Ender's Game

Image from: http://www.impawards.com/2013/enders_game_ver20.html

Name: Ender's Game

Release Date (in Singapore): 7 November 2013
Date Watched: 24 November 2013


Summary:
The Earth was ravaged by the Formics, an alien race seemingly determined to destroy humanity. Seventy years later, the people of Earth remain banded together to prevent their own annihilation from this technologically superior alien species. Ender Wiggin, a quiet but brilliant boy, may become the savior of the human race. He is separated from his beloved sister and his terrifying brother and brought to battle school in orbit around earth. He will be tested and honed into an empathetic killer who begins to despise what he does as he learns to fight in hopes of saving Earth and his family.

Summary by: CrystalSinger45, Jesse Daniels, strouda56
Summary from: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1731141/plotsummary


Personal Ratings: 3
I find this show a lot better than Hunger Games 1. But I prefer the way Hunger Games planned out their time allocations for each part of the movie. I find that this movie does not seem to have a proper climax. 

I kinda liked the movie, it was unique in the normal way. in the sense that their judgments from the higher ups are kind of different from what I'm used to be facing. Honestly, there are times in the movie where I could have never thought that the main character would be able to get out of the bad situation. I liked how the main character was worried over hurting people. Instead of other people being all judgmental about him, they took his side, which was something different from most books.  

I liked how they slowly showed the progress he had while trying to win people over to his side. But I feel that there was not enough time and emphasis on the actual strategic scenes. They also should have showed more obvious signs of the aliens trying to communicate with Ender throughout the movie. I just felt that the end of the movie came really soon, where else some parts of the movie just seem to be a little to draggy. I think for the last part, after Ender was told that he actually won the war and that was not a test, should have been a little longer, especially when portraying his emotions (before he decided to talk to the aliens).


Recommended for:
Gender: Female & Male
Age: 13 and above
Ratings: PG

Captain Philips

Image from: http://www.aintitcool.com/node/64581

Name: Captain Philips

Date Released (in Singapore): 14 November 2013
Date Watched: 16 November 2013


Summary:
This movie is about captain Philips and the pirates. He got captured by the Somali pirates while trying to save the rest of his crew. It shows how he was treated by the Somali's pirates, and how he got rescued.

Summary by: AngelaAgness


Personal Ratings: 2.5
Honestly, there was nothing much about this movie that struck, very much, to me as unique or entertaining. It was mostly as I expected, maybe a little lower. 
Though, the most interesting part for me would be how the ships operates, and how the navy take cares of situations like this. Since I have no idea, and have never seem much (in movies or animation), about proper operations in big ships. I honestly thought that there would be more men on board such a huge ship. I liked the part about how they try to lose the pirates that were just about to board the cargo ship.

I thought that Philips in the show would be a lot more.... (efficient..?) Like I thought there is always meaning behind his actions, but from the show, there were quite a lot of actions in which he had done that didn't seem to be helping him escape (were quite redundant if I must say). I thought that he would slowly gain a little of their trust, and talk them out a little. The last part was also a bit of a question mark. Was he actually sad for the three people that were killed? or was he so happy that he got out of the situation? I also didn't like how the camera shakes a lot. I don't really get why they have to shake the camera so much. Even though I know it's to show how intense the scene is, but honestly, with that much shaking, I cannot actually tell what was going on in those scenes.


Recommended for:
Gender: Male & Female
Age: 13 and above
Ratings: PG

Ookiku Furikabutte 2

Image from: http://myanimelist.net/anime/7720/Ookiku_Furikabutte:_Natsu_no_Taikai_Hen

Name: Ookiku Furikabutte Natsu no Taikaihen おおきく振りかぶって　〜夏の大会編〜
Prequel: Ookiku Furikabutte

Status: Completed
Episode: 13
Release Date (for eng subs): -


Summary:
Picking up where the original series left off, Ren Mihashi, the ace pitcher of the newly-formed Nishiura High School baseball team, and his teammates face the Sakitama High School team in the next round of the High School Baseball Invitational Tournament as they aim to play in the finals at legendary Hanshin Koushien Stadium.

Summary from: http://myanimelist.net/anime/7720/Ookiku_Furikabutte:_Natsu_no_Taikai_Hen
Summary Source: ANN


Personal Ratings: 3

I found this season a whole lot better than the previous season. There is more progress in each episodes, and unlike the previous season, they emphasis more on the parts that are relevant. It really made the whole show go a lot faster, and seem less draggy. 

Still a unique anime. I'm hoping there would be a 3rd season for this anime because it seemed like it ended without a proper ending. 

I think I really liked this season because it properly shows the problems of each player. Seems more in depth than the first season, whereby they just choose to show specific strategies on each team. Still love all the characters in this show. If they have a 3rd season, I'm hoping that they would show more of the individual training, especially for the main three people.

Art Ratings: 3

I really like the colours they used for this anime. Drawing is not that fantastic, but really works with the colours and the personality. 

Recommended for:
Gender: Male & Female
Age: 13 and above
My Ratings: PG

Hanasaku Iroha

Image from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanasaku_Iroha

Name: Hanasaku Iroha 花咲くいろは

Status: Completed
Episodes: 26
Release Date (for eng subs): -


Summary:
After her single mother decides to run off with a boyfriend to dodge debt collectors, the young and energetic Ohana is sent to live with her grandmother. However, her grandmother is the strict owner of a hot springs inn and requires her to work at the inn to pay for her living expenses. Although Ohana is unhappy about this situation at first, she decides to make the best of her situation and work hard. Ohana's life is suddenly filled with fun, mischief, and drama!

Summary from: http://myanimelist.net/anime/9289/Hanasaku_Iroha
Summary by: MAL Rewrite


Personal Ratings: 3
Unique anime. Honestly I won't think there would be much to show for this kind of plot. I was quite surprised at the first episode; when they showed the main girl's personality. 
I liked the main girl's personality. Honestly I was shocked in the first few episodes when she just started working in the inn. I didn't understand why she would get scolded by some one she helped. 
I also liked the 2nd problem about the "author" in the room, who turned into becoming a worker in the inn. 
I would have thought that they would make the main character one of the cooks since she showed them how she can cook. I loved the unique problem with her and her mum. I also always felt that her mum was wrong and a weirdo. But afterwards in the show, I finally realized how she was not actually a good-for-nothing. Honestly  I would have not expected that to happen. 
I really loved the episode when Ohana got fever. I think that episode, even though at first may seem a little confusing, really helps the viewers to understand her relationships with the other characters. It help us to understand more about the character's personality and what they think about Ohana.

What I didn't really like was the relationship throughout the show. Honestly, I think there was only progress in the first part and the last part of the anime. The middle showed almost nothing about the both of them. I wished they had spread it out more. 
I also didn't really understand the last part about the inn closing down. It didn't really reached the point of it being touching. I think that they should have added more emotional scenes to the last part, like showing more of each characters emotions (not just them being against it and working hard). 
I also didn't really like the part about Minko. It was sort of all over the place. Just when I thought it got better in the middle, she kinda got more weird and irritating in the ending. I think they should have shown a better side of her in the beginning, it would help the viewers to understand that even though she may seem like she is doing something wrong, there is always a reason.


Art Ratings: 3
Very similar to Tari Tari, only this art is more edgy and don't have the random blush.


Recommended for:
Gender: Female
Age: 13 and above
My Ratings: PG

From Manga to Words 3

From Mangas into Words: Tonari no Kaibutsukun #3
Chapter: 35

Read here: http://strawberryshortcake-extras.blogspot.com/2014/03/from-mangas-into-words-tonari-no.html


See the review on this manga: Click Here
From Manga to Words 2
From Manga to Words 1

Thor: The God of Thunder

Image from: http://www.iamfatterthanyou.com/2011/03/thor-character-movie-poster-set-1/thor-character-movie-poster-set-1-chris-hemsworth-as-thor-the-god-of-thunder/

Name: Thor: The God of Thunder

Sequel: Thor: The Dark World 
Release Date (in Singapore): -
Watched on: 2 November 2013

Summary:
Thor, a powerful but arrogant warrior, is sent to Earth as punishment for reigniting a reckless war. But after a dangerous villain from his world sends the darkest forces of Asgard to invade Earth, the hammer-wielding Thor must learn what it takes to be a true hero in order to save mankind.
Summary from: http://www.starpulse.com/Movies/Thor/Summary/

Personal Ratings: 3
Since I watched the 2nd season (Thor: The Dark World) first, I really was comparing that season to this season the whole time I was watching. So I can't say I'm unbiased. I didn't really expect the first season to be as funny. Because I've always had the impression that Thor is more of a serious action like batman or superman. So I was quite surprise at the amount of jokes and comedy scenes in the show. I was also surprised that they seriously did a lot more thinking as compared to the other actions shows from marvel. Because this was really not your mainstream typical action show. I was really surprise by the way Thor acted. Because usually the main character is always the good one that is always close to the perfect type of person. However it was not true for this show. Loved the way they showed the contrast between the people from earth and the people from the other worlds. Really funny, especially since we all know how life goes on on earth. Without the proper contrasting acts shown in the show, I don't think we would have actually thought that there was much difference between their actions in their own world and our actions, since we were only given information from one point of view. 
I thought that they could have added more scenes showcasing Thor's power. I also think that they should have stressed more on  Loki, especially that point of time where he really started to have doubts about himself and decided to betray Thor. I think that part should have been expressed in a much better way in order to truly gasp what his true motive is. Right now I'm conflicted between him wanting to take over the throne to prove to his dad that he is, or wanting to save their world by not letting Thor (than he was still inexperience and reckless), take over the throne and ruin their time in peace. Because I really believe that Loki is a much better thinker and have a higher IQ as compared to Thor.

Recommended for:
Gender: Male & Female
Age: 13 and above
Ratings: PG-13

Escape Plan

Image from: http://www.impawards.com/2013/escape_plan_ver4.html

Name: Escape Plan

Release Date: 24 October 2013
Watched on: 3 November 2013

Summary:
Ray Breslin is the world's foremost authority on structural security. After analyzing every high security prison and learning a vast array of survival skills so he can design escape-proof prisons, his skills are put to the test. He's framed and incarcerated in a master prison he designed himself. He needs to escape and find the person who put him behind bars.
Summary from: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1211956/plotsummary
Written by: Anonymous

Personal Ratings: 3
Honestly, I would not think that this show would be NC-16. 
I thought that they should have a proper balance of the other scenes and the main prison breakout. I think they used too much time for the main prison breakout. But I think that this movie is quite unique, because of the different ways they used for the prison breakout. Liked the unique ideas and information about the tools, metals and the layout of the prison itself. Would have never expected that the prison was a ship.
What I didn't really like about this show is that the prison break part (the first one) was a lot more simple and less technical than i thought it would be. But I think that the only reason it appeared that way was because of the way they showed the escape part. I think they should have properly showed all the hints and actions he took in a chronological order. Because they showed different scenes at different timing, not in the chronological order, the proper hints of why is he doing that, was not there. They also used a super brief summary of what happened. I also think that the scenes for the main prison break was not specific enough. For things that he had observed the first time he came and onward, they should have shoot the camera view from his perspective. Instead of just telling us what he had observed. 

Recommended for:
Gender: Male & Female
Age: 16 and above
Ratings: NC-16

Thor: The Dark World

Image from: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1981115/

Name: Thor: The Dark World

Prequel: Thor
Release Date (in Singapore): 31 October 2013
Watched on: 2 November 2013

Summary:
Faced with an enemy that even Odin and Asgard cannot withstand, Thor must embark on his most perilous and personal journey yet, one that will reunite him with Jane Foster and force him to sacrifice everything to save us all.
Summary from: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1981115/

Personal Ratings: 3.5
I really liked this show. A great balance between fighting and humor. I also like the different types of humor they used in the movie. Love how they showed the difference between the lifestyle in the other planets and earth. I really loved the story line for this movie. Even though I didn't watch the first show of Thor, and didn't really get what was the relationships between the characters in the show, I still really enjoyed it. I'm especially curious about Lokki and what he did. I liked some of the fighting scenes and the twist in the show. I would not have expected Lokki to use illusion for the last part of the movie and also the middle part (where he "cut:" Thor's hand off, which really shocked me). I totally loved the other side pairing; was so cute and hilarious. 
What I didn't like about this movie was that there was not enough stress on the main girl and the Aether, It seems like the significance was not there, and the show was quite short, thought they could have stressed more on some points and lengthen the movie a little. Either way, I cannot wait for the third movie of Thor. Hoping they would show more of Lokki.


Recommended for:
Gender: Male & Female
Age: 13 and above
Ratings: PG-13