Monthly Archives: April 2018

Quest For A Popstar by Katie Hamstead

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I literally could not read this book, at all. It was so darn cringey, well, I know I called The Football Girl the cringiest book I ever read but  nope, it is now this one.

So let’s see… the book was written as if by a 12 year old, which was a turn off in the beginning. But I thought to my self “Skylar, it may get better, just think of all those other great books that you hated in the beginning but then loved.” Nope, nope, nope. That didn’t happen here in the slightest. But here is the part that I stopped reading:

“I grit my teeth. There are guys in the group who look worse than me and didn’t get such severe criticism.”

And with this, I DNF’d. I do not need to read a book with a female character playing the “Oh look, the man is treated better than me, must be because I am a woman.” No thank you. If you don’t want to read a book that a Junior High school student wrote, do not read this.

-Skylar N.

Ultrasabers: Prophecy v3

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Are you a Star Wars fan? Well, if you don’t have one of these, you aren’t. Introducing Ultrasabers, the finest custom lightsaber company out there. With these sabers, you can duel to whatever intensity your heart desires. The site has everything, from double-bladed sabers, to crackling crossguards. While the price may seem a little much, you’ll be absolutely amazed by what you receive.

For my first saber, I chose the Prophecy v3, which is based on the hilt that Anakin Skywalker used in Episode II: Attack of the Clones. This saber was eventually lost during the Battle of Geonosis. I ordered it with Obsidian LITE soundboard, an Ultraedge Heavy Grade blade, and, for the color, Guardian Blue. When I first got it, some factors that surprised me were its weight, color, and volume.

Let me tell you right now, if you think holding a fishing rod one-handed is too heavy, you’ll have one heck of a struggle keeping these sabers suspended in your hand. When I first picked it up, I had to use two hands, but as I practiced with it, it got lighter and lighter. Another thing was the color. On camera, the blade appears white with a blue hue around it. The blade is actually a pure blue color. I definitely recommend the Ultraedge blade, as they allow the light to cover the whole blade, giving it a full look. Finally, the sound. Obsidian LITE is all you need, it sounds great, had motion and contact recognition, and is the best soundboard for its price. Thank you for reading, if you end up buying one, I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

-Luke D.

Suspect Red by L.M. Elliot

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Suspect Red, by L.M. Elliot, was one of the most historically accurate books I’ve ever read. It takes place in the 1950’s, which was the time of the Cold War. This book has everything, from psychotic secret agents, to power-hungry communists. I used this book for an English report, and it gave me an abundance of powerful characters and vivid scenery to write about. Another factor that I really enjoyed was the length of the book. It wasn’t too long, nor too short. The book, in my opinion, is a great read for all ages.

The storyline follows the point of view of Richard, a teenage boy who loves reading. However, the nation is thrown into distrust, with communist propaganda around every corner. Hundreds of classic books are being thrown out, their authors accused of being pro-communist. His father, who Richard idolizes, happens to be working under the people responsible for this overexaggeration of fear, the FBI directors.

Overall, this is a great book for anyone looking for a good, well-rounded historical fiction read. If you’re interested in the Cold War, or just think the cover art looked cool, you’re in for a pleasant surprise. Thank you for reading my review on Suspect Red, by L.M. Elliot. Definitely take this book into consideration!

-Luke D.

Suspect Red by L. M. Elliot is available for checkout from the Mission Viejo Library. 

Film Review: Black Panther

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Black Panther had a lot of ups and downs but it was still a good film. I wouldn’t praise it as the best Marvel movie but it is still a good movie. To me this movie was like a lot of Marvel movies. We have the hero who was defeated by the villain then gets saved and comes back to save the day. It seems like Marvel is trying to keep following that pattern.

This kind of had to do with some history. To me T’challa and Kilmonger represented Malcolm X and Martian Luther King Jr. One had extremist beliefs while the other had peaceful beliefs. It seems fitting that they use these comparisons because of the film’s release during Black History Month.

I thought that Eric Kilmonger played by Michael B Jordan had a very empowering role as the villain. I think he really improved as a actor since Fantastic Four which was his last marvel film. This movie also had a Lion King feel to it. Like when T’challa fought Kilmonger he was struck down and then came back to defeat him.

Now I’m going back to Kilmonger because he had such a deep part in the movie. One of the deepest things he said in the movie was “Bury me in the ocean with my ancestors who jumped from the ships, because they knew that death was better than bondage.” Those few words could probably be the most deepest thing in the whole movie. That is what is so cool about his character.

Since he lived in America and has Wakanda blood, he goes back to the secret country where nobody has ever heard of The Civil Rights Movement. Which makes no sense what so ever to the people but we as a audience get it.

I also thought that the costumes in this movie really understood the type of look that Wakanda would have. The technology in the movie was really cool in every aspect.

I thought that it was funny that the whole world thought that Wakanda was a very poor country but, it was the most advance in the world.

-Max U.

The Winter of Our Discontent by John Steinbeck

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Ethan Hawley is very satisfied with his life as a market clergy. He has a happy family but they are also unhappy with the amount of money that he earns. For me though, I think the best part of a family is not the amount of money that they have, but everyone loves each other.

Mr. Banker is a nice person but he sometimes can be a little snobbish and selfish. Although I would be ecstatic to have him as a friend because he is always there for you. I don’t know how a little girl like Ella Hawley can be so mature, but she acts like a grown-up woman to her dad Ethan Hawley.

The saddest part for me was when Marullo, Ethan’s boss got deported because he was an illegal immigrant. I really want to give him a pat on the shoulder because he is a very nice and kind person, it’s just that he doesn’t reveal his geniality very easily. It’s a winter when everybody has their own dissatisfaction, but at the end, a lesson can be learned: we should be glad about our life as always.

-April L.

The Winter of Our Discontent by John Steinbeck is available for checkout from the Mission Viejo Library. 

 

Land of the Lustrous by Haruko Ichikawa

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Image result for land of the lustrous

The world has been hit by six meteors. This has made most of the world uninhabitable except for a very small coast. However, this coast is also unstable too, and any creature that we consider living lives in the ocean.

Humans do not exist anymore.  The only creatures that live on the coast are animated gems. No really, imagine people made of amethyst or topaz running around and instead of eating food they photosynthesis, which is perfect for living on the coast.

This is the setting for Land of the Lustrous, where Phos (Phosphophyllite) and 27 other “gems” live an immortal life in peace and relaxation. Well peace and relaxation except for the fact that people from the moon come and attack them every three days or so, trying to take them back to the moon forever. Since they are basically defenseless when broken and alive when it happens, there could be a chance to rescue them, but it is slim. Hence, the gems, along with their strong leader “Teacher”, train and patrol every day in order to be ready to fight against the moon people.

Everybody except Phos at least. On the Mohs scale, Phos is the weakest at 3.5, and breaks easily no matter the method. However, she still tries to fight despite not even being able to hold the lightest sword. Throughout the story, she still tries her best to change.

The first thing to notice is that the art, compared to other manga, is very plain. The manga artist is obviously very new at drawing, and some of the pictures look like the reader could draw them. However, to make up for it, the character’s design looks perfectly like each of their respective gems, in which one can tell that Diamond has shiny hair.

For geology lovers out there, each of the gems correspond accurately to their real life counterpart. Besides from aesthetics and Mohs scale, for example, I learned about the gem Cinnabar, which has mercury in it, because the character Cinnabar has poison that looks like Mercury coming out of her.

As for story, there is all types of genre, with the exception of perhaps romance. It is very comical, especially at the beginning, whenever Phos messes up, and the world that they live in looks like another planet despite being Earth, also making it dystopia. Additionally, it is a coming of age story perfect for those who feel like they don’t belong, as Phos feels that she is useless, which leads to very dark choices such as losing her memories on purpose, which is perfect for goth fans out there who think that this is just a cute, silly story (hint: we find out later that it is not that cute).

I hope that you will give yet another good manga a try!

-Megan V, 12th Grade

The Land of the Lustrous by Haruko Ichikawa is available for checkout from the Mission Viejo Library. 

Film Review: Black Panther

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After all the hype, I went into Black Panther with extremely high expectations since people where calling it the best Marvel film date. After seeing it, I was very underwhelmed. Yes it was definitely a good movie and I totally enjoyed watching it but, it wasn’t as great as everyone said it was.

The movie begins with the background of Wakanda, which seems to be a third-world country but, is really the most technologically advanced and most well off country in the world thanks to a vibranium well that was created from a meteor. But, from here I personally thought the story line got a little bit confusing. The movie jumps to a scene in an apartment building. Then, to the start of the story line. This jump seemed very confusing to me and I spent so much time wondering what was going on and trying to figure out the scene that it really lost the effect that it was supposed to give, of suspense and later being a plot twist. I think the confusion from this scene as well as a couple of others, is partially why I didn’t think this movie was as great as everyone else thought it was because, it kept me so focused on being confused that I couldn’t really enjoy the movie.

On the other side, I loved the characters in the movie and the fact that everything was new and fresh. The story line was a total change of pace compared to everything Marvel had been putting out. The characters where different and personally I loved the fact that women formed the army and where totally awesome.

The Black Panther, or T’Challa, is the prince of Wakanda and Shuri his sister is the princess. When T’Challa’s father, the king of Wakanda dies, which was shown in Captain America Civil War, T’Challa takes over. But of course, there are problems someone who was of royal blood and nobody knew existed, challenges the throne and causes chaos.

Overall, the movie was good. I would totally suggest seeing it. But, just like many other movies, it just didn’t live up to the expectations.

-Ava G.

Fan Expectations for Predator (2018)

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Recently I came upon a movie called Predator featuring Arnold Schwarzenegger. It was about his crew of commandos going to South America and eliminating a threat. What they didn’t know was that the cause of the threat wasn’t human. Throughout the movie they were being hunted by the Predator, an alien from outer space who came to earth to hunt.

This was the major plot of the Predator movie which led to several other movies. I later found out that it was getting a reboot this year. The only thing on my mind is that the other Predator movies haven’t been successful as the first one. One other remake of a successful Sci-Fi movie is Alien. You might remember the movie Alien Covenant that came out last year. The movie turned out to be not that bad. I don’t see why Predator can turn out the same way as Covenant did. I think fans have a better view for this movie just like the first and most successful one.

The reason why the first movie turned out so good was because it was very straightforward. There were no love interests and not a lot of backstory. Fans wanted this out of Predator 2 but didn’t really get that same aspect as the first film.

I also think they should use a rural area for the setting in the new movie. The setting in the first Predator was a jungle in South America and the setting for Predator 2 was in Los Angeles. If you can see what i’m getting at right here it is that the good movie of the two had a rural area as the setting and the bad movie didn’t.

But maybe this movie doesn’t have to be Predator type like movie. It could also be a whole different kind of movie in the saga. Like a movie that actually talks about the Predator’s backstory. Like the movie Prometheus did for the Alien franchise. But seeing that the movie is named Predator it is most likely going to be a Predator based film. Which means it should be straight forward.

-Max U.

The Wayward Bus by John Steinbeck

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Image result for the wayward busThis book is another one by my favorite author John Steinbeck. It’s about a bus driver named Juan Chicoy who has a wife that he sometimes loves and sometimes pranks her. I must be feeling dreadfully lonely if I have such a profound and deep husband like him. His apprentice Pimples and his best comrade “Sweetheart” (the bus) are always with him just like shadows.

In my perspective, it would be my pleasure to meet such an intelligent couple like Elliot Pritchard and his wife. I can’t imagine what to feel like as a man meeting their erudite but voluptuous daughter Mildred. Sometimes I really wish that I am as inventive and funny as Ernest Horton. Unlike Mr.Pritchard, Ernest Horton is not very complacent and lonely. He always has friends. He was my role model.

Every girl wants to be like Camille Oaks but also doesn’t want to be like her. She has an angelic face that every man would be willing to be a devil for her. But her jobs require using her beauty to earn money. Camille seems to be like an older sister to Norma, a counter girl at Alice Chicoy’s restaurant. I see my sister’s shadow when Camille comforts Norma.

-April L.

The Wayward Bus by John Steinbeck is available for checkout from the Mission Viejo Library.