Don’t Blame Me

Word Count: 2130

Pairing: Reader x Poison Ivy

Rating: Mature

Synopsis: You work at Gotham's Botanical Garden, and one night, you run into Poison Ivy

Love is a drug. And a powerful one. You had learned that the hard way.

You were fresh out of high school, in the summer before university started. You had found a job as a caretaker for Gotham’s Botanical Garden, a large area filled with flowers and trees that barely ever got any visitors. You liked working there, you watered the plants, pruned the bushes, and got to enjoy the quietness of the garden reading a book on the sunlight.

She was young and brilliant. Her genius had granted her a great scientific career even at an early age. A career which abruptly ended, marking the beginning of a new life of crime. She had conned and killed many of Gotham’s rich and famous, her beauty was fatal, but irresistible nevertheless. She loved the nature, and the Botanical Garden had always been one of her favorites places in the city, so when she escaped Arkham, she sought refuge there.

Love is a poison. It burns through your veins, going directly to your heart, from where it kills you, little by little.

* * *

It was around the middle of June. You woke up late in the afternoon, back against the hard stone bench, in which you had fallen asleep. Looking up, you could see the faint outline of the moon beginning to show in the sky, as the sun descended. The noises from the rush hour invaded your precious sanctuary: cars engines, vehicles horns, wheels scraping on the asphalt.

You being to make your way back to the visitor’s centre, where you leave your stuff during the day, planning to change clothes, lock the park and go home, but, as you walk through the heart of the garden, a low humming catches your attention. You had believed to be alone, your few co-workers having long left, but from where you stood, the noises from the outside world couldn’t reach you, the song had to be coming from inside the park. Curious, you looked around, trying to find its source, but as far as you could view, you were all by yourself. 

You were about to resume your journey when you felt something tangle itself on your left ankle. You instinctively pulled away, but the thing had grabbed you tightly. You scream as you notice the large vine keeping you in place, it’s grip becoming tighter every second. Before you can bow down to free yourself, matching plants take hold of your arms and right leg. There’s a shuffle as a woman comes down from the tree tops, balancing herself in a swing made of vines.

Her long scarlet hair cascades down her back, her skin is slightly greenish, just enough to differentiate her from a normal person. You recognize her immediately: Poison Ivy.

You try to speak, but the words won’t leave your mouth. If it wasn’t by the vines keeping you in place, you would be shaking. A small smile forms in her dark green lips as she walks gracefully towards you. The way she moves her hips is hypnotizing. As she approaches, she brings with her the smell of flowers, which floods your nostrils. You can’t pinpoint which flower is it, and perhaps it’s a scent yet unknown to mankind.

She holds your chin in her soft hands, tilting your head to one side and then another. Her greens eyes lock into yours, her gaze penetrating your soul. Now you understand why men would do anything for her: she is beautiful.

"What do we have here?", she whispers, eyes still looking into you. Her voice is sweet and melodic. You still can’t bring yourself to speak, but that’s okay, as the question was more for herself than for you.

 She walks around you, her sharp fingernails never leaving your skin. She evaluated you like a hunter looking at its prey. You shiver. 

“What are you doing here?”, she asks, facing you. 

“Uhh, I wo-work here”, you stutter.  

She presses her finger on the Botanical Garden logo embroidered in your t-shirt. “Right. The park is closed. What are you still doing here?”, she hisses.

“Well, you shouldn’t be here either”, as soon as the words leave your mouth you want to swallow them back.

Her eyes narrow and you are sure she’s going to kill you, but then, she laughs. The vines hold on you begin to loosen and they crawl back from wherever they had come from. You fall forward, but Ivy’s arm catch you and help you regain your balance. 

“I fell asleep…and woke up just now”, you confess, you voice barely more than a whisper. “I was just going to pick up my things and get out of here. I swear I didn’t even know you were here”, you tell her, hoping she would let you go.

She runs a hand along your jaw bone, caressing your skin. “Are you scared?”

“Yes”, you admit.

She throws her head back in a laugh. “I promise I won’t poison you. Now, I was singing to the plants, it’s good for their health. Would you like to join?” With a gesture she brings back the swing and hops on it, reaching out her hand for you to take.

You consider your options: going back to your empty house or staying there with a psychopath. The answer is obvious. You take her hand and let her pull you to the vine swing, which rises slowly under her command. You sit by her side on a thick branch and let her sweet voice fills your ears.

* * *

Love makes you do crazy things. It drives you insane. It’s the worst obsession one could ever have. 

You begin to leave the park later every night, wanting to spend all the time you could with Ivy. You talked and learned you had a lot in common: movies, music, book, food and, of course, your shared love for the nature. You told her that you would study biology at Gotham’s University when the summer was over. She told you how she hoped to clean the Earth from those who hurt it.

In high school, you would flirt with the popular kids and go out in dates just to fit in, you wanted to be around the cool kids, but you never cared for them. Now, for the first time, in this dark little paradise that was your midnight garden, you were beginning to fall in love. And you knew she was falling for you.

Love is strange. There was nothing you wouldn’t do for it, and yet, it almost never gives you anything.

* * *

It was the beginning of July, you and Ivy were laying in the grass covered ground, looking at the stars and eating the candies you had brought her.

“Camila”, she calls. You flip your head to look at her. She was beautiful like always, the moonlight illuminating her soft features, her hair spread under her head like a fan, a few droplets of rain speckled on her skin.

“Yes?”

“Why do you stay here? You should be out there with your friends”, she stretches her hand as if she is going to touch you, but pulls back before she reaches you.

“You are my friend”, this time you reach to touch her, and places your hand over hers.

“You know what I mean. You must have better things to do than hanging out with a criminal.”

“And you must have better things to do than hang out with someone as mundane as me.” She laughs. You move closer to her. So close you can hear her beating heart. “Pamela”, you begin, using her real name, “I like you. I really like you.”

The words hang in the air between the two of you. For a moment you wonder what she will do. Will she reject you? Or will she kiss you? She seems to contemplate that too. The seconds feel like hours. And then she finally closes the gap between you and kiss you. Her lips are soft and she tastes like fresh peaches. Her arms wrap around you, pulling you into a tight hug and you let yourself melt under her.

* * *

Love is like a fire, burning bright and fast, consuming everything on its way.  

You saw her when you closed your eyes, ached for her touch when you were alone, her voice echoed in your head even while you slept. You spent the days wishing that the night came faster. Because at night, under the trees and stars, you two made love. She was sweet and caring. For you, she wasn’t a poison ivy, she was a daisy.

You couldn’t tell anyone. She was still a fugitive of the law, and if Batman knew where to find her, he would come and take her away. You vowed to not let anyone take Pamela from you. You knew she was plotting something big, an attack to a Gotham-based oil company, she talked about it with you, but you didn’t care. You were sure her targets deserved what was coming.

Love is wonderful. It give you a reason to live, but nothing good lasts forever.

* * *

It was almost August. Ivy struck during the day. You heard it from a co-worker before opening Twitter to double check if it was true. It was. All over your feed pictures of a building covered in vines were being posted and retweeted. Fifty dead. Ten on their way to the hospital. No one knew where Poison Ivy was. But you knew where she would be. You went with your day as usual, and when the clocked ticked 6 p.m., you closed the gates of the garden and you ran to her. 

“We need to get out of Gotham”, you tell her, before she can even say ‘hi’.

“I know,” she says, her voice unusually flat. You couldn't read her, she was expression-less.

“I just need to go home and pack, I can meet you here in a hour.”

“Camila…”, she begins, shaking her head. You can see tears forming in the corner of her eyes. “I can’t ask you to come with me.”

You hold both of her hands into yours, “Why not? I want to.” 

“It’s not fair. You have a future”, she pulls away from you and turns her back to you. She isn’t strong enough to say this looking into your eyes. “This is just a summer fling, don’t throw your life away because of it.”

Before you can answer a shadow cuts through the tree line and your lover is pushed to the ground. “Pamela!”, you scream, jumping to help her back to her feet.

Then you it. Standing in the shadows, a man dressed in black, his dark cape fluttering in the wind. Batman. You stand between him and Pamela.

“You won’t hurt her”, you tell him, surprisingly calm. Behind him, you see the trees moving under Ivy’s command.

“Camila, go, now. Please, my love”, she begs, lips in your ear. You don’t move a inch.

Batman is fast and cuts the vines before they can get a hold of him. You barely register what happens next. They move quickly, like a dance. She throws plants at him, he gets free. He tries to catch her, she twists away form his hold. They have done this before. There’s nothing you can do, you are not a fighter. And even though you want to protect Ivy, you know she can take care of herself. 

You hear the sirens from the police coming closer. Then they stop. And main gate is slammed open. Heavy footsteps approach. 

“Poison Ivy, put your hands in the air and surrender”, a mechanical voice announces. “We will use lethal force.”

She doesn’t even flinch. She knows the cops are nothing, that Batman is the real problem. But you think different. Especially when you see the moonlight reflecting on the metal of a gun.

“PAMELA!”, you scream again, full of panic. She looks at you, puzzled at why you are so afraid. She doesn’t notice the trigger being pulled, but you do. You jump in front of her and the projectile hits you on the chest, just below the heart. 

It pierces your skin, tearing your muscles apart. It hurts. It burns. Her eyes widen. Even Batman stops and shouts something you can’t hear. You can’t hear anything. You feel the blood running from the wound. Pamela tries to press the bullet hole to avoid blood loss, but it’s too late, you know it.

“Pammy,”, you whisper. You sight is blurred. You can’t breathe correctly. “I love you. You will love you to the rest of my life.”

Her warm tears falls on your skin. That’s the last thing you feel before darkness takes hold of you.

Burrito’s Guide To Survive Coronavirus Quarantine

We got to keep social distance (1 or 2 meters each other) or stay home during coronavirus outbreak so I thought I can share with y’all some things I’m gonna watch or do doing quarantine (this is a very long post, REBLOGS ARE VERY MUCH APPRECIATED!).

BUT FIRST SOME RULES:

Wash your hands: do it for 20 seconds or a while, but ALWAYS do it. It prevents the virus from spreading. If you don’t have sanitizer, water and soap! The cheapest and best ally against the disease.

Buy everything you need: if you can, try to buy stuff so you can stay some days at home. If the place is crowded, go back home and come later when it’s more empty. Same as medicine.

You can go for a walk: stay at home all day can be overwhelming for your mental health, but unless the goverment puts a curfew or gets strict about it you can go walk outside for a while always respecting the 1 or 2 meters from other people and without making contact (chatting) with other people. This ain’t my rule, a CDC professional says. DON’T go visit your friends or to crowded places such as bars, restaurants, shoppings, etc. If you want to buy something, ask for delivery or take away.

If you have coronavirus sympthoms (high fever, diarrhea, cough, feeling tired, breath difficulties) DON’T GO TO THE HOSPITAL YET, CALL TO YOUR PUBLIC HEALTH ORGANISATION OR WHATEVER YOU GOT AND THEY’LL TREAT YOU.

(credits to whoever made this meme)

SO YOUR LIFE IS ON QUARANTINE

Let’s say your boss or your school told you can stay at home. Okay then, you gotta prepare for some days inside *Isolation by John Lennon plays in the distance*. The first thing you think is you have to prepare a batch of series and movies to watch in order to kill some time. I’m gonna recommend you some you can find on VOD or cable, if you don’t have it don’t worry because I got you covered!

Infinity Train: a yet two seasons saga about people who got to face their problems aboard an endless train. The protagonists are joined by creatures who have different nature and help them, or not, to acknowledge their issues and leave the train. It’s on CN, it will continue on HBO Max.

The Owl House: a teen girl who daydream a lot was going to be sent to a down-to-earth camp but then she crosses a portal to the Boiling Isles, a magical world where she is taken care by a powerful Owl witch/saleswoman and her adorable demon. Lots of fantasy, some action scenes and many many puns. It’s on Disney Channel, it’ll be on Disney+ in some weeks.

Primal: Genndy Tartakovsky delighted us with the alliance of a caveman and a dinosaur, two rivals in a wild world who ally after facing a devastating event. It IS brutal and beatiful, has no dialogue and keeps you watching closely. Five final episodes are set to premiere this year. It’s on Adult Swim, maybe on HBO Max.

Tuca and Bertie: for the critics, one of 2019 best shows. For Netflix, a show that had to be cut off because the studio unionized. Two friends in their late 20s face changes in their lives: from living with a boyfriend and plan a life to look a way to stay sober and get a job. Deals with trauma, ptsd, anxiety and more harsh moments very well. In fact, the creator is a vital part of Bojack Horseman! It’s on Netflix.

Aggretsuko: red pandas are cute eh? But what about a antopomorphic red panda who releases her anger and frustrations by singing at a karaoke? This awesome comedy by Sanrio & Netflix is one of anime’s big hits lately. Like T&B, has a good handle of adult problems but not going too deep just to not break the comedy. You can watch it on Netflix.

Regular Show: yeah-uuuuhhhh! Eight seasons, a movie, five Halloween specials and some others. The adventures of a racoon and a blue jay with their co-workers/friends that relies on psychadellia and 80s and 90s nostalgia. It begins good, gets better, then lowers the quality (they were producing the movie at the same time tho, give some credit) and with and after the movie ends awesome. It’s on CN web, dunno if on Hulu (US only) and proably on HBO Max.

Evangelion: it’s a classic at this point, but addictive to me because I end rewatching the series or the final movie many times. A post apocalyptic future where the world has to deal with strange creatures known as the Angels and a boy with lots of traumas has to get on a mecha to save the humankind. All the characters have traumas and issues, the interaction between them or the action makes it worth. The End of Evangelion is a movie that ends the unfinished series. Warning: at some point it becomes very twisted and there are scenes which are too much violent. Viewer disclosure etc. It’s on Netflix worldwide.

Steven Universe & SU Future: this is the tale of the gem boy who ends a galactical tyranny and brings democracy to the universe. A acclaimed show that broke through many topics like gender, identity, ptsd, relationships and many more. Besides it’s got the best scores of the Milky Way and beyond thanks to the talent of Rebecca Sugar, Aivi Tran and Surasshu. And the actors and acrtresses! I don’t forget the movie, a musical that is an introduction to the epilogue: Shippuden Future. The show is available on CN and will be on HBO Max. Worldwide? No news.

Adventure Time: something that began as an innocent boy and a magical dog having adventures in a post apocalyptic world turns into the journey of Finn Metens from childhood to almost adulthood. There is a lot of fantasy and comedy you enjoy, but there are dark moments and serious ones through S6 that find a balance with early seasons form S7 to the finale. It also has great music, memorable moments and colaborations. And guess what? There is going to be a special set to premiere on HBO Max in some weeks! You got plenty of time to catch up or rewatch before that on CN or only (!!) S5 on Netflix.

Final Space: a dude tries to save the universe with their friends, where we can find his love interest, a cat-man and his kitten son, a intersexual alien, an AI then robot that is the best of them, two particular siblings and an annoying bot that prevents insanity that makes you insane. Crazy adventures in space, lots of situations, sadness, an evil smol bean who is a space emperor, a dude who looks for revenge, space deities that can destroy the universe. Is this a lot or info? It is not, because there is more and you can watch it on TBS, Adult Swim and Netflix (the world except US).

Rick and Morty: the most powerful, smartest human in the universe has adventures with his grandson. It’s awesome, but has a very toxic fanbase. Anyway, you can enjoy it on Adult Swim or Netflix (which is up to date!) and the rest of S4 is set someday.

Bojack Horseman: a Hollywood satire about human relationships, fame, traumas with a pour of comedy. Alongside the previous series, the best adult animation of the decade. Sadly cut by Netflix because the studio unionized (see T&B), said by both the creator and Aaron Paul. You can watch the six amazing seasons on that platform.

I’m not an animated movies guy, but here are three I really like and you can watch:

Porco Rosso: a handsome Italian combat aviator turned magically to a pig has a face off with an American pilot hired by pirates to get rid of him before WWII in Fascist Italy. It’s entertaining and, like every Ghibli movie, nice to watch. It’s on Netflix and will be on HBO Max for US.

Lego Batman Movie: Batman is depressed and has to get over it. It’s wacky and has lots of comedy. Plus Will Arnett is top 3 Batman. On Netflix (Latinamerica).

Spiderverse: Oscar winner movie about your friendly neighbour Peter Parker Miles Morales. Miles sees Spiderman die and feels bad after being transfered to a private school. Then a radioactive spider from a Fisk compound bites Miles and he’s Spiderman... among other dimensions’ Spiderpeople: Gwen, Peni, Peter Parker, Noir and Peter Porker. It’s visually amazing. On US it’s on Netflix (I guess), on Latinamerica on HBO.

Some interesting live actions I watched lately

Atlanta: Donald Glover is Earn, a dude who struggles to find a job for her baby girld and sees an opportunity when his cousin, Paper Boi, has a hit and uses him to make his cos famous. Sometimes a comedy, sometimes a social satire with touches of drama. And all protagonists are now big shots, like Zazie Beetz, Brian Tyree Henry or Lakeith Stanfield. There are two seasons and two seasons set for 2021 (2022 possible beacuse of coronavirus). It’s on FX, Hulu (US) and Netflix (world)

Avenue 5: this is brand new. On 2060 space cruises are a thing, and one cruise (the Avenue 5) has an accident that leaves the crew and passangers stranded for years. The captain (Hugh Laurie) has to solve this shit with a bunch of incompetent crew, bosses like Judd (Josh Gad), except one female engeneer who is very smart. Lots of crazy things happen in this series from the creator behind Veep. It’s on HBO (it’s free in the US!).

Peaky Blinders: it has some years but damn it’s epic. A gang from Birmingham makes their way to the top during the late 1910s after the Great War and extends through the 1920s. S5 is right in the ascension of fascism in Britain. ALL THE CAST acts spectacular, names like Cillian Murphy, Tom Hardy, Anna Taylor-Joy and a long etc. But my fave is Paul Anderson, that ultra violent junkie Arthur Shelby is splendid, then is Tommy and aunt Pol, the baddest badass woman in Britain. Blinders is going to have seven seasons, there are two left. You can watch it on BBC or Netflix.

Sex Education: speaking of Britain, excellent teen comedy. Horny, doubtful teenagers going through those hard years. Stories of sex (duh!), abuse situations, abortion, there are gay relationships either, Gillian Anderson! It’s on Netflix, go go go!

Watchmen: despite not having Alan Moore on board, Damien Lindeloff did a tremendous job with the comic. Way better and less misleading than Zack Snyder’s 2009 film, Watchmen is again at the gates of the world’s end (like today) and handles the problem of racism and white supremacy quite well. Just 9 episodes, but worth to watch. On HBO.

CAOS: Sabrina the Teenage Witch is over. Warner and Netflix made a revival of the Archie Comics character and brought her to XXI Century. But gorier, hornier, dark and magical than the nice 90s sitcom. Sabrina Spellman goes from a doubtful teen who has to decide if she has to be a witch or a powerless woman to rule Hell. How she does it? Find out on Netflix! Note: S1 and 2 take some episodes to start properly. Don’t get bored too easy.

There are A LOT MORE to recommend and I make a list: Harley Quinn (DC Universe), OK KO (Hulu -US only-), House MD, Young Justice (DC Universe/Netflix), Ken Burns’ documentaries (Netflix), Titans (DCU), Over The Garden Wall (CN), Seis Manos (Netflix), Thundercats Roar (CN), Easy (Netflix), GLOW (Netflix), Star Trek Discovery (CBS, Netflix) and Picard (CBS, Amazon Prime), etc.

- You named cool shows, but I’m not from the United States or I don’t have a subscription to (insert VOD here) because I can’t afford it

- Glad you asked, I have the answer here

Introducing Stremio. It’s an open source platform where you can watch shows, movies or even live TV on Windows, Linux, Apple or Android. You create an account, install some addons and start looking for what you want to watch.

Stremio is based on torrents, you should install addons from many known torrent sites. So maybe you find an old show, but there aren’t many seeds to watch. And it could be frustraiting, so make sure there are people sharing so you can watch it.

You can download Stremio here and check the FAQs which is very clear.

NOTE: Stremio is note quite “clean” way to watch, but if you do please support the shows you watch by posting, commenting about them, making memes, thanking the creators and crew for their work, buying merchandise if you can. They put a lot to make the shows we love, let’s give ‘em back that love and effort.

You’re tired of the same music, the same movies or need to leave something to make company? There is Vaughn Live, a streaming page where are lots of channels with movies and series on strem (not VOD). For example, there is a channel that streams Adventure Time, other Regular Show, other Sci-Fi shows, another with DBZ and so on. Take in count that if the channel has +70 viewers, the free access is cut and if you want to watch it you have to pay.

En Vaughn también hay canales en español, como Simpsonmanía, Dragon Ball, Futurama, dibujos viejos y muchísimo más. Anyway, go to https://vaughn.live/ and enjoy yourselves!

Y hablando de canales en español, pueden ir a SeriesLan donde está el mayor reservorio conocido de series animadas de entre 1960 a 2010 en español latino. Pueden encontrar tesoros desde Don Gato, los Halcones Galácticos o Street Sharks a Flapjack y Mechas XLR. Otra alternativa para que pasen el rato.

Some interesting facts:

Epic Games releases a free game per week in their store. This week will be two games. You can check in https://www.epicgames.com

Steam has good prices on games and some free ones. There even is the latest Football Manager for free until March 25th. Check on https://store.steampowered.com/

If you’re interested,

I got this playlist I made on Spotify

with songs I liked in more than one year. More than 1200 songs.

And that’s pretty much it! You got resources for a lot of days, 14 initially since that’s the quarantine time in my country. Remember: obey the indications of the Health authorities, this is no time to play the “fuck the goverment” game. We will overcome this pandemy together, helping and caring for each other. That’s why I did this guide, to keep your minds busy in these tough times! Wash your hands, keep social distance, stay at home, go outside if necessary and have some patience please. This has been a PSA.

Stay strong!

Burrito

the thing that gets me abt the lack of inclusion of uncle ben's death in homecoming is that it genuinely didn't have to be a big part of the movie (such as in tasm, which i loved). batman vs superman, for all its flaws, showed the death of the waynes wonderfully, as a flashback bruce was having as he ran from their funeral, culminating in him falling into the cave of bats and beginning his journey towards batman, taking less than 5 minutes from beginning to end but framing his whole mentality.

Thank you for mentioning Batman here because literally one of the things I always go back to when people complain about having to sit through Uncle Ben’s death again is that you would never see nerds treat Batman’s origin story the same way. How would a version of Batman where they never mention he’s an orphan even work? “Here’s Bruce Wayne, by the way, we’re just not going to mention whether or not he has parents, because confirming they’re dead might be kind of a downer. Them being shot in front of him certainly has no bearing on his crimefighting! We don’t need to examine that at all.” I can’t see it going over very well or being taken very seriously or being labeled as The First Bruce Wayne Movie. So why does Batman’s loss-based origin story get continually treated with respect while Spider-Man’s is seen as some negligible piece of his story? Is it because Batman’s viewed as a more “serious” character, in his black caped costume (with or without nipples), whereas Spider-Man’s primary colors and quips mean we don’t have to take him seriously as an important piece of the American pop culture landscape or as a real character with an established personality? Because -- and no offense meant to Batman here, because I love Batman -- that’s totally bullshit. 

Let’s not mince words here: Homecoming’s director, Jon Watts, has literally gone on record saying they didn’t mention Uncle Ben because it would put a “damper” on the movie:

As for why Ben was left out, Watts says he wanted to go all out on focusing on how awesome it would be to become Spider-Man, going from a geeky teen to possessing superhuman powers. Dealing with the fact that Peter is partially guilty for a loved one’s death would have put the dampers on that. (source)

Which is again, and I’m sorry for repeating myself, but it’s total bullshit. You have a character here who is defined by responsibility, whose famous catchphrase is with great power comes great responsibility, meaning that because he has greater power than the average man, he has a greater responsibility, so you remove the responsibility, because the responsibility’s... not fun? Yeah, we know that! Responsibility’s not fun! That’s always been the point of Spider-Man! It’s hard, but he does it, because it’s right! And to quote my good friend Yuuhy: you actually do need to put “a damper” on a story about a teenage boy who can crush concrete -- or a human skull -- with his bare hands. You do need to cement that responsibility in him. His origin story is perfectly tailored towards showing that -- Amazing Fantasy #15, Peter’s first appearance, DOES show how great it would be to be a nerdy teenager who suddenly gets these incredible powers and has fun with them! Makes money with them! Is selfish with them. And someone he loves pays the price. It’s important. Additionally, in erasing Uncle Ben’s death from the narrative, you take away the fact that the Parkers are a family who are the victims of gun violence. When you’re dealing with a story about a teenage outcast who suddenly gains incredible powers, I think that’s kind of an important detail to include in the framing of his responsibility to his community. Of course, who can blame the MCU for leaving out something as small as Uncle Ben being shot when less than four months to the day of Spider-Man: Homecoming’s release, Marvel announced their intentions to partner with defense contractor Northrop Grumman (which was canceled after massive fan backlash). Or when Spider-Man: Homecoming put drones and something called an “instant kill mode” in Spider-Man’s cool new technologically adept and weaponized suit. Or when the Pentagon can make changes to MCU film scripts. This Newsweek article on Captain Marvel and the Air Force goes into detail, including the sheer amount of military equipment that the Department of Defense put on screen for Iron Man 2. So we wouldn’t want to confuse the audience by saying the small guns are bad when we definitely still want them to think the big guns are cool, right.

Like I’ve said before, as much as I personally love the fact that The Amazing Spider-Man (2012) takes like a full 40 minutes of screentime to get to the scene where Uncle Ben is shot, I don’t think you need to make it a big thing. Like you said about the Batman vs Superman scene -- I haven’t seen that movie yet, so thanks for your detailed description! -- it doesn’t have to be some big long thing. Take five minutes. Take two minutes. Hell, take twenty seconds. Into the Spider-Verse did it by having Ben say “with great power comes great responsibility” before walking into the light at the very beginning of the movie. (Fun fact! Ben actually doesn’t originally say that line in Amazing Spider-Man #15, but I appreciate that it’s become so associated with him, because it is the easiest way to communicate the sentiment to both the audience and to Peter in a film.) Spider-Man PS4 had Peter and May reflect on Ben in May’s office in the middle of the game and put framed photos of Ben in Peter’s apartment in the opening shot. It’s easy. You don’t have to make a big thing out of it. But for Homecoming’s creative forces to throw out the origin and Ben altogether because it would “put a damper” on the fun is to say that they don’t respect the material they’re working from at all -- or, possibly worse, that they don’t understand it. 

David’s Resolution - Day 18

Day 18 (January 18, 2019)

Blade: Trinity (2004)

“In the movies, Dracula wears a cape, and some old English guy always manages to save the day at the last minute with crosses and holy water. But everybody knows the movies are full of shit. The truth is, it started with Blade, and it ended with him. The rest of us were just along for the ride.”

In 1997, Batman & Robin was released to theaters and... well, a lot of people didn’t like it. In fact, many say it’s one of the worst movies ever made. The first part is true as it was slammed by critics and audiences upon release and has cultivated a considerable notoriety for its badness; the second part is false because trust me, it is FAR from the worst ever made. If you unironically consider Batman & Robin one of the worst films ever, please tell me what your criteria are for determining whether a film is “one of the worst ever”, because I think that criteria is lacking. But one thing that is for certain about Batman & Robin is that it, along with the failure of Steel that same year, more or less killed DC Comics’ hold in the box office. They struggled for several years with other films until finally seeing success again with 2005′s Batman Begins, which was a critical and commercial success and started Christopher Nolan’s “Dark Knight Trilogy” of Batman films.

In between those Batman films, however, Marvel Comics decided to take another shot at movies after some... not-so-great films. And we got Blade. Hell yeah.

Telling the stylish and action-packed tale of the half-vampire Blade (Wesley Snipes) who hunts down vampires and does so in the coolest way possible, Blade - released one year after Batman & Robin - was a critical and commercial success, Marvel’s first in the box office. This was impressive not only because it was a comic book movie and people were questioning the viability of the genre after Batman & Robin, but also because it was an R-rated comic book movie featuring a more obscure character instead of someone more well-known to audiences. Blade was a pretty cool, stylish, badass movie and while X-Men and Spider-Man would become bigger and more famous successes, I’d like to think that Blade started Marvel’s new era of superhero movies and influenced their approach to making future films, especially when it came to looking into more obscure properties to adapt to film like the Guardians of the Galaxy.

And then there was Blade II, released in 2002 and directed by my guy Guillermo del Toro. This was a sequel that was even better than the original in practically every way. The villain was cooler and surprisingly sympathetic (not being mean to you, Stephen Dorff, you were great in the first film, but I’m just saying), the story has some neat twists to it, the characters are great and memorable, the action’s exciting and one-ups the sequences in the first movie, and it has Del Toro’s distinctive visual style for days.

And then came Blade: Trinity, which cocked the whole thing up. In order to properly prepare for this film, I watched the other two films (I’ve seen them before, which is why I’m not writing full reviews for them). I had actually tried to watch this years ago but only got as far as the first act because younger David somehow thought it was that bad. That’s the younger David who would have probably disliked watching sex, lies, and videotape.

This movie’s premise is simple: the vampire world has decided that in order to destroy Blade, they hit the Godzilla threshold and awaken Dracula (Dominic Purcell), the very first vampire ever to exist, to help them fight. And this time, Blade’s not doing it alone. Okay, he wasn’t always alone, as he had his mentor Abraham Whistler (Kris Kristofferson) in the other two films and- oh, they kill off Whistler in the first act, wow, that’s some bullshit. Well, now Blade has become part of a group of vampire hunters called the Nightstalkers, and accompanying him is the wisecracking Hannibal King (Ryan Reynolds) and Whistler’s daughter Abigail (Jessica Biel). Okay, the stakes are raised - pun unintended, promise - and this is going to be the biggest challenge yet for Blade.

Speaking of Ryan Reynolds... he’s the best thing in this movie ,getting that out there right now. His character, Hannibal King, could best be described as “Deadpool Lite”. He calls his vampire ex a cock-juggling thundercunt, which is one of the greatest insults of all time and that alone makes him great. I can see why some people would find him annoying or grating, but I like to think of it as a dry run for his playing the Merc with a Mouth, which is funny considering that around this time, Reynolds was hearing about the Deadpool character. In fact, after this movie, Reynolds would begin the twelve-year-long journey of bringing DP to the big screen, which would involve playing a character named Wade Wilson in X-Men Origins: Wolverine.

I’m sorry, this movie is not great. It’s just a big disappointing letdown. One of the problems with the movie is with Blade. Not the character himself, he’s still pretty cool and Wesley Snipes is great. I mean that this doesn’t feel like his movie. In the other two movies, it was pretty clear he was the guy in charge, especially in Blade II when he made it clear to the vampires he formed a truce with that he was not someone you screw with. But in this one, he just kinda gets shunted off for several other characters. To their credit, Marvel would get better at ensemble films (The Avengers, ‘nuff said), but in this one, it just feels sad. We watched this movie because we want more of Blade. But it feels like they put him in the back seat to focus more on other characters. He’s the title character for fuck’s sake, and yet he feels like he’s a side character in his own movie. Just like what happened with Tom and Jerry...

What doesn’t help either is that the film is one of those “too many things happening for its own good” films. The movie’s got too much going on and it feels confusing. What’s this film about? Is it about Blade fighting Dracula with the Nightstalkers? Is it about the vampire world finally getting the law to crack down on Blade? Is it about the vampire’s plans to completely subjugate the world? It doesn’t seem to know which one it wants to focus on, which really hurts considering that this is supposed to be the biggest threat that the vampire hunters of the world ever faced, and yet Dracula seems like less of a legitimate threat than Deacon Frost in the first movie or the Reaper virus in the second. And it’s not the only third film in a superhero film series to have this problem, as X-Men: The Last Stand had this same problem with too much happening. Again, Marvel at least got better at juggling multiple plotlines in superhero movies with their cinematic universe, so there is that.

There’s a lot of other problems big and small, and a good chunk of them can probably be traced back to Wesley Snipes. The production of this film was pretty screwed up, and a lot of it is due to him. David S. Goyer, who wrote all the Blade films including this one, ended up directing it when no one else wanted to take the job. Snipes was unhappy with Goyer’s decision to direct, and both he and Kris Kristofferson were unhappy with the script, which is probably why Kristofferson’s character is killed off early on. (Reminds me of what they did with RoboCop’s partner in RoboCop 3, another third movie in a series that sucked.) Not only that, but Snipes was hostile to Goyer as well as Ryan Reynolds and Jessica Biel; at one point, Hannibal King says “He doesn’t like me, does he?”, which was not Hannibal talking about Blade, but Reynolds talking about Snipes. Snipes also apparently refused to leave his trailer for any scenes that didn’t show his face, so his stunt double did a lot of the Blade scenes. His working relationship with Goyer got so bad that he called him a racist several times for no reason and refused to speak to him, communicating only in Post-It notes. The fact that the final film got finished and is... watchable... is pretty impressive.

This film, sadly, killed off the Blade franchise. New Line Cinema’s problems with Wesley Snipes led to them making a short-lived TV show on Spike TV with someone else playing the Daywalker, and then Snipes got sent to prison for tax evasion and the Blade character’s film rights reverted to Marvel during his prison term. He’s been in talks with Marvel Studios to bring the character back, but so far they’ve said they have no plans for the character in the future. Here’s hoping we get more Blade in the future.

I should also mention that the version I saw was the unrated cut, which doesn’t really add more violence or swears or other things cut for an MPAA rating as all the Blade movies were rated R. It has some more plot and character stuff, but that doesn’t help the movie much when compared to the theatrical version. The biggest change is the ending, which includes the infamous shot of Blade’s opening eyes being superimposed over his face when Snipes refused to open his eyes in the scene.

This movie’s a mess, plain and simple. It is without a doubt the weakest film in the Blade trilogy, which sucks because it could have been better. If they had trimmed some of the plotlines and focused more on Blade than his companions, it would have been better. Like Mimic 3, I don’t hate the film, I just find it disappointing with how it could have been better. For what it is, it’s still watchable, but it’s just a muddled mess of a movie. Not sure if I’d recommend it. I’d definitely recommend the other two Blade films.

Also, if any of you are hoping for me to review more Marvel movies as part of this resolution, you may be out of luck, sadly. I’ve seen all the Marvel Cinematic Universe films, as I had to catch up in time for Avengers: Infinity War, as well as all the X-Men films and spinoffs and the 2003 Hulk, which I actually really liked, even more than some MCU films (to which someone will say “it’s okay, you can just say Thor: The Dark World”). ...Although I haven’t seen the Amazing Spider-Man films yet...

Next time: How about a GOOD comic book movie from 1997?

Semester Reading List

Another 6 months have passed and that can only mean one thing: Another semester reading list! Here are the books I’ve read from April ‘18 until early October ‘18, including summaries and my thoughts on them:

The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Bronte:

Summary:  When the mysterious and beautiful young widow Helen Graham becomes the new tenant at Wildfell Hall rumours immediately begin to swirl around her. As her neighbour Gilbert Markham comes to discover, Helen has painful secrets buried in her past that even his love for her cannot easily overcome.

Thoughts: I loved this one a lot! (I read it in, like, two or three days - and it’s a very thick book! but it’s just really good) I was pretty surprised at first when I found out that it begins telling the story from the male protagonist’s perspective (Gilbert); which is not what I expected, admittedly. The middle part of the book are excerpts from the female protagonist’s perspective (over the course of her courtship, then later marriage with her abusive husband) - it was really fascinating to catch such an intimate glimpse of Helen’s point of view and see it change over time... but it was also very nice to see how she’d always been a strong character, although at first more falling into that “woman as the savior of the man’s virtuous attributes” trap, before she realizes that if she wants her son not to grow up like his father, she has to leave (which is very big thing for that time, when you think about it) - and her husband’s manipulating behavior to keep her at his side (complete with the classic “you don’t love me as much as I love you”-accusation). In addition to that, it was also very nice to see Gilbert react to Helen’s diary entries with a lot of understanding and just being very respectful regarding her wishes from then on (he’d been acting a little douche-y and presumptuous at times prior to that) and also see Gilibert bond with Helen’s son... This book felt just very modern in the way it dealt with this serious topic of an abusive marriage, which made it a very fascinating read! (This was my first book written by a Bronte sister and I feel like I have picked the absolute winner with Tenant of Wildfell Hall :)

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

Summary: When Elizabeth Bennet first meets eligible bachelor Fitzwilliam Darcy, she thinks him arrogant and conceited, while he struggles to remain indifferent to her good looks and lively mind. When she later discovers that Darcy has involved himself in the troubled relationship between his friend Bingley and her beloved sister Jane, she is determined to dislike him more than ever. 

Thoughts: I’ve already put my thoughts on P&P down in this post (I just read this Austen book very often ;)

The Darcys of Derbyshire by Abigail Reynolds:

Summary: During her trip to Derbyshire, Elizabeth Bennet longs to see the view from the famous Black Rocks, but her aunt and uncle refuse to allow her to ascend to the highest rock outcroppings alone. Elizabeth’s distress is only worsened by a chance encounter with Mr. Darcy - at least until he offers to accompany her to the Black Rocks. Unaware that the place has special significance for Fitzwilliam Darcy, she accepts his invitation. During their adventure, Darcy tells her the story of how his parents met and married despite many obstacles in their way; and like Darcy’s mother before her, Elizabeth learns there is more to the men of the Darcy family than meets the eye.

Thoughts: I really loved the story of Darcy’s parents, giving a little more backstory to the Darcy’s that came before the best-known Darcy of them all ;) The Lizzie/Darcy part of this book didn’t really work for me, though - it felt a little too fanfiction-y (read: romantic wish fulfillment that doesn’t exactly fit the proper nature of Jane Austen’s world... - or Darcy’s for that matter) for my taste. Nevertheless, it was still a very interesting read.

The Island of Doctor Moreau by H.G. Wells

Summary: A shipwrecked Edward Prendick finds himself stranded on a remote Noble island, the guest of a notorious scientist, Doctor Moreau. Disturbed by the cries of animals in pain, and by his encounters with half-bestial creatures, Prendick slowly realises his danger and the extremes of the Doctor’s experiments.

Thoughts: Very creepy. Definitely an interesting read (it’s a classic, after all... I just recently read a Wonder Woman comic that had a very ‘Island of Doctor Moreau’-vibe to it, which was interesting) and very suspenseful in the second half. It definitely made a good point about the importance of ethics in science. There were a few moments that made me uncomfortable because they read kinda racist to me (I guess you could argue that that’s simply influenced by the mindset of the society and era back then, but that’s just something I really didn’t like at all.)

The Caped Crusade: Batman and the Rise of Nerd Culture by Glen Weldon

Summary: Since his debut in Detective Comics #27, Batman has been many things: a two-fisted detective; a planet-hopping gadabout; a campy Pop Art sensation; a pointy-eared master spy; and a grim ninja of the urban night, cycling through eras of dark melodrama and light comedy and back again. He is constantly changing, jumping from page to screen and beyond, and yet he remains one of our most revered cultural icons. In this witty, wise, and a fascinating history, MPR critic and self-proclaimed nerd Glen Weldon explains why we’ve continued to look to this masked man in the night - and what that devotion tells us about ourselves.

Thoughts: Very extensive, in-depth and interesting book about Batman and nerd culture; the language was sometimes very flowery, with lots of fancy descriptors (which sometimes threw me off a little), but overall very fun and cool! (Also, I’m just a huge Batman fangirl, I love reading this kind of stuff! ;)

Mr. Darcy’s Diary by Amanda Grange

Summary: The only place Darcy could share his innermost feelings... was the pages of his diary... Torn between his sense of duty to his family name and his growing passion for Elizabeth Bennet, all he can do is struggle not to fall in love.

Thoughts: I liked this one a lot better than ‘The Darcys of Derbyshire’, I’ve got to admit - it felt a lot more natural and fitting for ‘canon’ than the other P&P inspired book. I very much liked how Darcy’s Diary gave the reader context for Darcy’s prickliness in the beginning of Pride & Prejudice (having the Wickham/Georgiana situation happen not too long ago, for example). It was also nice to read about Darcy’s thoughts and feeling regarding his friendship with Bingley (and his feeling for Lizzie, of course ;) Darcy is one of my favorite characters so it was a lot of fun to be able to read this P&P companion from his point of view :)

The Illustrated Man by Ray Bradbury

Summary: Ray Bradbury brings wonders alive. For this peerless American storyteller, the most bewitching force in the universe is human nature. In these eighteen startling tales unfolding across a canvas of tattooed skin, living cities take their vengeance, technology awakens the most primal natural instincts, and dreams are carried aloft in junkyard rockets. Provocative and powerful, The Illustrated Man is a kaleidoscopic blending of magic, imagination, and truth—as exhilarating as interplanetary travel, as maddening as a walk in a million-year rain, and as comforting as simple, familiar rituals on the last night of the world.

Thoughts: I just absolutely adore Ray Bradbury’s short stories (even though they don’t not necessarily fall into the genres I usually read). There is just something about his writing that feels very natural and simple to me, while simultaneously being very layered and making me ponder about the deeper meaning of the stories I’ve just read. This book collects mainly creepy (and excellent) short stories like ‘The Veldt’ or ‘Zero Hour’ (’the Veldt’ is the first short story in this book and it’s so amazing; it had me at the edge of my seat throughout), but also a kinda sweet one like ‘The Rocket’ - I very much enjoyed reading this book!

Wonder Woman Unbound: The Curious History of the World’s Most Famous Heroine by Tim Hanley

Summary: With her golden lasso and her bullet-deflecting bracelets, Wonder Woman is a beloved icon of female strength in a world of male superheroes. But this close look at her history portrays a complicated heroine who is more than just a female Superman. When they debuted in the 1940s, Wonder Woman comics advocated female superiority and the benefits of matriarchy; her adventures were also colored by bondage imagery and hidden lesbian leanings. In the decades that followed, Wonder Woman fell backward as American women began to step forward. Ultimately, Wonder Woman became a feminist symbol in the 1970s, and the curious details of her past were quickly forgotten. Exploring this lost history adds new dimensions to the world’s most beloved female character, and Wonder Woman Unbounds delves into her comic book and its spin-offs as wekk as motivations of her creators to showcase the peculiar journey of a twentieth-century icon.

Thoughts: Yet again, a really interesting and entertaining book by Tim Hanley about an awesome comic book lady! I already knew plenty about Wonder Woman, but there were still things I didn’t know about the world’s most famous superheroine. Plus, it’s always cool to learn more about the background and historical context behind the story of this amazing amazon!

Mythos: The Greek Myths Retold by Stephen Fry

Summary: No one loves and quarrels, desires and deceives as boldly or brilliantly as Greek gods and goddesses. In Stephen Fry's vivid retelling we gaze in wonder as wise Athena is born from the cracking open of the great head of Zeus and follow doomed Persephone into the dark and lonely realm of the Underworld. We shiver when Pandora opens her jar of evil torments and watch with joy as the legendary love affair between Eros and Psyche unfolds. Mythos captures these extraodinary myths for our modern age - in all their dazzling and deeply human relevance.

Thoughts: I always enjoyed reading the book about Greek myths that I’ve had as a child and I enjoy Stephen Fry’s humor, so I just had to buy this book when I saw it at my local bookstore - an excellent decision, as it turned out! Stephen Fry tells these ancient myths in such an entertaining and witty manner that I just couldn’t help but laugh out loud sometimes! It didn’t matter if I was already familiar with a particular myth or if it was one completely unknown to me, I was just completely glued to this book, eager to find out more and read Stephen Fry’s fun take on it! As this book doesn’t even begin to cover all the stories of Greek mythology that exist, I really hope that there will be a continuation of this book in the future :)

Catwoman: Soulstealer by Sarah J. Maas

Summary: Two years after escaping Gotham City’s slums, Selina Kyle returns as the mysterious and wealthy Holly Vanderhees. Batman is off on a vital mission and Gotham is at the mercy of the new thief on the prowl. Joined by the cunning Poison Ivy and notorious Harley Quinn, she wreaks havok across the city. Selina is playing a desperate game of cat and mouse. But with a dangerous threat from the past on her tail, will she be able to pull of the ultimate heist?

Thoughts: To be honest, I was pretty disappointed by this book of the DC Icons Series. It started out very promising and interesting with seventeen-year-old Selina living on her own, taking care of her sister, Maggie, who’s seriously ill. To be able to pay for the medical bills, Selina has become part of a street fighter gang, working for the mob boss Falcone. With this premise, I would have loved to just read a story about how Selina finds a way to break free from Falcone’s influence to do her own thing and become the kickass cat burglar we know and love - but instead, Selina is found out by the police and social services and then, at the precinct, gets offered one chance to escape the system to instead become an assassin for Talia al Ghul! A couple of years later, Selina returns to Gotham under the guise of socialite “Holly Vanderhees”. To me, Selina has alwas been someone who has been very independent and self-reliant and now to have her impressive skill set be traced back to the al Ghuls just doesn’t sit particularly well with me. Over the course of the rest of the book, Selina does team up with Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn, which is normally something I absolutely love (Gotham City Sirens, for the win!), but Ivy felt extremely off to me: too nice, too soft, too goody-two-shoes, I guess? I don’t know, it just didn’t feel right to me. In addition to all of that, Selina has to share her own book with Luke Fox, aka Batwing. I have nothing against Luke at all, and his backstory is definitely interesting, but a) due to his dealings with his PTSD (that gets triggered by loud noises such as gunshots which, for a vigilante, is just plain dangerous and I can’t imagine Bruce being nonchalant about this kind of thing when ‘recruiting’ someone with these kind of issues) and other problems, he’s not particularly good at the whole superheroing, which is a bummer and b) there is so much going on in his life that I simply felt that Luke should have just gotten his own book so his character could be thoroughly explored. Also, I just wasn’t digging the romance between Selina and Luke (that might be my inner BatCat shipper talking, but I wasn’t feeling the chemistry between these two at all.) My biggest issue with this book is, that while I was reading it, I had like three ideas for other Catwoman stories I would have rather read, making this book just a reminder of missed opportunities for me.

Lois Lane (Fallout trilogy) by Gwenda Bond

Summary:  … a contemporary reimagining of teenage Lois Lane. She and her family have lived all over, but now they’re in Metrolpolis for good, and Lois is determined to stay quiet. Fit in. Maybe make a friend. As soon as she walks into her new high school, though, she can see it won’t be easy. A group known as the Warheads is making life miserable for another girl at school. They’re messing with her mind somehow, via the high-tech immersive video game they all play. Not cool. Armed with her wit and her new snazzy job as a reporter, Lois has her sights set on solving the mystery. But even she needs help sometimes. Thank goodness for her maybe-more-than-a-friend, someone she knows only by his screen name, SmallvilleGuy…

Thoughts: I’ve already read these books since I’ve started doing my reading lists, so you can find my thoughts on the first two books here and my thoughts on the third book here.

Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood

Summary:  Sixteen years have passed since Grace was locked up, at the age of 16, for the cold-blooded murders of her employer and his housekeeper/lover. Her alleged accomplice in the crimes, James McDermot, paid the extreme sentence of the law and was hanged on November 21, 1843. But some thought Grace was innocent, and her sentence has been commuted to life imprisonment. After a spell in the Lunatic Asylum she now claims to have no memory of the murders, and so Dr. Simon Jordan tries to wake the part of Grace's mind which lies dormant. But what will he find?

Thoughts: I first found out about Margaret Atwood’s Alias Grace through the Netflix series (which is really good!), so I knew most of the story already when I got myself the book. Turns out that the Netflix series is a pretty good adaptation of the book - still, the book offered more insights into the various characters (as books are wont to do) and I liked that the book wasn’t just simple narration from different points of view, but was also interspersed with excerpts from actual newspaper clippings, Susanna Moodie’s book and written confessions, as well as a poem at the beginning of each chapter and the occasional letter written by the characters. I did sometimes hit points during which reading was going pretty slow (maybe because it reads old-fashion-y, which is sometimes difficult for me as a non-native English speaker; maybe because it’s not exactly a short book you can just breeze through... I don’t know), but overall, it is a really intriguing story with multi-layered and complicated characters, which is always a win in my book (pun not intended)!

If you’d like to know more about these books (and/or my thoughts about them) feel free to message me at any time or leave an ask in my askbox! :)

The summaries are from the back of the books or amazon pages.

Supernatural Series Finale: How to Wrap Up 15 Years of Story

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This Supernatural article contains MAJOR spoilers for the series finale. Obviously.

It’s hard to believe it, but Supernatural has come to an end. We had our theories about what might happen in the 15-season show’s ender, but Supernatural kept us guessing right until its final moments. “Carry On” is essentially a forty-minute epilogue to tie up loose ends after the definitive battle against God. It serves its purpose of bringing the series full circle to its humble beginnings: Sam gets his normal life. Dean goes out as a hunter. They reunite to keep riding that road together… in heaven. If you are having trouble (emotionally) processing everything that went down in the series’ final hour or you’re just not ready to let go of this show yet, here’s an explainer of everything that went down in the Winchesters’ final ride…

The Supernatural Series Finale Calls Back to the Beginning

Interestingly, the Supernatural ending episode plot centers around a normal hunt: a gang of kidnapping, masked vampires that Daddy Winchester had investigated years ago. There’s something poignant in being bested by a classic villain mentioned in Dad’s journal, something they often referenced in the early seasons. (Not to mention that Season 1’s Jenny is part of the group.) Things don’t play by the same rules though because Team Free Will were victorious against Chuck’s plans. There’s no more “get out of jail free” cards, no more divine intervention or “I’m Batman!” lucky pen throws. This is real, and for the first time in a long time, death is final. But it’s not the end.

There are so many references to the early days in this episode, including details like the zippo lighter Sam uses at the hunter funeral, to Harvelle’s Roadhouse making an appearance at the end. There’s a grudging lack of Ellen, Jo, and Ash, but that was a recurring issue with many guest characters who could have made a cameo.

Who Returns for the Supernatural Series Finale?

Many beloved characters were missing from this ending, from the aforementioned Harvelles to Mary and John Winchester to Castiel and Jack. This could be for a number of reasons. In interviews, showrunner Andrew Dabb explained that COVID lead to some changes in production. From these interviews we can ascertain that more people would have been involved with the finale, but in order to keep episodes tight and more COVID-restriction compliant, some of these other character appearances probably had to be sacrificed. In any case, it’s good that Bobby made the cut. He was more of an emotional attachment for fans, and had way more screentime than John while acting as the defacto father figure for years. 

Dean Dies in the Supernatural Series Finale

No matter what, everyone can’t be happy with an ending to such a long running show. One major contentious point is Dean’s death. The main character is fatally stabbed during a fight with the aforementioned vampires, pushed against a wooden post and impaled by a metal rod. Before he goes, Dean says goodbye to his brother, saying: “Hey, I’m not leaving you. I’m gonna be with you. Right here. Every day. Every day you’re out there and living and you’re fighting—because you always keep fighting, you hear me? I’ll be there. Every step.”

But Dean’s story doesn’t end with death. We see him arrive in heaven, and reunited with Bobby. This heaven is a place where with “everyone happy, everyone together.” For Dean, it also includes Harvelle’s Roadhouse and Baby. Dean’s parents and Rufus live nearby and, as Bobby tells Dean: “It ain’t just heaven, Dean. It’s the heaven you deserve.”

Driver Picks the Music

One of the most famous music riffs in the series is what I’ve always dubbed the “sad Supernatural theme” which is really called “Americana.” The theme is usually played slow, in piano, underpinning the most heart wrenching scenes at the biggest moment of loss. Obviously it’s used to its tear-jerking potential over Dean’s final words to Sam, but the theme resurfaces, changing its meaning. For Sam and Dean’s final embrace of the episode on that bridge, “Americana” is played via electric guitar, in a more upbeat, uplifting tone. The theme has become triumphant, and indicative of a job well done for these weary hunters.

One can’t talk Supernatural music without rejoicing in the liberal use of Kansas’ “Carry On Wayward Son” for the ending scenes. This song has always resonated strongly with fans, from its initial use in the season one finale Salvation to its subsequent appearance in every season finale since. Not only does the musical group share the name of the state the boys hail from, the lyrics in this progressive rock masterwork always seemed to perfectly line up with the story Supernatural was telling. 

The lyrics “On a stormy sea of moving emotion/Tossed about, I’m like a ship on the ocean/I set a course for winds of fortune” easily translates to the boys’ eternal fight against their supposed destiny. The line “Surely Heaven waits for you” is a promise fulfilled. 

From their biggest tragedies to the hopeful optimism that would finally be peace when they were done, this song meant more than a tune you could tap a toe to. It was the musical embodiment of the heart of this show.

Metallicar

You couldn’t have Supernatural without the other main character since the pilot — Baby the Impala. Both Sam and Dean have plenty of scenes with the car when they are separated by Death, but a fun nod to the fans is in the details. 

In Heaven, Dean drives the original version of the Impala, with the Kansas KAZ 2Y5 plate. Sam drives the Impala with the new Ohio license plate CNK80Q3. The plate had changed in the show after the Winchesters were arrested in Folsom Prison Blues at the end of Season Two. What had been a way for the boys to evade the law became a neat bit of trivia the fans have stored away all this time. 

“This is Dean’s Other Other Phone”

Dean tells Sam to “Always Keep Fighting” which rings so true because it’s the name of Jared Padalecki’s real life charity T-shirt campaign, the proceeds of which went to programs dedicated to mental health, including To Write Love on Her Arms and The Wounded Warrior Project. In a way, Dean is also telling the fans to keep fighting, to not despair at the end. 

Sam is obviously in a funk after all this takes place, going through the motions in a haze, tearfully petting Miracle while feeling the emptiness of the bunker. It’s when Dean’s phone — his other other phone — rings that he’s put back on his path to keep fighting. A werewolf attack in Austin, Texas — notably the city that Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles both live in real life. 

The “other other” phone has only really been on the show as a voicemail recording Sam gets when all other contact options have been exhausted, and Dean must be in trouble. The fact that we finally see the phone in this episode, and it’s Sam that answers? It’s showing that Sam is the one to carry on. 

Sam Has a Family

You can be a “Sam girl” or a “Dean girl” (or guy) but there’s a reason Sam was the surviving brother. Sam had to “carry on” because he was the one who could. When Dean went to Hell all those years ago, or even in the episode when the Trickster had him die over and over, finally leaving Sam to wander on his own for some time, Sam’s had a lot of experience being the one left behind. He learned to carry on from these experiences, as hard as it must be. Sam completes his own character arc, effectively picking back up where he left off and having a family with some out-of-focus-in-the-background wife.

Sam Joins Dean in Heaven

Years later, after living a long life, Sam dies and joins his brother in heaven. Here, the end mirrors the beginning. In the pilot, Dean picks Sam up from school in order to find Dad, thereby starting their 15-year journey. In Heaven, Sam ends up joining Dean again and they both happen to be wearing the same clothes as in the pilot: Sam, a tan jacket over blue t-shirt and Dean, a dark jacket over a red plaid shirt. 

They reunite on a bridge. One of the most pivotal moments of the pilot episode was when they saw the Woman in White on the bridge. This time, it’s a brightly lit sunny day, but a bridge between the pilot and finale seems oh so perfect.

Heaven was self-contained before Jack “made things right.” Simply a rehash of your greatest memories playing over and over, yet so singularly lonely since everyone had their own version of Heaven. As Sam joins his brother, you get the sense that they’ve done their work and things are truly, finally, at peace. 

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Was the Supernatural Series Finale Good?

It ain’t easy wrapping up a popular series after fifteen years. Not everyone will be happy, but the finale did find a way to pay homage to the beginning while bringing it all to a bittersweet end. In a sigh of relief, the show exemplifies that there really is peace to strive for after all. No matter the end, fans have fifteen years of show to look back on, meta episodes to laugh at, monsters to creep you out, and enough chick flick moments to make Dean blush. There’s a lot to love there, and at the core of it all is family. And family don’t end with blood. 

The post Supernatural Series Finale: How to Wrap Up 15 Years of Story appeared first on Den of Geek.

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10 Things to Looks For This At San Diego Comic Con 2017

With San Diego’s famous international Comic Con kicking off in less than 48 hours (July 20th - July 23rd, Preview Night Thursday July 19th) here’s 10 things fans of any kind will want to look out for this upcoming year on film and television whether or not you get close to the famous stars or not.

1. Teaser Trailer for Infinity War Part 1. and 2.

After D23′s expo which occurred this past weekend which hosted some of disney’s most beloved stars and fans. It gave Marvel fans the hype on something many have been waiting months for. The first official trailer for the Infinity Wars, as it steals the top spot for number 1. The reason for this besides the typical hype that follows any marvel film it was recently discovered that the production of the movie had recently finished filming and is now in phase of post-production. Coming along way from their beginning back in mid-january when they announced the beginning. For sure this trailer is one that will set the bar high this comic con season.

2. Fox’s Gotham Bruce Wayne Finally Batman?!

For all Gotham fans, I might say this coming season is surely one to look out for. Gotham, leaving fans in a tizzy with their season finale is  coming back for series 4. Even though it is still unclear on what will happen this new season fans hope comic con will be able to set things in perspective. One things for sure is that billionaire orphan Bruce Wayne will become the crime fighting vigilante that we all know and love. Although he may not be known let alone called batman yet (perhaps later in this upcoming season) we can ensure that he is officially one step closer to unraveling his destiny as Batman. As well as Selena Kyle, Bruce’s love interest as Catwoman. 

3. Operation Smile’s Live Stream Panels 

As one of many who has not been able to attend San Diego’s Comic Con. A special thanks is needed to Zachary Levi’s Nerd HQ/Operation Smile’s run charity panels to give at home fans a way to enjoy the Con without actually being at the event. So for those like me staying at home bumping news off others actually at the Con, these panels are a real life saver on discovering some of the news first hand on the fly. If interest download the app to catch all the live panels streams.

4. Star Wars “The Last Jedi”

“It’s time for the Jedi....to end” these were the words Luke Skywalker spoke in the Star Wars teaser trailer that dropped early January and continues to stir rumors and speculations around the films future. Including what Luke means in his mysterious message about the force as well as Rey’s training with Luke and if/when Finn will return back to us in the franchise after being injured during his battle with Kylo Ren at the end of The Force Awakens. There has been several news about the Star Wars franchise that the sudden passing of Carrie Fisher has not changed the plot of The Last Jedi film but pre-production writers and analysts had to rewrite the script of the following films to write out Carrie’s character Princess General Leia. Still no word on how the changes and how it will affect the plot of the films going forward. But the excitement surrounding the films will no doubt continue through this weekend.

5. DC’s “The Justice League”

With the set release date of November 17, 2017. It’s no doubt a countdown from now on for many DC fans. After the release of Wonder Woman its no kidding that DC has officially set the bar on their franchise raising from their past failures like Suicide Squad and Batman vs. Superman. Let’s hope this is as good as Wonder Woman’s solo film which so far has exceeded such expectations from and box office or film critic. So far the rumors have kept quiet so far except for director Zach Snyder taking sometime off during shooting due to a personal family matter. There was no word on if film was suspended or taken over by a different director but let hope this sudden hiccup in the filming process doesn't effect the final cut of the movie.

6. The CW Networks Supernatural Returns for Season 13

Season 13 here we come! The Supernatural Fandom has really come along way since Sam and Dean’s adventure in finding their dad, John (Jeffery Dean Morgan), from the yellow eyed demon back in season 1. From the season 12 finale, fans were ended with Lucifer’s child being born, Mary Winchester stuck in a parallel universe with the devil, and everyones favorite angel Castiel having died. A few spoilers that we know of so far is that Castiel does, unsurprisingly, resurrect from the dead, thanks to Jared Padelicki spilling the beans at a recent Supernatural Convention but how he comes back to the land of the living is still unknown to us including what episode it might occur at. The rumors of a Scooby-Doo themed episode is also running around including what will happen during the events of this upcoming season and if it might be their last. So for those of you going to Comic Con please ask if this is true.

7. BBC’s Doctor Who Newest Doctor- A WOMAN!

The Doctor had Regenerated! I repeat he has Regenerated! The series that has gone on for more than 50 years has now accomplished and taken the show to the next level by making their lead, The Doctor, a female. Actress Jodie Whittaker who will reprise the role as the 13th doctor after Peter Capaldi says she's “beyond excited to being  this epic journey” -entertainmentweekly. Good Luck Jodie you deserve it! more information about the series journey this season will be answered during their panel at comic con.

8. Blade Runner 2049

More than 30 years after the making of the original Blade Runner Film played by Harrison Ford and made famous by Director Ridley Scott. Blade Runner is back better and ready to take on the science fiction world once more. Set 30 years after the original Officer K, played by Ryan Gosling who seeks the help of Harrison’s character Rick Dechard about information of the Blade Runners and their jobs in society.  Nothing much has been said about the film except for the recent release of the films trailers. But it could be possible that another trailer is expected to be released during comic con but so far anything is possible.

9. Netflix’s Stranger Things Season 2!

Eleven is back for season 2! Even though the last season of Stranger Things ended with Eleven in the parallel universe and everything, so far, in our world to be  safe and sound. Including Will coming back and The Demogorgon gone everything’s back to normal except for the big impact eleven made on everyone’s lives in the show and its fans. Comic con will shed some light on the newly released poster and trailer as well as teasing on the monster that made its way back to the normal world and how this one is different and/or more harmful than the monster the first season. Can’t wait until October.

10.  Jurassic World Fallen Kingdom

With production of the newest Jurassic having recently come to a close a very short time away from San Diego’s Comic Con. It makes sense why a lot of them would attend to spread the word on how this new generation of dinosaurs with cause self destruction on people and its park. right? Anyway, rumors have spread about the ideas of the film based on the title as well as the new characters expected to play in the film in its designated release in June of 2018. Some new comers and veterans include BD Wong’s character Dr. Henry Wu whom we saw in the release of the last film and the return of Jeff Goldblum’s famous Dr. Ian Malcolm. There is still no concrete idea of the films progression into this fallen kingdom that the movie hints about but fortunately for us as fans comic con is here to shed some light on where it will takes us if the possibility of another Jurassic sequel is either in the works as I write this or any ideas of another.

New series premieres to look out for!

-Fox’s The Gifted

-Marvel’s Inhumans/ Defenders

-The CW’s Dynasty

-Netflix’s The Punisher

Returning Shows to look out for!

-CW’s The Flash

-CW’s Supergirl

-CBS’s Blindspot

- Netflix Thirteen Reason Why

-AMC’s The Walking Dead

-ABC’s Quantico

The inside story of a bizarre Netflix documentary showing Jim Carrey in character as Andy Kaufman for 4 months, both on screen and off

The Netflix documentary "Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond" is a behind-the-scenes look at Jim Carrey's journey to become Andy Kaufman in the movie "Man on the Moon."

Carrey was in character as Kaufman for the entire four-month shoot both on screen and off.

"Jim & Andy" director Chris Smith spent eight months editing the 100 hours of footage for the movie and two days interviewing Carrey about the experience.

It’s fitting that Spike Jonze would call documentary filmmaker Chris Smith to take on the task of sorting through 100 hours of footage of Jim Carrey, being in character as Andy Kaufman, throughout the filming of the 1999 movie “Man on the Moon.”

Smith has made a career looking at unique people and their passions. The movie that put him on the map was “American Movie,” which came out the same year as “Man on the Moon.” It gives an inside look at the often hilarious journey of an aspiring filmmaker named Mark Borchardt, as he tries to make a low budget horror movie. Then there’s the last movie Smith made, 2009’s “Collapse,” in which he profiles the controversial theories of police officer-turned-reporter Michael Ruppert. 

After years of Jonze trying to convince his friend Carrey to show him some of the footage of him as Kaufman behind-the-scenes on “Man on the Moon,” he recently finally got a glimpse and was blown away.

That led to Jonze getting Vice, where he is the creative director, involved in producing it, and Smith to be the director in early 2016.

“Spike just called out of the blue and explained what the project was and I think to his credit it was really his enthusiasm that made it happen,” Smith told Business Insider over the phone this week. “I don’t know if I would have seen the potential the way that he did.”

Smith admitted he didn’t really know Jonze personally before the call, outside of running into him at events over the years, and through mutual friends. And he certainly didn’t run in the same circles as Carrey, as the director had taken a break from filmmaking the last five years, and spent most of his time on a farm in England. But the three got on the phone and after some chatting agreed that they all wanted team up to tell this story.

The role Carrey trained his whole life to play

At the time of shooting “Man on the Moon,” Carrey was one of the biggest movie stars in the world. He had one of most successful years any actor in Hollywood has ever had, with huge hits “Ace Ventura: Pet Detective,” “The Mask,” and “Dumb and Dumber” all opening in 1994. It instantly made Carrey an A-lister and led to roles in “Batman Forever,” “The Cable Guy,” and “Liar Liar.”

Turning to more serious fare by the end of the 1990s, like "The Truman Show," Carrey saw Kaufman as the role he’d been training his whole life to play. And he went all in. For the entire "Man on the Moon" shoot Carrey was in his Kaufman character on and off set. And it was all captured on a digital camera that followed him.

Those moments included Carrey walking around as Kaufman’s most famous character, Latka, from the TV show “Taxi;” harassing professional wrestler Jerry Lawler when he came to set to film the scenes depicting Kaufman’s feud with him in the early ‘80s, when Kaufman would wrestle women; and being Kaufman’s vulgar alter ego Tony Clifton, who when Carrey was portraying him, would show up drunk on set. One time Carrey showed up to work on the back of a motorcycle with a group of Hell’s Angels, and even went to the offices of Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Entertainment one day, which is located on the Universal lot where “Man on the Moon” was made, and demanded to see the legendary director (Spielberg wasn’t there).

All this went on for the four-month shoot, while the movie’s director Milos Forman, and the cast that included Paul Giamatti and Danny DeVito (who worked with the real Kaufman on “Taxi”), looked on in shock.

After “Man on the Moon” wrapped, the footage of Carrey’s behind-the-scene antics, shot by Kaufman’s former girlfriend Lynne Margulies, went into the possession of Kaufman’s former writing partner Bob Zmuda. For over a decade the footage was just another Hollywood story brought up at parties.

Jonze wanted the legend to become available to all. He got Zmuda to license the footage to them, and Smith was handed a digitized version of the dozens of MiniDV tapes the footage was on.

When Jim Carrey says he wants to do something, who is going to stop him?

“We ended up working on the material for a good eight months before we did the interview with Jim,” Smith said. “There was a lot of talk about us interviewing everyone that was involved [on ‘Man on the Moon’], but I was really interested in just Jim’s perspective and what the toll this film took on him mentally.”

Smith’s end result is the entertaining and touching documentary “Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond — Featuring a Very Special, Contractually Obligated Mention of Tony Clifton,” which Netflix bought and will air beginning Friday.

The movie is not just a look at Carrey at his most bizarre, but also a look at how Carrey’s rags-to-riches life before making it big in Hollywood was the perfect training to take on the Kaufman persona.

As Smith had hoped, there’s only one current-day interview, and it’s Carrey, who recounts the experience with a clarity and vulnerability that amazed Smith.

“We shot with Jim for two days,” he said. “It doesn’t seem like a lot of time, but there was so much because his insights were so far reaching. He articulates so well this idea of losing yourself for four months and wondering if you can really walk away from yourself and come back.”

Carrey admits in the movie that after playing Kaufman it took a while to for him to get back to being just Jim.

“That experience had a big impact on Jim,” Smith said, who was surprised when Carrey told him that he didn't miss anything from making “Man on the Moon.”

“I think there’s oddly a lot of life lessons in this movie and I think one of them is just this idea of not holding onto things from the past but actually moving forward,” he said.

But why go through all of this? Did Smith feel he got from Carrey exactly why he went through all this to portray Kaufman?

“I personally think he really tried to do justice to Andy’s legacy and I think he really felt that this was the right way to do that,” Smith said. “When Jim Carrey says he wants to do something, who is going to stop him?”

“Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond” is available now on Netflix.

SEE ALSO: How a harsh criticism turned "Coco" into Pixar's most uniquely made movie yet

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20,000 Leagues Under The Sea by Jules Verne

Student/Blogger: Henry M. Belga Jr. Adviser: Mrs. Joanna Jacinth Ferer II. About the author and book background Author Verne was born to bourgeois parents in the seaport of Nantes, where he was trained to follow in his father's footsteps as a lawyer, but quit the profession early in life to write for magazines and the stage. His collaboration with the publisher Pierre-Jules Hetzel led to the creation of the Voyages extraordinaires, a widely popular series of scrupulously researched adventure novels including Journey to the Center of the Earth (1864), Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea (1870), and Around the World in Eighty Days (1873). Verne is generally considered a major literary author in France and most of Europe, where he has had a wide influence on the literary avant-garde and on surrealism. His reputation is markedly different in Anglophone regions, where he has often been labeled a writer of genre fiction or children's books, largely because of the highly abridged and altered translations in which his novels are often reprinted. Verne has been the second most-translated author in the world since 1979, ranking between Agatha Christie and William Shakespeare. He has sometimes been called the "Father of Science Fiction", a title that has also been given to H. G. Wells and Hugo Gernsback. (Wikepedia, 2017) Book Background  The novel was originally serialized from March 1869 through June 1870 in Pierre-Jules Hetzel's periodical, the Magasin d'Éducation et de Récréation. The deluxe illustrated edition, published by Hetzel in November 1871, included 111 illustrations by Alphonse de Neuville and Édouard Riou.  The book was highly acclaimed when released and still is now; it is regarded as one of the premiere adventure novels and one of Verne's greatest works, along with Around the World in Eighty Days and Journey to the Center of the Earth. The description of Nemo's ship, called the Nautilus, was considered ahead of its time, as it accurately describes features on submarines, which at the time were very primitive vessels. The title refers to the distance traveled while under the sea and not to a depth, as 20,000 leagues is over six times the diameter, and nearly twice the circumference of the Earth.  The greatest depth mentioned in the book is four leagues. The book uses metric leagues, which are four kilometres each. A literal translation of the French title would end in the plural "seas", thus implying the "seven seas" through which the characters of the novel travel; however, the early English translations of the title used "sea", meaning the ocean in general. (Wikepedia, 2017) III. Summary      The story starts in the year 1866, everyone in Europe and America is talking about a mysterious creature that has been attacking and sinking ships. The United States government assembles an expedition in New York City to find and destroy the monster, using the vessel called Abraham Lincoln. On board the ship are Pierre Aronnax (the main caharacter), a great scientist along with his servant, Conseil, and Ned Land the best harpooner.      After weeks of searching, the ship finally encounters the beast. Abraham Lincoln is attacked by the beast. The three men find themselves on top of the mysterious creature, which they later realize it was a submarine vessel. They are quickly captured and brought inside the vessel, where they meet its creator and commander, Captain Nemo. He tells them they can stay on board the ship and enjoy freedom as long as they return to the cell if asked. They are never allowed to leave the vessel again. Ned Land didn’t agree with the captain, for he believes it doesn’t sounds like freedom at all.      The Captain treats the men very well, especially Aronnax. They are given cloth and fed, they are also permitted to wander around the vessel at their leisure. The men spend their time observing sea life through observation windows. Aronnax studies and writes about everything he sees. Nemo then announces that he will be taking the three on a voyage through all the world's seas. They hunt in the underwater forests of Crespo Island and visit the site of two famous shipwrecks. There was a time when they set foot in an island, but they were interrupted and attacked by cannibals.      One night, the men are asked to return to their cell. They are given sleeping pills and awake the next morning very confused. Nemo asks Aronnax to look at a crewman who has been severely injured. The man later dies and they bury him in an underground cemetery, where many other crewmen have been laid to rest. They travel through the Indian Ocean and visit a bed of pearls, where Nemo saves a pearl diver from a shark, and then he was saved by Ned. On their voyage they pass by the lost city of Atlantis.       They reached the South Pole, but on their way back, the Nautilus becomes stuck in the ice. Everyone must take turns trying to break a hole in the ice so the vessel can get through. The ship almost runs out of its oxygen supply and the men grow tired and light headed. However, they escape just in time.      Finally, while sailing north of England, Nemo himself was consume by revenge, he attacked  an unknown ship. Aronnax is horrified when Nemo sinks this ship in order to get back at those people whom Nemo says took away his family and his country. Aronnax does not know to which nation the warship belongs, but he is horrified when Captain Nemo sinks it. The men decide they must escape at all costs.      Lastly, the Nautilus drifts aimlessly until it encounters the Maelstrom. As the Nautilus is being pulled into this vortex, Aronnax, Ned, and Conseil manage to jump ship. They wake up in a cabin on a remote Norwegian island. There, Aronnax finishes recounting his wild and adventurous voyage. But he hardly answers all the questions in his mind. He still doesn't know Nemo's home country or general backstory or if he even survived the Maelstrom. IV. Lesson Learned       This book was written in the year 1870, in which the submarines are not yet common to the people. Verne give us an overview about the submarine and how it works. In the story, we learned that we must observe a good interaction with others who works with us onboard to avoid misunderstanding and quarrel. And we have to be respectful of each other’s culture as well as of their age, gender, social status, and religion. Although this story is a science fiction, all the place are not just imaginary,   the author also give us realistic places to venture around the world. The character in the story depicts the reality where everything is not easy, not all the times you will always live in a comfortable way, there is always a hindrance, a challenge that makes our self strong. V. Critique/Review       I really like the story of Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne. The book was a quite good example of a science fiction. The beginning was exciting, it interested me until the first long and detailed scientific description. It was a little bit boring at some parts and I really don’t understand some terms used sometimes, but with the help of the dictionary I manage to reveal those meaning. I loved reading about all the different underwater cultures that Nautilus encountered. The descriptions of underwater landscapes are beautiful and amazing, that I feel that I am with a voyage with them. The adventures of the main characters are written in a very detailed way.       My favorite character here is Captain Nemo. I can compare him to a famous superhero today, Batman. Like Batman, Nemo boasts a unique moral compassion, but the course between justice and vengeance is not always an easy.  Also like Batman, Nemo has encountered personal tragedy, hides his true identity and has a vast fortune in terms of money. Unlike Batman, however, Nemo is a legitimate menace to the world. He has advanced technology, the will to use it, and is powered by righteous anger. Certainly Nemo wreaks bloody vengeance against those who have angered him, but his passion for science, exploration and knowledge makes him mightier. He's a genius, an intellectual, a man with a strong body and mind. Nemo strikes back at the world that killed his loved ones by attacking the ships of those governments. These acts are murder, a wrong act but to Nemo who has lost everything, it is justice. Then, Nautilus was pulled in the vortex of the maelstrom and through, the final fate of Nemo and his extraordinary vessel are not revealed in this text. The ending left me wanting more. It is such a cliff hanger. VI. References  Wikepedia(2017) Jules Verne Retrieved from https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jules_Verne at 9:00pm July 24, 2017 Wikepedia(2017) Twenty Thousand Leagues Under The Sea Retrieved from https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twenty_Thousand_Leagues_Under_the_Sea at 9:00pm July 24, 2017