Thoughts on FNAF (Five Nights at Freddy's)

This post is dedicated to my thoughts on the horror game franchise, Five Nights at Freddy’s. After watching a few videos of YouTubers playing the first game, I was hooked. I’m pretty sure I’ve watched every video that Markiplier has uploaded (games one through four) of or about the game. I also really love the theories that MatPat (Game Theory) has put out. While the overall gameplay can be very interesting, the real pull to the franchise for me is the lore. (Image: http://i.ytimg.com/vi/INMFlxEI538/maxresdefault.jpg) 

I think the first game is the best game of the four games that have been released. I personally love the designs of the main four, well five, animatronics in the first game. Yes, they are creepy (they are supposed to be, obviously. It is a horror game after all), but I think they are creepy-cute, especially Bonnie the Bunny. My favorite animatronic is Foxy the Pirate Fox. I’m not sure what drew me to Foxy being my favorite. I think one of the reasons was his special ability to run from his post at Pirate Cove to the security guard’s office. The idea of the first game is eerily real in tone. Being someone who has fond memories of going to Chuck E. Cheese’s as a kid, the setting of this game seems very close to home.

The second game has been proven to be a prequel to the first game. I think this was an interesting way to guide the direction of the franchise. I liked how we are put into a different location, even though the way you play the game is fairly similar to ways of the first game. In the first game, the office had doors that you could close to keep the animatronics out. This element was removed from the second game. Instead, you are given an empty mask to try and disguise yourself. I also like the addition of new models of the characters, with the old characters and new characters.

The third game, gameplay wise, is not my favorite. This game is set as a horror attraction with artifacts and training tapes from the locations of the first two games. I can totally see this happening in real life. The lore elements that come with this game are great, though still incomplete. The hidden levels and returning Atari-style mini-games from the second game make for great gameplay. The fourth game to me is a stretch. It takes place in a house instead of a pizzeria, and you are a child instead of a security guard. I like the overall execution of this game, even though some lore elements are still purely up for theorizing.

Check this game series out if you haven’t!

Thoughts on YouTube Gaming

In this post, I will be expressing my views on YouTube Gaming. Jimmy Kimmel recently released a parody video about the subject, which received a lot of negative backlash. Following that, he released two other videos about the comments he was receiving on the videos, some being death threats. He concluded this series by doing a collaboration with two big-name YouTube gamers. Being a fan of YouTube gamers myself, I found the video to be very awkward based on how mild-mannered the personalities were reduced to. You can watch the first video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ji9KmXwrA5Y

Personally, I love watching gaming videos on YouTube. I really don’t understand when people call the culture pointless or dumb. I find that watching sports or a reality show like Survivor is no different than watching gaming videos. You aren’t actually doing the action yourself; you are watching someone else and getting enjoyment out of it. It is the exact same principle. So, when I see celebrities like Kimmel bashing topics like this, I wonder if they did any research at all.

In terms of viewership, gaming videos are some of the most popular videos on YouTube. Even the most subscribed to YouTuber is a gamer. Felix Kjellberg (PewDiePie) is that gamer. He currently has almost 40 million subscribers. That amount of viewership is huge and proves that gaming is a growing form of entertainment. PewDiePie was the first gamer I frequently watched and he was how I got into the gaming community.

To give a personal example, I enjoy watching some horror games. I do not have a high tolerance for being scared, so I’d prefer to watch other people play the scary games than play them myself. I am a fan of The Walking Dead, both the show and the game, and I decided to watch a Let’s Play of the game. This particular Let’s Play was done by PewDiePie. Even though I was not playing the game myself, I still felt an attachment to the characters and storylines. You really don’t have to experience it first-hand to enjoy it. Another example is Markiplier’s gameplay of Five Nights at Freddy’s. This is not the sort of game I would play for my personal enjoyment, but I get so much enjoyment out of watching Mark play.

The added element of a commentary from someone outside of the characters of the game is really special. They may just be a voice or a face in the corner of the screen, but they really make all the difference. 

Fly Girl Review

While searing for behind the scenes videos from Wicked, I stumbled across a series of videos called Fly Girl: Behind the Scenes at Wicked with Lindsay Mendez. I enjoyed the 11 installments of Fly Girl so much that I decided to do this review.

Prior to watching this series, I was not familiar with Lindsay as Elphaba. I was of course familiar with Idina Menzel, as well as others such as Shoshana Bean and Kerry Ellis. After following Lindsay around for 11 videos, she is now one of my favorite women to have been in this special role.

This video series was very informative and provided a very in-depth look at a typical routine for an Elphaba at Wicked. From costumes, to makeup, to outside of the show; everything was addressed by Lindsay. I really love seeing how the actresses actually go through the “greenifying” process to become the infamous witch. We met her makeup artist, her dresser, and her hair stylist. From a distance, it looks like the whole body is painted green, but this is not the case. Lindsay shows how only her face, neck, and hands go through the greening process. Her arms and chest are green due to a sheer bodysuit to cut down on application time. I was not aware that Elphaba becomes greener and more glamorous by the second act. Lindsay explains that this is due to her aging process and also her internal changes. She also shows how she takes off the green after every show, even after two show days.

She also let us get to know her co-stars. Derek Klena, her Fiyero, often hung out in her dressing room. Lindsay explains that everyone tends to gather in her dressing room before the show. She says this is because they don’t have time to really interact with each other out-of-character during the show due to lack of time off-stage. Seeing how close they are were with each other was very fun. I especially loved the relationship between Lindsay and Derek. Before Wicked, they had done Dogfight with one another.

She also gave us her tips and tricks to maintaining a healthy voice for the show. Lindsay went through Derek leaving the show for a while to take a break, her dressing room being torn down during renovations for the theater, 10^th Anniversary performances and press, and running around the stage along with many other things.

This was an incredibly entertaining series to watch. Watch the first installment here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rvfSMr70jH8

The Big Bang Theory 9x01 "The Matrimonial Momentum" Review

Big Bang is back! This is my review of the Season 9 premiere of The Big Bang Theory.

This episode was a little confusing to me at times, only because I did not watch all of Season 8. You just forget to tune in sometimes, right? Despite that, I enjoyed the episode anyway. I mean, when it comes to this show, it’s pretty hard not to enjoy it. The lack of nominations they got for the Emmys baffled me as well. Even though TBBT is entering its 9^th season, the writers are still creating laugh-out-loud scripts for the cast.

This episode started out with Penny and Leonard in a little chapel in Las Vegas. Yes, they’re getting married! Penny didn’t have an extravagant gown or anything due to this marriage being a spur of the moment thing. Even though all seemed well and everyone seemed to be in love, Sheldon and Amy called it quits. I was quite saddened by this because I found their relationship endearing and fun to watch. To make things worse, they showed Sheldon pulling a wedding ring out of his drawer and not knowing what to do with it.

I felt bad for Amy after the split because she was unaware of Penny and Leonard’s situation. She was upset to find that she was not even invited to the wedding. Penny tried to explain to her that it wasn’t planned and that they just went for it. She also explained that they could watch the wedding live via a livestream. This led Amy over to Howard and Bernadette’s house. With everyone together, including Raj and Stewart, and Sheldon standing outside of the window, drama was bound to happen. I thought this was a very funny scene due to all of the tension.

My favorite part of the episode was when the couple-to-be were exchanging vows. In typical Leonard fashion, his vows consisted of comparisons to science, including atoms, and being very heartfelt and sincere. Penny on the other hand, did not have any vows prepared. Improvising, she recited the lyrics of You’ve Got a Friend in Me from Toy Story. This part got a big laugh out of me. I also laughed a lot when Leonard was struggling when trying to carry Penny bridal style into the Honeymoon Suite. Everyone back home didn’t even see their final exchanges on the livestream due to fighting.

Sheldon’s mother, Mary, made a brief appearance in the episode. I would’ve liked to see Dr. Hofstadter’s reaction to the wedding. Overall, I really enjoyed this episode. 

67th Emmy Awards Review/Rant

In this post, I will give my opinionated thoughts on the 67^th Emmy Awards.

The Emmys aired on Sunday, September 20^th, 2015. Andy Samberg was this year’s host. When I heard this, I wasn’t overly excited. Andy surprised me, though. His opening musical number was entertaining and shined light on all of the shows that were nominated in some way. As the night progressed, the jokes became underwhelming and forced. I stopped watching about a half an hour before the close of the awards.

I had everything betting on one actress; Christine Baranski. Her talent was highly recognized this year, resulting in her earning 2 nominations. She was nominated for Best Guest Actress in a Comedy for her recurring role as Dr. Beverly Hofstadter on The Big Bang Theory. She got her second nomination for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama for her recurring role as Diane Lockhart on The Good Wife. Once again, she did not win any awards. She has only won 1 Emmy in her entire television career, despite having been nominated for every year she’s been on The Good Wife (That’s 6 nominations! 6 Emmy Awards! 6 losses!). In my opinion, this is incredibly ridiculous to be happening to such an incredibly talented woman. She even had an interview with Seth Meyers, talking about dealing with her consecutive losses.

Another Good Wife nominee, Alan Cumming also did not win any awards. In an interview with Gold Derby, he mentioned that he really wanted Christine to take home the Emmy for her dramatic role. The irony of it all was, Christine and her daughter, Lily, were given an aisle seat just 2 rows back from the stage. Several Emmy winners were sitting lower down in their row, so Christine and Lily had to get up several times to let them out. At least she got a lot of screen time that way.

I was happy to see the cast of Veep take home as many Emmys as they did. Allison Janney was among some of the winners that I was very happy for. But, for those like Mayim Bialik, I was sad to see them lose in their respective categories. One thing is for sure, the red carpet fashion is always a delicious feast for the eyes. The men looked sharp; the women looked gorgeous. Awards like this really show how high-class Hollywood really is.

One word for the Emmys? Snubbed. 

Jeff Dunham "Unhinged in Hollywood" Review

On Thursday, September 17^th, a new special from Jeff Dunham was aired on NBC. This special was filmed at the Dolby Theater in Hollywood, California and appropriately named, Unhinged in Hollywood.

Overall, I loved this special. A lot of the material was familiar to me because it was rehashed from his headlining show in Las Vegas, Not Playing with a Full Deck. I saw this show in July and laughed a lot at the jokes from each character. Even though I’d heard the jokes before, I still laughed the second time because they were just that good. The biggest complaint I had was the time restraint. Only an hour slot was allotted for this special. In my opinion, that was far too short of a time slot to showcase the talents of Jeff Dunham.

Per usual, the show began with one of his most popular characters, Walter. He began with complaining about the various problems and living conditions that are dealt with in California. I always think that making fun of wherever location Jeff is performing in is very effective and gets a good laugh. My favorite joke from this portion was the jab at Caitlyn Jenner.

Little Jeff came after this. When I saw that this character was going to be in the show, I wasn’t sure if he’d do his little infomercial bit. To my surprise, he did. The whole bit was not showcased, due to time, but it still made for a hilarious introduction. My favorite line from this bit, even when I saw it 2 months ago, was, “What else is in the box, Jeff?” I think the highlight of this part of the show was when Little Jeff and Jeff get into a physical fight and start running all over the stage.

A fan favorite, Bubba J, was next up. He has easily become one of my favorites over the course of his last few specials. Just the way he talks is enough for a laugh. There weren’t any jokes that really stood out, but I did enjoy the small monologue about Walmart.

My personal favorite, Peanut, was next in line. I love this character and I think his bits are always very funny. The Starbucks gag got a big laugh out of the audience, and myself. At one point, Peanut flies off of Jeff’s arm, causing him to not be able to close his mouth. I thought this was not staged when I saw it in Vegas and I really enjoyed it both times. Some older jokes were recycled but still enjoyable.

The show then stopped for a musical break, featuring Brad Paisley. Brad and Walter shared a duet together when the initial portion concluded. This was not my favorite portion of the special, but it was still good.

The last character to be showcased was, Achmed the Dead Terrorist. He is my second favorite character and his catch phrases still make me laugh. The best part of this bit was the, very believable, crumble of Achmed. It began with his arm falling off and a few jokes to go with that. He then lost his other arm and the bottom part of his rib cage. Once again, I thought this was not staged when I first saw it. I thought this added feature to Achmed’s character design was very funny and effective.

To reflect, I think this was a great special and gave Jeff some ratings that he maybe wouldn’t have gotten otherwise. I give it a 9/10. 

Mamma Mia! Theory: Who is Sophie's Father?

One of the many questions I have is, who is Sophie Sheridan’s biological father?

At the end of the movie, we are left with this question unanswered. Technically, Sam is her father after his marriage to Donna; but who is her real father? In my opinion, Bill is Sophie’s biological father. This is my theory.

Between the dates of July 17^th and August 11^th, Donna Sheridan had three romantic relations that she recorded in her diary. Bill was the second of these relations, coming into the picture on August 4^th. This seems like a logical point to make in my argument because he wasn’t Donna’s first love, but he wasn’t her last. When talking to Sam about Donna, he states, “No, I hadn’t heard from her for 20 years, and then this invite out of the blue.” Sophie is 20 at the time of her wedding.

When Sam, Bill, and Harry arrive on the island and meet Sophie for the first time, Bill is the first to talk to her.

Bill: “I thought you looked familiar. Uh, Sophia?”

Sophie: “It’s Sophie.”

Bill: “Well, Sophia is the Greek.”

Sophie: “Well, I’m named after a Sophia.”

Bill: “I used to have a great aunt living on the mainland, named Sophia.”

More is revealed later in a conversation between the two of them at Sophie’s bachelorette party.

Bill: “How on Earth did Donna get money to buy this place?”

Sophie: “She was left some money by the old lady she looked after when I was little, Sophia, that I’m named after.”

Bill: “My Great Aunt Sophia?”

Sophie: “I guess.”

Bill: “I always heard her money was left to family.”

After hearing this and hearing that Sophie is 20, it dawns on him that he could possibly be her father. Bill then runs off after being overwhelmed by this possibility and Sophie goes after him. During this scene, the song Name of the Game was supposed to be sung to Bill by Sophie. This song was cut. If it would’ve remained in the movie, it would’ve been the only song shared between Sophie and one of her possible fathers. This scene can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XtY_i1mP3OI 

In addition, I feel like Sophie’s personality emulates Bill’s the most. Bill is categorized as the adventurous one and tends to take risks.  Sophie was “ransacking some old trunks” when she came across Donna’s diary, which led her to discovering Bill. She also took the risk of sending invitations to these three men, without her mother’s knowledge, having no idea if they would reply or even come.

In conclusion, I feel that Sophie has the deepest connection to Sam throughout the movie, but all the facts point to Bill.

Typical, isn’t it? You wait 20 years for a dad and then three come along at once. 

Mamma Mia! (2008) Review

Welcome to my review of the 2008, movie musical, Mamma Mia! These are my personal thoughts and opinions on the film.

Mamma Mia! is one of those feel-good movies that I can watch over and over, without getting tired of it. The constant ABBA hits and wild costumes leave me with a smile on my face every time. I absolutely love how they were able to create an entire story around songs from a Swedish pop group from the 70’s. Despite having a wonderful and timeless soundtrack, I have to say my favorite part of this movie is the star-studded cast.

Amanda Seyfried plays the bride-to-be, Sophie. Dominic Cooper plays her fiancée, Sky. Meryl Streep plays the lead Dynamo and Villa owner, Donna. Donna’s best friends and fellow Dynamos, Tanya and Rosie, are played by Christine Baranski and Julie Walters. Sophie’s potential fathers are played by Pierce Brosnan, Stellan Skarsgård, and Colin Firth. Personally, I feel like the casting was perfect. Meryl and Amanda have a very believable and endearing mother/daughter relationship. Meryl, Christine, and Julie have great chemistry and look like they are having as much fun off-set as they are on-set, if not more. Pierce, Stellan, and Colin each have very distinct personalities, making for some very comedic scenes. Amanda and Dominic are very playful and fun. Lastly, the side characters of Ali, Lisa, and Pepper add to some interesting and memorable scenes. Benny and Björn’s cameos do not give them a lot to do character-wise, but nonetheless, they are fun to look out for.

I love the sets that are displayed in this movie. I find it hard to tell sometimes which scenes were filmed on sound stages and which were filmed on location. I find them all to be very visually pleasing. The shots on the Greek beaches really do look like paradise, as they mention. In terms of cinematography, I think this movie was beautifully shot. I think it offers a wide range of close-ups, wide angles, camera pans, slow-mo, scenery, and ensemble shots. The costumes are displayed very well among the various camera angles.

For singing and choreography, I think both were done very well. With the exception of Christine Baranski and a few others, the majority of the cast had never done singing professionally. Knowing this, I think the cast as a whole sounds phenomenal. I prefer the movie’s soundtrack to the original, Broadway soundtrack. The choreography is fairly simple, save for a few musical numbers, giving the movie an intimate quality. I have danced and sang along with the movie many times.

Overall, I think Mamma Mia! is a very solid movie on its own, but it’s an amazing musical. I wish certain songs weren’t deleted, and I wish some were added. Other than that, I have no complaints.

I would highly recommend this movie and I give it a 10/10.

Watch the trailer here! - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CiVnD9i7BpE