in search of a cure for a paradox

Fairy Tail - Supergirl - the Cloverfield Paradox
pop culture dailies 013

Nope, nothing this time ...

Fairy Tail c420 Lamia Scale's Thanksgiving

Since I heard recently that the series is going to end finally after such a long run, or it actually did already just recently, I will take my time to get back into the manga and enjoy each chapter since I know it is going to run out eventually, just like how I mentioned I approached Samurai Jack in this segment earlier this year. Hiro Mashima who created Fairy Tail was known to me from his earlier work in Rave which I bought the manga one by one and enjoyed reading them although I can't remember whether or not I have finished the whole thing or not yet ... maybe I will revisit it after this one just to make sure. I can't fault the mangaka to over exaggerate the overall proportions of their female characters (with the skimpy, revealing or tight clothes to enhance them ... and the framing of them i.e. from below, the top, with bubbles, etc. ... he's much more voyeuristic in this instance) to appeal to the male demography (it rarely goes hand in hand with the other sex ... I'm not sure I'll like it, but they'll never give it a go. Truth be told, Natsu do get naked once in awhile but only for comedic effects) and Eiichiro Oda of One Piece also did so with the same intention but the main reason I keep coming back to this series (and definitely One Piece) is because how they develop all of the cast whether the main or supporting and the eventual clashes between them, resulting in wondrous, effective action sequences that is the pinnacle and signature of the medium. That long winded sentence does reflect my overall view of Fairy Tail somehow, as this particular chapter is just the start of another arc that they are used to rely on, a downtime after a big clash with the main antagonists and resetting the world into a new status quo, as Natsu and Happy is back with Lucy to search for the disbanded Fairy Tail former members. The established world is a solid foundation to build up the characters with fantastical powers in Lyon with Ice for example while integrating real world instances such as idol worshiping in Chelia and Wendy. It is all in good fun but it looks like we are moving to a more serious matter in the next chapter, aren't we? I love the clean looks with clear line and now look forward to see the tense action!

! Supergirl s03e12 For Good ! Spoiler Warning !

After going off the world in search of Reign's origin that costed her dearly of a life of a former-nemesis-turned-friend, Kara is more than desperate to get back to the Worldkillers before another life is sacrificed but had to play the waiting game since she does not have a viable lead to go on. On the other side of mask, Samantha is finally opening up of her complicated predicament to Alex, having a friend to lean on in the time of need to talk freely of what is bothering her physically and mentally. Despite the viewers knowing the whole procedure would not bear any viable fruit, it is the conversation that matters as we learn more of her humane side and the fear of losing her normal life if everything turns sour in the end. Speaking of which, we do learn more of Lena Luthor as we see her feud with Edge turned deadly as both of them are in the line of fire and almost cost them their lives, and while we see her character progression of embracing the legacy of her family to be used for good instead of evil just like her mother, Lillian, did, we can safely say that the MVP of the episode is Alex Danvers as her heart to heart conversation with xyz certainly helps in easing her mind at least while her medical skills are now at full front and literal live saver in saving Lena from being poisoned. Jon, the Martian Manhunter, has been a great supporting cast for Kara since the first season and the small scene he had with her is a great motivational moment that emphasize the theme of the series: good will always triumph evil in the end! Speaking of which, the main antagonist of the last season get a moment to flourish here especially with that classic (Iron Man-inspired?) Lexosuit but maybe she'll be sidelined for awhile while Supergirl is having her hands full at the moment. The beautiful friendship between the Danvers, Luthor and Arias is again emphasized here but you know this will come into play when they soon find out the real cause of her amnesia. Lena's arc has been wonderful so far and her burgeoning relationship with the Danvers has been the catalyst in her transformation, but whether or not the eventual reveal of Supergirl's real identity would unravel all that, that is still remains to be seen. Killing two birds with one stone is a little too much of a happy ending that I know the next episode would not be as easy for them since they find the next Worldkiller that is about to be awakened. Hm ... what do you think of Mon-El this season?

! the Cloverfield Paradox [NETFLIX] ! Spoiler Warning !

Cloverfield has been such a peculiar beast as of late as we see the slow buildup of the world throughout the years by the J.J. Abrams' studio, Bad Robot, in an effort to make yet another interconnected movie universe. Compared to the successful buildup of the Marvel Cinematic Universe with years of planning and a number of excellent movies based on a separate character each (and the occasional ensembles), they are using a different approach in building up theirs as the surprise hit of the first handheld film encourage them to make another film in the same universe, and 10 Cloverfield Land is the result, an effective slow burn character-based thriller contained in a bunker for the majority of the runtime. Looking back retrospectively, what makes it a success is not because of their tie to the universe but rather the characters themselves that have been put together as the result of the first film, which is excellent directed I might add since it could hold up on its own without the Cloverfield tag! Since the first is at the thick of it and the second is in the vicinity of the initial attacks, the decision to go to space is a strange one but you'll know by the end of it that it is a prequel, the one that starts it all. I can't fault you for thinking that they would try to retrofit a preexisting script that is not related to Cloverfield at all into its fold, having to give and take some of its written elements in exchange to fit in this shared universe ideal, for the betterment or the downfall of the overall storytelling. Speaking of which, the main concept of using a particle matter accelerator to generate a renewable and unlimited energy source is a novel and timely idea and the repercussion of it is having the two universes blended together and that causes the original monsters to come through as well. While the previous two are dealing with the results of the monster attacks, the crew on board the space ship is dealing with the results of the particle explosion directly i.e. a girl in the wall, an arm harmlessly being cut into two, a magnetized wall, etc. The movie itself does not do a good job in explaining the phenomenon to the viewers that happened randomly and conveniently to cut down the crew one by one but instead just relying on the crew's reactions to these anomalies and the aftermath. It's a decent storyline being told of an experiment going wrong and the effort to right the wrong but it is everything that surrounds it that does not meet the level of the predecessor (especially the second one) and it would fall apart without the tie to the Cloverfield universe. At least they follow up the effective marketing technique of 10 Cloverfield Lane of a surprise trailer and a theatrical release just weeks later with a surprise debut trailer during the Big Game and the release of the whole movie right away on Netflix, cutting their loss of a possible impending disappointing run in the theaters and exchange it for the most buzzed about film for the next few days at least. It is an unprecedented effort and any publicity is a good publicity, right? With that being said, the news of a planned fourth entry into the shared universe is at least a good news for the franchise and with the main protagonists yet again survives the ordeal of her own movie (I'm not sure of the first one ... he didn't survive, right?), would they meet one another eventually? I'm intrigued at least ...

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Well, that's all folks! Thank you for your time and please do come back for my future posts! :-)