User:Ronaa22

The Shrek Series (except for Shrek 3)

I have only just recently truly appreciated the Shrek trilogy for what it set out to do (except Shrek 3). I say trilogy because I ignore the existence of Shrek 3... this may be harsh, but I personally did not enjoy it, and believe it perhaps is a slight to otherwise what could have been a perfect story. Again, this is just my opinion.

I have noticed people did not like Shrek Forever After all that much. I implore you to watch it again and see how you feel about it during your second watch, because I believe that people dismiss this movie due to Shrek 3, which solidified Shrek's image as just a joke. You can argue Shrek is a joke because of meme culture but his films have very much established him as a complex character with his own struggles and triumphs that makes many love and appreciate him as a character. Anyways, I love Shrek Forever After, and this dismissive attitude towards it was the reason why I mentioned that movie among all the movies in the Shrek filmography. Because I am sure everyone knows the first two Shrek movies were close to or are perfection.

Megamind

Megamind is a spectacular movie that was ahead of its time. It twisted the superhero tropes in a way that was new and novel and as a kid I was blown away by the creativity of the creators. Unfortunately, it was forgotten for a while and overshadowed by the Despicable Me movie. However, recently Megamind has gained some popularity as people start to realise how innovative its concept was and how cleverly it was crafted. I heard a Megamind sequel show is coming soon^[1], which shows that people want more Megamind. I am very excited, and I hope to see how they flesh out the characters!

Hunter X Hunter

Hunter X Hunter is a series that's near and dear to my heart. I've always been in awe of Togashi's writing ability, though I haven't checked Yu Yu Hakusho out yet... I think it was the first time I've seen a shonen tackled in such a manner before, and although Togashi twisted the shonen genre in a way that was a bit terrifying, I ultimately believe it's a love letter to the genre. I actually read the manga, but as a lot of fans know it's been on hiatus indefinitely so it has been a struggle to keep myself sane from the wait. It's alright because I have my ways of coping...

Hunter X Hunter has some of my favourite villains in all of fiction, the Zoldyck family, the Phantom Troupe, the Ants, Hisoka, the list is exhaustive (and that's not including villains from the manga's latest arc)! Of course, the heroes of the story are just as well rounded as the villains. To be honest, I don't think categorising the characters as heroes or villains do any justice to the complexity of their writing, but for simplicity's sake I do it anyway. Just know, that every character in this show is never how they seem and I love the series for that.

My favourite arc is the Chimera Ant arc for obvious reasons. It kept me at the edge of my seat all throughout, and I felt like it changed the characters in a significant way other arcs haven't done so previously. Plus, Togashi's message about humanity was so hopeful and beautiful I cried a lot by the end of it. It was truly a beautiful ending to a long, gruelling arc. The arc also has one of my favourite love stories. All in all, Hunter X Hunter is a gem of an anime. No arc outweighs the other in terms of quality in my opinion, and I think which arc is one's favourite may come down to personal preferences, but I could be wrong, I'm not exactly the greatest fiction analyser out there.

Haikyu!!

Haikyu!! is a sports manga/anime that I absolutely adore. Everyone has a piece of fiction they turn to when they're down in the dumps, and for me, Haikyu!! is that sort of existence. Although, I adore it so much I don't need to be down in the dumps for me to dive back into this wonderful world Furudate crafted, because I don't need to be in a certain mood to watch or read Haikyu!! Even if I am already happy, I'll become even happier if I read or watch this beloved story unfold over and over again!

The brilliance of Haikyu!! is undoubtedly the characters. Volleyball is a team sport, hence, the dynamics and motivations of every character is put into emphasis, as well as the philosophy and role of every team in the overarching story. Haikyu!! is of the slice-of-life genre, and a feel-good story, with every single character being likeable and relatable to any sort individual. Whether you are an introverted person who just wants to take it easy most of the time, or passionate and driven by ambition, I'm sure there is at least one character you can relate to in this sports series. Nobody is villainous, rather, you can feel how very much like people every single character is (if that even made sense). Every character in Haikyu!! is a protagonist in their own life, the same way we are protagonists of our own life.

"Even if you lose, even if you win, no one's going to die and there's no resurrections. Evil won't get vanquished, it won't be the end of the world. Within the 9x8 metre square court... Let's all lose ourselves in the dream of keeping the ball up..."^[2]

The premise may not be all that complex, but I think that in its simplicity and grounded nature is it able to express the beauty of humans' normal, everyday life. In fact, I've learned a lot of lessons from Haikyu!! because although volleyball is used as a medium to express the author's take on ambition, happiness, selfishness, and all other human qualities that makes us what we are, many of the lessons taught in the story is applicable to anything in life. An example of a valuable lesson I learned from Haikyu!! is one taught by a side character of the show relating to fear. There have been many stories that encourage us to face our fear, but that isn't an easy feat. Often times, we give in to fear, because constantly facing it head on is challenging, as if we're getting ready for a fight. However, Haikyu!! reframes this lesson in a way that I believe many people can get by a lot better:

"Passing up the chance to learn and experience new things... is just one big, fat waste!"^[3]

The sentiment of facing your fears is not highlighted by this quote, but rather, the idea that it's a shame to pass up an opportunity to experience and learn. There is a character in the story that embodies this very idea, which further encourages and inspire me. There are plenty of Furudate's wisdom sprinkled throughout the narrative, and, to be honest, there are many more banger lines I want to drop here, but I always want people to discover these themselves when they do decide to check Haikyu!! out. First, the barrier of prejudice against a seemingly mundane premise like volleyball must be overcome by some! Because passing up the chance to experience this wonderful piece of fiction... "is just one big, fat waste!"