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Crowd Reviews: "Purple Dreams" & "Good Vibes" at soundcloud.com/raheeeem
Love Story : Magical Princess - Walkthrough
Introduction
A romance fantasy adventure simulation game, free to play only for girl’s version, pay to play for boy’s version and available on mobile, created by Catcap Studios and Littlelover.
Originally in Chinese, but was later translated to English.
-
If you’re looking for the walkthrough for Love Story : My Girl instead, click here.
If you’re looking for the walkthrough for Love Story : Legendary Twins instead, click here.
-
This walkthrough has been last updated on 22nd October 2023 :
Succeeded in updating the Endings section for Girls and Boys Version - had to separate job endings from the romance, ultimate and other endings but both links can be found on each of those two posts.
Updated and added additional info to The Guardian ending for Girls version.
However, I’ll still update this walkthrough from time to time if anything else comes up.
Thanks to the contributors and players who use this walkthrough for their gameplay ♡ have fun !
-
If there’s any submissions ( endings, images or information ) that you wanna share to this walkthrough, you can submit them to chowqing@ymail.com or the Post Office here.
Any questions that you wanna ask? Feel free to drop by Curious and Curiouser here.
Thanks for the submissions ! <3 It’s been a big help in completing this walkthrough !
Disclaimer & Notes
Use control F to search certain words or sentences in this long walkthrough.
Avoid the Spoilers section if you don’t wanna be spoiled (o˘◡˘o)
Do not copy/paste this walkthrough or/and repost and claim them as your own.
Creating this walkthrough takes a lot of time and effort, and my wish is to provide this walkthrough as an English reference for the players of this game.
However, the banner under characters featuring the girl and boy version of the Child belongs to Catcap Studios. This also includes any game illustrations throughout the walkthrough.
This walkthrough now covers the girl’s version and boys version.
Thanks for reading and have a blast ! o(>ω<)o
Sections
Characters
Storyline
Classes
Jobs
Shops
Vacations
Endings ( Girls / Boys )
Others
Q & A Corner
Fortune-telling Corner
Spoilers [ 1 ] [ 2 ] [ 3 ]
Credits & Sources
Chinese Version Walkthrough
Chinese Version Walkthrough 2
Catcap Studios Facebook Page
Littlelover Facebook Page
English Version Official Facebook Page
Hijiki’s Google Spreadsheet
Googleplay : https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=cn.catcap.ayc2en
IOS : https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/love-story-magical-princess/id1032310173?mt=8
My *Belated* Godzilla: Planet of Monsters Review
Okay, I’m sure everyone else who has reviewed this sorry anime has talked about this, but I’m just going to review the characters. We have:
Whiny Tortured Hero Guy
Seriously, one of the most one-dimensional characters I’ve ever seen (and I’ve watched a lot of pointless action movies over the years). Does this guy know any words besides Godzilla and bastard?
Totally Not a Vulcan
Calm, logical, pointy ears, religious...honestly, they just ripped off the Vulcans with the Exif, despite the slightly more fantasy vibe. And as far as this guy goes, I don’t trust anyone who uses the word however that often. I expect him to bite everyone in the butt in future installments.
Regimented Moody Guy
That’s literally all I remember about him. He was solely there to give Whiny Hero Guy a hard time before dying a heroic death.
Wait, He’s an Alien?
Honestly, could they get any lazier with their alien designs? I totally thought he was supposed to be a ripped black dude with some funky eyebrow scarification until he said a line about wishing his species had gods to pray to. Then that made me notice how the only humans you see on the ship are white or Asian, which either means black people didn’t survive the apocalypse or they’re all on other ships. (I know, I know, it’s Japanese, but you’d think you’d want to be more inclusive if you’re selling to international audiences.) Instead, you get warlike forehead aliens. If you’re going to rip off the Klingons, at least make them look a little less human.
Obligatory Female Character
And that’s all there really is to her. At least she had some good action sequences and never served as eye candy.
Oh, Yeah, and This Guy
One could almost forget this was supposed to be a Godzilla movie, despite the title. No more than we see of him, everyone on the ship could have just as easily been discussing an alien threat. Seriously, replace Godzilla with an alien invasion (or even Cthulhu for that matter), and it would virtually be the same anime. I mean, he was cool, what little bit we got to see of him, and I liked the twist regarding his species at the end. However, to be a Godzilla movie, it wasn’t really about him at all.
The Truth About Spirou & Fantasio Issue 56: La Mort de Spirou
Last year, I've heard that new Spirou & Fantasio graphic novel has been originally published in 2022 and the authors Abitan Benjamin, Sophie Guerrive and Schwartz have made it together. It was called "La Mort de Spirou" in French that means "The Death of Spirou". I've found so many results about it on Google but I can't be able to get a full review of that book in each one of those websites.
Love Story : Magical Princess ( Game ) Review
Yahoo ! A new love simulation mobile game developed by Catcap Studios has just release their English version yesterday, and all I can say is that I’m already falling in love with it :)
I’ve been a fan of the game developer ever since playing their games like NikkiUP2U and Sweetheart, which I highly recommend that you should give them a try as well.
Love Story - Magical Princess is a love fantasy adventure simulation, where the player ( you! ) will raise a child ( girl is free but boy is paid ) which you found one day, together with your butler Sebastian.
In the amount of six years, the child will grow up under your guidance, and you will be the one to control his/her destiny by making choices.
The storyline is unique, beautiful CGs and illustrations as well as immersive music are what makes this game highly replayable and addictive.
You can even customise your child with clothes, hairstyles and accessories, take them on vacation, set schedules and classes too !
Now, if only there is a way to rate more than 5 stars rating for this game, I would rate it much more than that.
Since I like this game so much, I’ll probably do a walkthrough on it but only from the girl version. I won’t be able to afford the boy version due to some reasons.
English Walkthrough HERE
If you wish to download the game, feel free to click the link below.
Google Playstore : https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=cn.catcap.ayc2en&hl=en
IOS : https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/love-story-magical-princess/id1032310173?mt=8
Disclaimer :
The thumbnail image on this post belongs to Capcat Studios.
Love Story : Magical Princess - Walkthrough
Introduction
A romance fantasy adventure simulation game, free to play only for girl’s version, pay to play for boy’s version and available on mobile, created by Catcap Studios and Littlelover.
Originally in Chinese, but was later translated to English.
-
If you’re looking for the walkthrough for Love Story : My Girl instead, click here.
If you’re looking for the walkthrough for Love Story : Legendary Twins instead, click here.
-
This walkthrough has been last updated on 22nd October 2023 :
Succeeded in updating the Endings section for Girls and Boys Version - had to separate job endings from the romance, ultimate and other endings but both links can be found on each of those two posts.
Updated and added additional info to The Guardian ending for Girls version.
However, I’ll still update this walkthrough from time to time if anything else comes up.
Thanks to the contributors and players who use this walkthrough for their gameplay ♡ have fun !
-
If there’s any submissions ( endings, images or information ) that you wanna share to this walkthrough, you can submit them to chowqing@ymail.com or the Post Office here.
Any questions that you wanna ask? Feel free to drop by Curious and Curiouser here.
Thanks for the submissions ! <3 It’s been a big help in completing this walkthrough !
Disclaimer & Notes
Use control F to search certain words or sentences in this long walkthrough.
Avoid the Spoilers section if you don’t wanna be spoiled (o˘◡˘o)
Do not copy/paste this walkthrough or/and repost and claim them as your own.
Creating this walkthrough takes a lot of time and effort, and my wish is to provide this walkthrough as an English reference for the players of this game.
However, the banner under characters featuring the girl and boy version of the Child belongs to Catcap Studios. This also includes any game illustrations throughout the walkthrough.
This walkthrough now covers the girl’s version and boys version.
Thanks for reading and have a blast ! o(>ω<)o
Sections
Characters
Storyline
Classes
Jobs
Shops
Vacations
Endings ( Girls / Boys )
Others
Q & A Corner
Fortune-telling Corner
Spoilers [ 1 ] [ 2 ] [ 3 ]
Credits & Sources
Chinese Version Walkthrough
Chinese Version Walkthrough 2
Catcap Studios Facebook Page
Littlelover Facebook Page
English Version Official Facebook Page
Hijiki’s Google Spreadsheet
Googleplay : https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=cn.catcap.ayc2en
IOS : https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/love-story-magical-princess/id1032310173?mt=8
Love Story : Legendary Twins ( Game ) Review
Hey hey~ it’s been a year or so since Love Story : Magical Princess English version came out and now here comes the next game in line, Love Story : Legendary Twins.
I’ve been waiting for this game to be translated into English after playing the first one. And looks like the wait is well-worth. ^_^
Still in the same world, there are differences from the previous one. The storyline is different, involving twins, heaven, hell and the mortal world with new features and love interests to go after. The amount of game years have also been reduced to five years, unlike six years in the previous one.
I also notice that this game relies on how you interact with your Child, through conversations and playing mini-games. Stats and encounters are no longer the only things to be looking after, which makes it a bit more tricky.
In my first game round, tbh I was a bit confused at first. Especially the feathers, which is another feature added to the game. Turns out it’s just to trade for Wings for your Child to wear.
And much further into the game, only then was I able to get use to the system. Searching for the love interests also involves a lot of looking around~
Throughout the game, I was thinking ( and probably someone is gonna be asking later on ) is why isn’t the love-struck guard, Caris or the handsome swordsman teacher, Halas available as romance routes. Raphael, Baal, Bunny, gorgeous guys and girls in this game. The character designs in this game are really good QwQ
The only downside of this game is that some parts feels incomplete? Like the Others section hasn’t been unlocked. Maybe it’s just me, but other that that, I feel this game is quite fun to play and I’ll definitely recommend it :)
Like Love Story : Magical Princess, I’ll create a seperate walkthrough which will start with the Girl’s version. It’ll take awhile but I’ll do my best o-o/
If you wish to download the game,
Google Playstore : https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=cn.actcap.ayc3en&hl=en
IOS : https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/love-story-legendary-twins/id1087299727?mt=8
Disclaimer :
The thumbnail image on this post belongs to Capcat Studios.
Love Story : Legendary Twins - Walkthrough
Introduction
A romance fantasy adventure simulation game, free to play only for girl’s version, pay to play for boy’s version and available on mobile, created by Catcap Studios and Littlelover.
Originally in Chinese, but was later translated to English.
-
If you’re looking for the walkthrough for Love Story : My Girl instead, click here.
If you’re looking for the walkthrough for Love Story : Magical Princess instead, click here.
-
This walkthrough has been last updated on 13 January 2021 :
Redid Shawn’s endings - 13th January 2021
Thanks to the lovely Sayuri for their contributions! ☆ ～('▽^人)
Also, happy holidays ＼(＾▽＾)／wishing each and everyone of you a blessed year ahead! 2020 was indeed a tough year with its ups and downs, hopefully all will be better in 2021.
Accepting submissions for boys version and girls version.
All walkthroughs for Love Story series are being revamped and re-check so they match the latest update. It might take a long time.
-
If there’s any submissions ( endings, images or information ) that you wanna share to this walkthrough, you can submit them to chowqing@ymail.com or the Post Office here.
Any questions that you wanna ask? Feel free to drop by Curious and Curiouser here.
Thanks for the submissions ^_^ It’s been a big help in completing this walkthrough!
Disclaimer & Notes
Use control F to search certain words or sentences in this long walkthrough.
Avoid the Spoilers section if you don’t wanna be spoiled (o˘◡˘o)
Do not copy/paste this walkthrough or/and repost and claim them as your own.
Creating this walkthrough takes a lot of time and effort, and my wish is to provide this walkthrough as an English reference for the players of this game.
However, the banner under characters featuring the twins belongs to Catcap Studios. This also includes any game illustrations throughout the walkthrough.
This walkthrough covers the girl’s version.The boys version may be added later to the walkthrough.
Thanks for reading and have a blast ! (✧ω✧)
Sections
Characters
Storyline
Practice
Part-time Job
Mini Games
Dialogue & Conversations
Events
Endings ( Girls / Boys )
Others - Not yet available in the game
Q & A Corner
Spoilers
Credits & Sources
Catcap Studios Facebook Page
Littlelover Facebook Page
English Version Official Facebook Page
Chinese Version Guide by 雪蝶狐
Googleplay : https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=cn.actcap.ayc3en&hl=en
IOS : https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/love-story-legendary-twins/id1087299727?mt=8
Love Story : My Girl ( Game ) Review
The game that some of us have been waiting for, has finally arrived in English version for both IOS and Android !
Love Story : My Girl is the first game of the Love Story series by Catcap Studios, however it is the third game in line to be translated to English version, thanks to everyone who supported the previous games to be translated.
Since this is the game that started the whole series in the first place, I kind of expected the game to have its flaws and to be different from its successors.
First off, the game only allows you to play as a Male Guardian to the Girl who has been place under your care by your commanding officer as part of your tasks under the Asian Special Forces. There is no boy version for now.
They have a nice selection of characters, with only Sebastian being a familiar face ( yes, he’s one of the secret love interests here ). I’m also guessing that the timing of this game takes place after the second and third game, considering the futuristic elements such as the military training and places like Skid Row and Business Street.
The game also seems to have more bugs compared to the rest of the games, which I’ll update it later in the walkthrough if it’s still ongoing.
My first playthrough of the game was a mess, considering I tried to spread out and get as much information as I could in one sitting from the game ( like the jobs and classes ). My advice is to have an ending in mind, especially if you’re out for the love interest because the first encounters are mainly stats-based. Yeah...I successfully ended up meeting not even one love interest throughout the entire first gameplay QwQ
Updates for this walkthrough may take a long time but considering that it only has girl’s version, it wil be easier to complete.
Still, it’s fun but I’m still neutral on whether to recommend it or not. Interesting but the bugs ( like not being able to change the names ) has made the game less enjoyable. Hopefully, these bugs will get fixed soon in the future.
English Walkthrough HERE
If you wish to download the game, feel free to click the link below.
Google Playstore : https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=cn.catcap.ayc1en&hl=en
IOS : https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/love-story-my-girl-dreamy/id1097706148?mt=8
Disclaimer :
The thumbnail image on this post belongs to Capcat Studios.
Love Story : My Girl - Walkthrough
A romance fantasy adventure simulation game, free to play and available on mobile, created by Catcap Studios and Littlelover.
Originally in Chinese, but was later translated to English.
-
If you’re looking for the walkthrough for Love Story : Magical Princess instead, click here.
If you’re looking for the walkthrough for Love Story : Legendary Twins instead, click here.
-
This walkthrough has been last updated on 27th August 2023 :
Unfortunately due to game removal, we’re having some difficulty completing this walkthrough to the fullest. Previously when this game was available to play, there were known bugs include name change at starting, certain work requirements met but not unlock, etc hindering full gameplay for Android players.
However, for closure sake, we’ve updated this walkthrough with all of the CGs and images so everyone can easily view them. Many thanks to Gwen Reaper for providing them and for updating us on the discovery ~! Also, thanks to SP for providing the guide to Luna’s ending!
Do check out Gwen Reaper’s Tips & Tricks & SP’s Luna Ending Guide by CrystalWolf Studios if you ever need help on completing the game owo/
Q&A Corner will be updated soon!
If there’s any submissions ( endings, images or information ) that you wanna share to this walkthrough, you can submit them to chowqing@ymail.com or the Post Office here.
Any questions that you wanna ask? Feel free to drop by Curious and Curiouser here.
Thanks for the submissions ! <3 It’s been a big help in completing this walkthrough !
Disclaimer & Notes
Use control F to search certain words or sentences in this long walkthrough o(>ω<)o
Do not copy/paste this walkthrough or/and repost and claim them as your own.
Creating this walkthrough takes a lot of time and effort, and my wish is to provide this walkthrough as an English reference for the players of this game.
However, the image here featuring the thumbnail of the Child belongs to Catcap Studios. This also includes any game illustrations throughout the walkthrough.
Thanks for reading and have a blast ! (o˘◡˘o)
Sections
Characters
Storyline
Study
Work
Events
Vacations
Endings
Q & A Corner
Fortune-telling Corner
Credits & Sources
Catcap Studios Facebook Page
Littlelover Facebook Page
Gwen Reaper’s TIps and Tricks submitted by Lila :
https://docs.google.com/document/d/13RWG-vW0U6e8exgc-WvXd52Nbrl7NViGA5XFx65U0cs/mobilebasic
SP’s Luna Ending Guide by CrystalWolf Studios :
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-Hp6swIhCum-eWzQCghECuOaJfJkcCC3Bh4qcR5qR4Q/edit?ts=5b63f106
Googleplay : https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=cn.catcap.ayc1en&hl=en
IOS : https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/love-story-my-girl-dreamy/id1097706148?mt=8
RWBY: Start to Finish -
Introduction - What is RWBY without the blessings of the twin gods of fantastic animation, and Halo existentialism? It is a project that should have only survived until the next big thing to distract its creators. But RWBY has taken to life the way Frankenstein’s Monster took it. Not very well.
RWBY can never escape the drama of its famed creators, which in any case gives the show a twist of lemon that zests up the story. Depending, of course, on which side of the fandom one asks. But that begs the question; how does RWBY stack up for someone who is not invested in the legend of its creation?
RWBY -
In a world of Humans, Monsters, and Magic there are four girls. Four well-armed, deadly little girls training to slay monsters known as ‘Grimm,’ to protect a civilization that is a ‘Remnant’ of something greater that was destroyed long ago.
Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee, Blake Belladonna, and Yang Xiao Long. Together they form the titular team ‘RWBY,’ and these are their adventures.
A punchy premise. Simple, yet solid enough to build a story upon. Complexity should only be a product of the story, not its selling point, and for the worse RWBY gets complex as the story progresses.
But for now, let’s start with Chapter 1.
Chapter 1; Ruby Rose
While a mysterious couple debates the merits of a Simple Soul and its effect on a ‘victory’ of some sort, we are introduced to Remnant. More specifically, a city in the wider world of Remnant. A very modern city with modern criminals, wearing sharp suits and wielding guns.
A gang of these sharply dressed ne’er do wells attempt to rob a store for its ‘Dust,’ but their crime spree is halted by the show’s Protagonist. A little girl in a red riding hood named Ruby Rose.
Shenanigans ensue, a rooftop chase leads to a rooftop duel, followed by a rooftop magic duel between a ‘Huntress’ and a Mysterious Female in a red dress. The fight ends with the Mysterious Female winning since she manages to escape.
Ruby Rose is a Huntress fangirl though, so she chalks it up as a lucky escape on the Mysterious Woman’s part, and tries to get the Huntress’s autograph.
Ruby gets interrogated instead. With cookies, compliments on her skills, a career talk, and an enrollment form into Beacon Academy. Where Ruby Rose gets a chance to follow in the footsteps of the very people she idolizes.
In the end, we learn that the criminal Ruby fought was Roman Torchwick, the Huntress Ruby first met was named Glynda Goodwitch, there was a civil rights thing for Faunus, and that Ruby could see Signal Academy from the airship she was riding to Beacon Academy.
Thus, the adventure begins.
Problems -
There are several problems from the start of this episode which could all be summarized with a general umbrella under which the show tries to hide from any criticism about its story pacing, and world-building. This singular, lampshade issue could incidentally be resolved with three words.
Keep. It. Simple.
RWBY’s first episode suffers from complexity. The bad kind of Complexity. Now, while both good and bad Complexity makes people think, the good kind of Complexity makes you think about the facts of life.
Bad Complexity makes you rethink your life’s choices.
There are a few points in this episode that illustrate my point on complexity, and I will talk a little about each below:
The Opening Narration -
The opening narration was wordy. Pretentiously so. But more importantly, it sets up a world of fantasy. A world that is a ‘Remnant’ of something that came before, a world where its inhabitants grapple with infinite darkness composed of fangs and claws using primal magic. Magic manifested in Dust, a material dug up from the earth of Remnant. The very flesh of the world aiding its inhabitants in the war against the darkness.
The narration sets up an adventure in a world that is highly fantastical. But the first scene of the episode involves men in modern suits, wielding modern weaponry. Followed by the minimal display of this vital material called Dust, and no sign of the darkness called Grimm.
Okie Dokie.
Huntresses -
A tiny girl in a red cloak pulls out a giant scythe and beats up grown men.
Roman; I sleep.
Older woman with a tiny stick.
Roman: wE gOT a HUnTrESS!
Granted, Glynda does pull off some impressive magic. But what identifies a Huntress from any other fighter with a giant scythe? A Cop pulls out a badge, wears a uniform, and identities himself as a Cop in action. How does Glynda identify herself as a Huntress to criminals like Roman?
The Faunus Rally -
Toward the end of the episode, a few minutes is dedicated to talking about the Faunus and their rally.
This is all I could tell you about them since nothing in the opening narration or the fight with Roman alludes to either the presence of Faunus or their place in the world of Remnant.
Taking each problem together -
Is nearly impossible because each point raised above is individually so distinct, there is no clear way to connect them into a coherent whole.
The opening narration sets up a high fantasy story about people fighting for their survival against vicious monsters.
The fight between Ruby and Roman, where a lone girl with powers battles modern criminals and stops robberies like a superhero comic.
Then there are the Faunus.
There are thus three distinct stories instead of a singular narrative focused around the girl named Ruby Rose, neither of which are properly developed. This is not surprising since there are only 12 or so minutes for the episode.
As a result, instead of an episode and an introduction to the story. I get three separate scenes written by different people. Solely united by the character of Ruby Rose, who is wholly inadequate for the task.
Ruby Rose -
A rose by any other name would be just as dull.
A character’s complexity is something that should not be decided upon at the start of the story. Complexity, and a character in general, develops over the course of a narrative and is fully grown at the end. At this point in the show, all we really need to know about Ruby Rose is her goal as it would be the main reason the audience would follow Ruby’s story. However, Ruby’s goal is not to be a Huntress.
Sure, Ruby says she wants to be a Huntress to help people. But nothing we were shown through the episode indicates that she wants to be a Huntress. Ruby Rose doesn’t do anything to become a Huntress. She fights Roman because of coincidence, her training has nothing to do with being a Huntsman since Huntsmen use Glyphs to fight. If Glynda was any indication. Ruby Rose may idolize the Huntsmen, but that doesn’t show passion toward being a Huntsman in the first place.
A contrast to Ruby would be Izuku from My Hero Academia. Izuku wants to be a hero, so he studies up on the pro heroes in his area. His education is focused on becoming a professional hero once he graduates Middle School. More importantly, Izuku's values and his heart is set on walking the path of a hero, and when given the chance to save his bully’s life? Izuku takes that chance and proves himself to have the heart of a hero.
Altogether, Ruby only becomes a Huntress by chance. While Deku was waiting for a chance to become a Hero. The latter is what makes a Protagonist’s desire and goal interesting for the audience.
Conclusion -
Ruby Rose, both the episode and the character, are kinda dull.
The first episode has set up three distinct story set-ups without formatting them into a coherent narrative. The Protagonist also fails to bring the episode’s three major plot elements together into an interesting story. This is especially egregious since a reasonable audience doesn’t need a very big hook to get them interested in a story. The attention span of the audience of ANY show is equivalent to a shoal of Mackerel. We just need a picture of a hook that says ‘Hook’, and we’d be flapping on the end of a line.
In conclusion, Ruby Rose the episode is confusing, conflicting, and saddled with a very tepid Protagonist who is so bland Gordon Ramsay is waiting in the wings to tear your walk-in apart.
Better shows were canceled for less.
RWBY Review - Start to Finish -
RWBY VOL 1; CHAPTER 2 -
We ended on the line ‘Better shows were canceled for far less unforgivable sins on our last episode.’
There is a second part to this, which goes;
‘But a show has at least one season before something (that) drastic happens.’
I should have qualified that last statement because;
I know, I should have qualified my statement.
Moving on.
Chapter 2: The Shining Beacon -
Picking up from the airship ride upon which Chapter 1 ended, Chapter 2 begins with Ruby Rose taking her first steps onto Beacon Academy and fangirling about the weapons borne by the other students accompanying Ruby to Beacon Academy.
After being abandoned by her sister, Yang, whom we met on the airship. Ruby then meets three characters; Weiss, Blake, and Jaune Arc.
Bonding with Jaune Arc, Ruby makes her way into Beacon proper where the first thing we see of the school is an auditorium. Ozpin gives a speech, and Glynda tells everyone to spend the night in the Great Hall and prepare for Initiation.
During the ‘Slumber Party’ Ruby catches up with Blake, where Ruby then reveals that she loves books. Just like the mysterious, raven-haired beauty Ruby and Yang are attempting to befriend. Despite committing the cardinal sin of interrupting someone while they are reading, Blake seems to appreciate Ruby’s attempts at friendship but decides to call it a night when Weiss appears.
Building upon Chapter 1 -
In the vein of being creative, reviews from this point on will always build upon the last review of the previous chapter. A narrative is not cogent on individual scenes but on how individual scenes build upon each other, and therefore any review of RWBY should be taken in the context of what previous episodes show.
This is especially true since RWBY isn’t a ‘Monster-of-week’ story but a continuous story about Ruby Rose and her adventures.
Chapter 2 chooses to expand on the Huntsman storyline by focusing on Ruby’s entrance into Beacon after she was given a chance to be at Beacon by Ozpin. We learn more about Ozpin and his place at Beacon, we get a clearer picture of what Dust is capable of, and the Faunus issue takes a backseat to Ruby’s character development and relationship building with her schoolmates at Beacon.
However, Ruby Rose’s development is rather inconsistent. Ruby portrays multiple, contradictory character traits which cause Ruby to feel like a blank slate. Adapting herself to reflect the traits of better-developed characters instead of being a character herself.
The dialogue and exposition throughout the episode also make it feel like I’m being reintroduced to plot elements discussed in the first episode, making the narrative so far feel tedious.
In fact, it may be better if Chapter 1 was a prologue or a trailer, while Chapter 2 becomes Chapter 1. This is because most of the plot elements introduced in Chapter 1 were better introduced with a more cohesive narrative in Chapter 2.
What I (genuinely) liked -
Dust -
The scene where Ruby Rose knocks over Weiss’s Dust Cases was my favorite introduction to Dust. The scene was simple and established what we needed to know about Dust for now; It’s volatile, powerful, and produces elemental effects when it explodes.
The introduction also serves multiple goals; establishing Ruby’s clumsiness, Weiss’s schtick as having more than make-up powder in her suitcases, and the relationship between Ruby and Weiss. Ruby’s impetuous energy, and Weiss’s cautious uptightness in regards to her personal items and space.
It is also interesting to see a weapon being introduced in a way that does not involve fighting.
Jaune Arc -
At this stage in the story, Jaune is my favorite character. His simple design is elegant, his weaponry is a breath of fresh air compared to Ruby’s over-designed Crescent Rose, and Jaune feels like the kind of guy you could go out for a beer with. Which is something that writers tend to overlook when it comes to character design. Would your character be someone the reader would go out for a drink with?
Ozpin’s Speech -
Ozpin’s speech raises a question that sets up one of RWBY’s … themes. In the opening narration, Ozpin brings up ‘a Simple Soul’ as the key to victory. Though we don’t really know what is a ‘simple soul,’ it can be assumed that the story of Ruby Rose will tell us as it unfolds. So that’s fair.
In this episode’s speech, Ozpin brings up the question of ‘purpose’. The Huntsmen are at Beacon to get knowledge, but they fail to ask themselves ‘why’ they want this knowledge. Why do you want to be a Huntsman? Implying a question that requires a good answer if one wants to succeed at being a Huntsman.
The purpose is something that most modern stories tend not to explore. Why does a character want to do something? Protagonists and Heroes tend not to have this well established. The Hero fights the Villain because that’s what Heroes do, but why does a Hero want to specifically fight this Villain? How would fighting the Villain help the Hero achieve his goals? Villains tend to have this better explained, which may be why audiences identify with the Villains more.
But in RWBY’s case, this question is not answered yet. But it is a question that the show intends to address, and I think it is a pertinent question.
Another pertinent question is how I’m going to piss off RWBY fans this time.
Problems with the Chapter 2 -
Like Harry Potter, to an extent, RWBY’s main problem is Ruby. A special girl is marked out for a special destiny, and we have to know how special she is at the expense of more interesting characters like Jaune.
One example of this is when Ruby meets Blake and they have a discussion about books.
The conversation is skewed to explore more of Ruby instead of Blake by taking something that is uniquely Blake’s, her love of books, and having Ruby explain Blake’s hobby to her face. We learn about Ruby’s preferred genres, we learn what books mean to Ruby, and how they motivate her to be a Huntress. Forgetting that earlier on, Ruby’s thing was weapons.
Ruby’s thing for weapons was established at the beginning of the episode with a sequence explaining how weapons are an extension of the Huntsman and are thus cool. This in and of itself contradicts Ruby’s first interview in Chapter 1 where she states that being a Huntsman is cool because they are romantic and cool. At the same time referring to weapons a grand total of zero times.
One could argue that this love of weapons and romantic stories about heroes are linked to Ruby’s love of Huntsmen in general. Ruby does state that;
“As a girl, I wanted to be just like those heroes in the books... Someone who fought for what was right, and protected people who couldn't protect themselves …”
Which could work, and I like that. So what do weapons have to do with stories? It is a jarring personality thing that takes away from the unique trait of other characters and serves to make Ruby a fence-sitter. A character tries to be like every other character, and in the process loses her character.
Funnily enough, this is why Jaune is a more interesting character than Ruby. He is his own character. A boy trying to live up to his family legacy by becoming a Huntsman, because that is how he would make his mark in a bloodline containing warriors and heroes.
We don’t have Ruby Rose telling Jaune how SHE is part of a family line of ancient warriors, and thus showing how special she is. Jaune is allowed to keep what makes him unique, and he thus maintains the quality that makes him an interesting character at this point of the narrative.
Conclusion -
I like Chapter 2. It interestingly introduces several interesting concepts and is a good start to the narrative of RWBY.
However, Ruby Rose takes too much screen time, and the Chapter would have been better suited to being ‘Chapter 1’ instead.
The 5th Wave Review
Rating 4.5 I this is simply amazing. This was actually my first time reading something sci-fi based, and now i'm totally into the genre. The book contains a lot of betrayal, and twists. If you're into romance mixed with action, this is the perfect book for you. Is it wrong that this book actually gives me the feels of fascism? That's all i've been getting when the author describes the scenes and the actions. I'm going to break down my review into three parts: SPOILERS AHEAD!! Characters The characters in my opinion were actually really realistic. Cassie is a character who is very determined, stubborn, and has trust issues - but can you blame her? Her development over the story has really shown. She went from a normal girl to a girl who was on a mission to save her little brother from The Others. Heroic? Yes. Terrifying? Hell yeah. The other main character in this book was Ben. At first, we were introduced to Ben as a guy who was from Cassie's school. Now Ben is the guy who had gone from a change from the all-star football player, to the leader of a group-that-really-was-killing their own kind. Ben displays leadership skills, but he also shows compassion (which was seen through 'Nugget' aka Sam). I would really love to continue to read the series and hear more of a backstory from Ben. Plot The plot is actually really good, and the author really progressed the plot a yet slow, but not too slow pace. Enough to make you think each chapter. I love the world-building, as I got to see how each part affects everybody differently. The description in the book is just perfect. Not too much, but not too little. Writing Style If you don't like a book that switches POV's each 'break' i'll call it, then it might not be for you. At first I was actually confused on what was happening (I even had to search it), but really, it make the plot completely better, and the characters more complex. I think Yancey really nailed each character's dialogue perfectly, it matches their personality. The only thing is sometimes I was in another point of view, and I just wanted to skip Ben's or Cassie's, and go to the opposite person. First person really makes me feel close to the characters, but I felt like I was Cassie or Ben. I understood them. Overall, I am definitely going to read the second book! I recommend this to anybody because really, this is an amazing book, and it's something you don't want to miss out on.
Review: City of Thieves by David Benioff
My Rating: 5/5
“As siege-hardened as I was before my arrest, the truth was that I had no more courage in January than I had in June – contrary to popular belief, the experience of terror does not make you braver. Perhaps, though, it is easier to hide your fear when you’re afraid all the time.”
Unlike anything else I’ve read―within the prologue of this book I just knew that it was going to be a masterpiece. Never mind the fact that this guy is one of the co-writers for the HBO series Game of Thrones (yes, you did just read that) but I went into the book without knowledge of this little tidbit and it definitely explains A LOT.
I started off reading the first page when I slowly grew confused. Why does this book, which is supposedly about Russia in the twenty-first century, sound as though it takes place in modern day Los Angeles? And then it hit me not four pages later. David Benioff introduced us to his story by showing how it came to be, how he interviewed his grandparents and was told “David, you’re a writer. Make it up (the rest of their story).” And so Benioff goes on to writing in third person―an intriguing perspective that I usually don’t read―and boy, does he deliver. City of Thieves is a wintry tale of savage beauty. I cried, I laughed, I tore my hair out in distress and nearly threw the book across the room on multiple occasions. It was, simply put, fucking awesome.
Kolya and Lev have two choices. They can die as prisoners for breaking curfew, stealing from a German corpse, and becoming a deserter, or…they can venture out into the wild snow and war torn terrain in pursuit of a dozen eggs for a powerful soviet colonel to use in his daughter’s wedding cake. Brash and defiant as they seem, they’re not going to go down that easily.
Lev, a young boy without a family, is our narrator. He’s afraid of many things, but death is at the top of that list. His character development from the first to final pages of this novel astonished me to the point of tears. But nothing had me crying more than his partner in crime.
Kolya is the ever-jovial companion of Lev that just doesn’t know when to shut up. He’s flirtatious and ambitious, constantly making people melt before him with just a few teasing words. However, his endearing speech often fails him when it comes to negotiating with soldiers or generally anyone who isn’t a female or Lev. Kolya is slightly older of the two, and therefore he fits the brother bear role quite smoothly, but he’s also terrified of many things, and his fear is delicately hidden beneath his sarcastic guise. He has a deep passion for literature, which was ultimately what made him a “deserter” although he likes to wave that off, and since Lev’s father was a famous poet, one of the many who were the first to be picked off by the Germans, the two boys share a common ground when it comes to the great writings of Russia.
Ultimately, this is a story about growing up.
One of the bet things about this novel is the sadistic humor. The whole point of the story is to find a chicken that will provide a dozen eggs by the upcoming Thursday. It’s plenty obvious that that task would prove to be more challenging in 20th century Russia than perhaps tracking down the Yeti. So of course things like this scene would occur….
“Darling’s not for the pot,” said Kolya. “We need her for the eggs.”
“The eggs?” Timofei looked at us, at Darling, back to us. He seemed to think we were joking.
“Everyone’s quitting on Darling,” Kolya continued, “but I think she’s got it in her. Do you know anything about chickens? You think she can lay a dozen by Thursday?”
“What the hell are you talking about?”
The surgeon seemed more and more irritated. Konya glared back at him, insulted by the man’s tone.
“Don’t you speak Russian? We’re waiting for the eggs!”
For a moment I thought the conversation would turn violent, which would have been a bad thing for the Red Army; we needed our surgeons and Kolya would have splattered the man with a single punch. But Timofei finally laughed, shaking his head, waiting for us to laugh with him.
“Laugh all you want,” I told him. “You’re not touching the chicken.”
“It’s not a chicken, you idiot. It’s a rooster.”
DAMN, they were so close!!
This book, for all it’s light hearted banter and humorous phrases, demands attention. For every sentence you read, there will be a thousand images rushing through your mind offering beautiful and horrific scenes that will appear almost like a memory, as though it’s a recollection of the past rather than the awful present. The ending of this book was as gripping as the prologue, if not more because, by then, I had fallen in love with the characters. Of course there were many deaths, but one death in particular truly made my heart ache. City of Thieves is ferocious and chilling, but the friendships that grow from such a black time are the ones to be most cherished and remembered. This book was amazing.
Disclaimer: You’ll need some tissues and something to scream into by the end.
(Read this on Goodreads)
Hi, I hope it isn't rude to ask but I'm wondering if there's a way to ask an author if they're doing fine without making it sound creepy or "update NOW!"? The last chapter said "next in 2 days" and it's been 2 weeks, they update often so i'm kinda worried. Am I overstepping? (I'm asking you bc from what i see here you have clear boundaries & sometimes get awful comments, again sorry if asking you is rude)
asking me isn't rude!!
i think the best way to go would to just make it clear it's not about the update! i've gotten checking-in comments before and i think it's nice that people are thinking of me even when real life gets in the way
maybe something like: hi! i noticed you haven't been as active online as you are usually and i hope that things are going well for you and that you're very busy with good things! sending good vibes your way :)
AW YEAH! The Letterboxd reviews for Backtrace are coming in!
My review of Paolo Rivera's Daredevil Covers
Check it out on Comics Bulletin!
http://www.comicsbulletin.com/main/columns/de-saturated-dynamism-paolo-riveras-smart-retro-take-daredevil