Author Archives: Bizarre Brunette

Invested in Critical Role

Posted in Bizarre Brunette Big-Screen Watches, Gaming by

The first time I heard about Critical Role was at Gen Con in 2019. The cast of Critical Role was doing a live show, and my friend was thrilled. He had tickets to go, and he said it was the highlight of his convention. Earlier this year, I figured I’d watch the first episode on YouTube because why not? I was still at home and wasn’t sure when I would be vaccinated. I was surprised at how easily I have become invested in their campaign. For the past month, all I have been watching is Critical Role.

For those completely new to Critical Role, it’s a Dungeons & Dragons campaign GMed by voice actor Matthew Mercer and his other voice actor friends. Every show is streamed live on Thursday nights, Pacific Standard Time, and uploaded to their YouTube channel. Originally, Critical Role was a private campaign Mercer had, but they decided to partner with Geek & Sundry and start airing their episodes on their channel in 2015. All of the episodes of Critical Role can be watched on YouTube.

When I started watching Critical Role, I went back to the beginning with episode #1 of their first campaign, Vox Machina. There were some recommendations to start with their second campaign, The Mighty Nein, since it was more refined with better video quality; however, I wanted to start from the beginning. In my experience, I would recommend watching Critical Role from the start. It’s fun to witness the chemistry the players have. It’s tough to pick a favorite character because all the characters serve a role in the story.

Another reason I’m enjoying Critical Role is that it’s easy to follow along. I have listened to other D&D podcasts where I couldn’t quite keep up with the game. It helps that Critical Role has a recap told by Mercer and story introductions narrated by each cast member. I usually skip over their backstories, but every ten episodes or so, I will listen to them in full just to keep their stories fresh in my mind. I prefer watching Critical Role on their YouTube channel versus listening to the podcast.

Additionally, I love how Critical Role gives back to the community. In the beginning, Critical Role was taking donations for 826LA, which focused on creating opportunities for kids. Now, they have their own non-profit. I think it’s admirable that they give back to their community.

I wish I had started watching Critical Role sooner than I am now. It’s such a fun group to watch, and they all seem to get along with and care for each other. Critical Role has gotten me through some hectic workweeks, along with making me look forward to the end of the day. It’s been a true escape to leave the stresses of work in my office and come aboard Vox Machina and their adventures through Tal’Dorei.

Nancy Drew: The Haunted Carousel

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The Nancy Drew computer games can be a huge hit (Ghost of Thornton Hall) or pretty mediocre (Ghost Dogs of Moon Lake). I’m determined to play through them all. It still surprises me how challenging the Nancy Drew games are. The puzzles require in-depth thought, and it’s easy to get stuck, not knowing what to do next. Nancy Drew: The Haunted Carousel was one of my favorite Nancy Drew games that I played.

In this game, Nancy is recruited by Paula Santos, the owner of Captain’s Cove Amusement Park in New Jersey. One of the horses from the Carousel was stolen, and some of the rides seemingly began to move on their own. Nancy is introduced to several employees of the park, who each have a motive as to why they would be interested in the park shutting down. Since this game is set at a carnival, this game is a bit heavy on mini-games, especially when Nancy explores the arcade. Nancy Drew: The Haunted Carousel is one of the better games to start with because Nancy isn’t at risk of dying in this game. If Nancy makes a wrong choice, she’s fired from the case rather than dying. There are also fewer “jump scares” in this game than in other Nancy Drew games I played.

I liked how this game had more suspects. It made it that much more intriguing when the culprit was revealed. I liked the setting at the park. Certain areas in the game were super creepy. I was a little anxious going through those areas because I was convinced something would jump out at me. The soundtrack to this game complemented the haunted theme.

Overall, this would be a good beginner Nancy Drew game. It’s less scary, and the puzzles, while challenging, are doable. I have five other Nancy Drew games installed on my computer, so it’s safe to say another Nancy Drew review will be written soon.

PEEPin at a PEEP Art Exhibit

Posted in Life Lately by

I hope you all had a lovely Easter weekend! For Easter, my fiancé and I visited his family in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. With COVID, we would normally quarantine at his parents’ house and watch TV. However, with both of his parents being vaccinated, we decided to go do something. For the Easter weekend, I convinced my fiancé to go to the 11th Annual PEEPS Art Exhibition at the Racine Art Museum. From the title, all the art pieces were made out of PEEPS or were inspired by PEEPS in general.

Image is a photo of me standing next to a cut out of a bright pink PEEP. I'm wearing a yoga mask and am wearing a long black winter coat.

The exhibit was open from noon to 4 PM. We arrived at the museum at 12:15 and there were already people waiting outside of the museum. Each ticket was $7 which I thought was a good price to see the PEEP room along with the whole museum. As we paid for our tickets, there were dots on the floor representing where to stand to be socially distanced. The museum had a cap of 50 people, so someone was counting how many people were being sold tickets. The PEEPS exhibit was in one room with a walkway with various art pieces. My favorite had to be the Baby Yoda made of brown and green PEEPS glued together. There were also several Bernie sitting on a chair PEEPS along with a Harry Potter-themed one as well.

Image is an art piece of Baby Yoga except it's made out of PEEPS. The green PEEPS make up Yoda's head and the brown PEEPs make up the cloak.

With COVID, I missed going out and doing random activities. I would happily go to this exhibit next year. It was such a fun way to spend the Holiday.

Image is a photo of an art mini with Bernie Sanders as a yellow stuffed PEEP sitting in a chair. He has silver glasses and his mittens are shown crossing over each other.

Intergalatic Cooking in Space Battle Lunchtime

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Image is a cover for Space Battle Lunch Time. It shows a woman wearing glasses and she's a chef. On either side of her are various aliens. It reminds me of Top Chef if Top Chef was in space.

With starting a pull list, I have been reading more single-issue comics than trades. When I first began reading comics, I heavily relied on trades to continue in a series. The latest trade paperback I read was Space Battle Lunch Time, by Natalie Riess. Imagine if Top Chef took place in space, and that’s the synopsis of Space Battle Lunchtime. This had such a fun premise and left off on a big cliffhanger.

Space Battle Lunchtime is an intergalactic hit! It’s a reality cooking competition featuring chefs from a variety of different galaxies. Peony, a human from Earth, is in the right place at the right time when she is zapped from her bakery to appear on the show. Peony is replacing another contestant who disappeared under mysterious circumstances. Peony has never used galactic cooking ingredients, which puts her at a serious disadvantage compared to her previous opponents. Will Peony fall under the pressure? Or can she cook up to the competition?

This graphic novel was such a lighthearted read. I liked reading about their challenges and how Peony has to quickly adapt. While Peony is the main character, I would say I liked both Neptunia and Aris. Neptunia is a fellow contestant and has to work with Peony on a cooking challenge. There’s a budding friendship between the two, and I liked seeing it unfold. Aris is a cameraman on the show, and he’s always in Peony’s corner, wishing her good luck. Both characters added to Peony’s journey throughout the show.

The art in this graphic novel complements the story perfectly. I liked how the beginning of each issue had a recap page, which felt in line with other reality TV shows or cooking shows. I also liked the logo of Space Battle Lunchtime with the pink spatula and the star.

I have nothing bad to say about Space Battle Lunchtime. It was a fun departure from other graphic novels I tend to read. This is the first graphic novel I read from Natalie Riess, and it won’t be the last. Space Battle Lunchtime can be purchased directly from Oni Press’s website or through your local comic book store.

Computer Games From My Childhood

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My mom has been doing spring cleaning at my childhood home. The latest find was old computer games I used to play. My mom was planning on donating them to Goodwill, but I insisted she give them to me instead. I’m not sure if I ever plan on playing them again, but I don’t think I can get rid of them. I’m not sure if they would work, considering that it lists Windows 97/98 as the system. I wanted to share the computer games that made up my childhood.

Carmen Sandiego Math Detective

Image is a photo of a computer game CD disc. It saws Carmen Sandiego Math Detective. The image on the CD shows a woman in a flying ship of sorts, she's wearing a brown hat. Off to the right, is a big rock formation on a cliff. It looks like there's a HQ on top of the rock.

I loved the Carmen Sandiego computer games! My dad bought them for me because technically they were educational. I liked the overall plot of the games and how the main goal was to capture Carmen even though Carmen would escape every single time. I have played through each Carmen Sandiego computer game at least five times throughout my childhood.

Backyard Baseball 2003

Image is a photo of Backyard Baseball 2003 Computer CD disc. It shows two cartoon or animated people. The first is a man from New York swinging a bat. Behind him, a girl is holding her mitt attempting to catch the ball.

My dad bought me this game to help teach me the rules of baseball. I would watch Minnesota Twins games with my dad and constantly be asking questions about the game, the rules, and the players. In the Backyard sports games, it would take professional players and make them into little kids. I could pick the players I wanted to create my team to get into the World Series. The Minnesota Twins player included in this game was pitcher Brad Radke. I never played any of the other Backyard Sports games, but I know there was one for football as well.

Clue (1998 Hasbro Interactive)

Image is a computer CD disc for the computer game, Clue. It shows the words Clue in bright yellow per the branding of the board game. In the middle of the disc, there's a magnifying glass surrounding the circle hole in the disc. It shows lightning striking in the background.

This Clue game freaked me out. Once you navigated around the Boddy mansion and started accusing people, it would show a clip of the person you accused murdering Mr. Boddy with the weapon. I probably shouldn’t have been playing this game at a young age, but my friend and I had the best time. We would always turn off all the lights and play this game in my basement.

The Game of Life (1998 Hasbro Interactive)

Image is a computer CD rom disc for the game, The Game of Life. LIFE is in all caps and each letter has a different color square in the background. The L is magenta, the i is blue, the f is a lime green and the e is a bright yellow. It shows the spinner of Life and off to the left, it shows a couple driving in a red car.

Besides Clue, I would always play Life. I tried to have the most babies in one go through of the game. I liked how I could customize my character and change the color of the car I drove. I found myself constantly playing this interchangeably with Clue.

Computer games from the ’90s were my jam. I don’t think I can get rid of them because of the many memories attached to playing through each game. I may try to find a CD drive and run them on my Windows 7 laptop to see if they will play. Let me know in the comments if you still have any old computer games.

Zack Snyder’s Justice League (2021)

Posted in Bizarre Brunette Big-Screen Watches by

My fiancé took off work on the release date of Zach Synder’s Justice League. My fiancé is a big DC fan. While I didn’t hate the original Justice League, the movie felt like a mess. There were rumors of a Snyder Cut; however, with DC’s movie track record, I didn’t get my hopes up. After my fiancé finished watching the movie, he came into the office where I was working and couldn’t stop talking about how good this film was. I was still skeptical, but I agreed to watch it with him the following weekend. I was pleasantly surprised because Zach Snyder’s Justice League was amazing. It was way better than WW84.

My expectations for watching the Snyder Cut were Joss Whedon’s movie with more scenes. To be blunt, this was a completely different movie. Cyborg (aka Victor Stone) in this full version had much more of a character arc than in the theatrical release. In this film, Cyborg’s origin story is told on screen. The relationship Victor has with his parents, how Victor’s father ends up helping the League, and Victor listening to a recording from his father saying how proud he is and how he is fortunate to be given a second chance. Ray Fisher (who plays Cyborg) has been the most vocal about Joss Whedon and his abuse of power behind the scenes. I can understand Fisher being upset after the theatrical release because his character’s backstory was erased. Cyborg is easily the MVP, and his role in splitting the mother boxes was crucial to preventing Darkseid from coming to Earth.

The return of Superman is so much more satisfying in the Snyder Cut. As Cyborg is pulling apart the mother boxes, Steppenwolf comes up behind him, about to deliver a devastating blow, when Superman appears, blocking the attack in his black suit. Superman pummels Steppenwolf, buying more time to assist Cyborg. I could feel myself getting amped at seeing Henry Cavill back in action at just the right moment.

Another surprising moment for me was the role of the Flash (aka Barry Allen). In the theatrical release, Barry seemed incompetent and immature. In the Snyder Cut, Barry is much more aware of his powers and the speed force. In the final battle, Cyborg isn’t able to pull the mother boxes apart in time, leading to the Justice League losing. However, Barry notices this and runs back in time to produce the energy needed to split the mother boxes. This moment was special to watch because, without Barry’s help, Darkseid and Steppenwolf would have won. In this version, each member of the League has a role. Without one of them, they would have failed at various steps of their plan. In the theatrical version, this wasn’t laid out.

If I had been told months ago that I would have liked the Snyder Cut better than WW84, I would have laughed. The Snyder Cut was everything I would have hoped for from a film adaptation of the Justice League. Unfortunately, Warner Bros. was trying to control Zach Snyder’s vision, leading to the theatrical version. Zach Snyder’s Justice League was amazing, and I wouldn’t be surprised if it was my favorite movie of 2021.

Unicorns, Critical Role & 90’s Punk – Highlighting Indie Comics

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I consider indie comics to be anything other than Marvel or DC. With Image and Dark Horse becoming more prominent comic publishers, are they still considered indie? Despite the lack of conventions I have attended, I have been reading more comics than ever before! It helps to have weekly trips to my local comic book store. I wanted to highlight a couple of indie comics I read that I thoroughly enjoyed.

By The Horns Issue #1 Naso, Muhr, and Tabacaru

Image is for a comic book cover for By The Horns. It shows a woman with short blonde hair wearing a white jacket. She's sitting on a pile of dead creatures. Her sword is sticking into something next to her.

By the Horns is published by Scout Comics, which I had never heard of before purchasing this issue. By the Horns follows Elodie, a monster hunter who is fueled by revenge after her husband, Shintaro, was murdered by a unicorn. Elodie is so consumed by rage that she’s asked to leave her town after they feel she’s abandoned them. Accompanied by her animal sidekick, Saijen, she adventures through various cities in search of unicorns.

By The Horns was a fully fleshed-out first issue. I liked Elodie as the main character. I felt the way she was designed, with her white, rogue jacket and blue face paint, gave her a look that was memorable to me. Elodie feels like a character I would play as in a Dungeons & Dragons campaign. Saijen is Elodie’s fox companion. Elodie and Saijen have this close bond, and I’m interested to see more of their battles together.

By the Horns issue #2 will be released in May, while issue #1 is available for purchase. I rated By the Horns issue #1 five stars.

Home Sick Pilots Issue #1 Watters, Wijngaard, Bidikar, and Muller

Image is a comic book cover for Home Sick Pilots. It shows a woman in blue staring straight ahead. Beneath her is a black house. There are red dripping palm trees of sorts.

Home Sick Pilots is published by Image whom I’m a huge fan of. Home Sick Pilots follows the band of the same name. To be competitive with a rival band, Ami suggests to both Buzz and Rip to perform at a haunted house. Both Buzz and Rip are terrified because of the rumors they have heard. Ami ventures in on her own and finds that this is more than a haunted house.

I love anything spooky and Home Sick Pilots gives off this feeling. I liked the art in this issue a lot. The blues/purples of the haunted house along with the ethereal look of Ami as she enters the house. There’s a panel showing both the Home Sick Pilots and rival band Nuclear Bastards as they are both exploring the house at the same time. There was so much to look at that I found myself staring at the page way after reading the panels.

Home Sick Pilots has been releasing weekly issues and should all be available at your local comic book store. I rated Home Sick Pilots issue #1 four stars.

Critical Role Vox Machina Origins Series III #1 Mercer, Houser, Samson, Msassyk, and Maher.

Image is a comic book cover for Critical Role Vox Machina Origins. It shows seven characters on the cover. There's a gnome holding a beer. Next to her are two identical looking half-elves, a man and a woman. In the back is a woman with orange hair holding a staff, a man with white hair and glasses, and a gnome standing on a table. Finally, there's a giant man with gray skin and black markings on his chest.

I started Critical Role last month and I’m hooked! This issue follows the group from Critical Role’s first campaign: Grog, Keyleth, Vex, Vax, Trinket, Scanlan, Pike, and Percy as they find their next paid mission. They wander through the town, drinking ale, and deciding their next move.

I felt each character was written the way they were roleplayed. I read their voices in my head as I read their lines. Grog has his witty one-liners while Keyleth serves as the humanitarian of the group. It helps that Matthew Mercer, the DM for Critical Role, had a hand in writing the issue. Since starting Critical Role, I cannot get enough, so I’m happy with the addition of a comic series coinciding with their game.

Critical Role Vox Machina Series III Issue #1 can be found at your local comic book store. I rated this issue five stars.

Reading comics is so much more than superheroes. I find the easiest way to get into reading comics is to take your interests and find a comic series that’s similar. Let me know what indie comics you’re reading in the comments below.

One Year Later COVID-19

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Image is a photo of me standing in front of an art mural with both my arms raised. Behind me is a mural of Jake the Dog from Adventrue Time. He has his arms out and they are shaking if you will and his arms aren't straight lines, but instead curve in multiple directions.

It was one year ago when I canceled my trip to Seattle for Emerald City Comic Con and spontaneously drove to Michigan. On the way home, I checked my work email, and to my surprise, we all were able to work from home the following Monday. At that time, I had no way of knowing this would be semi-permanent. While 2020 was a rough year for almost everyone, I have found myself reflecting on what this pandemic has taught me. I wanted to share what I have taken away from this experience.

Be Appreciative of My Experiences

Before COVID, I was always planning the next vacation. I would finish my trip, and a week later, I would plan my next destination. Since I wasn’t able to travel, I found myself going through old pictures and reliving memories of previous trips. One example was reading through my travel journal. Reading through my past vacations made me hopeful for the future and helped me to feel less isolated. It made me appreciate all of the life I have been able to live. I was always living in the future, not as much in the present. I don’t want to lose the travel bug I have acquired, but I also want to live more in the moment.

Paid Sick Leave

While the stimulus checks are crucial, I hope the United States re-evaluates the need for sick leave. In previous jobs, I would show up sick because I had no other choice, as I didn’t have paid sick leave. While I think the pandemic would have been the same regardless of paid sick leave, I think this would have made a difference.

Activism!

By staying home, I have been able to save money. Since I had more money left over, I was more aware of how I spent my money. I found myself trying to donate to various nonprofits. After the murder of George Floyd, I started donating to the NAACP, Black Lives Matter, and the ACLU. I want to leave the world a better place, and donating money here and there helps. I’m fortunate that I’m able to do this, as I was employed throughout the pandemic.

What Makes Me Happy

Playing video games, reading books & comics, and exercising all got me through this pandemic. It was a stressful time, and to get through it, I needed to figure out ways to destress. Additionally, I had to analyze my coping methods. Last April, I found myself relying more heavily on alcohol. It was a Friday staple to drink and play video games. The morning after, I woke with a headache. I found myself having to analyze why I was using alcohol in the way that I was. I still drink, but I find I’m more in control.

I’m elated because I feel there is a light at the end of the tunnel. My mom received her first dose of the vaccine. While I wait for my turn for the vaccine, I realize how much COVID has taught me about myself and life in general. I’m excited to be able to attend conventions, see friends regularly, and go to my favorite brewery.

Meet Cute Club by Jack Harbon

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I’m trying to broaden my horizon regarding the books I read. Almost all of my romances have been m/f, not because that’s what I necessarily enjoy reading, but it’s the most common type of romance. After browsing through Goodreads, I stumbled upon Meet Cute Club, a gay romance with a Southern small-town setting. Meet Cute Club was a great read.

Jordan Collins adores romance books! He runs the Meet Cute Club, a romance-themed book club. As he’s shopping for books, he meets Rex Bailey, who’s snarky and doesn’t understand Jordan’s passion for reading romance novels. Rex surprisingly shows up at Meet Cute Club and begins to help Jordan grow the club. Romance and a steamy hookup ensue, leaving Jordan and Rex in a daze about whether they belong together.

As far as the actual romance, Jordan and Rex are perfect together! I was rooting for them as I think they balance each other out. Jordan is passionate about his love for romance and breaks down Rex’s hard exterior. Rex grew up in a tumultuous family background with his philandering father, which caused him to be a bit stubborn about the idea of love. I thought these two had great chemistry together.

Meet Cute Club centers upon Jordan and Rex’s relationship, along with a dialogue regarding masculinity. In some ways, Jordan defies masculine stereotypes and has been bullied. Jordan felt pressure at a young age to sign up for sports, even though all Jordan wanted was to read romance. Although Rex appears as the “stereotypical masculine man”, even he abandoned some of this to show Jordan that he loved him. I thought that the core of this story was this discussion of masculinity and how men don’t have as much freedom to explore various hobbies or interests that women do.

Meet Cute Club was a jovial read as I was genuinely rooting for Jordan and Rex to get together. I rated Meet Cute Club as three and a half stars, rounded up to four on Goodreads.

Harley Quinn (2019)

Posted in Bizarre Brunette Big-Screen Watches by

With the discontinuation of DC Universe, HBO Max has collected all the DC content. As a DC fan, I prefer the DC animated series to the live-action movies. As someone who was disappointed by Wonder Woman 1984, I wanted to watch a DC title with promise. One series that has been highly rated is the Harley Quinn animated series. This series centers on Harley Quinn getting away from the Joker and building a strong friendship with Poison Ivy. I loved every minute of this show! It’s raunchy, hilarious, gory, and showcases Harley as being the complex villain that she is.

In the first season, Harley (voiced by Kaley Cuoco) finally dumps Joker and tries to establish her credit as a villain. Always living in Joker’s shadow, Harley creates her supervillain team consisting of Poison Ivy (voiced by Lake Bell), Clayface, Doctor Psycho, King Shark, and Sy Borgman. As Harley performs more villainous acts, she’s invited to join the Legion of Doom, which infuriates Joker. Throughout the season, Harley has to reckon with how Joker treated her and how her life can’t solely be about getting back at him. She needs to move on, and her team helps her do this.

At the heart of this show is Harley Quinn’s friendship with Poison Ivy. In the comics, Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy end up in a romantic relationship. The show develops this as a slow burn with the season #2 finale leading into Harley and Poison Ivy confessing their feelings for each other. Harley needs Poison Ivy as she tells Harley the truth. The Joker doesn’t love her, and she deserves better. Poison Ivy needs Harley in season #2 to help her realize she’s getting married to the wrong person. Their friendship is fun to watch.

This show is hilarious! The witty one-liners and subtle references to pop culture are well-written. Any show that can make me laugh until I cry is much needed during this time. Adding to the comical relief was the way the villains were given personalities. King Shark is a big shark teddy bear. Clayface loves theater and improv, and Doctor Psycho called Wonder Woman a slur, which led to him getting kicked out of the Legion of Doom. It’s the hypocrisy of using a slur that gets Doctor Psycho banned, even though the Legion kills people regularly.

While DC’s film universe has been mediocre, their animated series is a hit. Harley Quinn is no exception. With only two seasons, it won’t take long to finish the series. The Harley Quinn animated series can be streamed on HBO Max.