Samurai Jack, Bill Nye, and Ms.Frizzle On Your Screen

Good evening everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

This year is going to be explosive for sentimental people. Some of television’s best shows that kept us hanging on the edge of our seats or educated us in our childhoods are making a comeback.  It’s funny in knowing that the shows we grew up with will now also entertain a whole new generation. 

“Samurai Jack” will return on Adult Swim on March 11^rd, 2017 at 11 pm. The limited series picks up fifty years after the original final episode, wherein time no longer has any effect on Jack. The world still suffers from Aku’s wrath in the past, present, and even the future. Aku now has a cult with the sole mission of eliminating Samurai Jack who must return to the past.

Following the return of the iconic samurai is a certain science guy reinforcing global warming, science, biology, and a ton of other topics. “Bill Nye Saves the World” will be appearing on Netflix on April 21^st, 2017 and feature guest celebrities joining Bill Nye in a scientific conquest. Some guests will be Donald Faison, Zach Braff, Wil Wheaton, and many others.

Lastly, “The Magic School Bus:  Rides Again” is back to take us for an animated knowledgeable journey. Kate McKinnon will give voice to Ms. Frizzle later this year on Netflix.

As soon as these shows come on my inner child will go wild with elation and nostalgia. Here’s hoping the new generation will enjoy these shows as much as we did.

Thank you for reading tonight’s entry. If you enjoyed it, feel free to share, subscribe, comment, and critique.

So tell me, what show are you most excited for?

A Farewell to Doctors

Good afternoon everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

This has been a rough patch for Whovians with the death of John Hurt on January 25^th, 2017 and now the departure of Peter Capaldi after this upcoming season of “Doctor Who”.

Both men played wonderful doctors – John Hurt’s War Doctor questioned his regenerations in “The Day of the Doctor” special. Peter Capaldi followed Matt Smith’s Doctor with an older, brooding gentleman who always tried to learn more about himself. While we only saw John Hurt’s War Doctor for this special (and a brief appearance in the Matt Smith episode prior to the special), his appearance alone was enough to make us wonder about the Doctor. Where did this War Doctor fit in? How did he endure the Gallifreyian War? Did he really have a mid life crisis?

Along with playing the War Doctor, John Hurt also took on the role of Ollivander from the “Harry Potter” movies, he played himself in “Space Balls”, provided the voice of Aragorn from “Lord of the Rings”, and gave voice to the Horned King from “The Black Cauldron”.  He also lent his voice to the Dragon from the series “Merlin”, starred in “V for Vendetta” as Chancellor Sutler, and played Trevor ‘Broom’ Bruttenholm in “Hellboy”.

John Hurt was an eclectic actor who was the youngest of his siblings in Derbyshire, England.  Despite showing little initiative and solitude as a child, he was guided into art. However, his admiration for acting took hold and pursued the field after failing to receive a scholarship in art. John Hurt embraced television and with it exposed his acting capabilities to an extreme level.

Peter Capaldi’s acting abilities bear the same extremity, especially when portraying the Doctor. His cynicism, his slowly warming heart, and his nail biting bluntness have created a unique Doctor. Albeit, there were a slew of comedic moments from him most met with sarcasm and a witty tone which is something that will be missed as he takes his leave of the Doctor.

Peter will be departing from “Doctor Who” at the end of 2017 with the Christmas special as his final performance. When the BBC asked Capaldi if they could renew his contract for the show, Capaldi declined and claimed that it was time to move onto different things.  While this appears to be a common reason for Doctors to retire, it is understandable. As much as we adore the actors who play the Doctor, at some point they want something more than running around chasing aliens, befriending companions, and travelling through all of time and space. It’s time for a change and a new regeneration for Peter Capaldi.

Thank you for reading! If you enjoyed it, feel free to comment, critique, share, and subscribe.

So tell me, did you enjoy the John Hurt’s War Doctor or Peter Capaldi’s Doctor more?

Finding Strength in Trump's Reign

Good evening everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

Tomorrow marks the rise of a man I never thought would become our president. A man who has implied that he would have relations with his daughter, a person so persistent to shape the country in his image regardless of the damage it will bring, a being so vile and uninformed, that his cabinet is filled with people sharing his unfortunate attributes. I think we all know who I’m referring to and it’s incredibly terrifying to know that we have come this far in this election.

There have been rumors escalating of Trump eliminating the National Arts Program.  It’s even more horrifying to know that this program, along with the tons of others, would be cut. Destroying the National Arts Program, defunding Planned Parenthood, demolishing NASA’s global warming research. These are all notions he wishes to execute for whatever reason he believes. It’s a mortifying transition, but we need to hold on and live the best way we can. I have never delved into politics, but now I honestly wonder: why did we allow this to happen? What more could we have done than to vote and protest our beliefs in this world?

I still don’t understand how it’s come to this. What choice do we have but to live with it and try to voice our opinion when we can? We have a right to our voices – Trump cannot take this away from us. We can craft art without funding and do what we can to make it amazing in our (and hopefully others’) eyes. We can still retain our beliefs and facts and absolute science that global warming is real. Our health is something that we so desperately need to survive in this cruel world with the short lives we have. We will accept the best health there is in this newfound Trumpland that we are being plunged into.

We must remember that no one can take ourselves away regardless of our gender, sexual orientation, and who we firmly believe we are. Not even someone as ungodly powerful as Trump can break us or tell us who to be. We know who we are, so let’s embrace them wholeheartedly. From this, we can gather any strength we can, to walk on through life in these years to come.  Be strong and be ourselves – it’s a way to live for the better, despite what the future may bring.

Thanks for reading tonight’s entry. If you liked it, feel free to comment, critique, share, and subscribe.

So tell me, what will you do to become stronger?

Carrie Fisher: Royal General and Bipolar Queen

Good evening everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

2016 has to be Death’s favorite year. Death has taken almost everyone we’ve loved and now, it’s snatched Carrie Fisher. Carrie Fisher, an iconic woman who claimed overnight fame as Princess Leia, passed on December 27^th, 2016 at the age of 60 due to a devastating heart attack.

Carrie Fisher was famous before she was even born on October 21^st, 1956. She was the child of Eddie Fisher, an iconic signer, and Debbie Reynolds, screen legend who divorced when she was two. She escaped into books and was noted as a “bookworm” in her family. This later fueled her passion to write various episodes for series such as “Frasier”, “Family Guy”, “The Big Bang Theory”, “30 Rock”, and many more. She also crafted two plays (“Wishful Drinking” and “A Spy in the House of Me”), five autobiographies, three non- fictional pieces, and seven screenplays.  For some screenplays she was a “script doctor” – fixing scripts to make the films better; she helped with “Hook”, “Sister Act”, and other multiple films.  Fisher was a jack of all trades when it came to the cinema and even Broadway wherein she starred in “Censored Scenes from King Kong”, “Agnes of God”, and “Irene” with her mother, Debbie Reynolds.

Carrie Fisher has inspired many people everywhere as a warrior for women, a symbol of mental illness, and portraying many rolls from Camille (Mystery Woman) from “The Blues Brothers” to Princess Leia from “Star Wars”. Fisher used her struggles with her bipolar disorder, drug and alcohol abuse, and her parents’ divorce to empower her characters. With this, she essentially became the roles she played. It’s a common technique that many people with mental disorders execute. They utilize their struggles into a character – it’s a temporary form of escapism that allows them to become someone else.

Fisher has advocated for people to understand mental illness. As a whole, mental illnesses bear a stigma in society while people attempt to correct this. Mental illnesses are nothing to be ashamed of; they make up our genes and are a part of who we are. Yes, we can repair ourselves in various means and eventually we will emerge as someone stronger than before. Fisher inspired many to take note of mental illnesses and treat those affected like any other human being: with respect, dignity, and care. She emphasized this greatly in her interviews and targeted her own struggles to help people not only understand her better, but her bipolarity as well. She even referred to bipolar disorder as bipolar pride – a trait that is a part of those who have it. After Fisher’s death, people have taken to tweeting their mental illnesses following the hashtag #InhonorofCarrie.

Society still has a long way to go to understand just how crippling depression is, how one can be so shaken from anxiety, or how one manages to live a daily life with bipolar disorder. Yet through Fisher’s legacy of words and strength as well as being open about our illnesses, can we eliminate the stigma. Listen to her words, raise your lightsaber in her honor, buy her books, and remember Carrie Fisher as we march into a new year.

Thanks for reading tonight’s entry. If you enjoyed it, feel free to share, subscribe, comment, and critique.

So tell me, what will you miss most about Carrie Fisher?

Goodbye 2016: You Were a Roller Coaster

Good evening everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

A new year is on the horizon. For some, it may mean the apocalypse with Trump’s reign as the new president. For others, it may be a chance to start anew or continue in growth as a person. 2016 has been a festering pile of garbage – bearing ghastly moments we never thought would occur such as the death of some iconic people, tragedies with no end in sight, and political debates as wayward as a curved road.

We are standing on a hazardous shore with rough tides, wondering what exactly 2017 will promise us. We can swim out to sea and brave the choppy waves and roll with them, becoming a stronger being. We can stay at the shore and bide our time before making a move. We can watch from afar and carry on our lives as best as we can. We have choices, but we can’t turn away from 2017.

Despite the harshness of 2016, this year was by far the best year of my life. Not because of any celebrity’s death or the ungodly tragedies that scattered our world or even the winning elector. Rather, it was a year of meeting Internet celebrities I’ve been following for years, for being more of myself and becoming empowered, for meeting someone who I want to spend the rest of my life with, and for broadening my mind and world more than what I’ve already known.

2017 for me will mean moving on with my life. Yes, I’m absolutely terrified of what Trump will do especially to people of my feminine gender. This fear, paired with my depression and anxiety cannot dominate me. I’ve allowed it to win too many times in the past and frankly, I’m done with them.

Here are the things I need to do in 2017:

1.       Live – 2016 flew by and the older you become, the faster time flies. I need to take time with my hands and do with it what I want. By that I plan to live – go out more and try Cuban food or go to that museum I’ve always wanted to see especially with the one I love by my side. Time can’t stop me anymore.

2.       Work out – Hey, did you know your metabolism slows as you get older? Want proof? In January 2016, I weighed 120 and now I weigh 134. I need to tone my body, shake off the extra weight, and continue my fight to cut soda from my diet. Albeit, I do accept who I am physically and mentally, I realize that I’m getting older and my body isn’t what it used to be. I need to take care of it now more than ever. 

3.       Write – This goes in hand with taking time into my hands and doing what I will. I have to utilize time to finish my original works and work on the blog. I have allowed time to get in my way of publishing my entries due to my social life, a relationship, the holidays, and going out into the world around me. Yes, I apologize, but now I understand what I need to do.

4.       Improve  - This also ties in with working out, but more so on a mental note. While I do already accept myself mentally and physically, I still want to improve my anxiety which seems to attack me most in my life. I need to find ways to quell it so that it doesn’t affect me as much.

Thank you for reading tonight’s entry! If you enjoyed it, feel free to share, subscribe, comment and critique.

So tell me, what are your New Year’s resolutions?

Last Minute Christmas Gifts

Good evening everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

With Christmas just around the corner, there are last minute gifts to be bought, baking to be had, and lights to be lit. It’s a time of the year to get together with people and celebrate a holiday filled with cheer and wonder.

Speaking of last minute gifts, here’s some gifts anyone will like:

1.Body Lotion – winter is the season of dry skin, thus prompting everyone to use body lotion. Bath and Body Works usually has some great gifts for $10 and below.

2.Gift cards – especially the VISA ones. You can never go wrong with a gift card because it will always be used and they never expire.

3.A scarf and glove set – winter is cold and everyone could use the layers. Scarves and gloves not only keep you warm, but are fashionable as well. There are sets for men and women so everyone has the chance to be warm for the winter.

4.Movie tickets – the movies are expensive, with $11 a ticket per individual you can practically get a meal for that amount.  Plus there’s usually something good playing and chances are there’s a movie they’ll really want to see sooner or later. Tickets never expire either so they can use them when they like.

5.Speakers- because everyone nowadays has some sort of sound producing source whether it’s a mobile device or something stationary like a television. They don’t even have to be expensive speakers because there are good quality ones for $20 and below. There’s also some nice phone chargers for $20 and below because you can never have enough chargers whether they are for work, home, or even your car.

I wound up buying another gift that a majority of people would like: candy. I bought a simple Ghiradelli package for a couple I didn’t know all that well, but they were friendly at my workplace. It’s Christmas and well, why not? It was only $5 and they ate it up.

Thank you for reading tonight’s entry. If you enjoyed it, feel free to share, subscribe, comment, and critique.

So tell me, what’s your go to last minute Christmas gift?

Neko Atsume: Cats For Days

Good evening everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

Just like the majority of this world, I love cats. I used to have a few cats, but they passed on (rest their furry souls). Which is why I was immediately smitten with the kittens of Neko Atsume – a game where you lure cats to your yard using food, toys, and means of relaxation.

Originally Neko Atsume was an easy game for most devices with minor updates, but this year it’s seemed to have a few prominent upgrades. This past year, we’ve seen the release of more items to satisfy our cats, attract new feline friends, and wallpapers for our devices (I currently have Ginger as my wallpaper). The last update also included the new cats Sapphire, Jeeves, Macchiato, Bengal Jack (one of my favorites), and Melange.

Today, we receive yet another new update filled with even more furniture, new wallpapers, and more fluffy friends. The more I play this game, the more I’m allured by its simplicity, its overall adorable style, and my love for kittens.

Thank you for reading tonight’s entry. If you liked it, feel free to subscribe, share, comment, and critic.

So tell me, what’s your favorite cat from Neko Atsume?