 ).

Translating a computer animated classic right into a live-action film using the real world actors isn't always simple. Perhaps the most essential item of the jigsaw is the spreading. In the case of 1994's Flintstones they soooo really nearly got it right. John Goodman as Fred Flintstone - place on. Elizabeth Perkins as Wilma - made for the duty. Rick Moranis as Barney Rubble - all good. Rosie O'Donnell as Betty Debris? - Um ... intriguing. At the very least the sound-track (courtesy of the BC52s) appears wonderful!

Little bit recognized fact: Halle Berry plays a character called Sharon Stone (obtain it!?).

Transformers (2007 ).

Hardcore Transformers fans who bear in mind the 1980s hit cartoon show may really feel a little peeved that, in a separation from the original collection, Spielberg as well as co. have decided to opt for some more modern-day automobiles. So Bumble-bee's no longer a huge yellow VW Beetle! Boo! Nevertheless, those that can not bear in mind the initial (virtually anybody under the age of 30) will enjoy the continuous robo-action.

Bit understood fact: The 1986 "Transformers the Movie" was one of Orson Welles last ever movies - one of his very first was Person Kane.

Tom and also Jerry the Granddaddy of Kids Cartoon Movies.

Everyone has their very own preferred animation flick or tv show; as a matter of fact animations are now a big component of a youngster's very early years as well as in addition to enjoyable to adults too. If you were young in the 60's, 70's or 80's after that you'll have been lucky sufficient to have actually enjoyed the initial hand attracted animated standards, like the Flintstones, The Jetsons or among the most prominent as well as lengthiest running, Tom and Jerry.

The Tom as well as Jerry reveal begun as a TV series and then took place to become a number of feature movies; it has been running given that the 40's and also has because won 7 different Oscar awards for ideal animated short. Back then you needed to await the program to come on at a specific time, though today were fortunate enough to be able to purchase a Tom and also Jerry DVD set anytime we like and also relive the magic in our very own houses.

The characters are easy Tom a troublesome house cat with a preference for mice and also Jerry a reluctant mouse with a kind heart; both are friends at heart, however constantly wind up attempting to win one over on each various other generally with Jerry winning the day. The simple as well as funny slapstick comedy of this crazy duo is what's made it so popular in nations around the world; you'll find the preferred films playing in practically any kind of resort area on all continents.

So where did it all start? Most individuals do not understand that Tom and also Jerry has had more than one maker in over 50 years of broadcast; the initial 2 were the gifted William Hanna and Joseph Barbara. They came to the MGM workshops in the 40's with their concept and Tom as well as Jerry became a reality in individuals's houses. After a brief time the program was reduced and the team broke up until the 1960's when MGM made a decision to reboot the project, they hired Gene Deitch for 2 years, but his eccentric imagination didn't mix well with the program. In 1963 the workshops employed a new director Chuck Jones who became the next creator of the motion pictures.

An instance of an especially excellent film is the magic ring which came out in 2002, it was composed and also routed by both of the original makers as well as additionally worked together on by Chuck Jones. If you're a fanatic of the lovable pet cat and also mouse duo after that you'll love this movie, it would certainly also be a wonderful introduction to the personalities for your very own youngsters.

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jellyfishmanlove · 4 years

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Media Log Assignment

Constructing You, Deconstructing Others on Social Media

I shared my first post on Instagram on May 15, 2015. I was 10 years old. 5 years later and it’s one of the most used social media apps, especially for younger age groups. The issue with this is that Instagram is deemed to be very harmful. An article by CNN wrote, “Instagram is the most detrimental social networking app for young people’s mental health”. As a frequent user of the app, I can understand why it’s bad for mental health.

Instagram is an app made for “bringing you closer to the people and things you love”, as described by Instagram, Inc. It’s used for sharing pictures and videos, texting friends and making new friends. In theory, this is a brilliant idea, but in reality, there are consequences to combining your social life with the internet.

I’m going to use my own Instagram account as an example.

This post is a construction because this isn’t how I usually look. I don’t usually wear this much makeup or wear fake lashes or do my hair like this but I thought I looked nice and I wanted people to see me looking nice. I turned on my ring light to get the best lighting and took around 12 pictures of myself. I looked through the pictures for around 10 minutes and picked the one that made me look the best. Then I asked my friends if they liked it. Then I had to think of a caption. I wanted people to think I was pretty but also funny so I wrote something that was kind of humorous. This is a character I've created. I wanted people to see me a certain way and I made it happen. Nobody questioned it for a second because we’re so used to this construction.

But, I didn’t create this character by myself. Other Instagram users helped me. After years of scrolling through constructed images, I collaged all my favorite constructions and my character came to life. And I’m sure some of my posts had an impact on other people’s constructions. Constructions construct other constructions, and the cycle continues.

I think one of the main reasons social media is so constructed is because we are also constructed in real life. We are all collages of what we admire in others. If we let these collages build up they will hide who we really are and we will deconstruct ourselves.

I’m on TikTok and I Have No Shame

I feel that TikTok as a social networking app is much more casual than others. I think this is because nobody expects you to use or even have the app. This might relate to the app TikTok is deprived from, Musical.ly. If you had Musical.ly, you were instantly seen as “basic” or “cringy”. TikTok is different from Musical.ly because TikTok has more of a variety of content. Musical.ly was mainly used for music and dance but TikTok can be used for comedy, dance, music, makeup, fashion, etc. I think the reason the app was so successful is because of the variety of content- it makes the app seem more accepting and inclusive for various groups and cultures that were suppressed in the past.

Though this app is also seen as “cringy” to some, the humour of youth today is quite ironic and sarcastic. We often find humour in things we originally think are stupid or weird and we eventually forget that we’re being ironic. Then we start having fun with it and might even start liking it. TikTok is now very popular but despite its popularity, it is still being seen as a joke so nobody is really taking it seriously, probably because of its common theme of comedy. In my opinion, it’s important to not take social media too seriously and to not feel obligated to use it.

The down side of the app is that people feel comfortable expressing their opinions, which isn’t always bad, but unfortunately most of the opinions are negative and sometimes even racist, sexist, homophobic/transphobic, ableist, and classist. And people aren’t scared of any backlash because the informality of the app takes away the shame of posting whatever. Overall, there are pros and cons of having no shame on social media. I think it’s up to the individual to decide if it’s worth the negativity to have fun on an app without fear of embarrassment.

“Has the Smartphone Destroyed a Generation?”

The first smartphone was unveiled by IBM in 1992. It was called the Simon Personal Communicator. Two years later and they’re being sold for $1,100. In 2007, Steve Jobs teamed up with Macworld and then came the iPhone. The iPhone was a game changer. It gained popularity because of its sleek look, touch screen, and access to the internet. I was two years old when the first iPhone was created, completely unaware of how this device would affect my life and the world around me.

Other generations like to blame us for our general addiction to smartphones, but it’s nearly unavoidable growing up in the digital age. At a certain age, my parents wanted me to get a phone. I didn’t really want one at the time because I saw the way it affected my sister and I didn’t want that to happen to me. But, I knew that they only wanted me to get one so I could stay connected with them at all times and in return I got more freedom. So, I got a phone and I was using it at a healthy rate, until I discovered social media. First it was Facebook, then Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok and Twitter. Eventually, I noticed myself dedicating hours of my day to my online presence and it hasn’t stopped.

Smartphone addiction is a real thing. A study by Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) states that there is “an imbalance in the brain chemistry of young people addicted to smartphones and the internet”. Continuing with the bad habits we obtain in our youth, the more likely we are to have mental illness in the future. Statistically, mental health problems have been increasing at an alarming rate since the beginning of the digital age.

Sometimes I try to blame my parents for my phone addiction-they wanted me to have a phone in the first place-but I know that’s unreasonable. Smartphones are going to keep evolving and if it wasn’t my generation to get consumed by these devices, then it would be the next.

I don’t think smartphones destroyed a generation, because smartphones also caused an entire generation to retain information much faster than the generations before us. We constantly have learning utilities at our fingertips. Smartphones technically make us smarter. I think social media is the real reason this generation has such a high rate of mental health problems.

(Smartphone addiction creates imbalance in brain, study suggests. ScienceDaily. November 30, 2017) (History and Evolution of Smartphones. SimpleTextin. August 19, 2019)

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michael-radi-the-glamorous-life · 4 years

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Words Words Words

Words matter. Word choice matters. And context is everything.

I have often heard the saying that “words are magic,” and it’s difficult to disagree.

We can utilize language to create so many things:

We can create visuals to be imagined.

We can conjure emotions.

We can make peace.

We can force conflict.

We can make art.

We can tell stories.

We can build entire worlds.

Words are extraordinarily powerful, and it’s good to occasionally take stock and think about the way words affect our lives and the world around us.

Plus, it just might help your art as well. 😉

Choice

The English language is a fantastic and strange little mixture, made up of Germanic Anglo-Saxon roots with heavy borrowings of Old Norse, Norman French, Parisienne French, Latin, and oh-so-many more languages throughout time.

Basically, it’s language stew.

But that means that - unlike so many other languages around the globe - English has a built-in flexibility to adopt words, which expand its vocabulary and allow for nuances in its synonyms.

We can say essentially the same thing in multiple ways, but with each way meaning something only slightly different.

In other words (ehn? see?) - Word Choice Matters.

Let’s look at an example.

The following three phrases say, at their core, the same thing:

Killer Kitties

Fatal Felines

Deadly Cats

All three of these phrases are expressing something that means “some form of feline creature with the ability to kill.” However, due to the slight changes in the word choice, they each give off a slightly different intention in their meaning.

To me, “Killer Kitties” sounds either like a YouTube compilation video of extremely not-so-ferocious kittens trying sooo adorably hard to be predators, or like an anime series of a cute, crime-fighting cat squad.

“Fatal Felines” sounds like the title to a bad film noir starring actual cats, or some Natural History Museum exhibit on the world’s various cat predators.

And “Deadly Cats” sounds more factual and almost boring in comparison to the other two, like a half-hour filler program on NatGeo airing at 11am on a weekday.

Three phrases that all contain the same information, yet they create such different results. Words matter.

Context

Context is Queen. She rules all.

As great as word choice can be in conveying a thought the way that you specifically intend, the context in which it is said can alter every intention you had.

And to clarify, by context I mean: Who is saying it, To Whom it is being said, Where it is being said, When it is being said, Why it is being said, and How it is being said.

There are a lot of variables, which is exactly why context can be so tricky and important.

Let’s take a simple, often-said phrase as our example:

I love you.

“Aw, what a lovely choice of words for an example, Michael!”

Or is it? Dun dun dun.

The utterance of this phrase from one human being to another in various contexts has been the driving force behind a mass of storytelling and media throughout humanity’s recorded history. It’s a powerful phrase that can change drastically dependent upon its context.

Who Is Saying It

Let’s begin with Who is saying it:

A small child?

A parent?

A friend?

A significant other?

A lover?

A friend who wants to be more than a friend?

A stranger?

You may have noticed that you felt fine with the options at the beginning of the list, but felt less so by the end. And you see how expanding on the idea of “a friend” into “a friend who wants to be more than a friend” changes the context?

Well, what about if we do the same thing to “a stranger”? I’m assuming you didn’t feel great about that one upon reading it, but let’s expand our word choices to be either:

“A stranger you’ve been on five dates with, been flirting with for a month, and has now completely opened up to you and said ‘I love you for the first time.’”

“A stranger you’ve never seen before in your life trying to follow you home from the bar.”

The meaning of “stranger” is suddenly different based on its own context and who is saying the word. Context is powerful.

To Whom Is It Being Said

This one is fairly intuitive.

We may often say “I love you” to people in our lives, but we mean it differently depending on who we are speaking to.

And this is mostly because the love we feel for various people in our lives is different. Love is a large conglomeration of complex emotions and there are many nuances.

Think about how the meaning of that phrase would change if you were to say “I love you” to:

A colleague

A friend

A parent

A friend’s parent

A grandparent

A teacher

An acquaintance

A date

A boyfriend/girlfriend

A spouse

An ex

A boss

It can just keep going

How deep is the love you’re expressing? Are you just expressing, or do you want something in return? How would you define that specific love?

All of these can change depending on the person you are speaking to.

Where Is It Being Said

Many a sit-com episode and rom-com film have had climactic scenes based on this idea, particularly when “I love you” is being said romantically between two people for the very first time.

And this is again fairly intuitive.

It’s quite different to tell someone for the first time in the middle of a candle-lit dinner date than it is to say it for the first time in the middle of a break-up.

But even with dramatic situations aside, where we say it can still alter the strength and meaning behind what we say.

For instance, let’s assume you are with a friend you love deeply. How does saying “I love you” change in depth and meaning when either:

They’ve just made you laugh raucously with a joke that only the two of you would get.

You’re comforting them at a funeral for their older sibling.

Oof. Context matters.

When Is It Being Said

Let’s use the example I mentioned above of saying it for the first time during a break-up.

Even in the midst of a single conversation, when that phrase is uttered can make all of the difference. For this example, let’s assume the person in the couple saying it for the first time is the person being broken up with.

Here are three thoughts:

If “I love you” is the first thing said in the break up conversation, perhaps it was said with joy and expectation, but it instead becomes the impetus for the conversation and the break-up itself.

If said in the middle of the break-up conversation, perhaps it becomes part of the person’s argument as to why this break-up feels sudden and has taken them off-guard.

If said at the end of the conversation - even as the last word - perhaps it becomes a desperate, last-ditch effort to get the other person to stay.

Small changes to the When can alter the emotional state both people are in, and therefore change the intention behind the words.

Look for this the next time you watch a romantic comedy - it’s kind of fun to analyze!

Why Is It Being Said

Ultimately, the Why is attached to the combination of Who-To Whom-Where-When. Not that it isn’t important to note, but it is often generated by the surrounding circumstances.

We rarely say things just to say them - there’s usually a specific intention behind it.

To continue with this idea of love, we don’t stop loving people just because we aren’t saying it every second of every day. Which means that there must be an environmental reason that we choose to say “I love you” when we do.

Here are a few examples:

A parent tucking their child in for bed after a particularly difficult day for the two of them.

A just-married couple sitting on the bed, taking off their shoes, and exhaling, being alone for the first time since the reception ended five minutes ago.

A friend to their best friend who just delivered the goofiest and most public prom-posal in the middle of the school cafeteria.

With the remaining context, the why becomes apparent. What motivates us is fodder for good stories.

How Is It Being Said

More than anything, the way we say something is a window into our current emotional state.

People often believe that the way they speak tends to be a reflection of their current environment.

How many times have you heard a teenager say that they’re only being defensive with their parents because “they’re just so annoying” or “they keep asking so many questions”?

But the way we say something isn’t based upon the outer environment, it’s a reflection of how we feel internally.

Perhaps that teenager is being defensive when asked about how much homework they have because they’re feeling entirely overwhelmed by the amount of work they have to do, and it’s difficult or them to speak about. Or perhaps it’s because they plan to never do it, and parents can’t know that if they never knew how much there was in the first place.

The other side of How has to do with inflection and intent.

Context matters to determine the meaning behind word choice, but words have different meanings and connotations to each of us individually and culturally. An extreme example of this is how the “c-word” for female genitalia is a highly-charged and taboo word in the US, but a commonly used utterance in the UK.

And this is also where the internet and social media becomes a tremendous issue.

Ever gotten reprimanded on Facebook or into an online argument with someone who cannot understand the context behind your words?

Or have you ever gotten angry at someone because you saw something they wrote and you put your own tone on their words, making it become inflammatory?

The internet is great for communication in so many ways, but it makes context difficult and intended inflection almost impossible.

The more contextual information we have, the better off we are.

So perhaps the “kids” really do have it right by communicating mostly through Facetime, Instagram, and Tik Tok. Who knows?

And So

I love words. They bring me joy and they are the basis of both my art and my career.

But remembering their power and their importance is necessary to good communication and also to building a better world.

Take that extra time to think through your word choice and the context - and not just the context for you, but for the other parties involved as well.

You may just find a better balance in the world you create.

#glamorous life blog #glamorous life #words #language #word choice #context #who #to whom #where #when #why #how #intent #intention #inflection #magic

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ildurthrpid066 · 4 years

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5 Finest Ways To Market Tvtap Facebook

Upcoming phones: The future mobile phones of 2020

Yelp's users rate and also offer notes on locations, offering you a real-world take a look at what individuals think of them. The app enables users to sell as well as get new and previously owned vehicles and also cars.

What phones are coming out in 2020?

You can download apps on an iPhone for free in the App Store, which offers a wide range of free and paid apps. It's easy to locate free apps on your iPhone by going to the Apps tab in the App Store, and then choosing the category for all the top free apps.

best Android applications offered now!

Google Drive is a cloud storage space solution available on Android where all brand-new individuals obtain 15GB for free permanently upon subscribing. What makes Google Drive so special are the suite of Android apps that are attached to it.

Rate: Free on Google Play for Android

If points like that matter to you, we advise inspecting that out. The application actually goes back to 2014, which would typically disqualify it from this checklist. However we're making an exemption as a result of the app's sheer dominance since absorbing Musical.ly. Though the action initially came a as a shock to some followers of the karaoke application, it inevitably assisted thrust TikTok to the top of the graphes in the App Store and also Google Play.

Google Play.

The majority of those amazing photos you see on Facebook, Twitter, etc originated from here. Imgur also happens to be the image upload service that most individuals make use of on Reddit. Both Giphy and Imgur are totally cost-free to use as well as download. They have your back whether you wish to kill a few mins slacking off or searching for the best reaction GIF for that Twitter or Google+ message.

If you do not exactly know where you're going, obtaining around can be tough. There are plenty of applications that can aid, a few of which even come pre-installed with our phones. It covers whatever from restaurants and also bars to movers, health clubs, completely dry cleansers and also plenty more.

Google Pixel 4a.

Maps by Google is a full place app with attributes like GPS monitoring, address sharing, navigation, real-time web traffic updates, lane support, neighborhood area search and more. Application growth is beneficial not only for monetary purposes yet likewise to extend the reach of a business/website to the mobile individuals. Billions of people all over the world are making use of smart device gadgets now, and one certain means to get to those people is creating a mobile app for your business. Mobile apps are one of the reasons mobile phones are so much preferred today. These apps are what make your phones and also tablet computers smart, in regards to performance as well as attributes.

Plus, you can publish your photos to Imgur without restrictions for sharing to various locations. However, there are a lot of remarkable choices that don't cost you anything. These solutions are usually sustained by advertising and marketing, sponsorship of some kind, or another thing. Nonetheless, there are still some absolutely superb applications available that you can use free of charge without paying a penny. This is a best all-time list, type of like hall of popularity, so most of these apps aren't always new.

The number of mobile apps downloaded in 2017 is 1 Billion. What it does is allow you check your credit rating completely free. On top of that, the application will certainly inform you when there are significant adjustments to your credit history.

The 15 Ideal Two-Player Mobile Games to Play Anywhere.

There is an optional $9.99 monthly subscription, but it is totally optional. At first, we weren't mosting likely to place any type of launchers on this listing. Nova Launcher appears to be prolong past what typical launchers are.

Is WhatsApp free on iPhone?

Note that Apple no longer labels apps as “free”—while there are many you can download at no cost, they may require in-app purchases, like subscriptions, to unlock some functions or make full use of features. On iOS, any app with a “Get” button is free to download but not necessarily free to use or play.

With a regular monthly subscription, you can listen to albums in order, remove advertisements, as well as download songs for offline listening. Making life infinitely simpler is not only feasible but potential when you have a mobile phone within your reaches. Apps are enjoyable, as well as nowadays, they're also quite darn helpful to automate the majority of life's ordinary procedures. Make use of these cool apps to obtain the alcohol out of the way-- like handling to-dos, preparing dishes, and paying-- and also get your time back.

Yea, the app only works on supported mobile devices as well as there is no web variation. This is a devoted carrier (conversation) application by Facebook that provides messaging center to Facebook individuals. Formerly, there was no different app for messaging on Facebook yet there is currently, as well as it has ended up being similarly preferred within a couple of years of its innovation. Unlike existing worldwide solitary join remedies like the ones from Google or Facebook, ID4me does not track and also examine the web surfing practices of its individuals. ID4me will certainly see to it that the searching routines stay secret. It is an OTT solution offering ad-supported full-length attribute movies free of cost. The Application is had by Display Media Movies (SMF), so you can anticipate a constant inflow of motion pictures distributed by the SMF. The solution also organizes internet series as well as initial programs which can be streamed without paying a single dime.

What is replacing Showbox?

Crackle. Sony's Crackle is one of the most popular free movie apps on mobile. It boasts a bunch of hit titles, various TV shows, and a bunch of genres to choose from. It even has Nielson tracking software so you can be a part of the stats when it comes to popularity.

I was searching for cost-free IPTV solution for movies, boxsets and also live TELEVISION. It has a built-in library offered to conserve your favorite movies and also enjoy it later. Without using HDD or data manager area of your smartphone you can save motion pictures or dramatization into the collection of the application. Due to the fact that of the ideal solution supplying, this app is the heart of millions of individuals as well as boosting day by day. Furthermore, it lets you enjoy flicks trailer and also recognize various other needed information about the motion picture.

CMoviesHD.

The appeal of the website is the top search box which is punctual and also easy. One can quickly locate the episode number which they desire to watch. There are lots of video clip services, legal ones, there not a great deal of money and also some have advertisements to spend for some content or there is registration. SHOT FILM HUB. FROM GOOGLE PLAY STORE. BRIEF 15 SECONDLY ADS BEFORE YOU START THE MOVIE. NO TELEVISION SHOWS BUT ALMOST LIKE SHOWBOX MOTION PICTURE COLLECTION AND ALL LEGAL. ShowBox is Dead permanently, the developers have actually quit the support of the App.

Regardless of which type film you enjoy to view, you are going to found here all category motion pictures like Activity, comedy, computer animation, journey, as well as biography etc . My Download and install Tube can be your popular option if you can endure that. Else, you can consider my various other choices for leading cost-free movie streaming sites no Register. TorOWL is a brand-new motion picture streaming site, no sign up required. Therefore, you can arrange films conveniently using different filters like groups, styles, ranking, votes and also even more.

The services of Hulu right into Live TV started in 2017, prior to that it just utilize to host a series of TELEVISION programs both brand-new as well as old, motion picture as well as various tvtap.info other infomercial programs. It functions as a crossbreed of Sling TV and also Netflix, supplying both TELEVISION Shows as well as Real-time TELEVISION to its customers.

Finest Android Emulators For COMPUTER 2019 (Updated).

Can you go to jail for streaming movies?

One more method to use Netflix without a Credit card is by using a Netflix gift card. You can buy Netflix gift cards on Amazon or eBay and you can also get them as a gift from your parents or friends. After grabbing your gift card, you need to enter your voucher id to activate it and use Netflix.

Titanium TELEVISION also has a large directory of motion pictures and TELEVISION programs. From the just recently released movies to the most recent episodes, you will certainly discover everything here. I am likewise thrilled with the top quality of video playback this app uses.

I needed to assemble this listing because Showbox just recently got shut down completely. Showbox APK was one of the most extensively used streaming applications for flicks and TV shows. Because Showbox is not working anymore, it only made good sense to find its substitutes.

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miragablog · 7 years

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Top 10 Mahou Shoujo Shows for Babies (Part 2)

Now let's move onto Majokko, or Witch Girl...

Mahoutsukai PreCure

Junior High student Mirai Asahina is your typical tween. Between spring break, She goes out and spots a mysterious object fall into the park close by. Inspecting the area Mirai bumps into a novice witch by the name of Riko.

Scouring the human world for a magical gem known as a Linkle Stone the duo are thrown into unwarranted conflict with the minions of a dark sorcerer.

Ah Pretty Cure, the untamable cthulian beast that haunts my every nightmare.

Being WAY behind in the franchise myself, I can't honestly speak on how great this season is comparatively to others.

What I can say however is that, as far as Majokko Mahou Shoujo goes Mahoutsukai Precure is a fun entry into a rarely explored subgenre.

Watching Mirai and Riko’s friendship blossom and Mofurun just be- Mofurun is a pleasure enough but combined with cute, bright visuals and varied transformations I fell head over heels for Mahoutsukai.

Like everybody and their mother has said, Pretty Cure has some solid Sakuga and Mahoutsukai isn't missing out on any of it.

Say what you will about the toy hole Bandai has created for the franchise or its scattered quality since Futari Wa Pretty cure. I’ve really enjoyed what i’ve seen so far.

If you’re into some sweet witchy goodness and looking for an accessible entry point into the Pretty Cure franchise, Mahoutsukai may just be the broom ride you need.

Kobato

Kobato Hanato is a naive, young women with a wish to travel to a certain place.

Through helping others, Kobato must fill a magic jar with “konpeito” to see her goal come to fruition.

With the help of a talking stuffed dog named Ioryogi, Kobato can grant her wish, so long as she doesn't fall in love with somebody she heals, of course.

I have to be really upfront here, this is the first title i’m revisiting out of the list. A show has not made me cry so early on since Skip Beat, and that's saying something.

Kobato’s visuals are breathtaking, adapting Clamp’s wonderful character designs with a detailed level of care.

It's ridiculously rare to see a show so faithful to the source materials intent like this nowadays.

The soundtrack is this dangerous mixture of heart wrenching and nostalgic that just ruins your tear ducts.

One of the main perpetrators for this being Kobato’s character song, Ashita Kuru Hi or “The day that will come tomorrow”. Going right by Aozora and Tuxedo Mirage on the “cry like a little bitch” playlist I have tucked away.

Genre-wise Kobato harkens back to the themes of early mahou shoujo, where magical girls were just young women with otherworldly powers.

There are no transformations, no magical weapons- just a weird girl and her surly companion, solving the mundane problems of broken people.

Forewarning that the show is slow paced and if you wanting something with a little less emotional weight to it, this may not be a great fit.

However, If you’re looking to jump into a pool of your own tears while enjoying some fantastic old school Mahou shoujo, Kobato is the girl for you.

Ojamajo Doremi

Doremi Harukaze is the “World’s Unluckiest Pretty Girl”. That’s at least what she believes. Fascinated with magic, she stumbles upon a mysterious shop run by a creepy lady, Majo Rika. Doremi being the smart cookie she is deduces that Rika is a witch that, due to a curse must keep her identity a secret. Promising secrecy, Doremi is in turn taken under the witch's wing as an apprentice and hijinx ensues.

When finding Ojamajo Doremi, I got the reminiscent feeling that I could've watched it on something like 4kidz, with a bowl of Cocoa Pebbles and my kitty in my lap before school.

Like a mixture between Tokyo Mew Mew and Digimon, I love the shows infectious energetic vibe.

While most works in the genre do deal with the maturation process of young girls, Ojamajo feels quite believable with how it presents its cast. Doremi acts like a curious third grader and the adults around her and her classmate all feel around their own age.

The strange part that makes Ojamajo Doremi is its unorthodox transformations, with the girls literally putting the witches clothes on and the power of their weapons being limited. I LOVE this aspect of the show as it lends to grounding the setting even further into a fantastical reality.

If you’re into cute kinetic comedy and watching some wacky little kids become witches then I highly recommend watching this adorable slice of Majokko.

Magical Angel Creamy Mami

A up and coming Pop star in a milky galaxy, Yuu Morisawa is a sassy, fun loving girl with a pension for mischief; shirking responsibility to go play in the neighborhood.

However her cat like curiosity lead her to encounter extraterrestrial beings from beyond the cosmos, whom bestow upon her the power to transform into a teenager for a year.

With the help of her companions, Nega and Posi, Yuu can't just save the day but has to balance a life as an idol and actress!

If you want something really different from typical Mahou Shoujo, I highly recommend Creamy Mami. Not only does it play with some light sci fi themes but presents beautiful pastel art and a energetic cast, brimming with strange characters.

It is still very much of its time, airing in the early 80’s but that doesn't hinder its beautiful charm.

Aliens are rarely seen in a genre like Mahou Shoujo and having them utilized in such a quirky manner makes Creamy Mami stand out. Other than watching Madoka for the first time, This was the most recent instance of me feeling uneasy while watching a show in the genre.

One thing that has Creamy Mami in my graces is its bubbly retropop aesthetic, invoked by a soundtrack chucked full of songs that can only make me want to go to a karaoke bar in Akihabara and dance the night away.

Whether or not you're into the retro aesthetic, Creamy Mamis a cool, poppy experience for anyone with a sweet tooth for fun.

Show By Rock!

Cyan has always regarded herself as a ordinary girl, despite her musical telent. Without the confidence to join a band, all her dreams seem for not. That is until shes transported to world of Midi City where everyday is a concert and everyone wants to be a pop star. Scouted by a ragtag recording company, Cyan is thrusted into the world of music and must fight evil with the power of song!

As one of Sanrio’s recent properties, Show by Rock surprised me and many others with its nutty, Jodie and the Pussycats take on Mahou Idol.

Music being a driving force in establishing critical moments for any show, it’s important for the image songs to stick out in show of this kind. And Boy oh boy do I love every sugary, Jpoppy moment of Plasmagica’s discography.

The property being based off a rhythm game lends its soundtrack to a diverse blend of Electronica, Pop, Visual Kei, Indie and Folk rock- I could keep going for FUCKING DAYS DUDE.

And I know what you're wondering, “But Mirage the show looks like it's mostly CG? Isn't that bad?”

CG is a tool that can enhance and lift up a adaptation, or bastardize the intent of a work and piss off its fanbase.

Yet Show by Rock sits at the lucky impasse of not being based on a prior written property but a video game, diverting any kind of expectations people have of the work.

That is not to say the CG is horrible however.

In fact I think Show By Rock presents one of the best exercises in overt 3d modelling currently standing, in an industry full of PS2 models and- (Abunai Sisters) What. What the fuck is that?

Then again im talking about BONES and when BONES picks up a property, it's bound to turn some heads.

( Also uh if you don't get down with this sweet lesbian subtext well uh im sorry man we cant mix. I mean there’s bad taste and then there's hedonism. )

JPOP, Fujoshi bait or hell even Hello Kitty- Show by Rock catches you off guard with its unorthodox presentation but eventually reels the audience in with the power of music.

Definitely worthy of your time and maybe a APK download. -\owo/-

------------------

And so I get to the bottom of my beginner recommendations. Next video is already in the works, gunning to be either a more Shoujo oriented analytical piece or a Mahou Shoujo history lesson ^o^. Thank you all for your patience on this. Life got in the way, as it does but with some new soundproofing and a recent switch to premier (after this vod) i'm looking to make the next video a tad more focused on one subject.

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jamesruberto-blog · 5 years

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YouTube Reviews!

YouTube is the absolute hub for video content on the internet. The platform was created in February of 2005, and the first video was uploaded in April. The startup was then bought by Google in 2006 and has been operating as a subsidiary ever since. Now, YouTube has become an essential piece of digital culture. It is home to millions and millions of creators that make videos about even more different topics. Are you interested in comedy? YouTube is full of it. Looking to renovate your kitchen? Find out how on YouTube. Struggling in your calculus class? Tutors galore await you on YouTube. My particular fascination with the platform has come in the form of reviews. I absolutely love technology, and have been watching YouTube creators review cell phones, laptops, cameras and more for several years now. Content is constant as new products are always coming out for my favorite creators to review. Recently, I have also been falling in love with music reviews and reactions. I consider these to be in the same vein as product reviews, as creators are giving their takes on an artist’s work, similar to reviewing a company’s product. I want to break down how these creators make reviews, and ultimately, why they matter.

To properly talk about YouTube videos, we first have to talk about the creators themselves. Big YouTube creators have absolutely become societal influencers. Marques Brownlee, a tech reviewer known on YouTube as MKBHD, has 7.8 million subscribers at the time that I’m writing this. A 25 year old has an audience of 7.8 million people! That is rather remarkable, but MKBHD is not alone in his success. Casey Neistat, mainly a vlogger who dabbles in reviewing tech, has a whopping 10.9 million subscribers. Many people may not know who Casey Neistat is, but 10.9 million people (me being one of them) subscribe to see when he releases a new video. If those numbers impressed, you might be shocked to learn that 7 year old Ryan has a toy review channel with over 18 million subscribers! I don’t include these numbers to bore, but rather to draw attention to the prevalence of this genre on YouTube and the grand audiences that watch.

photo-credit (Casey Neistat and Marques Brownlee)

The topics of these review channels are as varied as they are popular. I have talked mainly talked about technology so far because that is what I know and love, but there is so much more. There are car reviews, makeup reviews, toy reviews, even airline reviews. If you can think of something you want an opinion on, there is probably a YouTube video about it. That is part of why I love YouTube so much. I could say I love YouTube, and someone else could say they love YouTube, and we might have never watched any of the same creators. There is something for everyone.

For the purposes of this blog post, I am going to stick to talking about my areas of expertise (that is, the types of videos I most often watch): technology and music. People ultimately watch reviews to get an opinion on something, but that does not mean every reviewer makes the same video just with a different opinion. Reviews on YouTube are so great because every creator has their own unique style and approach that makes their videos stand out in a crowded field.

First let’s talk tech. As I mentioned before, Marques Brownlee, MKBHD, is a 25 year old tech reviewer on YouTube, and he has a very distinct video style. He started his channel when he was in high school, but since then, he has grown to become one of the best cinematographers within the reviewing genre. Regardless of what you think about MKBHD’s opinions, I have no doubt you will be wowed by the filmmaking. Marques takes a meticulous approach, making sure to capture a product from every captivating angle, utilizing sliders and other apparatuses to make shots more dynamic. Watching his films makes you want to film. In addition to his amazing videography, MKBHD takes a similarly detail-oriented approach to his actual reviewing. When he talks about a product, he leaves no information to be desired. If he is talking about a cell phone, he will hit every major specification, from how many milliamps the battery is to the sensor size of its camera. He is a tech enthusiast himself and wants the audience to be as informed as he is. This attention to detail has clearly resonated with his ever growing audience of almost 8 million.

Casey Neistat is a different example of a tech YouTuber. First of all, to brand him as just a tech YouTuber is probably disrespectful. He is an accomplished filmmaker who once had an HBO show with his brother. However, he has found his true passion on YouTube as a vlogger. He releases almost daily videos about his life and his work. Neistat is passionate about technology in his own way. For Marques, the tech is the content. That is his passion and what he makes films about. For Casey, the technology is a tool. It is what enables him to make films about the other things he loves. This different perspective gives Casey’s tech reviews their own unique style. When Casey reviews something, it is a very practical and down to earth analysis. He is uninterested in specifications and instead fascinated by real world performance. How does the product hold up when you need it most? These are the kind of angles Casey takes in a tech review, and it offers YouTube viewers a fresh perspective.

On the music side of things, there are also very different types of videos. For starters, take Anthony Fantano, the man behind YouTube channel “theneedledrop”. He is the self proclaimed “internet’s busiest music nerd” and mainly reviews albums, and when I say review, I mean review. His videos are the types of critiques you would read in a serious news publication. He is detailed, educated and pointed in his analysis. It is worth watching one of his videos to see what I mean, as my paraphrasing won’t do him justice. Other creators take a very different approach to reviewing music. Instead of a prepared critique, others react live to the music. They play snippets of a song or album in their video and break down lyrics and musical elements as they listen. Some notable creators that make these types of videos are LawTWINZ, Lost In Vegas, Rock Reacts, and Shawn Cee. This type of video captures a different feeling, as you get to re-experience the music for the first time as you watch another person react to it. It is extremely captivating.

photo-credit (LawTWINZ)

YouTube reviews haven’t only impacted their audience; they have impacted companies. Reviewers are beginning to be seen as the main influencers of public opinion, and companies are trying to use that to their advantage. Last year, RED, a serious professional camera company, designed a hopefully revolutionary cell phone. Who was the first person to hold the prototype? MKBHD.

photo-credit (Marques Brownlee holding RED Hydrogen)

DJI is the biggest player in the consumer drone market, and they send all of their drones to Casey Neistat to review because of his huge audience (that and he mostly loves their products). Anthony Fantano has been shouted out in several songs recently due to his rising reputation. These reviewers are breaking out of YouTube culture and influencing culture as a whole.

I for one love it all. I love that YouTubers are getting the recognition they deserve because they do incredible work. I have a passion for filmmaking, and when I can appreciate great filmmaking about other things I love like technology and music I couldn’t be happier. This summer I want to start a YouTube channel of my own and review technology that I care about. Below are a possible logo and cover photo for my channel. I hope to be back online soon!

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barbosaasouza · 4 years

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Review: Banner of the Maid (Nintendo Switch)

I never really understood the term “alternative history.” If it didn’t happen, it’s not history. That didn’t stop Azure Flame, however, from giving us their version of the French Revolution via Banner of the Maid. It may not be wholly (or even remotely) accurate, but I’ll take this version nonetheless.

Banner of the Maid is that rare turn-based strategy game that nails just about everything it sets out to accomplish. This starts with the game’s presentation, which is simultaneously retro and fresh. It helps that we have the late 18th century setting, giving us characters and scenarios that feel quite different from the fantasy worlds to which we’re accustomed. I’m sure historians and people of taste will take issue with the “alternate” mannerisms and uniforms of a few of the game’s heroes and heroines, but they fit the game’s melodramatic narrative (if not the characters themselves).

The story focuses on Napoleon Bonapart’s sister, Pauline. She’s an officer of the French Army, but she’s also a “Maid.” This small group of women carry special powers they don’t fully understand, but that they must come to master in order to achieve success on the battlefield and within the French political landscape.

Honestly, the plot is somewhat convoluted, but it’s all handled with a nod and a wink via story segments that play out both between and during battles. Banner of the Maid harks back to the glory days of Fire Emblem in that regard, when the narrative elements didn’t interfere with the core gameplay. Yes, some of the sidequests are there just for comedic purposes (and a few are laugh-out-loud funny), but you move from battle to battle with a momentum that’s only broken up by the occasional need to grind.

Let’s talk about that for a moment, as it’s the game’s main problem. There are over 30 characters you can acquire, but they’re often introduced a few levels lower than that of the enemies you’re currently facing. And by the time you hit the game’s midway point, the battles become daunting unless you’re either significantly overpowered or some kind of tactical genius that I’m apparently not. You can tweak your soldiers with various skills and items that are either purchased or acquired automatically as you play.

Better items are made available for purchase as you increase your relationship with the game’s various political factions, and you do get some control over how that plays out.

The best way to get the necessary funds is to win the story battles without having anyone “retreat.” There’s no permadeath here as in Fire Emblem, but defeated soldiers are gone for the duration of the battle and will cost you financially at the battle’s conclusion. You can also get rewards by achieving certain accomplishments in addition to victory, but some of these are exceptionally difficult to reach.

This leaves you with nothing to do but grind through the same repeatable quest levels over and over until your army is strong enough to push through battles unscathed for the best possible rewards. So, spread out your game saves. You may find you haven’t spent your money wisely (those croissants aren’t cheap), leaving you unable to progress. In this case, backtracking may unfortunately be required.

Thankfully, combat is a lot of fun due to the fantastic maps and the shifting strategies required to push through them. Certain types of soldiers are strong against others—infantry, skirmisher, calvary, artillery, etc.—so positioning your army for the best outcome is key. You also have to take terrain modifiers into account, and changing weather will impact the overall effectiveness of both sides. Assignable skills can overcome these modifiers. You can allow your soldiers to more easily cross through mud, to be more effective on flat terrain, etc.

There are also some cool tricks to utilize, such as the cavalry’s ability to do more damage the further they charge into a fight. Per usual, you will get to position your entire army for attack or defense before the enemy gets to move, and you’re able to display the enemy’s reach to help you avoid attacks. I love that if reinforcements are going to appear on a map, you’ll be able to determine where by finding a set of footprints. (That won’t tell you in which round they’ll appear, however.)

All of this is presented against brightly colorful, intricately detailed isometric backdrops that become quite expansive by game’s end. The characters and maps are usually easy to make out on even the larger levels. This is important, as you don’t have the ability to rotate the maps or zoom in on the action. Banner of the Maid is playable in handheld mode, but you’ll have an easier time making everything out on your TV.

The combat animations are also unique in that they’re presented as line formation battles, with your commander leading the charge. They become repetitive, and you can easily turn them off, but they’re short enough that they don’t really slow things down. Plus, you can improve your Chinese by hearing and repeating their commands throughout the game, even if you have no idea what they’re saying. A particular phrase from Aimée has already become a permanent fixture of the Hiner family vernacular.

And as a tangent, where else but in video games can you get a Bavarian character in a Japanese RPG whose broken “French” is spoken in Chinese and subtitled in English, and yet the comedy of her inability to grasp the language totally works?

Now that I think about, that’s emblematic of this entire game. There’s a lot going on here—familiar and new—and the results could have easily been a mess. But CE-Asia pulled it altogether into a nearly perfect package. The story and characters are entertaining, the battles are challenging and rewarding (albeit brutally unfair on occasion), the graphics and artwork are lively and fun, and the overall experience is highly addictive. It’ll be over before you want it to be, but hopefully the DLC currently available for the PC version will soon arrive on the Switch. The PR rep who provided us with the review code said there’s currently “no news” on when that may happen. But if we do have to wait, there are plenty of online tips available for your New Game+ challenge runs.

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charetfriarsclub-blog · 4 years

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How To Produce Excellent Comedy For Your Business Vacation Party (From an Expert Comedian)

A vacation party is normally a time for event and a good funny show can be a terrific method to thank your staff members for a task well done. However there are some rules to think about if you want to ensure that you get the best outcomes for your company and from your talent Bruce Charet.

DISCOVERING YOUR TALENT.

There are a great deal of methods to look for comedians, and whether you go through a lecture agent, speaker bureau, funny agent, or check out your regional funny club, here are a few things to think about.

First, business funny is various. If you see somebody at a local club and they're funny and reasonably tidy, there's absolutely nothing wrong with putting them on your list. However make certain that they understand the rules, since a bar comic is typically comfortable utilizing raw language and material that may not fit your crowd.

So have a look at their websites, or much better still, see them live if possible, and call among their referrals. When you view their video, attempt to glance the whole program to get a sense of how everything circulations, rather than just presume that everything will resemble what they place on their emphasize reel.

Some comics, including myself, work all kinds of different places, and we are able to change our product from show to reveal depending on the forum. But I've also been doing this for over 3 years and know what's right for each crowd. The danger with a young inexperienced comic is that he or she may share great intents, however utilize unsuitable product if they feel they're not getting enough laughs, so keep that in mind.

As soon as you have actually chosen your talent, ensure that they consent to your guidelines. More than likely this suggests no cursing, no potty humour and avoiding material that is politically incorrect. It assists to review some of their jokes in advance to offer specific examples of what's fine and what would be considered crossing the line.

Now, it's true some smaller sized business have looser cultures. My partner operates in a workplace wherein charges shout and curse all day long, so if they hired a comedian for a celebration, the limits would most likely be a lot looser, but even then, an excellent business comic understands to err on the side of safety. Whatever you decide, use due diligence and do your research.

AGREEMENTS.

When you've chosen your acts, make sure all celebrations have a signed contract and a deposit. I usually get 50% which secures the date for the business, so they're guaranteed I'm not going to take an eleventh-hour deal for better money (not that I would), but it likewise ensures that I won't lose cash if I have actually refused work and the boss all of a sudden chooses to employ his second cousin's nephew.

COST.

It's hard for me to give specifics due to the fact that it really depends upon the size of group and venue for your celebration. If your company is small, the budget plan is clearly going to be rather different then it would be for a Fortune 500. The bottom line is, provide yourself a variety to patronize and be prepared to be versatile if you find a specific act that you simply need to have.

Keep in mind, the better acts are in higher need, so they generally do charge more, but there are lots of fairly priced comics who may not be family names, however will still do an excellent task for your group. But take care about hiring a comic that is available in at a price that's too low. They might be just starting or may not have much experience in the corporate market.

Keep in mind that the comedy program is probably going to be the important things your co-workers keep in mind most about the party, so be careful not to be cent wise and dollar foolish.

DEVELOPING A GOOD COMEDY ENVIRONMENT AT THE VENUE.

I have actually done comedy in all sort of scenarios and absolutely nothing is harder for a comedian than to enter front of a rowdy crowd who wants to drink, talk and mingle, and could not care less that there's a show. So the number 1 rule is to deal with the program with due regard. If the party coordinators behave as if it's background sound, the audience will usually respond in kind and the comics will be difficult-pressed to overcome that. But if you set it upright, it can be golden.

Wherever you hold the occasion, try to be sure your group has its own separate space so you prevent the opportunity of a loud bar or too much noise from other clients.

Let your group understand that there's a show ahead of time and stress that if anyone just absolutely has to be talking for whatever factor, that they need to take it outside. Then make sure cell-phones are all off and have somebody from the business present the comedian so that everybody focuses.

It's also crucial that everybody is seated, due to the fact that when too many people are standing, they're agitated, and it's harder for even the very best comic to hold their attention. And finally, do not start the program during the meal because no one actually chuckles too much when they're chewing. So try to do the comedy either after the meal, get the wait-staff to stop moving and provide everyone a 5-minute heads-up right prior to so they can use the centres.

NOISE AND LIGHTS.

Sound and lights are more vital then you may believe, so it's constantly an excellent concept to have your entertainer test both before the program when the room is empty.

A lot of hotel meeting room have tiny little round speakers developed into the ceiling. Utilize these only as a last hope. Bad noise can really injure a comedy show, due to the fact that if the audience can't plainly understand what the comic is saying, the humour isn't going to fly.

Lots of comedians have their own noise devices. I have a portable stereo that's good for about 250 individuals. If I'm doing a local show and I'm not exactly sure of the venue conditions, I throw it in the car simply in case. However bear in mind, if you require the comic to bring their own equipment, there is typically an extra charge.

Among the trickiest parts about setting the best tone for comedy is the lighting.

Basically, the total goal is to get the comedian well lit (however not blinded), and have the audience dim however not dark, which increases the intimacy element and makes it more comfortable for everyone to laugh. It likewise helps since the comic can still see the faces and body movement of the audience throughout the show.

AUDIENCE POSITIONING.

If you've ever been to a funny club you understand that everyone is usually packed in like sardines. There are 2 factors for this. First, the more individuals the club suits their room, the more money they're clearly making, but second, is that it greatly increases laughter.

While, you might not want to squeeze your workers quite that securely, do attempt to keep the tables fairly close together and near the comedian. Laughter truly is contagious and this is among the most important elements to an effective show.

LENGTH OF SHOW.

If you want a full funny show with 3 comics, about 90 minutes has to do with right, with the emcee normally doing 15-20, the middle about 30, and the headliner about 45. If you employ just 1 or 2 acts, anything from 30-75 minutes is fairly typical, however it really depends on whether you desire comedy to be a spice component for your celebration, or to work as the main course.

TIME OF DAY.

The very best time for a comic is normally in the evening, but I have actually worked corporate functions at every possible time of day. Almost whenever can work, however if your celebration remains in the morning, I recommend that you try not to start off with funny as the very first course, because your crowd merely will not be all that alert. I've performed at conventions as early as 8 am, and I have actually succeeded, however it's a really different response at 8 AM then it is even an hour later on.

MAKE THE COMIC( S) COMFORTABLE - IT ACTUALLY DOES HELP THE SHOW.

Attempt to make your comic( s) be as comfy as possible. If there's food, and it's not prohibitively costly, we always appreciate a great meal.

It's likewise handy to have a place in the back of the space, or much better still, in another space, for your comics to hang out before the show.

Many comics are quite low maintenance. We perform in many different circumstances that we're normally quite flexible, however the more you make us feel welcome, the much easier it is for us to concentrate on our job - which is to offer you a terrific show.

In my own profession, I've entertained at the NY Stock Exchange, opened for leading name acts at major theatres in front of thousands of individuals, been on national TV shows, and appeared at some truly mindboggling corporate events. I've also been at bars, clubs, coffee homes, libraries and drug rehabilitation. No matter what the location or occasion, the less extraneous stuff we have to fret about, the better it is for everything.

OTHER FUNNY CHOICES - ROASTS AND PUT-ONS.

Roasts are a fun method to let off some steam about workplace politics and business policies, however again, make certain you get someone who understands what they're doing.

This is one of the important things I concentrate on and I love doing it, but it's a lot of composing so I do charge more. However what you're getting in return is a lot more customized show.

When a comic is doing jokes about the business policies and some of your coworkers and officers, the audience is basically constantly riveted. If you do choose a roast, I recommend you examine ALL the comedian's material so there are not a surprises.

You may also consider the business put-on, where the comedian is presented as a new vice president who's signing up with the company after the holidays with some "fresh new ideas" for enhancing organisation. This gives it an added element of surprise, however again, this isn't something that every comic can manage.

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killprettymagazine · 5 years

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An Excerpt From Our Interview With Fancy Lad

To read the full interview pick up issue 5, a thing you can do by clicking this link! Wow! HTML!

KP: How did Fancy Lad get started?

BIG: The name Fancy Lad came from me working at a cafe with Legs who I guess you could say is on the team but not really because he doesn't really skate anymore. Same with Vey. I wish they had full parts but it's impossible to get it out of them. I was working at this bakery with Legs and our manager Phil was, I don't know how to describe him besides he was very...let's say, pretentious and kind of a snob...a little prissy in ways. We used to call Phil, Fancy Lad Phil. We got that term from Cabin Boy, the movie with Chris Elliot. So I was working there and we were using that as a derogatory term for really rich, pretentious hipster people. We thought it was funny because we were gonna make this low-fi, really shitty looking, whatever it is video. We were making that video and we finished it and I pretty much had no ambitions at the time. I was filming Fiske who skated for Heroin and he wanted to edit his own part. We just ended up making that video and it was just an afterthought. We showed it to Arty who used to own Coliseum and he suggested just printing one graphic and seeing what happens. We actually printed that VHS graphic which is still our best seller today. So, I guess we got lucky that he decided to print that one.

KP: So you always had that grimy VHS, comedy style from the first video?

BIG: Yeah. There were some parts that were kind of meant to be funny but the comedic aspect wasn't as prevalent in the first one. The first one was supposed to be intentionally shitty and breaking all the rules just so you could start from scratch. Obviously, if we're making this you can't really criticize someone intentionally trying to make something fucked up....we figured whatever we did if we made something that was just completely destroyed and an abomination it would still be uniquely more interesting than everything that was cookie cutter at the time. I think the idea was there but I don't think our skating was there besides Fiske. Like I said we were just skating and filming but not caring at all. Fiske had a big influence in that first video too because he was editing his part and I think that kind of influenced a lot of the video and I just followed suit afterward.

KP: One of my favorite parts of Fancy Lad is seeing tricks I've never seen before and boards I've never seen before. Where did that start?

BIG: I can't even say when that started because that's always been the skating I've always gravitated towards and it's always been my favorite. We used to skate for Coliseum and right around the time of the Boston Massacre vid it was a shift in focus from the biggest trick you can do to a trick you haven't seen before. Those were always my favorite videos like the Tilt Mode videos. I would always just wait for a trick that I hadn't seen just to rewind it a million times. Those are the closest thing to what I wanted to make. I always describe our videos as an entire full length but it's after the credits. That's where they disregard all the tricks that weren't good enough but to me were much more interesting just because they're, "goof tricks". But they're much more interesting than what's in their part but for whatever reason, it doesn't have the same value. I don't know who's gauging this skateboard point system. There was never a eureka moment it was just a slow build towards what we enjoy. Simon Woodstock is obviously the originator in board manipulations. Just to give credit to him.

KP: If Zumiez came to you and said, "We want Fancy Lad to ramp up production cause it's gonna be everywhere. We'll buy you out." Or whatever. Would you consider?

BIG: Well it's a little different with Fancy Lad, Fancy Lad never preached any core morals. Come on, front me that big check. Hell, I'll take a check from Mountain Dew, whatever company loosely related to skateboarding. I mean we all work full time jobs I don't know if everyone knows that. That makes everything way harder because we really have to utilize our time. Usually when people work, after their jobs they want to go home and Netflix and Chill, instead of trying to make the greatest skateboard company of all time. It would be a lot easier to make videos more often if it was our soul focus. It's probably not that surprising that we all have full time jobs. Is it?

Wow! Insightful stuff! Read the rest of the interview in issue 5!

#kill pretty magazine #interview #fancy lad #skateboarding

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lassroyale · 6 years

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Implementing a Magician, The Real Keys - Honesty From a Dishonest Profession

Hiring a Magician, the Actual Keys - Honesty From a Dishonest Profession

Magiker Stockholm With Over fifteen years of experience as a professional magician in EnglandI will tip you the secrets of employing a high quality magician for the event, and the way to prevent the low quality magicians that could really do more harm than good to your event. Simple Magicians jargon, the three main Kinds of magicians: o O A oA Företagsevent Stockholm A great magician may be worth their weight in gold at |} Any event, it is crucial if you'd like to not only provide entertainment to your event, but to boost the atmosphere and give it that unique advantage, selecting the most appropriate magician can be somewhat more'catchy' than one might imagine. A premium quality magician with years of expertise will not come particularly cheap, so here are some top tips to make sure you get the very best value for the money. Request Google or any search engine For a magician in your local area, and it will unmercifully spew a mind overload of prospective near magicians, children's magicians, stage magicians, entertainers, mind readers, comedy magicians, illusionists, jugglers and several more - but who do you choose? How do you choose them? And, how can you know they will be the vital ingredient for your event? If you have already started your search for a magician You may see many advertise on their sites exactly the very same buzzwords such as'Unforgettable','Unique',''World Class Magician','Absolutely Amazing','Perfect to your occasion' etc , but how much of this is fact, and how much of that is fiction? Before long you will learn to distinguish the truth from the embellished truth. Firstly, pick Exactly what kind of magician you believe would be ideal for your event. To help you search with using search engines for the right magician for your event utilize the'magicians jargon' phrases along with the following to help your hunts turn into that little bit easier. If you'd like a magician that could mingle with your guests in a drinks reception kind surroundings you'll have to hunt for close up magicians in the local area; should you require a magician to get a ball or dinner exactly the identical search terms or table magicians instead of close up magicians within your regional area will provide exactly what you require, acquiring a magician work around the courses is no problem at all to the professional, however the amateur may have a tricky time with organizing their entertainment round the meal. If you are looking for a wedding enthusiast, again you really do need someone that specializes in weddings, perhaps not especially someone that does the'entire shebang' as it where - as the old saying goes don't spread yourself too thin. Magicians that claim they are able to perform everything from close up magic to fire eating, also out of illusions to children's parties, likely haven't dedicated all of the required time to the specific place you want them for. I strongly suggest not hiring a close up magician which also does children's celebrations, unfortunately there are many great children's entertainers on the market, but many believe the very same rules apply to entertaining children as amusing adults - in reality it is a completely different ballgame. Both are highly skilled arts. Many children's entertainers will find out some basic magic Tricks and attempt to piggyback close up magical work out of their children's parties. Ideally if you want a children's entertainer, find somebody that specializes solely in entertaining kids and if you want a magician for adults find somebody that exclusively performs high quality magic for adults. Perhaps you desire a cabaret magician, or stage type amusement, there are many genres here; mind reading, comedy, stand up magic, hypnotism, illusions,'Tommy Cooper kind' magicians and so on, consider what would be best for your event and guests - should you think that your audience would appreciate a comedy magician over say a mind reader, then hunt around for comedy magicians in your region, a major tip here is to make sure they have at least one video of them doing, there's nothing worse than an unfunny comedy magician! If you understand the type of people at your event are not the types that like to be in the limelight, a hypnotist is certainly not for you! Fantastic stage magicians and illusionists are typically quite great crowd pleaser's, but it's generally old fashioned style entertainment which will not suit everybody. Illusionists and conventional stage magicians are perfect if you have international guests as they possess'non patter' acts which are performed simply to music. A fantastic mind reading show can be exceedingly impressive, it can be completely baffling, entertaining your whole audience and even be quite amusing, however there's plenty of boring mind reading shows rather than all them are geared towards relatives if there are children in the crowd, again check references and movies. Once You know exactly what you want for your event, and perhaps even a style which you believe would best suit your engagement, maybe you want the old looking magician type magician or your young fresh and contemporary near magician, take a look at a various websites until you come across a couple that you believe would be excellent for your occasion. Pay attention to there style and picture - If it is a black tie occasion, you most likely don't need a magician that wears jeans and t-shirt and other casual wear to performances, even if you've got a young trendy crowd maybe you want the rather young magician that really does dress more casual. Perhaps you need close up magic and stage magic, find out if they offer both services - many will provide you a great package deal for the two. Sometimes it's better To employ someone non local for you personally that covers performing in your area, a lot of magicians have a'one fee everywhere' for performing anywhere in the country so you are not landed with a massive travel expenses on top of the acting fee. Each magician's site should have; genuine Premium quality references and testimonials, photographs - and not just studio photographs but real performance photographs, a video if possible so you may get a clearer idea of what they do, and eventually they should present to you all of the info that you need about there doing experience. It should let you know how long they have been doing, notable areas and companies they've worked for and what makes them stick out over the crowd. When you get in touch with your brief list of magicians be sure to include all the necessary info about your event; such as type of event, time, date, location, number of visitors, and if you have some notion of the budget you've allocated for a magician, or mention this as well. Agency website will pop up with various magicians and alternative entertainments, recall brokers usually charge around 15 percent commission, so you might wind up paying more via a broker. Sometimes it's better to cut out the middle person to get one performer. If your event requires multiple functions of distinct amusement branches, agencies are usually the best way to visit manage your amusement, nevertheless most magicians are going to be able to recommend colleagues that work well together in the event that you would like to hire multiple magicians. Unlike most professions where there Are always'cowboy' providers, surprisingly there are very few'cowboy magicians' out there, however, there is a massive range in quality. The simplest way to find the fantastic quality magicians in the lower quality magicians is by the fee. A complete time specialist will work hard on his trade, he's got the experience and the skill required, devoting their life to performing magic, their fee reflects this and their clients will pay the fee every time to get an unbeatable service. On the other end of the spectrum you have the amateur, the guy just starting out, or the'seasoned professional' that maybe should of retired if his tie went outside in fashion in 1963. These are usually the weekend amateurs who is going to do the task for you and will not charge you very much. Whilst every magician needs to begin somewhere, don't settle for anything less than the finest when it comes to high quality, professional magical entertainment. It takes a long time to turn into a good magician, amateur magicians could potentially ruin your occasion, but they might create an off the cuff remark towards the guests that's not well taken, their magic might not be very great or they may just be exceptionally unsuitably dressed for your occasion. Total time professional magicians need to be good in every aspect of operation and people skills, generally you can't go wrong with a complete time professional that has all of the proper credentials I outlined previously. Many Magicians offer close up magic within 1 hour or 2 hour time slots, normally two hours to get around a hundred guests would be your best bet, which provides the magician adequate time to view as many people as possible. After You've your enquiries back, done either by telephone or email, here comes the difficult part - which one will choose? Unfortunately I can't make that choice for you, generally the better magicians are going to be in the same price range, as I mentioned above - the reduced cost magicians will usually be amateurs or part time magicians which may not give you the complete magic experience that will make your event stand out a mile. Magic is a very special art form, the best magicians aren't just good at magic they are also good with people and that comes with several years of expertise. As with all rules there are of course exceptions, Your event. Magic is one of the most entertaining, interesting and fun Only is it universal in appealing all ages but may bring individuals Together, even help sell products or unbelievably raise the atmosphere Of an event. An excellent magician can be a giant cherry on the cake.

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elephantpublicity-blog · 6 years

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eleRANT: Marketing Manager of the NZ International Comedy Festival, Poet, Writer, Woman, Annabel Hawkins Everyone loves a good rant. eleRANT is a series with some of our favourite artists, creators and hard workers, ranting on something they’re passionate about.

Annabel Hawkins: Art keeps us feeling things, and feeling things is good.

Coming back to NZ to work for an arts festival after working in advertising in Melbourne has been a confrontation of arts versus commerce, where they intersect and just how god damn exhausting it is trying to promote something you genuinely care about.

Art Festival promotion often feels like you are trying to coerce everyone who is comfortably far away from the cliff face further to the edge. You are asking them to jump off with you. Some people like the unknown and for others, it’s a little uncomfortable.

And I get it, it’s so easy not to. Jump, I mean.

To go out after work or on the weekends because you are tired. To spend money on a show you don’t know for sure will be good when you have rent to pay and things you need to buy to live and every time you spend money on something other than utilities and a bottle of Fat Bird chardonnay you think of your student loan and the house you don’t own.

There is also this overwhelming ability to stay home and be content with watching things online and feeling like this is enough of a cultural experience. The internet has kind of messed with our concept of art like this.

We are also so god damn absorbed by our phones and our other, online life, that it’s easy to forget about stimulating our physical one.

I helped make a documentary last year based on the premise that I had used my phone for 42 different things over the course of a day. Let alone a week. And this made me a very distracted human being. Plus, I’m not even cool on the Internet. I can’t imagine how consuming it is for people who are.

It’s like we have so many options we are afraid of making a decision and being disappointed by it. An analogy of decision paralysis standing in front of a smorgasbord at Valentine’s would not be out of place here.

But each time I go and see something live (art, comedy, a gig, a play, whatever), something shifts in me. Whether that is a good or a bad shift is beside the point.

Maybe it is ‘I wish I was in bed the whole time I was out’ or ‘I wish I was making more art’ or simply, ‘that was fucking weird/amazing/confronting/incomprehensible/alternative/ conservative’.

Art is a visceral experience and I think its value to us has become confused over time because we can just get that kind of stimulation from watching a YouTube video on the way to work and feel like we’ve had some sort of entertainment.

And we have. But it’s not live. It lacks that ‘anything could happen’ possibility. It lacks that proverbial jump.

Why is an emotional shift good? Because it moves us from one place to another. And if we stay too long in our comfortable five-day work commute, one day bender, one day recovery weekly routine, we get too complacent about our world around us.

And what happens then? Fashions like Crocs and carrying pink Supre bags take off and no one stops in time to question them. Amongst other things.

And what is the worst thing that happens when we go to something we don’t like? We make opinions and have real life experience to back them up.

Basically, what I’m trying to say is that art can reframe the context of your life in one quick, hot minute. Or, at the very least, it can distract you from your work emails and life admin for long enough to let you dream a bit. And that can never not be a good thing.

Thanks for listening. Rant over.

Photo credit: Anna Williams

Website: annabelhawkins.com Insta: @_annabel_hawkins Twitter: @belhawkins

#elerant

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yogaadvise · 6 years

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Yogi Profile: Lesley Fightmaster

If you've been a participant if 42Yogis for a while, you possibly recognize I'm about Lesley Fightmaster. If you have ever viewed yoga exercise videos online, you have possibly at least seen Lesley Fightmaster. Lesley instructs yoga in Orange County, California, but a couple years ago she started teaching incredible yoga classes on YouTube.

What has actually set Lesley's video clips besides the majority of yoga videos on YouTube is the production high quality as well as the treatment Lesley absorbs educating her class. Despite the fact that you're taking her course practically, she educates as if you are right there in the area with her. It's not unusual Lesley's network has (at the time of this writing) virtually 67,000 subscribers. Lesley is currently showing Yoga Take care of 90 on YouTube, an electronic yoga exercise course designed to aid you produce a healthy yoga exercise behavior in 90 days.

In this interview, Lesley chatted to me concerning her yoga technique, her incredible video clips, and also transformation.

Ysmay: For how long have you been doing yoga?

Lesley: I mosted likely to a few of courses in 1999 when I stayed in San Francisco, however I really did not like the courses quite and also I was so disappointed because I was really feeling attracted to yoga during that time. I had a go at once more a year later and also discovered a design of yoga exercise (Ashtanga and Vinyasa Flow) that really appealed to me and I remained to practice.

What initial brought you to yoga?

I have actually been in healing for alcohol since 1994 as well as I was truly searching for a means to locate a deeper spiritual connection. I listened to that it's great to practice meditation after practicing yoga exercise and also I desired to attempt it since I had a truly difficult time sitting still and also practicing meditation. I think that's why I was attracted to the Ashtanga and Vinyasa flow styles of yoga ... I could not stay still for long ... I was really kind A, and also had a great deal of anxiousness. The only means I can loosen up in Savasana was to be a perspiring mess from the technique! I likewise really felt forced to function on aligning my chakras as well as all of the reading I did about the best ways to do it aimed to exercising yoga.

How long have you been teaching, as well as what motivated you to transform into a yoga teacher?

I started teaching in 2006, so it's been 9 years currently. I started experimenting some amazing educators in San Francisco including Stephanie Snyder and also Janet Rock. They were unbelievably inspiring to me. When I began to exercise, I was very rigid as well as rather weak. I never ever believed I would be able to be an educator due to the fact that my educators were soooo remarkable and I never assumed I could do anything near that.

When we moved down to Orange Region after our first boy was born, it took me a while to locate good educators, however, the teachers that I began with in SF were so outstanding that a lot of instructors paled in comparison. I understood that I intended to show to attempt and motivate others the means that I was so inspired when I started to practice. I'm likewise delighted to report that I've found fantastic teachers here in OC, but I'm sort of pleased that I didn't initially ... I probably would have never taken educator training!

When did you begin doing yoga exercise video clips, as well as why did you choose to educating yoga online?

The fabulous that we did was a number of years ago. My husband is a writer, musician, as well as funnyman. He dreamt of a camera to work with some comedy projects. We bought the cam and he wished to exercise utilizing it, so we went to Pacific Ashtanga Yoga Shala (one of the studios where I instruct) and he shot me, edited it and also published it to YouTube as well as we quite a lot ignored it. I led a hideaway in Bali regarding 6 months later as well as after I got house, Fight it out informed me that our HALF AN HOUR Ashtanga video clip was obtaining some sights. I stated let's do an additional one, and also we did a 45 minute flow class and afterwards failed to remember about YouTube again.

Maybe another 5 or 6 months afterwards we were obtaining some clients regularly ... I keep in mind when we were getting approximately 10 each day as well as I was astonished. In December of 2013 we determined that we would regularly publish one brand-new course each week as well as we have actually been doing that since. I could barely think just how much our channel has actually expanded as well as I'm so thankful for the neighborhood we have actually started. I truly hope that we remain to bring yoga exercise to as lots of people as feasible. I think yoga brings even more love and also joy right into the globe as well as the more individuals that technique, the better the world will continue to be!

You educate a great deal of different styles in your video clips, exactly what is your favourite ?

I actually enjoy the corrective as well as yin classes. I used to assume it was a waste of time to do a yoga course that didn't end in being soaked with sweat and also I could not rest still, so for the longest time, I wasn't able to practice corrective or yin. Now, I enjoy it and exercising those type of courses frequently and also meditating now provide me more power than the perspiring methods. I still like the perspiring flows though!

Yoga can actually help individuals change. Just what is the most motivating yoga change story you have actually come across?

I have become aware of loads of amazing transformational stories and also I'm so blessed to get messages and also e-mails from individuals throughout that globe sharing their triumphs! One story that touched me was from a lady that has an autoimmune condition called Scleroderma which tightens the skin and also joints. She was getting extremely weak and also carrying groceries was too much. She had exercised a little yoga exercise a few years ago and also she made a decision to return but after that began to have arbitrary anxiety attack and also could not conveniently leave your home. She located our online courses and began to practice. Within a few months, she began to see significant enhancements. She went from being mostly stable to sending me photos of herself in Bakasana and Urdvha Dhanurasana! Amazing!

What could we anticipate to see following from you?

Believe it or not, a yoga exercise rock opera! Fight it out [Fightmaster] has composed a rock opera based in the yoga globe. He as well as I used to be in an affiliate when we resided in San Francisco. He creates music, sings, and also plays guitar. I sing and also utilized to play bass in the band. He has actually 25 songs written for the rock opera. When Duke obtains a concept, he doesn't stop until it's finished. He composed a movie script and put with each other a Kickstarter project to fund the recording of it. He raised $11,000, employed a director, actors and also a movie staff and also made a function movie called 'Pablo Steel.' It's a funny about a fallen short talk program host ... which is kind of a biopic. He made use of to have a talk show on YouTube ... yet that's a whole various other story!

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