Pitch Perfect (2012)

Beca was a freshman at Barden University, popular for their a Capella group; one formed by the guys name the Treblemakers, another by the girls the Barden Bellas. with Aubrey as their team leader, the Bellas struggled to be perfect and consistent. but when the Treblemakers became more and more creative, the Bellas had to get out of their comfort zone and try something different to win the competition.

the film was extremely entertaining as it involved much singing. the only downside was its cheesy romance, being completely unbelievable and impossible to relate to. back to the film, despite being the bad guy and going against Beca, Aubrey turned out was a much more lovable character than Beca, who was the main cast. the film has wonderful vocals and dancing, and especially personality. each of the girls stood out and was so hilarious under the spotlight, making the film so much fun and entertaining.

Garden of Stones (2013)

the story took place during the dark days of war, starting from a few days before and years after, leading behind its horrifying effects. Lucy was a normal 14-year-old, a Japanese-American that lived with her mother Miyako. they were among the other Japanese-Americans that were grouped to be moved out of their home, to the Manzanar camp while the war took place. together Miyako and Lucy endured the harsh living conditions that evolved around corruption and abuse. eventually it ruined Miyako, forcing her to make a difficult decision with the aim of freeing Lucy from these monsters.

i started reading the book not knowing that it was war-based, a genre that i never truly enjoyed. as the story evolved and the war signs came out, it was too late for me as i was too hooked to throw the book aside. the story was told in multiple perspectives, including Lucy's point of view from her younger days and her daughter, Patty's perspective in the future, before her marriage. while the dark years of war tainted those who survived, Lucy struggled with the circumstances with only the intention of surviving it.

Ebiten: Kouritsu Ebisugawa Koukou Tenmonbu えびてん 公立海老栖川高校天悶部 OAD (2013)

Noya just transferred to Ebisugawa High School. he had always been fascinated with space and decided to join the astronomy club. however, he mistakenly walked into a wrong room and landed him in a all female otaku club. while he noticed that the members acted weirdly, he didn't suspect himself for walking into a wrong club room. soon his life became strange surrounded by them.

the series reminded one of Seitokai no Ichizon (2009-2013) along with all the craziness. the plot was somewhat extreme, but remained interesting and entertaining until the very end. the club was random, its character random, while the club adviser was a cat. with all the serious anime around, this series was far from being anything like one would expect in an anime. despite looking like a harem anime, the main female character turned out to be a cross-dressing boy, which was hilarious when the truth surfaced.

Season of the Witch (2011)

Behmen and Felson were crusaders, serving god by killing everyone that defied Him. one day they returned home to find that the village was swept by the Black Plague, which they said was a witch's curse. the church commanded Behmen and Felson to transport the witch to a remote village, so the monks could perform a ritual to destroy the witch. together with a priest, a young knight, and a salesman that knew the way, the party set out to the village.

having watched so many fantasy movies, we assumed that the plot would be typical and within expectation. however, we were surprised to be completely absorbed into the storyline, enjoying the thrill and danger of their adventure. it was somewhat different, even a little exciting having things jumped out of nowhere and scaring us in a non-eerie way. the point that the party was weaker than the godly creatures made everything so much more believable and relatable, making us appreciate the film for being realistic.