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Beyblade Review

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Beyblade has always been one of the biggest anime franchises left that I had not seen yet. In fact I would argue that it was by far the biggest franchise I had not started. Not that honor would probably go to Bakugan, Pretty Cure, or Duel Masters. It’s a lot more debatable now though while Beyblade was unquestionably the top spot. Well, it easily lives up to the hype. This initial season was fantastic and really contains everything you could want in such a title. The cast is incredible and you really feel pumped thanks to the excellent action and soundtrack. It’s easy to see why this one hit it big.

There’s quite a lot going on here but the series opens up by introducing us to Tyson. He’s a kid who really likes the game of Beyblade. One day his life is forever changed when a bully shows up and beats the best player in school. Tyson isn’t about to let that slide so he takes that guy down and realizes he has what it takes to compete in the big tournaments. Tyson gradually meets with other skilled Beybladers like Max, Ray, and Kai. Together they form the Bladebreakers and aim to clam the top spot in the world. They’ll have to win a lot of tournaments along the way if they want to reach that title. It means travelling to far off places such as Russia and England and dueling everyone in their path. Not every match is in an official tournament setting either as the Dark Bladers and evil scientists also want to get in their way.

With 50+ episodes you can tell that there are going to be a whole lot of characters and story adventures to cover here so prepare for a pretty long review. There’s so much to cover that it’s always tough to know where to start but lets go with the technical areas here. The animation is quite excellent as you would expect. You really feel the intensity behind the Beyblade battles. It’s all nice and hand drawn which allows the tops to really have a lot of great movement. For the most part the power levels don’t get too crazy but by the end of the series you have dimensional rifts being opened up by the Beyblade’s power so they still shouldn’t be underestimated.

I also have to give the character designs some major props as well. The characters are extremely built considering that they’re just kids. You certainly would not want to mess with these guys that’s for sure since it looks like they could wreck you in a fist fight as well. It helps to add a sense of danger to the series. For example, there’s one episode where Kai has to infiltrate a facility and tape out a bunch of drones and automatic defenses. Between the serious character design and excellent animation in that episode, it got pretty tense. You always knew the series was not pulling any punches.

As for the soundtrack, it’s pretty large. There are a ton of themes here and they’re all pretty great. Sure, there may be one or two songs that don’t land if you were to really go back and listen to all of them but for the most part they’re all pretty fitting and get you into the moment. One song that really sticks out is Kai’s theme. It’s more of a rap song than the others and seems to be about someone underestimating him. It really works well as his “evil” song during part of Kai’s character arc. It just felt like the beginning of a new era and was a perfect way to launch the climax of the series.

The pre arc of the series is really about Tyson meeting up with his future teammates Max, Kai, and Ray. They all get along pretty quickly aside from Kai who’s always pretty aloof. Interestingly Kai is really the team captain for the first tournament which means that he doesn’t get to actually fight much. That’s the only thing that can be unfortunate as until the final tournament Kai is basically on the bench permanently. He only gets to duel occasionally when someone is injured or in a match outside the ring. Since at that point Kai was the big fighter it would have been nice to have seen him duel a little more. Still, we got a lot of different matches this way which was always a lot of fun.

While all the tournaments are leading up to the World Championship you could say that the others are all part of one grand arc. The heroes get to fight Ray’s old team, then they fight Max’s Mom’s team, and then they fight Kai’s team relating to his past. Each team tends to have something to do with one of the members which makes for a pretty good dynamic there. Each arc consistently gives great moments so there’s never an arc that just feels dull. It sort of goes without saying but the final arc is the best one. We get a lot of great character moments with Kai and the final villains just feel like huge threats. Certainly not the kind of guys you can afford to underestimate. It’s also always a good sign for the show to end on the best arc.

The writing with the show is definitely excellent as well. There are countless great moments and one liners. It’s part of what helps make the character cast so great. If I had any issue with the series it would be that the power levels can be a tad inconsistent. It’s hard to see the White Fang being any kind of threat to the All Starz based on what we’ve seen from them. Their feat of busting a boulder was also good enough where you don’t see how Max was able to compete much in the tournament. At the end of the day though it looks like the energy of the Beyblade depends on the owner’s will power so I suppose a lot of that is really subject to change here.

As you can tell I was quite impressed with this series throughout. It really just kept slamming home runs throughout. Same with the character cast and I suppose now is a good time to launch into those guys. First lets go with the Bladebreakers. As the leader of the group Tyson’s a pretty incredible character. For starters he’s never afraid to jump into battle. When the bully attacks his school Tyson is the first person to jump into action. Similarly whenever any opponent shows up disrespecting Tyson or his friends our lead doesn’t take that lying down. He’s always ready to jump in and put an end to that. His skills are also the real deal. Tyson is extremely confident in his abilities but it is absolutely earned. The fact of the matter is that Tyson is always taking care of his business so why shouldn’t he be confident?

He quickly became the leader of the group and while all of their skills remained fairly equal for a while, by the end Tyson easily surpassed the others in ability. His bond with Dragoon is really strong and helped him unlock a completely new level. Then you’ve got his rival Kai who is the best character in the series. Not only are his skills able to match Tyson’s for a while to the point where he even surpassed Tyson, but Kai is also good at fighting outside of the ring. One of his pretty hype moments was when he infiltrated the villain base as I mentioned earlier. Kai’s definitely more of a loner compared to the others and rarely gets in on the team atmosphere. He does mellow out a bit near the end of course but otherwise he keeps that calm and cool persona throughout.

His Dranzer has to be the coolest Beyblade in the series as well. I also liked the Dark Dranzer form quite a bit. The sheer power level on that thing was insane. Naturally you don’t want to be using an evil Beyblade for long but if Kai had kept that then it’s hard to see him losing to just about anyone. There is a brief moment where Kai turns on the team for power and how much you like the character will likely depend on how you feel about Kai’s heel turn there. I was all for it to be honest. You always want to see the rival turn evil at least once and it was a good excuse to see him take on all of the Bladebreakers.

I would consider Ray to be the third member of the group. In most series you’ve got the big 2 (Main Character and Rival) but then there is usually a third character who is under the top 2 but still considerably stronger to the rest. For example I would say that is Gohan in DBZ, Todoroki in My Hero Academia, Shiryu in Saint Seiya, and T.K. in Digimon. Ray can’t quite defeat Tyson or Kai but he’s still a very intense fighter. He takes a lot more punishment than the others as well as he gets beaten up to the point where his clothes are shredded and his hair comes undone. Nothing is able to take him out of the fight as long as he’s still conscious though. His Drigger is a fitting Bit Beast for Ray as well due to his aggressive fighting style.

I was definitely a pretty big fan of Ray. He’s a lot of fun to watch and you always feel like he has a chance at victory. Then you’ve got Max. From the Bladebreakers who can fight he’s easily my least favorite member although I wouldn’t call him bad. He doesn’t take things as seriously as the first 3 and isn’t really one of the stronger members. That being said, he does get a significant power up near the end which boosts his Beyblade’s defense to an extremely high level. You could make a very strong case that at the very end of the series he actually surpassed Kai and Ray. Not that this is likely to stick for the second season but at least the writers threw him a bone. He gets a big role in the tournament against the American team since his Mom is their captain. It made for a lot of drama that’s for sure even if Max usually ended up getting psyched out in the end.

Then we have Kenny who is more of a coach than an actual fighter. He mostly consults with Dizzi before and after every match as he gives tips to the team. I wasn’t a fan of Kenny. Part of the issue is that since he can’t actually play, it’s hard to really buy into him giving the characters such critiques. He wouldn’t really know how to improve their game if not for Dizzi giving him the play by plays. At least in the Dub version. Kenny also tends to complain an awful lot and doesn’t have fun like the other characters. he would have to easily be the weakest main character and one of the lest interesting ones in the whole show.

Time to talk about the White Tigers. They certainly made for a good threat early on. The leader is Lee and he’s pretty upset with Ray for leaving which you can understand to an extent. It sounds like Ray could have explained things better. Of course once you’re in the ring then there’s no chance for mercy. He was a good villain although it was hard to buy him being able to match the American representatives later on. He must have gotten a lot stronger to compete with them at that point. Mariah gets the biggest role aside from Lee and is also one of the most impressive ones. I still remember how she shattered a boulder with a single swing from her Blade. From the whole show that’s still one of the best feats. It’s why it was hard to buy into her not doing so well in the actual tournament but I could definitely see her getting some good wins later on. She’s a fun Blader and one who is easy to root for. It’s clear that she has honed her skills to a great extent.

The other two members Kevin and Gary don’t get to do nearly as much. Both of them seem to be a lot weaker than the main two members. Gary’s your classic power type fighter while Kevin is more about sneaking around an opponent. The fact that Kevin tried to take down his opponents with trickery outside the ring tells you all you need to know about his skills. He was benched from the team for good reason. Not to say he’s awful or anything but he can’t keep up with the other two.

Then we have the All Stars led by Michael. This team was definitely a lot of fun, I’m always up for seeing an American based team appear and make some noise. Michael was also a solid power hitter even if he didn’t get to duel until pretty deep into the arc. I’d say he’s definitely the strongest member of the team even if they sometimes hint that Emily can keep up with him as well. He has a lot of confidence and is a pretty tough blader. While he is no exception among all the side characters who get surpassed by the end he has a solid road to that point.

Emily is the next strongest member of the group and she’s pretty solid as well. She’s more about analytics than high energy and just pushing her way to the top. That said, it’s an effective tactic which seems to work out pretty well for her. She certainly enjoys messing with Max. Then there’s Steven, the Football member of the group. I like his direct, no nonsense style of blading. He goes all in on trying to take these guys down for the count. Steven definitely had a lot of great moments here. Then you’ve got Eddy who is good friends with Steven. Both of them seem to be pretty equal in strength and both have a lot of confidence. Again, you can see why the All Starz are such a great team. Pretty much all of their members are on point.

Judy is the coach of the team and as Max’s mom she gets a pretty big role here. Naturally she is a bit torn on who to root for and at times it seems like she is rooting for the Bladebreakers. It was good to have a parent who is actually here and contributing to the story though. Tyson’s Dad could learn a thing or two. Even Kai’s grandfather to be honest. The guy seems to be a villain with some big plans but he really has almost 0 impact in the series. You could blink and miss the guy’s scenes to be honest. Boris has a much bigger role as a villain. Now that’s a guy who makes his presence in the series felt and has a lot of pretty good master plans. You don’t want to mess with this guy.

We can’t forget Tyson’s grandfather Ryu. This guy’s pretty fun. He definitely loves being the center of attention and at the same time doesn’t care if people think he looks kind of crazy. He’s just determined to have a good time. Ryu can’t fight in the world of Beyblades but he does teach Tyson how to fight hand to hand which is still very helpful. Nobody will get the best of Tyson in the real world. As for Mr. Dickenson, he’s good for scheduling fights but doesn’t really come through when it counts. I wouldn’t say that I’m a big fan of the guy although I do like how occasionally he’ll launch a secret plan. It shows that he is at least fairly cunning.

There’s one group known as the Dark Bladers who to me seem like the most pointless characters in the show. No offense to these guys of course, but in their very first big appearances in the “New World” they all get wrecked by the European champs. There’s no point where you can take them seriously for the rest of the show. None of the characters were all that interesting either. It’s a cool name too so it kind of feels wasted on these guys. They’re like B leaguers thinking that they can actually take on the real characters and naturally that does not go over well.

If anything the big villain team led by Tala should have been called the Dark Bladers. Tala was a great villain. He didn’t get to do a whole lot at times but he has a terrific character design and is definitely a real threat which is what you want to see here. He can definitely hold his own with the other characters even if you feel like he wouldn’t stand a chance at all against Kai and Dark Dranzer. His only chance was with Kai in his normal form. Tala really took away the character chances from his teammates though. For example Spencer seems like a pretty tough guy. In fact his water battle was really good and solidified him as a true threat. He never got to duel again after that though so it was a very brief appearance. Same for Bryan. He’s clearly hooked on fighting and is like a battle machine. A lot of potential there but he never really got to take advantage of it.

Finally we have the European fighters. Oliver is pretty interesting since he seems very two faced. He acts nice to the Bladebreakers most of the time and then suddenly he’ll be insulting them behind their backs. As a result I definitely got to give this guy a thumbs down. The fact that the team did not participate in the tournaments because they were unable to work as a team was also pretty interesting. He is a good fighter though. Then you have Enrique who fights in a Colosseum which is a pretty nice power move. How many people can say they’ve done that in the past right? He’s definitely more of a flirt than the others but he hasn’t let his skills waiver so he clearly still practices. I’m not a big fan but he’s okay.

The other two players are a lot better. Johnny is a pretty tough fighter and he is always ready to rock and roll. From the 4 characters he probably gets the smallest role but he’s always a lot of fun. His skills are the real deal and he’s probably the strongest on the team aside from Robert. Robert is the best of the 4 of course. He’s very emotionless so it can be a bit jarring when he tries to be one of the gang and have some fun at the end. In general the European group is pretty interesting because they are all supposed to be top tier fighters but they spend a lot of their time getting wrecked or dodging the big fights so it’s hard to take them seriously.

The show did a great job of having the power levels slowly go up though. Tyson started out as a local fighter who wasn’t really ready to take on any of the bigger members to being a world champion class fighter by the end. At the end Tyson was taking on multiple fighters at once with no real effort which is impressive. Of course the power scaling means that nobody should ever be able to keep up with him again but I suppose with new technology that helps even things out as the excuse can be that new Beyblades have been created which just have better specs.

Overall, Beyblade is just a great series. You can easily get into it and just watch at any time. It’s got the right balance of action and solid character moments. There are a ton of duels here and the replay value is quite high as a result. These episodes really hold up to a rewatch and have a lot of replay value. I look forward to seeing if season 2 can match this one. After all here we got all of the hype initial meetings but of course sequels are always pretty nostalgic when you get to see all the characters return. Either way this is definitely a must watch anime.

Overall 8/10

A Shoe Addict’s Christmas Review

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Time for another Hallmark adventure for the ages. The whole shoe theme here was definitely pretty unique. I don’t believe it’s been done before. I know some people are really into shoes while others collect sneakers but I can’t say I’ve ever been into that. Just get me a pair of sneakers and I’ll wear them for the next 5-10 years no problem. Of course in this film it’s fortunate that Noelle enjoys her shoes since they are quite central to the story. Without them she definitely could have been in trouble.

The movie starts off by introducing us to Noelle. She’s pretty content as she has a nice job, good coworkers, and just loves Christmas. It’s a pretty fun time of the year for her. She is even put in charge of helping direct the annual charity party that co-operates with the Firefighters. Their liason here is a guy named Jake. They don’t initially get off on the right foot as Jake tries to make a good impression with some jokes while Noelle is fairly serious. Still, they’ll have to put aside their differences if this is going to be a big success.

There is something supernatural afoot here as well. A lady named Charlie appears and claims that she is Noelle’s guardian angel. Whenever Noelle puts on a pair of shoes from her past she is transported to that point in time to relive the memories and see what she could have done differently. Charlie is trying to make the point that Noelle has pushed her friends and family away while also turning down opportunities that could have helped her in the present. Noelle tries to point out that living in the past is dangerous but Charlie insists that she take a look at some of these alternate routes. Should Noelle listen to Charlie and try to hang out with people more or is she okay as is?

As always Hallmark’s got a pretty solid film here. There’s also just a whole lot of story developments and plot to sift through here so it’s a little busier than the average title. You’ve got time travel, angels, the firefighter plot, and even some family drama with Noelle and her father. The writing is on point as always and the film really flies by. The scenery is also good. There are no real weaknesses to speak of. At most maybe the boss gets a very rushed character arc at the end but it does help to wrap things up nicely for a quality ending. From all of the plots I feel like the Gala itself got the shaft for the most part since there just wasn’t enough time to grab everything. It’s why things had to move quickly at the end.

If anything I just didn’t agree with Charlie that Noelle made all of the wrong moves. For starters, she was perfectly content at her new job even if everyone was trying to guilt trip her into leaving. Put it this way, she makes a solid salary here and has quickly moved up the chains. Everyone seems to like her at this job so she seems to have a positive future. The pay is good as well while working for herself is a lot riskier even if it may end up paying well. Then Charlie says she wasn’t all that close to her father but they did seem pretty good to me from the opening scene. They had some banter and were even joking around with each other.

So I felt like Charlie was making this sound a lot more serious than it really was. It’s not like Noelle’s current life was really that bad at all. Still, Charlie herself was pretty nice even if she didn’t have a lot of experience in the gig yet. Noelle’s best friend Lorna was also really good here. She was always encouraging Noelle and had the heroine’s back from day 1. No matter what timeline Noelle went to, she certainly owes Lorna a lot for always being there. It’s been a little while since the main character had a solid friend like this so that was nice to see.

As for the main guy Jake, he’s pretty solid. He wants to move up the ranks even if it means no longer being a firefighter. He’s a bit worried since this means leaving his late father’s shadow but he does feel like it’s the right move. He does his best to make the firefighter gala a success. The ending is pretty tough on him since he effectively wasted a lot of time but ultimately at least Noelle helped him out a bit. It’s understandable that he wouldn’t have been a happy camper at that point. The romance is pretty rushed with him and Noelle though. I feel like they could have gone with the just friends angle and that would have worked out quite nicely.

Finally with Noelle, she’s a solid main character. It’s nice to have a character who’s super into Christmas for a change instead of coming around later. By all accounts she’s always been a nice person and has made a lot of good moves. She probably could have handled the situation of not telling Jake about the changes a little better but all in all I definitely can say that she was a fun lead. The cast is fairly small so each character really counts here.

Early on in the film Noelle gets stuck at work when due to everyone forgetting she was there and locking up for the night. She handled it pretty well as she really made herself at home and began eating the snacks. That would definitely be a nice perk of being stuck in a store like that. I always thought it could be pretty fun depending on the store. Spending a night trapped in there would almost be like a vacation of sorts with unlimited food. It’s fun to think about of course but so I’m glad she wasn’t panicking or anything. Taking it in stride is definitely how you should handle it.

Overall, Hallmark never ceases to churn out solid Christmas films and this one was no different. It’s been a little while since I saw one where they had a big supernatural angle from the start so that was a lot of fun. The Guardian Angel made for a fun character even if she wasn’t always helpful with how she likes to keep secrets and answer cryptically instead of just saying what she’s thinking. If you’re looking for a fun film to check out with quality characters then I would definitely say to watch this one. There’s really nothing bad to say about it and it consistently delivers with solid moments.

Overall 7/10

Switched for Christmas Review

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It’s been a while since I saw a film where the main characters decide to trade places. It’s always a pretty fun concept though using the whole premise of how the grass always looks greener. It makes sense that both of the characters would think that the other one has the easier job. I would make the case that the VP of the huge company probably has it tougher because she really had to rise up the ranks but naturally both of them have tough jobs. At the end of the day nobody’s got it super easy. Everyone has something that they’re going through and trials to overcome.

The main characters are Kate and Chris. They are both twin sisters who have grown rather distant ever since their Mom died. They used to be close but that was a long time ago. Their father tricks them into having dinner together and after a spirited argument they agree to do the body swap. They figure nobody will notice the difference and each person’s life is so much easier that it’ll be like having a vacation. In a lot of ways the swap itself is easy but the tough part is that each of the main characters falls in love with a guy while in disguise. This is naturally not good for a lot of reasons. The main one being that this will cause a lot of drama when they return to their own lives. They have to find a way out of this predicament but can they do it?

In a lot of ways Chris really shined the brightest here. She got to show off her artistic talents, knowledge of children, and was just a great team player. She was really acing every part of her day and really fulfilled her end of the bargain. From the two characters she also just seemed like the nicer member. Her eating habits may not have been as healthy as Kate’s, but Chris still gets the job done in the end which is what counts. Naturally that isn’t to say that Kate’s a bad character. She does a reasonable job at making the edits to the school play. The main difference is that she was showing a lot of resistance at first which almost put the job in jeopardy. Keep in mind that a large donor has asked to change things up and yet Kate still tries to block this at first. She comes around later on but seemed slower on the uptake.

Both of them were shaky with allowing romances to develop during the swap though. That’s definitely the last thing you need to be doing at this point. It all ends up working out pretty nicely for the characters but it could have easily gone very wrong. Definitely a high risk play if you ask me. The core plot can be a bit weaker than some of the other Hallmark titles. I’d say from all the ones we saw recently this one just felt the least focused on Christmas. It was more accidental than being a core/focused part of the story. Not to overstate that, we still do have two Christmas parties and a lot of lights everywhere of course but it still didn’t feel quite as big here. Maybe that’s just because the main part of the story was really about the swap and because of that the rest feels like background elements.

This movie did go for a bit of a different kind of story from the norm though so I appreciate that. Usually you have the girl who ditches her fiancée or gets dumped by him and then meets someone else. They hit it off and the lead learns to have a little more fun on Christmas. This time around none of that happens as both characters do like Christmas, Kate just tends to be too busy to really celebrate it all that much. By the end of the film she has learned to make time though.

The two guys Tom and Greg are decent enough I suppose. They aren’t great at knowing which twin is which though as it probably takes a long time to really master that. In a lot of ways their personalities are super similar. Tom is a rich guy who enjoys spending time with his family and wants to make sure that the school year starts off well for his kid. Then you’ve got Greg who just enjoys helping out with the party decorating. Both of them seem like pretty decent guys so that’s always good. Then you’ve got Chris’ kids who fortunately don’t appear all that much so they don’t hold the film back or anything like that.

Overall, this is another solid installment. As always the writing here is pretty solid. The characters are good and you’ve got a pretty well rounded movie experience. There’s perhaps a little less going on for this film compared to a lot of Hallmark’s other titles but I still wouldn’t say that there’s anything here to really hold it back either. It’s got a unique premise and that’s always good since it shows that Hallmark is still trying new things. With two main characters to follow that means there is a little less screen time for each one but still enough to tell a full story. If you want to watch a good Christmas film then this is a solid option to check out although I would sooner recommend other Hallmark films at the ready. With this title complete, Hallmark continues its streak of always delivering quality experiences.

Overall 7/10

A Christmas Detour Review

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Whenever you’re planning to go somewhere and your ride ends up getting delayed it definitely makes you hope that you’ll at least be able to grab some food. Some may really enjoy the detour while others will just eagerly await the moment where they can just get to where they were planning to go. This film deals with the main character having an exceptionally long detour but will this time allow her to avoid a potential mistake with her future? Right now there’s definitely a whole lot for her to think about.

Paige arrives to her plane with a decent amount of time to spare. This is fortunate because in the end she has to barter with the staff a while as she tries to bring more luggage on board than what the plane allows. She makes it onto the plane but then gets involved in a debate with Dylan on true love. Paige believes in this 100% as everyone has a soul mate and that’s the one true partner for them. Dylan doesn’t think that makes sense and thinks the odds aren’t in its favor. Well, they’re going to have a lot of time to be able to debate this with each other because as it turns out the weather is really bad so nobody will be getting to New York anytime soon.

For Paige this is troubling news because she had been heading to her fiancé Jack’s house so she could finally meet his parents. They are about to get married so this was a pretty big deal for her. Jack also warns her that if she doesn’t make it by Christmas day then they will have to put the marriage off for another year. The stakes are high. Meanwhile Dylan wasn’t thrilled about going home for Christmas anyway so he is thrilled whenever these occurrences happen. He has a lot of fun teasing Paige throughout the movie since she is very easy to trigger. There’s also a married couple of 20-30 years tagging along. They fall in the middle of the main 2 on emotions. They’re ready for a nice Christmas but are enjoying the detours as best they can.

This film has one of the better dynamics with Paige and Dylan. Certainly Dylan’s teasing can go a bit far at times but he’s just determined to have a lot of fun the whole time. Nothing is about to get him down and it makes him a pretty interesting character to follow. Of course you know the film is ultimately going to set him and Paige up but at least he has a lot of personality before that. He does have the right attitude about their situation. The heroes can’t exactly control when the storm will end so the least you can do is make the most of it in the meantime.

Paige definitely isn’t able to see the bright side here because she is very stressed out about her plans not going through. There’s also the added pressure of the marriage going back but that should have just been a red flag. When we meet up with Jack and his parents it’s hard to see how she ever liked him. Now, of course she would not have met the parents before so we can’t take that into consideration. They are portrayed to be comically antagonistic the whole time as they insult Paige to her face many times. Jack never actually defends her on this either so he loses more points right off the bat there.

The thing is, Jack isn’t really any better. He takes shots at Paige as well and is all too willing to have her lose out on her wedding plans. He just lets the Mom choose everything and expects Paige to follow suit. He doesn’t seem to care about her at all. I guess Paige was just a little oblivious at the time but there just didn’t seem to be much of a friendship between them at the bare minimum. It makes the whole soulmate thing look even more suspect as a result since this clearly didn’t end up working out. In theory you should go into a relationship as if it’s the only love you’ll have but the problem is in a film like this there are always constant rebounds so you can’t even take the premise seriously.

Unfortunately this whole plot ends up hurting Paige quite a lot though. She started the film off on a relatively strong note but started to really decline after that. She lies to Jack quite a few times and even by the very end of the film she continues to deceive him. She is basically forced to come clean once the photo is brought to light and Dylan himself appears. That already seems like a rocky start to her sticking through this next relationship. Keep in mind that she was already engaged prior to the film starting so no matter how she justifies it, she wasn’t exactly holding strong up to this point.

Additionally, Paige allowed herself to get steamrolled by the Mom during the whole second half of the film. She put up 0 resistance as all of her wedding plans were dashed. She would just shoot everyone astonished looks the whole time but wouldn’t say anything in her defense. That’s just not a good look. It shows that she’s not going to stand up for herself no matter what happens. Allowing everyone to walk all over you is never a good thing.

I ended up liking Dylan a lot more than Paige as a result. At least he always has a lot of good one liners at the ready and quick retorts. That said, Maxine and Frank were probably the more interesting characters here. They’re a very jaded married couple as mentioned, but they’ve still got a pretty strong bond going on. The end of the film actually gives them more of a serious plot than I expected. I kind of figured they were already doing well and the sarcasm was something they had fun with. Either way by the end of the film they’re pretty tight again. Without them Dylan and Paige definitely would not have been in a great spot. It’s been a while since I saw a Hallmark film with a supporting couple like this who get a big role. In fact, it may be the first time and I enjoyed it. It was a nice angle to have included.

Overall, Christmas Detour started out a lot better than it ended. The ending was just a bit weak with a lot of the decisions Paige ended up making. Still, I do like the premise quite a bit and so of course the best scenes of the film are before they actually get back onto the main path. There was a lot of good humor here and as always a lot of good writing as well so there’s nothing to really dislike in the slightest. You can expect a very balanced film here and I would definitely recommend checking it out if you want to see a good Christmas movie.

Overall 7/10

Christmas Under Wraps Review

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Time for our next stop on the Hallmark channel express. They’ve always done a tremendous job with their Christmas lineup and unsurprisingly that is true of this film as well. Christmas Under Wraps is another solid entry in the franchise and is a very solid all around title. There are no real issues to be had with the film. It’s just a nice adventure where we get to enjoy some time at a local town where they have a fun time celebrating Christmas. Definitely gets you excited since that’s coming up pretty close now.

The movie starts by introducing us to Lauren who is a doctor getting ready to get promoted into the Fellowship where she will be able to finally have completed her life’s plans. She’s always lived by her plan and prepares to get married which will check another box. Unfortunately things don’t go quite so smoothly. Her boyfriend dumps her during dinner and then she loses out on the program. Lauren’s only available option is a small town in Alaska where they need a doctor. It’s not exactly what she signed up for but she lost out on the position in part because she didn’t have out of the box experiences so this is her chance to change all of that. It’s definitely a very different atmosphere. Can Lauren get with the program or is she doomed here?

Lauren starts off as a fairly reasonable character though compared to the last Hallmark adventure where the lead came in with a bad attitude from the start. Lauren’s not perfect and does show some clear disdain for the small town environment at first but the townsfolk do a good job of ignoring her slights and continually trying to get her on board. Eventually she does realize that the town’s actually pretty great and that’s when she can really start having some fun here. It’s no surprise that she would eventually get used to the town. All the people there are really nice and the town has all of the essentials on hand. As long as you keep an open mind you’re bound to have some fun. I didn’t see any pizza places though so I’m hoping they’ve got at least one.

Naturally there is a romance plot in this film as handyman Andy shows up to have a good time. I can’t give the romance here a thumbs up since Lauren literally went from being ready to marry someone else to dating this guy within a few days. Perhaps if we’re being generous you could say there were massive time skips and Lauren was at the town for months but I have my doubts. So that falls into the rebound territory. Otherwise Andy’s a pretty good guy though. He really helps out around the town doing whatever he can to help the others. He’s portrayed as just a very decent guy and he never really lets things get him down. It’s hard to find a more balanced character.

Although my favorite character would be Hattie. She was great at memorizing the coffee orders real quick and seemed to have a solid knowledge of the town as a whole. She was always around and ready to step in when Lauren was having trouble. She’s the kind of character who will always have your back. The rest of the town members are solid as well of course but she really stood out. Then you’ve got Billie who is the head nurse and also a good friend to Lauren. I’ll give her props for not beating around the bush and just asking the guy out. I do feel that if you like someone you should just go ahead and make the move as opposed to waiting to be asked out. Of course, when you make a game of it like in Love is War that can make for incredible dynamics but that’s more the exception to the rule.

Henry and Maggie are also portrayed as pretty nice parents to Lauren. Finally we have a more reasonable group here as her father is glad that Lauren will be following in his footsteps but doesn’t put any extra pressure on her. When she makes her decision to enjoy the town he’s quite supportive of it. Meanwhile Maggie was especially happy since she was hoping Lauren would slow down a bit to enjoy her time while it was around. After all, a career’s important but you do always need to make sure to leave time for everything else too.

Then we’ve got a subplot with Frank, a man who looks like Santa Clause. Throughout the film Lauren keeps noticing things that don’t add up like Elves running around and the fact that Frank even owns a Reindeer. The official story is that he’s part of a little parade the town throws on Christmas but is that really the whole story? He’s quite secretive about his shipping business to the point where he doesn’t tell anyone outside of the town about it. The whole town seems to be involved in some kind of conspiracy. Frank’s definitely a great character though and he certainly enjoys his cookies. Of course, why wouldn’t he right? Christmas is the perfect time to snack on a bunch of cookies. Chocolate Chip will always be my favorite but naturally sugar cookies are a lot of fun too.

Frank may not take great care of his health but he’s definitely a good guy doing his best during the busy season. He probably could have been more receptive to Andy taking over parts of the business but I do agree with him that they shouldn’t be so quick to tell Lauren the truth about the business particularly if she was still thinking about going home. That’s the kind of secret you have to wait until both characters are fully committed. Based on Lauren’s final decisions she clearly hadn’t been 100% committed at that point. In the end the big twist of what the whole town is involved in with the business is pretty fun. It helped add a subtle mystery element to the movie.

Overall, as always Hallmark delivered another great adventure here. The writing is really good and the cast of characters are solid as well. You just can’t go wrong with that combination. It makes for a really solid Christmas adventure and shows you the appeal of small town environments. Personally I’m still more of a NYC kind of guy since I just like having all kinds of stores around and the ability to go anywhere on a whim but I wouldn’t mind some of that weather. It feels like a while since we got a decent helping of snow and over in Alaska that definitely would not be a problem in the winter. If you want to see a nice uplifting film that gets you into a festive mood then this is definitely a good movie to check out.

Overall 7/10

Let It Snow Review

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It’s time to look at a Hallmark film from a while back. They’ve always been very consistent about churning out great products. They have a lot of Christmas movies and I have yet to see a bad one. They always tend to have a solid plot and good characters arcs for the cast. In this case we don’t even have the usual rebound plot so that was an extra bonus. I’d definitely say there are no real complaints here. Naturally some of the story elements may seem very familiar and I’m sure you can guess what will happen before it does, but it doesn’t take away from the solid execution here.

The movie starts off by introducing us to Stephenie. She is a top executive at her father’s company and he has a new task for her. Stephenie has to head to a Christmas cabin that their company has just purchased to see how they handle Christmas. Her job is to take away the glitz and glamor and figure out how to make this a successful enterprise. Right now mostly families rent out rooms here but the firm needs this to be a place for single people with lots of cash to burn. Stephenie is ready for this since she’s not a big fan of Christmas and doesn’t even like the cold. She’ll enjoy taking everything apart. Things all begin to change though when she meets up with Brady, the son of the current owner. Is it possible that she will regain her Christmas spirit?

I think we all know the answer to that question. The scenery is really nice as always. We get to see some gingerbread cookies being baked and there are a lot of solid decorations all around the cabin. It’s clear that the family puts a great deal of effort into the project. You may wonder why they are selling the place. Is it because they got a great deal and can just take it easy now? Well, I’m sure that didn’t hurt but it’s really because nobody is prepared to take the business over. Brady wanted tom, but he also wanted to enact a lot of changes to the place which his father did not approve of. As a result they hit a stalemate. Stephenie is quickly brought into this drama as well and wants to help but the business deal is done. It’s not like she can really do a whole lot about the deal at this point. Still, she gives it her best shot.

Stephanie’s a pretty decent lead. She definitely starts out as one of the meaner ones though. She is absolutely not on board with having a good time at all. She definitely overreacts to just about everything and really gives Brady a hard time. Still, she ultimately gets past this. Then you have Brady who doesn’t get along with her at first but it looks like he is usually a pretty nice guy. Everyone at the camp likes him as he is typically seen as a very reliable figure who is always around to help out when the kids need a hand or something seems too difficult. He’s a man of many talents.

Then for the supporting characters you’ve got a good cast. Stephenie had a friend in the first scene but she ends up vanishing completely after the opening so we won’t count her. Stephenie’s father is definitely a fun character to have around although he seems a lot less reasonable after the opening scene. At first he definitely is shown to not like Christmas or anything like that but he isn’t shown to be quite as antagonistic towards it as later on. That’s where he really begins trying to crush all the ideas Stephenie has without really listening to the pitch. I like the idea that he sat there listening to her for over an hour only to completely disregard everything at that point and go on to the pre prepared topics he already had ready. The guy certainly wasn’t budging.

Then you have Brady’s parents who are pretty nice. The Mom does her best to get Stephenie settled in even if she is met with a ton of resistance. The lead not trying her home baked cookies was definitely an emotional moment. Brady’s Dad also does a good job as it must take a lot of effort to keep on getting the cabin set and participating in all of the events at his age. He did well in keeping the place going as long as he could. He and Brady have a lot of disagreements on how to make the place better but as we only see the aftermath of their arguments it’s hard to say who takes more blame in their disagreements there.

The movie really flies by. Let It Snow has solid writing and pacing as you’d expect from a Hallmark title so that won’t come as any surprise. You can definitely imagine visiting a place like this to have a good day. I can’t imagine actually spending a Christmas out there over the comforts of home but I’m sure you would still have a good time. I’d be going all in on the cookies and the rest of the desserts displayed in the film. Then the fact that there is also a pretty nice breakfast spread is also very enticing.

Overall, Let It Snow is definitely a very good movie and one that I would recommend checking out for Christmas. You’ve got a solid story and a good cast of characters which always serve as strong fundamentals for a movie. The romance is a bit cliché and could have been written out of the movie for sure, but otherwise the rest of the story beats end up working out quite well. It’s not the most ambitious film out there but it’s a pleasant one. As they say, it’s the journey that counts and even if you know how the movie is going to end, the execution is on point the whole time so you don’t feel bored or anything like that.

Overall 7/10

An Affair to Remember Review

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This film’s definitely one of those classics that you will likely have heard about at some point in your life. It’s a pretty big romance film after all with a lot of iconic moments throughout. The whole premise of the film is built around a rebound though as both characters are already in relationships so that definitely adds an extra layer to think about. It may be hard for you to root for the characters in this endeavor. Still, it is a pretty well made movie with a lot of the fast talking, witty banter you would expect from a Cary Grant film.

The movie starts with Terry and Nickie boarding a cruise. Due to plot reasons both of their fiancés decided not to board the cruise. Great move eh? I mean, in fairness you should not be afraid to miss out on a cruise. It’s not like an affair to remember should ever be expected to happen. If you can’t trust your partner then the relationship isn’t going to work either way. Still, this gives Nickie some room to work. He is a notorious flirt despite being in a relationship and decides to go after Terry. This works rather easily as she falls for him and the two have to think about getting serious. Of course the big thing here is if they do get serious then they are going to need to dump their current fiancés. Will they be able to go through with this or should they just back out of it?

I’ll give the film credit for not taking the easy way out here and making the originals look bad. Kenneth is actually a pretty nice guy. By all accounts he is a very supportive guy who wants what’s best for Terry. He’s naturally hurt by what’s going on but doesn’t get petty about it. No matter what happens he’s always by Terry’s side and also offers to be a rebound if she has second thoughts about Nickie. Then you have Lois who is portrayed as maybe a little more antagonistic as she isn’t super supportive of Nickie’s dreams to be a painter. They are rich though so she probably wonders why he wants to take this hobby up as a real job now. Still, Lois seems perfectly pleasant and even takes Nickie to a movie as a way to cheer him up when he is trying to hide his sadness.

So you need to remember that Nickie and Terry are the heels here. They’re the ones wrecking the ongoing relationships that they had been in with no prior signs of being unhappy. It’s not really portrayed in that light but when you think about it, they’re definitely not doing something that’s nice for the rest of the gang. They’re just thinking about themselves in this light. They should also be a bit wary because as they say, if you found your partner by cheating on someone else…well what comes around goes round. You’ll always have that slight suspicion in the back of your mind that you’re being cheated on as well.

All right, lets talk about the two leads though. So Nickie is a flirt as mentioned who always liked having companionship. He doesn’t really like being by himself and has a pretty tough exterior so people don’t get close to him. He’s a pretty entertaining character even if you never know when he’s actually being genuine. He can be a bit of a mystery in that sense. The only time he seems to let the façade go is when he is with his mother or with Terry at the end. He does his best to find out what happened with their meeting that wasn’t to be without putting her on the spot which was certainly a difficult task.

Terry was someone who initially tried very half heartedly to reject Nickie’s advances but I don’t think anyone truly thought she would succeed. At the end of the day I guess Nickie was just too charming. It seems like she definitely has a rougher road to get through compared to Nickie. He went through the emotional pain while she had to go through that as well as physical challenges. I do think she should have still contacted him right away though. Waiting would just lead to misunderstandings and didn’t really do him any favors. I suppose she didn’t want to tie him down but by that point they were already invested enough where that would have been what he wanted.

I’d say the best part of the film is the first half. I enjoyed the adventures on the boat with the crew constantly messing with the main pair. They weren’t exactly subtle about hanging out together and the crew were always ready to call them out on it like at the scene where they were having dinner or the happy neighbor trying to get a signature. The movie had a lot of nice comedic moments here before becoming a lot more serious and dramatic by the end. it’s a very natural transition though and for the second half the best scene would easily be when Nickie confronts Terry in his very roundabout way of putting the blame on himself. It made for a very nice dynamic as the film slowly builds up to him learning the truth. The writing is just quite stellar here and you would expect nothing less.

Overall, An Affair to Remember is a pretty solid film. It’s unlikely that you will be rooting for the romance though. The solid writing and character development will be what keeps you hear. An event near the film is also quite unexpected and definitely makes for an intense twist. It’s a sad moment but the film doesn’t go too far in trying to force this in your face which I appreciate. The movie goes by fast and you get some pretty nice scenery as well. I’ve always been tempted to go take a cruise even though you see so many of them crashing all the time. It just seems like it would be a really nice change of pace. If I ever went, I would definitely go on the one that has a 24 hour pizza buffet. Why would you choose any other cruise right? If you’re going to go on a cruise then naturally you should go on the best one. I’d recommend checking this one out if you like a light hearted romance. That’s not to say it doesn’t get serious but at the end of the day it is a film that should leave you rather jolly as long as you’re used to rebound romances in films. I wasn’t rooting for them in their romantic endeavors, but the film was still very strong all around and makes for a solid viewing.

Overall 7/10

Beyond Tomorrow Review

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Time for a film that reminds you of how easily many people can be corrupted by a touch of fame. While the film is a pretty uplifting one for most of its run, it actually goes through what I’d consider to be a fairly dark second half. Things get pretty serious with James choking left and right at every corner. Let me tell you, it’s difficult to really feel bad for the guy after a while. He really didn’t make things easy on himself that’s for sure.

The movie starts with three guys finally finishing work for the day. They run a pretty successful business and have all known each other for quite a while. One of them is a bit of a grouch while the other two have more fun just enjoying the Christmas season. When all of the guests cancel their appearances at the party the main member of the trio, Michael decides to have a little wager. The three of them will throw a wallet with 10 bucks out the window to see if anyone brings it back. 2 people do. A lady named Jean and a guy named James. Michael invites them for a Christmas dinner and they all get along rather well. Eventually Jean and James get together and life looks pretty bright for them except that the 3 men die in a big plane crash. Now they are back as ghosts to try and keep these two together as James begins being tempted by another woman.

First off I gotta say that James is just a terrible character. The guy doesn’t last a minute before lusting after the famous music star he meets. As soon as he goes to the studio to record his song he can’t help but stare at her poster rather obsessively. From there he never looks back and dumps Jean like a sack of bricks. Thing is, he’s not even able to do that so instead he just ignores Jean for a while and hangs out with the new girl. Karma tends to strike rather fast in these films so things don’t go very well for him but it’s a shame just how deeply his character was wrecked. He seemed like a nice guy originally and then all of a sudden he just jumps off the bridge. Madame Tanya even tries to warn him but he ignores all advice given as he is eager to keep on digging his own grave.

It’s why the film seems to have such a tonal shift between the first and second half of the film. One second things are going dandy with everyone having a good ole time and then they’re not. In the first half of the film we have people enjoying their time with dinner, hanging out with the kids at school, going on a merry walk through the park, etc. It’s just a very happy film where everything is going well and all of the characters are wholesome. To go from that to suddenly all of the characters are corrupted was just something I had not been expecting in the slightest. It’s almost like watching an entirely different movie. It was an interesting development though, I just wish James could have stayed strong.

Meanwhile Jean was a good character throughout the story. I’m actually glad that in the end she just walked out. Now I know there are always 2 minds about this. 1 is that you should fight for your man. If you see him being stolen away by another girl then you try to use your own wiles to fight back. The other is that if he is tempted away so easily then you can never trust him again anyway so why bother fighting for him? Just leave and find someone better. I’m more inclined to go with the second option. I think it’s reasonable to confront the issue head on first of course but if you just jump to option 2 I wouldn’t blame you. The second the guy cheats then it’s all over. There’s no real way to come back from that. Jean gave him a chance and he blew it so that’s it.

It’s part of why I’m not a big fan of the ending of the film. Certainly it’s always nice to have a second chance but it’s framed in more of a way like James made a mistake when he didn’t. He knew exactly what he was doing throughout the film as well as the consequences of his actions. He just decided that he didn’t care and so I think the film should have just ended on that note. It’s a pretty intense way to end the film of course but I do think it made a lot of sense after everything he put Jean through.

I do think a missed opportunity here is the ghosts angle. My main issue with it is that the ghosts served no real purpose. Of the 3, only Michael stays around for most of the film. The problem is that he didn’t really do anything. For most of the film he’s just glares at the various characters. At most he’ll throw someone’s hat but that’s about it. He never actually contributes anything to the story after death. The 3 characters were great before that but they may as well have not returned. The ghost angle just wasn’t explored so it felt like a rather empty subplot. There’s a whole lot more they could and should have done with that but I suppose the film didn’t want to get too supernatural and lose sight of the main premise.

Overall, I definitely didn’t like James but I thought this was a well written movie. I would have switched up the ending a bit though. Regardless of if you sympathize with James or not (I certainly don’t) there are definitely people like that who will throw you away as soon as they get fame or status. It’s why you always got to be careful before you commit. I’d recommend checking this film out if you want a pretty serious drama to watch. It’s a Christmas film but not one that is all that happy after the halfway mark so you may want to watch another classic like Jingle All The Way first and then wait a bit on this one. It’s definitely still got the biggest tone shift I’ve seen in a very long time between the first and second acts but it’s handled pretty well. You certainly don’t expect everything that happens.

Overall 6/10

Top Secret Affair Review

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Time for one of those films that has everything going for it. It’s got a court case which is always fun to watch even if it feels like half the time the judge refuses to even let the accused speak. Of course that is pretty accurate based on the cases I’ve seen in life. Half the time they just want a chance to take as many shots at you as possible and you’re not allowed to talk back. Then you’ve also got some nice banter with the two main characters and I always like that kind of dynamic. Makes for a pretty entertaining set of dialogue moments and this film is a solid ride from start to finish.

The movie starts off by introducing us to Dorothy, a boss who you do not want to cross. She is furious that General Goodwin is getting the political appointment for the position she and her magazine had been trying to get for someone else. Her staff tells her it’s too late to do anything about it but she doesn’t think so. She is determined to dig up some bad press on this guy in order to make sure he loses the appointment. It’s a pretty intense way to get her revenge but once Dorothy has her mind set on something she accomplishes it. Dorothy invites Goodwin to stay over at her place under the pretext of assembling an article that will speak positively about the army. The Army orders Goodwin to stay at her place. Will he be able to navigate the minefields of questions?

General Goodwin is portrayed as a very intelligent guy. He’s certainly skilled and very qualified for the position he is about to undertake. He doesn’t fall for any of the dirty tricks that the magazine has in store for him. He’s able to break records on their balancing game and knows how to avoid the loaded questions. He even manages to outdrink Dorothy when she tries to get to him that way. Still, we wouldn’t have a film if he perfectly evaded everything right? Unfortunately he has one weakness, Dorothy. As cliche as it sounds, he ends up lowering his guard around her which is a fatal mistake.

It’s too bad because otherwise Goodwin had been doing really good. He didn’t fall for the interviews which you would figure is the toughest part and he even outlasted her in drinking. It just wasn’t enough in the end. This eventually leads to the court room case where Goodwin handles himself well. His only unfortunate scenes here are getting involved with Dorothy and then spilling the beans about old events. It’s just not a mistake he should have made. Regardless, this doesn’t keep him from being the best character in the movie. I already spoke about how much I enjoyed the banter between him and Dorothy.

In many ways that is what keeps the movie operating at a high note the whole time. It’s just a very smart movie with a lot of good lines throughout. While Dorothy is the villain she is also a compelling character and a pretty interesting one to follow. She may get a little overly emotional at the end but otherwise it’s easy to see why she is able to lead this company. She’s quite witty and also good at strategy. She’ll use any kind of tactic to succeed and I’m sure that most would have faltered almost instantly.

Then you’ve got the supporting characters. The main two are Phil and Gooch. Phil is the guy who works for Dorothy. He’s usually around making sarcastic comments or subtly trying to get in Dorothy’s way. He has slightly more of a conscience than she does but seems to just be entertained by following whatever scheme she has afoot. He also gets drunk pretty quickly as well. His best scene is definitely when Dorothy has decided to flee the country so he calls in the government right away. He may not be quite as smart as Dorothy, but Phil definitely has his moments and I just thought he was a lot of fun from start to finish.

Finally you’ve got Gooch who is here to look after Goodwin. His job is to make sure that the story which gets published is positive. Unfortunately for him it’s not like there’s a whole lot that he can actively do about this. At best he can give out advice and talk a good game. He means well though and is a good sidekick to have at your side. He may not be someone who can just take over but if you need someone to carry out orders then he’s your guy. The cast is pretty small as a whole but it’s a solid squad.

The ending of the movie is a little rushed though. We literally go from one character threatening to murder the other to both of them jumping in the car together a few seconds later. Of course the whole murder thing was more figuratively speaking but she didn’t seem to be on good terms with the guy. There was definitely a ton of emotional back and forth going on but the last scene still just didn’t make sense in context to me. I dunno, feels like it all just moved way too quickly there.

The court case was fun though. It was as one sided and bias as possible but it still made for a lot of good entertainment. I just like to see court room scenes and it’s probably why political thrillers tend to be a blast. Of course this film was also part comedy with a lot of fun moments mixed in as well. It’s just a great mix and that’s why it all works out so well. When you’ve got excellent dialogue and a good premise then you’re in business. Really the element that probably should have been cut out was the romance and then this would really be all set. =

Overall, I would recommend checking this movie out. The film’s just very well written and engaging all the way through. The pacing is on point so nothing ever drags. Goodwin makes for an excellent main character and you can’t help but like his confidence. The cat and mouse battles with him and Dorothy as they talk politely but trade insults through subtext is great. You just don’t see these kind of verbal battles nowadays. You don’t want to miss this classic.

Overall 7/10

Lostorage conflated WIXOSS Review

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Time to take a look at the final Wixoss season. Well, the franchise isn’t over but this was the latest season at the time at least so that was a big deal. It also serves as a big crossover event bringing the characters from the first two seasons together to meet the ones from the third. It’s pretty balanced because the first cast had more episodes to work with but this whole thing is a lot fresher to the cast of season 3. Additionally the main character this time around is Kiyoi who is the only character to really have ties to all three seasons. She’s a very appropriate pick for that reason. This is definitely my favorite season. I do feel like a little more could have been done with the crossover concept here but it’s a solid adventure.

The season starts with Kiyoi asking Suzuko to help her out. She needs powerful fighters at her side in order to stop the next round of Selector battles. Satomi may have been defeated but all that means is that Carnival now controls his body and is using it for her own ends. Her goals are just as twisted as his ever were. Unfortunately Suzuko is not eager to join the battles again and decides not to help. Desperate Kiyoi also approaches Ruko for help but…Ruko says no as well. It looks like the adventures took an extremely heavy toll on both of the previous leads so Kiyoi will have to deal with this on her own. That’s not a promising prospect.

This is true for several reasons. The main one being that the heroes are all divided right now while the villains have united stronger than ever. You’ve got Akira, Carnival, and an extremely powerful new villain named Layla. Additionally there are other fighters here and even another cosmic being. If the heroines don’t get their act together soon then it’ll be too late. The rules are different yet again. This time there is no end to the battles until there is only one girl left standing. In addition to your LRig you can also summon another one, even having as many as 3 in one battle. The LRigs from season 3 still have their unique special abilities which puts them at an advantage over most of the original cast. Although, super LRigs like Tama can still activate their Rank 6 stage to balance things out.

Another new thing here is if you lose one battle then you lose your LRig immediately. The winner captures the LRig and can use it in future fights. You don’t have the luxury of being able to ask for a rematch or anything like that. It’s a pretty interesting approach although the rules aren’t explained too well. For example Carnival can summon 3 but when Kiyoi tries one of hers gets blown up. I believe the reason is that Carnival’s ability is that she can disregard the rules..but that’s a bit suspect at best. In general my favorite style of play would be the original way but I do like how they are always innovating.

It’s part of why I really enjoyed the Ruko vs Suzuko battle even if the ending was not as bold as it could have been. Ruko fights using the skills and tactics from the opening seasons while Suzuko uses her fancy game altering abilities and tag team LRig style. It may almost seem unfair but it’s how they play the game so it makes sense that a match would go that way. It’s like seeing someone from Yugioh 5Ds fight someone from Yugioh Arc V. The rules are so different by that point but it’s why a fight would be a lot of fun. Ruko’s LRig is far more powerful than Suzuko’s two so then she needs the special abilities in order to balance things out. It just makes for a great back and forth with a lot of tension as they both acknowledge the other’s strengths. Replace the ending of the fight with something more satisfying and this would be the best fight of the franchise.

One thing this season does really well is the slow build up to the eventual meeting. Now, with the season being fairly short this is a risky gambit. I think it would have really benefited from having 24 episodes personally. Of course Wixoss has never had a long season like that but it would have been really good. We would have really fleshed out more of the battles and gotten everyone involved. Still, it’s a great strategy. The tension for the fight starts building early and then they finally fight in episode 10. When you consider that there are only 12 episodes you can see how the build up was done so well. You may already get this from how this review is going but I also just love crossovers. You can milk the hype for the battles as long as you want because once it does happen I’m definitely going to be thrilled to see them return.

Even just little things like seeing the old cast hanging out is pretty nostalgic. It’s great to see Tama as a human since it took so long to get her to that point. The ordeal certainly put the characters through the ringer. Tama’s also such a nice character that you’re glad she got a happy ending. She’s easily one of the most heroic characters and is probably the only one to not hesitate when hearing that her friends were in trouble. Hitoe and Yuzuki could learn a thing or two from that. Seriously, I can’t state enough how annoying they are with all the bad advice to Ruko. Ruko’s the strongest fighter there so why not let her get involved with the battles? At least let her know what’s going on. The constant lying to her is always a pretty bad idea and just makes the situation that much worse.

As a quick tangent, this is also why the opening theme song is so good for this season. I’m not sure if I’m going to say that it is the best theme song out of the 4 but it certainly has the best intro. It’s a very ominous opening beat and it helped that most of the episodes would begin with an ominous note as the theme song starts. The soundtrack as a whole is pretty solid as always and the graphics are up to the task as well. The series has always managed to keep itself operating at a consistent level. In particular Tama’s fight against Layla was excellent, in part because we had been waiting so long to see her cut loose. Both of them are savage hand to hand fighters who don’t have to rely on energy blasts or special abilities. It’s part of why their fights can cut loose with the choreography. It doesn’t hurt that they are also two of the strongest characters in the series so naturally neither one of them is just going to go down without a good amount of back and forth.

So the build up is good and the season really takes its time. As effective as it is, I do feel like the season maybe bit off more than it could chew with the concept. It’s a grand tournament with all of the characters involved but several of the fights have to get cut short as they resolve off screen. Even big characters like Yuzuki only get 1 real duel before being taken out. I mean…in some ways that’s probably a good thing to be honest. At the same time, she should easily be one of the strongest fighters since she is an LRig herself but you definitely wouldn’t know that from how she performs in this show. Then you’ve got brand new villains like Layla walking around with a lot of hype but there isn’t a ton of time for it.

Due to this you can’t say that the season drags on at all though. There’s always something happening. It’ll always be hard to beat the first viewing of the season but this should hold up really well on a re-watch as well. It’s like a Secret Wars event as you have all of the villains going up against the heroes. At the end of the day that’s why it’s easy to see why this is my favorite season. It’s nice to just get everyone on the same page and have a ton of battles.

Kiyoi is a very solid main character. She’s doing her best to take down Carnival and finally end the eternal battles once and for all. If anything you have to give her more credit than a lot of the other characters who are content to sit back until they are literally forced to join in the fights. Kiyoi gets so many twists in her backstory it can be a little hard to keep the timeline straight but clearly she has been through a lot. I was glad she finally got to get some attention here. She certainly does really well in the climax. The climax is basically a free for all with the rules thrown out the window which was a lot of fun to see. The cosmic being may not have had much of an identity but a faceless opponent like that can make for an imposing final boss either way when you think about it.

Of course there are a lot of characters to discuss here so lets talk about them now. One of the big characters who got to return was Akira Aoi who was a big player in the first two seasons. She is back to take names and fortunately she acts a lot more like herself from season 1 before season 2 threw all of her character development into the waste basket. Here Akira is a tough fighter as she is supposed to be. Unfortunately, there isn’t a ton of time for her but I can’t complain since she gets more duels than most of the characters. She’s just such a great villain that any scene with her is always a lot of fun.

In general the villains have a pretty stacked lineup here. Instead of Satomi we have Carnival as the lead villain and she is a vast improvement. Finally we have a villain who isn’t twisted in some way. Season 3’s Satomi is obvious, The villain from season 2 was also about emotional manipulation with Akira, and then we had Season 1’s main villain who was just messing with people because she could. I still couldn’t buy into that character’s origin story. Carnival just wants to take revenge on the humans which is a very reasonable goal for an LRig. LRigs were either born into misery or forced into it afterwards so they certainly have some very strong feelings towards the characters and for good reason.

Then we have Layla who as I mentioned is a great new addition to the cast. In fact, she may have risen up to be my favorite villain. Of course I love Akira as an imposing threat but as much as I can’t stand what season 2 did to her…it’s technically canon so I have to take that into consideration. Layla has no such events hanging over her head. She’s just an incredibly strong fighter who really wants to take down everyone she fights. She gets quite a few solid wins which was excellent. Her fighting style is bold and impressive as well. There’s really nothing not to like about her character. She was even willing to fight Carnival which was superb. Layla is a character who I wish could have gotten more time. I wanted to see her fight Ruko at her best for more of an extended amount of time.

Chinatsu sort of gets a big role here. So in season 3 she is one of the characters who didn’t get a happy ending. At the end of the day her memories were erased. Suzuko tries to tell Chinatsu not to worry about it but that’s easier said than done. Chinatsu sees this as her way to get her memories back but of course this means that she is no longer a powerhouse in the skills department. The show even teases the possibility of a fight with her and Yuzuki/Hanna vs Yuzuki although they end up not happening. That could have been a lot of fun. Again, this is where extra episodes could have come in handy. In the end she isn’t able to accomplish much on her own but that’s what her friends are here for.

Suzuko naturally didn’t want to enter the battles again but the situation with Chinatsu forces her hand. She does want to get those memories back no matter the cost after all. I would argue this isn’t as selfless a motive as just wanting to save the world like Kiyoi but at least this gets her into the fight. She doesn’t fight much here but is treated with a lot of respect as a Wixoss veteran. At this point in the story she is considered to be the second strongest fighter behind Ruko. She even gets the honor of fighting against Carnival which was nice. I was very satisfied with her fights here.

The same can be said for Ruko although I would have liked to have seen her fight just a bit more. As with Suzuko, Ruko is a veteran to the point where it seems like she doesn’t even fight much anymore. She’s grown too powerful for the game and as always her friends are around to give her the worst possible advice and hide secrets from her. Due to circumstances Ruko is without Tama again for a period of time which is unfortunate since that serves as a big nerf to her. I suppose the writers needed a way to ensure Ruko wouldn’t just clean shop but I do admit that I really wanted to see Ruko and Tama take names. After all, that means even with the fight against Suzuko, Ruko couldn’t use Tama. That’s the fight we all wanted to see after all the build up.

Hanna and Hitoe are examples of big supporting characters who ultimately are forced to stay by the sidelines. There’s just no time for them to do much so they are promptly taken out for the count. Neither fighter was ever that impressive to me so that’s not very surprising. There are a whole lot of other characters running around though as almost every old LRig and Wixoss player were brought back into the fold. It’s just a lot of fun to see these guys back in action. Even characters like Shohei aren’t forgotten as he finally gets some real closure here. Kazuki is given the shaft as he appears for like 5 seconds but that’s definitely for the best.

So this ends up being a very balanced season and a nice way to see all of the characters one last time. The final episode definitely ends things off on a high note. My main complaints would just be the season’s plot being a little too ambitious to the point where it couldn’t totally deliver on what it was hyping up. We should have gotten many more battles with the characters all finally getting to duke it out with each other. I’d also say that Tama seemed to be a little nerfed here by falling in the cage. Fortunately her shadowy partner was around to help out and I’m glad she wasn’t forgotten but they should have been able to bust the cage with ease.

To an extent the new Wixoss rules are there to help mask the short length by having each player eliminated after 1 match. It’s not a bad idea particularly with the LRig being taken each time but I think to make things simpler it should have been that the player is also taken out of the picture. Keeping the human around adds even more variables and potential plots to keep track of. This is the kind of thing that I would consider to be more of a minor issue at best though. It’s not something that would lower the score or anything. I do feel like the score could have definitely gotten higher with more battles and episodes though. Even just having a real ending to the Ruko vs Suzuko battle would have probably added a star. We got a 8-9 episode build up to that fight so I was really counting on a true ending to show who the strongest character of all was once and for all.

Overall, This was a really fun way to end the saga. It may not have all ended up exactly as I would have written it out but I can’t deny that it was a lot of fun. Akira and Layla were great villains while Ruko and Suzuko still make for great heroines. Kiyoi did a good job of taking on the mantle of taking on the mantle of main character as well. At the end of the day that gives you a very balanced show firing on all cylinders. While the Ruko vs Suzuko battle may have gotten the most hype, I would say that Ruko vs Layla was another big hitter and one of the best fights of the season. It probably did have the best animation at the end of the day. Then Layla vs Carnival was great because I always like to see in fighting amongst the villains. It adds a lot of tension and underscores that Layla isn’t some pawn who will just follow orders. She makes sure to have her presence felt the whole time. If you’ve made it this far into the series then you should definitely check this season out. If you haven’t gotten into the series yet then you should at least watch season 3 to really get what’s happening here. Otherwise you’re definitely going in blind and will have to prepare for exposition based on things you don’t know a whole lot about yet.

Overall 8/10