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⭐ 9.0/10 (Originally written by Joseph) This game has been a HOT topic in the gaming community and everybody has had something to say. I'll admit I have a lot to say also. I absolutely adore the first game in the series, and so I was more excited for this release than I've been for any other. The first 10-15 hours did not disappoint at all. It was perhaps my favorite hours of a single-player video gaming I've ever experienced. The gameplay is fantastic, the graphics are stunning and story is bold, gripping and emotional. The acting is probably the best ever for a video game. I was completely taken in. From here the story makes another bold move (that I don't want to give away) that I appreciated, but can't say I enjoyed. All the drama is taken off the characters you are attached to and the spotlight shifts elsewhere. I love the idea that they were going for, but I didn't like the end result. The story really started to drag and this portion of the game fel...

⭐ 6.5/10 (Originally written by Joseph) Not too much to say on this one. It's a pure comedy, so if it's not making you laugh it's not doing anything else for you. I laughed sometimes, and fell asleep at the end. Soooo yeah. Just depends on if you find this kind of movie funny.

⭐ 7.0/10 (Originally written by Joseph) Jess and I were exhausted and wanted to turn our brains off and watch something stupid. This fit the bill. I actually didn't think it was very funny, probably because I don't think Seth Rogan is funny. But I thought as a drama, this movie was not bad. I think it understood relationships and sex better than 99% of movies out there. Some of the arguments and then the consequences of actions felt very authentic. This movie is also incredibly filthy. Lots of swears, boobs, drugs, etc. We weren't expecting that going in, though I suppose we were naive to think a movie called Knocked Up would have been anything else.

⭐ 9.0/10 (Originally written by kare) I had no idea what I was getting myself into when we decided to watch this movie. I had seen the trailer and thought, if nothing else, maybe it would be good for a chuckle or two. Who doesn’t enjoy a dumb, lighthearted movie every once in a while, right? But wow, I was not prepared to laugh as much as I did, smile until my face hurt, and fall in love with the ridiculously catchy songs. To say I was pleasantly surprised is an understatement. This movie had no right to be this good, yet here we are. I will watch this again and again, and you better believe that soundtrack will be on repeat for the next month of my life. Well done, Netflix. Well. Done.

⭐ 8.5/10 (Originally written by Magdalene) It's my man Science Mike! This book surprised me a bit, since it was more psychology and behavioural science, and less about faith or science. He tries to answer the question "Why did I do that?", reflecting on impulse control, gender expectations, social media, and more. He discusses how a lot of the reasons why we do dumb stuff like eat way too much pizza stems from the way humans evolved. The final conclusions are a lot about accepting yourself and your emotions. He does include some anecdotal examples, and he talks about the death of Rachel Held Evans. That chapter kind of gutted me. It's a pretty short book (5-6 hours on audio), and I kind of wished it were longer. I wanted it to go a bit deeper, maybe just because I thought it was so interesting. Anyway, I really enjoyed listening to this and thought it was super interesting!

⭐ 9.5/10 (Originally written by Will) Book two (of three) of the Mistborn series. A very satisfying escalation of book one, I couldn't put this book down. The ending was masterful - just when you think it's starting to get predictable there's a really unique twist. I liked the political storyline in the first half, but Sazed's arc was the best part of the whole book.

⭐ 9.0/10 (Originally written by Will) Mistborn is an epic fantasy series, and this book 1 is a very promising start. The basic premise is that the standard hero who rose up to save the world failed, so the world has basically been a wasteland for a thousand years now, which is where we start off. The world is interesting and detailed, and the magic system is great and actually makes a bit of sense (as magic systems go). It's 600 pages and still manages to seem pretty fast-paced and action packed, and also avoids being predictable in a lot of ways. I docked one star because I've read the Stormlight Archive (written after this) and I can tell Sanderson has improved as a writer since Mistborn. I've read a lot of fantasy, and inevitably there are a lot of themes and types of characters and settings etc. that become pretty standard. In his newer stuff Sanderson's makes his worlds feel really fresh with new ideas, but this one just wasn't quite as unique.

⭐ 9.0/10 (Originally written by Rebecca) I was really surprised by how much I loved this show, because I don't typically like high school dramas. But this was so fun, and so FUNNY, but also so earnest and touching at times. I cannot relate to the main character on really any level, but that didn't take away from my enjoyment at all, which is really impressive. I was hooked from episode one. Also I cried like 4 times. Wonderful.

⭐ 8.0/10 (Originally written by Rebecca) Sorry, I'm catching up on my movie night backlog. Tremors is a 1990 monster B-movie starring Kevin Bacon (and some other people) about huge underground WORMS and I watched it with my friend because it's her favourite movie. Despite the ridiculous premise, it was a blast to watch, possibly because I watched it with someone who loves it so much. It's a pretty standard monster movie, and the special effects are predictably lacking, but I had a good time regardless.

⭐ 9.0/10 (Originally written by Rebecca) I watched this in Grade 10 history class and definitely never quite understood it, so I really wanted to watch it again, and I'm glad I did. Such a cool concept, so thought-provoking, holds up so well even after 21(!!) years. Still manages to spur some really interesting conversation. I remembered very little, and it really kept me on my toes the entire time. Thanks, Young Keanu Reeves.

⭐ 5.0/10 (Originally written by Rebecca) Watched this at Wednesday movie night, definitely would never have seen it otherwise. I often enjoy "man in organized crime is doing one last job so that he can remove himself from that life" plots, but this one just felt so frustrating and stressful, and didn't end very satisfyingly. All I got from it was "wow, so glad I have never been involved in organized crime." Once again I feel like this was probably a good story that just wasn't for me. Thanks but no thanks, Daniel Craig. The romantic subplot was so dumb also.

⭐ 10.0/10 (Originally written by Rebecca) Can't believe this is the best book ever written. Seriously though, I feel like this story was tailored for me specifically. I can't imagine anything more delightful than a story about a lonely man told to go stay at an orphanage for magical children to make sure it's safe and discovering not only a love for the children there and the man who cares for them, but also a joy for life and a new perspective on acceptance and change. I genuinely teared up sometimes from how much I loved it. Every character was so different and lovely, the process of healing and growing was so beautiful, and it was so thematically relevant in today's world. I listened to it on audiobook (12 hours and I finished it in a single day--that's how good it was) and I didn't really love the narrator, but that barely even took away from HOW WONDERFUL IT WAS. I cannot stress this enough. I want to read this book every day for the rest of my life. (Also,...

⭐ 9.0/10 (Originally written by Beans) It’s the 10th annual Hunger Games, and Coriolanus Snow, along with 23 of his classmates from the Academy in the Capitol, have been chosen to be the first ever mentors to this years tributes. I thought this was a really great prequel. If the Hunger Games books tell the story of the revolution, the this tells the story of the oppressive system in place. It was incredibly relevant for the time. It was also a really cool perspective, seeing it from the outside and from a privileged, Capitol point of view. It’s a much less polished version of the games as it’s only the 10th one, but a lot of the ideas that make up the Games are introduced in this one. I don’t want to go into too many details cause I’m hoping some or most of you will read it. But one of the biggest takeaways I got was how the system looks so different based on where you are in the food chain. I would definitely say this book hit hard for the time we’re living in. It was fast paced and ...

⭐ 6.5/10 (Originally written by Joseph) I feel similar watching this show as I did watching Mad Men. I know this show is good, and often I appreciate the craft, but I don't actually enjoy watching it all that much. And along with Mad Men, I think my main problem is that I don't have any characters I actually like or that I root for. The Queen is less likeable with the new cast and most of the family is insufferable - especially her kids. The only characters I ever liked were the ones that opposed the royal family, if that means anything... I thought the show tried too hard to have an impactful, hard-hitting message every episode, though I admit some of them were really effective. The scene where the Queen digs into her son was one I loved, as was the scene where Phillip talks to the astronauts. I didn't hate this show, I just found it hard to ever want to watch it.

⭐ 8.5/10 (Originally written by Anita) Well I don't really know what to say about this one. It starts in the 1960's in America with a doctor having to deliver his own twins in a snowstorm. One is born with Down Syndrome and he makes the call to send her with a nurse to a home and tell his wife her daughter died right after childbirth. I mean that tells you right there how much of an emotional wreck you're going to be if you read this. I did enjoy the story arc of reconciliation and that it was told from multiple points of view. I also enjoyed how unclear who the protagonist was kept being. It was intense.

⭐ 7.0/10 (Originally written by Rebecca) I feel like this was a good book, but it was just not really my thing. I'm super excited to be seeing more stories with queer main characters that are nothing about the characters being queer (woohoo!) and I was really excited by the initial concept, but boy, I just do NOT like stories about war strategy and politics and betrayals and secrets. I loved the concept--boy from war-torn country finds out his best friend (who he's in love with!) is the heir of the ruling power who conquered his planet and they have to escape together! But everything after that just stressed me out. Really made me think about making difficult decisions in a war, especially as a pacifist, but again, it just stressed me out. Also, it's the first book in a trilogy, and it stressed me out even MORE that I know there's going to be another two books full of this mess. It's just not for me! Also, the author kept setting up fun tropes (forced to share a bed...

⭐ 8.0/10 (Originally written by Magdalene) The story of Jesus' fictional wife, Ana, by the author of The Secret Life of Bees. The author is exploring the fact that the Bible never says directly that Jesus didn't have a wife, and what would it have been like for her? Ana has her own goals and longings, primarily to study and to write, but of course is limited by the culture. She's also the sister of Judas, so it's an interesting take on him as well. Most of the book takes place before Jesus starts his ministry, but we also get to see a lot of the events that we're familiar with from the Bible. The concept is really interesting, because as the author says in her note, she's not trying to say she believes this is how things happened or that Jesus was married. It's more of a "what if" situation. (Or even kind of like fan fiction!) She focuses on Jesus' humanity (he doesn't seem to know/believe he's God's son) and his life before he bega...

⭐ 10.0/10 (Originally written by Magdalene) This book was really delightful and weird, in the best way. It reads like straight contemporary fiction, but the only speculative fiction element is the fact that some kids are able to spontaneously combust. Just like, set themselves on fire but not be hurt by it. No explanation, just that it's a super rare condition and probably genetic. The main character is Lillian, who's a mess, and one day her best friend from high school asks her to come to her mansion, and then asks her to take care of her fire stepchildren. Her husband is running for secretary of state or something, and their mom just died, but they want to keep the kids hidden. The kids are really weird and quirky because they had a crappy life, and of course Lillian kind of falls in love with them. The book is mostly her trying to find ways to keep them from catching on fire, and navigating their super weird family dynamic. And the weirdness of suddenly living in a mansion. ...

⭐ 7.5/10 (Originally written by Anita) I don't think I was this book's target market. I was constantly frustrated by how everyone was pushing the main character to give up everything for a stupid treasure. (I know it was metaphorical but I was still just annoyed.. like no one wants contentment?) It did get a lot better near the end for me when he was talking about enjoying the journey, etc. Overall, I'm glad to have read it since it's a somewhat classic and it gave me a perspective so different from my own and may have pushed me to shoot a little higher since sometimes it really is worth giving up some contentment for something better.

⭐ 7.0/10 (Originally written by Tim) I was handed this 600 word tome by my lead at work almost 2 years ago, and today I finally finished it. And no, I didn't just start it a couple weeks ago, I started 2 years ago and read about 2 pages a day. It's that kind of book. Ray Dalio started Bridgewater, an investment management company, and he is now one of the wealthiest people on Earth, and has been called the "Steve Jobs of investment". This book outlines the principles he crafted during his time as CEO, and the way he believes a company should run. It starts off with about 150 pages of his own biography, and how it all started, then really gets in to the nitty gritty with a systematic listing of his philosophies. My company follows quite a few of the principles he lays out, and I realized as I was reading how much of a Bible this must be to the leaders in my own company, since I recognized a lot of his pet phrases and concepts. It mostly revolves his concept of an i...

⭐ 8.5/10 (Originally written by Tim) Sad to say goodbye, but this show stretched on probably 2 seasons too far. Season 4 is the worst season, so they felt compelled to try and finish strong with 5 and 6, and while this is a better entry it felt oddly disconnected to the others. The creator starts really flexing his bizarre tendencies (as he does fully with his current show, Rick & Morty), and many of the episode plots and credit scenes are very very unusual. For a show that started as a bunch of people at community college, it has come a long way from that (and often references that fact). There are a couple all-time community episodes, a couple of those near the end of the season, so its easier to look back on this season fondly. But the new characters it introduces in to the group seem pretty random, and make the already unusual pairing even more unbelievable. I loved watching this show, and it will always hold a special place in my heart. I think the first 3 seasons are as funny...

⭐ 7.5/10 (Originally written by Jess Dyck) This season is definitely not as good. There were some strange character additions, weirdly self-aware story lines that were just not as funny, and I felt the absence of THREE of the original cast was just sad. It was just a very different dynamic, and I missed the old one. Change is tough. BUT there are some true gems in there. The final three episodes of the season were fantastic, and the final episode had me sobbing. Tim and I gave this 6 seasons and it was so much fun to watch that I literally wasn’t ready for it to end. Bring on the Community movie 🍿

⭐ 9.0/10 (Originally written by Magdalene) I liked this way more than I expected, but as soon as I watched the first episode I was already invested in the story. Devi's dad died recently and she's not really interested in facing her grief, so she starts making lots of bad decisions. Our girl is flawed, and I did feel like yelling at her a lot, but she is also a teen who has been through a ton. So I was still rooting for her. I found the characters super lovable (except for Paxton, who was very boring and too old to be in a high school show), and I loved the diverse cast. I found it funny, occasionally insightful, and very binge-able.

⭐ 9.5/10 (Originally written by Joseph) Incredible action, amazing visuals and a thrilling story. It was the perfect summer blockbuster experience. I mostly played the previous 3 games just to get to this one and it was worth it. Naughty Dog remains the gold standard for linear games and cinematic storytelling, and they ironed out most of the nitpicks I had with the other games. The previous games felt like Transformers, where the story was just setting up awesome action sequences. But this feels more like Avengers in comparison, where the action is still key, but the story packs enough punch to really get you invested. The characters felt much more fleshed out here and featured some terrific voice acting performances. I would still say the best feature however is simply feeling like an action hero. I felt on many occasions I was holding my breath jumping off cliff edges and hoping I'd be able to grip the next ledge. Several times after an intense chase scene I'd sit back and b...

⭐ 9.0/10 (Originally written by Magdalene) I pretty much didn't know anything about Booker T. Washington going in to his autobiography, except that he was Black and helped Black people. I just didn't know how. I think that made it especially cool to see how he went from a slave to getting an honourary degree from Harvard. The main thing that surprised me about his book was how positive he was about everything. He mentions over and over again that although he's obviously against slavery, he doesn't really feel any anger towards white people, and in fact constantly highlights how good and kind and helpful so many white people were. This was one of the reasons why he was so controversial, but man, why was he being so nice to us?? I was also so impressed with his drive to just learn and get educated (a true Ravenclaw) just for the sake of learning. And then his passion and hard work that he put into helping as many Black people get educated as he could. The man was non-stop...

⭐ 9.5/10 (Originally written by Joseph) So I played this game for 10 hours and 14 minutes. In that time I died 2076 times. This game is hard, and I am not one who likes a challenge during my leisure time. But in Celeste, it's all about the challenge. The opening cutscene tells you that this will be a challenge, and I love how they incorporated the difficultly right into the story. It's all about this incredibly endearing protagonist who wants to climb a mountain, which in turn symbolizes her overcoming her mental health struggles. Everything about this game is awesome. The music, the cute pixel art, the touching storyline. It's also the type of challenge I am okay with as you never lose any progress when you die, and you have unlimited lives. Beating a level feels great and the game rewards you with a nice pat on the back when you do something impressive. There was a lot of cursing while playing, but also a lot of fist pumping. The pain makes the accomplishments feel that ...

⭐ 4.5/10 (Originally written by Chaives) First I must say I know many people read this book in high school English class. It was not part of my curriculum though so I’ve never read it before. I’ve heard there was a movie but I’ve also never watched it.  Lord of the Flies appears on a list I have of “100 epic reads of a lifetime”. So I chose to listen to the audiobook the other day at work.  And wow. Let me tell you, I kind of knew what I was expecting but still.  The story follows a group of British boys being flown away to safety during the Great War. Their plane crashes (was shot? Mechanical failure? Unknown) down and the survivors are stranded on a deserted island with only adolescent boys, the oldest being aged 12. Basically the novel is an illustration of a society without laws, and the devolution of humankind into savagery without civilized society. The book itself was written well, and was definitely an interesting, albeit slightly horrific, read. But I have o...

⭐ 5.0/10 (Originally written by Chaives) The most disgusting masterpiece of language I have ever read.

⭐ 7.5/10 (Originally written by Magdalene) This is a graphic novel about basketball, and pretty much the only reason why I read it is because it's by Gene Luen Yang, who wrote the Avatar comics. I'm pretty sure it was well done (I still don't know comics), and I did get kind of invested in the fate of the team, though! It's autobiographical, about Yang deciding to look into his school's basketball team, which is doing really well. He's always been terrible at sports, but he wants to find out what the big deal is, and he knows a good story when he sees it. It goes into details about the history of basketball and how it's grown into such a popular sport, and some issues along the way, which was my favourite aspect. As he tells the story of the team's season, he focuses on different players and gives us some backstory on them, leading to reflections on what sports can mean to people, team spirit, etc. The fact that it could make me a little interested in ba...

⭐ 5.0/10 (Originally written by Joseph) The third book of trilogy in which I didn't really like the first two and shouldn't have read the third. Jess bought it and so I kinda felt compelled after sinking some 1.3k pages in already. Again, I have a tough time putting my finger on what I don't like about this series. It's a cool enough story and I thought the conclusion was pretty unique, but I didn't care about any of the characters enough for it to be impactful. I really don't like Sanderson's style. I think it's classic telling and not showing, and he doesn't give his readers any freedom to use their imagination at any point. I feel like his obsession with "hard" magic systems is in part his inability to let a reader have a picture in their head that differs from his own. I also think a problem is just that I'm not the intended audience. I think I would have liked this series a lot more as a young teen.

⭐ 8.5/10 (Originally written by Jess Dyck) This was definitely better than the first book! Pretty interesting arcs and character development, battles and mysteries that culminated in a reveal I was sure wasn’t coming until like book 10. I’m excited to keep reading! The one downfall is now that we have so many characters, I get annoyed jumping from story to story too haphazardly—the climax is always the most satisfying, when all our stories intersect again in dramatic fashion.

⭐ 7.0/10 (Originally written by Magdalene) This is a Netflix anime that we decided to watch based solely on the fact that there are dragons. We knew pretty much nothing about it going in. It's about a band of drakers - dragon hunters who fly around trying to catch dragons. And here's something I've never seen before in media about dragons - they eat the dragons! And almost every episode features a scene of them finding unique ways of cooking the dragon meat. The show starts off episodic, with each episode focusing on a new dragon they have the catch, but then the latter half of the season has short arcs that last a few episodes each. I enjoyed the longer arcs more, for sure. There are a lot of fun characters, and each dragon is different, with unique abilities. I really liked the art used in the show. I think the main flaw of this season was that it felt like most of it was introduction, and it takes too long to grab the viewer. But if kids can accept the fact that these d...

⭐ 7.0/10 (Originally written by Magdalene) This book is really hard for me to review, because it is so weird and original and mind-blowing... but I didn't enjoy it that much. I almost quit reading it a few times because I just didn't feel like continuing, and I don't know what wasn't working for me. Jemisin is obviously an amazing writer with a very creative mind. This is speculative fiction more than anything else, and maybe it just got too weird for me, I don't know. In this universe, when a city is mature enough, it is "born" and gets a human avatar. It's New York's turn, but New York isn't one person, it's five - one for each of the five boroughs. All five of the boroughs get attacked by an inter-dimensional fungus-type thing that occasionally turns into a white woman, and they have to find each other and band together to save the Heart of New York so that they can save the city, and maybe the universe? I was always a bit foggy on what ...

⭐ 7.5/10 (Originally written by Tim) As the title suggests, this book comes before Asimov's Foundation, but was written after, and honestly contains such a large spoiler I find it strange that it was done this way. I wonder how many people thought, I should read Asimov, picked up the book that sounded like the most natural starting point, and proceeded to ruin the ultimate reveal of the entire series. Or rather, read about a moment that was revealed in the actual conclusion, and know about it the entire time. Anyways, this book is about Hari Seldon's creation of the science that he ultimately uses to form the Foundation. It played out like a typical Asimov book, so I liked it, but the last 50 pages were where all the magic happened, and like Nemesis I thought it could have been better as a short story. Seldon is arguably the most important character in all of Asimov's work, so reading from his perspective, and not just about him, for the first time was really cool. Really a...

⭐ 7.5/10 (Originally written by Tim) I was really anticipating this one, since Spike Lee's movies always seem of the moment, and the messages that are always baked in to his movies around race and injustice are obviously at the forefront right now. This movie is about 4 Vietnam vets returning to Vietnam to retrieve the body of their fallen captain... as well as the pile of gold they buried him with. I loved the premise, and I also loved the flashbacks to their time in the war, where their captain Chadwick Boseman acts as their spiritual guide, leading in the war and also teaching them about black injustice in America. Like the couple Spike Lee movies I have seen, this one splices in a bunch of real life footage, this one using wars and protests and speeches. The way these were used were some of the more powerful moments in the film. This, combined with some incredibly tense action sequences, were the parts i enjoyed most. This Vietnam movie also features people losing their mind...

⭐ 7.0/10 (Originally written by Tim) Watched this one kind of on a whim. Had seen it a bunch as a kid, so nostalgia probably taints this review a bit, but I still really liked it. It's really cheesy at times, the coach is way too dramatic, and the music is so over the top. But the basketball scenes are actually pretty solid, and it got me feeling emotional. Nothing like a good 'ol American sports movie.

⭐ 9.5/10 (Originally written by Jess Dyck) Lots of fun, no denying it. Loved watching it, this is just a great movie, a classic for a reason! I hadn’t seen it in probably 10 years so it was amazing to experience it like I was seeing it for the first time again, SO MANY COOL MOMENTS!

⭐ 4.0/10 (Originally written by Jess Dyck) Honestly we watched this and I KNOW it’s objectively a good movie. Incredible acting, palpable tension, strong social commentary and a bit of fun along the way. The story is a strange combination of a war movie, a treasure hunt and a black history docu. It’s so hard for me because I KNOW it’s good and I WANT to like it and I WANT to be on the hype train but MAN I could barely watch it. The language was so severe I could barely make out the dialogue between F-bombs, the violence was pretty graphic, and there were so many suspenseful, tense moments that my heart just couldn’t handle. I maybe WATCHED half of it, and spent the other half distracting myself from the screen. It gets four stars is because I like cute old men (I said it) and they really were complex, wonderful characters. Movie highlight = the four main characters, older black gentlemen, dancing their way along a dancefloor in Vietnam for ~5 minute run time. Absolutely loved that mome...

⭐ 9.0/10 (Originally written by Joseph) This movie is the true story of a black cop who infiltrates the KKK. Lots of great stuff here. I think my favorite feature is how the movie consistently raises the stakes enough to appreciate how hazardous it is to have dark skin, or in another character's case being white but born Jewish. Without wanting to spoil anything, I'll just say the final 10-15 minutes are terrific. This movie is good as a cop drama, it's good as a social commentary, and it's good as a comedy. And of course, it's a great movie for the times.

⭐ 7.0/10 (Originally written by Rebecca) Once again I chose this audiobook completely at random to listen to at work. I started out pretty gripped by the premise--two best friends, their stories in two parallel, very different universes, struggles with mental health and trauma in one world and political uprisings and nefarious plots in another. But I felt like the second half really dragged, and I ended up not really understanding the point of linking the two stories because they weren't as parallel as I expected, and I was more interested in one than the other so those chapters kind of bored me, and it was kind of heavy-handed with the themes (as in, like, outright telling you the lessons you should have learned, multiple times). I feel like it should have ended like 4 chapters earlier, and then I would have liked it more. And this is coming from someone who loves neat, happy endings with all the loose ends tied up. STILL THOUGH, I enjoyed the experience overall, and the themes th...

⭐ 10.0/10 (Originally written by Evelyn) This book was so sad yet so great and I loved it inside out!

⭐ 8.5/10 (Originally written by Evelyn) This book was one of the funniest books I've ever read.I't was about a boy named George who decided to make some marvellous medicine for his mean grandmother; but is his medicine really marvellous?

⭐ 7.0/10 (Originally written by Joseph) I was really only playing this game to get to the fourth one, so I wasn't expecting much. Even so I thought this one was the weakest of the trilogy. It was a little buggier, had wholly unwelcome difficulty spikes, and added new animations that looked silly. For instance, if Nathan walks up against a surface, he touches it to look like a cool explorer feeling things out. But I think the game underestimated how often this occurs and it looks like he just has a compulsion to touch every wall. Anyways, there were some good parts to be sure and I've certainly become attached to the characters by now. Some scenes are even kinda touching which is impressive in a game you are not supposed to take seriously. But mostly I'm just looking forward to Uncharted 4 which was written by my man-crush Niel Druckmann ❤️

⭐ 10.0/10 (Originally written by Magdalene) This was one of the most delightful books I've ever read, and it's also a fantasy novel, and these are not two things that usually go together. The main character is Linus, a rule-following, average, middle-aged man who works as a case worker in the Department of Magical Youth. One day Extremely Upper Management chooses him to spend a month at a top-secret orphanage on the sea to make sure everything is as it should be. There he meets a bunch of "dangerous" kids... including the son of Satan (lol what). And their quirky guardian Arthur, who gives Linus butterflies. While observing the school, Linus learns a lot about judging others, looking past appearances, and prejudice. This book is just pure sweetnes with lovable characters, written with warmth and whimsy. It's funny and weird, but still reflects a lot of the terrible things that go on in our world.

⭐ 10.0/10 (Originally written by Tim) What an awesome movie. The philosophy and story behind it all is just as thought-provoking all these years later, but I was blown away with how everything else also holds up. There are some cheesy effects, but everything takes place in a computer in the 90s so it is somehow believable. And even with a couple bad effects, there are several that are still incredible, with epic slow motion while debris is everywhere, and all the sweet camera spinning action. The level of detail throughout is just so great. The story is clearly a heroes journey, and this tried and true archetype is used perfectly here, and feels fresh. We also get a western standoff, some kung-fu fighting, some existential humour, and some really thought out sci-fi. I was engaged the entire time, and I didn't feel bored or distracted the whole time, even though I have seen it quite a few times. I also love the villains in this movie. The agents are so stoic and monotone, and...

⭐ 8.0/10 (Originally written by Tim) A bit of a return to form after the previous season, and the creator coming back to run the show really shows. I enjoyed the couple meta-jabs at his firing and the poor season before it, and once again there were several amazing episodes. The MeowMeowBeenz episode is an all timer, and Black Mirror totally ripped it off. There were some main characters that left this season, which can be a tough adjustment. They are also really stretching for a reason to keep all our main characters together for a fifth year at a community college, but I think they pull it off. In general, less funny that the first 3 seasons, but better than the 4th. Still tons of laughs, and the tags that happen right before the credits have become even more bizarre and in my opinion even funnier. I love how creative this show is, and these final shortened seasons are over too soon.

⭐ 10.0/10 (Originally written by Anita) I absolutely loved this show!! I was blown away by how positive and uplifting it was (unfortunately this isn't too common in reality TV) and found myself falling in love with absolutely all of them. I was so happy to see Dan Levy as host too! I also wanted to make every single recipe (we only actually made one but it was *delicious*) and loved hearing each contestant's back story.

⭐ 10.0/10 (Originally written by Jess) I read the book first, so I was scared to watch the movie because the book was so good, but it totally delivered. The whole time I was watching it I couldn’t believe how relevant it was to what’s going right now, but I guess that’s why I picked it. I thought it was a great movie to better understand the social injustice of black people. The actor for Starr was amazing. #justiceforKhalil

⭐ 9.0/10 (Originally written by Jess) A great movie about a young girl who doesn’t know how to deal with death. I hadn’t watched this movie since I was a kid because it’s so heartbreaking. Warning: you will cry if you watch this movie, but it’s SO good.

⭐ 10.0/10 (Originally written by Jess) This show was absolutely amazing. Once I started I couldn’t stop. I loved the diversity in this movie, the fact that they even cast a character with Down Syndrome. It’s a coming of age/comedy/drama show. It was really funny. The characters actually look like high school kids (irl they are around 18-19), which was impressive. You will not regret watching this show.

⭐ 9.0/10 (Originally written by Jess) So Dan Levy was no longer the host of this season so I was a little disappointed. But I was so invested in the bakers in this season!!! Worth the watch.

⭐ 9.5/10 (Originally written by The Original Susanne) Just loved listening to this book. Light-hearted, funny, and fabulous accents. Paired with some insight regarding abuse, trauma, and flaws in the justice system, this book hit pretty much everything I was looking for right now.

⭐ 9.0/10 (Originally written by Joseph) I knew this movie was about racial discrimination and injustice, but I didn't know much beyond that. I quickly found out it was the most relevant movie one could watch based on what's been happening in the last few weeks. The parallels are right on the money and I could have sworn they were using footage from the least two weeks of CNN. Cultural relevance aside, this movie is really great on its own. I thought it gave great insight from many angles into a complicated issue and treated it carefully and with nuance. I thought the dad was the standout here, but there are plenty of great characters and great performances. However the boyfriend was so inexcusabley annoying and has the most punchable face and I couldn't believe they got that role so wrong!

⭐ 8.0/10 (Originally written by The Original Susanne) Lots to love and hate about this show. It's one of those strangely dark, moving, but hilarious shows. The acting is absolutely incredible and brought me to tears multiple times. The two main characters are so great with lots of witty, hilarious dialogue, and I appreciate the focus on strong, complicated female friendship. On the other hand, it stressed me out watching this show as things unravelled. Also, way too many coincidences and accidental meet-ups, one of my biggest pet peeves in media. I'd still recommend the series, though.

⭐ 9.0/10 (Originally written by Joseph) I knew the basic premise for this movie, but I thought they did the suspense so well that it didn't matter. I thought Tom Hanks was great, but my goodness has he done this roll a lot! This kinda just felt like the space version of Captain Phillips or Sully. But those are great movies, and this is a great movie. I feel like it provided great insight into space travel, though I thought it was a little funny how much space lingo they use that no mere mortal could understand. It's almost like they want the audience to feel dumb so 40% of the dialogue is incomprehensible, and you sometimes lose a bit of the plot as a result. Still, it added to the authenticity and make this one of the great space movies, on par with Gravity for me.

⭐ 9.0/10 (Originally written by Anita) This book was set in Southwestern Ontario! It's a first-person narrative from (mostly) one of a set of conjoined twins about their life together and separately. There is also some pretty heavy stuff in here. I felt like we were just going from one crisis to the next so I was absolutely riveted to see how everything would turn out but it was definitely a unique perspective to read from.

⭐ 8.0/10 (Originally written by Anita) I enjoyed this more light-hearted book a lot after the last heavier one. It was an interesting concept and a pretty unique spin on a romance that I loved. I found I really loved the female main character because I related to her quite a bit. It was a bit predictable but I really didn't mind and there was still enough surprise there to keep me more than entertained! There was even some good wisdom sprinkled in there for good measure.

⭐ 9.0/10 (Originally written by Anita) This book was heavy. It is about a young girl that's been in the foster care system for her whole life and it can be brutal. I looooved learning about the language of flowers (used in courtship in the Victorian era, I believe). This book was quite a journey for me discovering why the main character acted out the way she did. I was rooting for her so much but her life was just SO HARD! Anyway, it's a beautiful, messy, redemptive story that I'm better for having read!

⭐ 7.0/10 (Originally written by The Original Susanne) This movie was cute and quirky, but I've somehow found myself just not into highschool dramas. They just seem kind of...cheesy? I don't know, maybe I've just spent too much of my life listening to teens talk about their drama that I've become bored of it. At least this movie was different from the typical highschool drama/romance!

⭐ 10.0/10 (Originally written by Magdalene) I didn't know I wanted a choose-your-own-adventure book about Romeo and Juliet, but when I stumbled across it online I knew I needed it! This book is INCREDIBLY funny, painting Romeo as a big dummy who can't stop talking about love and Juliet as a girl obsessed with her muscles and trying to escape from her home. It's over-the-top ridiculous, but it's really clever, including plot points and puns from the original story, making fun of everything at every point. They talk like dumb modern 15-year-olds (unless you choose the "say it in fancy language" option) and it's amazing. I followed until like 10 different endings, and you get lots of variety - they hate each other, break up because getting engaged after one day is ridiculous, marry other people, and just occasionally get married to each other. Every single one was a hoot. If you need any more incentive to read this, I just realized the author also did the Din...

⭐ 8.0/10 (Originally written by Joseph) This book basically looks and reads like a high school history textbook and provides a super brief overview of each king or queen. I bought it partly to learn a little more UK history before our trip that didn't happen, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. I feel smarter for reading it and it was cool to see things get more and more similar to what they are today. The pictures, maps and old written passages were all great features.

⭐ 6.5/10 (Originally written by Rebecca) This audiobook was only 3 hours and yet I kept thinking it was right on the verge of ending after the first hour. I was excited to read it because I love Nancy Drew as a character, but it was honestly kinda slow and boring. And maybe it's just the writing style of the 1930s, but I kept being like, "Why is this important? Why are we talking about her crispy morning waffles? Why does it matter that she looks very nice in her blue cardigan?" It felt like a 16-year-old was writing it. But still, I could appreciate that Nancy was an incredible female figure for 1930--brave, capable, smart, forward-thinking. Apparently I read the 1959 rewrite, which paints her as more altruistic and sedate, and less impulsive and headstrong, which is too bad. A worthwhile read for the fact that it birthed the wonderful Nancy Drew, but overall...kinda lacking.

⭐ 6.5/10 (Originally written by Magdalene) Erased is a live-action adaptation of a popular manga. It's about Satoru, a man who is sometimes sent back into time to prevent tragedies. Usually he's only sent a few minutes back, but when day when he finds his mom murdered, he's sent back 18 years to when he was 11, when a few of his classmates were kidnapped and murdered. So he tries to prevent them, while trying to figure out how it's connected with his mom's death. This was a fairly short, fast-paced thriller whose premise intrigued me right away, but after about the halfway point, things started to get messy. It might have actually benefited from more episodes. There were some suspect medical situations (even I know comas don't work like that), and characters who were important in the first half kind of disappeared, and a not great villain... I haven't read the source material, but I think a manga format with its volumes and everything would have been more ef...

⭐ 9.0/10 (Originally written by Magdalene) I loved this book as a kid, and it still holds up. Wow, poor Joey! This little guy knows he's good at heart, but JUST CAN'T HELP BEING SO WIRED. I liked the point that a lot of his problems aren't his fault, and he really does need some meds. But he also really needs to work on decision-making and impulse-control. The way he kept ignoring directions and not thinking about consequences drove me crazy, but at the same time I could really empathize, because all he got were some dud meds! What a great way to help readers understand how it feels to have ADHD.

⭐ 8.0/10 (Originally written by Magdalene) This book follows four Korean women living in Seoul - a mute hairdresser, a room salon girl who's addicted to plastic surgery, a pregnant woman who was abused as a child, and an artist whose friend commit suicide. It is obvious that this book was not exactly a bundle of laughs. It doesn't have much of a plot, as all four women are just trying to survive in a society that is still patriarchal, full of classicism, and focuses a lot on physical beauty. This book really shows you why S. Korea is the number one country for plastic surgery in the world. The story was pretty bleak as they all just try to get by in a city that's so expensive and makes it so hard for its inhabitants to survive. But it also showed their strength and determination to make the most of their lives. There's no happy ending, but it is a really compelling look at the lives of women in this country

⭐ 8.0/10 (Originally written by Magdalene) I've been reading a few romance novels lately because sometimes you just need something light and heartwarming where you're guaranteed a happily ever after, and I've been pleased to have found some that I did really enjoy, including this one! Our main couple is already engaged, and although when they got engaged they were super in love and excited to move in together, ten months later they can barely stand each other. Naomi decides to try pissing off Nicholas so much that he'll call off the wedding so she doesn't have to do it, and thinks he's doing the same. They give up trying to show each other only the best parts of themselves, which of course makes them learn more about each other. At first I was none too sure about this book, because I didn't like Naomi. She did seem really fake and unkind to Nicholas, although through her eyes he did seem like kind of a jerk. But then I found their petty pranks super hilariou...

⭐ 7.5/10 (Originally written by Joseph) Another Bong Joon-ho movie that I've had on my list for a while and was reminded of with the TV show coming out. Like Parasite, it combines being super dark with whimsy and humor, which is honestly not my taste. The atmosphere mostly feels uneven to me to me. There are some great moments to be sure, but I wasn't crazy about many aspects. The social commentary could have used a bit of subtly in my opinion. I must admit though that I remember all of his movies more fondly than when I actually watch them and for that reason want to give it a higher score. I did like the movie as a whole, but to me I think the score loses most of its points from the uneven mood.

⭐ 8.0/10 (Originally written by Joseph) This is supposed to be the best game among the original trilogy and the one people point to as the all-time great. It's better than the first to be sure, with more diverse sets to explore and some truly breathtaking sequences. The presentation is also incredible, and it's a story you get sucked into. But the end of the story is just so inexcusabley lame. It's a carbon copy of the first and just doesn't offer you the twist and turns that you want. The game was made in the early days of video game storytelling, so I guess it's more understandable that they aren't offering some nuance, but for a story driven game I just wanted better. Still, everything else elevates this to a high score.

⭐ 8.5/10 (Originally written by Joseph) This was an incredible 2D action-platformer with true vintage graphics. It really brings you back to the good old days of playing Mario on the SNES. They mastered unique movement mechanics and the difficultly level was hard, but never felt unfair. This game really has everything I love. Great boss fights, amazing music, and a charming story. I enjoyed it any time I was playing it, though I admit my only real criticism was that it never really sucked me in and made me want to drop everything and play.

⭐ 9.0/10 (Originally written by Rebecca) Another quick middle school read-aloud from me and Mags this weekend. I read some of these Joey Pigza books when I was 10-11, and remembered very little. Was completely surprised by how deep and meaningful it was, since I mostly just remembered Joey's wacky hijinks. It was really moving! And portrayed so perfectly a somewhat messed-up family, and the ways you can still love people who have hurt you, but in a way that could mean a lot to kids reading it. And SO eye-opening about kids with ADHD and other learning and behavioural disorders. It was also incredibly funny, super fun to read out loud, and really sweet and encouraging and hopeful. I just love Joey so much! An excellent read, would definitely recommend for kids and adults alike.