HOLY POKEMON, BATMAN!

Good evening and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

This past week has been filled with tons of sneak peeks for the reboot of Pokemon Ruby and Sapphire. With every piece of news, my heart explodes with elation for this game, but what made me burst into a million fragments of joy was the return of the secret bases.

In the original Pokemon Ruby and Sapphire, Pokemon could be taught the move ‘Secret Power’. This ability would be able to detect secret rooms hidden within trees, rocks, bushes, and other places.  Once the player enters the secret room, you can customize it with plushies, pillows, tents, flags, rugs, and many accessories. However, since this game is a reboot, they’ve added a few adjustments to the bases. For example, you can turn your base into a gym with you as the gym leader. You can also play capture the flag with other base holders and share your base with the Street Pass. Your friends can also enter your base and battle with you. A new character entitled The Secret Base Master named Aarune will be tied in with the Secret Power and bases.

Another concept for the rebooted games is that you can now dress up your Pokemon. Coro Coro scans have revealed many styles that could be used in the game. Some of these styles are hard rock, madame (regal), doctor, masked, and idol, but I’m sure there will be more to come. With these new fashions, two things come to my mind: One, the return of the Pokemon contests from the original Ruby and Sapphire and two, Princess Gyarados. Because if there can be a princess version for the most brooding, famous DC hero of all time, why not have a princess version for Gyarados too? You can dress your Pokemon up in Pokemon Amie.

It has also been revealed that the Pokedex will look like a Gameboy Advance, which makes senses because that’s what the original games were released for. We’ve also seen the return of Brawly, Flannery, and other gym leaders from the original game. They too have received a slight makeover.

Lastly, we have been given a glimpse of one more Mega Evolution which is Mega Metagross. Metagross will achieve its Mega Evolution by using a Mega Brooch and will be used by someone in the Elite Four. There are rumors that many more Pokemon will receive a Mega Evolution. Personally, I hope Pokemon like Zangoose, Farfetch’d, Relicanth, and Dunsparce receive a Mega Evolution because they only have one stage. I’d like to see what the game development does with them and possibly expand them into incredible forces of power.

What would you like to see in the Pokemon Ruby and Sapphire remakes?

Once Upon a Revisited Dream

Good evening everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

Last night, people watched the Grammy Awards Show to witness the awkwardness of Taylor Swift, the reuniting of Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney, and the many marriages of happy homosexuals. However, while this night of Hollywood merriment commenced, CBS revealed another trailer to the long awaited Maleficent movie premiering in theaters on May 30^th, 2014. As the teaser revealed the villain, the main score of the original Sleeping Beauty movie played.

However, this isn’t the Once Upon a Dream song you grew up with.

Rather, it is a remake much like other classic Disney songs. But this redoing of Once Upon a Dream is completely and utterly brilliant. This version of the song is a nod to what we heard as children and possibly played the death out of. While it still keeps the whimsicalness that we remember, there is a darker tone added to the tune. This eeriness is included to remind everyone of the story of the villainess that is to be told. Yet this shadowy feel also evolves the classic tune into a more mature melody that resonates with Disney’s target audience for Maleficent.

Maleficent is a Disney movie and Disney movies are often directed towards children. Maleficent is not only targeted at kids, but at adult who grew up watching the original film. When they listen to this tune, not only do they reflect on themselves as children watching Sleeping Beauty, but how the story of a sleeping damsel has evolved with the times.

When Sleeping Beauty was made, everything was set to a simplistic plot for children to understand: Aurora good. Maleficent bad.  It was constructed this way for its child audience so they could comprehend it. But now, children have grown up and so has this story. This story now features Aurora, still on the good side, but she isn’t the main character as much. We now have someone who we always figured was evil, taking the spotlight, and changing the story. Maleficent alters the classic tale because we never received her side of the story. No one wanted to know about the wicked villain who placed a curse on the innocent Aurora. We just generally assumed she was evil. Now in the modern times, everyone wants to know about the reckless monster, and the cause of their actions.

Maleficent’s motives are shrouded in mystery, just like her character which is what also makes the redone Once Upon a Dream song wonderful. The song is sung with a beautiful unknown that captures our hearts and lures us in because it’s something we’re all familiar with. It’s manipulated so not only we are reminded of a childhood tune turned hauntingly enchanting, but it will give a whole new generation a new ideal of Once Upon a Dream.

What do you think of the redone Once Upon a Dream tune? Are you excited for the upcoming Maleficent movie? Feel free to leave your comments below and as always, feedback and followers are welcomed. 

Lights, Camera, 2014

Greetings everyone and as promised, here is Monday’s entry of The Magical Mystery Blog.

Despite Hollywood’s descent into unoriginal movie ideas, 2014 looks like an exciting year for movies and film ideas. While this seems like another year filled of retold fantasy stories, a few interesting ideas have managed to slip through the cracks. Here are just some glimpses into movies debuting this year and have attracted tons of attention.

-Maleficent

A few days ago the second trailer for Maleficent was released. This movie focuses on the villain of the iconic Sleeping Beauty story and tells the back story of the horned sorceress. In this teaser we see that at some point, Aurora and Maleficent meet and engage in multiple conversations. In one specific meeting, Maleficent informs the young beauty of an evil that not even she cannot protect her from. Notice the word in that sentence is ‘protect’ – thus giving a new idea to the audience that maybe Maleficent isn't vile, but rather another person defending Aurora much like her father and the fairies.

Throughout the trailer we see that the animated classic is the basis of Maleficent’s history. We see that the castle is kept nearly to the same design as are most of the characters. However, people are already bashing Elle Fanning for being Aurora mostly due to her voice and appearance. I believe that Elle is a fantastic choice because in the original story of Sleeping Beauty, she was fifteen to sixteen. Elle so happens to fit the same age as Aurora and embodies the youthful nature of the princess. This movie is set to hit theaters on May 30th. 

-The Lego Movie

The Lego Movie is just as what the title reads: an entire movie dealing with Legos. Not only are the Legos generic little yellow men and women, but in this film there’s Lego Batman, Abraham Lincoln, and even God (voiced by Morgan Freeman of course). The plot focuses on one average Lego man who stumbles onto something greater and discovers that he plays a rather large part of the Lego world. Although this movie is intended for children, chances are adults and geeks will flock to the theaters on February 7th to see their favorite childhood pastime come to life.

-Guardians of the Galaxy

This movie has received the most hype from Marvel fanatics everywhere. It has also attracted some Whovians due to the fact that Karen Gillan (Amy Pond) will star in this as well. The plot centers around Peter Quill, a man who happens to find himself caught in the war filled cosmos of the Marvelverse.   By his side are the Guardians of the Galaxy including a genetically engineered raccoon, a tree alien of royal descent, a revived human turned killing machine, and a powerful assassin.  Together they take on Nebula, Ronan the Accuser, and the ultimate villain, Thanos. Thanos, for you Marvel lovers, appeared at the end of the first Avengers movie. It’s rumored that the Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy may or may not fuse at some point.  If they did, then it would be one colossal movie that would be out of this world. Guardians of the Galaxy will premiere on August 1st. 

-Dumb and Dumber To

Dumb and Dumber was a classic, laugh until your sides hurt comedy featuring Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels.  In this sequel, they reunite twenty years later to find one of their children. While the plot sounds all right, the idea of them having families and children raises so many questions. Who would ever fall for them, how was their family life, did they change to fit the role of a father? So many questions, so many days to go until it hits theaters on November 14th.

What movie are you looking forward to? Feel free to comment and as always, feedback and followers are welcomed. 

Sherlock: Crazy. Sexy. Beautiful.

Hello everyone and welcome to yet another Monday at The Magical Mystery Blog.

Last Sunday, the third season of Sherlock premiered in the UK. Within hours, the Internet was bombarded with gifs of lovable characters from the show, fantastic quotes from the writers and actors, and gifs of every single thing that happened in the premiere.  Sadly, while I do not live in the UK, I was able to locate a video of the premiere entitled The Empty Hearse.

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WARNING: IF YOU DO NOT WANT SPOILERS, DO NOT READ ON.  BUT KNOW THIS: SHERLOCK SEASON THREE WILL PREMIERE IN THE UNITED STATES ON JANUARY 19^TH, 2014 AT 10PM ON PBS.

This premiere could be summed up in three words: Crazy. Sexy. Beautiful.

The amount of insanity in this show has induced fans on a high that cannot be obtainable by any drug. With every fight, rescue, and perilous event this premiere displays, the insanity seems to grow. It’s enticing and shatters the mind with every passing second, leading to a climax that bursts your brain entirely. But just when you think it’s over and your mind starts to piece itself back together, another twist of craziness comes forth, and breaks your brain once more. It’s a never ending game for Sherlock and it is dangerous as it is crazy.

Benedict Cumberbatch is the core sexiness of the show, making fans cheer with glee at his inevitable return. Yet what’s even sexier than the man in the trench is the mind palace he frequents to. It’s deep and wrought with intelligence and information that only he seems to possess. It’s complex, like a rubix cube, and oh so inviting like an adventure.  Of course there are other scenes worthy of sexiness, like how Moriarty and Sherlock almost kissed, Sherlock giving a rather epic kiss to Molly, and a few other moments.

This show is beautiful with its combination the actors, the writing, the situations the characters are thrown into, the characters, and the witty, funny humor that the show radiates. Like a rose emitting a perfume so attractive and alluring, Sherlock roots viewers to the source and keeps them there, intoxicating them with lavish ideas, developed plot, and constructed characters.

Sherlock season three will premiere in the United States on January 19^th, 2014 at 10 pm on PBS.

What do you love about Sherlock? Feel free to leave your comments below and as always, feedback and followers are welcomed.

Let's Do the Christmas Time Warp Again!

Greetings everyone and welcome to The magical Mystery Blog.

Just yesterday was the start of December and with it came the onslaught of holiday movies. Like a cluster of corniness and cheer, the Christmas flicks appeared on various television stations. One channel in particular, ABC Family, started its 25 Days of Christmas yesterday.  Tonight, that same channel has aired two Christmas specials that sent my back to my childhood within sixty minutes.  Some of you are probably familiar with these shorts entitled Winnie the Pooh and Christmas Too and Mickey’s Christmas Carol. Followed by these two specials, ABC pushed me even farther into the past with its traditional screening of A Charlie Brown Christmas.

While these three specials are produced with different plots, they share a few things in common. These concepts are tied in with the holidays and reveal the ideals of Christmas to audiences everywhere.

Christmas Doesn't Have One Meaning

wikipedia.com

Ooooooooooooh....shiny....

Winnie the Pooh and Christmas Too tells the story of Pooh bear believing he failed to deliver his friends’ letters to Santa. To make up for his actions, he dresses up as Santa, and travels throughout the Hundred Acre Wood delivering presents to his friends. In the end, he receives a present from Santa but realizes that he doesn't need gifts for Christmas. Rather, he wants his friends and nothing else because presents are worth nothing when compared to his many friendships.

Mickey’s Christmas Carol retells the Charles Dickens classic. In doing so, it shows what happens if you do not seize the day and be kind towards others, regardless of how much heartbreak and loneliness you’ve encountered in the past. Life has its challenges, some more terrible than others, and yes, they do shape a person. While Scrooge was molded for the worse, he should have attempted to see things in a different light, and Christmas is just the joyous season to bring out the best in a person. This special shows that Christmas is a wondrous time of the year to embrace the positive spirit and share the goodness with others, just as Scrooge does when he awakens.

A Charlie Brown Christmas shows a more religious meaning of Christmas. This is shown by the iconic scene of Linus explaining the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem and how joy is brought unto the world. This trumps Charlie’s idea of how Christmas is wrapped up in commercialism and presents to him a new meaning: that Christmas is a time of joy and celebration.

Gifts Aren't Everything

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In the three specials, we see the characters interact with their friends, and sometimes bestow gifts to each other. In the Winnie the Pooh special, we see Pooh bear go out of his way to be “Santa” to fulfill his friends’ Christmas lists. The following day, Christopher Robin comes to them, giving them gifts from Santa himself. While the gang enjoys the presents, it is Christopher Robin and Pooh who show us in one mere moment that gifts don’t make up everything. Rather, it is the people who you spend it with that make the holiday magical.

In Mickey’s Christmas Carol we witness Scrooge turning over a new leaf and visiting the Cratchit’s house.  The only gift in this scene is where he tells a boy to buy the fattest goose and deliver it to the Cratchit’s house. Once he arrives at the house, we see him present his transformed self to his coworker’s family, and engage in Christmas dinner with them. It is implied that the goose is delivered but the meaning of spending time with friends and family dominates the scene.

Lastly, in A Charlie Brown Christmas we see no gift distribution whatsoever. Rather, we see Charlie Brown faced with the ideals of consumerism that’s often featured during the holidays. By the end of the special, we see that he has overcome the commercialism and embraced a new meaning of Christmas, where gifts are nothing when compared to the joy Christmas gives us all.

It Really is the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

wikipedia.com

Oooooooooh.....more shiny....

These three specials show events and items associated with Christmas: the decorating of the Christmas tree, falling snow, lavish holiday parties, and other scenes of merriment. These wonderful experiences cannot be replicated any other time throughout the year because they do not embody the wonderment of Christmas. Christmas emits a certain type of warmth that cannot be felt by the summer sun or experienced by a kiss. Christmas radiates a special type of feeling when the lights are illuminated, like the Christmas tree in A Charlie Brown Christmas. This particular holiday also tends to bring out the best in people, even if it’s something small like donating to Toys for Tots, or sharing a meal like Scrooge in Mickey’s Christmas Carol. Lastly, this time of the year also shows us that sometimes we don’t need material items to make each other smile. Rather the company of good friends and family makes our holiday magical, just like Winnie the Pooh and Christmas Too.

These elements culminate a feeling and experiences that no other holiday can share.  Christmas is a wonderful day of the year where all the winter warmth comes together and embraces you in a tight, comforting hug. The moments shared especially during this time of the year are treasured away in your mind for many years to come.

What Christmas special taught you something about the holidays? Feel free to leave your thoughts below and as always, feedback and followers are welcomed.

Beauty - A Deeper Look into Belle

Good morning…evening…afternoon, whenever you read this, and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

Once again I apologize for this being such a late post. My planning skills failed me and I worked late on Friday and an early shift today. Because of my work hours, I didn't have enough time to finish this week's entry until later today. But enough of the past, let’s get on to the present shall we?

As my readers know, I love books. If anyone trapped me in the Pandorica or on an island and filled it with books, I’d be content until I felt like escaping.

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What? It's opening? Forget that, I'm still on Act II of Hamlet.

While I have read tons of books, it’s always hard for me to select my favorite one. Asking me to decide what my favorite book is, is like trying to choose between puppies or kittens: it’s just not possible.  However, I often find that thousands of book titles emerge in my head, and battle for the title of being my favorite book. Macbeth tries to murder the competition while Shibumi fights with The Coachman Rat. It’s a giant literary mess that my mind goes through every time that question is proposed. Yet through the quarrels one book always seems to emerge unscathed. This surviving book is none other than Robin McKinley’s Beauty. 

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Not only was this McKinley’s first retelling but it was her debut book. Published in 1993, Beauty is a re-imagining of Beauty and the Beast but with some changes. For starters, the story is told by our Belle character, Beauty. However, it doesn't begin with her singing about her hometown or entering the Beast's palace. Instead it starts with her telling the audience about her childhood and growing up to be a scholarly plain Jane. From her narration we also receive details about her family, especially her siblings, Grace and Hope as well as Beauty herself.  

Another change in Beauty is that the readers never receive a fleshed out description of the Beast character. I enjoyed this greatly because it allows the imagination to do some creating. We can personalize this Beast to how we please as the story goes on. The details of the palace and the vague images of the Beast help us to understand what type of person he is.

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I don't know about you guys, but the Beast comes off as Jack Skellington to me. Tall, immortal, intelligent. Come on, what Beauty doesn't love that?

Since this was McKinley’s first book, there are a few flaws. One issue is that Grace and Hope sometimes feel like the same person. They are easily interchangeable but become more defined with the challenges they face. The second flaw I find is the ending. While I won’t spoil it for you, I will say that it feels very rushed when compared to the rest of the book. Beauty is drawn out, pinpointing each detail about everything, fleshing out the characters, and creating magnificent imagery. When it comes to the end, it’s only in two to three pages where everything major happens.  I feel as though that the events that happen at the end should have been given the same, slow churned experience.

But what I enjoy the most about Beauty is that it has a lesson that can be taught throughout the years. It teaches readers to accept yourself and be yourself, even when you undergo change. This change could be for the better or the worse but in the end, you will still be you. There can only be one you in this universe; no one else can replicate you because they do not have the same qualities that only you have. You must accept yourself and be yourself to your full extent.

Growing up, Beauty accepts herself as the less attractive member of the family who constantly reads. She is thirsty for knowledge and absorbs it like a sponge takes in water. At the palace, she begins to change, and deny mental aspects of herself she discovers with the aid of the Beast. As she sees more of herself, she still remains the same clever, intelligent, and logical woman.

I give this book five out of five stars because of its lesson, its attention to detail and depth, and its ability to stay true to the original story of Beauty and the Beast while giving it a new light. Beauty and the Beast has always been my favorite fairy tale and this book does an excellent job of retelling it.