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Purple Phoenix Games (2266 KP) rated Aroma in Tabletop Games
Feb 20, 2021
Hello. My name is Travis and I have a big nose. It has always been big, and I used to tell people that it is so because I could smell so much better than everyone else. For a while this was partly true. However, as I age I find that I am less and less amazing than I thought I was when I was younger. Enter a game that revolves around actually using this schnoz and its wonderful ability and I thought I would have it in the bag! I was wrong. Again.
Aroma is a board game that originates from an essential oil company wishing to produce a board game utilizing its oils. Designer Odd Hackwelder then crafted a board game utilizing said essential oils that can be played four different ways. That’s right, Aroma is a game with four different play modes. Most of the modes revolve around the ability to guess the correct scent to score points. For this review I will be referencing rules for the Revolve mode with four players.
DISCLAIMER: We were provided a copy of this game for the purposes of this review. This is a retail copy of the game, so what you see in these photos is exactly what would be received in your box. I do not intend to cover every single rule included in the rulebook, but will describe the overall game flow and major rule set so that our readers may get a sense of how the game plays. For more in depth rules, you may purchase a copy online or from your FLGS. -T
To setup a game of Revolve each player will choose one of the themed player boards and bits from the following: Citrus, Trees, Plants, Floral. They will lay the boards touching in the middle of the table and their oil trays with essential oil bottles in front of them. Each player will also receive the wooden player token and scent tokens in their color. Place the wooden player tokens on the point tracker zero space and the game is setup to begin!
Revolve is played in rounds where each player will choose one of their oil vials from their tray, place its matching scent token face-down on their board and pass it to the player on their left simultaneously. The players then take the vials just given to them, smell the oils inside and try to guess its content scent by choosing the appropriate scent token and placing it face-down on the board in front of them as well. Play continues in this fashion until all players have smelled the vials from all players and made their guesses.
Players then flip over their scent tokens to compare what was given to them throughout the round and they will score points based on how many were guessed correctly. The players then choose a different vial and the process starts anew. The game ends at the end of the fourth round and the player with the most correct guesses is the winner!
Components. This game has pretty amazing components. The oil trays with the little oil bottles are great, but a little flimsy. The boards and scent tokens are thick, and the wooden player pieces are nice and medium-sized. The overall look of the game is very clean and colorful, reminiscent of the art style in T.I.M.E Stories, but with more colors and smells. Aside from the flimsy cardboard used in the oil trays, the rest of the components are top notch. I do have one gripe: the oil bottles themselves sometimes take quite a bit of effort to get the smell going. We tried manually rolling with our fingers, and the suggested technique of rolling on a sheet of paper (we used a paper napkin). The best way was to just drench oneself in essential oil by manually rolling the ball with one’s finger.
As a game Aroma’s Revolve is interesting and invokes feelings not normally used to describe board games. I have not played another game like it, nor one that I can remember using my sense of smell at all. For this point alone I feel attracted to Aroma. However, smelling all the scents over and over can sometimes get a little overwhelming for me. I KNOW what a lemon smells like, but when you pass around a vial and I sniff it, I feel like I am smelling lemon. When the card is revealed and it is actually grapefruit I just smelled I become frustrated. I guess I never realized how closely many things smell to other items in the same family. I like to reminisce about the first time I ever smelled pine, or its unmistakable scent down in my wood shop. But the pine scent in Aroma doesn’t really smell like pine to me. Maybe my snout is aging faster than I thought, but I am really no good at picking out some of these scents.
I have also played the Survive mode with just my wife and of course she always beats me. Survive is the only mode that is designed for two players, and I wish there were more. Getting together during the lockdown is difficult, and I game mostly with my wife. That said, on the rare occasion I got to play games with another couple in our quarantine pod I wanted to break Aroma out and try a different mode. Revolve is good, and Survive is good too, but I would prefer both with the full compliment of players.
If you are looking for something completely different for your collection, Aroma is it. I don’t know if it will make many gamers’ Top 10 lists, but it is so interesting to use the sense of smell in a board game that I think it is almost essential (see what I did there?). I mean that Aroma currently has no competition in the same space, so it will not be replaced by another similar game for quite some time, I’m sure. And what guest wouldn’t be impressed by playing a board game that includes 20 vials of essential oil? How novel is that, anyway? Purple Phoenix Games gives this one a lovely-sniffed 8 / 12. Do be warned: Aroma may accidentally perfume some other games it is stored near, but the scent is pleasant. At least I THINK it is. Now I’m doubting my ability to smell anything correctly.
Aroma is a board game that originates from an essential oil company wishing to produce a board game utilizing its oils. Designer Odd Hackwelder then crafted a board game utilizing said essential oils that can be played four different ways. That’s right, Aroma is a game with four different play modes. Most of the modes revolve around the ability to guess the correct scent to score points. For this review I will be referencing rules for the Revolve mode with four players.
DISCLAIMER: We were provided a copy of this game for the purposes of this review. This is a retail copy of the game, so what you see in these photos is exactly what would be received in your box. I do not intend to cover every single rule included in the rulebook, but will describe the overall game flow and major rule set so that our readers may get a sense of how the game plays. For more in depth rules, you may purchase a copy online or from your FLGS. -T
To setup a game of Revolve each player will choose one of the themed player boards and bits from the following: Citrus, Trees, Plants, Floral. They will lay the boards touching in the middle of the table and their oil trays with essential oil bottles in front of them. Each player will also receive the wooden player token and scent tokens in their color. Place the wooden player tokens on the point tracker zero space and the game is setup to begin!
Revolve is played in rounds where each player will choose one of their oil vials from their tray, place its matching scent token face-down on their board and pass it to the player on their left simultaneously. The players then take the vials just given to them, smell the oils inside and try to guess its content scent by choosing the appropriate scent token and placing it face-down on the board in front of them as well. Play continues in this fashion until all players have smelled the vials from all players and made their guesses.
Players then flip over their scent tokens to compare what was given to them throughout the round and they will score points based on how many were guessed correctly. The players then choose a different vial and the process starts anew. The game ends at the end of the fourth round and the player with the most correct guesses is the winner!
Components. This game has pretty amazing components. The oil trays with the little oil bottles are great, but a little flimsy. The boards and scent tokens are thick, and the wooden player pieces are nice and medium-sized. The overall look of the game is very clean and colorful, reminiscent of the art style in T.I.M.E Stories, but with more colors and smells. Aside from the flimsy cardboard used in the oil trays, the rest of the components are top notch. I do have one gripe: the oil bottles themselves sometimes take quite a bit of effort to get the smell going. We tried manually rolling with our fingers, and the suggested technique of rolling on a sheet of paper (we used a paper napkin). The best way was to just drench oneself in essential oil by manually rolling the ball with one’s finger.
As a game Aroma’s Revolve is interesting and invokes feelings not normally used to describe board games. I have not played another game like it, nor one that I can remember using my sense of smell at all. For this point alone I feel attracted to Aroma. However, smelling all the scents over and over can sometimes get a little overwhelming for me. I KNOW what a lemon smells like, but when you pass around a vial and I sniff it, I feel like I am smelling lemon. When the card is revealed and it is actually grapefruit I just smelled I become frustrated. I guess I never realized how closely many things smell to other items in the same family. I like to reminisce about the first time I ever smelled pine, or its unmistakable scent down in my wood shop. But the pine scent in Aroma doesn’t really smell like pine to me. Maybe my snout is aging faster than I thought, but I am really no good at picking out some of these scents.
I have also played the Survive mode with just my wife and of course she always beats me. Survive is the only mode that is designed for two players, and I wish there were more. Getting together during the lockdown is difficult, and I game mostly with my wife. That said, on the rare occasion I got to play games with another couple in our quarantine pod I wanted to break Aroma out and try a different mode. Revolve is good, and Survive is good too, but I would prefer both with the full compliment of players.
If you are looking for something completely different for your collection, Aroma is it. I don’t know if it will make many gamers’ Top 10 lists, but it is so interesting to use the sense of smell in a board game that I think it is almost essential (see what I did there?). I mean that Aroma currently has no competition in the same space, so it will not be replaced by another similar game for quite some time, I’m sure. And what guest wouldn’t be impressed by playing a board game that includes 20 vials of essential oil? How novel is that, anyway? Purple Phoenix Games gives this one a lovely-sniffed 8 / 12. Do be warned: Aroma may accidentally perfume some other games it is stored near, but the scent is pleasant. At least I THINK it is. Now I’m doubting my ability to smell anything correctly.
BookwormMama14 (18 KP) rated Stars Over Sunset Boulevard in Books
Jan 2, 2019
To what lengths would you go to make your deepest desires come true? For Audrey Duvall and Violet Mayfield, the lines of reason are blurred. Will the bond of true friendship be enough to hold them together?
A hat is found in a vintage boutique in Los Angeles 2012. It is unmistakably Scarlett's green curtain hat from Gone With the Wind. But how did it end up there? In 1938 Violet leaves home and travels to California and gets a job as a secretary at a movie studio. With high hopes of starting a new life she meets Audrey Duvall, a fellow secretary who was once rising star in Hollywood. As the filming for Gone With the Wind commences both Audrey and Violet find themselves in places they never thought imaginable. And when the infamous curtain hat goes missing, more than one person's future is at stake. Will Violet finally get the family that she dreamed about for so long? Will Audrey finally make her big break? And what will they sacrifice to see it all come to pass? Through the joys and the heartbreak, they are always there for each other. We know that love comes in many forms, and that ultimately, love conquerors all.
There is something about Susan Meissner's books that have me completely enraptured from the start. Her ability to paint pictures in my mind is outstanding. The history and colorful detail is captivating. Gone With the Wind has always been a favorite of mine, and I enjoyed the creative liberties of the setting! This story is a wonderful reminder to us that even when we do things to protect others, there are consequences to face. In my opinion, truth and honesty are always the best route to take. A quote from my High School Drama teacher that has always stuck with me is: "Can we be brave? Will we be brave? We MUST be brave for life requires it." It doesn't matter if we are making curtains into a dress to beg a man for money. Or your child undergoing a bone marrow transplant at 9 weeks old. Or speaking the truth to someone you love. Life requires us to be brave on a daily basis. But we are never alone. We never have to walk through the shadows on our own. Whether it is a friend, sister, mother or auntie, reach out for support. Because they most likely need you, just as much as you need them. I highly recommend Stars Over Sunset Boulevard!It will make you cry, laugh out loud and be truly thankful for the loved ones that surround you. Now I am off to curl up in a warm blanket, drink some tea and watch Gone With the Wind.
I received a free digital copy of Stars Over Sunset Boulevard from Penguin Group through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
A hat is found in a vintage boutique in Los Angeles 2012. It is unmistakably Scarlett's green curtain hat from Gone With the Wind. But how did it end up there? In 1938 Violet leaves home and travels to California and gets a job as a secretary at a movie studio. With high hopes of starting a new life she meets Audrey Duvall, a fellow secretary who was once rising star in Hollywood. As the filming for Gone With the Wind commences both Audrey and Violet find themselves in places they never thought imaginable. And when the infamous curtain hat goes missing, more than one person's future is at stake. Will Violet finally get the family that she dreamed about for so long? Will Audrey finally make her big break? And what will they sacrifice to see it all come to pass? Through the joys and the heartbreak, they are always there for each other. We know that love comes in many forms, and that ultimately, love conquerors all.
There is something about Susan Meissner's books that have me completely enraptured from the start. Her ability to paint pictures in my mind is outstanding. The history and colorful detail is captivating. Gone With the Wind has always been a favorite of mine, and I enjoyed the creative liberties of the setting! This story is a wonderful reminder to us that even when we do things to protect others, there are consequences to face. In my opinion, truth and honesty are always the best route to take. A quote from my High School Drama teacher that has always stuck with me is: "Can we be brave? Will we be brave? We MUST be brave for life requires it." It doesn't matter if we are making curtains into a dress to beg a man for money. Or your child undergoing a bone marrow transplant at 9 weeks old. Or speaking the truth to someone you love. Life requires us to be brave on a daily basis. But we are never alone. We never have to walk through the shadows on our own. Whether it is a friend, sister, mother or auntie, reach out for support. Because they most likely need you, just as much as you need them. I highly recommend Stars Over Sunset Boulevard!It will make you cry, laugh out loud and be truly thankful for the loved ones that surround you. Now I am off to curl up in a warm blanket, drink some tea and watch Gone With the Wind.
I received a free digital copy of Stars Over Sunset Boulevard from Penguin Group through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
MaryAnn (14 KP) rated The Secrets of Paper and Ink in Books
Nov 4, 2019
Lindsay Harrel presents a powerful story of healing, forgiveness, and finding the courage to write your own story. A year after the death of her abusive fiancé, domestic violence counselor Sophia Barrett finds returning to work too painful. She escapes to Cornwall, England—a place she’s learned to love through the words of her favorite author—and finds a place to stay with the requirement that she help out in the bookstore underneath the room she’s renting. Given her love of all things literary, it seems like the perfect place to find peace. Ginny Rose is an American living in Cornwall, sure that if she saves the bookstore she co-owns with her husband then she can save her marriage as well. Fighting to keep the first place she feels like she belongs, she brainstorms with her brother-in-law, William, and Sophia to try to keep the charming bookstore afloat. More than 150 years before, governess Emily Fairfax knew two things for certain: she wanted to be a published author, and she was in love with her childhood best friend. But he was a wealthy heir and well out of her league. Sophia discovers Emily’s journals, and she and William embark on a mission to find out more about this mysterious and determined woman, all the while getting closer to each other as they get closer to the truth. The lives of the three women intertwine as each learns the power she has over the story of her life.
My Thoughts: This was a very compelling read for me. This is not just a story about one woman finding her healing from an abusive relationship but of three women finding out who they are and finding their true love.
I love the way the author combines the three lives of these women to form a story that the reader will be unable to put down.
There is a quote in the book that really stuck out to me "All we have in life are the choices we make. We must make choices we can live with - and die with if it comes to that". This is so true, life is made up of our choices, some may be good and others may not be so good. In the end, we have to live with our choices and the consequences of them. This is what Emily's father told her once and it was good advice. Emily is my favorite of the three women. She had a desire and she saw it through, she never gave up on her writing. She held to her convictions and had a love for others. She never let defeat get her down or to stop her from doing what she wanted to do.
I really enjoyed this novel, and I believe that other readers will enjoy it as much as I did; I think each reader will take something away with them from this novel. I hope to read more from this author.
My Thoughts: This was a very compelling read for me. This is not just a story about one woman finding her healing from an abusive relationship but of three women finding out who they are and finding their true love.
I love the way the author combines the three lives of these women to form a story that the reader will be unable to put down.
There is a quote in the book that really stuck out to me "All we have in life are the choices we make. We must make choices we can live with - and die with if it comes to that". This is so true, life is made up of our choices, some may be good and others may not be so good. In the end, we have to live with our choices and the consequences of them. This is what Emily's father told her once and it was good advice. Emily is my favorite of the three women. She had a desire and she saw it through, she never gave up on her writing. She held to her convictions and had a love for others. She never let defeat get her down or to stop her from doing what she wanted to do.
I really enjoyed this novel, and I believe that other readers will enjoy it as much as I did; I think each reader will take something away with them from this novel. I hope to read more from this author.
JT (287 KP) rated Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close (2012) in Movies
Mar 10, 2020
Oskar Schell (Horn) and his father Thomas (Hanks) share a special bond, the pair seem inseparable. They spend most nights together reading books and solving puzzles with Thomas regaling stories of a mysterious sixth borough once part of New York.
When the 9/11 attacks tear the city apart it also rips apart the the Schell family as they come to terms with the loss of Thomas. Sandra Bullock supports as a grieving wife and a mother that has seemingly lost all control over her son. Oskar is himself a unique individual blessed with high intelligence he struggles to fill the void left by his father, but when he gains the courage to venture into his parents bedroom and his father’s closet he finds a key which leads him on a journey of self discovery and ultimate closure.
I have a bit of a gripe when it comes to child actors, their talents are almost so good it is beyond their own age and their performances can be over elaborated. Horn delivers a performance with gusto and it’s a credit to him. If occasionally annoying at times. Oskar’s journey takes him all over New York city, through its boroughs and interacting with its inhabitants all of whom have been affected by the terrible tragedy in someway.
Oskar links the key to the name Black, believing this to be a person he creates himself a map and intricate catalogue of every individual in New York by this name.He sets himself the goal of speaking to every last person, no matter how long it is going to take and records everything in a journal with photographs to accompany his experiences with them. Bullock gives an assured performance as a grief stricken and desperate mother
Max von Sydow joins him on his quest as a mysterious old man who doesn’t speak and only communicates through a notepad and pen. He himself has his own set of personal problems and its obvious from the outset just who he is. Von Sydow gives a typically brilliant performance even without the use of dialogue. The film is drawn out, too long for its own good. We’re desperate to understand just where this key fits and when the pieces of the jigsaw are finally complete we feel about the same disappointment as Oskar does.
That’s not to say the film is without its merits, and director Stephen Daldry and writer Eric Roth deal with the implications of Oskar and his problems extremely well, using flashbacks you can really begin to unravel the complexities of the 11-year olds inner psyche. I enjoyed the film but wouldn’t say I was completely comfortable with it for some parts, the ending, while closing the narrative, left me feeling somewhat annoyed and that’s a feeling that sticks with me long after the credits go up.
When the 9/11 attacks tear the city apart it also rips apart the the Schell family as they come to terms with the loss of Thomas. Sandra Bullock supports as a grieving wife and a mother that has seemingly lost all control over her son. Oskar is himself a unique individual blessed with high intelligence he struggles to fill the void left by his father, but when he gains the courage to venture into his parents bedroom and his father’s closet he finds a key which leads him on a journey of self discovery and ultimate closure.
I have a bit of a gripe when it comes to child actors, their talents are almost so good it is beyond their own age and their performances can be over elaborated. Horn delivers a performance with gusto and it’s a credit to him. If occasionally annoying at times. Oskar’s journey takes him all over New York city, through its boroughs and interacting with its inhabitants all of whom have been affected by the terrible tragedy in someway.
Oskar links the key to the name Black, believing this to be a person he creates himself a map and intricate catalogue of every individual in New York by this name.He sets himself the goal of speaking to every last person, no matter how long it is going to take and records everything in a journal with photographs to accompany his experiences with them. Bullock gives an assured performance as a grief stricken and desperate mother
Max von Sydow joins him on his quest as a mysterious old man who doesn’t speak and only communicates through a notepad and pen. He himself has his own set of personal problems and its obvious from the outset just who he is. Von Sydow gives a typically brilliant performance even without the use of dialogue. The film is drawn out, too long for its own good. We’re desperate to understand just where this key fits and when the pieces of the jigsaw are finally complete we feel about the same disappointment as Oskar does.
That’s not to say the film is without its merits, and director Stephen Daldry and writer Eric Roth deal with the implications of Oskar and his problems extremely well, using flashbacks you can really begin to unravel the complexities of the 11-year olds inner psyche. I enjoyed the film but wouldn’t say I was completely comfortable with it for some parts, the ending, while closing the narrative, left me feeling somewhat annoyed and that’s a feeling that sticks with me long after the credits go up.
Charlie Cobra Reviews (1840 KP) rated X-Men: Dark Phoenix (2019) in Movies
Jul 7, 2020
This Phoenix Failed To Rise From It's Ashes
Dark Phoenix is a superhero movie based on the Marvel Comics X-Men and the Dark Phoenix Saga story arc. It was produced by 20th Century Fox and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. The movie was written and directed by Simon Kinberg. It stars James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, Nicholas Hoult, and Sophie Turner.
In 1975, Professor Charles Xavier takes 8 year-old Jean Grey to his School for Gifted Youngsters, when she inadvertently kills her parents causing a car crash with her telekinesis. In 1992, the space shuttle Endeavor is critically damaged by a solar flare and the X-Men respond to save the astronauts. While rescuing the astronauts, Jean becomes stranded as the shuttle is struck by the energy. To save the X-Men's aircraft from destruction, she absorbs all of it into her body and as a result, her psychic powers are greatly amplified when she survives. Jean spirals out of control, wrestling with her personal demons and this increasingly unstable power that begins tearing her X-Men family apart.
This movie makes me so upset as a long time Marvel fan. If you never heard of the X-Men or watched any of the movies, you could probably say this movie was good. And honestly it was "okay" when I saw it in theaters, I guess with all the bad reviews coming out I thought, wow, it could have been worse. But no, after sitting down and discussing it with my brother and him bringing up some points as well as others that I brought up to him. As well as seeing some reviews, where critics brought up A Lot of other points as well, and this movie was actually pretty bad. Now the special effects were pretty good for the most part, and the acting was good but it was really weird because I felt that so many characters were acting out of character. Or that their motivations didn't match their actions compared to how their characters should actually be. Once again the Dark Phoenix story gets butchered and doesn't come close to the greatness of the cartoon episodes let alone the comics. Stupidest part (and I'm trying really hard to not put spoilers) was from the trailer where Cyclops says the kids are calling you Phoenix. Because after that, they couldn't say that her powers were the Phoenix because it would be like some kind of weird coincidence. The villains were very boring and dull and cliche motivations, Sophie Turner's acting wasn't bad but she just didn't pull off a believable Jean Grey. And the music was good but really out of place in times. Don't even get me started on how they totally didn't take into account how the X-Men and others powers are supposed to work. I give this movie a 5/10. It's just average.
In 1975, Professor Charles Xavier takes 8 year-old Jean Grey to his School for Gifted Youngsters, when she inadvertently kills her parents causing a car crash with her telekinesis. In 1992, the space shuttle Endeavor is critically damaged by a solar flare and the X-Men respond to save the astronauts. While rescuing the astronauts, Jean becomes stranded as the shuttle is struck by the energy. To save the X-Men's aircraft from destruction, she absorbs all of it into her body and as a result, her psychic powers are greatly amplified when she survives. Jean spirals out of control, wrestling with her personal demons and this increasingly unstable power that begins tearing her X-Men family apart.
This movie makes me so upset as a long time Marvel fan. If you never heard of the X-Men or watched any of the movies, you could probably say this movie was good. And honestly it was "okay" when I saw it in theaters, I guess with all the bad reviews coming out I thought, wow, it could have been worse. But no, after sitting down and discussing it with my brother and him bringing up some points as well as others that I brought up to him. As well as seeing some reviews, where critics brought up A Lot of other points as well, and this movie was actually pretty bad. Now the special effects were pretty good for the most part, and the acting was good but it was really weird because I felt that so many characters were acting out of character. Or that their motivations didn't match their actions compared to how their characters should actually be. Once again the Dark Phoenix story gets butchered and doesn't come close to the greatness of the cartoon episodes let alone the comics. Stupidest part (and I'm trying really hard to not put spoilers) was from the trailer where Cyclops says the kids are calling you Phoenix. Because after that, they couldn't say that her powers were the Phoenix because it would be like some kind of weird coincidence. The villains were very boring and dull and cliche motivations, Sophie Turner's acting wasn't bad but she just didn't pull off a believable Jean Grey. And the music was good but really out of place in times. Don't even get me started on how they totally didn't take into account how the X-Men and others powers are supposed to work. I give this movie a 5/10. It's just average.
Darren (1599 KP) rated The Spiderwick Chronicles (2008) in Movies
Oct 2, 2019
Characters – Jared is the out going of the twins, he is the one that reads the book and must convince the rest to fight back against goblins, his nature means people are less likely to believe him through any of his decisions though. Simon is the quieter and smarter brother that must look for the solution to the problems being caused. Helen is the mother that is dealing with raising the three children after her marriage has fallen apart and she needs to start a new life, one she isn’t prepared for. Mallory is the older sister that must be the warrior for the twins. Mulgarath is the goblin king that wants the book to kill any species in the surrounding area.
Performances – Freddie Highmore takes twin roles here and handles them both very well showing how he can be the smarter kid and the adventurous one too. Mary Louise Parker in the parental role works well as we need her to bring the serious side to the story now. Sarah Bolger is strong too needing to be the strongest member of the children.
Story – The story takes three siblings into a battle with goblins with fantasy creatures being used to guide the way in this battle. This will bring the broken family back together, well back to the level they are going to need to get used too. The scale of the book doesn’t give the story enough credit because it feels like this book has created a massive world only for us to get a snippet into everything. this story doesn’t re-invent the wheel because we can see the formula unfold without needing to guess to much on just how thing go on. We do deal with a big family change which should be the focal point through the film too.
Adventure/Fantasy – The adventure side of the film takes the family into battle against the creatures of the forest which are invisible to most of the world, this plays into the fantasy side too because of the creatures we see at war.
Settings – The film takes the family to a new house that is in the middle of the forest, which shows us the finical change the family must take, as well as the adventures waiting in the forest for people to experience.
Special Effects – The effects in the film are strong for the most part because we get to see the different creation looking like they would fit in the normal world.
Scene of the Movie – Come with me.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – Not getting a full grasp of the scale of the fantasy world.
Final Thoughts – This is a fun fantasy adventure that brings the characters into a world which will unite them as they deal with the biggest change of the children’s life.
Overall: Simple and enjoyable.
Performances – Freddie Highmore takes twin roles here and handles them both very well showing how he can be the smarter kid and the adventurous one too. Mary Louise Parker in the parental role works well as we need her to bring the serious side to the story now. Sarah Bolger is strong too needing to be the strongest member of the children.
Story – The story takes three siblings into a battle with goblins with fantasy creatures being used to guide the way in this battle. This will bring the broken family back together, well back to the level they are going to need to get used too. The scale of the book doesn’t give the story enough credit because it feels like this book has created a massive world only for us to get a snippet into everything. this story doesn’t re-invent the wheel because we can see the formula unfold without needing to guess to much on just how thing go on. We do deal with a big family change which should be the focal point through the film too.
Adventure/Fantasy – The adventure side of the film takes the family into battle against the creatures of the forest which are invisible to most of the world, this plays into the fantasy side too because of the creatures we see at war.
Settings – The film takes the family to a new house that is in the middle of the forest, which shows us the finical change the family must take, as well as the adventures waiting in the forest for people to experience.
Special Effects – The effects in the film are strong for the most part because we get to see the different creation looking like they would fit in the normal world.
Scene of the Movie – Come with me.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – Not getting a full grasp of the scale of the fantasy world.
Final Thoughts – This is a fun fantasy adventure that brings the characters into a world which will unite them as they deal with the biggest change of the children’s life.
Overall: Simple and enjoyable.
Shadows and Reflections by Marc Almond
Album Watch
‘Shadows And Reflections’ features sumptuous arrangements of iconic torch songs and 60’s...
pop
Shelle Perry (66 KP) rated Falling into Magic (Destiny Falls Mystery & Magic #1) in Books
Sep 1, 2021
It is truly a magical place.
Welcome to Destiny Falls. It is truly a magical place. Hayden Caldwell has had a good life in Seattle with her grandmothers, her best friend (and business partner) Luna, and her pampered cat, Sassy. A fall into a construction hole, and a flash of light, has her awakening in an alternate world with her long-lost older brother, in fact, she finds a whole family she never knew she had. She discovers she is part of a family that has been chosen to care for the town of Destiny Falls. However, her trip back home wasn’t an accident, and danger is very close to her and her newfound family.
This book is disguised as a cozy mystery, really though, it is just a fun time romp. Imagine a world where the Iphones and magic coexist in a seamless way. Where your pet has a telepathic connection with you and your home invites you to stay by creating a room for you to live in. The reader is as enchanted as Hayden learning alongside her how this world she has been dropped into works. The clues to the mystery are woven terrifically into the larger story, which is inexorably leading to the big question… What really did happen to Hayden’s mother?
One reviewer describes the book as “Harry Potter collides with the Hallmark channel and Law and Order”, and I can’t think of a more apt interpretation. The author’s descriptions of the town and the surrounding area, are wonderful examples. Classic Americana with a supernatural twinge. A library that behaves as if it wants to outdo HP’s undetectable extension charm, hiking trails that take longer on the return trip, a ferry that just might have you disembark at the end of your trip right where you started, and if you are really very lucky you might actually be allowed to see the second waterfall at Twin Falls Lake.
This is a place that is as fascinating as the story and can really be considered a character in itself, especially as it goes out of its way to remain unnoticed by the world at large. The characters in this book, by the way, are also both very fantastical, exactly like one would expect to find in this type of world, and yet they are also exactly the kind of folks you would find living on Main St. in Anytown USA. Hayden’s Grandmother (capital G) scares me just a little, but I adore her younger siblings. With Hayden’s interest in not one, but two local bachelors (both of whom seem quite dreamy to me) it is obvious that there is a place in this remarkable world for Hayden’s future and you can be sure I will be stopping by later books to see how it goes.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4.5 out of 5.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
This book is disguised as a cozy mystery, really though, it is just a fun time romp. Imagine a world where the Iphones and magic coexist in a seamless way. Where your pet has a telepathic connection with you and your home invites you to stay by creating a room for you to live in. The reader is as enchanted as Hayden learning alongside her how this world she has been dropped into works. The clues to the mystery are woven terrifically into the larger story, which is inexorably leading to the big question… What really did happen to Hayden’s mother?
One reviewer describes the book as “Harry Potter collides with the Hallmark channel and Law and Order”, and I can’t think of a more apt interpretation. The author’s descriptions of the town and the surrounding area, are wonderful examples. Classic Americana with a supernatural twinge. A library that behaves as if it wants to outdo HP’s undetectable extension charm, hiking trails that take longer on the return trip, a ferry that just might have you disembark at the end of your trip right where you started, and if you are really very lucky you might actually be allowed to see the second waterfall at Twin Falls Lake.
This is a place that is as fascinating as the story and can really be considered a character in itself, especially as it goes out of its way to remain unnoticed by the world at large. The characters in this book, by the way, are also both very fantastical, exactly like one would expect to find in this type of world, and yet they are also exactly the kind of folks you would find living on Main St. in Anytown USA. Hayden’s Grandmother (capital G) scares me just a little, but I adore her younger siblings. With Hayden’s interest in not one, but two local bachelors (both of whom seem quite dreamy to me) it is obvious that there is a place in this remarkable world for Hayden’s future and you can be sure I will be stopping by later books to see how it goes.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4.5 out of 5.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Charlie Cobra Reviews (1840 KP) rated Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin #1 - Director's Cut in Books
Sep 16, 2021
Lone Turtle On A Quest For Revenge
New York City has become a dark and depressing place as the Foot Clan has taken over quadrants of the city, with "synthetic ninja" or "synja's". It's ruled by totalitarianism and meticulous fascism at the hands of Oroku Hiroto, grandson of the Shredder. The last of the Ninja Turtles works hard to end Hiroto's evil reign. Alone and outnumbered he seeks to avenge his dead brothers, a seemingly hopeless mission and kill Hiroto, whom he blames for their murders.
So first off I think this comic is pretty bad ass. I had heard about it and decided to check it out and I totally liked the whole premise for it and how the story plays out in this first issue. The artwork was nice and there was plenty of action but what hooked me was the whole quest for revenge. I think I've said it before but if you don't know this about me, I'm a sucker for a good revenge story. I don't know what it is about being wronged or having something so bad happen to the hero/protagonist in stories but I immediately put myself in their place and think about what I would do if I was them. Plus it's always satisfying to see the bad guy get his "just desserts". I have to say that I'm a huge TMNT fan but I've actually never really read any of the comic stuff. I remember reading a crossover or team up of them with Erik Larsen's Savage Dragon but that's about the only thing I've ever seen or checked out before. So I might be a little biased but the story is also really compelling.
I like the way it starts off with the lone ninja turtle making his way into the city, sneaking into the Foot controlled zone by climbing over the wall. How they complain about the water being ruined from global warming and years of pollution as he has to swim through it. I like how people are talking to him the whole time and it's a shock to find out who they are. I really like the artwork, like the character designs and how they make it a mystery as to which Ninja Turtle is the one who survived. They even make him use various weapons instead of their signature one to keep the mystery going throughout the issue. I liked the way the city looked, it had modern looking places and but then futuristic parts with flying cars and stuff too. There's plenty of action as they take on plenty of "synja's" as well as elite ninja and some "Stockman tech", mainly some flying "mousers". Don't want to give away too much since this is my first comic book review and haven't figured out a format for it yet and if I'm going to do non-spoiler/spoiler style or not but I think this is where I'll leave it for now.
So first off I think this comic is pretty bad ass. I had heard about it and decided to check it out and I totally liked the whole premise for it and how the story plays out in this first issue. The artwork was nice and there was plenty of action but what hooked me was the whole quest for revenge. I think I've said it before but if you don't know this about me, I'm a sucker for a good revenge story. I don't know what it is about being wronged or having something so bad happen to the hero/protagonist in stories but I immediately put myself in their place and think about what I would do if I was them. Plus it's always satisfying to see the bad guy get his "just desserts". I have to say that I'm a huge TMNT fan but I've actually never really read any of the comic stuff. I remember reading a crossover or team up of them with Erik Larsen's Savage Dragon but that's about the only thing I've ever seen or checked out before. So I might be a little biased but the story is also really compelling.
I like the way it starts off with the lone ninja turtle making his way into the city, sneaking into the Foot controlled zone by climbing over the wall. How they complain about the water being ruined from global warming and years of pollution as he has to swim through it. I like how people are talking to him the whole time and it's a shock to find out who they are. I really like the artwork, like the character designs and how they make it a mystery as to which Ninja Turtle is the one who survived. They even make him use various weapons instead of their signature one to keep the mystery going throughout the issue. I liked the way the city looked, it had modern looking places and but then futuristic parts with flying cars and stuff too. There's plenty of action as they take on plenty of "synja's" as well as elite ninja and some "Stockman tech", mainly some flying "mousers". Don't want to give away too much since this is my first comic book review and haven't figured out a format for it yet and if I'm going to do non-spoiler/spoiler style or not but I think this is where I'll leave it for now.
Purple Phoenix Games (2266 KP) rated Tumble Town in Tabletop Games
Mar 5, 2020
Fun fact about me: I used to live in Le Claire, Iowa (birthplace of “Buffalo Bill” Cody) on a street named Wild West Drive. While the town named many of their streets after American West figures and items, it was not your typical Iowa ghost town – if there are such things. That said, I do have an affinity for the Wild West in my gaming preferences, so when I heard about a dice/building game with an American West theme designed by Kevin Russ (who also recently designed Calico) I was immediately interested. But how does this one… stack up?
Tumble Town is dice rolling, structure building, drafting game with variable player powers. You are charged with choosing building plans to be added to Main Street of Tumble Town. You do this throughout the game by selecting the plans that will make best use of the resources (dice) you gain. The buildings that you construct may allow you special powers to be used on future turns, or one-time bonuses to be used once built. The player who can turn the greatest profit (in terms of VP) at the end of the game will be the winner!
DISCLAIMER: We were provided a prototype copy of this game for the purposes of this review. These are preview copy components, and the final components will definitely be different from these shown. Also, it is not my intention to detail every rule in the game, as there are just too many. You are invited to back the game through the Kickstarter campaign, from your FLGS, or through any other retailers stocking it after fulfillment. -T
To setup, deal each player a packet of starting components: a unique Horse card, two reference cards, Storehouse card, Main Street card, and two brown (they are red in the prototype) dice to be rolled and placed within the Storehouse. Shuffle and display the 1-, 2-, and 3-cactus building cards per the rulebook instructions to form the market. Set aside a number of each die type per the rulebook (both the building cards and dice are determined by number of players). Determine the first player and give them the first player token (a colorful rubber potted cactus). Players will connect their two Main Street cards at the central icon to create a two-card street (we chose the wagon wheel – Easy) and the game can begin!
Turns in Tumble Town consist of four mini-phases that flow into each other rather naturally. The first phase will have the players choosing a revealed building plan card from the offer market. The face-down draw stack will inform the active player as to how many and which type of dice they must draw and roll. Once they have these dice in their Storehouse, the player may now build plans using the dice they control. Buildings can be constructed and placed right onto Main Street, or be placed on the plan card to be placed on Main Street on a later turn. If the player has collected more dice than their Storehouse can hold, they must discard any of the dice they wish. This concludes a turn and the next player can begin their turn.
Certain iconography on the building plan cards allow players to use special powers throughout the game once built, and there are three types. Cards with the silvery bottom panel of symbols and the 1x notation are powers that must be used only once and only when the building is constructed. These powers could be collecting a die of the player’s choice, or receiving various dice counters. The building plan cards that feature a circular arrow notation are powers that can be used once per turn, every turn, if wished. These powers are found on each player’s Horse as well and can be adjusting a die’s face value, or re-rolling two dice, as examples. The third type of power is from the golden paneled cards that have an arrow pointing to a vertical line. These powers are only activated at the end of the game and mostly include scoring variances, like 1VP for each building a player has constructed that has a vulture icon (or a windmill, for example) featured on the card art.
Once a building is erected, the player may choose to place it onto their Main Street cards. When they place them, the player will need to choose where on Main Street these buildings should live. Like Bob Ross always says, “There are no mistakes, just happy accidents.” A player can place their buildings anywhere they wish on Main Street, but the Main Street cards will give extra bonuses to those players who plan ahead and place their buildings strategically. Some plots will ask for a building of a specific height (one die high or three dice high). Some will ask for the base level of the structure to be made of a specific material/die color (brown wood, black coal, silver metal, and gold… gold). Extra points are awarded if one-die-width alleyways are allotted, and these Main Street placements can score a bunch of endgame points.
Turns can be very quick or very deliberate, depending on the types of players involved. AP-prone players will take longer on their turns as they internalize all possibilities of their rolled results, while people like me just fly by the seats of our breeches. The game continues in this fashion: four mini-phases of drafting cards from the market, grabbing the associated dice, rolling them, and attempting to erect the best buildings on Main Street until two dice pools contain two or fewer dice. The current turn order finishes and the game is over.
Components. Again, this is a prototype copy of the game, and the publisher was decent enough to include a listing of items to be improved in the final version (like the red dice being poured brown in final – that really messed up someone’s strategy during a play-through for us because they kept forgetting that red is actually brown). The overall art style is very simplistic and I do NOT mean that negatively. The graphics and artwork are great, and give exactly what is needed without being so distracting that you cannot concentrate on your strategy. The dice are normal dice quality (that always seem to roll poorly when I’m rolling… hmm…). Once you see the photos of how the game will look during production, you will appreciate how great this is going to look on the table. No problems with components at all, save for the red vs. brown debacle that happened on our table. I really hope they keep the awwwwesome rubber cactus first player marker because it’s amazing.
I absolutely loved this one. I have always enjoyed using items for purposes other than originally intended – in this case, using dice as building materials. Of course, playing any game with dice introduces a bit of luck and instability in strategy, but Tumble Town offers quite a bit of manipulation of dice rolls that keeps almost all dice results feasible and useful. I really enjoyed the stacking, the quick turns, and the desperation when someone takes the last wood die when I was gunning for a wood-based building on my next turn. This game is light, but is chocked full of difficult decisions and luck of the roll. Tumble Town is for people who enjoy the rolling and stacking from FUSE (minus the frenzy), and the spatial building placement chaining of Villages of Valeria.
If this is the game for you, then we highly encourage you to check out the Kickstarter campaign which is running until Thursday, March 26. Tumble Town has already exceeding the funding goal at time of this review, but all future pledges will contribute to stretch goals that will improve components and add other components (spoiler?). So get out there and build up Tumble Town, ya yella-bellied greenhorns!
Tumble Town is dice rolling, structure building, drafting game with variable player powers. You are charged with choosing building plans to be added to Main Street of Tumble Town. You do this throughout the game by selecting the plans that will make best use of the resources (dice) you gain. The buildings that you construct may allow you special powers to be used on future turns, or one-time bonuses to be used once built. The player who can turn the greatest profit (in terms of VP) at the end of the game will be the winner!
DISCLAIMER: We were provided a prototype copy of this game for the purposes of this review. These are preview copy components, and the final components will definitely be different from these shown. Also, it is not my intention to detail every rule in the game, as there are just too many. You are invited to back the game through the Kickstarter campaign, from your FLGS, or through any other retailers stocking it after fulfillment. -T
To setup, deal each player a packet of starting components: a unique Horse card, two reference cards, Storehouse card, Main Street card, and two brown (they are red in the prototype) dice to be rolled and placed within the Storehouse. Shuffle and display the 1-, 2-, and 3-cactus building cards per the rulebook instructions to form the market. Set aside a number of each die type per the rulebook (both the building cards and dice are determined by number of players). Determine the first player and give them the first player token (a colorful rubber potted cactus). Players will connect their two Main Street cards at the central icon to create a two-card street (we chose the wagon wheel – Easy) and the game can begin!
Turns in Tumble Town consist of four mini-phases that flow into each other rather naturally. The first phase will have the players choosing a revealed building plan card from the offer market. The face-down draw stack will inform the active player as to how many and which type of dice they must draw and roll. Once they have these dice in their Storehouse, the player may now build plans using the dice they control. Buildings can be constructed and placed right onto Main Street, or be placed on the plan card to be placed on Main Street on a later turn. If the player has collected more dice than their Storehouse can hold, they must discard any of the dice they wish. This concludes a turn and the next player can begin their turn.
Certain iconography on the building plan cards allow players to use special powers throughout the game once built, and there are three types. Cards with the silvery bottom panel of symbols and the 1x notation are powers that must be used only once and only when the building is constructed. These powers could be collecting a die of the player’s choice, or receiving various dice counters. The building plan cards that feature a circular arrow notation are powers that can be used once per turn, every turn, if wished. These powers are found on each player’s Horse as well and can be adjusting a die’s face value, or re-rolling two dice, as examples. The third type of power is from the golden paneled cards that have an arrow pointing to a vertical line. These powers are only activated at the end of the game and mostly include scoring variances, like 1VP for each building a player has constructed that has a vulture icon (or a windmill, for example) featured on the card art.
Once a building is erected, the player may choose to place it onto their Main Street cards. When they place them, the player will need to choose where on Main Street these buildings should live. Like Bob Ross always says, “There are no mistakes, just happy accidents.” A player can place their buildings anywhere they wish on Main Street, but the Main Street cards will give extra bonuses to those players who plan ahead and place their buildings strategically. Some plots will ask for a building of a specific height (one die high or three dice high). Some will ask for the base level of the structure to be made of a specific material/die color (brown wood, black coal, silver metal, and gold… gold). Extra points are awarded if one-die-width alleyways are allotted, and these Main Street placements can score a bunch of endgame points.
Turns can be very quick or very deliberate, depending on the types of players involved. AP-prone players will take longer on their turns as they internalize all possibilities of their rolled results, while people like me just fly by the seats of our breeches. The game continues in this fashion: four mini-phases of drafting cards from the market, grabbing the associated dice, rolling them, and attempting to erect the best buildings on Main Street until two dice pools contain two or fewer dice. The current turn order finishes and the game is over.
Components. Again, this is a prototype copy of the game, and the publisher was decent enough to include a listing of items to be improved in the final version (like the red dice being poured brown in final – that really messed up someone’s strategy during a play-through for us because they kept forgetting that red is actually brown). The overall art style is very simplistic and I do NOT mean that negatively. The graphics and artwork are great, and give exactly what is needed without being so distracting that you cannot concentrate on your strategy. The dice are normal dice quality (that always seem to roll poorly when I’m rolling… hmm…). Once you see the photos of how the game will look during production, you will appreciate how great this is going to look on the table. No problems with components at all, save for the red vs. brown debacle that happened on our table. I really hope they keep the awwwwesome rubber cactus first player marker because it’s amazing.
I absolutely loved this one. I have always enjoyed using items for purposes other than originally intended – in this case, using dice as building materials. Of course, playing any game with dice introduces a bit of luck and instability in strategy, but Tumble Town offers quite a bit of manipulation of dice rolls that keeps almost all dice results feasible and useful. I really enjoyed the stacking, the quick turns, and the desperation when someone takes the last wood die when I was gunning for a wood-based building on my next turn. This game is light, but is chocked full of difficult decisions and luck of the roll. Tumble Town is for people who enjoy the rolling and stacking from FUSE (minus the frenzy), and the spatial building placement chaining of Villages of Valeria.
If this is the game for you, then we highly encourage you to check out the Kickstarter campaign which is running until Thursday, March 26. Tumble Town has already exceeding the funding goal at time of this review, but all future pledges will contribute to stretch goals that will improve components and add other components (spoiler?). So get out there and build up Tumble Town, ya yella-bellied greenhorns!