A to Z Challenge 2017 -- Reflections #atozchallenge

REFLECTIONS

So I was hedging on whether to do A to Z this year.  I was totally not going to do it.  Then, I watched Sword Art Online: Ordinal Scale in theaters on March 9th.  It was a fantastic edition to the SAO franchise.  I loved it.  I love the anime and the light novels.

It inspired and excited me so much that the idea for this year's theme popped into my head then and there.

Thus, I ended up changing my mind.

So I did a headlong frenzy of name finding. I internet searched anime lists, I scoured my anime shelves and manga books, and racked my brain to find those ever elusive Q and X letters.

I had to hedge on only one this year. Stupid X.  But my X post happens to be in my top ten of absolute favorites. So, all was cool. I was happy about it once I resigned that there wasn't an X anime character name that I had watched and liked.

My first post was prewritten on March 13th and it went on from there. I finally got Y (yes, I finished Z before Y) on April 26th.

But the most wonderful thing was I didn't get sick in the midst of April like I usually do. So that was fantastic.

So onto the awesome and not so awesome.

Thank you everybody who visited my blog this year.  Real life kicked my bootie this year with Summer Reading Program prep as well as other catastrophies.  So I couldn't get to other blogs as much as I wanted. I wish I could have visited more but life before fun sometimes.

I really, really missed the linky list.  It was handy to tab out 10 or more blogs and see what was happening on them.  I had a few regulars but not many new ones popping up on my blog this year.

So that was the not so awesome.

The awesome was there were some amazing A to Z blogs I did find. There was the snarky and hilarious posts about Mythology, Hair Bands, and Folklore.

Here are some of the anime characters that didn't make the list that I love as well:

Agil - Sword Art Online
Amon - Witch Hunter Robin

Creed Disketh - Black Cat
Chidori Kaname - Full Metal Panic

Ein - Cowboy Beebop
Edgar - Earl and Fairy

Gintaru - Gingitsune
Goku - Dragon Ball

Hiei - Yu Yu Hakusho
Hagi/Haji - Blood+
Hayate - Pretear

Yuuko Ichihara - XXXHolic

Karma Akabane - Assassination Classroom
Kurapika - Hunter X Hunter
Krusty - Log Horizon
Klein - Sword Art Online

Levi - Attack on Titan

Mikona Modoki - XXXHolic and Tsubasa
Mamoru Kusanagi - Blue Seed
Major Motoko Kusanagi - Ghost in the Shell

Lucrezia Noin - Gundam Wing

Okarin - Stein's Gate

Ryo-Ohki - Tenchi Muyo
Raven - Earl and Fairy

Sephiroth - Final Fantasy VII Advent Children
Sadao Maou - The Devil is a Part Timer

Twilight Sazuka - Outlaw Star
Trunks - Dragon Ball Z
Thoth - Kamigami no Asobi

Vincent Valentine - Final Fantasy VII Advent Children

Yu Kanda - D Grayman
Heero Yui - Gundam Wing

BOOK CHALLENGE 2015 #13 A BOOK THAT BECAME A MOVIE

Okay, I admit to bawling my brains out at the end of the movie when I was a kid.  What?! How could anyone not cry at the end?

Anyway, the movie actually followed the book very well. All the pertinent points of the story were there.

What they did not have in the movie did not detract from it at all. The minute details that filled the pages of the book were so neat.  There's back story on Schmendrick and more details about Haggard and his lands. Lir's story is there as well.

Also the world has more people and places that fill the story.

I liked this book.  As I read I watched the movie in my head when the scenes were the same.

Sigh.  And now I have America singing the theme song to the movie stuck in my head. Brick wall here I come. 

BOOK CHALLENGE 2015 #7 A BOOK ON THE BYU HONORS LIST

An Ideal Husband (Image from Amazon)

The BYU Honors List has many titles to chose from from different periods of history and places around the world.  It was a difficult decision, but when I saw that Oscar Wilde was on there, I thought, "Why not?"

Since I was thinking of choosing another one of his works for a different challenge (Well, I still am, but that's beside the point), I went with An Ideal Husband.

I had watched the movie based on the play and thoroughly enjoyed it.  It stars Rupert Everett and Minnie Driver as Lord Goring and Mabel respectively.

So, I read it and am surprised to say that the play was even more amusing than the movie.

Main premise of the play is that Arthur, Lord Goring, has to help his friend who is being blackmailed by an old acquaintance.  Mrs. Cheveley wants a scheme to pass the House of Commons despite it being a swindle.

Taking place within 24 hours, the play is fast paced within the three acts.

A funny misadventure with witty banter among the characters.

UNDERRATED TREASURES BLOGFEST!

Today is a world of Underrated Treasures, Peeps.  Brought to us by the awesome Alex J Cavanaugh.  These are things I love despite their obscure nature.

First off is the movie Slipper and the Rose.  This movie was made in 1976 and stars Richard Chamberlain.  Yes, I mean the Richard Chamberlain of Thornbirds and Shogun fame.

It takes place in 1700s Europe in a fictional country called Euphrania.  They need a political alliance with a larger nation to survive, but the Fairy Godmother has other plans and introduces Cinderella to the prince.

The landscapes are beautiful and the costuming!  The stunning array of knee breeches, embroidered coats, waistcoats, and even the lawn shirts is only rivaled by the OH-MY-GOD-I-CAN'T-BREATHE corseted bodices and pannier skirts during the ball scene.  Also the epic powdered wigs come out to haunt us with the premature aged effect along with those great beauty patches that look like ginormo -- I don't even want to say it. Hee hee.

It follows the Charles Perault version of the story and it is a musical.  Wait!  Before you run off to the hills in terror, let me tell you it's not like Rogers and Hammerstein (although the Disney version with Brandy wasn't bad).

Plus, it deviates from the original story.  Le Gasp!  Ol' Cindie is sent away!  In actuality, that is my favorite song.  Tell Him Anything is the "Get-Him-To-Hate-Me song, sacrificing her happiness for the good of her nation.  So rather than have the prince hate his father, she wanted the blame to be put on her.

It may have the gouda, cheddar, and colby jack moments, but who wouldn't want to see old men in froufrou with bouncing curls as they sing about protocol.  Heh heh heh.

Oh Ji Ho as Song Tae-ha

I have two tv shows that are underrated. First, Korean Dramas are underrated in general because you have to have the patience to read subtitles. Only I'm not talking about Boys Over Flowers, To the Beautiful You, or Playful Kiss.  Nope.  Those are some of the most popular ones.  I'm talking about Chuno specifically.

Chuno, or Slave Hunter, is a historical drama that has everything that makes for great watching: love, death, friendship, comedy, drama, romance, betrayal, epic sword battles, loss, and some gorgeous eye candy for those of the feminine persuasion.

Its about a nobleman who becomes a slave hunter, a slave girl that becomes a noble, and a man on a mission to save a prince.  Along the way, their paths cross in a complex interwoven web.  From court intrigue, assassinations, battle sequences, beautiful music, and a Romeo and Juliet-esque back story, this show is definitely underrated.

The Ghost Hunt Crew

The second is the anime Ghost Hunt.  I know a lot of animes are super popular.  Dragonball Z, Black Butler, Hellsing Ultimate, Sailor Moon Crystal, Sword Art Online and S.A.O II are just a few.

This is a manga/anime series based on a book series written by Fuyumi Ono.  (I want to read them so bad!!)

The series is about a teenager named Mai Taniyama who finds a video camera in an abandoned school.  She ends up causing an accident where the camera breaks and a man is injured.

Naru (as she calls him) hires Mai as his assistant while Lin, the injured man, recovers and to pay for the camera she broke.  She finds out that they are using equipment and experiments to find out if the school is haunted.  Think something along the lines of Ghost Hunters.

Lo and Behold, the principal who hired Naru also hired a monk, a miko (priestess), a spirit medium, and a Catholic priest.  This motley crew make up the assemble cast of the anime.  It's kinda like one of those bar jokes.  A monk, a miko, and a Catholic priest walk into a bar . . .

It's underrated because the book series did not get fully manga-ed or animated.  So there are missing story lines and hidden secrets still unrevealed -- well, unless you google them and read all those lovely spoilers.


Lastly, I want to talk about a book called Dragon's Bait by Vivian Vande Velde. It's not your typical

dragon story.  No, this dragon doesn't eat the girl; he helps her get revenge.
DU DU DUN!!

I love this book for the characters and how they tolerate but not trust each other.  Reading how Selendrile manipulates, pokes, and prods Alys to do things. Alys, on the other hand, learns that there are many shades of grey.  Even the dragon learns a thing or two by the end of the book.

It doesn't contain the insta-love or love triangles or, in some cases, decahedrons that newer YA seems to have.  Nope.  This book has more animosity between the main characters than anything.