Tag Archives: action

Endgame: The Calling by James Frey and Nils Johnson-Shelton

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endgame_jamesfreyAs a prominent novel of thriller and fiction, Endgame: The Calling brings a simple treasure hunt to a whole new and different level. With teens fighting teens, the entire world has no chance but to rely on the victor.

In a modern day setting, twelve teenagers carry on with their normal lives until each of them are by a meteor, a warning sign to these twelve “players” for the beginning of what may be the world’s end. Representing the twelve so-called original lines of humanity, these teenagers must play in Endgame, a hunt for three significant artifacts (this book is on the first one) that will save their lines from chaos and disaster while condemning the other eleven.

Through the eyes of each of the twelve players, authors James Frey and Nils Johnson-Shelton incorporate adventure, action, romance, and much more all into just a three book series. Characters like Sarah Alopay, Jago Tlaloc, and Christopher Vanderkamp share their perspectives on their journeys throughout the continents and how they must survive when problems and troubles arise. As clues are hidden inside the novel itself, readers are recommended to try and solve the mystery themselves, being part as one of the players on a mission to save all of humanity.

Endgame: The Calling is a suitable read for young adults ages 13-16, and with my rating of 8.5 out of 10, this may be one of the very best plot lines that I have read.

“Will exuberance beat strength? Stupidity top kindness? Laziness thwart beauty? Will the winner be good or evil?”

…I guess you will have to read and find out.

-Riley W.

Endgame: The Calling is available for checkout from the Mission Viejo Library. 

Pandora Hearts by Jun Mochizuki

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pandorahearts_junmochizukiOz Vessalius is fifteen years old, which means that it is time for his coming of age ceremony for the Vessalius family. Being the head of a powerful family, he doesn’t have to worry about in his future and his days are spent teasing his servant Gil, playing with his younger sister, and trying to woo the beautiful Sharon. That is, until he and Gil stumble upon a grave and Oz starts to have weird dreams about a girl in a twisted dollhouse who wants to kill him. The erratic Baskervilles send Oz into the “Abyss”, a prison thought only to be be a scary bedtime story. But why is the girl from his dream suddenly helping him get out of the Abyss? More importantly, when he finally gets out, has the world changed? Or did the Abyss change him?

Pandora Hearts is a completed manga series, with 104 chapters in 24 volumes and it’s a very worthwhile read. The series has very beautiful artwork, with each panel being a masterpiece and scenery that perfectly sets the tone. Additionally, characters are drawn in a way that perfectly suits their personalities. They have incredible backstories that lead the plot towards incredible twists and turns. The plot is woven well into the overall theme, from one scene about madness, to the next being completely comedic and the next being a thrilling action scene.

For Alice in Wonderland fans, it is nice to see many references to the book, with many scenes of madness, a character named “Alice”, and many characters having nicknames such as “Mad Hatter” or “B-Rabbit”. However, younger teens should be cautioned because some scenes of madness and action can be quite gruesome and twisted.

This is an amazing manga series, and I hope that everyone can take the chance to read it.

-Megan V., 11th Grade

Pandora Hearts is available for checkout from the Mission Viejo Library. 

D. Gray Man by Katsura Hoshino

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Allen Walker had been tossed around for most of his life. At just fifteen years old, he has faced the twisted Millenium Earl, watched his beloved Mana turned into the accursed Akuma, and has played so many poker games just to pay off his master Cross Marian’s debt. But finally, he can now become an Exorcist, the one and only group of people that serves to get rid of the Akuma and the Millemium Earl once and for all. Of course, so long as he can contain fully use the Innocence that inhabits his left hand and eye.

This is a really great story! Despite the fact that it goes on hiatus a lot because of the author’s health, I really enjoy the plot and how it can go from comedy to seriousness in a matter of seconds. There are also some very great fight scenes, with giant hammers and huge battles against the Akuma and the Noahs. Although there is no romance, there are still the important bonds of family and friendship that show how strong these bonds can be.

Additionally, I really like how there are not only physical battles, but emotional ones too, with one guy living with the fact that he is a vampire and another trying to hold on to the responsibilities of being a “Librarian.” Most importantly, I love how the author makes you fall in love with the characters. From one character loving his sister way too much to another being playful even though he is evil, each of the characters somehow worm their way into the reader’s hearts.

This manga, although still going on, is a very good recommendation for fans of action and fantasy.

-Megan V., 11th grade

Manga Introduction: Bleach by Tite Kubo

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bleach_titekuboIchigo Kurosaki is a high school student who can see ghosts. Because of this ability, he encounters Rukia Kuchiki, a Soul Reaper who guides souls from the World of the Living to Soul Society (the afterlife and Rukia’s home). Their meeting is not the most fortunate. Rukia is severely wounded saving Ichigo from a fallen soul called a Hollow. Left with no choice, Rukia gives her power to Ichigo to change into a Soul Reaper so he may fight in her stead. Now without power, Rukia is trapped in a human body and must train Ichigo to keep the balance of souls a Soul Reaper. Their partnership is far from easy as it reveals dark secrets that could tip the balance of the world just enough to destroy it all.

 

Here are a few facts about Bleach:

  • It was published in August of 2001 and ended 15 years later in August of 2016
  • There are 74 tankobon volumes (manga books) .
  • It was published weekly by Shueisha in the magazine Weekly Shōnen Jump
  • Bleach has sold a total of 84 million copies in Japan, ranking as the sixth best-selling series from Weekly Shōnen Jump as of 2013.
  • An anime series aired from October of  2004  to March of 2012 ending with a total of 366 episodes
  • Four animated films have been released, all featuring an original plot and character created by Tite Kubo: Memories of Nobody, The DiamondDust Rebellion, Fade to Black, and Hell Verse
  • Two collectible card games based on the Bleach series have been produced, one in Japan and one in North America.
  • There has been 9 musical productions since 2005. Five of which have been based on the original manga. The rest have been original stories or specials performances.
  • Recently, a live action film adaptations has been confirmed and it is to produced by Warner Brothers and directed by Shinsuke Sato, who has filmed other live action movies like Gantz and Library Wars

This is not one of my top favorites, but I still consider it a good manga. Compared to most manga, Bleach has one of the most structured settings I have seen. This could be seen as a necessity, due to the large cast of characters, but it helps with understanding how each society functions. This one of my favorite multi-dimensional worlds stories as it goes beyond just the two parallel worlds concept. Rather there are several worlds that balance the each other out. Characters, especially, are well developed with backstories that explain their choices and actions. I will have to say the beginning of the series I enjoyed more than the chapters currently, because the manga now is just trying to end and it has been dragged out far too long. As far as I understand, it has “officially” ended but there are still “extra” chapters to be released.

I do recommend this to an older audience as it contains a large quantity of violence and cursing. This manga I would give a 6/10. It could have been better if it had ended earlier but overall, I enjoyed it. Read it for yourself to find out!

-Sarah J., 11th Grade

Bleach is available for checkout from the Mission Viejo Library.

Movie Review: The Magnificent Seven

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magnificent7Today, western cowboy films with their gun slinging and horse riding are largely regarded a past era. Magnificent Seven may just prove otherwise.

I recently had the opportunity to watch this movie in the famed Chinese Theater in Hollywood. (If you have a chance I recommending visiting the theater as it is truly “magnificent”) This movie is actually a remake of a 1960 of the same name, which in turn was based off of 1954 Japanese film Seven Samurai. 

It is 1879, the mining town of Rose Creek has been taken over by the corrupt Bartholomew Bogue (Peter Sarsgaard). He slaughters anyone in his way including Emma Cullen (Haley Bennett) husband, who tries to stand up to him. Emma, in part for revenge and in part for justice, sets out with her friend, Teddy Q (Luke Grimes), to find someone to help their town. They meet, Sam Chisolm (Denzel Washington), a bounty hunter, who agrees to help after knowing Bogue was involved. With Sam’s help, they assemble a crew of men from all parts of life: gambler Josh Faraday (Chris Pratt), sharpshooter Goodnight Robicheaux (Ethan Hawke), knife-wielding assassin Billy Rocks (Byung-hun Lee), skilled tracker Jack Horne (Vincent D’Onofrio), Comanche warrior Red Harvest (Martin Sensmeier) and notorious Mexican outlaw Vasquez (Manuel Garcia-Rulfo). With this rag-tag crew, they will attempt to drive out Bogue and defend Rose Creek.

Overall the can be considered to be average. The storyline does not stick after very long and the main focus of the film seem to be on the fight scenes. I personally felt that Magnificent Seven was underdeveloped in terms of character, but developed the characters enough not to harm the film. There is a large group of main actors and it become very difficult to catch each of their names, but it was help with the characters being very unique in personality. Emma Cullen is a  relatively strong female character, which was refreshing. The main cast was obviously an effort to represent diversity of the film but it lead to some parts of the movie seeming to farfetched.  Cinematography wise, it does feature the classical sweeping landscapes of western films.

This was a one time movie for me. It is great for those who want to see a western film but not so much for me. Note that it has a lot of fighting, and it can go on for a while. This is not recommended for a younger audience. Of course this is only by opinion of the movie, see it for yourself to truly decide.

-Sarah J., 11th Grade

Webtoon Review: Flow by Honey B

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Magic is normal. Rather, being born under a god is the norm. Some gods are weaker, others are stronger. To be born under a weak god means a lesser chance in both education and society, but a strong god means high school and training which later equals a higher status. There is only one thing in common. All of them can grant a single wish as long as the correct price is paid.

Yun Lee-Rang is a child of the cat. Not particularly bad but not strong enough for high school. His childhood friends, Suh Yul-Bi and Hong Ryun, are a pigeon and dragon respectively. Ryun, as he is a dragon, attends high school. Lee-Rang works with Yul-Bi in a delivery restaurant. He is satisfied with his life and has a crush on Yul-Bi. One day, when he is out on a delivery, Lee-Rang is severely beaten by students from a nearby high school, leaving him blind and paralyzed. Filled with despair, he wishes to turn back time. His cat god asks if he is sure and the answer is “yes.” It is done, but what Lee-Rang finds is that not only has he changed his fate but lives of everyone else. In this new timeline, Yul-Bi dies. Suddenly, the principal of Ryun’s high school invites Lee-Rang to enter his high school. Lee-Rang accepts in the hopes that he will learn to turn time again. This new timeline opens doors that shouldn’t have been opened and Lee-Rang learns that what is seen is not always what it is.

This is one of the earliest webtoons I have read and I have found it refreshing. It has a new twist to a power concept I have seen several times. There is a rollercoaster, which this webtoon takes you. There are the crazy light hearted monuments to the darkest of the dark time. The character are well developed and the changes in Lee-Rung personality and maturity is certainly strong. The artwork is simply beautiful. As webtoons are primarily released as color strips online (hence the name) artist have the opportunity to mix art styles and colors. Honey B uses a more realistic styles for the gods compared the the characters creating a incredible contrast.

It has been completed and the ending my opinion is quite satisfying. Of course, I cannot say that for you so why don’t you read it for yourself.

This webtoon is licensed by Line Webtoon and is free to read online.

-Sarah J., 11th Grade

Twin Star Exorcists (Sousei no Onmyouji) by Yoshiaki Sukeno

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In every story, there are elements and themes that are often repeated but twisted in such a way that readers know what to expect while sitting on the edge of their seats. These elements may include the typical multiple girls liking the hero, an awesome heroine, a ditzy heroine, a kind of scary father in law, an anti-villian/anti-hero, or an evil brother. Oh, and did I mention the atypical manga “main heroine somehow ends up in the most awkward moments with the hero” trope? How about the “pervert teacher ends up to be actually super powerful”? Or the “government is evil and has ulterior motives”?

That’s what Twin Star Exorcists is all about: with mixes of manga Kekkaishi, Flame of Recca, and Blue Exorcist, young fourteen year Rokuro is trying to fight his destiny against becoming an “exorcist”.

Although Rokuro is actually very good at being an exorcist, a profession that works with destroying the “impurities” (monsters created by human’s dark desires/nightmares), he wants no part in it. That is, until he meets a girl about his age, named Benio, who hits him after falling from the sky. Then, because of a prophecy, he’s told by the perverted head of the exorcists that they have to marry and have the child that will supposedly get rid of all the impurities. However, he absolutely hates her. Mostly because she too wants to be an exorcist and is absolutely annoying to him.

Typical plot tropes aside, Sukeno weaves a fantastic tale from familiar themes that readers get excited about, such as the ditzy heroine being useless but wanting to root for her because of her determination. Additionally, the manga is a hilarious comedy, with one heroine just calmly being a kuudere (someone who is cold and indifferent to others) and the other getting mad all the time.

The best thing about the manga is the incredibly beautiful artwork. Sukeno makes great use of contrasts with black ink and white paper, and even a lot of gray, creating beautiful openings and amazingly drawn and colored fight scenes.

The manga has an excellent plot line that is easy to follow and beautifully drawn characters (although unfortunately, at least in my opinion, the recent anime doesn’t do it justice). Although there are only a few volumes out, it is an extremely recommended read for one wanting to try something new.

-Megan V, 10th grade

The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey

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5thwave_yanceyThe 5th Wave by Rick Yancey was a great book. It incorporated suspense, entertainment and was overall very compelling for young teen readers.

The book begins with sixteen year old Cassie, one of the few surviving humans of the four other waves that aliens, known as the Others, have created in order to kill all humans on Earth. The first wave is darkness, all electronics go out and as a result, darkness takes over the world. The second wave is a major tsunami which wipes out all coastal nations. The forth wave is disease, which is airborne, extremely contagious, and results in death. The forth wave are Others, taking the place of humans and are known as Silencers because their job is to kill humans left on Earth. Together, the four waves have killed around seven billion people. Cassie is currently living alone on the run and has a feeling that she is the last human on Earth.

The book then flashes back to a couple months prior to when Cassie was traveling with her dad and her five year old brother, Sammy, after her mom was killed by the third wave. They make it to a camp with the last of the humans, which is run by military officers. One day, a bus comes and is collecting only the kids in order to take them to Camp Heaven to save them. Cassie does not want their family to be separated, but Cassie’s dad insists that Sammy has to go to Camp Heaven to remain safe. Cassie argues, but eventually loses and Sammy is taken to Camp Heaven. Cassie then leaves the camp to collect Crisco, a boy at the camp who is also young enough to qualify for Camp Heaven with a military guard accompanying her to make sure she remains safe. She finds Crisco and is about to take him back to camp when the military guard accompanying her and who is also one of the heads of the camp shoots him. Cassie then realizes that they have been tricked and the military guards running the camp are in fact Others. She runs back to camp and sees her dad crawling out, but it is too late and another Other comes out and shoots her dad. She runs away and barley escapes them which brings the book back to the present.

What Cassie does not know is that a Silencer, whose job is to kill her is and has been watching her every move and is ready to finally kill her. He shoots her in the leg and she hides under a car. The Silencer decides to wait her out. He knows that if she tries to stay, she will bleed to death and if she tries to escape, he can just shoot her.

The book then travels over to Sammy’s perspective where he is being taken to Camp Heaven. He is scared to go but guards comfort him and tell him that he will be safe. He arrives to camp and is checked by various doctors to make sure that he is healthy and not an Other.

The book then takes place in a sixteen year old boy’s (Ben Parish’s) point of view. Ben was Cassie’s crush in high school before the Others arrived on Earth but he didn’t even know that Cassie existed in school. Currently, Ben is at camp Heaven, the same place that Sammy was sent to. It turns out that Camp Heaven is a camp where they train kids to go out and fight the Others when they are ready. Ben and his group have been training hard to become one of the four groups who are able to fight the Others. At Camp Heaven, the kids are vigorously worked in order to be able to have success on the battlefield. Sammy winds up in Ben’s group and Ben takes Sammy under his wing because of Sammy’s age.

The book the goes back to Cassie’s perspective. She was saved from under the car and wakes up newly dressed in a house. She meets the person who saved her, a boy in college named Evan Walker. With the help of Evan, Cassie becomes strong enough to walk again and she learns how to use her gun a lot better. She finds Evan to be likable and kind, the only thing that is off about him is that he always goes hunting at night but never returns with anything. Now, her priority is to save Sammy from Camp Heaven and evan insists on coming with her, but Evan is not who he seems to be.

Meanwhile, in Camp Heaven, Ben’s group has graduated and are ready to take on the Others, but Sammy cannot come with them because he is too young. They are given all the tools they need and are sent out to battle. However, during battle, they realize something startling that reveals the truth about Camp Heaven, the 5th Wave and the Others.

-Matthew R.

The 5th Wave is available for checkout from the Mission Viejo Library. It can also be downloaded from Overdrive. 

The Map of Chaos by Felix J. Palma

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What if you’re an author and your books can come alive?

Enter H G Wells and his wife Jane. They’re best friends with Arthur C Doyle and Murray, a very rich man. Enter another H G Wells and Jane, who are friends with Lewis Carroll. Enter a third H G Wells, who got bitten by a dog… wait. Aren’t there two too many H G Wells? Oh, and enter alternate dimensions, a man who encountered a woman who can change into a wolf, an invisible man who wants to murder people, and the map of chaos that can save the worlds. This is the story in The Map of Chaos.

Confusing, huh? But don’t worry, all will be explained when you read the book. As you can see, The Map of Chaos has a very confusing plot that won’t be explained until you have read most of the book. Additionally, science fiction is molded with adventure, comedy, and fantasy, with excellent plot twists. It is the third book in the series, but one doesn’t have to read the other two books to know what is going on so long as one reads a synopsis of both books.

Additionally, Palma gives a very comedic view on how authors really got ideas for their books. For example, it seems as though the Hound of the Baskervilles is named after a guy named Baskervilles who is scared of dogs. I really enjoyed this book, and I suggest that you would please try it out!

-Megan V.

The Map of Chaos is available to check out from the Mission Viejo Public Library.

Movie Review: The Man from U.N.C.L.E.

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manfromuncleThe Man from U.N.C.L.E is a modern take on a vintage spy show. The director, Guy Ritchie, tells the story of an American secret agent and a Russian secret agent teaming up to stop a third-party nuclear threat. The film takes place in the Cold War Era, when U.S.-Russia tensions are at an all-time high. The Berlin Wall still divides Germany. The American spy, Napoleon Solo, is both suave and daring. He carries out his missions with a casual confidence, in contrast to the Russian KGB agent Illya Kuryakin, who is serious and professional.

From the very beginning, the movie jumps right into action. Napoleon Solo travels to East Berlin to extract Gaby Teller from the country. Russia also wants her for information on Gaby’s father, a scientist who worked with the United States during World War II. After Solo and Kuryakin pit their skills against one another, Solo escapes across the wall. After the initial excitement, the movie slows down to reveal the exposition and driving force for the rest of the plot. Despite being locked in combat in the opening scene, circumstances eventually force the agents to work together to stop a terrorist organization from creating a nuclear warhead.

The 2015 film is based on a television show from the 1960s. As a result, everything seems old-fashioned, from the way people speak to the set design. The director creates the movie to be elegant and vintage, in sharp contrast to modern day blockbusters. Each scene is a work of art, using careful camera angles and interesting transitions. Even action scenes are well planned. Clear establishing shots ensure that viewers are never confused or overwhelmed.

The best aspect of this movie is the dynamics between characters. Solo and Kuryakin both have distinct personalities that often clash. Their friendly bickering is humorous and entertaining. As the movie progresses, they become unlikely friends, even adopting nicknames for each other. Although most of today’s audiences can’t really relate to the historical time period, it’s obvious that The Man from U.N.C.L.E. is vastly different from the typical action movie. If you’re interested in both action and elegance, this is the movie for you.

-Phillip Xiang