Don't Forget To Watch Video Review Of Juni Taisen On YouTube

Don't forget to watch video review of juni taisen on YouTube

Falsified Romance

The city of Brooklyn was coated in a thick layer of snow. School was closed, harsh winds were blowing and people wanted nothing more than to stay inside. Despite the cruel weather, Aria called Maxine over to her apartment to have a private chat. They only had so much time before Aria’s mom would return home. Maxine hung her snow-covered jacket by the door and met Aria in her bedroom.

“ You sounded really tense on the phone. Is everything ok?” Maxine asked.

Aria nervously paced around the room and looked at Maxine with moist eyes. “ No. Not really. I never expected this to happen but”- Aria paused to catch her breath-” I'm pregnant and Shawn is the father.”Aria wasn’t sure how she found the strength to say those words but she did.

Maxine’s eyes flared up before immediately slapping Aria across the face. Everyone nearby could hear the crack of the slap and some even turned on their phone cameras anticipating a fight. Aria slowly rubbed her cheek and tried to keep her temper in check. She didn't want to fight her friend. She knew it would only make things even worse.

“What happened to you Aria? We used to make fun of the type of girls who get knocked up in high school and promised not to end up like them. You were never a saint- nobody in this neighborhood is- but you were still better than who you are now. You know your mom can’t afford this baby and she’ll kill you if she finds out. Why would you be so stupid? It's not like I don't understand why you did it. I get it. Shawn is this charming guy with all this money and one day he has his eyes set on you. You probably thought he’d be your ticket outta here. Sorry to say this, but guys like him won't take you too far. You're only entertainment for him. He can find girls like you anywhere."

Aria rolled her eyes with her hands placed firmly on her hips.

“You wouldn't understand because you're still living the life I left behind. I don't need to fight other girls and steal their money like we used to do. Ever since Shawn and I met, he’s been taking care of me and mom even though she doesn't know anything. He loves me and protects me. I can't give him up for anything. I admit the pregnancy was definitely a mistake. We used protection so I have no idea how this happened.”

“Is this the same Shawn who disappeared as soon as he found out you were pregnant? Or maybe it's the other Shawn who’s been sleeping with other girls your entire relationship. He doesn't love you, Aria. You're just another girl he can play with and everyone can see it but you. Grow up!”

“ let's end things right here. If we keep talking we’ll end up fighting and I definitely don’t want that happening. Get outta here and give me some room to myself. I know you're trying to help me out but you’ve said too much.” Aria said.

“ Fine, I'll leave. If something  goes wrong don't come running to me for help.”

Maxine grabbed her coat and slammed the door behind her. Aria watched her walk away from her window as Maxine turned to look at her for a brief moment. There was too much distance to say for certain, but, Aria could've sworn she saw Maxine cry. Aria lay on her reflecting on the argument that ensued. She was angry yet she couldn't help feeling that she was in the wrong. She knew Shawn was a dangerous guy to hook up with but he was the first man that said he loved her. There was no father in her life to say those words and the boys in the neighborhood had lust for any female to cross their path. 

'Maybe I can still talk things out with him. If he really loves me, he won’t leave me to suffer like this. I’ll prove to Maxine she was wrong'.Even as the words entered her mind, Aria doubted that her situation would have such an easy solution. After about an hour of self-reflection, Aria put on her winter clothes and left her apartment. She would go to Shawn’s hideout and finally settle everything. When Aria boarded the bus, she reflected on everything Maxine said again. She didn't want to admit it, but she knew she really had changed. Growing up poor with a single mother, Aria had a reason to be angry since day one. She hated seeing her mom work so hard just to barely get by. She was exactly like the other moms in their housing project. Slaving away for nothing.

'I can't end up like her', Aria would often think to herself.  She'd rather be a criminal who stole from the wealthy than busting her back as a nurse in a local hospital with nothing to show for it. Being a blue-collared worker meant supporting a government that couldn't care less about you. Thieves are simply taking what’s due to them. The government loved to make life harder for poor people so it was only natural they pay the system back in kind.

It was that ideology that led her to Shawn. She was in a store, looking to grab some things off the shelves and run. There was barely anything left in the fridge at home and Aria's mom could only patiently wait for her next check. It was her first time shoplifting in a different neighborhood so she was anxious and out of place. She awkwardly stood in front of an aisle of food, her wobbling arms outstretched.  Before Aria could make a move she felt a big hand grab her by the shoulder.

“It’s too late to do any stealing. You've already made it too hot with all that fidgeting you did earlier. I know a good spot we can go to.”

Aria was prepared to be reprimanded by the store manager but instead, she got advice from local thug Shawn. The two hit it off smoothly after that. Shawn would get her fancy gifts she would show off to the girls in her gang. The fancy clothes and jewelry let everybody know that Aria was Shawn’s property. She wasn’t that “violent girl living in the projects” anymore. She felt special and was finally living a life worth living.

Shawn had moments where he could be terrifying though. There were days when he would get so angry and make Aria feel degraded. He would get into these moods where he couldn't help but insult Aria while reminding her where she came from. She had known about the other girls in his life but never came to terms with it. Yes, Shawn had fooled around with a countless amount of girls but Aria wanted to believe she was the special one. Delusions could only go so far, however. This insecurity would burrow in her mind and eat away at her self-esteem.

Aria could feel the dread building in her soul as she entered the old worn down brownstone. It was an ocean of snow outside yet this place felt colder than any winter to grace Brooklyn. Her ebony seemed to grow paler with every second she spent outside. Her nose was immediately assaulted with the stench of beer and weed. The floorboards looked like the entire city took turns stomping on them and the walls had more crack than the actual drug on the floor. Aria usually took pride in her Gucci jacket over her Armani Exchange sweater but now she just wanted to rip it off. It was the same reaction meat lovers have when they see slaughterhouses. They like the product but not how it's made. Aria glanced at the neat rows of white powder lined up to the sides. The same substance that paid for her wardrobe. She tiptoed up the stairs but it did any good. The loud creaky stairs were practically alarm bells. As soon as she hit the first step her eyes locked with Shawn, standing at the end of the hallway. A solid minute of absolute silence.

Shawn used to have a fire in his eyes that could fill most girls with warmth. The flame had long since kindled and it was an icy stare. They both knew what had to be said but the words were too shy to come out.

“We… we have to do something about this baby.” Aria’s voice was barely a whisper.

“YOU have to do something. I already told you I don't want nothing with that bastard child. You made your choice so don't try to bring me into it.”

“Excuse me?!?! We both played a part in this mess so don't you even dare play innocent. I need the abortion money.”

 Shawn traced his fingers across his temple, massaging the veins on the brink of bursting.

 “Look, you already pissed me off the other day coming out of nowhere talking about you pregnant. I don’t need you begging me for money.”

“It wasn’t the other day, it was two weeks ago! That’s how long you’ve been ignoring me. You need to take care of this baby. You know I can barely afford to take care of myself. Come with me to the hospital and pretend to be my dad so I can get this abortion already. I’m done with all the BS you’ve been giving me.” Said Aria

“Why you acting like I’m the only one who made this child? You’re the one who decided to get pregnant! We used protection and everything. You probably put a hole in the rubber to suck some more money outta me. The only thing girls in this neighborhood ever want is want is my money.”

Aria wanted to smack him but knew full well Shawn wouldn’t think twice about knocking her out. “I fell” wouldn’t get by her mom the second time.

“You’re taking care of this baby one way or another. All of this,” Aria said while pointing to the copious amounts of drugs, “is gonna get you in jail. I’ll keep quiet if you do me a small favor. Just something a would-be dad is supposed to do.

Shawn’s fists clenched as his cold stare morphed into a scowl. The fire’s back. Aria felt the walls close in as her ex leaped like a lion hunting prey. His massive hands gripped her by the collar and slammed her to the wall.

“I’ve had enough of all this baby drama. We’re done so stop trying to be part of my life. I’m gonna give you a real good reason to keep quiet. You ain't ever gon' open that shit talking mouth again.”

The air froze over when the police slammed open the front doors of the abandoned apartment. Men in blue came marching up the raggedy steps and now it was Shawn’s turn to be pinned down. Aria was stunned not by the police but at the sight of her mom and Maxine walking up the steps.

“She knows everything,” Maxine said with an apologetic look. It had barely been an hour since the fight yet Maxine still helped. 

“What kind of man are you? Alone in an apartment with a girl barely half your age.” One of the cops said as Shawn struggled with his cuffs.

Aria soon felt a warm embrace from her mom as she hugged with all her strength. Aliyah’s tears rolled down her daughter’s neck.

“I’m sorry mom. I’m sorry for everything. I ruined everything.”

"No, Aria, you didn’t. That man manipulated and abused you. It’s not your fault.  It’s not going to be easy but we can get through this. We’re taking this to court and suing him for everything he has.”

Aria shook her head. “Mom, you know we don’t have the money for a lawyer.”

“Yes, we do honey. The government will force the money out of him no matter what happens. Let’s just focus on you right now.”

The world outside was a harsh winter wonderland but with her mom and Maxine by her side, Aria felt true warmth for the first time in a while.

The days following the disaster flew by like the winter winds. Aliyah expressed her disappointment and anger at her daughter’s recklessness but was ultimately glad she was safe. The government Aria hated so much had siphoned the much-needed money out of Shawn who was currently rotting in jail with a statutory rape charge. Aria didn't understand the seriousness of the crime at the moment because she never felt assaulted but she know he had manipulated her.

There was still the dilemma of keeping the baby or getting an abortion. She didn't want anything to remind her of Shawn but killing something that was inside her seemed so harsh. After thinking about it, she realized she saw a pregnancy movie where the mom gets an abortion. The mom usually either gets talked out of it or is the one who shoots down the idea. The media is biased that way. There was no point in going through the pain of childbirth only to give the baby away so abortion was the bitter pill she would swallow.

When the procedure was done, Aria and her mom cried for what seemed like hours. Tears of joy for everything being over and tears of sadness for it having to come this far. Aliyah introduced aria to a support group in her hospital. It was for teenage victims of sexual assault and abuse. Aria was at first hesitant as she wanted to put everything behind her. Aliyah assured her that talking about the crisis she endured was the best way to move on. Aria reluctantly agreed and entered the program.

At first, it felt awkward talking to strangers about her life but with time it felt natural. She hadn’t realized how disturbing and cruel Shawn was until she looked at him with a retrospective. She wanted to cry her eyes out but didn’t want to look pathetic. Being part of the group let Aria see she was a victim and there were a lot of other girls who shared her pain. What’s more, is that every girl there had their own ambition. Some wanted to be fashion designers and others wanted to be singers. Aria never put much thought into what she wanted to be but now she had an idea. There are so many people in the world who feel directionless and abused just like she had been. She wanted to help those people and stop them from making the dumb choices she made. Whether she be a therapist, motivational speaker, or psychologist, Aria would heal the mental scars of those she met.

Magical Girl Raising Project Volume 1 Review : Dare to be Magical

Magical girls sure have it rough these days. It seems like gory death battles and agonizing despair is all they ever find themselves in. That's what schoolgirl Koyuki Himekawa learns after her favorite app game turns her into a real magical girl.

The concept of magical girls in a death game was something that immediately hooked me because it involved two genres I love. There are not enough dark Mahou shojo stories in the world and it's incredibly rare to have one as a light novel. The greatest strength of mgrp is the fact it's written from multiple perspectives. This allows readers to see how each girl copes with their grim reality and feel suspense as alliances and betrayals are born. Cranberry became my favorite character due to her sadistic lust for battle and expert use of her sound manipulation magic. La Pucelle is a close second due to his heroic bravery.

It would be impossible to talk about the characters without mentioning their stunning designs and creative abilities. Artist Maruino brought out her A game with her eye-catching costume designs. Ripple has a weird ninja/swimsuit fusion going on and Hardgore Alice looks like a gothic doll. Their abilities are also unique compared to the usual superpowers you see in fiction. Weiss' ability to conjure walls anywhere stood out for being surprisingly more useful than you'd expect.

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel despite already watching the anime twice. The prose is written in a concise style that made reading a brisk experience free of filler. This brisk writing style leads to the story's main weakness of the fights being far too short. The battles often end as soon as they begin while the characters get killed off before readers get to know them. One fight happened entirely offscreen which I found to be sloppy writing. Later novels in the series thankfully rectify this by adding more details and characterization.

I definitely recommend this series for any reader in a battle royale or magical girl.

Verdict- Recommended. Stay magical.

We are Water Protectors picture book

Review

I stumbled upon this book in the best way possible. I was strolling through the park basking in the nature when I saw that my library was doing a story walk. It was my first exposure to a story walk and its such a brilliant idea. Each page of this book was displayed around the park walking trail.

This picture book is less of a story and more of a call to action. It informs readers we are all born from water and we must protect it from the black snake known as oil. It's important to note that this was written in response to the Dakoto access pipeline protests. The native American population of Dakoto rebelled against the construction of this pipeline due to the damage it would cause to the water supply and cultural sites.

Author Carole Lindstrom urges readers to cherish water while educating us on its cultural significance to the Ojibwe people. Water is characterized as a nurturing force that gives us all life. It is our duty to keep water safe and protect the defenseless inhabitants of this world. Michaela Goade does a phenomenal job captivating the eyes with her breathtaking drawings.

This is an important lesson for everyone to learn because environmentalism isn't taken seriously enough. There's so much harm being done to the planet every day and we need to take a stand. We are water protectors feels like a folktale that should be passed down for generations upon generations. Do your part and save this planet.

Remembering what was Lost: My Dragalia Lost Experience

My time with Dragalia Lost wasn't as long as I wished it could be. I knew about the game since its launch, but my low quality phone at the time made it almost impossible to play. It felt like a tragedy since the concept of forging bonds with dragons pulled me in like everyone else. It wasn't until the fall of last year I played the game consistently after upgrading my phone. For a while, it seemed like I found my daily routine. I'd login every day for daily challenges, linger on the main menu to hear my units chat it up, fall in love with adventurer stories, and bob my head to epic boss music. All was going well until news of the end of service struck the community.

To say we were all shocked is a huge understatement. An important part of our lives was about to join the graveyard of forever lost video games. With news of Dl's impending doom, I was forced to reflect on my experience with the title and came to a surprising conclusion: Dragalia Lost is easily one of my favourite games of all time.

I don't usually talk about video games on this blog, but Dragalia Lost holds a special place in my heart for being the most fun I've had with a mobile game. It hit all of that boxes that other gacha games struggle to keep up with.

It's impossible to talk about DL Without mentioning Daoko. Whether players are chilling on the home screen, slaying a deadly boss or summoning beloved units, Daoko's pop vocals are bound to be heard. Even some of the instrumental tracks are remixes of her other songs. Her songs fit the game perfectly as they invoke the feeling of a light-hearted and fun-filled adventure. The pop score helps DL stand out from other games which usually use European orchestral music. It gives the game an oddly fitting contemporary atmosphere. Ryusei Toshi and CRASHER remain iconic tunes that gets players into the thrill of a good ol' boss battle.

While on the topic of the sound department, the English voice acting deserves special mention. Ocean Productions was in charge of the voices and that makes DL an incredibly rare case of a Canadian dubbed anime game. Each voice was a breath of fresh air that fit the characters like a glove. Special mention goes to Brian Drummond as Zhu Baije, Tabitha St Germain as Althemia, Richard Ian cox as Ranzal, and Mark Oliver as Hawk.

My only complaint is that the English audio lacks fully voiced dialogue. That could've gone a long way to making the game more immersive.

Pokemon TCG artist Naoki Saito brought his A game with the art design. Most of the characters have highly rememberable designs done in a vibrant pop art style. Character portraits were always a delight to look at due to how much they popped out on the screen. Each adventurer has a unique appearance highly distinct from each other and full of personality. The fun expressive style really added to the Saturday morning cartoon feel of the game. The user interface also has a nice sleek look to it that made navigating menus anything but a chore. While the chibi graphics can seem overly minimalistic at first, that simplicity prevents the game from feeling dated and instead gave it everlasting appeal.

It may seem disingenuous to review a game without mentioning gameplay but there's not much I can say in that department. DL's isometric action RPG style made it stand out from other games on the market even with its very limited attack system. It wasn't the most immersive combat system I've experienced, but it always kept me back for more and never left me bored.

The implementation of skip tickets and auto-loop was a godsend for grinding and made it overall stress-free. I didn't have to waste hours of time just to upgrade a single character. Just hit the auto button and step away from the phone for a while. Seriously, more games need to follow this method instead of making maxing out units so tiresome. The Co-op raid battles also deserve special mention since it was so fun seeing strangers come together to beat a particularly arduous boss. There were several times I relied on Co-op to clear stages because the difficulty is no joke at times. This was especially true for the MARVELOUS final boss Xenos which can easily last half an hour. Now that's how you go out with a bang.

Last but certainly not least is the story. It starts off simple enough with Euden performing his princely duty of forming a dragonpact; the main draw of the game. Then the game added layers of complexity with Zethia's dark doppelganger and the King's sudden evil disposition. The carefree prince now has to save his kingdom from his treacherous family with an even greater threat looming in the background. The beginning of rbe story was a bit slow at first, but there were enough plot twists and burning questions to keep me fully invested. I so was not prepared for the time travel shenanigans and social commentary on classism/privilege the mid-game story brought.

And that's only what the main campaign brings to the table. Dragalia has several event stories that heavily build on the robust lore and characterization players love so much. Certain events like Faith Forsaken, Fractured Futures and Advent of the Origin even serve as epilogues to plot points made in the main story. I will admit that there were FAR too many beach themed events for my liking. This game had great slice-of-life moments but it'll be too soon if I ever see another beach adventure in a mobile game.

Finally, it would be irremissible of me not to mention the vocabularian localization provided by 8-4. Character dialogue is stuffed to the gills with personality and colloquialisms you wouldn't expect from this game at first glance. It's guaranteed you learned a few new vocab words after playing the game. Seriously, some of these characters talk like they eat thesaurus' for breakfast. That's when they're too busy spouting meme worthy dialogue at least.

Dragalia may be lost, but I'll never forget the incredible memories I made along the way.

Juni Taisen Novel Mini Review

Like many Nisioisin series that aren't Monogatari, Juni Taisen is often overlooked by the public. There was a little fanfare when the anime came out a few years back before it was quickly forgotten. Is it even a story that deserves to stand the test of time?

JT's biggest pro is also its biggest con: the inner monologues. Readers only have a short time to get attached to the characters before they're abruptly killed by their opponent. This means that the writing is curt instead of the extensive roundabout dialogue Nisioisin is known for. I greatly prefer this writing style and it made for a brisk read. There wasn't any filler and everything was straight to the point. Though some characters were definitely less interesting than others, I felt that each one made a strong impact with the limited time they had.

My favorites are Inounoshishi due to her haughty attitude and Uuma for being a socially awkward beefcake. I just really love muscular guys, especially when they're shy.

The incredibly short battles was the only major flaw besides from the minimal characterization. It's a battle royale story so the fights should be the highlight but in here they're more of an afterthought. They don't even last a page. I'd be more disappointed if I wasn't already familiar with the author's penchant for anti climax. With Medaka Box as proof, Nisio can write inpreessuve battles when he wants to. C'est la vie.

Give this book a read if you enjoy character introspection and don't mind a battle royale without all the cool battles.