Ariyana Vidya – Google

Just finished watching season 1, and I found this adaptation quite enjoyable. To be fair, I wasn't too invested with Winx club back then because their art style was a bit hard to stomach. The first thing that hit me in this series was the... cast. It's not a big problem for me, but I had to adjust my thoughts while watching. In my mind, Musa was East-Asian. This Musa looks like... mixed Middle Eastern? I'm Asian and I liked Musa in the animated series, so I was a little disappointed by this casting, but it isn't the end of the world. Musa turned out to be a cool empath who wears headphones everywhere. And then there's no Tecna or Flora, instead there's this new girl called Terra. I did a search, the showrunner mentioned somewhere that Terra was Flora's cousin (although it's never mentioned in the series). Story-wise, I think it was good! I like the dark theme, and the characters are really forgiving. I know I wouldn't be friends with this Stella that fast, lol. And about the people complaining that this is "too dark," well I guess they've never watched Netflix's Sabrina adaptation. Now THAT's dark. Looking forward to season 2 :)

Fate: The Winx Saga

2 likes

Howl's Moving Castle

9 likes

Just finished season 4, I think the writers wrapped the ending up in sync of the show's tune: emotional, kinda happy, but also disturbing +_+ Overall I enjoyed this series. It's a dark take on witchcraft: violence, gore, cannibalism, blasphemy... It can be very disturbing but also sometimes funny. With everyone basically being cultists (Satan worshippers and later pagans), I'd be surprised if this show isn't banned in some religious communities. It's definitely not for the faint of heart.

Chilling Adventures of Sabrina

Binged this in a day! The story was quite nice, though I haven't read the book. It kept me entertained if I managed to ignore some of the things that bothered me. Spoilers ahead. This series made me wonder if Mandarin was used so much in Malacca. I've always pictured Malacca, being an international trades center for centuries, as a much more diverse place than what was depicted here. Next, the costumes! They look good and realistic on the earth realm, but bizarre and anachronistic in the netherworld where Tian-Ching is. Like when Li-Lan wears a backless black dress (backless in 1890s?). Tian-Ching also wears a luxurious fur coat, which is probably not an outfit he even used to wear when he was still alive, living in a hot/humid place like Malacca. Maybe the netherworld setting allowed the designers for anachronism and much artistic liberties. But logically, the things Tian Ching has in that realm should be things that already existed on earth, since his mom had to burn a paper version of these things in the first place to send them there. And how does his mom even know what he wants her to send (like that lamp)? Now the characters. I like them, especially Amah, and even Tian-Ching the bad guy. But I found it off-putting that Li-Lan seemed content to have left her family and fiancé with only a letter. Like... Where are the manners/courtesy that Peranakan culture always instilled in their family? It must've also been a big blow to the Lim family that they had TWO cancelled weddings a few months apart involving their sole heir, after sending wedding invitations. On top of that, one of the bride-to-be turned out to be a criminal. Speaking of, that reveal was clumsy and anticlimactic. But we don't see the fiasco affecting the family much. Also, what happened to the servant who was arrested for poisoning the tea? Her lines were confusing... was it her who poisoned the tea or wasn't it? Why was the tea found in her quarters when she kept saying she didn't do it? What becomes of Tian-Ching's baby? ... Anyway, I still got my enjoyment from watching the series. I do believe everyone involved already did their best. Glad I watched it, tho I probably won't rewatch anytime soon. Looking forward for the next season 😃

The Ghost Bride

12 likes