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Hail to the King, baby!

Things I'd Like to See: The Legend of Zelda

The Legend of Zelda was a game that I grew up with. I absolutely loved it, right from the beginning when it was released in 1986. Almost 30 years later I'm still in love with it. It doesn't matter how many games and spin-offs are released in this franchise, it is a game that truly never grows old and it never really leaves you once it has you enthralled.

Some of the games were better than others, and favorites can change depending on your tastes and interests, but overall, there is a great deal to love about the series as a whole, and there is something in it for everybody. The fantasy aspect of the game is what gave rise to my adoration of all things fantasy and quite possibly sparked my love for writing fantastic stories. Writing has become my greatest passion in this life, so I feel that I owe a great deal to the Zelda franchise.

That said, I believe that there is still so much they could potentially do with the series in the future, and there is a lot of things that I would love to see realized. That is what this post is all about!

(Minor to moderate spoilers ahead. You've been warned!)

#1: Zelda is the Hero!

One of the things that I have wanted to see happen in the series is a reversal of roles for the two main protagonists. I even wrote a letter to Nintendo when I was a child asking them to make my dream a reality. Please make Zelda the hero for a game! Unfortunately my wish was denied, but I still have hopes that Nintendo will eventually go this route. I absolutely cherish my favorite hero in green, but it wouldn't hurt to give Zelda the spotlight every now and then. I mean, the game is named after her! I believe that one of the things that sparked this desire in me was the old, and admittedly rather silly, Zelda cartoon that aired every Friday during the Super Mario Brothers Super Show. In that cartoon, Zelda wore practical clothing and often fought alongside Link with her bow. I didn't care much for her snarky attitude, but I loved her for taking a stand and fighting back!

#2: A Sequel for Zelda 1 & Zelda 2

Second on my list is a hope for a sequel for the original two Legend of Zelda games. After The Adventures of Link (AoL) every subsequent Zelda game became a prequel, going further and further down the timeline in reverse. AoL was a game that you either loved or hated, and wasn't considered a fan favorite, but I particularly enjoyed the RPG aspect of it and the dark storyline, so I have always hoped for a game that would take place after that one. I even wouldn't mind a remake of the two games to give the stories therein some more omph! There is a lot of interesting possibilities down that darker timeline that I believe that fans would absolutely love, if the love for Majora's Mask is any indication.

#3: More Lorule

A Link Between Worlds (ALBW) created an interesting story when they introduced the Kingdom of Lorule, a counterpart for the Dark World in A Link to the Past (ALttP). There have been numerous occasions where parallel worlds and other dimensions have been introduced in a Zelda game, also introducing new villains and characters, but in subsequent games regardless of its place in the timeline, these other worlds go forgotten. I would love to see these other, darker worlds revisited at some point - perhaps even having the game take place primarily in those worlds so that we are given a more in-depth view of them. Lorule in particular stands out to me, because it so neatly mirrors Hyrule, and it introduced some pretty awesome characters to the series: Hilda and Ravio. They were my favorite part of that game and it would tickle me rotten to see a game that takes place in Lorule. They could create a game that stars Ravio as the hero in a world that is struggling to be rebuilt now that they have a triforce. Please, Nintendo, hear a fangirl's pleas and have pity on me!

So that concludes my list things I would love to see in future Zelda games. There is so much possibility in the world of Zelda, so let me know in the comments what you would like to see happen. I would love to hear from you!

Thanks for reading! XOXO

Happy Holidays from the Pop Culture Queen!

I hope that everyone has a wonderful holiday!

The New Year is just around the corner!

Thank you for reading <3
      ...XOXO...

Game Re-releases I'd Love to See!

Thanks to a high demand for beloved games from prior console generations, we are living in a period where re-releases such as HD remixes and total remakes have become a popular trend for game developers. One of the things I tend to get really excited about is when developers start re-releasing games on the handheld consoles. Something I reeeeeeally wish that Playstation would do more of with their Vita; I mean c'mon! There is an absolute wealth of Playstation 2 games just waiting to be marketed on a Playstation handheld. Nintendo has also been largely ignoring their collection of SNES games that would go great on the 3DS.

So here is my wishlist for games I'd like to be considered for a re-release in some form or another:

1. Final Fantasy VIII (PS1), it was already re-released on PSP and Steam, so I'm rooting for a remake like FF7 is getting!
2. Star Ocean: Till the End of Time (PS2)
3. FF7 Dirge of Cerberus (PS2)
4. The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (SNES), a re-release on the 3DS would be fantastic...
5. The Last Story (Wii), re-release on the New Nintendo 3DS please!
6. Castlevania: Lament of Innocence (PS2)
7. Super Metroid (SNES), another vote for a re-release on 3DS
8. Final Fantasy VI (SNES), why has this huge fan-favorite been so ignored?
9. Final Fantasy: Type-0 (PS4), why a new gen game, you ask? Because they should have also released this game on Vita and didn't. They really should. Stop ignoring the Vita, Sony!!!

I'm sure there are many more that I'll think of down the road, but for now I'd be happy with any of these amazing games to get the re-release treatment. What games would you add to your wishlist?

Short Review: Face Off

Type of Review: Short, Opinion-Based

Review Subject: Reality TV, Competition Show

Available Platforms: TV: SyFy

Spoiler Content: N/A

Personal Enjoyment: High

Face Off is a reality competition show on the SyFy channel. Today I was watching the latest episodes and found myself really examining why I loved the show and have loyally followed it since it started. In my honest opinion I feel that Face Off is one of the best, if not THE best, competition shows on television and I will tell you why.

1) It doesn't need to instigate drama to keep viewers watching. This show really maintains the spirit of competition better than any other competitor show I've ever seen on TV. The contestants are all in it to win, but you almost never see them pitted against each other (i.g., say a judge compares one's work with another, which never really happens because all pieces are judged individually!), and there have been countless times where one contestant will stop what they're doing to help another. That is not to say that there is no drama on the show, but it is always natural, and usually only happens whenever there are team competitions.

2) The house judges genuinely care about their competitors. They don't just tell you to pack up and leave when you've been eliminated, they always get a last word in before they send you off and it is always words of encouragement for the eliminated artist. I can't express how much I love this about them.

3) The judges and guest judges are relevant to the show. Every one of the house judges are experts in their field, and all guest judges will have something beneficial to say regarding the theme of the show they appear on.

4) All of the challenges are genuinely creative. Each challenge, even the small ones, are designed to showcase each artist's particular set of skills. It's almost impossible to win the season unless you are a well-rounded artist, because the focus challenges will highlight a particular weakness an artist has. Each show also carries a theme, and those themes make the show more quirky and enjoyable because it gives us a sense of familiarity to the types of movies that we all love.

5) I can almost guarantee that this show has introduced a lot of artists to a new passion in make-up art. In my eyes, this is a great response to a wonderful show. Even I wish I could dive right into this field of work!

So here is to hoping that each new season continues to maintain this sense of awesomeness and sincerity that I have come to appreciate as a loyal viewer. I feel that other creativity shows, such as Project Runway and Ink Master, could really stand to learn from Face Off. You don't need drama to sell a show, and you really shouldn't encourage drama in your field of work. A creativity show should inspire artists, young and old, as well as build up awareness and appreciation for their line of work, and Face Off manages to do that spectacularly well.

Anime Review: Tokyo Ghoul

Type of Review: First Impressions

Review Subject: Anime, Horror

Spoiler Content: Moderate

Personal Enjoyment: High

There is so much to this anime I don't even know where to begin. First off, it definitely wasn't what I had expected going into it. I knew very little about the anime, and had seen some mention of it here and there and decided to check it out because I'm pretty fond of anime horror. My first thought was that it must be some kind of zombie type of show, but that wasn't exactly right. In this world, ghouls do eat flesh but aren't undead creatures. They are more a different type of being altogether. Living, breathing humanoid beings that aren't much different from normal humans except they need to eat human flesh to survive. The other major difference is that they have special powers that they call their kagune, a red "predatory organ" that is unique to ghouls and functions as their weapons. Ghouls are also a lot more sturdy than their human counterparts, and are nearly impossible to kill by any normal means. This caused the humans to open up a special branch of investigators that have trained to kill ghouls using scientifically created weapons called a Quinque that was made from the kagune of ghouls they have killed.

Ken Kaneki is the main protagonist of the story. He is a young college student and bookworm who was nearly killed by a ghoul named Rize in the first episode. He was saved when Rize was crushed to death and he was rushed to a hospital where an unnamed surgeon implants Rize's organs into his body in order to save him. He survives the ordeal, but as he is recovering in the hospital, his body begins its transformation into a human-ghoul hybrid. He then has to figure out a way to go through life craving human flesh, and learning to control his new-found powers. It is readily apparent to other ghouls that he is no normal ghoul due to his single red eye (ghouls have eyes that turn black and red) and a plain human eye. He still manages to find a place with a group of ghouls who are sympathetic to humans and wish to integrate into human society without harming innocent people. It is through him that he learns that not all ghouls are evil and depraved beings to be feared, and is told that only he has the power to change the way that humans and ghouls perceive each other.

[Increase in Spoiler Content from here...]

At first I thought that Kaneki was kind of a boring protagonist because, while he was very kindhearted and empathetic, he also seemed to be very weak-willed and allowed people to kick him around without even trying to fight back for what seems like forever. I applauded his good qualities, but I was beginning to grow tired of watching him get kicked around so much and so often. It never seemed to end. By the end of the first season I began to realize that this was only a setup for what he was going to become and why he needed to become this new Kaneki. In the last few episodes Kaneki was kidnapped by a ghoul-run organization and was held prisoner and viciously tortured to the brink of insanity by a ghoul who went by the nickname Jason (due to his mask that resembled that of Jason Vorhees from Friday the 13th). It was during this incessant torture that Kaneki finally faced what was growing inside of him and ultimately embraced the part of him that was a ghoul. This revelation caused a huge change in him: his hair turned snow white and his power increased dramatically. He freed himself from his chains and turned the tables on his tormentor, eventually killing and devouring him.

Strangely enough, when this dramatic transformation occurred in Kaneki, my first reaction was: "Wow, now he's beautiful..." Kaneki fought against what made him kind to a fault and made the decision to do whatever it took to protect the people that he cared about. He made the choice to no longer be a bystander who sits back and watches. He decided that he would fight. I was able to really relate with his inner turmoil, as well as his tragic history that led him up to this point. I too knew what it was like to resent my own kind nature when people took advantage of it, or it prevented me from doing something I knew was right. This story was now taking an incredibly deep and interesting look into some very distressing ethical questions that many of us face on a regular basis. What lengths would we go to in order to protect those most important to us? Is there a such thing as going too far? The show addresses these questions and more in ways I'd never really considered before. If I were in Kaneki's shoes, would I do the same thing, or would I do it differently?

There are only two seasons so far, with a hopeful release of a third season in 2016. I haven't read the manga so I cannot comment on anything more than what I've heard, that the anime does not follow close to the written content. So perhaps I will get a chance to pick up a copy of the books and see how much deeper they go into all of this deliciously gory mayhem and emotional delving. For anyone who loves horror and deep, probing questions, I highly recommend this anime.

Kaneki recommends you go watch this anime...

Enjoy Your Pop Culture

A general note regarding my reviews, lists, articles, etc.:

Everything that I write about on this blog will almost always be entirely opinion-based. I do not believe that my opinion is better than or anymore correct than anyone else's because it is our life's experiences that shape how we relate to things, and everyone's experiences are entirely unique to them so opinions will vary wildly on things. It is thanks to this diversity that we have so many different genres and character-types. Everyone is free to enjoy pop culture in whatever manner that they see fit. That said, please don't take away my freedom to do the same. If you disagree with me, all I ask is that you do so in a non-aggressive manner. Pop Culture is meant to be fun and entertaining, let's all enjoy it and don't make it a battle ground!