BOOK: The Road to Oz (1909)

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The Road to OzYear: 1909Author: L. Frank BaumLength: 261 pages One thing that continues to stand out about the Oz books by L. Frank Baum is how creative he was with the characters he created. Unfortunately, by the fifth book in the series, it's also clear there isn't a lot of creativity left for the plot. Sure, this time it felt like there was a more conscious journey to Oz instead of just magically ending up there, but nothing else about going to Oz felt nearly as unique as the new characters. The first half of the book introduces quite a few new characters, which are usually seen as replacements for the original set of Scarecrow, Lion, and Tin Man. Baum did this in several other Oz books, so it's only the characteristics of these new individuals that shine through as something new. Of course, with so many new characters, none of them really get enough dedicated time to flesh them out...
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MOVIE: The Wolverine (2013)

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The WolverineYear: 2013Rating: PG-13Length: 126 minutes / 2.10 hours It's nice to know that of all the X-Men characters to get a spinoff trilogy, Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) was able to improve from one movie to the next. Of course, it's easy to surpass the peculiar X-Men Origins (2009) with a movie that explores what happens when Wolverine loses one of the core parts of his identity as a mutant. It also helped that this film (and its sequel, Logan (2017)) were directed by James Mangold—a solid director with a variety of different genres under his belt. I'm glad this little piece of Marvel recognizes there are other locations in the world other than New York City and San Francisco. Having the Japanese setting combined with a nuclear backstory (which also ties into the mutant nature of Wolverine) felt like a breath of fresh air for these superhero films. Because having Wolverine fight guys wielding katanas seems like a natural thing to happen...
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VIDEO GAME: Perfect Vermin (2020)

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Perfect VerminYear: 2020Rating: MTime Played: 30 minutes Sometimes, you just want to smash up an empty office with a sledgehammer. Perfect Vermin scratches that itch initially, but the longer you play, the more bizarre and horrific it gets. I've played plenty of first-person games before, but the unique way this one evolves with each iteration of the same level had me feeling nauseous for more reasons than just motion sickness. I appreciate its innovation, but I probably wouldn't have played it if it wasn't free and short. If anything, the short length of this game is one of its saving graces. I don't know if I could play it for much longer than the main story. I'm sure those who don't suffer from motion sickness like I occasionally do won't have an issue with this game, but the combined aspects of the first-person controls and the rush of the ticking clock combined in a way that made it uncomfortable for me to...
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MOVIE: Brave (2012)

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BraveYear: 2012Rating: PGLength: 93 minutes / 1.55 hours 2012 was a weird year for Disney and Pixar films. Disney released Wreck-it Ralph (2012), which felt like a classic Pixar movie, but Pixar released Brave (2012), which felt like a classic Disney movie. And while the visuals in Brave are as amazing as ever thanks to the quality Pixar had been known for, the plot felt a bit lacking compared to some classics that have come out of that production company. For once, the movie Pixar released felt just average, which was more disappointing because audiences had already seen Pixar make much greater movies before. Perhaps this was the start of the trend in Pixar movies to deal with generational trauma in creative ways, but it never felt that the "mother turning into a bear" plot-line was as strong as the "I want to be an independent woman" one. Sure, they're both connected, but all the advertising somewhat overshadowed one by focusing on...
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BOOK: How to Be Perfect (2022)

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How to Be Perfect: The Correct Answer to Every Moral QuestionYear: 2022Author: Michael SchurLength: 553 minutes / 9.21 hours The Good Place is one of the best television shows of the last decade. Its approach to morality and ethics may have been more "pop psychology" than anything else, but it presented these questions in a way that was relatable and legitimately funny. Of course, if you have seen this show, may I suggest also reading the companion book written by its creator, Michael Schur? How to Be Perfect is basically the behind-the-scenes notes on how the show obtained its morality subtext. I appreciate how this book uses humor to soften incredibly difficult concepts but still presents them in a way that's understandable to the average person. Of course, one of its flaws is that the topic of moral philosophy has been discussed in such depth for so long that there really isn't a satisfying "conclusion" at the end of it other than...
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MOVIE: Aladdin (1992)

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AladdinYear: 1992Rating: GLength: 90 minutes / 1.50 hours Growing up, I never felt Disney movies were something that appealed to me as a young boy. Most were fairy tales of princesses, and I didn't connect with Snow White (1937), Sleeping Beauty (1959), or The Little Mermaid (1989). Then along came Aladdin (1992). Not only was the main character male, but the movie was full of action, adventure, and a funny performance by Robin Williams as the Genie. It quickly became my favorite Disney film and remains so to this day. Ultimately, Aladdin taught me a few things about life. Being content with our circumstances can keep us out of a lot of trouble; telling the truth is easier earlier on before the lies grow into more complex scenarios; and sometimes the quick magical fix isn't the right way to go about solving a problem. That I could relate much easier to Aladdin and his struggles as he tries to woo the princess...
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VIDEO GAME: Cats Hidden in Paris (2023)

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Cats Hidden in ParisYear: 2023Rating: ETime Played: 15 minutes I love big pieces of art that have lots of hidden little details. There's almost an impressionism to them where you can see the whole piece if you step back, but a closer examination reveals a whole other level to the art. Most of the time, these kinds of drawings are reserved for posters or picture books. Cats Hidden in Paris takes this experience and digitizes it for a fun, albeit short, point-and-click video game. The goal of Cats Hidden in Paris is simple: find all the cats hidden throughout the line drawing of Paris. While it starts out fairly easy, the challenge comes at the end when you've scoured the entire scene multiple times and cannot seem to find that last handful of cats. Of course, this means it's satisfying when you're finding lots of cats in the beginning, but it's a different kind of satisfying once you finally find that last...
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MOVIE: WALL-E (2008)

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WALL-EYear: 2008Rating: GLength: 98 minutes / 1.63 hours In the history of Pixar films, I feel the pinnacle of their filmography is none other than WALL-E (2008). By this point, their technical prowess had an impressive track record, and their stories were proven to be quite heartfelt. Still, some of the earlier films have not aged quite as well as this masterpiece. And the ones that come after have been fairly hit-or-miss. The planets aligned to make WALL-E an achievement of storytelling and visual splendor that has stood the test of time. While Pixar worked around the uncanny valley with the human characters being bloated versions of their former selves, everything else in this movie looks so beautiful and real. Perhaps it's even the techniques they used where it almost feels like the whole thing is actually shot on camera instead of entirely in a computer that gives it that sense of grounding. Because there's personality in a little robot that's rusting...
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BOOK: The Meowmorphosis (2011)

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The MeowmorphosisYear: 2011Author: Coleridge Cook and Franz KafkaLength: 208 pages The Quirk Classics have been an amusing experiment of mashing together a public domain classic and a vastly different genre to create something new. Most people know about Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, and my favorite from the set was definitely Android Karenina. The only one I hadn't read yet was The Meowmorphosis, an adaptation that uses Franz Kafka's The Metamorphosis as its base. Unfortunately, the fundamental aspect of the Quirk Classics mashups doesn't work with such a bizarre novella like The Metamorphosis. Part of what makes the other books in this series click is how the original text remains mostly unchanged in a way that the addition of zombies or sea monsters enhances the narrative. With the primary change in this book being that the main character changes into an enormous fluffy kitten instead of a cockroach, it's hard to keep most of the original text intact and still benefit from...
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