Weekly Check-In 12/12/2020

(Ps: Sorry this is late you guys I appreciate the patience). Hey guys how’s it going? This week I was watching and reading a lot because of how the season has been especially since the weekends were pretty relaxing.

I watched four movies, one TV show, I buddy read two books and read one on my own, and also read four volumes of manga. Onto the Media!

TV Show

Happily Ever Avatar

Yes this is another dating reality show but I will be honest it watches like a documentary and explains all the aspects of meeting people through video games and the pros and cons of it with all three of the couples being in different parts of their relationships.

I liked what it represented sure plus I thought the situations that occurred were very realistic. However, there are moments where I wanted more gameplay with the couples doing it together (that could have been a licensing thing which I understand but still.) and I wanted one of the relationships to dive deeper into the long distance relationship aspect. This is just because I know there are several relationships out there that continue long distance the best they can for a longer time than six months and I wanted to see that transition more effectively than ones moving together (you know what I mean?). I also wanted to point out as well, there is an instance on pressuring someone with marriage/proposal and I understand why it was there, however, I was in the camp that if the couple is not financially stable or ready, marriage shouldn’t happen not to get too caught up in emotions and just marry for the sake of being married. (that’s just me though, I know some people may think differently). Because of these points, I have to give this show a 4 out of 5 stars or 4 sushi 🍣🍣🍣🍣.

Movie

The Knight Before Christmas

I wasn’t sure what I was expecting when I started this movie this week. I think with the possibility that it was just a fluffy time traveling knight falling in love with a woman. That did happen however, it was a lot deeper and more profound (chivalry isn’t dead people) than I expected and at least so far it was my favorite Christmas themed movie this year. My one issue though, is it sort of dated itself in 2019 and didn’t make it more generally modern to make it more timeless plus there are some plot holes. Because of these points, I have to give this movie a 4 out of 5 stars or 4 sushi 🍣 🍣 🍣🍣.

Holiday in the Wild

This movie was a bit darker than the previous but the overall feels were the same.

There were moments where the camera was a tad weird, the timeline was a bit funky, and the animal conservation psa hit a bit too much but otherwise it was a fascinating self-discovery movie on top of how to deal with empty-nest syndrome.

Of course also like the previous one there were a bunch of plot holes but with these movies they happen. Anyway though, I think its an okay movie and if you’re looking for something different this holiday season check this out. Because of these points, I have to give this a 3 out of 5 stars or 3 sushi 🍣🍣🍣.

La La Land

My family and watched this and were not a fan of this movie. We loved the music and cinematography but the plot was a bit confusing. If you want a movie in the background of parties I would definitely recommend this. Because of these points, I have to give this a 3 out of 5 stars or 3 sushi 🍣 🍣🍣.

Polar Express

I watched this with my sister and her friends in the movie theater. This movie is not one of my favorite Christmas movies I think because as an adaptation it wasn’t my favorite its still not my favorite. However, upon further reflection and this rewatch I think it enhances the original picture book for kids because of the plot and moral lessons . Its also very entertaining as far as music and behind the scenes of the North Pole. Because of these points, I have to give this a 3.5 out of 5 stars or 3 sushi 🍣 🍣🍣.

Novel

Spoiler Alert

There is a ton of hype surrounding this book and I have to say there are merits to it and in some aspects that was to its detriment and this is why:

I love the fandom aspect of this. The community both in the fan areas and the cast aspect (plus I loved how they intermingled in not just the romance side of things). I also appreciated that I could relate to the leading girl in the aspect of the plus-sized confidence but also how the aspect of mixing professional and personal lives can intermingle or lack thereof.

The one thing that I was not a fan of with this, and I know “how can you not love this????” was that there were too many times where on both ends there were a ton of times where there was a lot of stepping on eggshells and sidestepping subjects and secrets and although I lovvvvveeee the hero as far as his down-to-earth, care of the leading lady, and deep profound thought, There were times that I just wanted to shake both of them like “why are you being so goofy?” or “why did you not say it sooner??” I know you don’t want to hurt each other but sometimes the truth hurts and you need to tell each other what’s happening internally. Of course, I know with romances that can happen, but still in this it was frustrating. One point though, I want make as well as although the multimedia was also great but I think I’ll have to reread those aspects on the next read because I wanted to move on to find out what happened. (I am not knocking off a star for that, I am just pointing it out). Because of these points, I have to give this book a 3.5 out of 5 stars or 4 sushi 🍣🍣🍣🍣.

The Spark

So haha….looks can be deceiving when it comes to this cover. This is a story that has quite a few dark elements such as child abandonment, depression, domestic violence, and general verbal/internal abuse.

I’ll be honest, if Lifetime got a hold of this book, it’s something that they would do a fantastic job adapting 🤣. However, I think it was too much drama for me personally. It would have been better to just have internal conflict and not the external. Plus the ending was good but I wanted more from it. Because of these points, I have to give this a 3.5 out of 5 stars or 3 sushi 🍣 🍣🍣. This came out this week so check it out if you’re interested.

Bromance Book Club

Well I believe the hype with this book/series! I thought this was really cute on top of something new for me in the romance genre. I have never read a book about a couple who fell out of love while married and were trying to pick up the pieces and the shenanigans that ensued because of it were hilarious.

The characters were all a variety and truly an ensemble cast I wished there was even more about them at times because of how fun they were. They also had some of the best lines.

My issues with this were probably the placement of where the big moments of the book the book club were. I personally loved just the side comments from one character to another (although I understand we need context but still) and also the representation of a fluency disorder (stutter) in one of the main characters. This is purely because although I understand that people who have fluency disorders have a variation in their stutter (I help people with their speech for a living), it seems like in this particular instance there were some moments (though small), where the stutter was just added to make sure there was enough to make it believable. However, neither issue prevented me from enjoying the story plus I appreciated the character existed at all.

Overall though, now I want to read the rest of this series. I am excited to see how everyone else’s relationships go. Because of these points, I have to give this a 4 out of 5 stars or 4 sushi🍣🍣🍣🍣.

Manga

Series Starters

The Fox’s Kiss

One of my favorite genres in anime and manga is demon/yokai romance and this definitely can be put up as one of my faves.

The Fox Demon in this story is a lot snarkier than Tomoe from Kamisama Kiss (in the best way), There’s a subtle love triangle between the characters but its hilarious more than anything else. The art *chef’s kiss* is gorgeous and the plot moved along similarly to Demon Prince of Momochi House (although more young/new adult than that series) episodic yet cohesive at the same time.

One thing that I wish was that there was more in the volume because it felt too short and concise (this is just me though) If you like a short demon themed romantic story, I would definitely recommend this. 4 out of 5 stars or 4 sushi 🍣🍣🍣🍣.

Androgynous Boyfriend

So hmmm I read this this week and um suffice it to say I am not sure how I feel.

First, I am not uncomfortable with the premise let me just put that out there right now. I am however, uncomfortable with all of the deception that occurs with this relationship. It kinda feels like its more convenient than anything else. But there were some wonderful moments in this volume that I loved dearly and the characters were hilarious.

The only other issue I had with this volume was that there were a couple of moments that I was confused on who’s who. This could have been on purpose but I don’t know for sure.

Overall though, I can definitely see what the hype is about and if I am interested in continuing I am curious to see what other antics the characters get into next. Because of these points, I have to give this a 3 out of 5 stars or 3 sushi 🍣 🍣🍣.

Fangirl

I have read the original source material a few times and its one of my favorite books of all time so I had high expectations coming into it. However, like some the manga only scratched the surface and gave us beautiful art on top of it.

One of the complaints I have heard from this, is that a lot of stuff is missing from the manga that helps build character development and plot development along and I can definitely agree with that.

However, if someone who is not comfortable reading a novel and wanted to pick up the manga instead to start, I wouldn’t stop them but I would tell them the novel gives more information.

The only other issue I had for this was the Carry On/Simon Snow parts were weirdly placed for me even worse than the original source material. If it ever gets its own manga I think it would flow better but I think if they were cutting out parts of the novel for the manga they should of cut some Simon parts rather than actual Fangirl parts(just me though). Overall though, I am curious how the rest of the book will be adapted and how the manga will be received by only manga readers. 3-3.5 out of 5 stars or 3 sushi 🍣🍣🍣.

Series Continuations

Sweat and Soap

After reading a quite serious book, I needed something fluffy to counteract it. I have to say Sweat and Soap can definitely become one of those series for me. I love the new characters that were presented in this volume plus the shenanigans that occurred. Its definitely one if you need to have a slow burn romance with some hilarious moments this one is for you. The only issue I personally have with this volume was that I wanted more I need omnibuses of this series haha! 4 out of 5 stars or 4 sushi 🍣🍣🍣🍣.

The Week Ahead

With the holidays, there most likely will be some more movie/tv show watching than there have been but no guarantees. Reading though, will be taken day by day. What about you did you read or watch anything this week? Let’s talk about it!