Me on Some Favourite Things (4)

Hi! I'm back with another one of these collective fun things posts! Only a few things this time, though.

First, Rock and Riot by Chelsey! I love this webcomic. The best way I can describe it is it's like if Grease had a huge diverse cast and every character was queer. It's about two gangs of teens, the girls of the Jaquettes and the boys of the Rollers, and their high school days. Their hijinks, their fights and squabbles. Their exploration of sexuality and gender. Their realization that they can be who they want, like who they want to like. Identify however they want to. The humourous moments mix so well with the comedic moments. Moments of two characters awkwardly flirting in loud voices and almost missing until someone clueless shows up looking for popcorn. It'll be ending soon, so you might want to start reading it now. Plus you can watch an animated version of the first chapter!

In case you didn't figure it out from last week's reviews, go check out the Horimiya manga! ;)

I've been speeding through a bunch of e-books I picked up through my local library, books I've been interested in but haven't felt like reading in order to review them. Because sometimes I want to be able to tune out when I read. Not to say that these haven't been good books, but they've either been books I don't usually review here or books where far smarter people have already posted their amazing opinions and anything I say would be inadequate. Like with Saints & Misfits by S.K. Ali. An amazing, heart-breaking, honest book. Right now I'm making my way through Cindy Pon's Want. Considering the state of the environment, I could totally buy that something like this book could happen.

See you again in a couple of months with another of these! :) And add in the comments something you've been enjoying lately so I can check it out!

Me on Some Favourite Things (3)

Hi! These recap of favourite things posts seem to be popping up ever couple of months, so I think I'll keep on doing them. :)

Let's start with another webcomic rec. Flowerpot by leehama! This is the story of Ben, a college student with an unusual disease. He's super kind, super friendly, and super quiet, preferring to stay in the background and avoid attention. When Ben was a kid, he was patient zero for a disease called Fleurine when flowers appear and sprout from people's bodies. It wasn't so bad for Ben, his condition means he sprouts dandelions from his scalp, but it was different for others when flowers burst from their skin, from their ears and eyes. When petals would fill their lungs. This is a world where people fear flowers, where people avoid them and those with Fleurine because they don't want to be infected. Ben's happy living a quiet life, but an encounter with a photographer with a project and a plan starts to change Ben's way of thinking, of what it means to be a 'flowerpot.' This comic is super cute and fun, the artwork is bright and colourful, and it's rather diverse in terms of race and disability and illness, both visible and invisible. Here's a link to the start of the comic. :)

Speaking of comics, VanCAF! I love going to VanCAF, seeing what people are doing in terms of their own art and original characters as well as fan art. As someone who can be super visual, who likes comics and isn't that artistic on their own, I really enjoy it. It's the act of creating art, of telling a story through a medium other than straight prose. And it's a chance to support local artists as well. I've been looking forward to going for months and it's finally happening this weekend.

Because we're heading deeper into spring now (where I live) and summer is approaching, here's a quick shout-out to taking walks. I don't know what it is, but it turns out I like going for walks. Especially on my own when I can stick headphones is and listen to music and go for easy-going walks in the sunshine. This sort of started last year when Pokemon Go came out, but walks on their own are also fun. If there are parks or green spaces near you, check them out when it's nice out.

I'm behind on so much Netflix watching, I promise I'll get to you one day, season 2 of Sense 8. And I think I'm pretty much on board for the new Star Trek: Discovery show after seeing that trailer earlier this week. Oh, sci-fi. Kid me loved you so much.

Considering these posts keep happening, see you again with other list of fun things in July! :)

Me on Some Favourite Things (1)

Hi there. :)

Today, instead of the standard Friday review, here's a quick list of some things I've enjoyed recently. Basically, the pop culture and other things I consume on a regular basis when I'm not reading.

First, some webcomics. Check Please! is a wonderful webcomic created by Ngozi Ukazu. It follows the college life of Eric 'Bitty' Bittle, a sweet Southern boy who loves to cook and has headed up to the northeast to play some college hockey. Things don't go quite to plan, mostly because Bitty's a bit (read: VERY) scared of being hit, but it's okay. His teammates, while looking like idiots, are actually the best. This comic does so much, talks about anxiety and expectations, fears and hopes. Friendship. I won't say too much about what happens plot-wise, some big things have happened during Bitty's first few years at Samwell, but when you read it you might know why I'm being a little hush-hush.

Gunnerkrigg Court is epic. Done by Tom Siddell, it follows the adventures and events that happen to Antimony Carver when she's sent to school at a place called Gunnerkrigg Court. What follows is an enchanting and sometimes heartbreaking story, rich with fantasy and science. The characters are deeply flawed and human, the settings are lush and dark and extremely dangerous. The current chapter is making me very very nervous.

Now to anime. I could recommend Yuri!!! on Ice, which has wonderful charm and deals with performance and aging and anxiety so well, but I won't. Instead, I'll recommend Haikyu!!, which is smart and so much fun. It follows the antics and matches of the boys volleyball club of Karasuno High School, particularly first year members Hinata and Kageyama. I like this series because there's no magic here, not really. Maybe some players' skill levels are a little impossible, but this is all about hard work and practice, about confidence, about victory and defeat and how you can never let one define you. Just play your game. It's free to watch over at Crunchyroll, region permitting (first person click here for a quick trial). The manga is also currently being published in English, for those looking to get into sports manga.

It feels strange to rec something called Assassination Classroom, but I will. It's about the class of rejects, Class 3-E at Kunugigaoka Junior High, and their mission to kill their teacher, the super dangerous and super powerful super-creature Koro-Sensei that just blasted the moon into a crescent. This show is like a weird punch to the heart. It's a murder fantasy comedy, yes, but the things it says about teaching, about learning and developing skill, about sharpening those skills and making sure you can make good use of all that you're good at, can get you hard and fast. The manga, again, is currently being published in English.

As for TV, I don't watch much anymore! Because it's been Christmas and New Year's, I've watched a lot of hockey recently, and a bunch of Food Network shows, but then I just end up hungry when I'm about to go to bed. I've been meaning to watch some things on Netflix, things like Stranger Things and The OA and the Sense 8 Christmas episode, but I just haven't yet. Soon.

Hopefully you enjoyed this, were interested in a couple of things. I'm not sure when I'll do another of these, maybe once a month when I'm struggling to get through a book or I have a sudden gap. And add in the comments something you've been enjoying recently, a new TV show or some new music that's come out. What are you interested in right now?