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Katie (868 KP) rated Boomerang in Apps

Jul 1, 2018  
Boomerang
Boomerang
Entertainment
Great content (0 more)
The Boomerang app is great for fans of classic cartoons. Their content includes the entirety of The Flintstones and The Jetsons as well as other Hanna-Barbera classics. They also have plenty of Looney Tunes and WB content. I'm hoping they continue to add to the catalog because no other streaming service carries much of this kind of content. They also stream some modern cartoons which some may be interested in.

I've tried the app on both my Android phone and my Fire Stick. I've had no issue with the streaming and it seems to run very smoothly. I also think the app looks great. The design is clean and colorful. I only have a couple of minor complaints about the app. First, it has a startup screen that has sound that you cannot turn off. This can be somewhat annoying. Second, when selecting a cartoon it automatically starts playing the first episode, or whichever episode you're on rather than taking you to a screen that shows all episodes. If you want to see all of the episodes you have to hit a tiny information button very precisely. I'd rather it just take me to the episode screen immediately.


At only $4.99 a month, I'm really happy with this service. It's pretty inexpensive and I've probably watched more on it than a lot of my other streaming subscriptions (which, as an adult with no children, I probably should be embarrassed by). They also have a 7-day free trial, so I recommend giving it a try!
  
Oh my gosh what a surprise this book was. For the most part I figured it would be a YA fantasy (given the name) but I was pleasantly surprised by what was inside this book. Teddy was a pleasant character to read - she starts off in some trouble and to get out of that trouble she's offered a spot at, like the book title suggests, a school for psychics, to hone whatever skills she potentially has. She gets there and of course feels at home, she's been weird and different all her life (same stories as most books like this) but it didn't feel rushed or forced or out of place.

Aside from the initial hint at a love triangle this was very much more of a fast pace thriller than I had expected. There were lulls of course, every book usually has that, but by a certain point, after all the classes and things, there was quite the story to behold.

There were also parts I felt, wow, these guys act younger than they are supposed to be - which I was a bit frustrated at, I mean, you're supposed to be an adult why act like a tween?

This book is worth a read though 100% and I will definitely be continuing the series when the next book comes out! Other characters I enjoyed were Molly (even though there were some interesting things going on with her) and I adored Jillian to no end ... and a guy named Pyro, who wouldnt enjoy that.
  
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Erika (17789 KP) rated Fantastic Beasts: Crimes of Grindelwald (2018) in Movies

Nov 16, 2018 (Updated Nov 19, 2018)  
Fantastic Beasts: Crimes of Grindelwald (2018)
Fantastic Beasts: Crimes of Grindelwald (2018)
2018 | Adventure, Family, Fantasy, Mystery
Newt (2 more)
The beasts
Jude Law as Dumbledore
Johnny Depp (2 more)
Johnny Depp
and Johnny Depp
*After reading the screenplay, I'm knocking this rating down.



I am completely torn on this one, I liked some parts, but hated others. I also really can't stand Johnny Depp, and I rolled my eyes to myself every time he was on screen...
In my book, Jude Law was playing Richard Harris' Dumbledore, not... Michael Gambon (Don't even get me started on Gambon: 'Did you put your name in the goblet of fire, Harry?' Dumbledore asked CALMLY). So, it was a good way to go.

I did not like the way they went with some characters, namely one, who was rumored to go to Grindelwald's camp. Making a likeable character slightly deranged was irritating. There was a name drop at Hogwarts that had to have been a relative, unless the original character became an adult professor before she was technically born...

However, the possible recons that occurred didn't mess with canon as badly as that terrible Cursed Child mess.

It was largely predictable, and even the end, it was all foreshadowed, and not in a good way. The best bits were of Newt with the beasts... I liked Eddie Redmayne, as always, but can we please stop calling these movies Fantastic Beasts? 6 for him and the Niffler alone.
I wanted to largely stay away from a comparison, but I feel like Rowling is going the George Lucas route. And, that's not a compliment.
  
Suicide Squad: Hell to Pay (2018)
Suicide Squad: Hell to Pay (2018)
2018 | Action, Animation, Fantasy
The deadly, demented, and dangerous, and dysfunctional Task Force X has returned in “Suicide Squad: Hell to Pay”. The new animated film from Warner Bros Home Entertainment features the voice talents of Christian Slater, Vanessa Williams, Greg Grunberg, Tara Strong, and many others in an adult themed story which should delight fans of the series who thought the PG-13 approach of the live action film did not do the series the proper treatment they believed was due.

The worst of the worst have been recruited to recover a mysterious artifact and thanks to the explosives implanted in their heads; their control and compliance is expected.

Deadshoot, Harley Quinn, Copperhead, Captain Boomerang, Killer Frost, and others set out to complete their mission despite their usual issues with authority, the world, and each other. Naturally they are not unopposed as Captain Zoom, Banshee, and others stand in their way.

As the team fights others and amongst themselves, the body count piles up as this is not a kid’s movie and the blood and bullets fly frequently.

The animation and voice acting is first rate as you would expect from Warner Bros and the large cast works very well bringing their characters to life and infusing them with a complexity which is deeply engaging.

In another triumph for the studio, the movie delivers all that fans expect and more and let us hopes we will be seeing Task Force X again in the very near future.

http://sknr.net/2018/04/10/suicide-squad-hell-to-pay/
  
HD
Half Dead & Fully Broken
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
I received this book from Curiosity Quills in return for a fair and honest review.

This book starts with a bang and will draw you in as you continue to read every word. Imagine being an identical twin, identical in every way even down to a mole on your foot. Now imagine that you are the quieter one, the one who messes things up rather than puts them right. Imagine that your twin in the "go-to guy" in every situation. Now imagine that in an accident caused by abnormal behaviour, he is ripped away from you, from your family, from his friends, and from school. Now imagine that you have to carry on living.

This is what happens at the start of this book and then you discover just how Carter feels as he walks around sharing a face with his dead twin. We also get an insight on how Mel (Marcus' girlfriend) feels and also Justin, the boy who was driving the truck also involved with the accident. The depth of emotion that is covered between these three is brilliant to read.

Marcus plays a bigger part in this book than I realised and to be honest, he freaked me out a bit every time he showed up. I wasn't sure if he was a good guy or bad guy and it didn't help that Carter didn't know either!

If you are looking for a Young Adult story that deals with emotional issues, with a dash of the paranormal, then I can highly recommend this book.
  
Unknown Reality
Unknown Reality
Kurt Chambers | 2016 | Science Fiction/Fantasy, Thriller, Young Adult (YA)
9
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Chloe lives with her family in what seems to be a fairly normal life. But after meeting a stranger during a trip to the theatre, she starts to realise that all might not be as it seems and her world - and her entire life- might be nothing more than a simulation. Abruptly thrown out of the only existance she has known she has to face up to a different reality. She must adapt to her new circumstances and new reality when all she wants is to return 'home'.

Following on from the young adult fantasy stories of Truth Teller and The Wrath of Siren, Chambers once again sets out to encourage an interest in fiction in young adults, in this case science fiction. Once again he produces an interesting and engaging work, choc full of characters and ideas. Just the first few chapters contain enough material for the average science fiction work but Chambers goes further, layering further nuanced plots and subplots together and managing to spin them together into a terrific ending.

Chloe is a strong protagonist, intelligent and thoughtful while always remaining an 11 year old in outlook and the reader will really root for her and want her to succeed. The world Chambers creates is very well described and imagined, relying on science fiction standards for some parts but carefully avoiding cliche and doing what science fiction does best - highlight some of the folly of the real world.

Yet another terrific book from Chambers, one of those authors who is a 'must read' for my teenage sons.
  
Honey Boy (2019)
Honey Boy (2019)
2019 | Biography, Drama
392. Honey Boy. A story about a boy, who's dad made a living off him, by pimping him out to Hollywood, ensuring he would grow up to be a weirdo, the Shia LeBeouf story. Ok, it's written by him, oh and it stars him as Tom Cruise's character from Born on the Fourth of July, only he's not in a wheel chair, he has a son. Dad, James and son, Otis live in a motel, close by the movie studios where Otis is a child actor, doing child actor things...insert Corey Feldman stories here... while his dad, lives off him, and doing other shady things and not being a good dad, and how the two deal with that. Movie also tells the tale of twenty-something Otis, and his adult acting life is... insert Shia LeBeouf stories here... where he relives the memories we are watching. Guy who plays older Otis, Lucas Hedges, has LeBeouf's super annoying way of aggressive, spit-talking and mannerisms down pact, even though it's not supposed to be him in the first place...ooops. I really did enjoy the movie I just felt there were several places where I felt the filmmakers were patting themselves on the back, saying to themselves 'yea man, this is deep. stretch this out a little longer, man, really show that this 12 year old boy's relationship with the prostitute across the way is beautiful, not creepy in any way at all.' Worth the watch, check it out! Filmbufftim on FB
  
Murder on the Mountain (Marshall Brothers #1)
Murder on the Mountain (Marshall Brothers #1)
Carolyn LaRoche | 2020 | Mystery, Romance
5
5.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
good, but not one for me!
Independent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian, I was gifted my copy of this book.

For the most part, I enjoyed this book.

It's well written, with both Adam and Emma having a say, in the third person. POV flips at random points though, and it got a bit confusing. There are some clear changes, it's just there are also some points its Emma in one paragraph and moves swiftly onto the next paragraph and its Adam.

It's CLEAN. Just some kissing. I struggled with the concept of a single kiss being the reason these two never really loved anyone else after 10 years. A Hig School kiss under the mistletoe. Just a bit odd to me, is all. Might make perfect sense to some, maybe I'm just too cynical.

There is violence, but dealing with a drug lord was never gonna be a picnic, now was it? It's not very graffic, it's just there and needed. But for the violence, I would have tagged this young adult. It's just a tad too much for that, but one scene less and it would be.

I liked this book, I did not love it. This is the first in a series of the brothers Marshall, 6 of them, I think Adam said at some point but I forget already. It is also the first of Ms LaRoche I've read. Will I read more? I will certainly try. I DID finish this book.

3 good solid stars, just not really one for me.

**same worded review will appear elsewhere**
  
Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda
Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda
Becky Albertalli | 2015 | Fiction & Poetry, Gender Studies
9
9.0 (29 Ratings)
Book Rating
I got this because I saw the film was out on DVD and I like to read the books before I see the film.

So, this centres around 16 year old Simon who's in the closet, scared to come out to his friends and family. He's instead having an email conversation with someone else from his school - someone whose identity he doesn't know - sharing tales of his life while starting to fall for this someone.

I actually really enjoyed this from the first page. I was drawn into the drama as Simon is pretty much blackmailed by a fellow pupil into helping him get a date with one of Simon's friends. Things escalate and don't go great in the end and I really felt for Simon. Kids can be so cruel to each other and over stupid things that shouldn't matter.

I just fell in love with this group of friends. I loved how protective they could all be of each other and then when Simon and his crush/Blue finally got around to meeting each other...I was smiling like a lunatic. It was so cute. I fell in love with them even more. There was just something so believable about this group. Crushes, friendships, parents.

I cannot write a truly fitting review of this book but if you like young adult books with gay characters or just a sweet romance, then you really should give this book a read.

I definitely feel like I need to read more books by Becky Albertalli now, if they're anything like this one