Stephanie McKibben, Author
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Crow saves the World from Everlasting Winter

3/7/2019

 

**Award Winning** CGI Animated Short Film: "Crow: The Legend" by Baobab Studios


Blurb

The Legend is an exciting new animated short movie starring John Legend as Crow, the most popular and admired animal in the forest with his magnificent colors and beautiful voice. But when the very first winter arrives, can Crow make the ultimate sacrifice to save his friends?

Inspired by the original Native American legend, this story of sacrifice and community features Randy Edmonds, Kiowa-Caddo tribal elder and founder of the National Urban Indian Council as Narrator and Sarah Eagle Heart, CEO of Native Americans in Philanthropy, as Luna.

Starring John Legend, Oprah Winfrey, Constance Wu (Crazy Rich Asians), Tye Sheridan (Ready Player One), Diego Luna (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Narcos: Mexico), and Liza Koshy.

Created by the director of Madagascar and the Emmy-winning animated films Invasion! and Asteroids!. Executive produced by Baobab Studios, Get Lifted, and Native Americans in Philanthropy.
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Review

Short. Simple. Enjoyable. 

This is about sacrifice but it has a Happy Ever After so don't think this is a glum story. You'll recognize the voices, and the song is an ear-worm so be prepared to think about this short for a long time. :)

The art is beautiful. The story has a moral lesson for children. And getting to hear and see an American Indian folklore is inspiring.   

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I Would Recommend this to Fans of:

Children's Stories

Native American Folklore

​Beast Fables
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Dog Demon with an Angel's Heart

2/7/2019

 

InuYasha

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Blurb

Suddenly finding herself in feudal Japan, schoolgirl Kagome teams up with half-demon Inuyasha to retrieve the scattered shards of a sacred jewel.
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Main Characters

What we have in this story is the "traveling angel" plot. Like Michael Landon in Highway to Heaven, there is/are "angel/s" character/s going around solving Other People's Problems. 

In addition to InuYasha solving OPP, the collection of travelers are set on revenge on this one guy AND to collect shards of the four souls jewel... that was shattered by one of the main characters. It has a lot of good plot going on which creates a good enough series to keep me involved in the two seasons of the tv show.  
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InuYasha

In the first five minutes you see InuYasha destroying a village and reaking havoc so obviously the antagonist,  right?

Not so much, it turns out. 

His story goes deeper than what the first 5 minutes lets on. 

I liked his introduction and how his backstory weaves into the series. But one thing I have to ask... what's up with the bare feet?

If you're interested more about the meaning of his name, I found this wonderful Fanon:
http://inu-fanon.tumblr.com/post/67102045516/the-meaning-of-yasha

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​Kagome Higurashi

​"You're wrong! That's not why Kagome was born! Kagome taught me how to smile, how to believe in people! Kagome was the reason I could make friends and rely on those friends! To shed tears for others, to understand true strength and kindness…They’re all things I learned from Kagome! Kagome was born to meet me! And I was born for her!"
―Inuyasha admitting Kagome's significance to him.
Kagome is InuYasha's conscious, and allows him an excuse to be a "good guy". She pulls out the distrust he had in humans and transforms him into a half-demon that can wield a sword that is only used (for the most part) in service of humans by the power of friendship.
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Supporting Characters

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Shippō

If you're going to have the Traveling Angel theme, you need travelers to go with that angel who travels... thus, Shippō joins Kagome & InuYasha when seeking revenge from the duo, the Thunder Brothers, who killed his demon father.

Being a half-demon himself, 
Shippō understands InuYasha and while they fight constantly, Shippō admits it's because they are very close.
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​Miroku

Miroku is a priest whose grandfather was cursed by Naraku (the antagonist of the story). Miroku was passed his wind-tunnel palm when his grandfather died. Miroku now seeks revenge for his family. 

He is also the one who reveals to InuYasha that Naraku is the one responsible for his current misfortunes with humans.

The wind-tunnel curse is also a powerful weapon that Miroku uses to defeat demons. He has a good heart if not a bit flirtatious. Miroku seeks "companionship" through the series, often receiving trouble instead.
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Sango

Fierce demon killer, Sango, joins the InuYasha team after Naraku convinces her he's responsible for the destruction of her village and the death of her family. 

She nearly succeeds in killing InuYasha even though she's not at her full strength, but in the end, InuYasha reveals that she's being tricked and used.

Once Naraku's deceit is discovered she teams up with the pack and helps hunt down Naraku. 

She seems to have luke-warm feelings for Miroku but doesn't want to get involved─probably for fear of getting distracted from her mission.

If you're wondering... Sango's weapon is called a Hiraikotsu ("Flying Return Bone").
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Antagonists

There are many opponents and henchmen InuYasha and his crew come against but there are two main guys the pack goes after. 
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Sesshomaru

InuYasha's older brother seems like a bored god wandering aimlessly for purpose. He thinks more power is a good goal to obtain but lacks passion and seems to roam the land in this listless desolation after his one attempt at obtaining the tessaiga (inuYasha's sword) is thwarted.

I feel pity for him. Which doesn't make him a great antagonist but still, maybe he'll gain purpose someday. 

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Naraku

This guy has the will, ambition and a plan for his evil mission (unlike Sesshomaru) and he's powerful enough to do just about anything to collect all the shards of the shikon jewel. 

He wants the jewel to become as beautiful as possible which means that his pawns must use the shards for evil ends. Then he'll become the most powerful demon ever. 

At least he's got motivation and nearly every episode is about what he can throw at InuYasha and is pack to achieve his goal.

My Review

It was my guy who started watching InuYasha and got me interested in it. 

The first 15 minutes of the show I was at my desk trying to work. I noticed he'd been trying to satisfy his samurai craving but this was the first anime he started watching on Netflix. 

One thing I loved was the English dub was available. Anime is so much better when I don't have to read it. AND I love the voice actors that play the characters. Many times I don't like the voices and listen to the Japanese version and read the sub. 

So right off the bat & a smile from InuYasha, I was hooked. 

It's classic traveling Angel plot, collecting allies, barely defeating one foe in a surprisingly entertaining saga. 

​I'm on to Season 2 and it hasn't gone off the rails yet, so I have high hopes that this serial has closure. I'm looking forward to finding out. 
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I Would Recommend this to Fans of:

Fantasy

Swords & Samurai's

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Sesshomaru might be dispassionate about life, but he's still pretty to look at. 

Room on the Broom

11/1/2018

 
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Room on the Broom

Julia Donaldson
Axel Scheffler

Blurb

The witch and her cat are happily flying through the sky on a broomstick when the wind picks up and blows away the witch's hat, then her bow, and then her wand! Luckily, three helpful animals find the missing items, and all they want in return is a ride on the broom. But is there room on the broom for so many friends? And when disaster strikes, will they be able to save the witch from a hungry dragon?
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My Review

My life is so much better now that I've seen this short.

No, I'm not being facetious. 

This heartwarming story of making friends, being polite and returning a kind act all had me into this adventure for the whole ride. 

Witches are normally shown as bad and this wonderful woman, who is also a witch, cleansed my heart of resentment. She was so different from the ugliness that can be portrayed as bad people that I wish there were more stories about witches doing charitable things. 

The story reminded me of an older legend of a cow, a goat, a cat and a bird or mouse but I can't remember where they saved the farmer. 

But I loved this story so much I needed to bring it to you.

I am grateful that Facebook group CELTS (link no longer available but wanted to give attribution) brought this to watch.

The full movie, not broken into chapters, is not on YOUTUBE and, alas you can no longer find it in parts. 

I would Recommend this to Fans of:

Children's Stories

Good Witches

Heartwarming Comedies


*obviously safe for children
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Freaky Dystopian Shorts That Will Make You Want More

10/4/2018

 

Don't Feed the Freaks

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Blurb

"If you're reading this. If you find this book; I'm sorry but I have no answers. But I can tell you what I've seen and what I know".

A young man travels the lifeless wasteland of what was once civilization. He's following the breadcrumbs of an apparent thriving society hidden somewhere in the vast, long-dead wilderness.
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My Review

Holy shit. 

I watched "Don't Feed the Freaks" first. When I finished, I had to know more. 

There are subtle clues about the film that you can piece together from the other three short films. Amazing art. Very creative. Left me wanting to see more of this world and what happened to the boy and his capitol "T" Town.
If you have any interest in 

Apocalyptic
​Dystopian

This one deserves your attention!

Inside Scoop

This is actually the last of a series done. When I found this out, I went back to the others, but this one was the best.

"Don't Fee the Freaks" is fourth in a series. The other 3 take place within the walls of Autodale and are more dystopian than apocalyptic.
Check them all out here after you watch this one.
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Being Pretty:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=44Vh_...
"No Monsters":
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EemY2...
"Children's Toys":
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h2ByY...


(Mostly) Galiant Knight Saves (Ugly) Princess Among Popular Movie References

9/6/2018

 

850 Meters


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Blurb

A not-so-brave knight is on a quest for Fame and Fortune - legend says rescuing a princess is the way to go. And in those same fairy tales, there's only one way to slay the dragon that hold the fair lady captive: find the invincible sword. To reach his goal, the knight is ready to go far. Maybe even as far as 850 meters...
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My Review

Hilarious Medieval Adventure CG Animated Short blew me away! Not only is the artwork amazing and award worthy, the story had me in stitches every second. 

It goes through many tropes and has noble references to some of our favorite movies, pop culture and historical figures. 
Tangled/Rupunzel
Mario Brothers
Teletubbies
The Last Unicorn
King Arthur
Troy
Don Quixote
Dr. Strangelove
and (some what) Aladdin
*if the carpet ride was terrifying instead of romantic 
But the references were not in my face until I noticed the Teletubbie. Thank you Thuristar & Lunanime for this would-be famous knight! 

This 15 minute short deserves your attention.

​I know it will give you a laugh.


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  • Author S.N.McKibben
  • Books
  • A Dirty Blog