K-Drama: Hi Bye, Mama!

Hi Bye, Mama! is a heart wrenching tale of a mother who lost her life and watches over her young child as a ghost. Spooky, am I right? But that's not the direction this K-Drama takes. It is a lovely story that guts you in the feels and makes you wish you could go in and fix everything yourself, like in Dramaworld, another kind of K-Drama...  but not really.

Book: Kissed by an Angel by Elizabeth Chandler (Kissed by an Angel #1 - 3)

This book we are going to be discussing this week is one of my absolute favorites when I was a teenager going through my emo/scene phase. Kissed by an Angel by Elizabeth Chandler is about this girl, Ivy, who fully believes in angels, despite being a teenager. Her boyfriend, Tristan, supports her, from what I remember, until he dies. After his death, Ivy is completely heartbroken and loses her faith in angels, only for the irony that Tristan came back as her guardian angel! He tries to reach out to her, but her faith in angels is nearly completely gone! What is he to do?

Book: In High Spirits by Kate Danley (O'Hare House Mysteries #4)

In High Spirits by Kate O'Hare is the final book of the O'Hare House Mysteries! Oh how exciting this journey has been, strange, but exciting nonetheless. This was a satisfying ending to a long journey. Somewhat. It is with this volume, however, that most of the questions that have been plaguing my mind were resolved.

We start off with Wesley being carted away by the coppers! He has been accused of murdering Lady Rhoda Beltza amongst other crimes. Clara is then forced to act without her usual partner and takes things into her own hands...

Book: Spirit of Denial by Kate Danley (O'Hare House Mysteries #2)

Alright! It feels nice to be able to read books in a series back to back like this, helps me not forget what had happened in the previous volume. So, I was able to get my hands on Spirit of Denial, the second book of the O'Hare House Mysteries by Kate Danley through Hoopla, an online thing that allows you to check out ebooks and the like with your library card. 

Spirit of Denial picks right up from where A Spirited Manor left off. In this one, Clara confronts her house staff, only to find out that they are honestly and truly ghosts! And she has the ability to see and speak with them! Wesley, on the other hand, is still involved in this book, with him and Clara having fallen for each other, wherever Clara goes, he is not very far behind. Now, what had transpired at the late Lord Horace Oroberg's estate seems to be much bigger than either of these two could've imagined for now they are trying to stop an ancient Egyptian curse! The reason for Violet to have become a demon! The very reason why all those people had died...

Anime: The Promised Neverland by Kaiu Shirai (Season 1)

This anime is absolutely phenomenal! I had watched this anime sometime last year, after AnimeNEXT 2019, an anime expo that happens in Atlantic City, New Jersey annually. At the time, I didn't know the anime had released for this series, I was only reading the manga. When I had gotten to the convention and saw all the cosplayers dressed as the characters from The Promised Neverland by Shirai Kaiu, I knew at that moment, as soon as I got home from AnimeNext, I would binge through the whole season in like two days. 

Which, evidently, I did. I had watched through the whole season and checked it off of my completion list for anime and manga, but this was all before I had started this blog. I have now rewatched the whole season in preparation for season two, which will be releasing January 2021, only in a few months, 'casue as of right now it is November! I am very excited for the second season to release, especially since I enjoyed the manga very much.

TV: Game of Thrones (Season 1)

So, I know I'm kind of late, reviewing this and all, but I do want to do it. Game of Thrones is a show that took America by storm, and Britain I think, not too sure on that one. It was such a big show during my time in high school and even still when I was in college, which wasn't that long ago. I was caught up until season eight, at which point I didn't have cable or anything so I missed out on all the events that took place. 

Unfortunately, I heard that the last season was absolutely dreadful and that I shouldn't even bother... So I'm going to watch it anyway! I am a completionist at heart and once I start something, like a book or a show, I am compelled to finish it. I am going to die watching both Supernatural AND Criminal Minds I hope you know that, all for you guys and my own entertainment. 

So, since my local library has all the seasons on DVD, thank the gods, I will be rewatching the first seven seasons and then the eighth for the first time. You guys will be getting my first reactions and thoughts to the season because I try very hard to keep myself spoil free when I want to read or watch something, so I have NO idea what is going to happen in season eight. I don't even have an inkling of a clue. 

TV: The Good Place (Season 4)

 

We are in the final stretch! Season four of The Good Place! This is the absolute final season of the series. Honestly, the journey these guys have gone through these last few years have gotten me emotionally attached. Severely so. This is a very emotionally charged season, not just because it is the last one, but because of the story that takes place. 

TV: The Good Place (Season 1)

I have been debating for quite a while whether or not I was going to start doing reviews on TV shows I've watched and decided to just start with this and see how it goes. The series just recently ended with its fourth season earlier this year, and with that finally releasing on Netflix, I have recently finished watching the whole series! Anyways, we are going to start with season one and make our way through the rest of the seasons in the coming weeks. 

The series revolves around six characters: Eleanor Shellstrop, Chidi Anagonye, Tahani Al-Jamil, Jason Mendoza, Michael, and Janet. It starts off with Eleanor waking up in an office waiting area and Michael coming out to greet her, having her come into his office. He informs Eleanor that she is dead and that she has arrived in The Good Place. Soon, he shows her around the neighborhood, her house, and her soulmate, Chidi, a philosophy professor. As soon as Michael is gone, Eleanor confides in Chidi that she doesn't belong there, chaos then ensues... 

K-Drama: Possessed

I have decided on branching out a bit beyond just talking about anime and manga and talk about some other things I have been watching since this pandemic started. So... I have started to delve into the K-Dramas that are available on Netflix! This is not my first time watching K-Dramas but it is the first time I get to talk about the ones I have seen, solely due to the fact that I don't have many friends that enjoy K-Dramas as much as I do. 

Moving right along, this Korean drama centers around Kang Pil-Seong, a detective in the Violent Crimes unit at the Sangdong Police Station and Hong Seo-jeong, an online clothing store owner and extremely powerful psychic. These two meet and their fates become entwined with one another, especially after Hwang Dae-du, a serial killer that had been executed over twenty years ago, is resurrected and starts killing again... 

Manga: The Promised Neverland by Kaiu Shirai

This has been a long time coming! The Promised Neverland by Shirai Kaiu has finally ended! I had started reading this amazing story since last year and let me tell you... this is not your typical shounen manga. This manga centers around a plethora of characters but more focuses on the main three: Ray, Emma and Norman. 

 

They are residents at the Grace Field House, an orphanage that actually treats the children well: keeping them well-fed, clothed, giving them an education, and allowing them play-time. Their caretaker, who they refer to as "Mama," is Isabella, the only adult in their lives. The only rule that is enforced is that the children are not allowed past the fence, dictating the orphanage's grounds. The children are all adopted out by the time they turn 12-years-old, no older, and thus life goes on. But... considering that this is a shounen manga, not everything is as it seems...

Manga: 7 Seeds by Yumi Tamura

As you guys know from the last two weeks, I have become obsessed with 7 Seeds by Tamura Yumi-sensei. I got into the series due to the anime being recommended to me on Netflix and I though "why not?" After the fact that I found out it was by Tamura-sensei, the anime art is so polished I had no idea until I googled the series, I wanted to read the manga...

Anime: 7 Seeds by Yumi Tamura (Season 2)

This anime is amazing right now and I cannot wait for the third season to release already when the second only came out earlier this year! I binged through this season as well as the first and let me tell you, things have gotten really interesting! The first episode starts the second where the last episode of the first season left off. There's no time skip or anything! If they didn't break this up into two separate seasons, season two came out a whole year after season one, I would've been satisfied with it just being one consecutive season. Nevertheless, this season keeps you on the edge of you seat, keeping you where season one left you. 

Anime: 7 Seeds by Yumi Tamura (Season 1)

I've been binge watching these small twelve episode animes in a day for a little while now and this one takes the cake! This is the third one that I've binged so far, the other two being Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?! and No Game No Life. Now in comparison to the other two, this has a completely different feel to it, not at all related to games in any sort of way! It's actually a post apocalyptic anime where Earth is not how you remember it and try to survive and make the place inhabitable again.

Anime: Death Note by Tsugumi Ohba

Despite this anime being out for years, I've never completely watched it, so now I can check it off my list as complete since it's available on Netflix. Anyways, Death Note by Ohba Tsugumi is an anime about shinigami, death gods, and what happens when they get bored, more specifically when Ryuk, the main shinigami, gets bored. The series is 37 episodes long which is quite odd for an anime to end with from this era. Usually anime are 12, 24, 48 or 52 episodes long but this one stuck out to me all these years because it doesn't follow the norm. From the couple of episodes I had seen prior, it's a really good show and I know why it's highly recommended and revered. Moving on though, this is the story of when a shinigami gets bored and decides to drop his Death Note, which will be explained, into the human world...

Manga: Kitchen Princess by Natsumi Ando

Kitchen Princess by Ando Natsumi is a really cute shoujo manga centered around cooking. This is a classic for me, it was originally published by DelRey, I believe, in America and after DelRey shut down, it was rescued by Kodansha, who published it in Japan. It is 10 volumes long, originally DelRey's publishing, but now it is available as a 4 volume omnibus series with Kodansha. There is a light novel that accompanies it but unfortunately Kodansha hasn't rescued that yet, I'm hoping that they will. Although, I'm really glad they brought this series back, it caused a spark in me, leading me to love flan! 

Manga: Red River by Chie Shinohara

One of my absolute favorite series makes its debut on my blog, Red River by Shinohara Chie! I cannot stress enough how much I love this manga. The series had a long run, ending with 28 volumes. It is a historical fiction manga dating back to the B.C. era in the Hittite Empire during King Suppiluliuma’s rule, really near the end of his rule. Many of the events that happen within the manga are actual events that was recorded in history, which I personally think is amazing. This manga, I believe, is the first of its kind. I have never see another manga to use this time period in this location, most mangaka write about Japanese history due to the fact that it’s what they know. You don’t normally get to read western history in manga unless it’s about Egypt, but this is not a story centered around Egypt, it is about the Hittite Empire during the peak of its reign.

Manga: Tail of the Moon by Rinko Ueda

Tail of the Moon by Ueda Rinko is a series I could not put down! I had originally read this manga way back in either middle school or high school and loved it enough to reread in recent months. This is a charming manga, depicted in the Tensho era of Japan, is about ninjas. Momochi Usagi is the great-granddaughter of the head of the Momochi clan, an elite family of ninja, but despite this fact, she’s still doesn’t have her qualification to be a ninja. Her great-grandfather, Momochi Tanba, sends her off on her first assignment, to marry Hattori Hanzo, one of the highest ranking ninjas in Iga and the handsomest man as well, and bear his children!