#michel being a terrible person is so underrated in this Terrible People Book

[linka-from-captain-planet]

every other chapter in the second half of The Masked Empire has a scene like

Briala and Celene: *airing out all their dirty laundry, making out and/or cuddling, talking about how bad they wish they could fuck*

Michel in the background:

And it cracks me up every time

[ryanmeft]

The Greatest Showman Movie Review

The Greatest Showman is a piece of complete fantasy, an almost total fabrication that gets two things exactly right: P.T. Barnum existed, and he created modern entertainment. The rest is smoke and mirrors, obscuring behind a modern narrative sheen what it doesn’t outright invent. Barnum would be proud. What matters isn’t that it’s accurate. What matters is it is a total blast with a genuinely moving message, the kind of thing that no longer entirely works in Disney films because they’ve driven it into the ground. Somehow, song-and-dance numbers about being yourself get a breath of fresh life injected when they’re sung by conjoined twins and bearded ladies.

The film, helmed by a first-time feature director name of Michael Gracey, takes the complex and sometimes dark and terrible stories of P.T. Barnum’s life and distills them into an archetype: the struggling visionary desperate to provide for his family. Hugh Jackman, that perennial audience favorite, dons the bright red jacket and top hat, but not at first. When the film begins, he’s nothing: a servant boy whose lady love’s father (an easily loathable Fredric Lehne) sneers at him when he later comes to take her away, announcing she’ll be back as soon as she tires of his lack of wealth.

 She doesn’t and isn’t. Soon she’s grown and played by Michelle Williams, and they are dancing and singing with their two daughters on the soot-stained rooftops of mid-19th century New York. This is one of my favorite time periods in all of film or any other medium, suffused as it is with a Dickensian vibe of downtrodden-ness, a ripe canvas on which to paint any number of rags-to-riches stories. You might notice that Williams, as Charity, isn’t saddled with the easy cliche of most wife characters in these yarns. She neither constantly nags the perpetually struggling Barnum with reminders of their money woes, nor does she make dramatic speeches when his success and his head begin to swell. When one of the daughters asks for ballet shoes, their response could draw tears even in 2017 from anyone who ever had to spend an hour in the store trying to decide whether they could afford the tiniest luxury. (I was reminded of the personal recollection of someone I know, which I won’t share here). Barnum, who has been let go from a (fictional) job in shipping, is able to provide as a present instead a quickly invented gadget that puts on a light show.

Quickly inventing things, of course, became Barnum’s stock in trade. It isn’t an exaggeration to say he invented modern entertainment as we know it. What is a movie, after all, if not pure and total…humbug? And the even more modern video game has learned how to ensnare a person’s emotions with computer code in such a way that they will keep returning and paying for new hats. Barnum sought out the total outcasts of society, the ones who would have before been doomed to poverty, prejudice and early death, and made them stars. He brought in exotic animals and displayed them for the audiences of the cold New England coasts for the first time. He brought the idle whims of the aristocracy to the people.

He also made his performers to go on stage in cages, and can without a doubt be called a profiteering exploiter. The film portrays him as a philanthropist and early champion of what we would now consider rights for the differently-abled. His performers are his friends, and the ensemble cast includes dazzling performances by Sam Humphrey as the famous General Tom Thumb, Keala Settle as bearded lady Lettie Lutz, and Zendaya as black trapeze artist Annie Wheeler, whose race alone kept her off any earlier stages. The only time it is intimated that Barnum forgot they were human is during a period when he hires famous, respected singer Jenny Lind (Rebecca Ferguson) to tour the world and bring him the respect he craves from titans and queens (there is a wonderful exchange between Tom Thumb and none other than the Queen of England herself).

 In reality, the man whose second-most-famous line was “There’s a sucker born every minute” was very, very in it for a buck, and while it can be fairly said that his performers lived much worse lives before he found them, that was hardly his intent. He didn’t use the term “freaks” affectionately.

What “The Greatest Showman” does is what “Moulin Rouge!” and the supremely underrated “Marie Antoinette” did: it helps to shine a light on a mostly forgotten period of history by modernizing it, and it mostly does this through music. The film opens with “The Greatest Show”, as rousing an intro as any musical has ever managed. Every song is good, but the standouts comprise the center section of the film. “This Is Me”, nominated for a Golden Globe and a safe bet for Oscar, features the under-valued Keala Settle leading Barnum’s army of “freaks” in a rousing celebration of being yourself. This theme has gotten tired but is given new life with the performance of an ensemble cast and a stellar visual production by an army of technical maestros far too extensive to list in a review. Rebecca Ferguson lends a perfect physical presence to Loren Allred’s vocal performance of “Never Enough”, a solo act that gives musical voice to Barnum’s escalating needs for adulation. My favorite number, visually and musically, is that of Zac Efron and Zendaya’s interracial love song, “Rewrite the Stars”, which explodes off the screen without the benefit of tons of props or multiple flashy costumes, and ought to puncture the stoicism of all but the most stubborn tough guys.

We can debate whether Barnum’s legacy was for good or ill; the film doesn’t even claim the often-laughable “Based on a True Story” appellation, so for me it’s not really important. I loved La la Land, and contend it only took so much flack when people thought it would out-Oscar Moonlight, and I loved The Greatest Showman for the same reason: it made me want to celebrate how awesome life is at the same time it got me weepy at how hard it can get. I don’t need accuracy. After all, I have a broom closet full of history books for that.

 Verdict: Highly Recommended

[recentanimenews]

Bookshelf Briefs 10/18/19

Bakemonogatari, Vol. 1 | By NISIOISIN and Oh!great | Vertical Comics – For years there wasn’t a Bakemonogatari manga. It’s not clear why; perhaps Nisioisin didn’t like the format, perhaps the iconic SHAFT anime made it a hard act to follow. In any case, getting Oh!great to draw the story was an inspired choice—the ridiculous over-the-topness that grew tiresome in Air Gear and Tenjho Tenge fits in perfectly with Araragi’s fevered fantasies and Senjogahara’s verbal lacerations. This first volume takes us almost to the end of Hitagi Crab—indeed, it cuts off right near the end, awkwardly so. Still, for anyone who gets overwhelmed by the novel’s verbiage, this is a great purchase. There’s even a bit of added content, though only a bit. – Sean Gaffney

If I Could Reach You, Vol. 1 | By tMnR | Kodansha Comics – Teenage love can be dumb, but not always. Sometimes people are well aware that the feelings they have are never going to be requited, but that does not actually stop the feelings from being there anyway. It’s especially troubling for Uta, the girl that she’s fallen for and her childhood friend. Unfortunately, her brother was also Kaoru’s childhood friend, and they’re now married. Uta is living there due to circumstances, and must continue going to school and living her life while falling deeper and deeper into her passions. I must admit I found her school life a bit more interesting than the home life. Still, this manages to be a potboiler but not in a Citrus way, which is good. – Sean Gaffney

Komi Can’t Communicate, Vol. 3 | By Tomohito Oda | VIZ Media – After a second volume where I had to make it a full review so I could rant, this one settles down quite a bit. Yamai is still around but far less, and the emphasis is firmly on Komi trying to make progress. She does—in fact, her goal of “100 friends” is up to eleven by the end. We also get a better idea of her home life, and it turns out that both Komi and her brother take after their father, while the mother is a total chatterbox. As with the first two books, the best moments in the volume are more heartwarming than funny. Komi at the pool, where her accidental trip and fall means she has to sit by the side, leading to her castigating herself till Tadano steps in. There’s also a lovely festival at the end. Cute as heck. – Sean Gaffney

Ms. Koizumi Loves Ramen Noodles, Vol. 1 | By Naru Narumi | Dark Horse – The back cover promises “a fun food manga that will show you around the authentic ramen culture of everyday Japan,” and on that, Ms. Koizumi Loves Ramen Noodles delivers. I doubt I’ll be able to retain any of the information imparted, but it was interesting, all the same. Ramen-obsessed Koizumi is fine, but I’m less fond of Yu Osawa, the girl who’s desperate to become friends with Koizumi. Watching her friends become friendly with Koizumi—by demonstrating an affinity for ramen rather than interest in her—eventually drives Yu to the point of flailing on the ground and crying, “Why won’t you be friendly with meeeee?” It’s very unappealing. She does start to win Koizumi over by the end of the volume, though, which I guess is good for her. I’m not sure I’ll be back for volume two. Maybe. – Michelle Smith

My Hero Academia: School Briefs, Vol. 3 | By Kohei Horikoshi and Anri Yoshi | VIZ Media – Set just before and after the U.A. students have moved into the dorms, the third volume of My Hero Academia: School Briefs has a recurring motif wherein Hatsume Mei’s inventions cause trouble, including a fun chapter where the kids, on edge from telling ghost stories in Tokoyami’s room, hear a strange buzzing sound that Aizawa begrudgingly comes to investigate. My favorite stories, though, are the a-day-in-the-life entries told from the points of view of Ida (who worries he has ostracized his classmates by being too strict) and Kuwai (Koji’s pet bunny, whose inner narrative turns out to be surprisingly and delightfully erudite). I especially liked that both stories showed Bakugo in a good light, including a moment in Ida’s story where Bakugo prevents a surprise from being spoiled and one in Kuwai’s where he checks on the bunny to make sure it’s okay after it briefly escaped Koji’s room. I’m really glad we’re getting these stories! – Michelle Smith

My Hero Academia: Vigilantes, Vol. 6 | By Hideyuki Furuhashi and Betten Court | VIZ Media – This takes place a number of yeas before the main series, so we can’t really get cameos from 1-A. But we can see the teachers, some of whom aren’t teaching yet. This volume gives us a lot of Eraser, who ends up dealing with Koichi against his better judgment. Meanwhile, Koichi is doing the sort of quirk experimentation that 1-A requires in its students, and finds new uses for his quirk. This really does have in its background plot the idea that someone who fails (or in this case misses) an exam is not a terrible person, but society may treat them that way. And, yes, there’s still quirk drugs going around, this time lading to infiltrating a mixer, with the help of Midnight. Good times. – Sean Gaffney

Natsume’s Book of Friends, Vol. 23 | By Yuki Midorikawa | VIZ Media – It looks as if this is now a yearly series, but that makes each new volume a rewarding experience. This one has two main storylines. In the first, the boys of Natsume’s class get involved in a school’s urban legend about a painting, which may or nay not be supernatural in origin. Then, Natsume and Natori end up visiting a seemingly abandoned house that in reality is being maintained by Matoba and his people, and requires a certain ritual to go well. That said, nothing goes perfectly with Natsume around. Again, the big reason to read this is the natural empathy Natsume has to nearly everyone around him. He is absolutely a good boy—a cinnamon roll, in fact. – Sean Gaffney

Otherworldly Izakaya Nobu, Vol. 4 | By Natsuya Semikawa and Virginia Nitouhei | Udon Entertainment – I like the way that the semi-regular cast show up over and over, sometimes because they’re plot-relevant, and sometimes just to eat more of their favorite food. One of our lothario knights ends up having a food discussion with a woman who is clearly a noble, only he doesn’t really get this. A lady knight shows up looking for the enemy that she fell in love with years ago… only to find the waitress of the izakaya (the blonde, not Shinobu or the little girl) is his wife. Meanwhile, Nobuyuki may be getting closer to Shinobu, but it’s pretty clear food is more important to both of them. Still makes me hungry, but good stuff. – Sean Gaffney

The Poe Clan, Vol. 1 | By Moto Hagio | Fantagraphics – It’s always cause for celebration when more of Hagio’s work is released in translation, doubly so when that work is the highly influential shoujo classic The Poe Clan. Originally published in the 1970s, the series’ focus is on a family of vampirnellas and their interactions with humans, particularly how they prey upon them to sustain their own lives or to initiate them as members into their immortal clan. The first English-language volume from Fantagraphics, released as a beautiful hardcover omnibus, collects six chapters of Hagio’s epic. Though the chapters are all related to one another, the story isn’t presented chronologically and instead shifts between time periods as well as characters. But tying everything together is the presence and spectre of Edgar—a young man whose mortal and immortal life are both tragic. Delectably dark and dramatic, I’m looking forward to the final volume of The Poe Clan a great deal. – Ash Brown

Sacrifical Princess and the King of Beasts, Vol. 7 | By Yu Tomofuji | Yen Press – Sariphi is making friends and influencing people, but her royal fiancé is never far away. She needs to show that she can handle things on her own, so is sent to a nation to essentially bring greetings from the King. Things get complicated, though, because her bodyguard accompanying her is a hyena, and they’re treated as untrustworthy and evil. It doesn’t help that, in order to make himself look good, he deliberately puts her in danger so that he can save the day. But of course Sariphi can see the good within him. She may need to double down on that, though, as the cliffhanger implies he’s about to be framed. An underrated shoujo series. – Sean Gaffney

By: Ash Brown

[patheticphallacy]

IT’S MAY Y’ALL. Even though I’ll still be doing blog posts in May, it’s not going to be as hectic, as I finally finished my second year of university and have decided to take it easy after a very packed April.

I’m also doing things a little different with my wrap up this month by getting rid of star ratings. I watched a video on it, and I just feel like I’d rather people go by my actual comments on the books than look at the rating and decide that covers all my thoughts. I still have star ratings on Goodreads for my own personal use, but I’m doing my best to start writing proper summaries of my thoughts from now on!

READING WRAP UP

  Tropic of Serpents by Marie Brennan– a solid follow up to the first book, although there’s a startling lack of dragons in a series about a dragon naturalist! Definitely go into this one expecting a lot more politics than book 1, and Isabella starting a lot of Drama.

The Elementals by Michael McDowell– such an amazing horror novel! McDowell is so underrated for a writer who wrote predominantly in the seventies and eighties, and it’s so tragic how young he died. 

Princess Jellyfish Volume 1 by Akiko Higashimura– such a disappointing read. It’s really problematic, to the point where it drastically impacted my enjoyment of the plot, especially when I’ve got so many other more recent manga I could be enjoying more than this. 

Fullmetal Alchemist Volume 8 by Hiromu Arakawa– speaking of next tier manga… holy shit. I am so scared of volume 9 and finishing this series, it’s meant so much to me and it’s really helped me immerse myself fully in reading manga. 

Lumberjanes Volume 9 by Shannon Watters– Barney is a precious precious bean and I love them! This is a roller derby volume, and it was pretty great: I’ve been a fan of roller derby since I first watched Whip It, and this volume was super entertaining!

Lumberjanes Volume 10 by Shannon Watters– wholesome volume where the parents come to visit their kids. I do feel really sad for Molly, but it was nice seeing everyone else’s parents! 

Lumberjanes: A Midsummer Night’s Scheme by Nicole Andelfinger– this was a fun bonus one shot comic. However, it does get very cheesy and it’s whole message is just so obvious  that them explaining it was very much unneeded. 

Smut Peddler Volume 1 by Various Authors– this is a fun anthology of smut comics that I super enjoyed reading. E.K. Weaver’s comic is by far my favourite, and it’s only after I realised that it was a one shot about a character in her webcomic! 

Rumple Buttercup BY Matthew Gray Gubler– a very cute children’s graphic novel about loving yourself and finding acceptance! 

Smut Peddler Volume 2 by Various Authors– this wasn’t as good as volume 1, but I still read it really quickly and had a fun time looking at the different art styles and methods of story telling!

Dream Daddy by Various Authors– there are so many good moments in this comic, it’s so great. Highly recommend if you’ve played the game, and if you haven’t, check it out, it’s real fun! Damien and Robert’s issue was by far my favourite as they were my favourites in the game too.

Tokyo Ghoul Volume 5 by Sui Ishida– finally, I’m starting to enjoy Tokyo Ghoul. It took a while this volume to actually understand what the hell was happening, but once I did, it really did become something I enjoyed.

Rick and Morty VS Dungeons and Dragons by Patrick Rothfuss– A decent enough read, although there is way too much dialogue and exposition on every page. The font is really small, too, so reading it was a hassle. 

Meddling Kids by Edgar Cantero– this book was actually terrible and I have a whole review discussing my issues and how harmful it is!

Jackass! Volume 1 by Scarlet Beriko– This is a funny, sweet manga about fetishes and blackmail. It has an age gap romance between an 18 year old and a doctor, and there is some transphobic bullying/weird treatment of bullying being okay if the person has a crush on you, but the main relationship is great, and the MC has a really lovely relationship with his older sister. 

Batwoman: Elegy by Greg Rucka– Chronicles the Alice Batwoman arc from Detective Comics, as well as giving the backstory for Kate. It’s so great having a badass DC hero who is a lesbian, whose storyline also touches on homophobia in the ‘don’t ask don’t tell’ era of the military. Glad I finally got to this!

Sparrowhawk #5 by Delilah S Dawson– a really disappointing series conclusion overall. I knew I should’ve just stopped reading after the first issue and I wasn’t feeling it, and I honestly wish I had after such a dissatisfying conclusion. Others may enjoy this, but it really wasn’t for me.

Assassination Classroom Volume 1 by Yusei Matsui— an amazing series starter! Already really moving with a teacher who spends all his time encouraging his students despite being a threat to the entire world they have to kill within the year. I have a feeling this will become a new favourite.

I’ll Be Gone in the Dark by Michelle McNamara– really great non-fiction read written by a journalist who played a massive part in the resurgence of talk surrounding the Golden State Killer. You also get some of her life story, and by the end I was almost in disbelief that the author had already died by the time her work was published. I will say it did drag at points, especially in the parts not written by McNamara that had to be finished after she died, but overall a really thorough look into the cases and the victims.

The Woods Volume 5 by James Tynion IV– this series is- dare I say it- picking up? I still have issues with the representation and the fact that most of the main characters to have died, especially in this volume, were POC while the white characters are in the exact same situation and survive. Will have to see if this carries on. 

Backwards & In Heels by Alicia Malone– this started off strong, and I found out so much about women in film and their presence in the industry since the creation of film in the 1800’s. However, by the end it got so repetitive and formulaic in the way information was presented that I started skimming. This is more of a coffee-table, occasional-read book when you fancy learning more about amazing women! Also, even though there is diverse rep and talk of lack of hiring of WOC and LGBT+ women in the industry, we also get the author praising white women earlier on in the book who took on roles where they did blackface and yellowface, which really dulled down the conversation in the latter half of the book. 

My Love Story!! Volume 6 by Kazune Kawahara– so GOOD. I got so emotional reading this volume, I ended up crying. This is by far one of my favourite manga series, I can’t recommend it enough. It follows tough-but-soft boy Takeo as he enters into a relationship with Yamato, cutest girl in the universe, with the support of his best friend Suna. Truly the PEAK of romantic comedy fiction. 

When the Sky Fell on Splendor by Emily Henry– emotional, hardhitting read about a group of friends who end up with superpowers after discovering a strange alien object. It’s very reminiscent of the film Super 8 in my head, and if you love stories about not only aliens but found families through friendship, highly recommend!

The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle– I just don’t think Sherlock Holmes is for me. I love the retellings and adaptations, and in theory, I’m invested in the murder mysteries, but I just think Doyle’s prose weighs it down and there’s always that underlying racism I don’t think is appropriate to even attempt to shake. 

And my May TBR Jar pick is…. MY HEART GOES BANG by Keris Stainton!

TV SHOWS/MOVIES/VIDEOS

At the start of the month, I started bingeing Dead Meat videos, a channel entirely revolving around horror. My personal favourite series is the Saw kill count videos, and the movies that changed horror podcast episode James (the host) does with his girlfriend Chelsea (who is amazing)!

I finally watched season 2 of Stranger Things! I adore Steve, as always, and it was such a solid season (BOB). However I did have an issue with the needless rivalry that festered with Elle towards Max, season 3 better sort that and stop pitting girls against each other for no reason other than because of boys.

Zoe from Read by Zoe was on FIRE this month with some really great read-a-thon videos! I loved her 24 read-a-thon vlog especially, she read only books she enjoyed growing up and it all felt really nostalgic.

This is very much a personal one, but my favourite streamer returned to a podcast with the company he used to work for, and it was just…. so heartwarming to watch. I can’t believe he left four years ago! I’ve been watching this company since I was about fourteen, so it was so nice watching this, a long-awaited reunion.

Kat at paperbackdreams did an amaaaaazing video rant reviewing After by Anna Todd, and I loved it. In general Kat is a top tier booktuber for me, I highly recommend her videos as much as I can!

MUSIC I’VE ENJOYED

Pressure by The 1975

Old Town Road Remix by Lil Nas X, Billy Ray Cyrus

The Black and White and I Spend Too Much Time in My Room by The Band CAMINO

I Got 5 On It  (Tethered Mix From US) by Michael Abels, Luniz, Michael Marshall

Soldiers (From Stranger Things) by Kyle Dixon, Michael Stein

REVIEWS I POSTED

Three Romance Reviews: Kulti, The Hating Game and Sunstone

The Elementals Book Review

Meddling Kids Book Review

OTHER POSTS I’VE DONE 

Spring Cleaning Book Tag

Film Friday: Favourite Campus Films

Getting Through Exam and Essays: ADVICE

DISCUSSION: Reading at University, and how I do it!

Music Monday: OMG This Song Book Tag

Top Ten Tuesday: Rainy Day Reads

Top Ten Tuesday: First Ten Books I Ever Reviewed on Goodreads

  April Wrap Up & May TBR Jar Pick IT'S MAY Y'ALL. Even though I'll still be doing blog posts in May, it's not going to be as hectic, as I finally finished my second year of university and have decided to take it easy after a very packed April.

[linka-from-captain-planet]

what I like about The Masked Empire is that it's all about Terrible People and Their Terrible Misadventures, but there's one character whose terrible person factor (tpf*) is so underrated:

Michel

Throughout the book, Michel's POV gives constant lip service to his devotion to Celene and the Empire, right or wrong, on his honor as her sworn champion... yet, on several occasions, he puts his ego above everything else. He only practices what he preaches when it upholds his ego and his fragile sense of self.

What's funny is that he probably IS being sincere when he says he'd die for Celene... because dying for Celene would uphold his ego and self-image. It would allow him to go out, taking his Horrible Secret to the grave, as the man he's spent his life pretending to be.

But to forego his Chevalier Code, even once, even if it would put an end to a brewing civil war, even if it would prevent imminent harm to a real person he supposedly cares about? No way. He's too selfish for that.

It's so ridiculously on point that he goes into every battle screaming his own name like a pokemon, because that's all he truly cares about - that he is Ser Michel de Chevin, Chevalier - and it's only in the end, when he's been defeated, that he's also an elfblooded bastard.

*tpf is not a bad thing and in fact is typically proportional to sexiness and/or coolness, so all of this makes Michel a much more interesting character