#kirby review

[kirbybaker-the-alch]

I’m starting a new thing on this blog, Kirby Reviews! Cause I want to indulge in my hyperfixation after I finally beat Super Cat Tales 2 after losing data so many times. So after finally beating it I have to give THOUGHTS!!!! Super Cat Tales 2 is a REALLY GOOD platformer despite being a mobile game. That’s because like most good mobile games, it actually uses it’s format well!

So, you control using only the left and right sides of the screen, and the game’s mechanics focus on this. If you double tap a direction, you run. Hitting a ledge while running causes you to jump. Walking into or jumping into a wall lets you climb it, and you can wall jump off the side! you also dont bonk into it like the first game ach

So the controls are tight, what else is good? Well the STORY of course! I’m not gonna spoil it but it involves Alex teaming up with other cats to take on the Tin Army, who are trying to harness the power of the Moon Crystal (held onto by Luna), to give Lord Iridium ultimate power (or something)

The graphics and music are also a really strong point of the game, its ouretty.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v-6j5yklhGs

Also the game’s dialogue is very humorous, you’ll probably get a kick out of it, theres some good gags too. Boss fights are very fun as well obviously, patterns are not difficult to memorize but handled very well. Now for 2 downsides- 1: this game has no checkpoints. Die and you go back to the start. 2: lategame, there is a very huge coin grind. My tip- save up for the genie lamp, and SS Gear is a very easy level with a lot of coins. (i would attach an image but the tumblore got me) Anyways overall a really good game, and fairly long. I recommend it to anyone who wants a free mobile game that plays like an actual game (like not arcadey) anyways PLAY THIS GAME YALL (And support Jonathan the game’s developer he’s really cool https://www.youtube.com/@Neutronized)

[aqun-athlok]

all i've been able to imagine for the last several hours is lucanis sitting on the edge of his shitty little pantry bed in complete silence, holding an ipad and watching knife cleaning videos and harshly judging their techniques.

[guy60660]

Jason Kirby | Design Reviewed

[kirby-the-gorb]

[gethoce]

Some unfinished art that was originally going to be for the Morpho ask blog that I was too unsatisfied with.

[uwmspeccoll]

Decorative Sunday with Henry P. Kirby

These charming sketches are the work of New York architect Henry P. Kirby (1853 - 1915). Architectural Compositions contains fifty loose plates printed on Whatman paper and housed in a portfolio. It was published in Boston in 1892 by Bates, Kimball & Guild, publishers of one of the United State’s leading architectural journals of that time, The Architectural Review (Boston), not to be confused with the longer running Architectural Review still in publication out of London. 

Kirby would have been working as a draftsman for George B. Post at the time of publication, for whom he later worked as lead designer before striking out on his own. Some of the subject matter also evokes Kirby’s time in France, where he studied at the École des Beaux-Arts after training with his father, also an architect. Per the subtitle, some of the sketches were “made in connection with actual projects,” while many were “the result of study during leisure moments.” I found Kirby’s eye for the human elements in his sketches particularly endearing, from the foreground figures to details on the buildings themselves, like open widows and overgrown foliage, or what looks like a duvet cover hanging out to dry (first image above). 

For any music buffs reading, the final sketch includes some bars of "Très-jolie" from the opéra comique smash hit La Fille de Madame Angot. 

Our copy of Architectural Compositions was gifted to UWM by Gustav A. Elgeti in 1966. 

Find more Decorative Sunday posts here.

-Olivia, Special Collections Graduate Intern

[kryptonbabe]

Issue #5 (1963) of Fantastic Four is so unremarkable I always forget I've read it at least three times by now. For all the time travelling, friends to enemies, historical fiction and pirates of it, I never remember what exactly happens in the issue and not very long after reading it I forget everything again. The only reason why I always come back to it is that it is the debut of Doctor Doom, who is barely in the story unfortunately... After the cool moments of issue #4 which presented the first silver age appearance of Namor, #5 disappoints, but there are some highlights:

Dr. Doom first origin story

Sue saves the day (not as common back then as it could be)

The Thing (Ben as the pirate Blackbeard) sends his goons to fight against Reed and Johnny

Dr. Doom is actually a robot all along

There's a promise of a Namor appearance

And finally the two images on this post by Jack Kirby, especially the following one:

Pirates are a big deal in this story, I never cared for them, but if you do this will probably be a much better story for you then it was for me, and in that case I recommend it, otherwise... I also recommend it, it's an early FF story (some level of fun is always guaranteed in those), Dr. Doom debut, Kirby's art, it's still worth it, even if you forget about it afterwards!

[vg-bird-reviews]

Dynablade from Kirby

10/5

big-ass rainbow colored knife bird with a cute jacket and she/he pronouns. impeccable

^ me

[blueberryfruitbat]

King Dedede first 4 figures statues post!!

To clarify these are EXPENSIVE statues I thankfully had the ability to buy because of saving my commission money. While I do love how great their statues are F4F figures are very costly and I do not recommend them for general collectors of merch. Please be smarter than me with your money, no matter how quality their goods are.

FIRST OF ALL AMAZING BOXES

As you can see I got the deluxe edition for both statues as a bundle. If it wasn't for F4F's payment plan options I would have never been able to get these things, also got the early bird discount as I pre-ordered them over 8 months before production.

Each box basically has the statue's F4F page description on them but it's still a very nice addition!

Even the protective foam they come in is custom made for the statues!

OH LORD HE COMIN'

These statues are CHONKY and I don't just mean that because it's Dedede, but because each are roughly 15lbs, and they are MASSIVE.

Nintendo switch game case for scale.

Overall a great item for the obsessive collector, they come with a gold plated coin that's a solid 1.5 or so lbs on its own and their own identification card to show they're the genuine article! Even if I can't recommend these for the price I'm very happy I have a physical reference of this idiot on my desk at all times now!

[scoutsunset]

Camp Camp Season 5 Is OK. (Episodes 1-2) // OUT NOW

Part 1 of 2 of my Camp Camp season 5 review! Today we take a look at episodes 1 and 2, “Welcome Back, Campers!” and “Cloak & Hunt”. I say something stupid at the end so please try to ignore it as much as you can.

[jupiterswasphouse]

WASP REVIEW - QUEEN SECTONIA (& ANTLERS) (KIRBY: TRIPLE DELUXE)

[Image ID: A 3D render of Queen Sectonia from Kirby: Triple Deluxe /End IDs.]

I love the Kirby series! It's a great series for a more casual platforming experience, and almost game I've played has been super memorable. Now, in all honesty, don't remember much of my time playing Kirby: Triple Deluxe, but I feel like it has more to do with how sparse my play sessions were at the time, and how long ago it was, rather than the actual quality of the game. One of the things I do remember, though, is the big stinger of a final boss that is Queen Sectonia!

This review is gonna be a quick one because, for one, she doesn't appear for that long in the game, and secondly because there really isn't all that much to pull from in terms of real world equivalents. In terms of appearance, her body is thin-waisted, akin to a member of the family Sphecidae, her exoskeleton seeming fairly smooth (although most of is covered by her regal clothing. Her eyes are seemingly somewhat mammalian in nature, with sclerae, irises, and darker spots that at least resemble pupils. She doesn't actually have any limbs at all, with her gloved hands floating Rayman-style off to her sides. Honestly, her thick antennae and partially clear, very distinctly venated wings, remind me of a Hornet Moth, more than anything, with some further wing comparisons to be drawn from the venation of Cicada wings.

[Image Sources: iNaturalist, Bill Keim, Wikimedia Commons, Colette Kerr, and Biomimicry Institute, Sarah Batsford | Image IDs: A photo of a black and yellow, Yellow-Legged Mud Dauber, followed by a photo of a black, yellow, and brown Hornet Moth, further followed by a photo of a Cicada's forewing /End IDs.]

Furthermore, and I have to give props to the editors of WiKirby for this observation, it seems as though some of her features, as well as her backstory, may also be in reference to the Japanese legend of the Jorōgumo, and by extension the real world Jorō Spider, the Jorōgumo being a Yōkai which takes the form of a Jorō Spider but possesses the ability to transform herself into another form, that of a beautiful, human woman.

[Image Source: Flickr, Christina Butler | Image ID: A photo of a black, yellow, grey, and red Jorō Spider /End ID.]

Speaking of her backstory, interestingly enough, this is where she gets a bit odd, as she was actually originally more spider-like. In her original form, she was obsessed with beauty, so her at the time friend (later lackey, and even later enemy), Taranza, bestowed her with the Dimension Mirror, which gave her the form we see in the game now. Perhaps she simply saw some insectoid forms as being more elegant and/or beautiful than her original form, spurred on by thoughts of the regal queens of wasps (Vespids, Bees, Ants), or mayhaps this is just a design choice entirely intended just to tie in to the plant theming of the game, with wasps being essential pollinators. It seems as though she was then corrupted by the Mirror, attempting to take over Floralia and Planet Popstar.

[Image IDs: Two 3D renders of what is implied to be Queen Sectonia's original form /End IDs.]

As for her behaviors, it's hard to see much that really ties her current form in with real world wasps apart from the aspect of queenship, she doesn't even truly seem to use her stinger, instead opting for swords (A common choice amongst Hymenopteran enemy designs it seems) and magic. One could say that the implications that her kind feed on the life force of others to survive is referential to parasitic wasps, including the aspect of control (See last week's review of 'Parasitica' from TMNT 2012 for more on real world parasitic wasps that control other insects), but it could just as easily be said that this could once again be in reference to the man-eating Jorōgumo.

It certainly doesn't get any more easy to analyze in terms of the real world when we get into the second part of the fight, as she fuses herself with the Dreamstalk to become Flowered Sectonia, feeding indiscriminately on all life below (not even close to the most fucked up thing in this mostly E For Everyone franchise, between Shiver Star, Fecto Forgo, Zero, and the extremely Dark Souls sounding boss Astral Birth Void). Her face becoming the pistil of the flower and her antennae the stamens, multiplying into three pairs, her wings taking on a different and more angel-like shape. In this form, her attacks still use magic but are also heavily plant-based.

[Image ID: A screenshot of Flowered Sectonia /End IDs.]

One more thing of note are her other lackeys, the Antlers, fairly standard platformer enemies that use maces and shields to attack Kirby, taking orders from and often summoned by Sectonia in battle. They have an anthropomorphic build, similarly Rayman-esque, with the floating hands and feet that may or may not be connected to the body, and have a head that reminds me of that of a Paper Wasp, Sphecid, or Cuckoo Wasp, although they are wingless, like some ant castes or female Mutillids. They also come in four unique flavors! Original, Ice, Fire, and Spark.

[Image Sources: New Scientist, and Australian Museum, Mark Raward | Image IDs: A screenshot of the Antlers during the fight against Queen Sectonia DX, followed by a photo of a black, yellow, and brown Paper Wasp's face, followed then by a photo of an iridescent green, blue, and black Cuckoo Wasp /End IDs.]

Not much to say about these guys (Gals?), other than that it shows that Seconia does in fact have some sort of hive, in all honesty, but I do find them supremely charming.

With all that said, what would I rate Queen Sectonia and her followers? Well I usually like to rate these wasps on accuracy, and if I did that for these characters, the rating would probably be fairly low. However, it seems like she's really a bit too far from the real thing to really do that, especially with her more apparent ties to folklore, so, I'll have to go for just a straight up opinion here. Really, this is a type of character I've seen a few times before, the overlord obsessed with beauty and power, which isn't necessarily a bad thing but I don't find it very interesting. I do find myself really enjoying her backstory and inspiration, and her design is pretty alright!

-

Overall: 6.5/10

-

Leave your wasp review suggestion in the replies, tags, or askbox!

[i-rate-creatures]

Dark matter from Kirby Dream Land 3

it's easy. it's shaped. it's simple. it has a big ass eye. WHAT ELSE COULD YOU WANT? solid 8/10. banger.

[digitalmidnight]

Overall experience with going to the Kirby Cafe in Tokyo

Retelling my personal experience with booking and going to the Kirby café (it's really good)

Reservations

To get a reservation, I had to get to their reservation website asap and sign up for a time. To get a reservation in September, I had to make a reservation early in August. By the time I got to the page, the only time available for the Kirby Cafe that overlapped with the trip was the latest time slot for Sept. 1st. Because my timezone is PST, I had to stay up until 2am to do the reservation.

Hardest part I came across was having to write my name in Katakana because I didn't have any easy access to a katakana keyboard. I was able to find one only and copy and paste it in. The reservation website has an English option, so there wasn't any confusion on my part (though the English was a little broken at times).

They also asked if it was for a birthday and if there was any requests. I said no, however I am curious what would have happened if I lied and said yes.

Emails

After booking the reservation, I got an email confirmation with a code, number of people, and the fact I didn't make any requests for a birthday or anything.

A few nights before I did get an email saying stuff about a time change, which alarmed me, until I saw the email say the last time to change reservations was in 2021. It was an email from Covid times, and my time slot for the Kirby Cafe was still safe.

And then, the night before, I got another email reminder. It said the same thing as the previous email.

Arriving

The Kirby Cafe is located under the Tokyo Skytree, at the very base. It's outside, but it's still semi-connected to the big mall there.

Kirby and Waddle Dee are there to greet you, and you can see Whispy Woods through the window. There was a person who was getting people's reservation stuff. We asked them and they confirmed who we were then told us to come back 5 minutes before our time.

Kirby Cafe store in the mall

Inside the mall there's a separate Kirby Cafe giftshop with slightly different things to the gift shop in the restaurant.

It's located right across from the Pokémon center. There's some Kirby stuff in there that isn't related to the Kirby Cafe, like a dreamy gears puzzle and some of the newest Kirby light novels (I couldn't read it, but I snuck a few peeks at the Samurai Kirby light novel)

Strangely, there's another store near a different entrance to the same mall that sells Game and Anime stuff that had more general Kirby stuff than the Cafe shop. It's where I got Bandana Waddle Dee! There's also Kirby stuff in lots and lots of stores in Japan, so it's not too hard to find Kirby stuff. The Cafe will also be limited with characters besides Kirby, Chef Waddle Dee and Chef Kawasaki.

That said, the Cafe had lots of cute merchandise only available at the Cafe that was really good. I got this cute metal cup sleeve to keep my drinks cool there and a summer tote bag with Kirby swimming! There's also a Gacha machine with pins and small standees, so I recommend at least checking it out!

The receipt has a random cute Kirby picture! The clerk noticed the sheer amount of Waddle Dee on my person and said they liked Waddle Dee too and then pointed out my receipt also had Waddle Dee! They also took out the item I bought and confirmed with me that was the one I wanted.

The Cafe store also had drinks to buy! It comes with a kirby straw. Kirby can be taken off the straw and kept. (Kirby straw not in picture). The drink was really good and had jelly and whole pineapples in it. I got to pick the flavor, but not the design on top. (We went to the mall twice. Didn't get drink same day as Kirby Cafe.)

Going inside

Before we went inside we were sat on stools and the person explained some stuff in Japanese (then to us and another group in English). We could only order 1 Kirby Car cake and 1 lemon Parfait per group. Then we were brought in individually.

There's a photo station near the entrance with Kirby, Waddle Dee and some props! My parents got pics of me and my brother, then they took a picture of all of us (and I was complimented on my Waddle dee bag again)

We were then brought to our table and given the menu. It had the exact same items as on the website, so I already knew what I was getting. There's also a star that tells you what food comes with souvenirs next to the food with it, and you can choose which souvenier dish you want when there's multiple! We were able to quickly order, then were encouraged to take photos of the store.

We were also given water cups that the staff would refill during our stay. Not a lot of places do that here in Japan, so we were pleasantly surprised and grateful (especially with the heat and humidity)

The store was cute. The music was lively, yet calming. Everyone sounded joyous, including the staff. Whispy woods was dressed for summer and there were Itty bitty kirbys and Waddle Dees everywhere. There was this display with shadows that sometimes had the chefs get sucked up by Kirby or had Chef Kawasaki peek over jokingly. The lights were warm colored and there was fake vines and a chalkboard inside. It very much had a cafe vibe, while still being very kirby themed.

Speaking of the staff, they were all great. The ones that came to us spoke great English and were very helpful. They all pointed out the Kirby stuff some of us had on and helped explain anything that needed to be to my parents. They made doubly sure what we ordered was correct. There was no chance of miscommunication. They were wearing either Pink and Blue Hawaiian shirts with pineapples on them (no distinction between Gender. There were more blue shirts worn than pink, strangely.)

The food

Oh my goodness the food was amazing.

We received our drinks first. I ordered the iced chocolate au lait (basically, iced hot chocolate. Tasted just like chocolate milk) with Waddle Dee art and my mother ordered Doctor Kirbys secret research soda. The secret research soda includes instructions which you get to keep and the staff help explain to you what to do. You mix liquids in a potion and the eventually pour the potion over cotton candy into a big drink. My mom had fun doing it, and apparently it tasted delicious! There's videos of people doing it on YouTube. For privacy reasons, there's no Pic of it here, but rest assured that it was very very cool.

We all received our food at the same time. I only got 1 slice of pizza and my plate with the Waddle Dee burger, so I'll only talk about that.

The Waddle Dee Burger Meal was probably one of the best burgers I ever tasted. When I ordered it, I was apprehensive but willing to try it. I was weary because I'm not the biggest fan of Avocado, Chowder or Mushrooms, and I'm unfortunately very picky with texture.

The stars were tator tots and were as expected. The mushrooms on the pasta were eaten by my mother, so I have no comment on that. The pasta was pretty good, but I didn't quite get a taste of what flavor that star was. The chowder, which my Dad mistakenly told me was clam chowder, was actually a buttery corn chowder and tasted really good.

Now, for the burger itself, that thing bested my expectations. The meat itself was smaller yet thicker than a typical American burger. There were 3 slices(?) of avocado in it, cooked, and the bun was orange. I was fully expecting the sort of mediocre burger back home, with weird chunks in the meat, cooked veggies with a weird aftertaste, and for the bun to taste wholly of artificial flavorings.

The bun tasted like a bun. The color didn't give it a weird flavor. It was just a bun. The avocados were also barely tasted. They tasted good and different to what a normal avocado tastes like, so I assume some flavoring of some sort was added. The meat was fully cooked without any charred bits, and while soft it stayed together. It was moist to a point. I almost wonder if they mixed cheese or something into it. The flavor was great and not overwhelming in any direction. It was also the opposite of crunchy (which is why I'm calling it soft. The food isn't fuzzy it's just not crunchy). Each bite was easy to take. It was really, really good and I ate the whole thing very quickly.

I also had one slice of the four cheese pizza. My family devoured the rest of the half and half pizza before I was able to finish my burger and I had to plead to let me have at least one slice of the pizza. The four cheese pizza also tasted good, but was also soft. While this worked with the burger, it was a struggle to eat the pizza because it was floppy. The pizza was good. No cheese aftertaste which I get on the pizza back home. The honey it was served with worked very well. There wasn't really crust on top.

After dinner they cleared the plates and served desert. I was given the Lemon Parfait, but had to split it with the family because of the layers and wanting some room to try the Kirby Car Cake. The parfait was good! First I struggled to eat it because it looked too good, then I struggled because it was hard to scoop the ice cream on top without it sinking into the jelly around it.

I ended up getting the ice cream onto a different plate with one scoop of the spoon, then handed it to my brother who ate the part of the parfait with lemon slices. It was apparently good but he eats the whole lemon slice when given a drink with it on the side so... the ice cream itself was good. It had bits of sugar and mint on it and was a cool lemon flavor. The bottom of the parfait had more jelly and frozen grapes, which also tasted great.

The car cake jelly was soft. Now I know I keep saying everything at this cafe was soft, and I need to keep saying it because it surprised me. The cake looks like it should be hard given how shaped it was, but it's a bit softer than typical jelly and was strawberry flavored. His feet were bits of apple, the small stars sugar sprinkles, and his wheels chocolate. It also wasn't as sugary sweet as American cake, which is a good thing. It tasted like strawberry and vanilla without any artificially sweet aftertaste. I'd definitely advocate for getting and trying the cake. The cake is also different with the seasons, this one is summer's cake.

Paying

We got our bill along with all the souvenir stuff from the meal (already wrapped in boxes for protection on the plane) and went to the register in the gift shop. The gift shop was small, but had many things Kirby. Only Kirby Cafe stuff though.

I was able to get this cute glasses holder for my glasses. It came with a Waddle dee glasses cleaning cloth and was the perfect size for my bag. I also got this adorable Keychain for my bag (not Waddle dee this time. It was random and I got a sleepy kirby)

The only not Kirby cafe thing there was Magolor, who was by the cash register. The receipt also had a random kirby picture on the bottom. We paid for our food, said our thanks, and left.

Overall thoughts

It was great and I'm so happy I went. I'd say definitely try to go if you are a big Kirby fan. The food was good and cute. The menu changes with the seasons and games. The staff were nice and probably spoke the most English out of anywhere we had gone. The food itself far exceeded my expectations (and I'm a picky eater) so I'd say try it even if you aren't sure you'd like it.

The cafe is hard to get reservations for. However, I wouldn't feel too sad if you are unable to go. You can still get a Kirby drink and cafe items from the main mall store. There's also Kirby Cafe takeout items, so you can still get food and a souvenir!

The staff are all very nice and sweet, but if you are wearing anything Kirby expect to be perceived. I didn't mind it cause I dressed up specifically to be perceived, yet I know that can be a bit much for the more shy sort.

Everyone also expects pictures to be taken there. I saw people taking selfies with Kirby and Whispy Woods. Don't worry about being seen as silly, everyone there is a Kirby fan.

Anyways great restaurant. Cute vibes, nice staff, great food and amazing location. It was fun :)

Links:

Kirby Cafe main page

https://kirbycafe.jp/tokyo/

Reservations

https://kirbycafe-reserve.com/guest/tokyo/

[fideidefenswhore]

the audiobook of tobg is literally 22 hours long which has me thinking...kind of surprised it was never adapted into either a miniseries (i know the 2003, but idt that counts, lowest budget imaginable, and i think it technically might have been shorter than the actual film?) or even full series.

[kirby-the-gorb]

[mandoreviews]

📽️ Me Before You (2016)

This is a movie that is such a good representation of the book. So many book adaptations follow the basic storyline but not much else. There was obviously some stuff they had to change, but they followed the book really closely. Which means that the ending is still devastating. The casting was also perfect, especially the two main characters. This is a great movie to watch any time, but especially if you want to cry. It’s definitely a tearjerker.

Sex/nudity: 2/10 (kissing, some talk of sex and sexual joke)

Language: 2/10 (no f-words, mostly mild stuff)

Violence: 1/10 (references to suicide attempts)

Overall rating: 8/10