The ramblings of an unhinged yapper

About: Psycho Save Us (completed)

The story was decent. It was pretty messed up, but that was the point and it didn't feel gratuituous in my eyes. Eh, scratch that. The idea of being kidnapped by sex traffickers is already gratuituous in general :P. Regardless, the story kept me hooked. I felt sick when bad things happened to Kaley and Shannon, so I dreaded the parts when it cut to their time stuck with the traffickers, which in this context means that the book successfully made me disturbed. However, I wasn't as interested in the parts with Spencer, especially with the constant N-word bombs. On one hand, though, I'm already not a fan of that word, or any other slurs in general. On the other hand, it is completely in character for him to do this as he's literally an uncaring psychopath, so I can't really complain much on that aspect.

The characters were fine, all things considered. The character I liked the most was Kaley, though. I enjoyed her powers and I liked how while she could be pretty cool, she also has her signs of weakness like being afraid. Despite my annoyance with the N-word bombs, I also liked Spencer. His psychopathy was pretty interesting, and I liked how despite him being void of empathy, he at least rescues the girls from their torment. My least favorite however was Shannon, not because of anything major but because she wasn't as interesting to me. She didn't really too much, so I never got attached.

The book was okay. It wasn't super special, but it was entertaining enough to keep me reading. Despite its length, I just couldn't stop reading the story. I do apologize for this review not being long. Though I read the book this year, it's only now that I'm actually writing a proper review on it.

One note is that this review was actually all the way in fall of last year, though I had already completed the book months prior. This whole thing in fact MAAAAY or may not be completely copy and pasted, since I'm too lazy to retype the entire thing asides from a couple of edits :/. I recommend the book if you can handle disturbing content.

About: Poison for the Fairies (completed)

The story was pretty good. It did drag on a bit, and I feel like it could've been shorter than the hour and a half it was, but the ending made it worth it. I liked Veronica and Flavia's growing toxic relationship, and how despite nothing supernatural goes on outside of the girls' heads, the setting is still a bit creepy. I enjoyed the girls' antics and I liked the scene where Flavia gets twisted and burns Veronica in the barn.

The characters were good. My favorite had to be Veronica. Even though she's bratty and annoying, I still feel for her. I mean, she not only lost her parents but is lonely at school, being the strange kid. In general, though, Veronica makes me feel sad more than angry. She only puts her “witch” persona up just to cope with her insecurities of no parents, isolation, and loneliness. To her, witches can be anything. It's not only a form of escapism, but also a form of her gaining power. She barely has power with anyone else because they can see through her facade, but that changes once Flavia comes along. Flavia's the easiest to control, so of course she goes for her. In fact, I even felt sad when Veronica started crying in the fire, begging Flavia to help her despite her toxic treatment of her throughout the entire movie. Flavia was fine, I liked her naivety in the film and how she's a a representation of everything Veronica is insecure about. Flavia’s rich, has parents, has more possessions than her, which is why Veronica feels right in bullying her into doing what she wants after “killing” Flavia’s piano teacher. This is pretty short of a section, since there's barely any other characters in the film, which is another interesting detail considering that Taboadas decided to go with a 'Peanuts-like' approach in which none of the adults show their faces.

The cinematography and costume design in general was top notch. I liked the old fashioned clothing and setting, especially since it's set in the 60s. Though, I must admit, it felt like the 40s-50s to me at first when I saw the outfits xD they were so frumpy! Back on the cinematography, though, the colors were warm and soft as a nice contrast to the dark subject matter. I miss the coloring of older movies, anyway, compared to the modern washed out colors in movies nowadays -_-.

The movie was great. I recommend it if you can handle slow pacing and enjoy themes of the occult in horror movies. I'm usually not a fan, as I have a scrupulous fear of the paranormal and all of that, but it wasn't like there were real evil spirits in the film, so I didn't feel scared watching the film. I just enjoyed Veronica and Flavia's mischievous antics. Still pouring one out for Veronica, even though you were a pest t_t.

About: Welcome to the Dollhouse thoughts

Fun fact: I watched Welcome to the Dollhouse last year. Not a great opener to this blog post, but it's something, alright?z Just like how that hour and a half flick was something. I can't see Lilly Moscovitz the same ever again, ._.

Anyways, onto how I really feel about it. It was...good. In a strange sense, I mean. Was it a grueling and painful watch? Absolutely. Dawn gets brutally bullied at school, her family isn't necessarily abusive but her parents DO neglect her emotional turmoil, so there's that. One of the bullies forces her to shit in front of her, while the main bully threatens to rape her before backing out of that threat and instead developing a toxic relationship with Dawn.

Surprisingly enough, her siblings aren't too hostile towards her despite the inadequacy Dawn feels in comparison. Notice how I said 'too', because even her sibling relations are pretty flawed. Missy is bratty and occassionally picks on her, while Mark is more indifferent.

One thing I REALLY like, though? Is that just because Dawn is a victim doesn't mean she doesn't have bad qualities herself, like her calling Ralphy a f*g, and letting Missy go to ballet practice (though she tries to 'rescue' her later XD). In all honestly, though, Dawn is merely just a miserable and sad kid. Another sad detail is that in Palindromes, it's stated that she kills herself, though this gets retconned in Wiener Dog where she ends up as a vet instead (thank goodness t_t).

In general, Solondz seems to REALLY like suffering in fiction, and I mean, I can't say I don't understand his view. Middle school is a underrated portrayal of hell on Earth in movies. Even in movies where it's supposed to be 'challenging', they still tie it all up in a sappy bow and call it a day at the end. Not this movie, though. The movie ends with Dawn going to Disney (despite initially not wanting to in the beginning of the movie as her mom comments on that. I can't believe she's like meeeee), and though she sings with the bus, her voice is totally defeated, like she succumbs to her miserable future of continuous torture. It's a grim contrast to the 'happiest place on Earth', I'll give it that.

More movies should be set in middle school, in all honesty. The reality of it, I mean. I like some sap, too, but the bad and sucky parts can also feel quite cathartic so to speak, especially as a lady who also grew up as the weird kid and never really had strong friendships. Even when I'm headed for college, I don't feel like I have the closest friendships ever. There's always a layer of secrecy when it comes to me, :P.

Now, ENOUGH projecting from me. Now is the time for me to edit my dream log soon. I have a ton of dreams I want to share, but it's been months since I last updated that page. Have a good night, you all!

About: Criticism pet peeve

Not too long ago, I was sadly scrolling the worst social media website on Earth (hint: it's not Tumblr) and I saw a take that annoyed me mildly. It wasn't too unhinged as I thought it would be, but it is still an annoying sentiment (screenshot here).

I don't know why, but there's always been this weird critique that stories would've 'work better' if it was an entirely different concept, like a coming of age story being 'better' if it was about college students and not actual kids, or a fantasy story 'improving' if it's about a character who is always mature and never makes a bad decision ever. It's one of the most stupidest criticisms I've ever seen, and I'm tired of pretending it isn't (well, it's not like I NEVER thought it was stupid, but that's not my point :P).

What doesn't help is that these people, in the context of anime, would be much happier if they started to read and watch seinen instead of the seasonal shonen and shoujo that releases every year. Maybe then they wouldn't be shocked that a high schooler targeted story doesn't revolve around taxes and mortgages :/.

And also, many of these stories that mainly center around children or 'unrealistic scenarios' wouldn't work if those aspects were replaced. Undertale works with its child protagonist because if Frisk wasn't a kid, Flowey mistaking them for Chara wouldn't make sense, and the weight of the fallen children's deaths and Frisk saving monster kind wouldn't be as impact. Those VNs and animes wouldn't make sense if set in college because high school in Japan represents the last period of happiness before you become a wage slave in an office for the rest of your miserable life.

Anyways, my nothingburger rant is over. Now, I have to prepare my stomach to munch on spaghetti :P.