Links and Updates

So… what a month. It’s not even over yet, so who knows what the final few days of June will have in store, but truly: these are strange times we live in.

That makes it difficult to know what to say about times like these, largely because I’m surrounded by people far more eloquent and informed than myself on issues of such wide-reaching importance, and because this blog is a pop-culture site, where I look forward to new books, films and television shows, and occasionally moan about them when they don’t pan out.

But social issues are always prevalent in the media we consume, and this month’s double-whammy of the Black Lives Matter movement and J.K. Rowling’s unprovoked comments regarding transgender women have led not only to a surge in the spotlighting of black stories (examining not only the treatment of black characters in fictional contexts, but also the treatment of black actors on various film/television sets) and the youngest generation of Harry Potter actors raising their voices in condemnation of transphobia.

Not to put too fine a point on it, but never forget that the twin evils of this world are white supremacy and the patriarchy. Usually they intersect; sometimes you can be a victim of one while benefiting from the other, often it’s easy to underestimate just how insidious they are, but always they are the root cause of the bigotry, injustice and cruelty of this world.

But there’s light; there always is. In the wake of the aforementioned attacks on black lives and transgender people, it’s heart-warming to be reminded that each new generation is kinder, wiser and more open-minded than the one before. And yes, that doesn’t mean than young people can’t be racist, misogynistic or homophobic (god knows, they’re out there) but eventually: time will have its way. Progress can’t be stopped. The world only spins forward…

…as long as we keep on fighting.

Here’s a couple of great videos about redemption arcs in She Ra, as posted before and after the final season.

It covers things like the restrictions of children’s programming in dealing with complex issues, the show’s depiction of abusive relationships, the difficulties of redemption arcs when mass murder is involved, and how all three of these components are woven together throughout the five seasons of She Ra, both to good and questionable effect. I’ve watched them more than once, and they beautifully explore their subject matter – and once again, shed light on how the latest Star Wars film botched these exact same themes so very badly.

Speaking of She Ra, this YouTube channel as some hilarious commentary on all five seasons (plus sarcastic summaries of The Dragon Prince, The Legend of Korra and Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts) so if you’ve got some time to kill, check that out – as well as the fanfiction that’s rumoured to have been penned by showrunner Noelle Stevenson herself.

Then there’s the release of The Babysitter’s Club trailer, which brings up so many mixed feelings. I’m loving the cast and the sheer fact that this show exists at all (there are new editions of the books coming through at the library, and I think my colleagues are tired of me talking about them) but I’m curious about the actual plot of this show. Will they follow the episodic nature of the books? Will they get as far as Mallory and Jessi? And why do they all look so young? (Oh right, I’m old now).

Of equal interest is the fact that Claudia Kishi is getting a short film about her role as an Asian-American icon at a time when there weren’t many of them to spare. She was always my favourite (messy, creative, junk food lover – yeah, I definitely related to her the most) so I’ll be tuning in, though I’m curious that she’s the only one to have been spotlighted. Was Jessi Ramsey not similarly popular among young black readers? Honest question.

But obviously I’m gonna binge the heck out of this show. I’ve got a Saturday all lined up…

In other news, I’ve had Nancy Springer’s six Enola Holmes books in my TBR piles for ages, even before realizing they were going to be adapted into a film starring Millie Bobby Brown, but time crept up on me and it looks like the film is on the verge of release (not withstanding a rather ridiculous lawsuit from the Conan Doyle estate).

Whatever, here are some cool promo pictures. Is it just me, or does it look like she’ll be breaking the fourth wall?

More excitingly – Wolfwalkers! I’ve been waiting FOREVER for this film from Cartoon Saloon, rounding off the animated Irish triptych that was started in The Secret of Kells and Song of the Sea (that latter being in my top five favourite films of all times). They’re all different stories, but share a distinctive animation style and – obviously – a similar setting. The latest batch of concept artwork demonstrates how stunning it’s going to be…

And in not-too-surprising news, Disneyland is finally refurbishing Splash Mountain. Having been based on 1946’s Song of the South, a film that Disney is desperate to pretend never existed, the only shocking thing is that it’s taken them this long to get round to it. As it happens, I’ve been on Splash Mountain back when I was a twelve-year old, and watched Song of the South even further back when it was still airing on television. All I can remember about the former was the Ear Worm song and of the latter, the snotty little kid getting trampled by the bull.

Disney Engineers apparently plan to use The Princess and the Frog as their inspiration for the new ride, which makes a lot of sense considering the aquatically-themed story (and if you disregard the fact that mountains aren’t exactly a thing in the bayous of New Orleans).

That said, the ride is situated in Frontierland, whereas The Princess and the Frog is clearly better suited to New Orleans Square – in fact, I fully believe the rumours that the film’s setting was chosen specifically in order to have a princess in that area of the park. I wonder if perhaps the creative decision was a tossup between The Princess and the Frog and Zootopia (which would have melded slightly more organically with the talking-animal-content of Splash Mountain as it exists now) only for current events to tip the balance in the former’s favour.

Just random musings, though the important thing here is that it’s changing. And honestly, even without the racial issues surrounding the original film, surely it was time to update a ride that no child in about twenty-five years has possibly understood.

And one last thing, check this out! How the heck did I not know about this??