If you're wondering why I didn't write a review of Endless Game it's because I actually really dislike the song. As for the rest of the songs on the album? I don't remember them but I just remember I didn't like any of them. I tried giving Monochrome a chance because it sounded jazzy but it was horrible.
With all that being said... I love the performance for Endless Game. Has it made me like the song? No. I still can't listen to the song without stopping it within 30secs, but I am willing to rewatch this performance multiple times because I legitimately think it's that great.
I was pretty hesitant about watching the performance because I knew how much I disliked the song but I was, surprisingly, hooked from the beginning. I was actually multitasking when I started the video so I laughed a bit when I paused the performance because it looked like the pose they'd have to the cover of an album. But onto the dance. It was cool. From what I could see, the black on black and crazy camera angles made watching them a bit of a pain but I enjoyed it. I really appreciate all the little, repetitive, precise dance movements they do like the horse-riding looking thing, the left-to-right hip swing, a few of the arm movements etc. I don't know why but watching any dance I've always appreciated little movements like that. They always seems more awesome and entertaining to me than spinning on the floor, or doing flips.
There were some parts of the dance that were kind of awkward though, like when they were trying to move in "slow" motion (or were they trying to do some pop-lock motion cause that did not show through at all).
The end of the song is also great though. I was glad they didn't go the Face Down/Breathless route having the members make a aisle on the middle for the main to walk through - I got tired of that already. What they did with the standing in a line was great. I know other groups have done it - and Arashi certainly has done things like this in other songs but a lot of the times the camera isn't centered in or it's just... not all that impressive to watch but for Endless Game it was impressive and I loved it.
Random note - when Sho (or any one of them) says "Warning" it sounds like "ワニ" (Wani) to me and that means crocodile so whenever I heard them say warning I couldn't help but grin or chuckle a little. When I first heard the song I was always curious about what Sho was saying because it sounded like someone took his voice and stuck it through the whammy bar of an electric guitar. But anyway.
All in all it was a cool performance and considering how much I hate the song - yet I love this performance - it goes to show how great it really is.
Friday 31 May 2013
Tuesday 28 May 2013
Star Trek: Into Darkness
Where Spock x Kirk as an OTP is canon and Benedict Cumberpatch plays Sherlock Holmes with a bit of revenge on his mind.
Jokes aside.
It wasn't a bad movie. I enjoyed the ambiguity of who was the villain and who was the "good guy". You could see that Khan, although terrible, was not 100% evil and Kirk wasn't an angel either. It's a bit load of gray, where you question whether you should be mad at this guy, or feel pity for him. Obviously you end up cheering when he gets defeated but there is that moment of doubt halfway through the movie where you begin to question "is he really that bad". Or at least I did. I've never watched Star Trek though so it's not like the name "Khan" would've rung any warning bells. Did it surprise me that the Admiral was hell-bent on war? No. It was a very "modern" movie in a way. People bent on war, people bent on revenge, terrorism, destruction. Some of them could be our fathers, some of them could be people who have lost everything. I believe the messages the movie was trying to stress were apt and enjoyable without being too preachy.
The other message they were trying to shove though, which was Spock x Kirk (called, quite lovingly, Kock?) was a bit too much for my tastes. I love my good share of bromance and friendships, things like LoTR and The Avengers but the "touching hands between the glass" etc. etc. was just a teensy bit too much. I just don't like having pairings and ships shoved down my throat (if you haven't noticed with Sherlock *cough*) when the point of the movie is not romantic. And I know, I know, Kirk and Spock are supposed to be besties but come on. Maybe I've been hanging around tumblr too much, I think this is a sign I need to step away from the computer.
The lovers quarrel was amusing though. What I like about Star Trek is their humor, and the character dynamics that allow for this humor. I enjoy me some Spock and Kirk interaction with the quick barbs and witty banter just as much as I enjoy Scotty and Bones (Dr. McCoy).
And I will not retract what I said about Benedict Cumberpatch. Khan was simply another Sherlock Holmes with some revenge in his system. This is merely a note about his acting though. I think I enjoy Khan's character more for his ambiguity as a villain, as I've already mentioned. I'll admit though, that I could be completely biased and I just don't like Benedict Cumberpath, that is also a completely valid reason for me nitpicking at him.
Good movie, I enjoyed it. Was it a masterpiece? I wouldn't say so and I'm not exactly jumping up and down for it to win any Oscars but it was a satisfying sequel to an already great series.
Jokes aside.
It wasn't a bad movie. I enjoyed the ambiguity of who was the villain and who was the "good guy". You could see that Khan, although terrible, was not 100% evil and Kirk wasn't an angel either. It's a bit load of gray, where you question whether you should be mad at this guy, or feel pity for him. Obviously you end up cheering when he gets defeated but there is that moment of doubt halfway through the movie where you begin to question "is he really that bad". Or at least I did. I've never watched Star Trek though so it's not like the name "Khan" would've rung any warning bells. Did it surprise me that the Admiral was hell-bent on war? No. It was a very "modern" movie in a way. People bent on war, people bent on revenge, terrorism, destruction. Some of them could be our fathers, some of them could be people who have lost everything. I believe the messages the movie was trying to stress were apt and enjoyable without being too preachy.
The other message they were trying to shove though, which was Spock x Kirk (called, quite lovingly, Kock?) was a bit too much for my tastes. I love my good share of bromance and friendships, things like LoTR and The Avengers but the "touching hands between the glass" etc. etc. was just a teensy bit too much. I just don't like having pairings and ships shoved down my throat (if you haven't noticed with Sherlock *cough*) when the point of the movie is not romantic. And I know, I know, Kirk and Spock are supposed to be besties but come on. Maybe I've been hanging around tumblr too much, I think this is a sign I need to step away from the computer.
The lovers quarrel was amusing though. What I like about Star Trek is their humor, and the character dynamics that allow for this humor. I enjoy me some Spock and Kirk interaction with the quick barbs and witty banter just as much as I enjoy Scotty and Bones (Dr. McCoy).
And I will not retract what I said about Benedict Cumberpatch. Khan was simply another Sherlock Holmes with some revenge in his system. This is merely a note about his acting though. I think I enjoy Khan's character more for his ambiguity as a villain, as I've already mentioned. I'll admit though, that I could be completely biased and I just don't like Benedict Cumberpath, that is also a completely valid reason for me nitpicking at him.
Good movie, I enjoyed it. Was it a masterpiece? I wouldn't say so and I'm not exactly jumping up and down for it to win any Oscars but it was a satisfying sequel to an already great series.
Friday 24 May 2013
Fire Emblem: Awakening
I know, this has nothing to do with Arashi but I said this was a fangirl blog and I am fangirling Fire Emblem: Awakening. Well - fangirling isn't really the correct word but I'm pretty obsessed with this game.
When I first started I didn't realize there was a marriage system but once I did realize I pretty much spent all my time pairing people together just for fun, and then I realized they had children and the parents actually effected the stats of the child and I hit another whole new level of intense. I also realise I majorly screwed up with my pairings and a majority of my 2nd-gen characters aren't as strong as they apparently "could be". I currently have about 8-9 super strong characters that can pretty much 1HKO anything and then all my other characters are.. manageable but frustrating.
Chrom, MU, Lucina, Morgan, Lon'qu + Panne, Henry + Tharja... and Kjelle is getting there but when people get through her defense she goes down. Henry and Tharja are also a bit iffy, as they can IHKO but like Kjelle, once they're hit they go down pretty fast. Lon'qu paired with Panne, neither of them ever get hit and MU is such a beast I can't even deal with how much of a beast she is. Morgan and Lucina as well. Chrom is lacking a bit compared to these three but honestly.
My other characters are just fodder and this is my "normal" file. I've begun a new one on Hard and mean to do this one properly and more logically (thinking more about stats, level-ups, and abilities) but I realised very quickly that Hard mode is definitely a lot harder and there is actually quite a big learning curve for me. Normal mode allowed me to beast through everything relatively easily without giving too much though, but Hard I really have to think as a tactician.
All-in-all I am loving this game and it's going to keep me occupied for a while. Which is good because I that means I can hold of buying new games which means saving money :)
When I first started I didn't realize there was a marriage system but once I did realize I pretty much spent all my time pairing people together just for fun, and then I realized they had children and the parents actually effected the stats of the child and I hit another whole new level of intense. I also realise I majorly screwed up with my pairings and a majority of my 2nd-gen characters aren't as strong as they apparently "could be". I currently have about 8-9 super strong characters that can pretty much 1HKO anything and then all my other characters are.. manageable but frustrating.
Chrom, MU, Lucina, Morgan, Lon'qu + Panne, Henry + Tharja... and Kjelle is getting there but when people get through her defense she goes down. Henry and Tharja are also a bit iffy, as they can IHKO but like Kjelle, once they're hit they go down pretty fast. Lon'qu paired with Panne, neither of them ever get hit and MU is such a beast I can't even deal with how much of a beast she is. Morgan and Lucina as well. Chrom is lacking a bit compared to these three but honestly.
My other characters are just fodder and this is my "normal" file. I've begun a new one on Hard and mean to do this one properly and more logically (thinking more about stats, level-ups, and abilities) but I realised very quickly that Hard mode is definitely a lot harder and there is actually quite a big learning curve for me. Normal mode allowed me to beast through everything relatively easily without giving too much though, but Hard I really have to think as a tactician.
All-in-all I am loving this game and it's going to keep me occupied for a while. Which is good because I that means I can hold of buying new games which means saving money :)
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