Metalocalypse

Sup kiddies, I'm sure you've heard of an apocalypse, but there's something even better. A Metalocalypse, its also a show, an awesome show. A brutal show, and metal. Its basically about a death metal band called Dethkolk, they're a band in real life also. An animated band on Adult Swim, that is the worlds best band and they are rich as all hell. They all rock and are totally brutal, but they're not the smartest. It is rated TV MA, because of violence and stuff. On lead singer is Nathan Explosion, with a dark heavy voice who failed to get his GEP. Lead guitarist Skwisgaar Skwigelf, Swiss man and one of the best guitarists ever. Rhythm guitarist Toki Wartooth, first time in a band and adored by children for his simple and  like young mindedness. On drums is Pickles, heavy drinker (not that the rest aren't) and last name unknown. Finally, bassist William Murderface, an overall angered, mean dude who's fat. Skwisgaar is the guy with long blonde hair, Toki is the guy with long brown hair, Nathan is the big guy with black hair, Pickles is the guy with the orange dreds and Murderface is the guy with the roundish brown hair. They are awesome and do some crazy stuff, like one time they wanted to apologize to Finnland for almost destroying it last tour. They instead released an ancient troll. Its pretty cool so check it out and a Metalocalypse would be awesome. So check it out and my next post. Vote Oscar 2013!

- Oscar (This isn't for the last post)

Read More

POKEMON X AND Y

Whats up baruch kids, here comes a post fresh off the press. I don't know how many of you are pokemon fans, or at all, but here's something one should know. They did it again. They went and made another damn region, with a new game and new pokemon. And you know, people thought the Unova region was bad, this... this is just disappointing.  These starters just look ridiculous. A frog, some chihuahua, and a chipmunk looking thing. And then the fact that theres just going to be even more pokemon, what the hell. I was getting close man, had 500 and something pokemon out of the 600 and something. This is annoying especially when it happened when i was close during the Sinnoh region. I don't know what Nintendo is thinking, and I only fear what will happen for the TV show of that region. Well here's a video of the trailer, see what you think. And peace.

-Oscar O.

Read More

Vampire Diaries Premiere – A Plus

 Last Thursday marked the new premiere of this season’s Vampire Diaries!  After the series took a quick hiatus in the middle of December and returned again this month.  This episode comes after Stefan and Elena broke up after their almost 3 year (real life wise) relationship.  In this episode, Elena finally reveals that after becoming a vampire, her feelings for Stefan’s brother Damon has magnified.  Also throughout all of this heartbreak and torment –mostly on Stefan’s side, there is a race to find the cure for immortality.  Pretty much all of the major characters in this television show want to find the cure for immortality.  The one with the key is Elena’s brother Jeremy and he must kill vampires in order for his tattoo to grow which leads to finding the cure. 

                Honestly, I thought this episode was amazing! It was so suspenseful and I could not take my eyes off of it.  I was so eager to find out what was going to happen next and I felt for all of the characters.  After watching the show for a little more than 3 years, I have felt so connected to each of their stories.  This episode has changed so much from what the series was like in the beginning.   I feel as each character has grown so much from the beginning of the show.  If you are into vampire stories or any other supernatural stories, I think you should definitely watch The Vampire Diaries.  It is an amazing show!

- Giselle Barkley, Entertainment

Read More

Game Review: QWOP

Hi everyone,

How is break so far? Time to sleep in, play games, hang out with friends, and procrastinate on HW (I KNOW I'm definitely not alone on this)! >:'D Well, one game I know you guys should play is QWOP! Prepare to rage at the computer and flip the table over in anger!

Summary:
Your only objective in this game is to get your character, which is this runner guy, to run as far as he can. So one might ask, "why is this game called QWOP?" Well, you press the letters "Q," "W," "O," and "P" to make the guy run! Yep, it's as "simple" as that.

Unfortunately, that's all there is to it, so this summary will be short.

What I like about it:
It's challenging and if you're the type of person who doesn't like backing down from a challenge, then this is the game for you. Trust me, you'll fall down a lot.

I also like how I can't stop laughing whenever I do play this game because the character is always in hilarious positions.

What I dislike about it:
The game can get kind of repetitive after a while, so it's quite understandable if  you get tired of it really quickly.

Overall:
I enjoyed the game for quite a while (for like a day) until I got tired of it. This isn't a game that you enjoy for an extended amount of time because there's nothing else you can do beside run. The only difficulty of the game is how the player you control constantly seems to fall down, and getting ahead in the game may require more patience than skill.

Here is a link to a video that will preview some of the difficulty you will encounter during the game:

*Warning: there is some swearing in the video, so you can just turn down the volume, the video is meant to show the gameplay, so sound is not needed.*

(Watch from 2:41-4:51, the rest is about a different game)

Here is a link to the game if anyone is interested in playing: http://www.foddy.net/Athletics.html

- Melissa He, Entertainment

Read More

Dragon Ball Z Budokai Tenkaichi 3

Hello there fine students of Baruch High school, I’m back  with another post. This time about a video game, a very good video game. Here it is, Dragon Ball Z Budokai Tenkaichi three! If your not familiar with this game series or dragon ball z, you can just go- inform yourself about this subject by searching online. Right now.  Anyhow, so yeah this game is based off the Dragon Ball series. Its really good, it starts from Dragon Ball Z and goes to Dragon Ball GT. But it even includes characters from the Dragon Ball series.  And characters from movies that aren’t in the series. These characters would Mercenary Tao, General Blue (RR Army), Android #8 or eighter, Turles, Garlic Jr.,  the Demon King Piccolo, Dr. Wheelo, Kid ChiChi, and more. It’s really a great fighting game, even if you don’t know Dragon Ball Z, which would be weird. But, there is the play station 2 version and the Wii version. I have the Wii version, which normally you would use the nun –chucks for. That’s really cool, because it’s like you the fighter and you can just do the Kamehameha wave, or the Dodon ray, or the Galick Gun and more. But personally I just use a game cube controller. But be warned, the controls take a while to get used to.  Other than that, this game is a lot of fun! You can fight any character with any character, play through the story, and more! Its one of those really fun fighting games, because you get to move around, its not a 2 dimensioned fight. So I would say check this out, and the Dragon Ball Z series, it could teach you kids a thing or two. Some real entertainment, not like the garbage that’s on TV now a days. Alright, continue to check out for my post, because they’re not stopping anytime soon.
 

-Oscar O.

Read More

Game Review: Ōkami (Wii)

Hi everyone,

This time, I’m back with my first game review~ *imaginary applause all around* …OTL Anyways, Ōkami was one of the first Wii games I’ve ever played, and I completely loved it. For those of you who have a Wii, if you haven’t played this gave before, you should give it a try.

*SPOILER ALERTS BELOW~*

Summary:

Set in the ancient world of Japan (called Nippon), the start of the game flashes back to a time 100 years ago, in which Shiranui, a white wolf, and Nagi, a swordsman, work together to fight Orochi, an eight-headed monster that threatens Kamiki Village, Nagi’s home, and Nami, Nagi’s love interest. Orochi demands the sacrifice of a maiden every year in return for not attacking Kamiki Village. Eventually, they manage to defeat and seal Orochi away, with Nagi’s sword acting as the seal.

Now back to the present, Susano, Nagi’s descendant and lookalike, believes himself to be the greatest warrior in the world and decides to pull out Nagi’s sword to prove that the story was false. Unfortunately, this breaks Nagi’s seal, and Orochi escapes into the world once again. Nagi flees in terror as Orochi starts to roam the lands, consuming all the life force from every living being.

Sakuya, a wood sprite and the guardian of Kamiki Village, summons Amaterasu, a white wolf and sun goddess who is thought to be the reincarnation of Shiranui by the villagers (they can’t see the patterns on Amaterasu; they only see a white wolf). Sakuya asks for Amaterasu to remove the curse from the lands by using her power to bring out the sun again (this is done by using the wiimote and drawing a circle in the sky). Issun, a tiny creature called a Poncle, is responsible for increasing praise for Amaterasu (doing this increases Amaterasu’s powers), accompanies Amaterasu on the way.

After Amaterasu brings back the sun, she is charged with the task of finding the other celestial gods and goddesses to gain their powers and save the world from Orochi and other evil forces.

What I liked about it:

I loved the game’s music, especially when the lands were being purified. I thought it correctly portrayed certain scenes in the game. I also liked the artwork, as all the drawings and even the gameplay artwork was very beautiful and colorful. The gameplay was really creative, as I never thought of using the wiimote as a brush. Furthermore, as Amaterasu, I enjoyed the fact that I was able to roam the lands and (sometimes) randomly go into people’s houses and scare them with my goddess powers.

I also liked how long the story lasted. I had to play Ōkami for a very long time before I finished it, and some parts were somewhat difficult, so sometimes a walkthrough was needed. I also thought the story was very interesting and emotional at times, as there was this sad separation scene, and I cried when it happened.

What I disliked about it:

There was voice over in the game, but I disliked how all the voices were just mumblings. In the Japanese version of Ōkami, all the characters spoke actual words. It would have been much more fun and cool if I could hear the actual characters speak, instead of hearing nothing but people mumbling.

I also disliked how I sometimes had difficulty in drawing certain symbols with the wiimote (I had to redraw it over and over again, and sometimes, the game recognized the symbol wrong and made undesired things happen).

Overall:

I thought this was a fantastic game that includes a lot of adventure and provides game play that can be challenging at times, so if you like these elements in a game (adventure and challenge), you should try playing Ōkami.

- Melissa He, Entertainment

Read More

Movie Review: The Life of Pi

Hi everyone,

Hope everyone managed to get something good on Black Friday! My mom decided to go to the movies with me that day, so no shopping for me~ OTL Anyways, she really wanted to watch The Life of Pi for reasons unknown to me. I read part of the book before, and I liked it, so I agreed to see it with her.

*SPOILER ALERTS BELOW~*

Summary:

A boy, Piscine Patel, or Pi for short, and his family own a zoo and live in India. Pi learns about different types of religions, so he tries to worship all of them at the same time. His father tells him that this worshipping is ridiculous, and to worship all of them is like worshipping no religion.

Later on, Pi tries to feed Richard Parker, a Bengal Tiger, some meat, but his father stops him before the tiger can fully approach him, and yells that the tiger is not his friend. He punishes Pi by forcing him to watch Richard Parker kill a goat that was placed in front of its cage.

Many years later, Pi fills in for a teacher in this dance class and falls in love with a girl, Anandi. They spend a lot of time together, but unfortunately, Pi's parents decide to sell the zoo animals and move to Canada. They pack all the animals on a Japanese cargo ship, and then get on as well, planning to sail to Canada.

One night, Pi and his family sleeping in the ship cabins, and Pi wants to get out and see the storm. His brother refuses to go with him and continues to sleep. Pi decides to go up by himself, only to be overwhelmed by the storm and the sea's waves. When he goes back to the ship cabin, it is already flooded with water, and he is forced to resurface to the top. He then sees some of the ship residents trying to lower a lifeboat into the water. He tries to get help for his family, but is shoved into the lifeboat. A zebra jumps in and the whole lifeboat falls into the water. Pi watches in horror as the whole ship sinks. He sees Richard Parker floating in the water and tries to force it away from the boat. A large wave hits the lifeboat, and he blacks out.

When Pi wakes up, he finds that only the zebra is on board. An orangutan comes floating out on the sea, and he helps it onto the boat. A hyena comes out, and Pi is terrified of it. Sometime later, the hyena succumbs to hunger, and it later kills the zebra and orangutan. In the heat of the moment, Richard Parker jumps out from under a sheet that covers half the lifeboat and kills the hyena.

Now, Pi has to survive on a boat with a tiger.

What I liked about it:

I thought the movie was really heart-wrenching during the scenes in which Pi was stuck on the lifeboat. His devotion to God plays a role in how he felt about the situation. Although the whole movie was practically about a boy trapped on a boat in the middle of the sea, the acting was good, and I ended up crying for like, the entire film.

What I disliked about it:

Nothing. The movie had meaningful subtext, and I was really moved by it. My mom didn't get the subtext though, and thought it was really boring because "it was just about a boy on a boat!"

Overall:

I think everyone should watch this movie. I know I haven't really described what's so good about it, but it's something I can't really explain. The acting was good, I cried because I was so convinced by the acting, and it felt like I was there on the boat with Pi when I watched.

- Melissa He, 12th Grade

Read More

Franks Pizza Store

Children of the earth, it is I, and I’m here on business. Well technically being here is always on business, but that’s beside the point. Now I’m going to tell you my favorite pizza store, and pretty much favorite place to go for lunch. It’s Frank’s Pizza Store! Located on 23st between Park and Lexington Ave. Its been around for a long time, since 1949 I think. It is also really good, and I mean like really finger licking good. Its got an A for restaurant grade, so you know its legit. Theres a variety of things on the menu… you have to go find
out yourself. Plus the slices are 2 bucks each, so that's that. But cheap doesn’t always mean good. Those
places that have 1 dollar pizzas are not so great. Their pizzas are either small or taste stupid or plain.
Frank's is awesome and has mouth watering food. I should know, I've gone there for a long time. They have nice employees, a family thing or something I’m guessing. It’s a small place, but they have seats, if you
wanna go eat with a few friends it’s all good. So go eat there because its right by the school. And keep
looking out for my posts.

Oscar O. (11)

Read More

TV Show Review: Sherlock

Hi everyone,

Instead of a movie review, this time I'm reviewing a TV show. So these past few days, I've been watching Sherlock, a British television crime drama that is based on the widely known works of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (he wrote the Sherlock Holmes series). The difference is that it's now set in modern day London. I don't remember how I learned about this show (I probably saw it somewhere on Tumblr; smh to myself), but I am happy I did because it is awesome and entertaining.

Warning: This post will be super long this time. Just shamelessly promoting here. :’D

*SPOILER ALERT BELOW~*

Summary:

At the start of the series, this guy, John Watson, has been discharged from the army because he was injured, and he has trouble adjusting to life in London. He limps and uses a crutch to support himself. One day, he comes across an old friend, and he tells this friend that no one would want him as a roommate. The friend laughs because John is the second person to say that to him that day. The friend then shows John who the first person was.

The scene changes to that of news reporters interviewing this detective, or rather, Detective Inspector Lestrade, about this case in which there were three suicides that were caused the same way; through ingesting a poisonous pill. Reporters ask if the cases were related and if it was planned murder, and Lestrade responds by saying they are related. They ask something else (sorry, I don’t remember), and when Lestrade answers them, everyone receives a “Wrong!” text message from someone anonymous. The reporters also ask if there is any way to prevent this from happening to them, and Lestrade tells them that they could by not committing suicide. He also says that everyone is as safe as they want to be. Everyone in the room receives another "Wrong!" text message from the anonymous sender.

At the moment, this other man, Sherlock Holmes, approaches this dead body in the morgue, and a worker there, Molly Hooper, tells Sherlock about who the corpse was (it was some nice old guy). Sherlock responds by getting his riding crop (I think they're used to hit horses when you want them to go faster) and beating the corpse senselessly, which frightens Molly. Afterwards, Molly tries to ask him out, but she fails because he doesn't get the message.

*dun dun dun* This is when John and his friend (I didn't bother to remember his name) come strolling in.   Sherlock says he needs a phone to text someone, and John lends him his phone. Then, before anyone can say anything else, Sherlock deduces that John fought in the war, is looking for a roommate, and some otherwise unknown facts about his life. Basically, he figured things out about John just by observing simple details. I'm not going to describe the whole deducing thing in detail because 1. it is too awesome to put into words, and 2. it would be a waste of time to do so; my description will greatly pale in comparison to the actual scene. OTL Anyways, John's first reaction is just like, "whutttttt" and "who is this guy?! I don't even—" and it seems as if he is just torn between being amazed and creeped out at the same time. After explaining his process on deducing, Sherlock leaves and tells John where the apartment is. He then winks and takes his leave.

Thus begins their life of solving crimes togetherrr!!!

/is shot for writing a terrible conclusion

What I like about it:

This show is hilarious. The characters were well planned out, and despite being creeped out by Sherlock at first (seriously, the man beat a corpse with a riding crop and deduced like a boss), I soon warmed up to his extremely odd and quirky behavior at times (he can be socially awkward, but that's what makes his interaction with others so amusing LOL).

I also like their accents. Even though I don't understand what they're saying sometimes, it's worth it because their accents sound awesome. 'Nuff said. I liked the accents so much, I found myself impersonating them at home (my mom laughed at my terrible—I mean awesome skills. Ahem).

The plot is amazing. I praise the way they (the writers) incorporated the show into our modern society. It didn't feel awkward at all (I mean, I didn't read the original series, but the plot was really believable).

The actors possess some, as some people call it (including me) "mad skillz" (emphasis on the z guyz lol). I am totally immersed in every episode because everyone's acting is too good to be true. It's either that or maybe I just get emotionally too easily... -sadcake- (Sadcake is an expression I felt like using. It appropriately describes what I'm feeling by juxtaposing the image of a cake, which is normally associated with good feelings, with the feeling of sadness... Sorry for the lecture OTL).

I also think the writers did a good job, as the show is full of "witty banter" (it drew me in like a moth to a flame) that is funny and memorable. I remember when Sherlock encountered this enemy and said, "People have died" (or something similar), and the enemy (not spoiling :'D) replied, "THAT'S WHAT PEOPLE DO!" When I heard that, I smh'd the whole time. There are also some lines that I thought was pretty thought-provoking, like when someone (probably Sherlock) said something like, "Caring is not an advantage," etc.

I do believe a small character summary (just the two main characters) will do this post some well-deserved justice (not really, I'm just being overly passionate about this show lol):

Sherlock Holmes - Obviously, he's good at deducing. He doesn't seem to care much about other opinions, except for John's, as he solves cases for his own entertainment. He once called himself a high functioning sociopath. He gets bored really fast, and sometimes he does crazy things to entertain himself (like harpooning a pig, which was really random, the poor piggy). Unfortunately, due to his behavior, he only has one person he considers a friend, John (seriously, he was willing to die for him). He doesn't like it when feelings get in the way because he thinks they just cloud your judgement. He also likes conducting funny experiments (he put a human head in the fridge). In a nutshell, he is pompous (he really likes showing off), sometimes arrogant, and sometimes indifferent, but he does his best to come through for the people that matter to him (by now, I'm pretty sure everyone knows it's mostly John lol).

John Watson - He's the more down-to-earth of the two. He misses the action that he once experienced on the battlefield, so solving cases with Sherlock brings back the excitement and thrill he yearns for. I find it funny that people keep mistaking him and Sherlock for a couple (it seems to be more socially accepted over there), despite his constant denial (I think he just gave up later on). I think it's just that they have a really great bond, and they depend on each other for pretty much everything. Okay, maybe it sounds couple-y. Anyways, he keeps this blog about his life (Sherlock finds the blog pointless), and he usually blogs about the cases he solved with Sherlock. He usually leaves the deducing to Sherlock and is pretty much the opposite of Sherlock personality-wise. He often serves as the moral compass during cases and thinks more realistically.

Okay, enough about me ranting about how much I like this show, it's time for some cons.

What I dislike about it:

The addiction. When I saw the first episode, I got hooked. I wanted to watch all the episodes in one day. Unfortunately, each episode is 90 minutes, so it took me a while.

There are too little episodes. There are only 6 episodes in total (3 episodes per season) at the moment, which is too little for me. Then the writers left this gigantic cliffhanger at the 6th episode, and I can hardly wait for the 3rd season to come out.

The suspense. This kills me. There is always a cliffhanger that bothers me to no end. I have no idea what’s going to happen next and I can’t imagine what would because I have terrible imagination.

The emotions. Maybe it's because I'm too sensitive, but I am drawn into like every episode. Every time there's a sad scene, I'm like "NUUUUUUUUZZZ" and I get all weepy, and if the characters are in trouble, I worry like a paranoid mother.

That’s about it. Yes, my dislikes are fueled by my intense like. OTL

Overall:

It’s quite obvious what I’m going to say. Watch. This. Show. Besides the awesome character interactions, I really liked the plot because it was interesting and thrilling, not boring and tedious like some other crime shows out there (can’t think of one atm, but I have watched a boring one before). It’s also the characters that make this show what it is. I can’t really explain all the reasons why I like this show so much (I’m not good with words, plus I pretty much explained why I like it in the “what I like about it” section), but if you take the chance to watch at least one episode, maybe you’ll understand why. I know not everyone will like the show, but probably a lot of you will/do.

Since it’s a British show, it might be hard to find way to watch the show online (unless you buy it), so I’ve decided to link a website that has all the episodes! Yayyy. Here you go: http://www.dailymotion.com/moffatholmes#video=xnqfr6

BTW, I am aware that there is the American version of this show, but I haven't watched that one and I still like this version better. :)

If anyone really does try to watch it because of my review or has already watched it, you're welcome to leave a comment about the show below. :'D

- Melissa He, 12th grade, Editor/Writer for Entertainment

Read More

Burt’s Bees: Lemon Butter Cuticle Cream

The first time I discovered this product was when I was over a friend’s house. She had a whole gift package from Burt’s Bees, so we were looking through it. I came across this Lemon Butter Cuticle Cream, so naturally I wanted to see what it smelled like. The scent of lemons in this cream is so apparent, and it smells really good. We rubbed it on our cuticles, (between the skin on our fingers and nail bed), and we had healthy hands for months. That’s actually what sold me on getting this product myself, because it actually did what it advertised. This cream helps get rid of hangnails, something everyone gets a time or two. Hangnails usually happen when our skin is dry, so we have to keep our hands moisturized so this won’t happen, because a hangnail can be painful after awhile. This product also helps brittle nails, so if your nails crack easily then this will make them a lot stronger. Every product has some flaws, so one con for this product is how hard it is to get the can open, you really have to dig deep to get the top of the tin can off. Also, when you first put the product on, it feels greasy, so you have to wait a few minutes for the product to really sink in. Sort of like the feeling you get right after you get your nails done, waiting a little bit to feel comfortable with the “weight” of the polish or for it to dry. Nonetheless, I loved this product so much, I’ve even hit pan on it! Check out other Burt’s Bees products if you’re into things like all natural ingredients.

- Zakiyyah Mandisa 

Read More

Movie Review: The Grudge

Hi everyone,

I hope you all have been safe and warm this past week! Unfortunately for me, I had a power outage in my area, so I've been without Internet and electricity for about 5 days! My heart goes out to all of you who had to go through that too! I never realized how dependent we were on electricity until it was gone.

Anyways, this post was meant to be submitted during the week of Halloween, but we all know how that went (no electricity, no posting for me). I was going to review a scary movie for the occasion, but even though Halloween's over, I still am, as you can watch scary movies any time.

Alright, it's been a while since I've watched The Grudge (I watched it in 7th grade), so my summary's going to be a bit fuzzy since I don't want to watch it again (it scared my pants off the first time).

*SPOILER ALERT BELOW~*

Summary:
It starts with this quote that says something about how a curse is started every time someone is killed in extreme anger or something like that. Then there is this old lady that lives in this house, and her caretaker, who is this Japanese girl (I think), hears some noise coming from the attic. She then walks into this closet (I think the phone is ringing above it), and when she looks up, a pair of arms reach down and pull the girl, who is now screaming, into the ceiling (to the attic probably). It then fades out to another scene of the police investigating the house. (This paragraph may be horribly inaccurate, so sorry about that.)

The police are looking for the Japanese girl, who has been missing for a few days, and the company that employed her filed a missing persons report on her. I am not exactly sure what the setting is, but it is probably Japan. This police officer chief guy goes into the closet and looks up, seeing a big pitch black hole in the ceiling. When they investigate it, I believe they find dead bodies of people, including the Japanese girl. I don't remember what happens after this, but I do know a new woman has been assigned to be the old lady's caretaker.

This new woman (who is pretty much the main character) goes inside the house to take care of the old lady, who seems to be somewhat mute and senile, and during the night, this scary shadow thing that appears out of nowhere attacks them both, killing the old lady. The police come over again later on, and the woman sets out to find out what happened and why.

The movie also shows how the old lady moved into that house in the first place. Apparently, she comes with her relatives (I think it was her daughter, and her son and his wife) to visit the house first. They decide that the old lady will move into the house. Sometime later, the daughter gets off work, and in the building she works in, she starts to see that there is this ominous force after her. She rushes home, and in her apartment elevator, there is this creepy boy's face every time it passes a floor window. Running into her home, she quickly locks the doors. She then hears her brother's voice outside the door, telling her to let him in. She is relieved to hear his voice, but when she opens the door, there is no one there. She locks the door again and jumps into her bed, hiding under the blankets. However, the ominous force (this creepy lady) grabs her legs from the beneath the blankets, and pulls her down. They disappear into the blanket.

Eventually, the woman (the main character) finds out that this wife and her son was killed in anger by the husband, who later committed suicide. They all died in the house that was mentioned earlier. She discovers that anyone who enters this house is cursed to die very soon after entering it, which explains all the sudden deaths. As she has also entered the house, she must find a way to stop the curse and save herself.

What I liked about it:
This movie lived up to its label of being scary. Then again, The Grudge was the first scary movie I had ever watched in my life, and I watched it when I was 12, so maybe it's not as scary as it seemed back then.  This was pretty much all I liked about the movie.

What I didn't like about it:
Although there's not much I liked about it, there's practically nothing I disliked about it either. The only part I disliked was that it was scary enough to make me afraid of my bathroom, of being alone, and of the dark for like a long time, but most scary movies will do that anyways, so I guess my one dislike doesn't really count.

Overall:
This movie is scary and is probably not meant for the faint of heart, but for those of you looking for a scary movie, you should probably watch this. I will never get over the creepy lady and her death rattle (the sound she makes; it's called a rattle because her neck is broken).

- Melissa He, 12th Grade, Editor/Writer for Entertainment

Read More

Movie Review: The Avengers

Hi everyone,

I'm back with an actual review! :D No one sent in any suggestions, so I'm going to review a movie I watched over the summer. :)

*SPOILER ALERTS BELOW~*

Here's MY summary of what happened in The Avengers movie. (It's been a while, so my summary may not be accurate.) So this will pretty much be about the way I saw the movie. Bear with me guys, my summaries are always weird. :)

Summary:At the start of the movie, I see someone with a lot weird armor and this terrible headdress (this is Loki), talking to this creepy monster thing (I think it is called "the Other"), who gives Loki the task of retrieving the Tesseract in return for reign over the Earth. The Tesseract is this super powerful energy source. Then the scene changes, and I see this eye patch guy (apparently his name is Nick Fury, director of S.H.I.E.L.D., an organization), along with this woman (Maria Hill), a man (Phil Coulson), some old guy who is like a researcher or something, and this creepy guy in the like upper corner of the room (I found out he was Clint Barton, aka Hawkeye...). They are currently conducting some experiment on the Tesseract, which is quite shiny and blue. Then, all of a sudden, the Tesseract gets TOO shiny, and (dun dun dun) Loki appears from this portal thing. Loki is wielding this staff that creams everybody in the room. With the staff, he pokes Barton and the old researcher guy, and puts this mind control over them. They leave with Loki, who takes the Tesseract along with him.

At this point, Nick Fury is like, "NO, THIS IS NOT HAPPENING!", and he escapes the place, which is now crumbling (for a reason I do not remember) with Maria. They chase after Loki for a while, but fail to get ahold of him. Eventually, Nick issues an order for the Avengers to assemble in response to Loki.

I think the scene then changes again to this woman (Natasha Romanoff, aka Black Widow) who is currently strapped to this chair. Some creepy mobster looking people are apparently threatening her for some information. She gets a call from someone (I forgot who), telling her to do something (probably to find the Hulk I think). She then beats up the mobsters in this awesome fighting scene, while still strapped to the chair. Later on, she finds Dr. Bruce Banner (aka the Hulk), who has been hiding for a while. After some persuading, Banner agrees to come along. Coulson goes to visit Tony Stark (aka Iron Man) and asks him to find the Tesseract, and Nick Fury asks Steve Rogers (aka Captain America) to help retrieve the Tesseract as well.

At some point, Thor comes along (describing how would make this TL;DR summary even longer), and with the team assembled, they have to put aside their difference and work together to retrieve the Tesseract.

What I liked about it:This movie was hilarious (to me). I thought each Avenger was unique and each contributed to the humor of the movie.

Clint Barton (Hawkeye): This guy was pretty much a bad guy throughout the movie. In my opinion, he didn't really do much as an Avenger as he only became a good guy again at the end of the movie.

Natasha Romanoff (Black Widow): This woman kicks butt. I don't exactly remember much about her (it's been months since I saw the movie), but what I do remember is that she was always running away from stuff. Fortunately, the job of saving the world was pretty much handed to her.

Bruce Banner (The Hulk): He worked diligently to find the Teaseract. It was funny when he became the Hulk on the ship (everyone was pretty much on this flying ship for most of the movie) and destroyed everything. There was this one scene where he jumped onto this aircraft, and they spiraled towards the ground. Banner then woke up in this random place (I think a barn) and he was naked. After a really long time (so long, that everyone had already gotten off the ship), he came back on this old motorcycle.

Tony Stark (Iron Man): Okay, this guy is hilarious. I don't remember if he was considered part of the actual Avengers because I think he was just needed to help Bruce Banner track the Tessseract, but he just joined them anyways, trying to command the team as the leader. He also suggested for everyone to eat at this shawarma restaurant at the end of the movie.

Steve Rogers (Captain America): He's not as funny as the other characters because he's very serious and earnest. He's at odds with Iron Man, as they both want to be leaders.

Thor: I remember at one point in the movie, when the Avengers were arguing with each other, he laughed at them and remarked, "You people are so petty and tiny." That was easily my most favorite quote in the movie.

What I didn't like about it:Nothing. I thought this movie was hilarious and awesome.

Overall:Besides being really funny, this movie did have its really sad moments, like when one of the characters was killed, and the death was used to motivate the Avengers to work together. It also had its fair share of action as well (which is obvious, since it was an action movie). Anyways, in my opinion, this is a must watch movie. :)

- Melissa He, 12th Grade - Entertainment Editor

Read More