Review of Disenchantment

I don't know why. I loved The Simpsons since I was a young kid and I loved Futurama, but I didn't really look forward to Disenchantment from the beginning. The trailer explained the characters pretty straight-forwardly and I guess I just disliked the characters from the beginning. Anyway, I thought I might write a review of it since I kept obsessing it in my head after watching a couple of Youtube reviews on it, which made me understand why the show wasn't as good as The Simpsons or Futurama.
Before I start, the show is actually alright. It has some bland and over used (and reused) humour, which includes some of the same jokes and themes from either The Simpsons and Futurama, but never-the-less it's quite enjoyable. The story line is a bit boring, but it really does pick up in the last few episodes of the 1st season and it's not that bad. It fits as a mindless and relaxing after work show to watch. Also, I understand that I was not the target audience. I'm a teacher for god sake. I care about people, believe in the good of people and I also deal with bratty kids all the time haha.
So I just couldn't ignore the dislikes of the show. Like I said, from the trailer, I disliked the characters and they haven't changed much since the first episode.
The reason why I dislike the characters is purely personal. All three main characters are chaotic neutral. They're not really bad, but they're not really good either. They do stupid stuff to prank others and they get off pretty lightly. This would definitely appeal to teenagers, someone in their 20s or drunks, but for me... well... I still like 'good'. It's childish, I know, but cartoons of a similar genre that I like include Adventure time, Gravity falls, American dad etc. All of which have varied characters, but has at least one main character who is considered to be 'good' in nature. Even Simpsons and Futurama had these, simply because these were made to be family friendly, and I really liked that. Take for example Fry. He was dumb, but he was generally good in nature, not wanting to hurt others and had a certain level of empathy. Elfo on the other hand, is way too dumb to actually do anything good or right. He basically just tags along Bean and Lucy and does whatever things they do with little moral objections towards some of their questionable acts.
I can't help but also rant about Bean. As I said, I deal with bratty characters all the time. The thing I like about bratty kids from other shows that I've mentioned, is that because it's child friendly, there was always a moral compass at the end. Something that turns them around and makes them think "ah, that wasn't the right thing to do." I really like that about shows like Gravity falls, because it really does give the children a second view, a development on empathy. Because Disenchantment was a show made generally for adults and maybe teens, it lacked that. There were moments when Bean did regret her decision, but it was mostly from self-degradation and self-loathing rather than actual remorse from understanding the hurt she brought. Like, "Oh I couldn't do this thing. I suck. I'm sad." rather than "Oh I hurt a bunch of people, I feel bad because people were hurt." Most of the time she got away with little consequence anyway. Like that episode where she was supposed to play ambassador and got completely drunk. After they escaped... well things just went on like nothing happened. Bean didn't even really regret what she did and was only a little sad. Or when she had a castle party and got a bunch of people killed with a viking attack. She didn't even think once about the dead bodies, because it's a 'cool' show, that normalizes death. She just shoved it up a chimney.

One other thing I disliked was the use of drugs, alcohol and sex to make the show seem like it was for adults. The show itself has themes that mostly relate to children and teens. Growth, rebellion, young-mistakes, pranks etc. and I genuinely think that the show would've been more successful and more people would've liked it if it actually was for children, with a hint of an adult tone. But from the beginning the show seemed like it was made for adults with the alcoholic teenager Bean. Not really even for teens, because statistically, less teenagers are actually drinking less in the new age and even when they do drink, it's mainly this sneaky friday outing thing with friends and it definitely does not define their life except for some unfortunate few. So the alcoholic, sex tone was misdirected in a way and maybe it shows how Matt is out of times. In any case, I resonated when one youtuber pointed out that drunken night outs are fun for the people involved, but not necessarily for the sober outsiders. When bean stole a cart and trashed it in the river with a person inside. I cringed rather than finding it funny. The fact that no one actually tried to save the person made me cringe even more. Other more friendlier cartoons would've used that opportunity for characters like Bean to save the person in the cart, have a learning moment or make it lead on to another journey of it's own, making people involved something. But this was just... well... heartless? No in their point of view, it wasn't even heartless. As I said, the 3 main characters in the show are all chaotic neutral, which meant that they really don't care.
I kind of got off topic since I started talking about the use of drugs, alcohol and sex. For most sensible adults, we actually like topics and the use of drugs, alcohol and sex if it's meaningful. A lot of good shows do use the 3 'adult' combo in many ways to actually connect with people. But the over use of the the three makes it quite meaningless and dull. People who get drunk all the time, do so because they have problems and people who see shows with alcoholics in them are not dumb. They either get a kick out of these two things, they see the alcoholic with a problem and laugh and resonate with their problem. (playing with sympathy) Or they see an alcoholic and see how they resolve their issue and get a kick out of that. Disenchantment on the other hand has drunkenness all the time... but for some reason, Bean is not depicted as an alcoholic or having problems for drinking all the time. The alcohol, is just seen as their thing. Which really is what people in their early 20s do and when it's devoid of meaning, the show becomes less flavourful for people who grew out of that. When they do have issues with drinking, like that ambassador episode, it is rather benign and the Bean does not see that the problem lied in alcohol, rather in prank. Let's just take a moment to compare it with Bojack Horseman a cartoon show that was created for adults. Although I haven't seen the full series as it wasn't fully my type of show, I've seen where it headed in regards to alcohol. Bojack is an alcoholic. They don't play around it. They make the audience understand that it's a problem, they also show both the benefits and the total downfall of drinking. This brings in a lot of people with actual human empathy to engage with the show because even if they don't drink, they understand either the danger of it, or they're able to sympathize with it. Disenchantment on the other hand seemed like it was written by someone who has never seen the dark side of drinking or just never got out of the whole 'hey, let's drink and PARTAY!' phase of life. Peter (from family guy) and Homer (from The Simpsons) had their moments of alcoholism, but for most parts it was either an episode on its own about their problems, or only a very minor detail to a whole story. and because both shows had a clear audience (except family guy changed its narrative after the first 2 seasons) they didn't show alcohol excessively.
Similar issue with sex. It might be a surprise, but sex is actually still a heavy topic even for teens. Most teens don't just get all pouty when they can't have sex. Relationship is a different matter on its own. I still have no idea who Disenchantment was for, but for teens.... well this show depicts teen's personal interest and conflicts very poorly. The only actual relationship conflict someone has is Elfo, and... that's also done pretty weirdly. So to show a girl just wanting a hot guy to have sex with is... rather insulting in a way. My thought is that Matt might have wanted to be progressive in that we see a lot of boys just mindlessly chasing girls for sex in some shows and he wanted to do the same, just the other way round, and well... I guess I'm just old and the younger generation might like that but... from observation, the most successful cartoons actually had a build up on various meaningful relationships beyond sex... and well, if the show is for adults... then... obviously, the show is very directed towards a small group of adults because despite the portrayal of some adults just mindlessly chasing sex, most people actually want something meaningful and a connection. Both of which Bean isn't really looking for. Having Elfo on the side did not really do much because the tension they hinted at was almost non-existent.
In any case, I know this is just season one. People didn't like season one of Futurama or Adventure time. I'm sure it'll pick up and become good, but I just wanted to rant after seeing all these youtube videos.

Naruto the real bro

I liked the early stages of Naruto immensely. I loved the character design and execution of their stories. Their powers, whilst unrealistic and defying logic at times, were entertaining and full of awesome action.
I got pretty bored half way through, pretty much after the Sakura vs Sasori fight where things became a bit... hmm... weirdly repetitive, dragging on and a bit dull.
But!!! I managed to pull through and actually finished the whole story. I never finished the anime, but I switched to the manga because the anime just had too many annoying fillers and slow story transgression. It was the right thing to do because after being a bit bored for a while due to the anime ruining the whole story for me a little bit, I soon got into the whole war and the background. It was a little bit ridiculous how they forged Naruto and Sasuke's connection like that, but overall, I loved the story of the Tsuki hime and her sons.
But here's one thing I also just loved in the end. Although Naruto was overly OP and overly 'nice' and 'loving' which made him all annoying, I loved that he remained a true bro to Sasuke.
Think about it. Sasuke, the emo, the rebellion, hurt a bunch of people, someone everyone hated and mostly lonely. His obsession drove him mad but Naruto kept saying he will save him, die with him and just be his friend. He never stopped called Sasuke his friend. As someone who suffers from loneliness and depression, I really appreciated that. I loved how one kid just kept fighting for a friend he cared about, that just fell into hardship in a way. Yeah, Sasuke was annoying. He was so engorged in his own little fantasy that even I cringed at a lot of things he did and say. But ultimately, he was just someone who lost a family and who wanted to find meaning in his life in his own way.

In any case, I loved the whole series in the end and I think I will revisit it in a few years time when memory fades a bit.

Donald Glover / Childish Gambino and his white wife

I honestly just wanted to write that I feel sorry for all the hate Donald Glover is getting for having a white wife. It seems like most of the hate is from black people saying he's a hypocrite to make a song like 'This is America' and then dating a white person.
I don't know the true intent of 'This is America' and the true views of Donald Glover. But I know one thing for sure which is that his music was never about 'white against black'. In fact, I dare say the purpose may even have been to unite white and black people against the current state of violence and media treatment of black people in America. It is true that the music portrays black people as being persecuted for the colour of their skin, but I think one of the point of his video and his view is that black people are just people and should be treated like a normal human being.
By pointing out his white wife is doing exactly what Donald Glover was going against. Seeing colour and nothing else. Dehumanization due to the colour of one's skin. What if Donald Glover saw beyond the colour of her skin? What if Michelle White also saw beyond Donald's colour of his skin? Dating someone who's white doesn't make him any less of a black man.

Reply to a youtube video by I hate everything on "I HATE SING (2016)"

I didn't really enjoy the movie but I'm going to actually defend it.
Why? It's a generic money making KIDS movie that was obvious from the beginning to the end.
It's almost like an adult trying to review an episode of Barney the dinosaur.
If the movie had some sort of a pretense of being meaningful or anything more than just simple entertainment yeah, you're right, this movie should have a review and should be labelled shit.
But it doesn't.
We all know Illumination never makes anything of art or meaning.
This was just simple time-passing entertainment for children whose parents are simply tired of their antics, and wants them to be zonked out for a small while watching cartoon animals running around and singing.
The real hate... or cringe should be towards adults; functioning, supposedly intelligent, mature adults who 'thought' the movie was for them just because it had characters that were supposed to be adults too.
There is just one criticism that I want to add that ihe haven't added about the movie.
It's that the movie promotes and plays on the idea of popularity and it's links to success.
I hate it.
A lot of people strives be famous on movies, youtube/internet and think it's a success and it disgusts me. They do stupid shit like the tidepod challenge, fire challenge to become famous.
The movie plays on that idea really well. If you keep trying (to be famous by singing or dancing), you will succeed (everyone will applaud you or admire you).
I know that massage is important for some, but a lot of people that really should be admired, applauded and looked up to, were doing their jobs because they simply wanted to advance humanity. These people include Alan Turing, Edward Jenner, Marie Curie and even Nikola Tesla.
I was going to put this review as a reply on IHE video, but I realised most people will not appreciate what I say.

Nissin Cup Noodles Review

Instead of getting the Umai Box, (since it was like $30 USD, which for about 6 cup noodles seemed a tiny bit pricey) I decided to just learn to be satisfied with random cup noodles at the local asian market. Obviously they have limited variety, but it's enough to say it's quite adventurous.

I'm going to review Nissin Cup Noodles (about $2.50 NZD) one by one so I know what to get next time.

Laksa Flavour: I really enjoyed this one. I guess the price is justified with the actual chunks of dried tofu and dried shrimps. Nissin really didn't cut back on adding content which cheaper brands do. The broth was equally thick and tasty. The laksa flavour was definitely authentic as well. Obviously it's not going to taste like the real laksa soup, but it was definitely had that sweet savory flavour.

5/5



I'll try out another at some stage

Ranting about loneliness and marriage

I know a lot of the new generation shy away from marriage. Seeing the older generation fight over divorce, lengthy process and the growing knowledge and fear that most relationship are not perfect and break up ls are a common occurance make it seem like a no brainer not to get married.
But for some women like me, it is still a longing dream. I've wanted a 'traditional' life. The american dream type of life where i meet a guy, we get married, buy a house, have kids, settle with a few dogs and cats and grow old together. New zealand, whilst its not well known, is the 3rd country in the OECD study to have single parents and nearly one out of four children we have have parents who have split. This statistics might not be fully accurate as i have occasionally seen cases where people lie for more benefit money, but we are also below average on marriage rates. With this culture, finding a man who wants to marry gets a bit more tricky. Usually, in other cultures, parents are eager to push their children onto marriage and we sometimes even see memes about parents asking their children when are they going to marry.
However, there's a bigger reason why i am unsuccessful in my endevours of marriage. I'm simply not mature enough to date a guy who wants to marry. My past 2 relationships were a total train wreck and the last one i had, i initially did not want to date the guy because he was basically a guy without a plan and just lived day by day at his parents place because he couldn't be bothered getting a better paid job. I loaned him a bunch of money for his training course and i'm never going to see that money again. But i stayed with him. He simply convinced me to because... well... we were both lonely. What was supposed to be a temporary fling, became long term. All because i basically gave into my loneliness and depression. This wasn't the first time i had a relationship with someone who basically isn't a husband material. The thing is, my interests are all immature, like playing games and watching anime for reality escape, and i don't have the heart to reject someone easily. Basically the first 'nice guy' who looks alright and who confesses his love for me, i'll fall hard for... it was one of the reasons why i looked into online dating more. Seeing what job the guy does or what kind of interest they have... i was basically hoping to reject the bad apples more easily.
But alas... here i am... i am now currently in a relationship with a guy who's not so interested in those things. He's a nice enough guy and tells me to ask him about these things in a few years, but my previous relationships are an all too powerful lesson and reminder that this... probably won't happen. My depression is getting worse and a part of me wants to give up. I'm trying my hardest to fight off the demon that tells me, 'i might as well just waste away my years and drink myself to death'. It's really just my depression talking, but reality that i need to give up something i have longed for just makes it all hard.

Spiderman preference

Spiderman is one of my favourite superheros along with hulk. I'm a nerdy awkward geek who likes science and i love the idea of science helping the superhero shinanigans.

Marvel has made several remakes of spiderman movies and each seemed to have a different take on the character. Rightfully so since the comic itself which orignated in 1962 took several different origin stories and takes in different universes. I haven't read any of the comics and only watched a couple of the original cartoon so my review will definitely be biased.

Tom Holland is wildly known to follow the original character profile with a modern twist the best and his age and setting seems to be a factor in that. I loved the homecoming movie. It was filled with action, comedy and showed a great portrayal of spiderman dealing with his teenage problems. He had his charms that engaged the audience and i loved how his love interest was not the ditsy portrayed Maryjane.
But despite all this, my favourite spiderman was Tobey Maguire. I'm not even going to mention Andrew garfield, even though he did a pretty good job for his own spiderman universe. It's simply because of a very biased reason. His age. Toby's Peter started off as a university student juggling 2 jobs, one of being spiderman and the other of being a news paper photographer. If i was a teen, i know i would've loved Tom's spiderman better, but oh boy, Toby's spiderman felt real. His struggles resonated with mine. Juggling work and.. well.. depression in my case, and trying to stay afloat on all the bills, love life and friendship... i lived them all. Even the venom movie where Peter just gave up being spiderman and lived life reminded me of when i just gave up. His character was also in someway, more awkward and i loved it. He was the hero that represented us, the low life, awkward and weird people. Tom's character was seemingly meant to be awkward, but he had friends, a social life and in that circle he was normal, fitted in fine. He wasn't weirdly bullied, shunned out or put in a little bubble of his own thoughts, he had friends to excite with and talk with. The thing is, when we look at superheros we always try to see a little bit of us in them. To know that we can be at least a little bit like them. To be heros of ourselves and others. I tell myself to stay strong, smile, be nice and not kill myself because someone needs me. I get encouraged seeing that in superheros. They sacrifice their own lives to save another. I... i know it was definitely there for Tom's spiderman, but the introduction of his character was poor and i felt little of that. From the beginning it made it seem like he was more interested in saving people to be cool and be a part of the avengers. His whole goal throughout the movie was focused on him trying to get Tony Stark to include him in avengers for some larger gigs. Toby's spiderman was more self sacrificing. He had a job, university work and social life to maintain. But he took on a role to use his powers for good. I really liked that about Toby's spidy.

It was also nice how his character build up wasnt as sudden. I understand that in order to include spiderman in the new movies, his introduction had to be quick. His back story wasn't introduced properly and he had less character build up than Toby's. We never saw his uncle being killed because he acted selfish and we never saw why he built his persona. It all just made the character more unrelateable. I felt like i was watching just some bratty attention seeking teen who wanted to be in avengers because it was cool.

All in all, all spiderman takes were great. My preference of Toby is biased and i know it. But i do hope the next spiderman movie will include a lot more real life dilemas that the cartoon spiderman had the Homecoming movie