Sneha Jaiswal's Blog, page 224

Alice Oseman Does A Stan Lee in Heartstopper! Did You Spot her?

Remember how comic book creator Stan Lee would sneakily appear in blink-and-miss roles in Marvel movies? Sure, a lot of writers/directors have done that in a lot of movies… but the Lee example seemed to be a good one for this write-up. In the 2022 Netflix series ‘Heartstopper’, which has been adapted from the comic-book series of the same name by Alice Oseman, the creator makes a tiny appearance in the last episode. If you missed spotting her on the show, here’s a still from Episode 8, where the author-cum-artist makes her cameo.

She is the girl on the train, busy illustrating (hopefully some new hearstopper scenes) something, while Nick and Charlie the protagonists happily chat away, oblivious to everything around them. The cute little blue drawings behind them bear the Oseman stamp, with the maple leaves that appear throughout the books and even series. Also, love how her bag has a rainbow on it, symbolic of the positive LGBTQ+ representation in her books!

The series is available to stream on Netflix, and you could read our spoiler-free review right here – Heartstopper – Warm And Fuzzy Like The Books

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Ep 61 – Spoken Word Poetry – Gender Fluid

Heartstopper – Warm And Fuzzy Like The Books

By Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)

How do you make a love story set in the gloom of winter months seem bright and fuzzy like a summer romance under whose warmth you’d want to bask in? You take notes from Alice Oseman’s ‘Heartstopper’, the coming-of-age tale of shy nerd Charlie Spring and Rugby lad Nick Nelson. The live action adaptation of the beloved comic books has been directed by Euros Lyn, under the guidance of original creator Oseman, she is also an executive producer of the show. So to readers who might have had their apprehensions about how loyal the Netflix show would be to the original source material – you have nothing to worry about.

Newcomer Joe Locke leads the show as its protagonist Charlie Spring, who is in year 10 and is the only gay teen in his all-boys school. While he is sort of seeing a jerk, things change when he meets the athletic and caring Nick Nelson at the start of a new school year. Kit Connor who plays Nick looks like he was pulled right out of the comic books, he is unwittingly charming and exudes the cuddly earnestness of a ‘golden retriever’ (like characters in the series observe). In fact, both actors capture the essence of their teen protagonists flawlessly and are the absolute beating heart of the show.

The first episode brilliantly sets up their first meeting, you know something is going to brew from the soft endearing way in which they say ‘hi’ to each other. There’s a nice slow progression from friendship to lovers, while the boys deal with their varied emotions of confusion, insecurities, fear and well… their undeniable mutual affection. The show is not all rainbows and sunshine, the teens do have to deal with bullying, prejudices and stereotypes, however, the overarching themes are LGBTQ positive.

Actor Yasmin Finney who plays Charlie’s trans best-friend Elle, is also trans in real life, and delivers one of strongest performances as a supporting cast member. There’s just something so wholesome about Elle – she is an empathetic being who always has her friend’s back. William Gao is feisty as the protective Tao Xu, he is like a mother-hen of the pack, constantly worrying about Charlie’s emotional well-being and standing up to his bullies with the fiercest come-backs. Tobie Donovan completes the primary friend group as the wallflower Isaac, silently supportive of all the silly antics his buddies engage in. Sebastian Croft, the ‘villain’ Ben Hope, isn’t as despicable as he seems in the books, but does manage to pull of his negative role. Cormac Hyde-Green was an absolute jerk (a compliment) as the rich privileged Harry Greene, who can’t differentiate between a joke and blatant homophobia. Jenny Walser was the only cast member who stuck out as a bit of a sore thumb as Tori (Charlie’s older sister), who is still a senior in school, but looks too old to be a teen. And while that might not be a kind thing to say, a little bit of searching online – turns out the actor is 27, and well, it shows.

The cinematography is colorful, bright, filled with warm tones that will please the eyes. Despite the show starting off in February, the scenes are shot in the lines of a dreamy fall romance, except for the one gorgeous snow scene, where Nick and Charlie hang out for the first time. All the houses in the show were overtly pretty, and maybe too organized, but they were all homey with a cozy aesthetic. Whoever was in charge of the ambient music has done a good job with picking out upbeat tracks that blend well with the mood of the moment they are played again.

While only eight episodes long, ‘Heartstopper’ does try to cover all bases to give a satisfactory season 1, so viewers also get brief glimpses into some of the familial interactions of the primary protagonists. Nick’s relationship with his mother is the most precious of all, they have a communicative and transparent equation, which hopefully will serves as healthy model for a parent-child relationship for whoever is watching the show. Some of the parents could’ve used a little more screen-space, considering the kind of impact they have on the lives of their kids. But honestly, no complains there, would anytime choose more of ‘Charlie-Nick’ interactions over parental representation.

Also Read: Alice Oseman Has A Cute Little Blink-And-Miss Cameo In HeartStopper

The pace of the series is consistent and never meanders into unnecessary diversions. Each interaction, be it between the lead pair or the secondary couple(s), helps in moving the story forwards. Within the show, the creators display the necessity and power of positive LGBTQ+ representation. For a second, the question ‘why are there no heterosexual couples in there?’ might arise in your mind, but if you really think about – the show is filled with heteros, Oseman is just not telling their story, because they already have their voices everywhere.

Heartstopper has a consistently engaging pace and the climactic episode only marks the beginning of a new chapter, leaving plenty of scope for a few more seasons. Hope Netflix serves them soon. Meanwhile, season one isn’t just perfect for a weekend binge, it also has a high re-watch revalue. I am gonna go ahead and give this a 9/10. Stream it.

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Listen to Ep 73 – Cobalt Blue, A Book Vs Film Review

The Spire – Graphic Novel Review

Created by Simon Spurrier and Andre May, ‘The Spire’ is the kind of stand-alone graphic novel that fantasy fiction fans with a taste of violence would enjoy reading. Set in a fictional universe, with bizarre creatures, warring clans, racial tensions… the creators throw around so much jargon, that there’s no way one can process all of it in one sitting.

The primary protagonist is the gender-fluid called Sha, who is human only in appearance, and is a sort of a cop in charge of the city’s safety. She gets a pretty killer entrance – chasing goons and beating the shit out of them – while messengers in her kingdom announce the death of the king. What follows is a series of gruesome in-explainable murders and attacks on the royal family, so Sha finds herself investigating the unrest.

The artwork by Jeff Stokely and coloring by Andre May is very striking, with constant change in hues, making each page markedly different from the other. A lot of the panels have a very dystopian steampunk touch to them, while there are a few pages that look out of a star-war fan-fiction comic. However, as far as the storytelling is concerned, it was rather chaotic and it might take a while for readers to really understand what the central theme is. Like mentioned earlier, Simon Spurrier throws in too many new words/phrases, rapid developments, that can leave one confused/dazed AF. Some might completely lose interest in the novel. I almost did. It’s the eye-catching artwork and action that keeps me persist till the end, not so much the plot.

There’s a genre-bending twist in the end, which was quite brilliant, however, there’s just not enough build-up to it, so it feels a little hollow. Maybe 200 pages is a little too less for the kind of vision the creators had, they should have spread things over in a few more chapters to make the characters and situations more memorable. So despite the grand scheme of things in ‘The Spire’, which includes an almost war-like situation, it can be quite forgettable. I did love the fact that all the powerful and interesting characters are women in the book.

It’s a 3/5 from me.

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Episode 74 – 10 Book Reviews Under 10 Minutes #13thEdition

Achcham Madam Naanam Payirppu – Movie Review

The 2022 Amazon original ‘Achcham Madam Naanam Payirppu’ is a coming-of-age film starring Akshara Haasan as a shy under-confident college student Pavithra who goes on a unwitting journey of self-acceptance.

The film marks the directorial debut of Raja Ramamurthy, who has written the story for the flick. For non-Tamil viewers, the title flips to ‘The Myth Of The Good Girl’, it’s a tale of a young woman raised in a strict traditional household, who struggles with her identity and sexual awakening. It’s a ‘slice of life’ kind of movie, set realistically, with a lot of relatable characters, minus the excesses of big Tamil masala entertainers. So there are no dramatic proposals, no dancing in foreign locations, and no forced caricatured characters making ridiculous jokes; although there is an aunty who keeps trying to peddle weird products to Pavithra’s family. And while it’s great that Ramamurthy attempts to keep his film real, the pace so exceedingly slow at points that a lot of viewers will find their interest wavering.

As far as the cast is concerned, Akshara Haasan is able to pull off the role largely, and does the bits of an awkward sweet young girl quite well. It’s the scenes requiring emotional heft where her breakdown as Pavithra isn’t very convincing. Siddhartha Shankar is cute as her cricketer boyfriend Harish and the two surprisingly make a sweet onscreen couple. Their romance is drama-free and breezy.

Actors Anjana Jayaprakash and Shalini Jayakumar are entertaining as Pavithra’s best-friends Rathi and Jessica. Each girl in the trio is representative of different kinds of girlfriends, and many viewers might be able to see echos of their own buddies in them. Jessica is ‘saving’ herself for marriage and thinks pre-marital sex is a sin, while Rathi doesn’t attach the burden of societal expectations with her sexuality… and then there’s the protagonist Pavithra, who isn’t sure if she should ‘seal the deal’ with her boyfriend. Singer Usha Uthup gets a small but meaty role as Pavithra’s grandmother and just like her strong vocals, she has great screen presence!

‘Achcham Madam Naanam Payirppu’ is definitely a breath of fresh air, especially with its women-dominated cast, all in different shades, from plain annoying to absolutely endearing. The script does a good job of representing female friendships and relationships, but there are some basic loopholes that discount the intelligence of its characters. And like mentioned before, the pace is slow, with too many long-drawn shots that are neither great to look at, nor do they help in carrying the story forward. A lot of scenes could’ve been shortened and the runtime should’ve been a little more tighter. Patient viewers looking for a leisurely coming-of-age story might find the film to be a rewarding experience.

It’s a 6/10 from me.

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Listen to Ep 73 – Cobalt Blue, A Book Vs Film Review

The Backpackers Review – Pretentious Baggage

The only thing nice about the 2022 romantic Spanish movie ‘The Backpackers’ (Hasta que nos volvamos a encontrar) on Netflix is the gorgeous locales its shot in.

Directed and written by Bruno Ascenzo, the plot follows a workaholic wealthy architect Salvador (Maxi Iglesias) who meets the free-spirited Ariana (Stephanie Cayo) in Peru while he is on a work visit to build a 7-star hotel. While the two are immediately attracted to each other, Ariana’s horrified to learn that the rich daddy’s boy wants to build a commercial concrete monstrosity in her beloved land. We all know where this romantic story is going, don’t we?

Lead actors Maxi Iglesias and Stephanie Cayo make a striking looking couple, but their banter – or even passionate romance for that matter – is so lukewarm and boring, it makes you immediately want to stream something else. The two travel around in the gorgeous Peru, so the scenic shots are the only thing worth watching.

This whole “serious workaholic person meets a wanderer who loves nature and dancing” trope is getting a little too old in the world where every second person on social media claims to be a ‘traveler’. Besides, in a lot of irony, Ariana’s character does keep admiring historical man-made structures, just that they were made centuries ago. Sample this hot-springs her character loves, the ugly staircase surrounding it would look like ‘concrete monstrosity’ to some, especially against those lush green mountains.

Long story short, this is just a random movie, with a weak story and keeps getting more snooze-inducing as the runtime progresses.

It’s a 4/10 from me.

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Listen to Ep 73 – Cobalt Blue, A Book Vs Film Review

First Love Again Review – Wish Gone Wrong

‘First Love Again’ has got an interesting story, let’s give it that – Yeon Seok, a slave in the Joeseon period, feeds a starving forest fairy, who then grants him a wish to have a happily-ever-after with the woman he loves. Unfortunately for Yeon Seon, his lady-love dies before their romance can bloom, so the fairy helps him wait agelessly for her to be born again. Three hundred years later, when Seon’s ‘soulmate’ appears as a young man in present day Korea, he doesn’t know if he should still pursue the person of his dreams.

This is really the story of a fairy not doing a good job of fulfilling a wish. However, funnily, the actor playing the fairy is the nicest thing about this series – she is spunky, funny, practical and immortal. What’s not to like? Well, for starters, the rest of the cast is pretty mediocre. Fortunately, the comedy in this 6 episodes long series is quite good – it’s almost like Japanese manga like – cute and exaggerated. However, the most crucial theme – romance – feels lacking.

Actor Jin Gun who plays protagonist Yeon Seok, a popular author in modern day Korean, neither exudes the nerdy persona of a writer, nor the suave charm of a romantic lead. His onscreen chemistry with Jeon Chnag Ha who plays the beautiful Ha Yeon/David is pretty lukewarm. In the actors’ defense – the script is too contrived and doesn’t give their love story much scope for growth.

Despite being a very short mini-series, I lost interest after the first three episodes and simply forgot about following up with the rest. I finished all episodes much later, in a belated effort to see what happens and if things get interesting… but they really don’t. There’s just another contrived pointless twist after the other and a cliche ending. But at least it wasn’t preachy, emotional or tragic in any way. ‘First Love Again’ could have been so much more, but it fails to live up to its potential.

It’s a 5/10 from me.

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Listen to Ep 73 – Cobalt Blue, A Book Vs Film Review

Spy X Family Episode 2 Review

Based on the Manga by Tatsuya Endo, the anime Netflix show ‘Spy X Family’ continues to be on a strong foundation-building exercise in its second episode titled ‘Secure A Wife’.

Loid has already secured a daughter via adoption, so now he is on a hunt for a wife to complete his family for his next mission. The episode opens with a hilarious sequence of Loid’s friend cross-dressing as a woman to pass off as his fake wife. But the mood considerably shifts when viewers finally get introduced to the third protagonist Yor, Loid’s potential future wife, who has a boring job as cover for her real gig – assassinating people.

Also Read: Spy x Family Episode 1 Review

This episode wasn’t as light and funny as the first one, largely owing to the fact that the primary focus isn’t on little Anya this time, the psychic girl Loid adopts. However, it makes for an interesting change, with the plot shedding insights into Yor’s character, who is a weird combination of a cold-blooded murderer and socially awkward wallflower. Her day-job is filled with mean women who pass nasty comments, which was a pretty convincing representation of what toxic work places can be like. Oh and since Yor is a 27-year-old single woman, apparently she is a bit of a threat to the society and needs to be married ASAP, or her younger brother cannot rest in peace. As much as that can piss off women viewers, it’s also going to be relatable to some.

Action fans won’t be left disappointed, there’s plenty of ‘mission impossible’ style stand-offs peppered throughout the episode. Loid and Yor hit it off pretty well, it’s the classic case of ‘made for each other’. Again, the makers are sticking to the original work, so fans of the Manga are going to be thrilled. This was as entertaining as the pilot episode.

Only complaint from the viewer’s point of view – waiting a whole week for the next episode is painful! Stream it on Netflix.

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Ep 74 – 10 Book Reviews Under 10 Minutes #13thEdition

10 Book Reviews Under 10 Minutes #13thEdition

We are back with another edition of ’10 Book Reviews under 10 Minutes’ for our podcast. So if you aren’t into reading long book reviews, listen to episode 74, where we quickly look at some diverse titles.

Here’s the list –

The Agony House by Cherie Priest (Young Adult / Horror)Zikora by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (Contemporary Fiction)Pilu of the Woods by Mai K. Nyugen (Graphic Novel/Children’s Fantasy Fiction)The Mountains Sing by Nguyen Phan Que Mai (Historical fiction)‘Rockstar & Softboy’ by Sina Grace (One shot comic /fantasy/lgbtq+)The Dangers of Smoking in Bed by Mariana Enriquez (Horror Fiction)‘Princess Princess Ever After’ by Kay O’Neill (Fantasy/lgbtq+)Andre The Giant by Brandon Easton & Denis Medri (Graphic Novel/Biography)Before The Coffee Gets Cold – Toshikazu Kawaguchi (Fiction/Time Travel)Tropic of the Sea by Satoshi Kon (Manga/Graphic Novel/Fantasy)

Do subscribe to the channel. Episode below.

Night Drive Review – A Pacy Political Thriller

An innocent long drive to celebrate a birthday turns into a Kafkaesque nightmare for a young couple in the 2022 Malayalam film ‘Night Drive’.

Directed by Vysakh and written by Abhilash Pillai, the plot is the highlight of this political thriller, even if its packed with too many co-incidences to carry things forward. Actors Anna Ben and Roshan Matthew who were last seen together in the 2020 ‘Kapella’, play the lead pair in this one too. Anna Ben is popular regional news anchor Riya Roy, credited with breaking a gold-smuggling case involving a state minister. Roshan Matthew is Riya’s boyfriend Georgy, an Uber driver (an upgrade, since he drove an auto in Kapella) who wants to move to the gulf for better opportunities. The two seem to be a sweet practical couple, who go out on a drive late night, but get entangled in a dangerous political game after their car meets with an unexpected accident. To make things worse, the couple had a tiff with cop who is now in-charge of their case.

It takes time for the story to interesting, director Vysakh slowly sets things in place to introduce the first major twist, so until then the viewers may feel a little restless about scenes don’t have any context yet. But once the conflict begins, the pace picks good speed and every character’s presence falls into place like a jigsaw puzzle. The journalist-driver couple’s attempts to outwit the system forms the crux of the movie.

Anna Ben is spunky enough as the well-read confident journalist Riya, however Roshan Matthew has a limited set of expressions and isn’t able to give any sort of edge to Georgy. Indrajit Sukumaran overshadows the protagonists as the arrogant cop handling their case. Siddique as corrupt minister Rajan Kurup looks straight out of an actual state assembly, emulating subtle nuances of a politician well. The police-politician nexus and how a corrupt system can turn tables against the most upstanding citizens is portrayed in a very ‘in your face’ manner.

‘Night Drive’ follows Aristotles’ rule of drama when it comes to ‘unity of time’ – the entire story takes place in a period of 24 hours, with clever (if sometimes contrived) little twists and turns which will keep viewers guessing what’s going to happen next. It almost gave me second-hand anxiety, which is a compliment to the makers really, that’s the kind of effect thrillers should have on the audience. I guess.

The climax matches the expectations set up by the makers, however, not before an unnecessary emotional sequence meant to make either viewers empathize with or admire Riya and Georgy. So there’s a bit of sob story stuffed in, followed by an exaggerated action fight… a clear attempt to give the film a more mainstream touch towards the end, maybe a lot of viewers would like it. I didn’t. Thankfully, the emotional detour doesn’t take the climax’s thunder away and ‘Night Drive’ ends with a clear dawn.

It’s a 7.5/10 from me. You can stream it on Netflix.

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Listen to Ep 73 – Cobalt Blue, A Book Vs Film Review

Cherry Blossoms After Winter Review – Fluff Alert

Things begin with a close up of some sizzling prawns, the protagonist – the cute one- cooks up a delectable looking burger. For the next few minutes of the episode, I couldn’t think of anything but that prawn burger, good way to distract viewers. They then introduce the next protagonist – the ‘hot’ one – working out in the gym, and my brain is still processing the bread, tomatoes and prawns…. They show the cute one again, so the food image is further re-enforced. My food-reverie is finally broken by the annoying scream of young high-school girls, swooning over the entry of the ‘hot’ one, yelling “oh he is so handsome!”.

Directed by Yoon Joon Ho, ‘Cherry Blossoms After Winter’ tells the story of fluff-ball Hae Bom (Ok Jin Uk) and Tae Sung (Kang Hui), both of who are in high-school and live under the same roof. Tae Sung’s mother takes Hae Bom under her wings after his parents pass away. While the boys are close when they are small, they practically live as strangers under the same roof in their late teens. Tae is secretly in love with Hae Bom and thus keeps his distance, to keep his feelings under check.

I wasn’t a fan of the first few episodes, because the sweet little Hae Bom is bullied by some evil boys at school. I’ve mentioned this in some other reviews – Korea and Japan seem to have a serious bullying problem that needs tackling. Luckily, Tae Sung gets transferred to the same class, so he steps up and protect Hae Bom and the two rekindle their friendship. How the two tackle their growing affection for each other forms the rest of the series.

Thankfully, the second-half of the show has no bullying and instead focuses on the romance between the lead pair. Actors Kang Hui and Ok Jin Uk are absolutely adorable together and the plot gets incredibly fluffy, complete with all the cuteness that comes with first love. The story is pretty simple and doesn’t go beyond superficial explorations of the relationship. The makers use a lot of bright and soft tones that blend well with the romantic theme of the story. So you’ll see a lot of peachy-pink colors, making the sets look aesthetically pleasing.

The climax is surprisingly smooth, so after brief moments of conflict, the last episode is filled with mush, it’s like someone dunked double the amount of sugar in their beverage. Definitely check the series out if you are looking for a simple no-brainer romance with a good-looking cast.

It’s 7/10 from me.

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Listen to Ep 73 – Cobalt Blue, A Book Vs Film Review