January 1848 was when gold was discovered in California. If you are looking for a good series to read about the Gold Rush, consider these three books by Rae Carson.
If you've talked to anybody lately, you have probably heard about Netflix's latest reality-show release, Tiger King. Tiger King is the hilarious and sad story of the owner of a road-side wild cat exhibit. While it seemed as though the show was going to be about the plight of big cats in the US and how regulations are being put in place to help that population, that is NOT what the show ended up being about. The show chronicled the tumultuous life of Joe Exotic and his numerous husbands, employees, friends, and enemies. I was able to watch every episode but the last one, which I had to quit because it got a little TOO real. I don't want to ruin the show for you, but a quit Google will tell you that Joe is in jail, Carole is not, and the cats and employees are left to fend for themselves. The takeaways from the show: DRUGS ARE BAD and ANIMALS DESERVE BETTER THAN HUMANS. But at least the memes are funny.
By Kaylee Bynog As of January 17, 2020, Halsey released her third album titled Manic. The album has 16 songs and is 48 minutes in total from start to finish. The album features songs of mixed genres like electro pop, alternative rock, hip hop, K-pop, and even a country song. It features artists like Dominic Fike, BTS, and Suga. Halsey said that the album is a “less dystopian fantasy world” and reflects her current view of the world. The reason she went with the album title Manic is because she said “the album itself is literally manic. I made whatever I felt like making. There was so actual reason for any of it.” She did also say that the album is extremely personal and that she feels like she’s been given the chance to express herself more than she did in her first album. Manic debuted at number 2 on the US Billboard 200. It also debuted in the top 10 in multiple countries like Australia, UK, US, Canada, and etc. Rolling Stone named the album an “excellent new album of Halsey’s raw autobiographical portrait of [herself] as a young mess, craving her share of love and tenderness in a hostile world.”
Is THe boys worth your time?
By Jacob Smalley Amazon Prime’s new show The Boys released over the summer and has received moderately positive critical reception since. Having seen it, it is easy to understand why. The show's first, eight-episode season is jam-packed with excellent performances from a star-studded cast. Among those included are Jack Quaid as the lead Hughie, Karl Urban as Billy Butcher, and Anthony Starr as the main antagonist, The Homelander. But what is The Boys actually about? Based on the superhero satire comic book of the same name (written by Garth Ennis), The Boys is a very dark take (seriously, it is not for the faint of heart, that's your warning) on what a world with real-life superheroes (called supes by the average citizen) might be like. While this concept has been done before, both very well and not so much, here it has a new spin on it by taking on the military industrial complex and the idea of private defense contractors. In this world all supes are controlled by an independent contractor called Vought American. Vought American has all sorts of friends in high places, and I don't mean those that can fly-- even if they have no shortage of those with that particular ability. The show’s main character, Hughie Campbell, is struck by tragedy when his girlfriend is killed in a very brutal way thanks to the superhero A-Train (think the Flash+Quicksilver). When he is approached by Billy Butcher promising a chance at revenge, Campbell's whole world is thrown for a loop. While the setup for the plot is admittedly basic, it is supplemented by wonderful character interactions and dialogue and includes quite a few wild twists and turns about the true origins of Vought American’s seemingly endless supe army. While the drama and characters are great, the lack of a substantial budget can be felt throughout the first season, with very large gaps between the superhero action and less-than-stellar special effects. None of this is enough to make the show unworthy of your time if you’re interested. In fact, in this age of never ending superhero adaptations and reboots, The Boys is a nice shift in tone. My personal final score is 4 stars out of 5, and I cannot wait for the second season.
by Makayla Hawkins MTV is famous for its interesting additions to television. From Teen Moms to Ridiculousness they have brought us hilarious and sometimes controversial content. A show that is now appearing as a new love on MTV is one that combines almost all that makes MTV great. This show is one entitled How Far is Tattoo Far, which is hosted by Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi and Nico Tortorella. It is a show about friendships, betrayals, hilarious backstories and most of all tattoos. Those who come on this show are mostly those who are seeking revenge on someone in a way in which they know the other person will permanently remember. Two people come to the show and tell the history of themselves and the other person , whether they’re sisters, cousins, or a couple the backstories are almost always hilarious. Then the two are split up and sent to there tattoo artist where they must get a permanent tattoo of the design and on the place in which the other person chooses. The part that makes all of this much more daunting is the fact that throughout this whole situation, you are unable to see the tattoo that is being permanently engraved in your skin. Most of the time they are absolutely horrifying and cause the people to be extremely ticked off from the results of their misplaced trust. Although some tattoos leave you feeling genuine pity for the victims of such horrible tattoos, it’s almost impossible to not die from laughter from the sheer fact that you’re not the one enduring this pain. So if you enjoy watching other people go through unfortunate situations and you have an odd fascination with strange tattoos this show is for you. The question I would like to leave you all with though is this… Would you ever allow someone to tattoo something on you, and if so who?
by Tiffany Robinson During this lockdown, the only way I've been filling my time is by binge-watching. I've done plenty of movie marathons, watching Frozen and Frozen 2 and all the Star Wars movies (in order.) My biggest binge, however, has been Grey’s Anatomy. Grey’s Anatomy has SIXTEEN seasons, so there's a lot of content to go around. Although I've seen every single episode of the show in the past, I decided to re-watch it because it's not like I have anything else better to do. I've watched the medical drama every single day since we’ve been out, and I will probably keep watching it until I find something better to do. Do you have any good suggestions? What have you been watching?
By Yamileth Ledesma To All The Boys P.S I Still Love You is the sequel to the Netflix original movie To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before. In this movie, Lara Jean expands her relationship with Peter from the previous movie until one of the boys she sent her love letters to appears. This is a great romantic movie series but I believe that the first movie was definitely better than this one. It was a good movie in general but it's not what I expected it to be. It still had the romance between Lara Jean and Peter, but it didn’t feel the same as the first movie. In this movie they start officially dating but their relationship doesn’t feel as romantic or real like when they were fake dating. This movie shows the struggles they go through while being in a relationship which you will see if you watch it. If you haven’t watched the first movie, I recommend watching it first. Other than that, I’d say To All The Boys P.S I Still Love You is a good movie but not what i expected.
Star wars: The rise of Skywalker
By Jacob Smalley Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is the latest movie in the 9 episode saga of the Star Wars universe, this being the third of the highly controversial sequel trilogy. Starring Daisy Ridley as the protagonist Rey, and Adam Driver as Ben Solo (otherwise known as the villainous Kylo Ren). Now where to start with this one? If I’m perfectly honest, this movie is an incredibly mixed bag. The Performances? Incredible, most likely the best thing about this film. Daisy Ridley is the best she has ever been, portraying the conflict within Rey with a skill previously unseen in this sequel series from her. And Adam Driver brings his amazing talent as always, his portrayal of Kylo Ren is the number one reason that his character is the most compelling of the series. The Pacing? Terrible, you will jump from plot point to plot point at light speed, literally and figuratively. At the beginning of this film alone you visit what feels like 10 different locations and find out a number of different things that are all thrown at the audience with the grace of an old man shooting lightning from his fists. In the opening crawl, an iconic element from these films, they reveal that the main villain of the original trilogy has miraculously returned! How you may ask? It’s barely addressed in a throw-away line by a character who is never named in the film itself. Not to take away from Ian McDiarmid’s performance as Emperor Palpatine, which is just as amazing as he was in both the original trilogy and the prequels. Now one thing Star Wars has always been known for is pushing the boundaries of special effects, and while that might not quite be true here, the artistry on display is nothing to scoff at. As with the previous two movies in the sequel trilogy, the effects are stunning, showcasing how CGI can be crafted into magnetic action sequences. How much you enjoy this film will most likely be determined by whether or not you enjoyed the previous sequel film, The Last Jedi. A film that was highly controversial among fans, mostly hated but also a small community who swore by the film and loved it completely. Personally I was somewhere in the middle, but much of this film is spent undoing the things that made The Last Jedi so polarizing. This is the main reason that the pacing of the film is so awful. For example, supreme leader Snoke was killed in The Last Jedi, as a twist to set up Kylo Ren being the true big bad, unlike Darth Vader. Yet the first thing The Rise of Skywalker does is bring back the previous trilogy’s villain to replace him and give Kylo *SPOILER* a redemption arc that feels far too underdeveloped. The Last Jedi also set up Rey as a nobody who would go from zero to hero yet this film undoes that as well. It’s clear that the backlash to the last film had a heavy hand in the creative process for this new one, much to its detriment. Overall The Rise of Skywalker is a fun action movie with good performances, but it struggles to escape the controversy caused by the rabid fanbase thanks to the last film.