RJ Writing Ink

Amphibia Episode 5 Review/Recap

The Plantar’s may have gotten used to Anne, but the residents of Wartwood still don’t trust her that much. She does make a breakout, though, in this newest episode of Amphibia. That, she and learns how to drive a snail.

Anne Theft Auto

After Anne asks Hop Pop to let her drive the family snail, Bessie, the old frog agrees, to her surprise. First, though, he insists that he read the book on her entire history. Anne decides to take Bessie out anyway, and she does a good job. Until she takes Bessie off-road and Bessie crawls into her shell and won’t come out.

While Sprig goes into town to find help, Anne’s forced to read the book on Bessie, and gets engrossed in the whole thing. As the plot demands, it also explains why Bessie hid inside her shell: they landed in an area filled with hedgehogs that eat snails! Using what she learns from the bug, Anne and Bessie work together to get out of the forest and get home. Thus, Anne learned to see Bessie as a living creature, albeit the hard way.

Anne’s Breakout

Anne wakes up one morning to learn that she has a bad case of acne on her face. While she wants to hide in the basement until it goes away, Hop Pop forces to come with them to the farmer’s market to sell Scream Beans. When everyone sees her zits, the frogs consider her “ruby-red warts” to be gorgeous. Next thing she knows, Anne’s the breakout celebrity of Wartwood.

Mayor Toadstool decides to exploit Anne’s new breakout status to help him in the upcoming election, and starts giving her the royal treatment, and she starts neglecting the Plantars as a result. But when her zits fade right before a big campaign rally, the Plantars don’t hesitate to help her out. Anne ultimately chooses loyalty to her friends over fame and fortune, and Mayor Toadstool gets pelted with fruits.

Review

I love how close Anne has gotten with the Plantars in just a few short episodes. At first, Hop Pop wanted nothing to do with her, and here we see her treating like his own granddaughter. He trusts her enough to let her drive Old Bessie, something he hasn’t done with Sprig. When her breakout came out, he was willing to help her even after she started neglecting them. Anne’s really found herself a good family.

While this episode doesn’t look like it will affect the plot of the show, that’s not true. Mayor Toadstool’s re-election campaign’s been referenced before, and it likely will be again in future episodes. His actions in this episode could end up coming back to bite him, and I look forward to seeing it.

I give “Anne Theft Auto” and “Anne’s Breakout” a 4/5. A nice episode to show how much Anne means to the Plantar’s

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Click here to see the first episode on YouTube

Amphibia Episode 4 Review/Recap

Hi, I know that this review’s a few days light, and I apologize. I’ve been busy doing all my remaining posts for the Marvel 30-Day Challenge, and then my work for Pride Week. At any rate, this episode of Amphibia sees Anne deal with some reminders of home. Both times don’t end well, and involve Hop Pop.

The Domino Effect

Anne and Sprig are playing a form of baseball when they stumble upon a caterpillar that looks like her cat, Domino, back on Earth. Smitten right away, Anne adopts the creature and names it “Domino 2”, despite Sprig’s concern over its habit of biting him. That and Hop Pop wants no pets in the house since he takes care of them.

Domino 2 proves to be a handful to keep a lid on, with Sprig and Anne barely keeping it a secret. Eventually, they can’t keep him a secret any longer. To their horror, it turns out that the caterpillar’s a Coastal Kill-a-Pillar, an insect that eats amphibians. As it happens, Domino 2 has turned into a butterfly. To save the Plantar’s, Anne’s forced to set Domino 2 free into the wild with her toy mouse, learning her lesson. Surprisingly, Hop Pop’s very understanding.

Taking Charge

After realizing her phone downloaded the latest season for her favorite show, Suspicion Island, Anne gets the Plantar’s hooked on the show. When they wake up the next morning, though, someone’s killed the phone’s battery. The only possible way to get it recharged is a bio-electric creature called a zapapede.

Easier said than done. Thanks to watching the show, everyone’s paranoid and accusing each other of draining Anne’s phone. When the fighting gets too much, Hop Pop snaps and reveals he did it: he loved the show so much he binged it all in one night. Then, like a nutjob, he jumps into a pit of zapapedes’s with Anne’s phone, forcing the kids to pull him out. In the process, Anne’s phone gets charged up to 10,000%, so Anne forgives Hop Pop.

Review

This episode touched me in more ways than one, as I too have dealt with the love for a pet. I cannot think of a time in my life when my family didn’t have at least one pet in the house. I still miss each one of them! If I had to pick, though, I think I liked Taking Charge better.

The reason why I think “Taking Charge” was the better episode is because I knew Hop Pop was the culprit! I’ve seen enough mystery shows to know that its the person you suspect the least. Called it!

I can’t really think of anything else to say about this episode, because it’s already been four days since it came out. Lost the window!

I give “The Domino Effect” and “Taking Charge” a 3.5.

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Click here to see the first episode on YouTube

It’s summertime, and that means a great many things. It’s the time of the year for family trips, relaxing, and just having fun in general. If you’re a geek like me, though, then Summer’s also the leak do Convention season. From San Diego to DC, people are gearing up for these glorious gatherings that celebrate pop culture.

As a veteran of more than half a dozen conventions, I’ve learned a thing or two about what it takes to survive them. Since D&A Anime Blog did their own guide, I feel like I should do one of my own. So here it is: Jay’s Declassified Convention Survival Guide. If you recognize where I got the title, you’re a fan of Nickelodeon.

Convention tip 1: Make yourself a budget

Conventions, while fun, are designed around the premise of getting people to spend money. Lot of money. depending on what convention you’re going to, tickets can cost close to a hundred dollars, maybe more.

That’s just to get in. If you’re the kind of person who can’t resist all the vendors selling cool stuff at a convention, you will burn a hole in your wallet. After that, you have to consider the price of autographs. Then food, and if you’re traveling overnight, hotel rooms.

My advice is to draw up a budget months in advance, and start putting aside money for it. I usually put aside a couple hundred dollars to spend on things I want. Most of it goes to autographs or cool stuff from vendors.

As for hotel expenses, I have never had to worry about that. Which I will explain in my next tip

Convention tip 2- Where you’ll stay

In my experience, I have never had to travel overnight for a convention. All the ones that I have gone to have been close enough for me to drive to. If you’re within driving distance, then I recommend avoiding getting a hotel room. It will save you money

Otherwise, I recommend checking the convention website to see if they have any deals on hotels nearby. It could save you money and time. Don’t forget to book a room months in advance. They will disappear quickly.

Convention Tip 3- Bring A Backpack

If you’re going to be at a convention for several hours, you’ll need something to carry the stuff you get. Especially if you’re not staying in a hotel room. Bring a comfortable backpack that’s big enough to hold everything you want. Make sure not to bend any photographs or autographs you may get.

Additionally, you can use your backpack to carry some supplies. Conventions are long, and you’ll want to be prepared. So bring essentials like chargers for mobile devices, extra socks or shoes, and more. It will be worth to have a charger to save your phone.

Convention Tip 4- Pack Food

Food can get expensive at conventions, And that can eat up your money. I know I’m not the first person to do this, but it’s a neat convention hack to use. I always pack a lunch or dinner in advance that I bring with me. It helps save me a lot of money and time from standing in line. Otherwise, budget accordingly.

Convention Tip 5- Getting Autographs

This is a big reason why people go to conventions. They want to see their favorite celebrities and get a selfie or autograph with them. The problem is, you and a hundred others want the same thing, which makes the process slow and frustrating. Don’t despair; I have you covered.

First, check the website to see if you can buy an autograph ticket in advance. This will save your butt if the line reaches its cutoff point.

Second, show up in advance. They start forming lines an hour before signings, maybe more. So, get there half an hour before the line start forming. That way, you can get as close a spot to the front as possible.

Third, don’t spend the entire time your at the convention waiting in line. I know that seems contradictory, but if you do that, a lot of the fun will be sucked out of it.

Convention Tip 6- Don’t Try to Do Everything

No matter how hard you try, you’ll never be able to do everything you want at a convention. So don’t try to do that. That will create unnecessary stress and will ruin your ability to have fun. Having fun is the whole point to a convention.

My advice: just pick a few big events, and then plan everything around them. Make sure you have plenty of free time in between. Do that, and all will be well.

Convention Conclusion

Conventions are some of the most fun things you can do. They’re a chance to meet like-minded people and enjoy the benefits of being a geek in a culture where we run everything. Whether you’re a newcomer ready to dive in, or a seasoned veteran, these tips are important. What’s more important, though, is that you have fun and get some sweet souvenirs out of the trip. I know I have!

My Favorite Cartoon Adaptation

Do you remember the first time you saw Marvel Comics adapted as a cartoon? I may not, but that doesn’t stop me from loving them, all the same. The 1990s were famous for giving us X-Men: the Animated Series, and while I never saw it, I know how much of an impact its had on my generation. My favorite cartoon adaptation is about the X-Men, but it’s a more recent one that combines some of the best stories in X-Men history.

Wolverine and the X-Men

The X-Men were once some of the most prominent champions of Mutant Rights, but after mysterious explosion led to the disappearance of Professor Xavier and Jean Grey, they disbanded. A year passed, and life for mutants got worse as humanity began to persecute them. Realizing that war’s on the horizon, Wolverine takes it upon himself to reform the X-Men before things get worse.

All this ends up being the tip of the iceberg. After finding Xavier in a coma, they receive a warning from him twenty years in the future. A future with the world in ruins, humanity enslaved, and the Sentinels hunt down any mutants they find. Unless they change things, this is the future that awaits the world. With Armageddon at the gates, the world needs the X-Men now more than ever.

A Love Letter to the X-Men

This show only lasted a year, running on Nicktoons Network from January to November of 2009. Even so, I consider it as a love letter to the team that helped carry Marvel for years. The art and animation already make it enjoyable on its own, but then you look at the voice cast, and you realize it reaches god-level. The show has an all-star roster of voice actors that include Steve Blum as Wolverine, and the talents of Nolan North, Kevin Michael Richardson, Tara Strong, Tom Kane, and more. It’s uncanny how they got so much talent behind this one show.

Then you have the plot, which is what makes it my favorite cartoon adaptation. The show combines two of the greatest stories in X-Men history into a single, cohesive unit: The Dark Phoenix Saga and Days of Futures Past. Interspersed amongst all this are elements from crucial stories from the X-Men’s history.

Unfortunately, the show got canceled due to Disney buying Marvel, meaning any unresolved, secondary plot threads were left unresolved. They were able to finish the main story, though, so I consider it a win in my book. I loved watching this as a teenager, and I call it my favorite cartoon adaptation of any Marvel property.

Click here to see the rest of my comic book related writings, including the 30-Day Challenge