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Book Review: In The After by Demitria Lunetta


As I stated in my Apocalypse discussion, I tend to really like books that fall into this genre. So, to prove my point even further, I decided to read a book within the genre that caught my interest. After all, this book was said to be similar to Legend, and I think you all know how I feel about that trilogy. I also needed to find another book within this genre to review because I was actually planning to review World After this week, but that’s beside the point (click here for why I won’t ever read that monstrosity). And…while this book did leave me slightly disappointed in some respects, I thought it was pretty good. It had some creative elements, and some really strong characters. It definitely wasn’t the masterpiece that Legend was, but I really was not expecting it to be anyway. So, from a critical perspective, does In The After crash and burn? Sit back, relax, and read on as I review In The After.
The Setup:
In a setup that has never been done before in an apocalypse book, the world ends. Gasp! On one perfectly normal day, these aliens called “Them” (please don’t question the logic; I don’t want to spoil anything, and They are referred to as “They” and “Them” for the first part of the book before Their real name is revealed) invade our planet. They are a hungry bunch, eating every human they could find, and have impeccable hearing. Their coloring is also rather peculiar, with Them being both yellow and green, their blood being black. Now that I’m really thinking about this, the setup of Them in this book is practically the same as the zombies World War Z, except They are aliens and have a different color code. You could also draw comparisons of this setup from another recently released book called The Fifth Wave, but since I haven’t read that book I can’t really do that. Moving on, we are introduced to our main character Amy, a bookish girl who lives an ideal life with her friends until They attack. Fortunately for her, her mom was a control freak and her dad was an environmentalist, so her house has an electric fence, she has a gun at her disposal, her electricity comes from solar panels, and her water comes from the rain. This is the unique part of the setup, mainly because we usually don’t see someone living a truly “normal” life after the apocalypse, within his or her home. You could argue that the entire setup was out of pure plot convenience, but to be perfectly honest, I don’t; I think it’s rather unique. It lends itself to a ton of possibilities when it comes to the characters, which I’ll get to in a moment. So, while Amy learns more about how to survive in this hostile environment, she comes across our next main character, Baby, of whom Amy takes back to her home and raises her, thus the story takes off.
The Characters:
One of the aspects that I particularly like about the characters in this book are their realistic reactions to the changing world around them, which is essential in any apocalypse book. This is no more evident than in our main character, Amy. Her character developed pretty quickly into a hardened survivor, but not to the point where it felt rushed. She started off normally enough; she had friends, a loving yet overly-careful family, good grades, and a happy life. When They attack, you genuinely feel her denial towards the end of the world gradually fade away as she adapts, becoming stronger and more careful. This development is fantastic and creative, mainly because in most apocalyptic books we only see the characters after Armageddon, but that’s not the case here. I have got to say, Amy is an extraordinarily well-written character, and one of the strongest female leads I have ever had the pleasure of reading about. Sure, she’s a little bit generic when the second half comes along, but it’s her development within the first half that makes you relate to her and want her to survive. You also get the sense that she truly cares about preserving her life, especially when she “adopts” Baby and becomes a big-sister figure to her. You rarely see these types of relationships develop within a book; when relationships do develop, it’s normally a romantic one. There is a little bit of romance within this book, though, but that’s beside the point right now. Baby, as a character, is the smartest toddler ever to be incorporated into a book, but at the same time retains the inexperienced innocence of a toddler, which is actually a lot harder to balance out than one might think. She’s a very memorable character in my opinion because of the relationship between Baby and Amy alone, along with being well-written. So, with the two main protagonists being so memorable, I was hoping that the book wouldn’t fall into the trap of not putting as much effort into writing the side characters, but it kind of does. The average character within the latter half of the story barely spends enough time with the main characters for me to truly sympathize with them. Rice, for example, is the love interest, and as far as love interests go, he’s not terrible, but was kind of bland. Granted, he wasn’t a complete jerk like most love interests are, but his dialogue reflected a stale personality that didn’t really make me interested in him. The same can be said for basically every other side character with the exception of maybe one or two, but to avoid spoilers I can’t really go into detail about any of them.
The Story:
The story of In The After is kind of generic for this genre; people survive, they find refuge in a place that remained untouched when the apocalypse struck, characters learn some dark and/or twisted secret, and so on. Pretty typical. However, the first half of this book tells the story of Amy and Baby as they live outside of a refuge, and to be perfectly honest, the book should have stayed that way! If the book were only about that, then, at least in my opinion, it would have been more enjoyable because it was more unique and would be a lot less predictable. I mean sure, you could argue, “But Legend was set up that way, and you love those books!” Well, the main difference between Legend and In The After is execution. Legend was set up to be a book about a twisted government to begin with, and it was much better at crafting mysteries that legitimately kept me guessing throughout the entire trilogy. In In The After, the mysteries are practically spelled out for me, and for the most part I could see where the story was heading, with the exception of one twist that I will not spoil. Still, even after the book goes into generic territory it was still a well-written story that kept me interested mainly because of the writing.
The Writing Style/Grammatical Errors:
The writing of this book is spectacular. It perfectly created the right tone for a book within this genre, being fast, exciting, tense, and descriptive. Though, to be perfectly fair, it does fall into generic territory when we get to the second half, with the exception of how the story is told. In the second half, the perspective alternates between “two” Amys, originally seeming to have no connection to each other, but as you read further into the book, it starts to make sense. I can’t go into too much detail without spoiling too much, but that was the most interesting part of the second half. As for grammatical errors, there were a few, but in all honestly they weren’t painful enough to stop me from reading the book. It mainly had to do with punctuation, though it really wasn’t all that common.
Final Judgment:
So, is In The After worth reading? Yes, I think it is. Its high points are definitely within the first half, where Amy and Baby get a lot of character development alongside an exciting and suspenseful story. In the second half, things fall into generic territory, but it’s not terrible, and it’s where the writing takes a unique turn to keep you interested. However, it is pretty predictable especially if you have experience with this genre, though to be perfectly honest, I don't care how predictable something is as long as it has engaging characters, and Amy and Baby were enough for me to think this book was great. Overall, I give In The After a solid 4 out of 5, and a recommendation to read it. If you like apocalypse books, you’re sure to love it, but if you’re into romance, it’s probably best if you stay away from this one. But, like always, it is up to you to decide your own opinions.
ScoreCard:
Further Recommendations:
The Fifth Wave
Though I haven’t read it, I must say that the setup (aliens invading Earth and taking over) is pretty similar to In The After. So, I recommend this book to anyone who wants to read another alien apocalypse book.
Finding Eden
This apocalypse book is exciting, creative (albeit a little implausible), and is a great read. It isn’t a series or trilogy, which is kind of a rarity, so if you want a quick apocalypse read, check this book out.

Next week is…The 2013 Media Awards! Hurray! I will also have an anime review prepared for next week, and here’s the hint: Completely, amazingly, and brilliantly epic.
That is all.
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Movie Review: Saving Mr. Banks

I love Mary Poppins. As a younger child, I loved the movie, and I still love the movie today many years afterward. But something I had never known before was the story's origins, and that's where today's movie comes in. Though I have heard that it is largely inaccurate, Saving Mr. Banks is a movie that shines bright with memorable characters, a heartwarming story, and showcases some of Disney's best work while highlighting...some of Disney's best work. INCEPTION! Anyway, while some might argue this is a movie about Disney glorifying itself over the masterpiece that is Mary Poppins, I believe that this movie is so much more than that, and as of today is my favorite movie of 2013 (keep in mind that it isn't the best movie that I've seen in 2013). So sit back, relax, and read on as I review Saving Mr. Banks, and explain why I believe it to be such a great movie. 

The Setup:
Based off of a true story, Saving Mr. Banks begins in London in 1961, with our main protagonist P.L. Travers arguing with her assistant. She had been keeping the rights to her book, Mary Poppins, to herself for 20 years now, with Walt Disney still pining for the story to make into a movie. Finally, due to loss of money, P.L. Travers decides to go to Hollywood to discuss and plan the movie with Walt Disney himself, and the story begins. 
P.L. Travers takes a trip to Hollywood, California to plan the movie Marry Poppins
The Characters:  
Major props go to Emma Thompson right of the bat, because P.L. Travers is one of the most likably despicable characters I've ever seen. In other words, she was nasty and unflinching towards practically everyone in the series, but her dialogue was so hilarious and she was somehow so charismatic that you can't help but like her. You can also factor in the fact that she doesn't even want to work with Disney in the first place, explaining her biting personality. There are virtually no words that could describe how well Emma Thompson fit this role, to the point of which I actually forgot I was watching an actress on screen. If she doesn't get nominated for anything in the upcoming Oscars, then I'm fully prepared to march right up to the Academy and protest until she's on the list for Best Actress Nominees. Not to demerit Tom Hanks as Walt Disney, who did an excellent job. I thought Tom Hanks was good in Captain Phillips, but just to prove his talent, Walt Disney is a completely different character, and Tom Hanks nailed him. The side characters also really well-acted, though not nearly as memorable as the main leads. 
Tom Hanks and Emma Thompson both performed excellently as their characters
The Story:
The story is divided into two timelines. The first basically follows the creation of the Mary Poppins movie in 1961. The second follows P.L. Travers as a young child, showing the relationship she has with her alcoholic father in 1906. What I especially like about this type of storytelling is how it develops the character of P.L. Travers, learning more about her backstory and how the book Marry Poppins was created, and why P.L. Travers grew so attached to the world she created. I don't want to spoil anything, but it's actually really tragic.
The story flip-flopped between timelines, with one being about the relationship between P.L. Travers' relationship with her father
The Presentation:
The presentation of the movie isn't big and grand, but that wasn't the point of the movie anyway. The coloring, costumes, and settings were all perfect, matching the tone of the movie extraordinarily. The music, though not entirely memorable, fit the movie well while I was listening to it, so props for that.

The coloring and music fit the tone of the movie, but the music isn't the most memorable
Final Judgement:
Saving Mr. Banks is heartfelt, charming, and just very enjoyable. It has a fantastic character cast, creative and witty dialogue, is unique and refreshing, and its colors and music were spot on. Overall, I give Saving Mr. Banks a 4.75 out of 5, and a recommendation to watch it now! A movie like this is a rarity, and really should not be missed.
Oh, I see you reviewed my movie...
...and you can stay over there until you learn the art of subtlety. You were too obvious in your opening paragraph that you liked it!
Sorry, P.L. Travers. I just liked the movie so much, I couldn't help myself. Besides, it's your own opinion, and you like everyone else should have one.
ScoreCard: 
Further Recommendations:
Silver Linings Playbook
Heartfelt movie, anyone? This a great movie, through and through, very similar to Saving Mr. Banks in that respect. If you want a movie that has some darker elements to it but is just as satisfying, watch this movie.
Mary Poppins
You liked the creation of it, then why not see the movie itself? Enough said about that, this recommendation speaks for itself.
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Merry Christmas!


Merry Christmas, followers! Today is the day we spend time with our family and friends, eating turkey and receiving presents! I hope you all have a wonderful day and remember this Christmas fondly, and I'll see you guys soon! This is HSMediaNerd wishing you a Merry Christmas filled with joy and happiness!



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Rating System


Everyone needs a rating system in order to truly judge something. This is my personal rating system, based off of five particular elements, which is then assigned a number based off of my own experience with media and entertainment. This is to help you, my dear followers, get an idea of  how I grade the subjects of my reviews. Just remember that this is only my opinion of course, and if you have a different opinion, that's completely fine. This is just how I judge things.

The Elements:

Setup- The setup has to be somewhat unique, giving me some sort of interest that would make me want to read or watch this piece of entertainment. I normally judge a setup differently than the rest of the elements here, mainly because setups can be misleading, making you think something is amazing but is actually not worth your time. For the most part, the setup is not the most important part of the subject, but it is the part that got me interested in the story to begin with, so that's why it is relevant to the overall judgment of the media.

Characters- This is where I judge the most harshly, mainly because of a rule that I live by; if you're not invested in the characters, then you're not invested in the story. Of course, there are some pieces of entertainment that have really great stories and characters that are average like 11Eyes, but that's not my point, especially because characters are, in my opinion, what connects you to the story. Characters have to be likable and relatable, along with having a personality that helps them deviate from your average archetype. When I judge characters, I normally take into account how much of an impact they left on me, due to either being complex or some other likable aspect about them. They don't have to be the most unique character the world has ever known, but they do have to have some sort of reason we should care about them, otherwise the story just fails in my opinion.

Story- The story, in its core, just has to be engaging. I honestly don't care if it's the stupidest story ever known to mankind, it just has to be engaging enough so I can just immerse myself within the entertainment.  

The Presentation- This is a little more complicated to talk about due to the different presentations of each medium, so I'm going to be a bit more specific.

The Writing Style/Grammatical Errors (Books)- In books, the writing style in my opinion should be smooth, fluid, and straight to the point. I despise books that have pages after pages describing some flower on the windowsill that has no relevance to the story whatsoever. When it comes to descriptions, one to two paragraphs is where my limit is reached. The writing style also has to be engaging, with smart dialogue and the usage of elaborate words (in other words, no frequent usage of "like", "nice", "good", ect.). The writing must also make sense. To be more precise, the writing is describing the pacing, and for something like a romance to suddenly spring into the story without any sort of buildup hinders both the story and the reader's suspension of disbelief because they are asking the questions of "Who? What? How...?". As for grammatical errors, this is actually pretty major when it comes to enjoyment. This is my message to self-publishing authors; if you don't know your grammar, you shouldn't write a story! Improper grammar, punctuation, and spelling can be a huge distraction from being engaged in a story or characters because the reader constantly notices the incorrect grammar and wonders why this book was published. At least, I do; I probably shouldn't be speaking for the majority of readers here, but to be perfectly honest, I think most readers should be able to tell the difference between "their" and "they're". 

Animation and Sound (Anime): I'm pretty lenient when it comes to animation and sound in anime, but there are times where it is either exceptionally fantastic or exceptionally horrible. I normally judge character designs, colors, and fluidity when it comes to the animation, along with how much it left an impact on me. When it comes to the OST, I normally judge how well it fit the anime and whether or not there are particular songs I would like to listen to without visual accompaniment. I also judge whether you should watch the anime in Japanese or English. I'm going to be perfectly honest and say that I prefer English dubs, mainly because it's the language that I speak and I take advantage of the fact that there are dubbing companies within my country that take the time and effort to create these dubs for an American audience. When judging an English dub, I normally look for how well it portrayed the character and not necessarily how it sounds, unless the voice just doesn't seem like it fits at all. I also pay attention to dialogue and how well the dub fits the setting. For example, Baccano!'s dub portrays the New York accents of the characters, which helps immerse the viewer into the setting. When it comes to Japanese dubs, well, I don't speak Japanese, so it's kind of hard to judge them. I normally look for how well the actors deal with the emotions of the characters and the dialogue, even if I'm just reading it. Just to be perfectly clear, I do not think that just because the anime is in Japanese means that it is better-acted, because I've heard sub-par Japanese dubs before, see Code-Breaker or Valvrave the Liberator. Finally, I also look at the openings and endings of the anime, where I only judge how memorable they are.

Presentation (Movies): Since most of the movies I watch are live-action, I normally judge the cinematography of the movie and how well the special effects blend in. The time period in which the movie came out in also applies. For example, the original King Kong came out in the 1930s, and back then the effects were ground-breaking, so I take that into account as well. As for music, cut and paste what I said concerning music in anime, because I judge it in the same way.

Personal Enjoyment- This is the biggest factor in any type of entrainment; did I enjoy it? Did I like the characters, was the story intriguing, how did the presentation hold up, was the setup interesting enough so I would check it out in the first place? My enjoyment of the media in question can either make or break it. For example, I acknowledge Madoka Magica for having a great story and well developed characters, but I personally did not like it due to my own personal tastes. With something like Angelfall, the only thing that saved the book was the fact that I enjoyed it, perfectly reflected when I wasn't enjoying myself while reading the second book and ended up hating it. This is kind of where personal bias does factor in, however, and I try to make my reviews as unbiased as possible, so while I do include my enjoyment in the Final Judgment, I try to factor in every other element (with the exception of the setup) as equally as I can.

The Rating System:

I always rate the media I'm reviewing using the 5-Star Rating System, though I also use decimal points and in my mind I have my own personal title. I set up the rating system also by comparison, using media that I have already watched to help compare the media in question, as shown here:

5: Masterpiece (Fullmetal Alchemist/Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood, Looking for Alaska, The Pianist)

4.5: Amazing (Ouran High School Host Club, The Lux Series, Catching Fire (the movie))

4: Great (Attack on Titan, Divergent, Speed)

3.5: Above Average (Madoka Magica, Finding Eden, Iron Man 3)

3: Average (Dream Eater Merry, Starters, Pacific Rim)

2.5: Below Average (Sword Art Online, What's Left Of Me, Now You See Me)

2: Bad (Valvrave the Liberator, Angelfall, Man of Steel)

1.5: Abysmal (Code-Breaker, Nightshade, North)

1: A Sacrilege Against The Human Race (Needless, Incarnate, Batman and Robin)


Anything in between the numbers such as a 4.25 (Amazing-Great) indicates that the media in question is not quite "Amazing", but it's not "Great" either, but somewhere in the middle of the two. For example, Legend got a 4.9, which barely scathes the designation of "Masterpiece", but it just doesn't hit that mark.
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Update 12-23-13: Schedule

So, it is winter break. I have two issues that will interfere with my usual reviews:
1. I'm going on vacation soon.
2. My exams are coming up and studying for them is going to take up a lot of time.

Due to these, I have to skip out on reviews on one week. To compensate for this, I've come up with a schedule to let you know what I have planned to do:

Sunday, December 29: Book Review (as planned)
Sunday, January 5: Best Media of 2013 Awards + Anime Review
Sunday, January 12: No Review
Sunday, January 19: Book Review

Starting January 19, I'll get back into my normal schedule of reviews. Until then, I'll try my best to at least update you guys on what's going on. See you on Sunday (if not sooner)!
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Anime Review: Kanon 2006

Happy Winter everyone! In honor of the season, I'm reviewing the most wintery anime that I know of (Kanon 2006) and tried my best to make all the pictures winter-themed. Hope you guys enjoy!
The moe genre of anime and I tend to not get along well. For those who don’t know, the “moe” genre of anime is a subgenre of the slice-of-life genre, normally featuring four or more absolutely adorable girls doing whatever is on the menu at the time, otherwise known as not having a plot. Some examples are Lucky Star and K-On. I can never get into any of the anime within this genre because, at least for slice-of-life comedies, there has to be some sort of draw other than the comedy and watching girls whose eyes take up half their face take part in “real-life situations” to get me interested in the anime, otherwise it gets boring and tedious. To give you an idea, I tried watching the first episode of Lucky Star and practically fell asleep. However, if it were a slice-of-life anime with some sort of story that happened to have moe elements…that’s an anime I’ll watch, and an anime that fits this bill rather nicely would definitely be Kanon. To give you guys some background, there are two versions of this anime: one from around 2002 and another from 2006. I’ll be reviewing the newer version, because it’s the only one that really got anywhere in terms of popularity. Both anime were based off of the same visual novel done by Key, a company known for making fantastically emotional anime based off of said visual novels. Some other Key anime include Angel Beats!, Clannad, Air, and most recently Little Busters. Well, now that I’ve dragged this introduction on long enough, sit back, relax, and read on as I review the emotionally heart-wrenching anime, Kanon 2006.
The Setup:
Kanon takes place in a small snowy town in Japan, where a young man named Yuichi Aizawa has just moved. He had been to the town several times before when he was younger, visiting his cousin Nayuki and his aunt Akiko. When he arrives, however, he realizes that he had forgotten all of his memories about the town when he was younger, besides the fact that he’d been there, and that’s where the story begins. To be perfectly honest, however, this setup is not what really draws people to this anime; it would most definitely be the characters.
Kanon takes place during the winter in a small village in Japan
The Characters:
Even though I love most of the characters in this anime, I will admit that a lot of them are basically written better in Clannad; in other words, the character archetypes are pretty much the same in both anime, though they have varying personalities. The ironic thing is, the Kanon visual novel came out around five years beforehand and the Kanon anime came out before the Clannad anime. I guess you could interpret Clannad as being the “redone” version of Kanon, but I digress. Personally, I thought that the hardships in Kanon hit me harder than those in Clannad, even though overall I think Clannad is the better anime. So, without further ado, let’s move on to the characters themselves. Yuichi…is…kind of a jerk. During the drama scenes he’s fine, but otherwise, he’s basically throwing insults around. I will give him points for having a personality, but the personality they gave him was not the most desirable. Next there’s Ayu, the overly childish character of the bunch. I can see some people thinking that she’s irritating, but I personally thought she was incredibly likable. I thought her childish antics were pretty funny most of the time, and her innocence kind of rubbed off on me a little bit. She also invented the famous phrase, “U-go!”, which can only be truly understood if you watch the anime. Now, moving onto my favorite character in the entire show, Shiori. No, I’m not just saying that because it’s ShadowACS’s opinion, I legitimately favor her over everyone else. She is probably one of the more interesting characters, as she claims she has been out of school with a common cold. Gee, I wonder if that’s a complete and utter lie? When you do find out the reason, though…for me, that was the saddest moment in the show. Speaking of sad moments, let’s move on to our next character, Makoto. She’s basically a prankster who holds a grudge against Yuichi for an unexplained reason with a carefree personality. Keep an eye out for…you know what, I’m not going to say anything. Next there’s Mai, my second favorite character. She’s a very silent girl who stays behind after school to hunt invisible demons that only see knows about, and that’s all I’m going to say about that. I will say that the episode, "A Strange-Looking Waltz" (episode 12), which centers around Mai, is probably one of my favorite anime episodes ever, mainly because of how it is presented. I don’t want to go into detail about it, just watch the anime. Finally, there is Nayuki, Yuichi’s cousin who was honestly just a side character. Apparently in the visual novel, she was really important, but I’m not reviewing the visual novel. Anyway, Nayuki is a very likable character of whom I wish got more screen time, but you get what you get.
Yuichi
From left to right: Mai, Makoto, Nayuki, Ayu, and Shiori
Story:
The story of Kanon focuses around Yuichi interacting with one of the girls, growing closer to them, and then discovering a dark and/or depressing secret about them as the anime goes into “cry your eyes out” mode. And let me tell you; these moments are depressing. I mean, really and truly tragic. Just thinking about it kind of makes me want to cry, and no other anime has really done that to me. Enough about that, so the story basically repeats itself with this formula four times, and each time Yuichi remembers something about his past in the town.
The best parts of Kanon are when the emotions of the characters really shine
Animation and Sound:
Produced by Kyoto Animation, Kanon looks gorgeous. It really captures the snowy atmosphere of the small village with some truly beautiful backgrounds that most anime today wish they had. The character designs are kind of unrealistic, but I’ll let that pass seeing how this is a moe anime. The animation is fluid and solid, unless it decides to go for something I like to call, “comedic choppiness”, in which the animation is purposefully choppy to emphasis comedy, but even then it’s used rather rarely. The soundtrack of Kanon isn’t the most memorable, but it certainly holds its own when listening to it during the show, so kudos for that. As for dub vs. sub, I rather liked the dub for Kanon. I thought it was reasonably well-acted and it worked, but I have heard complaints that the characters don’t sound “cute” enough. Well, here’s my counter for that statement: If you’re a moe fan, watch the sub. If you like dubbed anime, watch the dub. Finally, you’ll probably like the opening song for the first few episodes, but then after a while you’re most likely going to have a hard time listening to it due to all of the heart-breaking moments this anime offers.
Animation is top-notch, as expected from Kyoto Animation
Final Judgment:
Now, you might be wondering, “If this review seems to be holding this anime in high regards, then why isn’t it higher on your favorites list?” Well, unfortunately, I do have a problem with this anime, that problem being the comedy. Yes, at times, it is rather funny, but for the most part it’s basically Yuichi either making fun of the girls (more often than not Ayu) or taking advantage of them (again, mostly Ayu), which made him seem really unlikable at times, which is a huge problem when telling a story. But, when you get right down to it, Kanon 2006 is a great show with fantastic characters that hit every part of your emotional spectrum, the happy and the sad. Overall, I give Kanon 2006 a 3.75 out of 5, and a recommendation to watch it. Just…have an extra box of tissues ready, because you will probably need it.
ScoreCard: 
Funimation Link: http://www.funimation.com/shows/kanon/anime 

Further Recommendations:
Clannad
Talk about emotional anime. Let me warn you that if this anime hasn’t been spoiled for you already…dear Haruhi, maybe this isn’t the best recommendation. But it can’t go unnoticed how similar these two anime are, though I would argue that Clannad is better overall, so if you want another anime that is really good at creating likable characters and being emotional, check this one out.
Angel Beats!
This anime definitely has a more fast-paced plot than Kanon, but that does not in any way make it less emotional. This is a Key anime, through and through, so if you want a little bit of everything (even though it can get a little confusing at times), watch this anime.
Book review next week! Here’s the hint: In the Before, everything was normal. In the After, everything changed.

See you then!
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Why I Won't Read: World After (Penryn and the End of Days Book 2)


Some of you are probably wondering, "Wait, what? Didn't you enjoy the first book in the series and said you were reading the second? Weren't you going to review it?" Well, dear reader, I read up to about the halfway point before I couldn't stand it anymore, and I'm just going to say it; this book is traumatizing. Seriously. 

The Setup:
Since this book is the second book of a series, I'm not going to say anything beyond the fact that it takes place immediately after Angelfall. The story takes off pretty quickly too, but a quick pace and an interesting plot does not excuse the reasons for why I will not ever look at this book again.

The Reasons Why:
1. Excessive gore. Yes, this did not bother me in the first book, but to be perfectly honest, the gory scenes were actually kind of sparse when I look back on it. Not in this book, though. If I wanted to, and keep in mind that this is only 50% through the book, I could probably name at least 10 painfully gruesome scenes that made me feel nauseous. This also ties into the next reason, as a lot of it makes the book extremely depressing.
2. Unnecessary depression. I was not having fun while reading this book at all. So many innocent people die in horrible ways, get stung, forcefully separated from their family members, you get the point. This did not help the story. In the first book, it was depressing in some bits, but it was mostly saved for more serious scenes. In this book, it's shoved in my face every five seconds, and it is not pleasant to read about. When any enjoyment of a book is squandered by making the audience feel really depressed with no happy ending in sight (to the book's credit, it's pretty unpredictable), then you're doing something wrong. 
3. NO FREAKING ROMANCE! Seriously, this is advertised as a romance novel? Where the hell is the romance? At least in the first book, the romance did develop, but we went through half the FREAKING BOOK without an appearance of the main love interest! And when he does show up, it's only for a brief moment and we don't even see him with Penryn

This is not romance, guys; this is a book that is falsely advertised as a romance, is gratuitously depressing, and highlights everything that doesn't make a book entertaining! I'm sorry, this book just isn't for me! I will not read this book even if it's the only choice between life or death! This is only my opinion, though, so if you blood-thirsty emo psychopaths like it, go right ahead and keep liking it. 

Future Edit: THERE ARE GOING TO BE FIVE BOOKS IN THIS SERIES?!  WHY DO PEOPLE LIKE THESE BOOKS?!

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Genre Discussion: The Apocalypse


The idea of the world ending before our very eyes has manifested itself into entertainment over the years, with causes ranging from disease to angels attacking to zombies. I sure as heck like a good apocalypse story, but I should probably clear up some confusion. I'm not going to talk about "dystopias", because not all of the media within that particular genre have to do with the apocalypse. No, what I'm going to be talking about today is media with a setting the majority of Earth's population have died, and it's usually up to one survivor to tell the story. I will also not really mention zombie apocalypse stories, honestly because I haven't really seen or read any. I may check out this book called Love & The Zombie Apocalapse sometime soon, though, because it does look rather interesting. So, with that out of the way, I always find these stories, though repetitive in some respects, to be rather interesting and allows you to get a glimpse of what could potentially happen should the world end. It allows for great drama, characters, and stories if it plays its cards right. So, which medium is right for this genre? Sit back, relax, and read on to find out!

The Apocalypse in Books:
This is probably the most common form of telling the story of a potential apocalypse, since it's become a very popular genre in recent years due to the release of The Hunger Games, though it's technically not an apocalypse book. Despite this fact, people have been going ballistic for these books, with a few popular examples being The Darkest MindsAngelfall (click here for my review on that), In The After, The 5th Wave, Finding Eden (by Megan Dinsdale, to clarify; there are two books with this title), The 11th Plague, and a ton of others that will unfortunately go unmentioned. To be perfectly and totally honest, I love these books. Though I haven't read all of the books mentioned, all of the books I've mentioned that I have read have been entertaining in the very least (The Darkest Minds, Angelfall, Finding Eden, and The Eleventh Plague), because they all provided an interesting experience. I have yet to read one that is truly fantastic beyond all belief, but it's a genre of books that I enjoy nevertheless. I give apocalypses in books a 9 out of 10.
Some books in the apocalypse genre.


The Apocalypse in Movies:

The apocalypse has made its appearance in movies almost as much as it has in books. Some examples are: The Day The Earth Stood Still (both its original and remake), Terminator, 2012, Resident Evil, WALL-E, Warm Bodies, Apocalypse Now, Oblivion, World War Z, The Host (movie), and This Is The End. One thing I have to give to movies is that they sometimes stray from the normal "apocalypse" setting; This Is The End most certainly takes a more comedic approach towards it (though I haven't seen it) and WALL-E uses its setting to establish what we are doing to the world, and how we should sustain it. So, when it comes to movies, there's a lot more variety than books. I give apocalypses in movies a 7.5 out of 10.

Some movies in the apocalypse genre.
The Apocalypse in Anime:
Apocalypse in anime...gee...Attack on Titan anyone? Just to prove how popular this genre is, the most popular anime of 2013 is without any doubt Attack on Titan, an anime about humanity's last stand against titanic man-eating monsters (hehe puns). Also, to prove another point about how popular this genre is, one of the most popular anime of all time, Neon Genesis Evangelion, is an apocalypse anime. Along with them, there's also Ergo Proxy, Coppelion, Wolf's Rain, Guilty Crown, and...Needless. Well, that's a review for another day, but seriously, I freaking hate this anime, and is a contender for my Worst Anime of 2013 award. But, like with movies, there is a lot of variety here, dealing with heavily psychological anime to action anime to god-awfully horrendous anime. Finally, another thing I've noticed about anime in this genre is the fact that most are Mech anime. I mean, it's to be expected, but still, it seems to be the stereotype of apocalypse anime. So, my message to those who are sketchy about anime within the genre, not all are about giant fighting robots. Just saying. I give apocalypses in anime a 6 out of 10, due to the putrid desecration of the human race.
Some anime in the apocalypse genre...and an abomination. Try to guess which is which.


Which Medium Suits This Genre Best?

To be perfectly honest, I think books suit the genre best. I love this genre, but I haven't seen too many movies within the genre and my experience concerning anime...has been fairly mixed (Needless is needless). So, based off of personal enjoyment, I would go with books. They're normally really good and enjoyable, so if you notice an interesting-looking apocalypse book on the shelf, pick it up. The best aspect about apocalypse books, in my opinion, is, if done right, the writing style. It has to be sharp and quick, resulting in excitement, and normally sports a strong character cast that is hardened by the experience. That is something that I can't find in paranormal romance books or any other book for that matter. However, this is only my opinion, and if you prefer this genre in another form of medium, go right ahead. 

By the way, as for apocalypse in normal TV, I think we all know that The Walking Dead dominates the screens, enough said. I have plenty of friends who enjoy the TV show, so if you want a TV series that isn't an anime and gives you weekly entertainment when it airs, go right ahead. I may not be a fan, but I acknowledge it as probably one of the best zombie apocalypse stories ever made.


See you guys soon!

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