Sneha Jaiswal's Blog, page 79

From Pixels to Power Moves: Princess Peach Over The Years

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Let’s talk about the princess who’s been serving looks, loyalty, and occasional sass in the gaming world for decades—Princess Peach. Whether you’re a lifelong Nintendo fan or just getting into the world of Mario, you’ve probably noticed how Peach has transformed from a mere damsel in distress to the reigning queen of our pixelated hearts.

The Early Days: A Princess in Peril

Ah, the ’80s. A time of big hair, even bigger shoulder pads, and the birth of one of the most iconic video game franchises ever—Super Mario. But in these early days, Princess Peach wasn’t exactly the powerhouse she is today. Back then, she was known as Princess Toadstool (her more regal alias) and, let’s be real, her primary function was to be kidnapped by Bowser. Over. And over. And over again.

In the original Super Mario Bros. (1985), Peach was the ultimate goal for Mario—literally. Her character was pretty much a plot device, giving Mario a reason to hop through eight worlds filled with Goombas, Koopas, and a whole lot of pipes. She was the quintessential “save the princess” trope that fueled so many early video games.

The Power-Up: Peach Takes Charge

Fast forward to 1988, and Nintendo must have realized that Peach had more potential than just being a pretty face in a pink dress. Enter Super Mario Bros. 2. For the first time, Peach was a playable character, and she wasn’t just tagging along. Peach had skills. Her floating ability made her a favorite among players, and it was clear that Peach was ready to step out of Mario’s shadow.

Over the years, Nintendo started giving Peach more agency. In games like Super Mario RPG (1996) and Paper Mario (2000), Peach wasn’t just sitting around waiting for Mario to rescue her. She was out there, helping in her own way, whether it was through sneaky subterfuge or wielding a frying pan with surprising skill. Suddenly, Peach wasn’t just a damsel in distress—she was a vital part of the adventure.

The Royal Makeover: Princess Peach Gets Stylish

Peach’s evolution wasn’t just about gaining agency—it was also about style. We’re talking major glow-up vibes here. While her classic pink dress remained a staple, Peach started rocking different looks that showcased her versatility. Remember her turn as a racing queen in Mario Kart? Or how about when she dominated the courts in Mario Tennis? Peach was serving more than just looks; she was serving game.

Her spin-off title, Super Princess Peach (2005), was a big moment. Peach was the star, using her emotions—yes, emotions—as her powers. Critics had mixed feelings about this (there were some side-eyes at the stereotypical portrayal of a woman’s emotional range), but it was a step toward giving Peach her own narrative, making her more than just a sidekick or a goal.

The Modern Era: Queen of the Mushroom Kingdom

By the 2010s, Peach had fully established herself as a strong, independent character in the Nintendo universe. In games like Super Mario Odyssey (2017), Peach’s role had shifted once again. Sure, Bowser still had a thing for kidnapping her, but Peach wasn’t waiting around for Mario to save the day. In fact, the ending of Odyssey was a mic-drop moment for Peach. When both Mario and Bowser competed for her affection, Peach basically said, “Thanks, but no thanks,” and went off on her own adventure.

And let’s not forget her role in the Super Smash Bros. series. Peach has proven she’s not just a pretty face—she’s a formidable fighter who can hold her own against the likes of Link, Samus, and even Mario himself. Her moveset, complete with turnip-throwing and Toad-summoning, is a testament to how far she’s come since her early days as a perpetual captive. And in the 2024 “The Super Mario Bros. Movie”, Princess Peach trains Mario to learn how to jump, smash and outwit his enemies if he is to fight the evil Bowser and rescue his beloved brother. Yes, so we get to see Princess Peach teach Mario how to essentially play Super Mario!

Peach: The Icon We Deserve

So, what makes Peach such an icon? It’s her evolution, her resilience, and the way she’s navigated the sometimes-treacherous waters of video game storytelling. Peach has grown from a one-dimensional damsel into a multi-faceted character who embodies grace, strength, and yes, a little bit of that sweet, sweet shade.

Peach’s journey mirrors the broader shift in how female characters are portrayed in video games. From her early days of being “just” the princess who needed saving to becoming the hero of her own story, Peach has shown that even in the world of gaming, girls can be powerful, fashionable, and a little bit mischievous—all at the same time.

So, here’s to Princess Peach, the OG queen of the Mushroom Kingdom, and the evolution we never knew we needed. Long may she reign!

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The Union Review – Mark Wahlberg & Halle Berry are Spy-Pals

Rating: 2.5 out of 5.

Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)

Roxanne belongs to a super cool spy organization that does the actual work while outfits like the CIA get to take credit for keeping things under control in the world. Sound like a lot of other films or series? Like Gal Gadot’s Heart of Stone or Priyanka Chopra’s Citadel?

Directed by Julian Farino, The Union is a super familiar, formulaic spy movie starring Halle Berry as protagonist Roxanne, a spy whose mission to extract an extremely sensitive file is thwarted by the Russians (obviously). The file is up for sale, and Roxanne’s organization, called “The Union,” needs a ‘nobody’ to pose as their buyer so that a background check won’t expose them. Enter Mark Wahlberg’s Mike, a broke construction worker chosen by Roxanne because they used to date in high school, so she trusts him and also thinks he has the “right skills” for the job.

Both Mark Wahlberg and Halle Berry have done their fair share of action flicks, so they are both in their comfort zones and have an easy chemistry as former high school flames Roxanne and Mike. Mike gets a speedy two-week training to go from construction worker to James Bond in less than a month. It’s kinda ridiculous, but then the problem with The Union is that it’s not exaggerated enough! All the action bits are underwhelming, and despite the cute camaraderie between the lead actors, this is not a romantic flick.

In fact, I think it would be fun to see Halle Berry and Mark Wahlberg together again in a full-fledged romance. The Union is a slow, low-on-imagination action thriller, which does have a few twists towards the end but just doesn’t have the spy movie excitement. It might be fun if you go in with low expectations and watch it for the lead actors.

Rating: 5 on 10. You can watch “The Union” on Netflix.

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Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair – 100 Years Later

Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)

In my sky at twilight you are like a cloud

and your form and colour are the way I love them.

You are mine, mine, woman with sweet lips

and in your life my infinite dreams live…

It would be hard not to fall for someone who wrote you love poems like Pablo Neruda does. That was my first thought after reading a few poems from Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair, a collection of romantic musings by the Chilean writer, first published in 1924. That’s 100 years ago! Wow. There is something so alive about his words; they don’t feel like an echo from a century ago, perhaps because he was only 20 at the time, full of passionate vigor.

Almost all the love poems in this collection share the same theme: Pablo writing about the woman he loves, comparing her to various elements of nature. You’ll find recurring imagery and metaphors related to the seas and mountains, which resonated with me even more because I am currently based in a city nestled between the hills and the sea. As I read Neruda’s poems, the view from where I was sitting was of a lush, green, monsoon-kissed hill. Ah, there’s a special magic in reading love poems on a rainy day with a beautiful view.

I remember borrowing a small book of poems called Love by Pablo Neruda a few years ago, and a friend revealed to me how some of her exes would use Pablo’s poetry to woo her. “Tonight I can write the saddest lines. I loved her, and sometimes she loved me too.” This one is perhaps the most popular with romantics caught in the agony of unrequited love or a broken heart. It’s the 20th poem in Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair.

My favorite is probably the last one, The Song of Despair, where Pablo recalls a short but “drunken, tense, avid” love with a woman. He speaks of remembering her one night and drowning in sorrow when reminded of how the lovers were forced to part, even though he also admits that his desire for the woman was scarily short-lived. I appreciated that candidness, the admission of his own heart’s restlessness and frivolity.

All sorts of lovers, young and old, will find words that will resonate with them through Neruda’s poetry, you would wish someone wrote to you like that, or that you could write like that for someone. But until you find the inspiration to write your own songs of hope or despair, there’s always Neruda’s poetry to turn to.

Rating: 4.5 on 5.

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Jackpot! Review – Some Killer Kung Fu Would’ve Made This Epic

Rating: 3 out of 5.

Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)

Like any action fan who grew up in the 1990s, I loved watching Jackie Chan movies, including the ones he did with Owen Wilson. I honestly do not remember much about them except that I had a blast watching an Asian guy and a white guy fighting a bunch of people with some killer moves. The 2024 action-comedy “Jackpot!” is about an Asian-American woman (Awkwafina) and a big white man (John Cena) fighting hordes of people trying to kill the woman to bag her billion-dollar lottery winnings. But Awkwafina’s character is a regular person with no moves, and I instantly wished they had just tweaked the script, made her learn Kung Fu (she was a voice actor in Kung Fu Panda 4, by the way), and it would’ve given us a new action duo. Anyway…

Directed by Paul Feig and written by Rob Yescombe, “Jackpot!” is set in a dystopian California, where residents are obsessed with winning the ‘Grand Lottery’, which comes with an interesting rider: if a losing ticket holder kills the winner before sundown, they get the money and the kill is completely legal. The only catch? No guns allowed. When that’s announced in the film, I thought, “Why don’t they have a bunch of Legolas characters flying around the city?” Nobody uses bows and arrows! Pooh.

Awkwafina plays protagonist Katie Kim, an aspiring actor who is new in town and doesn’t know about the lottery. To make things worse, she accidentally registers for it and wins the jackpot, so the entire town is out to kill her, and she has no idea why! Luckily for Katie, a security services guy named Noel (John Cena) offers to protect her, for a 10% cut of her winnings. The rest of the movie is all about surviving murderous psychos out for Katie’s blood and money. The first 45 minutes of “Jackpot!” is hilariously good, with all sorts of people—actors, models, athletes, biker gangs, food truck drivers, teachers, students, grannies, heck, even the cops—trying to murder Katie because it’s absolutely legal in California to do so for the jackpot! Will she be a billionaire or dead meat at the end of the day? That’s the crux of the story.

Katie doesn’t know if she can trust big guy Noel either, but with nobody else on her side, the two sort of team up and fight against the rest of the city. And even though Awkwafina doesn’t do Kung Fu, the action choreographers do give her some amusing self-defense moves. But just imagine how much more fun it would’ve been if Michelle Yeoh (“Everything Everywhere All At Once”) had played a Katie Kim that did know martial arts. Regardless, Awkwafina brings her own awkward quirkiness to Katie and manages to kick quite a few butts as she desperately hangs on for dear life throughout the runtime. Awkwafina and John Cena make a fresh, offbeat comedic duo in this ‘just for laughs’ action film.

“Jackpot!” isn’t as funny or exciting in between, especially when a new villain enters in the form of Louis Lewis (Simu Liu), another security guy who tries to steal Katie as a client from Noel. There are a bunch of clichés added in to give the script a depth it doesn’t need, like a dark history between Louis Lewis and John Cena’s Noel, which, when recalled, only slows down the movie. But after a brief slowdown, the chaos of half the town attempting to murder Katie resumes, and things get fun towards the climactic moments.

Overall, if you’re looking for a mindless action-comedy, “Jackpot!” is the right pick. It’s not memorable, but fun while it lasts. Some killer Kung Fu would’ve obviously made epic.

Rating: 3 on 5 stars. Watch “Jackpot!” on Prime Video.

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It Ends with Us Review – Bit of A Cop Out But Ends Right

Rating: 2.5 out of 5.

Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)

Lily Bloom is home after a long time for her father’s funeral, and when her turn comes to speak at the service, she offers to list five great things about her dad, maintains a moment of silence, and walks away without saying anything.

Directed by Justin Baldoni, the 2024 romantic-drama “It Ends with Us” is based on the bestselling novel of the same name by Colleen Hoover. It stars Blake Lively as Lily Bloom, who starts a flower shop in Boston and falls in love with the handsome, charming neurosurgeon Ryle Kinkaid (Justin Baldoni). While things are fun and steamy between the two at first, when Ryle begins to get abusive, Lily finds it hard to end things instantly.

“It Ends with Us” begins with the funeral of Lily’s father, which helps establish Lily’s strength of character. She doesn’t give in to the societal pressure of having to say nice things about a man she clearly didn’t have a cordial relationship with. The scene then switches to her ‘meet cute’ with neurosurgeon Ryle Kinkaid. The two run into each other on the roof of a building, where Ryle walks in an evidently horrible mood, kicking around chairs in anger, but magically switches to being charismatically flirtatious when he sees Lily. And Lily decides to immediately spill the beans about her first love, Atlas (Brandon Sklenar). Who does that in a first conversation with a stranger? But Ryle is even worse at conversation openers. Guess when you’re that good-looking, you don’t care about what comes out of your mouth.

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Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively look good onscreen, their chemistry is great as Lily and Ryle, especially when they just start to see each other and things are steamy. However, throughout the runtime, Blake often looks like she is not in the moment, which often feels odd. Flashbacks reveal her troubled childhood and the course of her relationship with her first love, Atlas, a boy from her school. Isabela Ferrer, who plays teen Lily Bloom, looks like Blake Lively’s doppelgänger, so she is excellent in the role; however, it also makes Alex Neustaedter, who plays younger Atlas, look very miscast. The younger Lily and Atlas don’t have palpable chemistry, so the throwback scenes were quite lack-luster.

“It Ends with Us” was very confusing to watch because despite the film being about domestic violence, the creators skirt around the issue for almost the entire runtime, like it’s some sort of phantom, or ‘he who must not be named’. It was just weird as hell to go through over 70 percent of the film and not even see the story address the problematic aspects of Lily and Ryle’s relationship head-on until the very end. I mean, at one point I began to question my own comprehension skills, wondering if I was reading things wrong. “It Ends with Us” isn’t a thriller or mystery; we all already know it’s about abusive relationships and the need to break out of the cycle of violence—hell, even the title is indicative of it—yet we’re shown a rose-tinted view of the lead couple’s love story for 90 minutes, and only the climactic moments deal with the uglier layers. Justin Baldoni’s portrayal of Ryle however in on point and helps establish how abusers can be scarily deceptive, despite the limited time dedicated to the doctor’s Hyde side.

There are a lot of pretentious layers to “It Ends with Us”. For instance, Jenny Slate plays Allysa, who simply walks into Lily’s shop even before it opens for business and asks for a job. Allysa is so well-dressed that the moment I saw her, I thought she could buy the damn shop if she wanted (I have not read the book), and it turns out she is indeed super rich. So why she decides to work in the shop after saying she hates flowers is never explained and never makes sense. Also, for no good reason, Lily’s shop becomes very popular and is even featured in a magazine, even though the rare times we see the shop, there are barely any customers. It would’ve been okay if the creators showed it as a paid feature, but no, they want us to believe that a feature focusing on new flourishing businesses in town would include both a flower shop and restaurants. Huh? It’s a very random list, intended only to facilitate a specific scene in the story.

Okay, at this point it might seem like I’ve simply begun to nitpick on the movie, but the thing is, “It Ends with Us” isn’t as serious as it should be, nor is it as entertaining as it could’ve been. Surprisingly, the climax is powerful, cathartic, and gives a satisfactory resolution to a domestic violence story that isn’t given the space it needed.

Rating: 5 out of 10.

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Thoughts on Reading ‘Fellowship of the Ring’ In 2024

Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)

It’s never too late to read Tolkien!

Finishing ‘The Fellowship of the Ring’ turned into my own uphill personal quest. I started reading the book on May 26th and finally finished it on August 14th. I wasn’t expecting it to take that long. For context, it took me 10 days to read “A Suitable Boy” by Vikram Seth, which is one of the biggest novels to exist and is more than twice the size of “The Fellowship of the Ring”.

I honestly don’t even know how to rate this Lord of The Rings book out of five stars, because it was soooooo SLOW in parts that I started reading just a little every day (well, not every day really) before going to bed, and it made me fall asleep within a few pages. But not in an “oh, this is so boring, I hate it, I don’t want to read it” way, but more like “this is sort of nice, but too descriptive and too slow for me” kinda way. It’s like taking a 14-hour train ride on a scenic route when you could’ve taken a one-hour flight and gotten there, but you obviously want to take naps on the train. The destinations might be the same, but the journey is entirely different.

One can summarize the entire “The Fellowship of the Ring” in an easy paragraph. Little hobbit Frodo goes on a quest to destroy a powerful ring before it lands in wrong hands and faces many dangers along the way, but he can always count on his loyal friend Sam Gamgee and the wise wizard Gandalf to be by his side. Definitely convinced that Dumbledore was inspired by Gandalf. The villain – Sauron, the ruler of Mordor, is the titular lord of the rings, who wants to rule the whole of middle earth and one of his greatest source of powers is the ring that’s in Frodo’s possession.

J.R.R. Tolkien’s painstaking effort to describe everything about Frodo’s journey across middle-earth is impressive, but also definitely feels like overkill in many parts! It takes almost 100 pages for Frodo to just get out of The Shire, the hobbit region he inhabits. The middle section of the novel, where Frodo and company navigate ancient caves that were once the kingdom of Dwarfs, was the only part that I read for more than 30-40 pages at a stretch.

My favorite part about ‘Fellowship of the Ring’ were the poems/songs strewn across the chapters, which beautifully blend with the narration. Each time a character is recalling a story or historical event to explain their background, or each time they reminisce about something or simply decide to celebrate, they break into songs. Before the printing press came along, it were songs that carried our stories, and thus it is songs that poignantly carry the story forward in this book. I’ve seen the quote ‘Not all those who wander are lost’ so much on social media by travelers that I didn’t even know it’s from Tolkien, so I was definitely thrilled to bits when the poem/song featuring the quote turned up in the novel.

All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost. From the ashes a fire shall be woken, A light from the shadows shall spring; Renewed shall be blade that was broken, The crownless again shall be king.

I grew up watching “The Lord of The Rings” films—our parents took us when we were in school—and at that point in time, my brother and I didn’t really know the movies were based on books. But now that I’m done with this book, I totally understand why so many fans agree that the movies are better than the books. I LOVE the movies. My brother and I made our parents rent the DVDs after we were done watching the trilogy in theaters, so that we could watch all of them back-to-back once again. But again, the movie creators were able to make such great films thanks to Tolkien writing the story in such great detail. There’s no room for imagination; there’s not one scene that qualifies for “white room syndrome”—a term used for scenes where the writer doesn’t describe the setting, making it feel like the character interactions are taking place in a blank space. But ugh, I wish there were a lot more character interactions to make the novel more entertaining.

If there’s one thing that was annoying about the novel, it was the excessive use of names and places, it’s like Tolkien slaps the reader with a book of Yellow pages that’s not from their region. Thankfully, at least the fellowship is small enough to remember the main characters, although nine members isn’t all that small. Gandalf leads the fellowship, which includes four hobbits—Frodo, Sam, Merry, and Pippin—two human warriors of royal lineage, Aragorn and Boromir, an elf named Legolas, and a dwarf named Gimli.

It’s only Gandalf, Frodo, and Aragorn, whose characters are well-developed in the first book, others still feel like shadows, although Sam’s personality is also clearly drawn out – he is fascinated by elves and is fiercely loyal to Frodo and will follow him anywhere, even to hell. One of the most dynamic and instantly likable character only appears for a flash in the book, it’s Tom Bombadil, who is a cheery, powerful, near-immortal man that helps out Frodo and his hobbit friends when they are lost in the creepy old forest in the first half of the book, before the fellowship is formed. Tom didn’t make it to the movies and I can see why, he isn’t very essential to the tale, but that doesn’t change that he was an absolutely firecracker in his little fascinating cameo. I would’ve loved to see some more of him in the books, but he is also the kind of guy who likes to be in his own bubble and not get embroiled in the power-politics of the world, possibly because he is a happily married man content with what he has.

Well, I am definitely glad to have picked up the series, and since Tolkien has done all the explaining needed of the different races and places of Middle Earth in the first book, I am hoping the others will be a lot more exciting! Here’s to hoping. I’ve already started book two – The Two Towers.

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Demon Slayer Hashira Training Arc Review

Ashley Suvarna (Instagram | Twitter)

I remember calling Season 3 of Demon Slayer the weakest season yet. I almost passed on that title to Season 4. Almost.

So let’s talk about the latest season, called the Hashira Training Arc. The term is pretty self-explanatory. Ever since the events in the Swordsmith Village, demon sightings have reduced to practically zero. It’s almost as if they have disappeared off the face of the earth. Kagaya Ubuyashiki, the terminally ill leader of the Demon Slayer Corps, is quite convinced that things are about to escalate. Nezuko Kamado has become the first demon to withstand the sun, a feat the Demon King Muzan himself has been trying to achieve for hundreds of years without success. No doubt Muzan will come for her, and since she’s under Ubuyashiki’s protection, for him as well. There’s only one way to prepare for the coming storm – retrain the entire Corps. Ubuyashiki believes this could help the rank-and-file swordsmen get stronger, and with luck, maybe allow the Hashira to awaken their Slayer marks.

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The chapter begins with Iguro and Sanemi, two of the Hashira, chasing down a demon and getting their first peek at the Infinity Castle, a warped dimension that also serves as Muzan’s lair. Puzzled, they head back to HQ, where the decision to kickstart the training exercise is made. Now most of the entire season is basically Tanjiro making his way from one Hashira to another, completing his training regimen under each one before moving on to the next. Every Hashira has something specific to teach, even the retired Tengen Uzui who, despite losing an arm and an eye, volunteers to help out.

But this isn’t the kind of gripping, story driven training Tanjiro endured in Season One under his former mentor Urokodaki. We have reached the ‘calm before the storm’ point in the story of Demon Slayer, the final familiarisation of all the characters before the endgame begins. This season is all about getting a glimpse into the lives of each Hashira, their moods, personalities, origin stories, sprinkled with some training, some friendly sparring, a little reminiscing, and a whole basketful of humour thrown in for good measure.

To be fair, it’s nothing unexpected. Except for the first season, every arc/movie in Demon Slayer has begun with some humour and light entertainment for about a third of the story before things get a little serious. Except in this one, it’s most of the season. Perhaps that’s why the fandom didn’t seem quite happy this time. I, personally, didn’t have that problem, although I did have a few concerns. The pacing was good but nothing great, however, the storytelling did not seem lazy at any point. To keep things going, there’s also a parallel plotline going on, where Muzan Jackson and his lead guitarist Nakime are trying to locate the hidden Ubuyashiki Mansion by using hundreds of demon eyes to spy on every single Corps member patrolling the streets and villages. It had a somewhat filler-y feel to it, but all in all, if you keep aside your typical Demon Slayer expectations for the moment, there are plenty of enjoyable moments and story expositions going on to keep you interested.

There are two things that tie really well into the events of the first season.  The first is Sabito, the deceased friend of Giyu the Water Hashira, who, coincidentally, also happens to be the ghost kid Tanjiro fought all the way back on Mt Sagiri. The second.. well, we will come to that in a moment. So Giyu Tomioka’s history is probably the most poignant of the lot, more so because it explains his serious, nonchalant attitude throughout the entire story. Just like the other Hashira, a lot of fans also mistook his behaviour as pacifism bordering on arrogance, but turns out it was a classic case of survivor’s guilt. Come to think of it, every Hashira has some issues they’re dealing with. Maybe the objective of this arc was to make them look less like powerful, godly beings and more human. Even Tengen, who feels terrible inside for leaving the Corps, hides it all behind his boisterous charm.

So now you’ve breezed through most of the Hashira Training arc. You’re probably thinking ‘ugh, filler season’, looking at the time left, waiting for episode seven to end so you can go back to killing zombies on your PS. That, my friends, is exactly when shit hits the proverbial fan.

Muzan has found his way to Ubuyashiki, and the penultimate episode of this arc ends with the Demon King sauntering into the mansion like a MET Gala attendee, dressed in an ensemble that would make even Don Corleone smack his lips. A moment that immediately says, ‘playtime’s over’. But it’s the last one, episode eight, that skyrockets the entire season’s rating by several notches. It completely makes up for any complaint, any dissatisfaction you may have had earlier. Turns out, Ubuyashiki had already planned for Muzan’s arrival, even planted several surprises in store. And for the first time since we were introduced to the immensely powerful demon king, we see him confused, overwhelmed, driven back and pushed to the brink. When Tamayo tells him that the Blood Demon Art used to hold him in place belonged to a man he turned in Asakusa, the word rang a bell. Asakusa? Asakusa? Where have I heard that name before? It didn’t hit me until very late that this was the same market town where Tanjiro and Muzan had come face to face for the first time, the place where he’d used his blood to turn a passerby into a demon as a distraction. I realised that it had all come full circle. The innocent man had probably survived under the care of Tamayo and developed an ability worthy of an Upper Moon, the same ability that Tamayo used to immobilise him right now.

This is probably a metaphor for how Muzan has a recurring tendency to lay the seeds of his own destruction. He foolishly killed the doctor who cured him of his illness, the man who knew where to find the blue spider lily. And deprived himself of the chance to be a daywalker. His attack on Tanjiro’s family was what led the young boy to become a demon slayer, the boy who also happened to be the only living person capable of using the long-forgotten Sun Breathing style. He tricked the dying Tamayo into becoming a demon and devouring her own family, and she went on to survive for hundreds of years and create the cure that would rob him of his former demonic strength.

But Ubuyashiki wasn’t the only one with a plan. Pinned down and about to get attacked on all sides, Muzan finally plays his last card, dragging the Hashira, the Tanjiro trio, and all the other Corps members into his Infinity Castle, which is now infested with scores of demons eagerly waiting to tear them all apart. As all of them freefall into the depths of its strange geometry, the screen fades to black.

This has to be one of the best cliffhanger endings in this history of cliffhanger endings. It sets up the next Demon Slayer arc perfectly. In fact, I tried and I could not think of any better way to end the season. Everything about the last episode is breathtaking, from its first frame to its last, from the visuals to the camerawork to the heart-thumping score. Ufotable seems to have learned from their previous mistakes with 3D asset integration, because this time, they did a perfect job of it throughout the entire season. But I’m frankly surprised by how much content they were able to cram into that one episode. It is a spectacle that must be seen to be believed. And if this is the standard for what’s about to come next, I cannot wait to hit the cinema hall.

In conclusion, the Demon Slayer Hashira Training Arc turned out to be a pretty solid season that redeemed all its shortcomings in the end and met my expectations. Perhaps even surpassed it. But here’s the biggest takeaway. The jokes, the lighthearted fun, I believe that phase is over. From here on, it’s about to be a mad dance of blood, death, and destruction. This is all-out war.

Like a popular MCU character once said, “We’re in the endgame now.”

You can stream Demon Slayer Hashira Training Arc on Netflix, JioCinema and Crunchyroll.

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Mission: Cross Review – Marriage Meets Mayhem

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)

Kang Mi-seon is a tough, badass cop married to the docile Park Kang-moo, a househusband who meticulously looks after their home and chores. What Mi-seon doesn’t know is that Kang-moo used to be a top special agent in the military. When a woman connected to Kang-moo’s past runs into him, he is swept up in a dangerous mission, and soon Kang Mi-seon becomes embroiled in the same case too.

Written and directed by Lee Myung Hoon, the Korean action-comedy Mission: Cross (Original title: Keuroseu) stars Yum Jung-ah and Hwang Jung-min as the lead couple, Mi-seon and Kang-moo. The two of them are comically cute as a married couple who are used to their mundane domestic life and are quite content with their humdrum relationship.

Mission: Cross opens with a funny scene of Mi-seon and Kang-moo waking up together and getting ready for their day. First, the movie sets up their stable conjugal life, and then the plot gets crazy. The premise reminded me of both Mr. & Mrs. Smith and the more recent The Family Plan, which is about a former assassin turned boring car salesman who has to reveal the truth about his past to his family. Kang-moo doesn’t seem to have any intention of sharing his past with Mi-seon, so what comprises a comical twist in the tale is how Mi-seon begins to suspect her husband of having an affair because he starts meeting a former colleague’s wife, Jang Hee-joo (Jeon Hye-jin), to help her with a case that involves a defense scandal. Just so you know – ‘Mission: Cross’ features close to zero romantic moments, especially since the lead couple is way past the honeymoon phase of their marriage.

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One of the most refreshing aspects of ‘Mission: Cross’ is how Yum Jung-ah’s Mi-seon is always in minimal makeup and comes across as a regular, practical, strong, no-frills cop. I am so used to seeing actors in layers of makeup in Korean dramas and movies that Mi-seon was a breath of fresh air. Hwang Jung-min’s portrayal of the ex-military turned devoted househusband is entertaining, though it would’ve been more fun if the action sequences with him featured more gritty combat scenes.

Overall, Mission: Cross is a fun action-comedy that maintains its humorous tone for the entire runtime. The climactic face-off packs in a lot of guns, violence, and deaths but feels overwhelming not just because it’s over-the-top, but because there are no close combat confrontations. I am all for exaggerated action flicks, but then the director needs to throw in some exaggerated kicks and punches too. But if you’re fine with just guns going off, you’ll enjoy Mission: Cross even more than I did.

Rating: 7 on 10. You can stream the film on Netflix.

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Knock Knock, Boys! Series Review

Rating: 2.5 out of 5.

Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)

Four bachelors share an apartment and make an interesting pact after a drinking party—Almond, the youngest among them, offers to cover an entire year’s rent for whoever helps him hook up with his college crush.

Spanning 12 episodes, the Thai series ‘Knock Knock, Boys!’ is a light comedy that follows the romantic lives of its four bachelor protagonists. Nokia Chinnawat Phattharathan plays Almond, a wealthy college freshman with a huge crush on his classmate Jumper (Varayu Pusomjitsakul), and hopes his flatmates will help set them up. Jaonine Jiraphat Sodjam portrays the pansexual Latte, who is both Almond’s classmate and flatmate, and one of the most likable characters in the series. Vittawin Veeravidhayanant (‘Check Out‘) plays the nerdy Peak, who is dealing with issues at home. Seng Wichai Saefant rounds out the group as Thanwa, a food blogger who loves cooking meals for his friends.

I was thoroughly enjoying the series until episode 5, which introduces an unnecessary and problematic conflict that disrupts the otherwise light-hearted tone. A clip of one of the characters in a compromising position is leaked on social media, leading to some serious misunderstanding about who is responsible. When the truth finally comes out in the second half of the series, it doesn’t even make much sense.

Nokia Chinnawat Phattharathan and Jaonine Jiraphat Sodjam are quite endearing as Almond and Latte (the names are too funny), and their onscreen chemistry is sweet. The slow, comedic romance between their characters is one of the redeeming qualities of ‘Knock Knock, Boys!’. However, Vittawin Veeravidhayanant and Seng Wichai Saefant seem mismatched—their chemistry isn’t convincing, despite their solid performances. Vittawin’s character, Peak, is particularly frustrating, as he’s an annoying people-pleaser who literally runs away from his problems. Seng Wichai Saefant is proving to be a versatile actor, from playing a crazy-creepy teen in ‘Secret Crush on You’, to being the calm, rational, and understanding Thanwa in Knock Knock, Boys, Seng displays a chameleon-like ability to seamlessly embody each character he plays.

While Knock Knock, Boys! was marketed as a fun, spicy romantic comedy about four flatmates betting on who can get Almond to lose his virginity, that plotline wraps up by the fifth episode, which is less than halfway through the series. I expected an out-and-out comedy, but it turned into a not-so-entertaining drama.

Rating: 5 on 10. You can stream “Knock Knock, Boys!” on WeTV.

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Virginia Woolf: Graphic Novel Review

Rating: 2 out of 5.

Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)

Well, this was a blur! Comixology’s Virginia Woolf by Liuba Gabriele is an illustrated biography of the famous English writer and poet, primarily focusing on Virginia’s relationship with Vita Sackville-West, with only brief glimpses into her literary career.

Even though it’s been just a few minutes since I finished reading the book and started writing this review, I can barely remember much of it. The art style didn’t resonate with me, though it’s quite nice—simple, crayon-like sketches with pleasant colors. Since art and beauty lie in the eye of the beholder, perhaps other readers will appreciate the artwork more than I did. I picked up this book because I was impressed by a similar illustrated biography on Van Gogh by Comixology—Vincent Van Gogh: Sadness Will Last Forever—which had both compelling art and storytelling.

Virginia Woolf is only 122 pages long, making it a quick read, but the brevity doesn’t do justice to any aspect of Woolf’s life—neither her passionate romances, her writing process, her complex marriage, nor her fragile mental health. The literary icon feels like a shadow in her own biography.

Rating: 2 out of 5.

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