Sneha Jaiswal's Blog, page 185
February 13, 2023
Blue Lock Episode 17 Review
Dudes! Barou is such an annoying character, he totally gets on my nerves! Luckily, Episode 17 was a lot of soccer and less of Barou, so it turned out to be an unexpectedly entertaining edition.
(Read ‘Blue Lock’ Episode 1 Review if you have no idea what the show is about)
Titled ‘Donkey’, the episode is completely focused on the ‘three versus three’ match between team Isagi, Nagi and Barou going up against the formidable trio of Reo, Chigiri and Kunigami. I miss watching Isagi and Bachira playing on the same side as friends, but Isagi and Nagi are turning into a very interesting duo, a fact that other players in ‘Blue Lock’ are beginning to pick up. But is their partnership enough to win without the third member’s co-operation?
Like most matches, this round also featured a lot of monologues by Isagi who is constantly strategizing how to beat his opponents, but the creators mix it up with some graphics in the animation to make it seem interesting. Some of the soccer phrases he comes up with are unintentionally hilarious and his character is experiencing an exaggerated growth in soccer skills, so it turned out to be a fun episode. The theme of ‘ego’ gets a front-seat and Isagi is transforming into the one of the top egoists on the show. His new-found confidence and hunger to win at all costs is exciting.
I hoped we would get the results of the match by the end of 20 minutes, however they decided to extend the mystery over who is going to emerge victorious.
Stream the series on Netflix.
Subscribe to our Podcast show by the same name on YouTube.
Listen to – 10 Graphic Novel recommendations under 10 Minutes
February 12, 2023
‘Candy Color Paradox’ Series Review
What works best for 2023 Japanese mini-series ‘Candy Color Paradox’ (also known as ‘Ameiro Paradox’) is its interesting glimpse into how journalists work for gossip magazines in Japan to land their latest scoops. There’s a lot of deception, danger, day-long stalking and often – long thankless nights. Even though the makers do make it seem a little easier and softer than it really is.
Directed by Furumaya Tomoyuki, ‘Candy Color Paradox’ is spread over eight episodes and follows the adventures of Onoe (Kimura Keito), a young serious reporter who is forced to team up with the flirtatiously aloof photographer Kaburagi (Yamanaka Jyutaro) to work on scoops that often involve going undercover or chasing targets. The two couldn’t be more different from each other (both of them are and do look like boy-band members) and behave like rivals despite being on the same team, but as they cover stories together, Onoe finds himself falling in love with the wily photographer.
Wide-eyed Kimura Keito is funny and endearing as the hard-working Onoe who wants to do more hard-hitting stories instead of exposing the secret sex lives of celebrities. Yamanaka Jyutaro’s Kaburagi however is too cliched, the typical romantic lead type featured in Mangas – who is cold on the outside but eventually turns soft – also known as ‘Tsundere’; however he nails the role of an unscrupulous jaded photojournalist who’d go to any lengths to get the latest exclusive. While the lead actors make for a visually striking pair, their chemistry isn’t great, which could be due to the weak romantic script that’s rife with miscommunication and misunderstandings. The few amorous scenes between the two are awkward, one sequence that could’ve been steamy had Onoe lying like a dead fish. Some of the regular interactions between the two leads are quite entertaining though; maybe they should’ve kept the series completely PG-13.
Izuka Kenta had a riveting cameo as Inami Kei, a top Japanese actor who Onoe and Kaburagi stalk to investigate his love life and eventually uncover an even bigger scandal about his side-dealings. Kenta switches from charming to cunning with ease in his bit part and steals the show during his limited screen-time.
It’s a 6/10 from me.
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Listen to – 22 Movies From 2022 To Watch On Streaming Sites
February 10, 2023
‘Your Place or Mine’ Review – The Answer Is ‘Skip it’
(Click here for the audio version of this review or scroll to the bottom)
There are good movies, then there are ones that are so bad they are good, and some are just terrible with no redeeming quality, like the 2023 romantic comedy ‘Your Place or Mine’. If I had to compile a list of ‘Top 10 Most Boring Romantic Comedies of All Time’ this title would be right up there. Unfortunately, I chose to watch this with two of my closest girlfriends on a Friday night and set the pace for a sorry weekend. Did nobody on the team watch this slow-burn abomination?
Directed and written by Aline Brosh McKenna, the film stars Reese Witherspoon and Ashton Kutcher as best friends Debbie and Peter who swap cities/homes for a week as Peter volunteers to look after Debbie’s teen son so she can crash at his Manhattan flat to give an exam. In this one week they learn things about each other they hid for two decades of friendship.
Fifty minutes down and the plot doesn’t pick up, all three of us were bored out of our brains and we eventually stopped streaming when 30 minutes were left. Two of us finished watching it by ourselves, since we have the incorrigible bug of finishing what we start. I saw the last part on 1.25x speed and it was still fucking tedious. For a romance film, you cannot even gauge the chemistry between the leads because there isn’t any. Reese and Ashton are almost never together at the same time and when they are talking to each other over the phone they are either anxious or pretentious. Steve Zahn as the random rich dude always working on Debbie’s lawn was the only minutely funny thing in this flick.
Apparently, Aline Brosh McKenna was born in 1967, which is strange, because when you watch ‘Your Place or Mine’ it feels like a 20-year-old wannabe author wrote a romance about 40-year-olds. Instead of trying to sound hip or whatever, the creator should’ve just written the script in human language instead of imaginary millennial garbage.
Reese’s Debbie is a typical caricatured helicopter mom whose personality is centred around her kid, Ashton’s Peter the stereotypical man-slut who cannot last in a relationship longer than 6 months and Wesley Kimmel (didn’t know he was a nepo kid, he is indeed Jimmy Kimmel’s son) as Debbie’s kid looked completely disinterested in his part. The kid is allergic to a thousand things, he is even ‘allergic to gym’, what does that even mean?
‘Hated the whole thing. Terrible acting, fuck all story, Bad script, fuck all direction,’ my friend Isha texted us on the group after she was done. That’s your quick one-line review guys. Don’t watch this. Our other friend took a guess that Reese Witherspoon looked like the only actor who cared about the script because she is probably the producer. She is.
It’s a 2/10 from me.
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Audio version of the movie review embedded below, listen in!
‘Dear David’ Review – Of Teen Fantasies & Friendships
Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)
Some people write sneaky secret notes to their crushes, and some choose to write saucy secret fan-fiction about the object of their desires; like school topper and ‘good Christian’ girl Laras in 2023 Netflix movie ‘Dear David’.
Directed by Lucky Kuswandi, written by Winnie Benjamin, Daud Sumolang and Muhammad Zaidy, the film stars Shenina Cinnamon as lead Laras, who is a scholarship student and writes erotic fantasy stories featuring her crush David on a private blog whenever she finds time. When someone leaks all the contents of the blog, her ‘Dear David’ stories go viral and even though nobody really knows who the writer is, things get complicated for Laras when David figures it out.
The central premise is interesting, especially since the makers show the fantasies in shiny neon sequences instead of simply having the protagonist read it out. So, the very first scene hilariously draws you in – Laras is dressed in revealing silver gown and is walking through tall grass in high heels until she finds something and starts to spy on it with opera glasses, a young well-built man in a lion’s mask bathing in a stream and then things get steamy.
Laras isn’t a very likable character, but older viewers will have to remind themselves that these kids are still in their late teens. Shenina Cinnamon pulls of the part with panache, she switches from bitchy-sexy to lost and vulnerable with ease. Caitlin North Lewis was more fascinating as Dilla, Laras’ estranged best-friend who’s the school ‘slut’ courtesy some rumours and her risqué photos on social media. Emir Mahira is the titular David isn’t very impressionable, even though it’s his character that suffers the immediate consequences of becoming a sexual object in the fictional stories that go viral. The friendship between the two teen girls was bitter-sweet, poignant and far more believable than the few romantic sub-plots in the tale.
‘Dear David’ looks at how school authorities deal with instances like these, where student’s private blog/photos/videos are leaked. It seems like not a lot has changed since the 90s – teachers and authoritative figures still don’t understand that even the privacy of teens must be valued and protected. The film also has a slightly predictable love-triangle going on and the pace could’ve been a faster. The climax was a tad bit dramatic, but it hits a satisfactory crescendo – the protagonist gets to finally speak her mind out instead of scribbling things in secret.
It’s a 7/10 from me.
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Listen to – 22 Movies From 2022 To Watch On Streaming Sites
February 9, 2023
Squire – Graphic Novel Review
As you started reading ‘Squire’ it immediately feels like a Mulan-style story with a twist. But as the story progresses, turns out the graphic novel by Sara Alfageeh, Nadia Shammas is set in a past where men and women seemed to have had equal rights. So, Aiza the protagonist have a legitimate chance at joining the army and rising to the highest ranks. Girls needn’t pretend to be men to hold important positions.
The plot seemed interesting at first, a poor girl who belongs to an outcast community called the ‘Ornu’ dreams of becoming a Squire in the army, not just to serve her nation, but to pull her family out of poverty. What follows next is a predictably story about a tough training, new friendships and Aiza finding an unlikely mentor with a tragic past. The heroes turn out to be villains and the underdogs emerge victorious.
Except for the idealistic gender balance, everything in Aiza’s world is pretty much the same, there’s war, class clashes, hunger, poverty, widespread discrimination, and discord between different communities. What makes this graphic novel worth a read is the beautiful artwork that brings to life the fictitious historical world the writer crates. Otherwise, due to old tropes and uninspiring dialogue, ‘Squire’ gets uninteresting quickly. In-fact, I wish the art designs of the characters would’ve been a little more different. Aiza was so similar in appearance to another kid called Husni that I got confused for a bit and had to re-read a few pages to understand what was going on.
The creators have an earnest anti-war message at the heart of this story, but the work gets preachily boring towards the second-half. I was hoping for a lot more action, adventure, fun, but was left struggling to finish a book that would’ve been over in one sitting.
It’s a 2.5/5 from me.
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Listen to – 10 Graphic Novel recommendations under 10 Minutes
February 8, 2023
Blue Lock Episode 16 Review
(Read ‘Blue Lock’ Episode 1 Review if you have no idea what the show is about)
Who would’ve thought that Isagi Yoichi, Nagi Seishiro and Barou Shoei would end up in one team? But we already saw the outcome in the last episode ‘Devour’, where Isagi picks the King to join him after winning the two-versus-two game. However, even with two geniuses on his side, it’s not going to be easy to clear the next round since the self-centered Barou is a terrible team-player.
Titled ‘Tri-Fusion’, the most exciting bit about this episode was Kunigami, Chigiri and Reo teaming up and challenging Isagi, Nagi and Barou to go against them. While Kunigami and Chigiri are pissed with Isagi for leaving them behind, Reo fiercely holds a grudge against Nagi for not being by his side. And in the best twist, everybody differs on which player they’d like to pick if they win.
Viewers get to see the administrative side after a long time, Ego (mastermind of the ‘Blue Lock’ program) makes a fresh presentation to his bosses, promising them a ‘genius’ that would take Japanese soccer to new levels. Episode 16 was a mix of everything, there was plenty training and playing by the teen strikers and a slight glimpse into what’s going on behind the scenes with those who are in-charge of the program. The last few minutes were the most entertaining, as Isagi realizes it’s not going to be easy defeating the formidable trio that includes Reo.
You can stream the series on Netflix.
Subscribe to our podcast on YouTube by the same name – AbstractAF
Listen to – 5 Reasons To Stream ‘Trial By Fire’ On Netflix
‘Moonlight Chicken’ Off To A Dreamy Start (Ep 1 Review)
First they made a wish upon the stars and now they get to wistfully gaze at the moon. Earth Pirapat and Mix Sahaphap Wongratch who won over fans with their charming romance ‘A Tale of Thousand Stars’ are now leading their third series as a pair in 2023 Thai show ‘Moonlight Chicken’.
Directed by Aof Noppharnach Chaiwimol, the story follows Jim (Earth) who runs a diner popular for its deliciously cheap chicken rice and the younger Wen (Mix) who becomes quite enamored after spending the night with the latter the very first time they meet. However, Jim doesn’t want anything serious but cannot get Wen out of his mind either. So what’s going to happen between the two strangers?
Aof Noppharnach Chaiwimol has also directed the entertainingly fun college romantic comedy ‘Bad Buddy’ but ‘Moonlight Chicken’ is quite different in tone, mood and settings. Jim’s diner is the sun in this series, most things revolve around his work, food and duties. The cinematography is gorgeous, with a warm palette that capture Pattaya’s streets and daily life in an arresting manner. In just the first episode Earth and Mix prove their chemistry is still electric, even though they meet as adults who share beers when they meet, the moon over each other like one does when they fall in love.
Episode one sets a promising pace for the series and introduces a few crucial supporting characters who are going to have a decent sub-plot to themselves. There’s Fourth Jirochtikul who plays Jim’s younger school-going brother Li Ming, while Gemini Titicharoenrak is his potential romantic interest named Heart. Some actors who’ve been billed in the supporting cast are yet to make their first appearance but we cannot wait to stream the next edition.
You can watch the pilot episode on YouTube.
Subscribe to our Podcast show by the same name on YouTube.
Listen to – ‘An Action Hero’ – Movie Review
‘Class’ Review – Flashy Teen Whodunit
When three poor Hindi-medium kids get scholarships to Delhi’s most expensive/exclusive private high-school after theirs burns down in a fire that is suspected to be arson by a prominent builder. The rich students are rattled by the new students and the class clash eventually leads to murder. But who is the killer? Spread over eight episodes, ‘Class’ is the official Bollywood adaptation of Spanish Netflix series ‘Elite’. It’s a laudable remake with a gripping first half.
Most Indian viewers who attended ‘junior colleges’ are not going to find this show very relatable. Majority of Indian schools have classes up till the 10th grade, so a small minority across the country attends private/govt institutions for 11th and 12th and leads the kind of lives shown in ‘Class’. Point being? – watch it for entertainment, not for ‘relatable’ content. The makers ensure they declare all teens are 18, probably because of the sexual content, while in reality students in their grade are usually 16 or 17, very few 18 or above (usually if they’ve failed a class).
Dheeraj Kumar Valmiki (Piyush Khati), Balli Sehrawat (Cwaayal Singh), Saba Manzoor (Madhyama Segal) are the three new students who enter the posh international school and are immediately made aware of their class differences by the prudish English-speaking students. Each of them gets entangled with a different rich kid, leading to a lot of complications and bad blood. The cinematography nicely juxtaposes the gilded halls of the posh school against some of Delhi’s impoverished bastis. While Dheeraj lives in a cramped lane where cars can’t even enter, he needs to take a golf cart to the main entrance of his wealthy friend’s palatial bungalow. However, the ‘rich vs poor’ theme along with caste equations becomes secondary to the sexual/romantic relationships forged by the students.
There are a lot of new faces in the series, three actors that stood out most were Anjali Sivaraman as jaded-druggie rich teen Suhani Ahuja (although her hair is terrible, the stylists and creators should’ve noticed); Cwaayal Singh as the uninhibited ‘jugaadu’ Bassi and Chayam Chopra as the closeted Dhruv Sanghvi. Ayesha Kanga as Yashika Pandey was akin to a bitchy version of Ananya Pandey, she does what her role demands, except her character was half-assed. Even though the actors were fine in their roles, their chemistry just didn’t work for me. Despite multiple couples, no pair is worth rooting for.
The murder investigation was done in ‘whodunit’ novel style, with each protagonist getting a chance to tell the tale from their perspective. As the second-half approaches, it becomes apparent that multiple people had enough motive to kill the victim but the eventual disclosure comes a surprise yet manages to be underwhelming. The plot in-fact slows down from episode 6 onward. They should’ve trimmed the plot a little and limited the focus on fewer characters. I haven’t seen ‘Elite’, so a comparison isn’t possible, but ‘Class’ made for a decent one-time watch.
It’s a 3/5 from me.
Subscribe to our Podcast show by the same name on YouTube.
Listen to – ‘An Action Hero’ – Movie Review
February 7, 2023
‘Cunk on Earth’ – Philomena Is Still Phenomenal
Diane Morgan is a hoot as the poker-faced ‘investigative journalist’ Philomena Cunk who asks experts in their field profoundly intelligent questions like “what was the Soviet Onion?” or “Do we know if King Arthur came a lot?”. The 5-episode mockumentary series ‘Cunk on Earth’ is now available to stream on Netflix and is just as hilarious as some of the previous installments featuring Morgan.
Written by Charlie Brooker, Ben Caudell, Jason Hazeley, Joel Morris, Eli Goldstone, Michael Odewale, with some additions by Diane Morgan herself, the script is rife with wry humor that will delight viewers, especially those who are already fans of the character. Over the course of 5 episodes, Philomena interviews distinguished experts and takes viewers through history of mankind, right from the discovery of fire to the creation of nuclear warheads.
One of my favorite lines from the series was – “Having conquered numbers, humankind moved on to something even more boring by inventing writing”. As a published author and someone who writes on a daily basis, I took no offense on the dialogue and laughed my ass off, and you’ve got to love the irony in the quote – she isn’t saying it off her head, someone wrote that for her. Another one that cracked me up a lot was – “The Greeks also created a kind of theater for stupid people known as sport”.
Diane Morgan’s deadpan delivery is everything, just like her dumb-blonde British character in the other Netflix mockumentary ‘Death to 2021’ which was packed with stars but Morgan stood out with her riotous performance. But unlike the ‘Death to…’ titles, ‘Cunk on Earth’ features real-life professors, historians, authors, and experts on whatever topic Cunk is questioning them on. All the guest interviewees do a fantastic job of making sense of the ridiculous questions posed to them, only one of them can’t contain their laughter onscreen. While I usually don’t enjoy British humor too much, I hope they keep making more of these series starring Diane Morgan, because like the makers of the show claim before each episode – it’s potentially award-winning.
It’s a 8.5/10 from me.
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Listen to 10 Book Reviews Under 10 Minutes #16thEdition
February 6, 2023
‘Chivalry’ Book Review – Tea Break Read
Who knew a random find from a thrift store could shake up a widowed old woman’s life and lead a strapping handsome young man from medieval times to her door?
Written by Neil Gaiman and filled with beautiful painting-like illustrations by Colleen Doran, ‘Chivalry’ is a 72-page book that would be a great accompaniment with your evening tea if you are a slow drinker like me.
The protagonist is Mrs Whitaker, who is a pensioneer and has a set routine which includes having tea and macaroons every Friday with a friend. One day, she buys what looks like the holy grail from a charity shop and has a knight in literal shining armor knock at her door seeking her latest buy, claiming it’s part of his ‘quest’. But Mrs Whitaker isn’t willing to part with the relic easily, even when the knight offers her mythical gifts of great value. What would it take for a kind lady to give the young dashing man what he wants?
It’s not like ‘Chivalry’ is a mystery book, far from it. It’s a kooky fantasy fiction read about an unlikely friendship between an old lady living in present day with a medieval knight who magically appears in her timeline. The illustrations ranged between plain and dreamy; the artwork has a vintage touch to it, as if you are reading an illustrated book for children from the 1940s. I quite enjoyed reading it and the story was practically over in a blink!
It’s a 4/5 from me.
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Listen to – 10 Graphic Novel recommendations under 10 Minutes
