Samurai Equine

Hello there, my crowd! Welcome to my Weekly Musings: Orange Edition. 

[I ❤ JAPAN] -- [I ❤ THE COLOR RED] -- [I ❤ CELESTIA]

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Let's wrap it up, my crowd.  Ponies are calling me.

 The biggest thing that happened this week has to be my mother's birthday.  She had one of the best ones in a long time. So many people celebrated, double the cake, and all the love possible. What more could one ask for? Well, maybe presents, but my mother doesn't seem to want much. She seems to have all she could ask for.

 Before we go any further, special shout out to @TomDaBombMLP. I never knew Maxi, but I know it's never easy saying goodbye to a loved one. Just know you have more friends and supporters than you know.
R.I.P. Maxi.

 I managed to have one of the best weeks ever! Saw so many great movies, good food, and lots of fun.  I saw a trailer for a Sonic fan project, which has Johnny Gioeli involved. Found a new music artist to enjoy. I learned about Earl Gray flavored ice cream (not sure when or if I'll ever be able to have it, but maybe some day). And late on Sunday evening, there was hail storm with heavy rain. It was a short storm, but the hail was bigger than marble size, and it scared me. 

 SUPERHUMAN SAMURAI SYBER-SQUAD!  

• Episode 22, love and pollution. For the most part, this story is an original. Targeting a place in Japan is not only a nod to the source material, we now see Malcom doing some progressively more evil. The MOTW footage comes from Gridman 38. Yay healing scene. So Tanker and Syd finally have a scene together, and it gets interrupted, and we never learn if they are truly a couple now or not. Why did Syd sign up for this win-a-date contest anyway? If it were any other Gridman episode, I might say that this episode wins. But considering they used footage from a series finale, the choice is obvious. Gridman 38 wins.
• Episode 23, school record manipulations. From progress to downgrade, Malcom thinks in small term targets again, and the opening of this episode recycled footage from a previous SSSS episode? That's a new low for recycling. Still, it is an original episode plot, and they turned a monster that previously didn't talk into one that does. The MOTW footage comes from Gridman 36. You know, Syd counts herself as super smart, but even I have doubts when she can't figure out the computer-graded test was hijacked by a virus monster. I mean they've only been doing this for over 20 episodes... Wow, no healing scene this time. And a PSA, NO!!! Gridman 36 wins. A race to save a pregnant lady is way more thrilling than shallow friendship drama.
• Episode 24, school play craze. Another original episode. MOTW footage comes from Gridman 22. No healing scene either. So conflicted. On the upside, we've got Kilo working independently and secret relationship drama. On the downside, I doubt it will matter in the future, and this was Kilo's weakest solo move. By comparison, Gridman 22 is a solid episode for that series. No contest here, Gridman wins.
• Episode 25, punk cafeteria lady. Malcom likes White (Rob) Zombie; who knew? MOTW footage and part of the story comes from Gridman 35. And both versions of the monster talk! I'm not sure if I love or hate all these music references, but I know I wouldn't get it as a kid. No healing scene. Both episodes have similar levels of stupid, but the steaks in this show have been downgraded a little. The winner is Gridman, but just barely.
• Episode 26, don't drink the water. Playing hide and seek with Servo has got to be a new level of recklessness, and apparently this isn't their first time either. MOTW footage comes from Gridman 17. The plot is somewhat similar to Gridman 10, yet very different. No healing scene. It's hard to say who the winner is. Gridman 17 had a hacker that tried to post Gridman's secrets to the internet. This show had Sam paralyzed and unable to transform on his own. It's hard to really declare a winner without drawing straws, so I'll say both win.

 [ 1 / 2 ] MOVIE TIME!  I recently saw SONIC THE HEDGEHOG 2. I wish I knew what I could say here. It's too soon for me to give spoilers, and I could talk about this movie for HOURS! All I can say is: Go see it. If you liked the first Sonic movie but wanted way more, go see it. You'll get everything you asked for and then some. If you like Sonic in any kind of way, go see this movie. Yeah, there are some things I can nitpick over, but it's mostly not worth it. Let the empire of cinematic Sonic begin!

 [ 2 / 2 ] Next, I saw THE BATMAN. Well done. Just when you thought WB was losing their way after the Justice League movies, they pull us back in by showing us they can still do a good Batman movie after all. It's been a long time coming, but it's great to finally see Batman as a detective, using gadgets and vehicles to help him solve cases and defeat enemies. They even set up a sequel, which I love all ready. The only thing I don't like is how the movie tries to punch down Bruce's parents as less-than honorable people. I never really enjoy seeing this. I don't expect them to be saints, but it kills Batman's entire motivation when you do this. I hated seeing it in Joker, but at least that movie makes you question what is and what isn't real. This movie is trying to be canon, and while they did try to mitigate the new details about the Waynes into something positive again, I still hate seeing it. Still, this is a Batman movie that doesn't disappoint. It's a great Year 2 story. I love seeing the new spins on the formula. Batman doesn't kill once again. He's wearing a bullet proof suit. He knows how to fight. If you were worried about seeing an actor from Twilight playing as Batman, rest assured that the story more than makes up for it.

 DonBrothers 08: The Sins of Pink!  It was nice seeing Kiji and Inu having a bonding moment, but I never thought I'd see Kiji so angry that he'd purposefully condemn a man to death. I thought that maybe he just wanted to defeat the monster himself, but no! He purposefully let their enemy kill the monster, thus killing the human host as well, who may not have actually been evil! This adds a whole new layer of complexity to the story that makes me hungry for more. I'm also really glad they didn't do a predictable story; for a moment, I thought they were setting it up where Kiji's wife is also Inu's wife. And maybe this is the first time I am noticing, but I see the villains have their own transformation items. I don't see what art and modeling have to do with Kiramager, but I don't think it matters.

 ReVice 31: Words That We Must Bear.  Great ending to this two-parter. The mystery is nicely wrapped up, the two former friends made up, I'm glad that Subaru was the host for the monster, and ending it with more lore was a nice final touch. Not sure how losing your personal memories would affect a physical picture, unless that's more about Ikki's personal perception.

 Vail 03: A Painful Choice.  Back with more Vail. We learn more about how twisted NOAH is and the sinful past of the Karizaki family. Now Genta must make a painful choice. Does he make a deal with the devil, or does he allow it all to end? Consider me invested.

 MLP TYT 07: Best Trends. I wasn't instantly sold on whatever music they were playing on top of dancing bunnies. I was beginning to feel a little patronized. However, I like how they turned it around into a lesson about being yourself. Granted, it's bundled around the image of a pony chasing trends and trying to get some digital fame (which is not necessarily a healthy message to give to impressionable kids), but the nice sentiment is there. I like that we got more cameos from the other movie characters. I doubt it will play out this way, but if the shorts are the slice of life stuff while the main series has the bigger story lines, I'd be happy with that. 

That's all for now, my crowd.  Take care, and don't lose your smile.

Well, I keep talking about it, so here it is. Sonic SatAM was suppose to have one last season before it got canceled. It's been decades later, but now the fans are making it happen themselves. This is the trailer for "Return to Robotropolis". And I'll always have mixed feelings about hearing Crush 40's vocalist doing the theme song.