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Beauty Quadrant: Thoughts on Ulta’s Podcast Episode with Dylan Mulvaney

Hello to all of you beautiful nerds and I am back with a post that should be thought about and I figured I should also share my thoughts.

Thoughts on Ulta’s BackLash Towards Their Podcast with Dylan Mulvaney

Disclaimer! This post is based on thoughts and opinions from the lead writer of this blog. Please respect her thoughts and what she thinks towards the hashtag against the company since she is human! You have been warned!

So, I was watching What’s Up in MakeUp this morning while having my lunch from Fresh Set since I slept in on a fine Sunday, I deserved after working and studying all week and this came across on the episode where people are boycotting Ulta because of their latest podcast episode with a trans woman and people thought it was “Woman Face” where it’s like “Black Face” where it’s bad to have a trans woman on to talk about her journey in becoming her own self and how beauty affected her. Even the host, David Perez who was gender fluid also talked about his journey as well. I felt like posting about this since it’s been a while talking about LGBTQ related issues such as this since we did lose a dear friend who has helped us and was about to go on their own journey.

As you know, I have been shopping at Ulta since around 2012 after finding their location at the Millenia Mall back then and fell in love with shopping in the NYX section every time I get that moment. I have bought from other brands such as Ulta’s own, Essence, Smashbox, and even Urban Decay. Makeup has been a creative outlet for me as a visually impaired person since I can’t draw on paper as much as I had in the past doesn’t mean I can’t find my new canvas. One thing that has been big ever since living with a conservative family is that I was drilled in my head that makeup is for girls only! However, makeup has not been really. The earliest time that men wore makeup was around 3000 BC in China where men wore nail polish as part of status, another example is Ancient Egypt with the eyeliner look we are familiar from seeing in ancient artwork along the tomb walls or even at the Mummy ride in Universal Studios. Even the Silla people of Ancient Korea believed that beautiful souls inhabited beautiful bodies that beauty belonged to both men and women, even their Hwarang army wore jewelry, powder, and rouge in battle. 

So, let’s fast forward to 2016 when we started seeing new trends in wearing makeup where James Charles came onto the scene by being CoverGirl’s first Beauty Guy and this shook up the beauty game. I am pushing aside his controversies for this post because he has given a new path to new faces on YouTube where we have men like Manny MUA, Gabriel Zimora, even Jeffree Starr showing up and making videos all about makeup and this gave a new idea in self-expression, which some people have forgotten. Heck, for years, my favorite bands have worn eyeliner such as Good Charlotte, Green Day, Simple Plan, and so many more and they haven’t given smack for it either so why a transwoman in the first place when men have taken the beauty space and made it more unique? And why does it have to have boundaries?

Thoughts on Podcast Episode

I had to watch this podcast episode for myself to see where the backlash laid and there was nothing with it. I also just read Jeff Johnston’s article up to the point where a woman talked about on Twitter where Mulvaney can’t be a mother and how most women saw these two people in the video wearing makeup “mansplaining” girlhood. I saw more of a talk about how the two got to their point as a way of how to tell stories. As someone who has done podcasting, sorry for not having new episodes due to my schedule, podcasting is a way of storytelling and I have been in the audience of so many, especially Annie Spano’s Becoming Fearless where she talked about how she got out of a toxic situation and being her own girl boss and I think Mulvaney was telling his story from transitioning and that is what we need more of is seeing people going through their transitions as in seeing when they realize they were born in the wrong body and go through their transformation and seeing who they really are and doing things they didn’t like to what they liked and that is what this episode was about and Ulta celebrating it. Their response to it was even great where they said beauty has no boundaries and they are right about that.I feel that with how we are here in 2022 that beauty is one size fits all, I can see where Patrick Star got it, since we should not put a cap and say this is meant for girls when it’s really not, even with how history explained it all. I mean Ulta even featured someone in a wheelchair on their window displays as a way of celebrating people with disabilities and they are doing the same with transexual women and men. I did enjoy the episode and I hope Mulvaney keeps doing what she does since she wants to get back into theater and I respect that. I did love her story about the canopy bed since she was exploring decorating as a woman for the first time in her first apartment. I can relate since I had moved out in 2018 and didn’t start working yet so I couldn’t buy anything for my apartment after doing so, I had to rely on my dad on the moving journey by going to thrift stores, WalMart, Target, and Ollie’s for my stuff for kitchen and bathroom. 

Should Beauty Have Boundaries?

Hell no! It should not, even with how Ulta showed it in this episode. Like I said, it was nothing vulgar or anything bad being portrayed, it was just two trans men  talking about their lives and how they came to be in the end and that is what we need to hear more about. People in the LGBTQ community get a lot of bad rep and they shouldn’t anymore since we are all human in this world. If I would, I could have turned the clock back to my college days and taken the courses on this topic since it is part of our culture and we shouldn’t push them aside either. I think this episode is a pivot point in our society where beauty can be anything, anyone, and any sex and gender since beauty and makeup has evolved and came a long way. I would say watch the episode for yourselves and see what you think. I see it as two people connecting and showing who they are and telling a story while others don’t see it that way but if they are boycotting Ulta, so be it. I am not boycotting the store since I have a convention coming up and I know I have to hit the NYX section for my favorite lipstick and eyeliner!

That is it for this post, you can catch the “Beauty of…Girlhood with Dylan Mulvaney” on YouTube.. If you want to comment, they did shut off comments there but you can comment on their Twitter.  What’s next? I will be talking about brands going bankrupt!

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by moonleopard85 on October 23, 2022  •  Permalink
Posted in beauty, Internet, LGBTQ, Social Media

Posted by moonleopard85 on October 23, 2022

https://nerdyshiqueuniverse.com/2022/10/23/beauty-quadrant-thoughts-on-ultas-podcast-episode-with-dylan-mulvaney/

The Web Series Quadrant: RWBY Volume 7 Review!Hello to all of my beautiful nerds and welcome back from traveling the vast universe! It’s time for my long awaited review of this!

RWBY Volume 7 Review!

Disclaimer: This review is based on thoughts and observations of the lead writer of this blog! Please respect her thoughts because she has different opinions from people on YouTube. You have been warned!

I know the seventh volume of RWBY ended in February but due to work and the CoVid19 pandemic rising I didn’t get the chance to do it. I finally got to sit down and re-watch the season and here we go!

Team RWBY arrives in Atlas to not so open arms. All thanks to the ship they arrived on being seen as stolen they are welcomed by Ace Operatives who are an elite group of huntsmen and huntresses appointed by General Ironwood. Despite the cold welcome, they are warmly welcomed by an old friend who was presumed dead since the Vital Festival, Penny. Once meeting up with Ironwood again they are now given new jobs to work with the Ace Operatives to be seen as trusted and handed their licenses and in on a secret expansion of Amity Stadium to help reunite everyone in Remnant. Even though Ironwood wants to keep this a secret danger arises when Dr. Watts and Teri an come to Atlas to cause trouble for him and try to frame Penny and not only that cause disruption in an election for the Council Head between Jacques Schni and Robin Hill. Besides the troubles in Mantle, Weiss has come back home to not only a cold shoulder from her father but a warm hug from her sister Winter and that her sister may take on the powers of the Winter Maiden since times have gotten worse since Ironwood is trying to find ways of protecting Atlas and Mantle from another attack by Salem. Will they be able to keep her away or will the Grimm and Salem’s allies be able to take down Ironwood his friends including Team RWBY?

Thoughts: This was a better volume because it did continue from where Volume 6 left off and felt like it was a better story. Even though Volume 6 had some added back story but here it felt like it brought back what we enjoyed with the early volumes of RWBY or at least me. I have been noticing people on YouTube have been complaining about some parts of this volume and I agree a little bit and disagree with most of it. How so?

Penny: First off Penny was brought back and I was hoping to see her returning after what had happened to her in Volume 3. Some people think she should have stayed dead but to me I had a feeling that she would be back at some point and this is where she did return since Atlas was where she was created. Got to remember folks, Atlas is known for their military, tech, and dust mining in the world of Remnant and being able to bring her back was not hard even though it was revealed later that someone’s aura was used to help her be brought back. Hey, you have to get it from somewhere. Even though she was treated as the protector of the city but we did get to see more of her in a newer light this time since I kind of felt like despite being able to hang with Ruby and the gang during the Vital Festival she was able to hang out with them again this time but as a helper. She did help with the enemies in this and even with the Winter Maiden, which I will touch upon later, but I did like how she was brought back for this volume and I did like her from the start. I wonder how she will play in the next volume after I talk about the Maiden role this time.

Ironwood: With all the things that have taken place I did notice that Ironwood did show that he was pretty mistrusting towards a lot of people. Yes, he did keep a huge secret and yes he was trying to do it to protect everyone but he was acting very rash in order to do that. I did notice it when Team RWBY and the rest of JNPR meeting up with him that he was holding a brave front but inside you can tell that he is afraid of what may happen if he tries to trust anyone. As in how is he able to share his trust with Qrow this time? How will he trust Team RWBY? Will he be able to trust Oscar since he is the newest Ozpen reincarnate? It made the story seem to flow smoothly until the end when everything started to fail when he noticed that things are starting to fall apart as in that even though his team of Ace Operatives were the strongest but there was something that made them vulnerable and open to the enemy. I also did like Oscar’s philosophical talks with Ironwood in this one because he was able to try and reason with him knowing that Ozpen could say the same to him since the theme here is fear and that everyone, including Ironwood, has it and it’s hard to escape from it even when Salem is the one bringing it. I wonder how it will continue in the next volume with Ironwood since someone did say he was going to be on the death list next but who knows how that will play out.

Team RWBY: I felt that this volume made them stronger because not only they were able to get newer weapons, also new looks, but also trained by the Ace Operatives. I also feel like their personalities also improved. Some people were ragging on how Yang was not the same as she was from the first volume, especially looking out for Ruby, which I kind of see it but I am also noticing it’s that Ruby has grown up and same with Yang after she had lost her arm in Volume 3 and found out that her mom, Raven, is the Spring Maiden and that they can still work together but at the same time can make themselves stronger when working on their own. On top of that, I noticed how Ruby has taken more of a leader stance since she is the title character after all and since the past few volumes it didn’t feel that way but since the change and now knowing what Salem is capable of she needed to step up! I did like how she gave orders in how to handle the dinner party Weiss’ father was putting together and the election was probably rigged and that she had Weiss go in to find that evidence to prove it. Plus, she did step up when Ironwood was starting to break under the pressure towards the end of the volume. Despite what others think I feel that she has gotten stronger and same with Weiss since she wasn’t too happy about coming back to Atlas but she had to with her team. I did like how she stood up to her father towards the beginning of the volume since he noticed how she cared for her friends but said that they are family to her. I did find it interesting how her mother, on the other hand, pointed to her that she left Whitley, her brother, alone. I have feeling that may play into the story somehow but we will see! Blake, let me see, I have noticed this volume she has become more out spoken since Volume 5! She did get a new bold hair cut but she did have a change in personality even around Yang since now it looks like they’re dating. Yes! Even though she did have that fight with Adam towards the end of last volume which I am seeing that she is starting to get over it and becoming better as the volume rolls on.

Winter Maiden: In this volume we get to meet the Winter Maiden finally and her name is Freya. Unlike the spring and Fall Maidens losing their lives young, Freya has reached her old age and this time she needs to pass her power on and it ended in an interesting way. Sorry for spoiler’s people but if you have not seen this volume I would say watch before you read! At first Winter was ordered by Ironwood to take the power since he thought it would be able to help her be able to use the Staff of Creation but unfortunately due to Cinder getting in the way the power went to someone else! It was Penny who ended up with the power.

I decided to go back to the Maidens Wiki to see if my hunch was correct about what had happened and it was which Freya gave her the power. I find it interesting though because isn’t Penny an artificial human with a soul? I even remembered that the way the power is passed onto another young woman is that either they are in the dying maiden’s thoughts or the maiden deems them worthy. With Raven it was out of nowhere while Cinder took it on due to greed, with Penny, on the other hand, I felt that Freya knew that cinder was not the one but waiting for someone else who was worthy and that was Penny. I think Freya noticed the aura inside of her and that it was pure and passed it onto her and I found this interesting since now we have her as Winter, Raven as Spring who is a bandit, and Cinder who took the Fall powers, I wonder what about Summer?

Thoughts on Summer: This brought me to this point since I kind of have been wondering like a few others on who might be the Summer Maiden? She hasn’t been revealed yet since now the circumstances with Salem are changing and things are getting worse. My thought is that did Salem kidnap her? It is a possibility because during the second to last episode she brought up Ruby’s mom and of course her name is Summer. I am wondering could she be alive and did she kidnap her? Because up to this point I remembered Ruby mentioning that her mom didn’t come back from her final mission and there is a possibility she may have had a run in with Salem. I am not sure if she had the Summer powers but if she did then it may have been passed on or Salem would have taken them since she wants the Maiden Relics in the first place. Either or I am hoping we can see the Summer Maiden next volume or if my theory would be partially right. Let’s see how that happens!

What Do I Want to See in Volume 8? Where to start? Definitely Summer Maiden because of how things are going down and I feel as though she may make an appearance or my thoughts may be the idea of how it will be revealed. And of course seeing how Penny deals with her now new position of Winter Maiden. I have a feeling that Ironwood won’t like it since he was hoping Winter would take them on. Also, this will still bug me since I feel like it was forgotten, the dreams of Pyhra coming back since those appeared in Volume 4 and hoping to get to see if those appear again if they are still a message.

Rating: 5 Shooting Star Paws Out of 5! I know I didn’t get to put a real rating but this deserves the five because it did continue the story from the last volume. Some people have been talking about the negatives and how this series is not the same as we remembered. Yes, Vol. 4 and 5 seemed to be the filler volumes and it did drag the story a bit not focus on Ruby herself but I feel that 6 and 7 fixed the story since we got to see some back story behind Remnant and what Salem is planning and that we got to see how badly Ironwood is afraid but didn’t want to show it and tried to make things safe but there was an opening for things to go bad. Plus it did bring back an old character and it built our favorite characters up to be better in this one so I feel that the story is stronger and it will get stronger, hopefully, with the next volume.

Also, I want to give major props to Christina V. as Robin since she did a really job playing this character during this volume. She did an amazing performance and I enjoyed every chapter of it!

Well guys that is it for this review! Sorry if I haven’t given this blog much love since of course we are going through a major pandemic and times gotten busy after all. I will get back to here and of course I do have the podcast to do on top of it. And then of course I do have one more RangerStop video to put here and that will be next! Until next time!

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by moonleopard85 on April 5, 2020  •  Permalink
Posted in Cartoons, Internet, Reviews, Television
Tagged

Posted by moonleopard85 on April 5, 2020

https://nerdyshiqueuniverse.com/2020/04/05/1571/

Beauty: What FIve Things I Would Save In A Fire?

Hello all my beautiful nerds traveling the vast universe! Today is going to be a new tag!

What Five Makeup Products I Would Save In Fire?

So, today, I watched a video by Just Call Me Jo on YouTube which I just subscribed to all thanks to Danielle Schmidt and now watching Danielle’s video and this tag deals with what five things I would save from a fire? Now I’m hearing “fire” by Arthur Brown in my head especially with one specific line that goes, “You lost all you saved and earned…” Anyways, so it’s interesting to see what a blind person has to say with a huge makeup collection but these are five items I would save.

. Ulta Be Gorgeous Set: This is the first product I would grab first because it is one of my shelves and this is a set I can’t stop touching and well it’s no longer available. It has all of the things I need which there is a ton of shadows, also has bronzer, blush, and highlight, even my gel liners and a few pencil liners and lip products! I better grab the flash drive with my pallet guides then!
L’Oréal Voluminous Miss Manga Mascara: The mascara I would save is the L’Oréal Miss Manga Mascara! This is my ride or die because it is my top fave cosplay item and it makes my lashes look amazing and yes I can replace it but this is one that I would run out with! Can’t help it if it’s my all-time fave mascara either!
Black Moon Cosmetics Moonlighter in Shroom: I just got this recently and it looks stunning on me and that is my Shroom Moonlighter from Black Moon Cosmetics because of how beautiful it is! I was hoping to get Squid from this line but it sold out at Riley Rose which sucked but this one was my second choice if that happened. It does have a bit of glitter but not to the point of pooping it since I can put a brush easily into the compact and put it on my cheek bones!
Both Urban Decay Naked Heat and Petite Heat Pallets: I know this is slightly cheating but Jo did have six items but I would have these together and they are the Petite Heat and the Naked Heat pallets from Urban Decay. I’m trying to collect all of the naked pallets from Urban Decay at the moment and my birthday is coming up soon and have two left to get but these two have my faves out of all the ones that have been released, even more than the Naked 2 Basics. The mini pallets really got me to collecting since I use those for interview makeup and when I had my work experience, heck I hit pan pretty hard on the final shade of the Naked 2 Basics and bought another during Pre-Employment, so yeah on my second one on that and the first one may follow suit but later. These two in particular are very unique despite how warm toned they are but very versatile. Yes, people have complained about too many warm pallets but you can create a lot of looks plus the Petite Heat is a supplement where you have colors that did not appear in its original counterpart especially with the orange! I would grab these two since I can’t keep my paws off of them!
Wet N Wild Foundation in Buff Bisque: My final item is of course the Wet N Wild Photo Focus Foundation in Buff Bisque! I know over the years I raved about Almay’s foundation from the Clear Complexion line but this one beats it out of the water because the applicator is simple and you don’t have to pump out so much which you just spread all over the face and I buff it in with my beauty sponge! Plus, it’s very affordable and my skin just matches perfectly with this shade. Speaking of tools…
Coastal Scents Vanity Affair Brush Set: I’m going to pop in one more item before I end this post or shall I say before my runner ups! I would so grab this brush set first since I can’t go without brushes and my suitcase of loose brushes would be too heavy and that’s the Brush Vanity Affair Set from Coastal Scents! Reason being is that I had watched this set on Coastal Scents for years until it went on sale but found it on Amazon a few months back for $9.99 plus free shipping and grabbed it since it was the last one. And Coastal Scents put it on sale for half off. What the heck? Oh well, but this set does have all the brushes I need from powder to foundation and all the eye brushes I need. I can just get the Real Techniques sponge at Ulta real quick!

Runner Ups: Can’t go without a few runner ups!

Hot Topic Black Beauty Galaxy Shadow Pallet: First is something from my fave store Hot Topic and that is the Galaxy shadow pallet which is in the original huge packaging! This shadow pallet is unique and it has more out of this world colors and I admit I’m not afraid of playing with color time to time!
NYX Dream Catcher Pallets: My most favorite pallets from NYX are the Dream Catcher pallets which are Dusk to Dawn, Golden Horizon, and Stormy Skies which I love all three and they are so pigmented! Plus these are the cheaper pallets that NYX has released since. I saw the newest one and ten shadows for close to $30? Say what?
MAC’s Warm Soul Blush: I’m so addicted to this blush and it became a major staple in most looks!
L’Oréal Lumi Bronze It In Light: This has become a favorite bronzer and it’s hard to not wanting to use it but it always ends up in my hands like the next item!
Physician’s Formula Butter Bronzer in Light: This is a bronzer I wear a lot since it is so natural and the smell is amazing!
Curve Chill perfume: Even though I’m running low at the moment but I would grab my bottle of Curve Chill! This perfume is the cleanest smell in the Curve line because I tend to love clean smelling perfumes and it’s not that heavy of a scent either. Plus Curve was one of my first perfumes but it was Curve Crush and I do have a bottle of that along with Kick, Appeal, and Wave.
Burberry Brit Perfume: Last runner up and another perfume and that is Burberry Brit which has been a big staple fragrance in my perfume collection! Everyone at the Blind Rehab Center always knows me by this scent due to it being a unique vanilla spice scent and I’m a unique person that everyone meets.

Well, that’s about it for this post! It was hard to narrow down some items since I do have a big collection of makeup and it does continue to grow! I am glad that Danielle Schmidt and so many other YouTubers have done this tag so I can do this post. If I were to tag anyone, definitely Vivi! Your turn! I want to see what you have to say! I will get the interview with Apl D Ap up as soon as she finishes looking at it in case if it needs editing and more things to come! I haven’t been posting as much since I’m going through a lot of books and I’m also still going through the JAWS Certification so I can pass that before I start my Grad Certificate Program so hang in there! In the meantime, make sure you follow us over on Twitter @ Nerdy Shique for any latest updates like if I finished anything in my Project Pan! Until next time! Stay beautiful my nerds!

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by moonleopard85 on July 20, 2018  •  Permalink
Posted in beauty, Internet, Response and Opinion, Social Media, Tags
Tagged ,

Posted by moonleopard85 on July 20, 2018

https://nerdyshiqueuniverse.com/2018/07/20/beauty-what-five-things-i-would-save-in-a-fire/

Favorites: May & June 2018

Hello all of my beautiful nerds traveling the vast universe! I am back with my Favorites and this time it’s May and June! Let’s get started! I do have one non-beauty favorite and a Meh Favorite! Let’s see what I have.

Meh Fave: Urban Decay Primer Potion in Nude! I know everyone fell in love with this but I feel like it is not my fave except it’s a meh! It did work pretty well on my lids and worked better than the Wet N Wild Primer, which I will be talking about next in my Un-Favorites area, it did not glue my lashes shut but I felt like it was going into the lashes a bit. I know I am supposed to put not that much of this product and use the wand but I prefer squeezing it out into my fingers and apply it a lot more easily that way. I feel like this was not for me, I think I prefer my NYX Eye Base in the pot along with the MAC Paint Pots because I have an easier time applying those than primers in the tube and the lip gloss looking container.

Meh Eye Shadow Pallet: Marvel Avengers Infinity War Pallet from Hot Topic! I tend to love the eye shadow pallets from Hot Topic but this is in my Meh category. I did kind of put it under “Regrets’ at first because people on What’s Up In Makeup thought it looked muddy with the shadow look I tried first with the orange, the green, the brown, and others but when I re-did the look with Soul, which is the orange I put it all over my lid and just did more of a neutral eye that way. I thought the shadows were okay but too powdery after realizing it. I may keep on using it but I prefer the unicorn ones and the Galaxy Shadow pallet I got last year.

New Eye Shadow Pallet: Urban Decay Beached Pallet! I finally got this pallet after hearing so many things about it and that is the Beached pallet by Urban Decay. Yes, 2018 is all about the Urban Decay and not sponsored, sorry! I think they’re slaying it this year because of the new pallets they have been coming out with. Anyways, I got my Beached pallet after collecting my points at Ulta and used them on it and it was worth it! All thanks to doing a look with the teal, the deep blue, and the Blaze in this pallet I ended up attracting Hash Tag Sunglasses to it. I love Urban Decay and their shadows have been killing it and I can’t wait to complete the Naked collection since I have been collecting them, I have to keep my paws off my Naked Heat pallets, lol!

New Shadow Quads: Wet N Wild Flights of Fancy Eye Shadow Quads! Along with new releases by many brands, Wet N Wild released their summer collection last month and it’s called the Flights of Fancy Collection for the hummingbirds that are native to California. I got the full set and it was beautiful, I do have a not so favorite but these shadow quads are pretty much what Wet N Wild has done after discontinuing the trios. I think it was a good idea to do that because not only they re-formulated Walking on Eggshells but they added another color to it and it gives us more freedom to play with the quads. I realize I haven’t used the trios as much which I am trying to hit pan on so I can let them go. I used in my video the Hasta La Costa Quad and it is a green and blue quad which is gorgeous! I am thinking of using one of the others in the future since the Braille labels did pop off, which sucks but hey I can use them one day soon. Maybe I should use the rose gold one next week for the NFB Convention, who knows.

New Lip Gloss: Wet N Wild Lip Glosses! Along with those quads, Wet N Wild also released lip glosses! Those things are great except you have to kind of build them up due to the applicator. Usually with most lip glosses I do one swipe or two and I’m good but it feels like you kind of build up with two swipes on the bottom and top but still these aren’t sticky like most lip glosses. Not even sticky like MAC.

Lip Scrub: E. L. F. Lip Scrub in Mint! I finally got to try the Lip Scrubs from E. L. F. Normally I would use the ones from Lush but it’s been forever since I got any lip scrubs from them since now the drugstore is starting to create their own, even Wet N Wild made their own for the Flights of Fancy collection which seriously should be permanent! At first when I got the scrub in my package, this was when they did free shipping a little while ago, I thought it was weird due to how it looked as a lip stick tube. When I started using it, it felt weird at first because of how compact it is together and then realized I had to run it across a few times to make it work and then wipe it off with a cotton round. Easy enough and it is hard to be tempted to eat because I love mint! That is the reason why I went for mint. I definitely want to try the other ones that they came out with and they aren’t as expensive as Lush or the coffee one I have made with coffee from Ulta, this one is good!

New Translucent Powder: NYX Pressed Powder! So, I went to NYX last month and to get a new powder to get for my under eye because I felt the LA Girl one was running out faster and I felt that there was not much in the pan and realized I liked pressed more. So, I did find out that the NYX Setting Powder is also pressed and got it in Translucent. I love it! I can see why people recommend this powder to use as a setting powder and it feels as lightweight as you wear it.

New Mascara: NYX worth the Hype Mascara! So, I reached my first round of points at NYX and ended up getting a free tube of the Worth the Hype Mascara as a sample size and I heard good things about it from one person and when I got it, I was hoping it would not be flake city like Better than Sex and guess what? It wasn’t! I carry this in my makeup bag and whenever I spend the night at Gondras’ place and don’t hand don’t have any makeup I turn to this! It makes my lashes look so full! Way to go NYX, I want the full size now!

New Blush: The Baked Blushes by Wet N Wild! Speaking of WNW earlier, another item from their Flights of Fancy is the Baked Blushes. Sorry WNW, you need to make these permanent! Milani has had them for a long time! Anyways, these blushes are gorgeous! I think I use the nude one the most because it was a shade you rarely find as a baked one, you do have Apricot in The Middle, which I still need to get and try out, these definitely need to be permanent and they are very good in blending them on your cheeks.

New Setting Spray: Wet N Wild Matte Setting Spray! Yes, a lot of Wet N Wild but they have been getting my money for any of their face items because I used to use Almay and getting the foundation and powder was costing a bit much so I switched to Wet N Wild’s stuff since it’s cheaper and I like the wand part more than the pump. Anyways, I decided to try the setting spray from Wet N Wild and I prefer this more because the NYX one I’ve been using the Demi Matte formula was breaking me out in certain areas of my face but mostly around my cheeks the most. I think I’m a little too sensitive to their spray and I even felt itchy around the areas on my face after a few hours. The Wet N Wild doesn’t do that to me! I think it’s the ingredients that they use, I know one ingredient is Vitamin E if I remembered and it doesn’t cause me to itch nor break out. I think also that the NYX one was not reacting well to the Clearasil products I’ve been using. This spray has been working out beautifully and now on bottle number two! I am able to find this spray easily at Walmart and even on Ulta’s website and it doesn’t cost an arm and leg like most sprays. I also like how it smells, it smells sweet!

Not-So-Favorites:

Wet N Wild Eye Shadow Primer and Primer Water Spray: These two items are not my favorites at all when it comes to makeup! I am so sorry Wet N Wild here are my reasons. I mentioned above, the Wet N Wild Photo Focus Eye Shadow Primer was the thing I wanted to try for so long! SO LONG! But it sucks! It glued my lashes SHUT! I hated how it felt like glue and it was thick as paste as it came out of the tube, I had to go back in for more dollops of this stuff and it glued my lashes shut. I am sorry, that is not supposed to happen when you put on any eye shadow primer even from a pot. I had to toss it, shadow primer is not glue Wet N Wild! And the other item, I tried loving but couldn’t due to how the spray nozzle stopped working correctly and that is the Primer Water that came with the Flights of Fancy collection. I was hoping this would last me for a while and I loved how cooling it was while spraying it and it did set very well but as time went on the spray nozzle would not work! I tried shaking it and it would still not work. It was like it worked once and would not work again! I take back that I want it permanent, I think I will stick to the Hydro Touch I’ve been using and I am planning to try out the Dewey Primer from Wet N Wild and see how that compares but sorry the primer spray does not get my love. I did toss it too.

Non-Beauty Faves!

Book: Tiffany Blues by. M. J. Rose! This was a very enjoyable read by M. J. Rose and it is called Tiffany Blues. If you read my review, you could tell I loved every page of it and I didn’t want to stop reading it because of how beautiful it was. I did do a makeup look based on the Tiffany Glass colors you heard throughout the book and I felt like I was brought to the 1920s to when Jenny was there doing art. If you have not read this book, I highly recommend as an excellent read!

Another Book: The Dream Keeper’s Daughter by. Emily Colin! Another book is the Dream Keeper’s Daughter by. Emily Colin. I didn’t want to leave Kindle alone with this one either because of how it pulled you between past and present to see how the two main characters, Max and Isabel, go through the times they were in with Isabel trying to live her life while Max is getting her mom back. I would say read that one too if you’re interested.

Recipe Favorite: Pickle Dip! I know what you are thinking, “Say what!?” you can make a dip out of anything and pickles was an interesting dip to make because you had many things going into it besides dill pickles, you also had cream cheese, garlic paste, and other things and came out to have an interesting mild taste. I would say if you find the recipe from Publix, which is who I got it from, use pretzels because they go the best with it.

Movie: Avengers Infinity War! Next is movie and you already know! Avengers Infinity War was a great film except the ending. All I have to say is, “Damn it Quill and Thor! You had one job!” I won’t spoil the rest and I can’t wait to catch any other Marvel movies even if it means on Netflix.

Series: Series of Unfortunate Events! Okay, I wasn’t expecting to watch this because Nerdy Shirts and his brother asked GOndras to be in a video with them reacting to episode 9 of season 2. Gondras couldn’t get past a certain point in Season 2 but I kept watching. All I have to say is that I never read the books but this was a great too series since they had Neil Patrick Harris being Count Olaf in this one. You never thought he would play creepy very well until you see this and it helps with his Broadway musical background because he does sing the theme song and it’s catchy! I can’t wait to see what Season 3 holds for the Bodalairs since the final episode of Season 2 revealed a big thing and I can’t reveal it. If you want to see the reactions on this series, make sure you check out the Super Reaction Bros.!

Top Five Songs!

1. Ignite by. Alan Walker! First on my list is a song by Alan Walker who performed at this year’s Electric Daisy Carnival in Las Vegas! This year it was in May rather than June to keep people cool at night. I never heard of Alan Walker until I saw a video of his set and it brings an awesome beat but this song called, “Ignite,” got me loving his music even more. I do like his first song, “Fade,” from his early days but this one fits the sci-fi theme we pull on here, I would so use this as a theme song if YouTUbe doesn’t get mad.
2. “Odd Future” English Cover by. Jonathan Young: Next is another cover by Jonathan Young and it’s the fourth My Hero Academia theme song called “Odd Future.” I I’ve been loving this anime a lot and thank you Gondras for showing it to me and need to watch more of but this is one of my fave songs from that series.
3. “Dirty” by. Sevendust! Oh yeah! My Southern Metal boys are back and this time with a newer song! Apparently they have released new music and this song is called “Dirty.” It kind of goes back to their more metal roots since the Seasons album had more of a softer sound and their song, “Unraveling” was also pretty soft but do like it but this one it calls back to what I knew Sevendust for and kept it up!
4. “History Maker” Cover by. Nate Wants to Battle: I know this is not new but I can’t stop listening to it because it always get in my head, plus May was all about meeting with my destiny of getting my job offer, getting to go to the NFB National Convention, and of course being accepted at Northern Arizona. I am following my dreams people!
5. “Lion Skin” by. Hands like Houses: Even though there have been other songs that have been appearing on my I Heart Radio but this one was unique out of all the music that has been on there lately. I’ve never heard of this band but if I had then I wouldn’t have looked at their info but this song is a really good one. Almost reminds me of “Arrow” by Gackt in the beginning but then goes into its own song.
Well, that’s it for this bi-montly favorites. I know a lot of Wet N Wild was on this list because they have been in my makeup collection even more after using their powder and foundation. I may be adding Clearasil next time since the face wash I got was not a face wash but it was a face mask but I have the actual face wash so I will be giving another two months before I add them to my favorites since so far my skin has been getting better and people noticing in my pictures. So next time will be my review on the NFB National Convention since I need to take time to read some books! Until next time! And follow us on Twitter @ Nerdy Shique!

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by moonleopard85 on June 30, 2018  •  Permalink
Posted in anime, beauty, Books, Favorites, Internet, Movies, Music, Television

Posted by moonleopard85 on June 30, 2018

https://nerdyshiqueuniverse.com/2018/06/30/favorites-may-june-2018/

Cartoons: RWBY Volume 5!

Hello Shiquers and welcome back to Nerdy Shique Universe! Today is another review but this time it’s based on an animated series that ended its latest season and that’s RWBY!

RWBY Volume 5!

Disclaimer: This review is based on thoughts and opinions of the lead writer of this blog! Please respect her thoughts and warning there might be spoilers for anyone who hasn’t seen the series nor this volume. If you haven’t seen the series, I highly recommend and you can find all of the volumes on YouTube!

Synopsis: In this volume, we catch up with Team RNJR and Qrow finally reaching Mistral in order to find Huntsmen and Huntresses to join their team to fight the evil Salem. Once reaching Mistral, they meet Oscar, the new body of the deceased Ozpen who can switch between himself and Ozpen in order to bring advice and train them for the oncoming battles ahead. Meanwhile, Yang goes and finds her mother, Raven, to find her uncle and sister, Ruby, in order to get answers to questions that have been bothering her for a while now. While confronting her mother, she reunites with Weiss and gets a warning of walking away from Qrow in order to save herself from anything that may hurt her. And finally, Blake and Sun are still in Minagery in order to get the Faunus to fight Adam and the White Fang before they head off to Mistral in order to destroy the tower so their kind can rule again. Will Sun and Blake be victorious or will the White Fang capture her and take her to Adam? And what’s up with Cinder and her crew when it comes to finding the Spring Maiden to retrieve the Spring Relic? A lot of things happen in this volume as the twists and turns to keep the world safe gets even darker.

Thoughts: I have so many thoughts especially from Gondras since he had to play catch up in the end due to school and work. The story pacing in this volume lagged because it basically told everything taking place with Yang and Weiss and then a good part of it with Blake and Sun, and not so much with Team RNJR especially after talking to Leo Lionhart about what’s going on. A good chunk of this volume was dedicated to Blake and continuing what happened with her and Sun during Volume 4 which was good and all but that should’ve been resolved in the last volume than using a good part of this one for her. I understand that it shows how she grows as a character and what she needed to do but it could’ve been used to extend Volume 4 and then focus more on RNJR for this one since we find out what had happened with Ozpen’s spirit.

I found it interesting with what had happened with Ozpen since now it seems that he always reincarnates when he dies due to a curse casted by Salem. They’re saying with all of this story that Salem is trying to cause a lot of things in the world and one thing is getting not only the Four Maidens, which she had Cinder, but their Relics too and this volume was where they went to Haven Academy in order to get the Relic of Knowledge which is for the Spring Maiden. Apparently, Ozpen is also the one behind the original maidens which if you remembered that tale told back in Volume 3 it did play a big significant role. Anyone new?

Basically the tale is that four sisters who represent the seasons visit a hermit and bestow upon him their gifts. Winter tells him to meditate and reflect, Spring, the second one, revitalizes his garden by bringing fruit and flowers, the third, Summer, convinces him to step outside and embrace the world, and finally, Fall, encourages him to be thankful for what he has. The man gives the four great powers as thanks to the four in return.

Apparently, according to Wikipedia, the Maiden storyline didn’t really come to mind until halfway through Volume 2 and that is how Volume 3 came to be with what had happened to Amber, the previous Fall Maiden. I would suggest watching Volume 3 for that explanation of how it starts which leads up to what’s going on this volume.

So, with now knowing that Cinder is after the Relics for Salem, who knows what’s going on as in what does Salem want the Relics for? I know she has Cinder to work for her and looking for Spring in this volume in order to get the Relic from Haven but it’s not explained if it’s take over the world or something. I am hoping this comes up more in Volume 6 because I’m wondering if things will start coming out. As in, will we see the other two Maidens which the remaining two that haven’t been revealed are Summer and Winter.

Gondras thinks that Salem is Winter since she can use magic but during this volume it is revealed that she is the main big bad and that she wants all the Maiden stuff. Yes, she may know about all the stuff behind them but is she using Cinder and the Relics for something bigger? Yes, she can create Grimm and did make Cinder part Grimm in order to heal her but is Cinder also betraying Salem? Why do I ask that? During Chapter 12, “Vault of the Spring Maiden,” Cinder tried to kill Vernal in order to get the Spring powers thinking she can have more than one Maiden power. I don’t think that’s how it works because how a Maiden transfers their power is based on the last person in their thoughts and I liked how it was expanded when Yang asked her mom if Spring did trust her in her thoughts when she got the powers. So, I’m thinking another part of the transfer may be based on trust besides seeing that person in the final thoughts and the reason why someone can’t have more than one is due to how greedy a person can be? That’s my own thoughts about that!

Now onto Blake’s story! Again, it should’ve been resolved in the last volume or just done it with one or two chapters rather than extending it to Chapter 10. I love Blake but she’s not the only character in this entire series. Yes, it leads up to her being with her teammates again but it would’ve been easier if they shorten her spats with Ilia and the White Fang and then go to Mistral from there to meet up with Adam at the tower at Haven Academy. I do have to say that the end fight between her and Ilia was beautiful though! Rooster Teeth did an amazing job and Monty Own would be proud if he saw the fight. I did like how they did a “Behind the Scenes” thing based on it because it does take a lot of work in many fight scenes. I even have a hard time putting them together myself in text but how they animated it was well-done and with the Raven versus Cinder fight too. That put the powers of Fall and Spring to the test! But back to Blake, I wish they could’ve explained her relationship with Adam a little more when she was with the White Fang. I can see why he was obsessed with her especially with how he wanted her brought to him but I feel like he was forcing it and his attitude a bit too much. I loved how the actor over acted as Adam but there were some parts that could’ve been fleshed out especially the motive in getting Blake back. I did like how Blake stood up to him though towards the end of this volume. I have a feeling that we’ll be seeing more of the Faunus in future volumes because it seems like they were able to work with humans very well despite the past. The question is will they be trusted by the human race or will they trust them in future volumes? Time will tell!

Plus, with Adam being let go, this is going to be an even more interesting add on to the story. With him running off, the question is where will he go and did any of the White Fang follow him? Ilia did state that he may have been betrayed due to him running off and leaving everyone behind but when you look at it, a bad guy can always get new teammates and the question is that will he find Mercury and Emerald to form a new team or will he end up running into Salem? There are so many possibilities when it comes to what may happen next for him. I am now wondering what will Salem do next? There are many things that can happen due to the attack on Haven was thwarted by our main cast and characters but who knows what else she has up her sleeves. Leo did reveal to her that Ruby was among the ones who arrived at Haven before he was killed and I have a feeling she was satisfied to know that Ruby is alive after what had happened to Cinder all thanks to her eyes. Which brings me to the next point…

What Should Be In Volume 6!

1. Better Pacing: Yes! Rooster Teeth has acknowledged that the pacing int his volume was very slow. I can see how it was not the best due to coming off of what took place in Volume 4 and building up the story from Monty’s original idea of how the series is supposed to go. Yeah his brother is doing great since he did pick up as Ren but definitely the story pacing should be worked on. Next volume should be slightly longer if the pacing is worked on better.
2. More Stuff Involving Ruby! Since the pacing was off, we didn’t get to do much with Ruby herself. In the first four volumes we got to see her more and how she grew in those volumes as a character. The first was of course her being her usual young self and going to Beacon with her sister Yang and being a little wild due to being new. The second one we got to see how she interacts with her team more and even trying to get along with Weiss a little more and then the other students. Yeah, they do go on a big adventure with the one professor who has a coffee cup that turns into a bazooka, not kidding and Gondras wants to cosplay him, but we did see how the team got to grow and interact. Then the third volume comes around and that’s when crap goes down! And four, that is when she starts to grow and understand that survival in order to beat Salem is huge! Volume 5…I don’t know! I know that Ozpen/Oscar talk about her as if she was the best student but Ozpen does say she is a hard fighter and that’s it! Yeah we get to see her fight well towards the end but not much interaction with Ruby and she is the main character of this entire thing! Now I’m looking at my Ruby figure from my lunchbox and thinking, Can we see more interactions with you than Ruby Chibi? Yeah, if you seen that cartoon shorts series with all the characters, you see more of Ruby shorts than this volume!
3. What Happened to the Pyrhha Visions!? If you have seen Volume 4, in the beginning of the volume Jean and Ruby had dreams of Pyhrra and they haven’t happened since. I am still convinced that her spirit is trying to give them a message, especially Ruby since she did watch Cinder kill her! I’m hoping something gets mentioned about that because that was something that wasn’t explained yet.
4. A Love Fight Between Yang and Ilia! I know it sounds weird but during this volume, Yang and Ilia clearly have something for Blake and they both have the same reaction of, “Why doesn’t she look at me with those eyes?” Clearly there is something there but I know Blake may end up with Sun due to how well they worked out. Even thought it would be funny between Yang and Ilia next volume if they were to interact with each other.
5. Summer and Winter Revealed! Okay Rooster Teeth, five volumes down and we need to see Summer and/or Winter because things are definitely going down, especially with the criptic message from Ozpen about going to Atlas. It would be interesting to see which Maiden Salem wants next but I have a feeling one of them is in Atlas and it might be the next Relic location. It does make sense with Ironwood being involved with the whole Maidens thing after keeping Amber alive in Atlatian tech under Beacon in order to transfer the rest of her power. Who knows how that will happen but I definitely want to see Summer and/or Winter in the next volume after Raven being revealed to be the newest Spring Maiden.
6. Salem Revealing Why She Needs the Relics! Throughout this volume, Salem hardly revealed why she wants the Relics and since she has cursed Ozpen who knows why he wants him alive or kill him permanently since he has to be the one to get rid of her according to earlier in the volume. Who knows what Salem has in store for Volume 6 but I want to see what her plan is exactly and what’s the next phase? Will it be going to Atlas or seeing about Cinder being alive unless her power was transferred to someone as Fall Maiden? Hoping that is told in the next one.
7. Fall Relic Being Revealed! In this volume, Ruby asked Ozpen if his cane was the Fall Relic which is the Relic of Choice but Ozpen says it’s not and that it’s hidden away for good due to Cinder not being able to find it when she got her powers. It does make sense after Cinder being defeated by Ruby and how she ended up like she had in Volume 4, who knows what had happened to the Relic of Choice after the fall. Maybe Glenda Goodwitch sent it away or it might be found by someone who may have gotten Cinder’s powers if she had been killed because we don’t see her body in the Spring Vault anymore, we do only see Vernal’s.
8. The Silver Eyes! Throughout Volumes 4 and 5, Gondras and I have been wondering, same with the fans I hope, what is it with the Silver Eyes? In the Maidens Wiki for the RWBY Wiki, it says that Cinder was defeated by Ruby’s eyes and it’s not sure that is how a Maiden is defeated. It does show that a Maiden can be killed by normal means. It is a good question to ask since of course it is said that Ruby’s mom, Summer Rose, did have the same eyes so that means the same power. Gondras thinks that Ruby and Summer’s people were the ones who brought on Remnant. It is a good theory to think about but this is still unclear to what Ruby’s eyes stand for and hoping they get to explain it or that she uses the power again in Volume 6. Or maybe Salem might capture her and take an eye out, I don’t know but it is one of those things that should be explained.
Rating: 3.5 Star Paw Prints Out of 5! I would have given this a higher rating but the pacing kind of dropped the rating to this. I feel as though that the story could’ve been better and that we would have more RNJR moments since they are the surviving team from Beacon until now with RWBY reuniting. The fight scenes were beautiful, the music was amazing, however the story with this one was a bit off. I did like the Raven as Spring Maiden being a surprise since you didn’t expect it until she reveals it! I did like how they made Cinder think Vernal being the Maiden but of course got to love the decoy idea. I was wondering if Jessica Nigiri was replaced as Cinder because she was a little off in her voice throughout the volume. I understand that Cinder did have a long recovery and had a hard time getting her voice back but at least the tone came back towards the end of this volume. I am glad Rooster Teeth knows that they need to fix the pacing for Volume 6 bit jeu at least they know! Now onto the bests!

Best Song: “This Life Is Mine” and “This Time In Shadows Part 2!” If you haven’t heard the music from RWBY, well more of the rock/operatic music you’re missing a lot! “This Life Is Mine” is pretty much the extension of the song that was heard in the one episode in Volume 4 where Weiss’ dad asked her to perform at a benefit event he put on to raise money for something. In this one you hear more of that song where she is on the airship and it was amazing! I would say listen to the entire song and you will see why! While the other one, “This Time In Shadows Part 2” was used as the ending theme for this volume but it was glorious and the best song to end the volume on!Casey and Jeff Williams do major justice with the music for this entire series and this song to end the volume made it even better! I can’t wait for what they will bring to the next one!

Best Character: Yang! I give Yang Best Character this time because she has grown so much throughout this volume! The actress even did a really good job doing it! I can see why Qrow refers to her as Firecracker because in the beginning she was stubborn and easy to start a fight but now after regaining her arm all thanks to Atlas, she changed a lot! I did like how she confronted Raven at the end of this volume because it shows that Yang may be scared of facing Salem but she is still willing to fight! Way to go Yang!

Best Voice Performances: Chermie Leigh-Kune as Ilia, Aaron Dismuke as Ozpen/Oscar, Barbara Dunkleman as Yang, and Anna Hullum as Raven! This season had four strong voice performances and I will explain why. Cheramie as Ilia was one of her best performances next to Airi from Erased (if you haven’t seen it I highly recommend it), Lucy from Fairy Tail, and and many more but this role fit her very well! You enver suspect her at first but when you listen closely, it is her using her Seagland voice from Dragonaut. Even though her character was a little confused in this volume, she did come out on top even with how Sun paid her back for hurting him. Aaron Dismuke was amazing as Ozpen/Oscar which I do phrase it like that since he did have to do double duty in this series. It felt like you were watching FMA all over again since Vic is Qrow in this one but now as the wise character in this one than Ed. As in, what if they had Al be more of the character of wisdom than Ed. Brenda as Yang, again, she made her into a strong character for this volume and how she interacted with Raven even made it better. I am hoping she keeps this performance up because it was beautiful this volume! And Anna as Raven, at first she sounded slightly forced since she hasn’t seen Yang in so long even though she did appear during Volume 2 to help. Towards the end the performance got better and her interactions with Yang made it even more memorable. I can’t wait to see what happens with Raven and I am wondering when Qrow will know what really happened to the Spring Maiden which reminds me that he doesn’t know yet and can’t wait to see how he reacts to it. Still, it was a beautiful performance for Raven.

Well, that is it for this review of RWBY! I can’t wait to see what Volume 6 brings since this one ended with a very rounded ending. I know there is supposed to be RWBY Chibi if they keep making that but Volume 6 should be stronger and the story should pace a lot better.

So, what’s next? Another Access Tech post on a device that is gaining some popularity! Until next time!

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by moonleopard85 on January 30, 2018  •  Permalink
Posted in Cartoons, Internet, Reviews

Posted by moonleopard85 on January 30, 2018

https://nerdyshiqueuniverse.com/2018/01/30/cartoons-rwby-volume-5/

Conventions: Friday Panel Summary from Holiday Matsuri 2017!

Hello Shiquers and welcome back to Nerdy Shique Universe! I am back and with more coverage from Holiday Matsuri!

Friday, December 15, 2017 Panels: So, I have some bad news! At first we had video footage of the two Friday panels from the con but due to some technical difficulties and not being able to replace the files, we could not be able to upload videos but the good news is that I did take notes on the panels and will be giving you a summary about them. I am really sorry and we will make sure that the files work next time and have copies for now on. Normally this is a rookie mistake and lost one video once and hoped not to do it again but what can I do when it comes to tech wanting to mess up. Be glad that I take notes for reviews on my handy dandy Braille Sense U2 and will be doing a post on that soon with how voice actors are mesmerized by it. Let us get onto the panels shall we?

Christina & Nate Wants to Battle Panel: First panel we covered was the Christina & Nate panel that started the convention for us since we did not get to Holiday Matsuri until 1:30 that afternoon.

This panel was a pretty good panel with a lot of questions and answers. When they introduced themselves, Christina was a guest at Hol Mat back in 2013 and I remembered that year since we were at the con at the time hosting a panel before we started doing press for Hol Mat and I still have my Homura mug box signed by her which she played her in Madoka Magica and she is also the voice of Sailor Mars in the re-dub of Sailor Moon and in Sailor Moon Crystal. While Nate has been a guest at Hol Mat every year and has been a tradition for him to be a guest. If you want to know what he does, he is a musician and does some voice work. In case if you are on YouTube, you can catch some of his music there, even covers of anime songs including the theme song for the anime Erased by Asian KungFu Generation. (By the way, it is on Hulu in EngEnglish, the series I mean.)

There were a variety of questions being asked at this panel. One of them happened to be their start in voice acting which Christina started at the age of twelve while Nate had his start when he met Tyler Walker, the Director of Fairy Tail, and was sent a script to read. He does have a role in something Fairy Tail but forgot which role it was. I will hear him and look it up when I buy more parts since I am a little behind. I did ask Christina about her role as Sailor Mars since it was one of my interview questions for her in how does it feel to b her and if she got to meet Katie Griffin and her answer was meet it was so so surreal to be in it because she watched Sailor Moon at a young age and she got to meet a lot of the cast from the original series but Katie. Maybe you will get to do that someday Christina.

One interesting question was the methods in getting the character that they are voicing and Christina says that she is visually oriented when it comes to developing the voice which she sees the character and comes up with it and Nate is the same way. Another was the hardest roles they have done and for Christina it was Homura because since she was the youngest on the cast at the time. I found that interesting since I figured Lauren Landa, who was also on the cast as Sayaka (I think I got her name right) probably would be the same age. Nate, on the other hand, his hardest role was Chad 2054 because he had to do a raspy voice.

There were a lot of other questions and Gondras did bring one up and that was about Christina has participated in the Power Rangers Hyper Force RPG which you can watch over on the Hyper RPG YouTube channel and it is pretty good from what we have seen. She plays as the first female black power ranger and she gets to play alongside Paul Shrier and Andres the Black Nerd and so many more. Heck, the first episode had Jen from Time Force!

It Gets Better Panel with J. Michael Tatum & Brandon McInnis: Next panel with J. and Brandon and that that day was. This panel was something I was not expecting because I thought it was going to be all about voice acting but it was about the It Gets Better Project and the LGBTQ community since these two…well J. is gay and Brandon is bi-sexual and they have been dating for a while now. I must confess that I thought when Brandon mentioned he was J.s partner that I thought work at first but everything was revealed.

If anyone does not know about the It Gets Better Project is, it is where actors in the LGBTQ community reach out to the youth in this community and J. mentioned how it is social suicide in Texas if you come out as gay, lesbian, and the rest and did not know about that part. After this panel and during it, I did think back to an article I had to read in two of my writing classes from Rolling Stone from 2010 about how a small town went through suicides of young teens who were a part of this community and this also around the time Rise Against did their song Make It Stop (Septembers Children) from their End Game album which ended with some of the teens saying It Gets Better and now I know know.

It was great to know about J. and Brandon a little more because we always hear them in Black Butler and other anime but not who they are out of the booth. I even found it amazing that I do relate to J. because I had a speech impediment myself when I was younger like he had and did work myself out of it. You do not hear it in my videos but I had issues with the s sound and the sh sound when I was younger and everyone thought it was funny.

What I did find true was how bullies can be created out of jealousy and fear and also it is a phase in high school which you can make friends with your bullies later on, heck I did it a little while ago when I found my worst enemy on Facebook and she apologized for picking on me when I told her who I was. Now we are pretty close even though she lives in Cali but I do comment on her posts time to time.

Well, that is it for this summarizing since there was a lot from both panels and would love to put it all down but it would take a long time writing and translating my notes. Too bad I do not have the videos of it but I do with the Idol Festival which is the last coverage we have from this past Hol Mat. But in between, I want to do my post on voice actors learning about my Braille Sense because it does fit with this since Brandon watch me type since we did have front at his panel with J. Until next time! The

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by moonleopard85 on January 4, 2018  •  Permalink
Posted in anime, conventions, Internet, LGBTQ, Panels

Posted by moonleopard85 on January 4, 2018

https://nerdyshiqueuniverse.com/2018/01/04/conventions-friday-panel-summary-from-holiday-matsuri-2017/

Response Post About the Logan Paul Video!

By the way, update is that I thought this video was monitized but it wasn’t, sorry guys!

Disclaimer: This blog post is a response to something that happened recently at the start of 2018 in Japan and deals with a vlog. Please respect my thoughts and feelings and by the way, if you know someone who has suicidal thoughts please call the Suicide Hotline because it is not a great thing especially for the one who leave behind. The number to reach is 800-273-Talk. If the someone mutters the first words that give the warning, please call because it is no joke since we all have one life to live and should live it.

Hello Shiquers and welcome back to Nerdy Shique Universe! I know I still have the rest of the Holiday Matsuri stuff to post but something took place the past two days that I want to touch upon and that deals with YouTuber Logan Paul. He is the older brother of former Disney star Jake Paul and he does vlogs and he has been in Japan and vlogging which I have watched one a few minutes ago that dealt with Pokemon related things and all I have to say it is pretty disrespectful but the video that got the internet hating him was where he went to the Suicide Forest and found a dead body and shown it and used it as a thumbnail. It was taken down but in his most recent video he did talk about he and his buddies still saw it evne after apologizing and I feel like it’s still not okay especially when Japan has a major suicide problem.

As someone who has taken Asian Humanities in college twice, once at the state college level and the other at the university level, along with a class about the undead, the cultural ideas of death is an important thing and when we look at the history of many places especially the Suicide Forest or the Sea of Trees in Japan, it is pretty dark. The thing is I have seen many other response videos and this got me thinking about doing this post because of how many people are disgusted by what Logan had done and that YouTube let him post it. He said he wasn’t expecting something like that but here is the thing about the forest that I have read, especially one page about the top fifteen things that make it the forest that the way it is in other words don’t expect the unexpected because you can find a lot of things in the forest such as leftover tents that were placed there, pill bottles because people tend to overdose in that forest which is the number two thing that they use to kill themselves while the first is hanging which in a place like that…yeah…it is dark! Besides the negative things you probably find, apparently the Japanese government I have read put up signs telling people, “Think about your family that you’re leaving behind!” and “You can get help!” and other things and there were some vlogs since someone made a compilation of five people who have done vlogs including Logan which lead up to his that they have ribbons to lead the people out who want to leave.

Which I want to touch upon that too. There are people who have gone into the forest and didn’t do as bad as Logan has done as in if they were to see something they would move on but I have seen one good video that one person did visiting the forest and that is Aki Dearest where she and her boyfriend I believe went to visit but shown the nature of the place and some of the tunnels too because Japan does have a ton of those. She did make a response video saying if you want to visit just look at the nature itself as in how peaceful it is and how beautiful it is which it can be but at the same time you do have the eerie sensation from the place and one other video said that is why not a lot of people suggest going there as a tourist place but the internet says it does have a lot of history even with the recession that took place in 2008.

Next, I would like to touch upon on Logan’s behavior though since this kind of brings up my post about “Not Being a Whheb” since I point out about visiting Japan. I didn’t get to watch any other video that Logan may have done but have heard what else he had done such as acting a bit immature while wearing kimono and a specific hat and not only that hitching a ride on someone’s truck like nothing. I watched Gaijin Gumba’s video about this and there are guidelines that you must follow while visiting Japan or even working there and watching stories about people who have visited Japan with a Wheeaboo it shows that Logan may cause Japan to think that all people visiting from outside or wanting to work there are like him and many others which is not true. When I was doing my post and also watching those stories, it had taught me about things I should and should not do and understood no cat ears in public and so on. Heck, if I were to visit I would have to take a look at dress code since Puerto Rico also, for example, expects their tourists to have a bit of business casual going on. Also, another thing, Logan and his buddies, from what I have noticed, are LOUD as heck! I am hoping they didn’t visit any temples because in those and even on the subway you have to be quiet and not always yelling everywhere. I have seen the girls of Beauty News have their Japan Vlogs and when they went out they were more respectful in a lot of the touristy areas and ang at karaoke bars and had fun in a very respectful manner. I know whenever I would visit with Gondras I may have a hard time to admit due to my visual impairment and may have to take a look in how I would walk or may have to rely on Gondras to sight guide me most of the time even in the temples because I don’t want to be disrespectful at all either.

All tangents aside, after all of this Logan Paul may make it harder for foreigners or not to visit or work in Japan. I did watch someone who is Japanese living in Tokyo’s response and he did say it was cringey especially the Suicide Forest and how he reacted and he did point out that a lot of people do make mistakes and I do agree that people make mstakes and not perfect but we have to see how other people are treated after this because not everyone is not as disrespectful. As in, I did point out if you want to visit some of the places do the research in the history behind it and any cultural research about the different islands if need be in case if things are different. Heck, if you want to visit the forest I would also research that too because I feel like Logan didn’t do much even though he did talk about how it is not okay and left the number in his description box before the video was taken down by him. I also do agree with most of the responses, he should have moved on and left the body alone or at least call the police so they could take care of it rather than blasting it on YouTube. That is still a shame in my book. If you are wondering about me, I wouldn’t visit the forest after reading about it and plus I am a bit claustrophobic so it is not a good spot for me and plus I can get hurt from reading about the roots on the forest floor can be a major trip hazard.

With YouTube, on the other hand with those thoughts, I think they should be more strict on the deep, dark content like what Logan has done. I know we had Adpocalypse on there and this video was monetized when deep topics like Isis and other things were de-monetized. YouTube should at least make sure their creators know that things like this is not okay to show especially when your audience is in the pre-teen age.I do also agree that Logan shouldn’t have posted it in the first place since he had the choice of not doing it and in my opinion if he wants to talk about it why not just blog about it telling his story and then talk about the Suicide Watch Hotline which would inform his audience that they shouldn’t end their life and that there is a hotline to help like I mentioned in my Disclaimer above. There are many other ways to approach this topic and showing death is not the way to go!

What do I think Logan should do or go to next? In my opinion, he should change is material because after something like this should change your mind in doing what you do since it makes us look bad to people that run tourist businesses. Also, another thing he should have done before traveling to Japan with his buddies is to research in how to act, the history since some people said he didn’t know what a kimono was which that can be easily researched, and the different spots to go to and also the camera policy in taking pics and recording video because they have a strict policy in that and would help know what he can record and what exactly can be recorded and move on from there. Should he get off of YouTube? I would say yes and to re-evaluate his material because YouTube is starting to become a dark place for some people especially the ones who are trying to make it their career even with people who are in the beauty community and YouTube should be the place where tutorials should exist, news exist, and even videos to teach cultural things should exist but not videos where you slander someone with photo shopped pics and calling them out on false things, that is not a platform it should be. All I have to say is please Logan, re-evaluate yourself and your material before posting anything else because man everything went wild!

Well, that is it! I know this was a bit deep for the blog since this was a topic that has started off 2018 with its first scandal. I am hoping Japan doesn’t think of us as Logan after he leaves because we aren’t all like that because there are a lot of people that respect the culture and history and willing to learn about it while visiting or willing to stay and work or even go to school over there. Heck, I even considered going to Temple University over there before attending the university that I went to. If you want to watch better vlogs by people who have visited or live there, I suggest Beauty News’ vlogs from last summer, CanadaJin3, and even Gaijin Gumba’s videos on Japanese culture and history in our media, which I will put his video in here to show the response and also Aki Dearest’s since she talked about her experiences in the forest itself. Again, if you know anyone who is going through a hard time and might think of ending it all, please call the hotline when those words are spoken for the first time because yes depression and anxiety do happen and I admit I have anxiety myself and have gone through depression after graduating but I am looking at the positives of life and not letting the bad outweigh the good even as a disabled person. I would suggest one podcast if you are a blind person and going through hard times after losing your sight and that is the Life After Sight Loss Podcast with Derek Daniel which he gives awesome tips about getting around things and he did have a blind therapist on his podcast and she was very helpful in giving me advice. So, that’s about it!

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by moonleopard85 on January 3, 2018  •  Permalink
Posted in Internet, Response and Opinion

Posted by moonleopard85 on January 3, 2018

https://nerdyshiqueuniverse.com/2018/01/03/response-post-about-the-logan-paul-video/

Shopping: Holiday Gift Guide 2017!

Hello Shiquers and welcome back to Nerdy Shique Universe! It is November and we are getting closer to Christmas and you know what that means! It is time for a gift guide here. I have done gift giving advice here and back on Myspace when it was a thing and now it is time for a gift guide in case if you need some ideas!

MakeUp Sets: First is makeup sets! We all know the beauty lovers in our lives and getting that perfect makeup gift would help. We do have the beginners and experts that we know when it comes to makeup and Holiday time is when the brands come out with their own makeup set. I have gotten some in the past and even purchased a few for myself this year and they are worth it. Some of the makeup sets that are big this year include Tarte’s Holiday sets which you can find at Ulta and Sephora depending on who has what, Kat Von D’s Saint & Sinner pallet which would be a big one to ask on any list, but if you want to go for drugstore E. L. F. has released a lot of sets from brushes to highlighters and even stocking stuffer gifts. If you want a better list of sets, I would suggest watching Kat and Hayleigh (sorry if I butchered the spelling) on Beauty News since they talk a lot about new releases even for holiday and Jen Luv’s Reviews for new holiday releases every week on What’s Up In MakeUp and I suggest joining the Facebook group since everyone helps in suggesting products so asking for what gift to ask for or get for someone special they are willing to help. Heck, they helped me with selfie advice.

When it comes to some sets I would suggest, I would suggest the Ulta sets in Be Gorgeous, Beauty Treasures, and Love MakeUp because not only you get a lot of makeup but it does come in nice cases that you can keep. If you have someone that loves jewelry boxes, I would suggest the Beauty Treasures because you can remove the face and eye pallets for convenience since they are not in the signature plastic casing like the Be Gorgeous one. Plus you can go through the drawers very easily for what you need for instance, one drawer is for the concealers and eye primers, another one is for the brow powders, gel liners, cream shadows, and eye topcoats, and the last drawer has the lip items, the brow mascara, and a blush brush and dual ended eye brush. You would pay a bit more for this and good thing is the eye pallet has a lot of warm and cool shades to play with. If you have someone that loves train cases more for convention travel or vacations, then the Be Gorgeous and Love MakeUp sets are for them. I just got the Love MakeUp on sale and these two sets do have your usual eye shadow pallet which the Be Gorgeous comes with 42 shades while Love Makeup comes with 36 and you can create a lot of looks with these and you do have your essentials like your bronzers, gel liners, brow powders, but interesting thing is that the Love MakeUp does not come with the primers. I would suggest using your usual eye primers with the Be Gorgeous and Beauty Treasures sets because I find the Ulta primers in these sets too drying. Also, with Love MakeUp you do get lip liners. I would say for either of these sets to see which one would be worth more to give and again to see if the person loves train cases or jewelry boxes. These sets do retail for $29 which is Beauty Treasures and $24 for the other two but they do have specials on the train case sets.

Nerd Memorabilia: Here at Nerdy Shique Universe, we do include nerds when it comes to giving gifts and many stores do carry a lot of merch based on Doctor Who, Harry Potter, even Dungeons & Dragons. Your best places to find these things are Barnes & Noble, especially the ones with music and movies being sold, Best Buy where they sell Marvel themed thumb drives and other pop culture related things mixed with tech, F. Y. E. for a lot of your merch and tees, Hot Topic being the biggest, and two more stores to mention that we do have here in Orlando and they are Pop Cult where there are way more pop culture items like Hello Kitty, Pokemon, and more, and Box Lunch which has more of the classic pop culture stuff like Miyazaki films and 90’s themed stuff. Gondras did get me a Gigi from Kiki’s Delivery Service as a coin bank last year for Christmas from Box Lunch by the way. Nice thing about that place, they do put your purchases in a lunchbox like carton since it does match the name. I know I will be hitting the Hot Topic website for Gondras this year! Lol

Bath & Body Sets: I know a lot of us love to pamper ourselves after a stressful week at work, heck even a stressful weekend at a convention, so having a a set of bath or skin care or body products to help soothe that aching foot or to calm the skin from stress is a way to go. Many brands have been coming out with sheet masks to help with the skin, even on a plane which I hear people use sheet masks to help with the dry air on a plane, and you know the holidays are HUGE for travel! You can get some of these sets from Sephora where they have skin care sets from Glam Glow, Tachia, Boshia, and much more. Emily Noelle even talked about some masks she got with holiday scents recently like pumpkin spice and sugar cookie and I think those are Ulta and you do have other brands at Ulta like Tony Moley, their in house brand of bath sets that you can get Buy One Get One 50% Off at the moment. I do hear the scents from Ulta do smell good. And of course, Bath & Body Works, my kryptonite with their Christmas scents! And of course, can’t forget Lush because they do have awesome gift sets with bath bombs, bubble bars, and they do come with mini shower gels in there too and good thing about getting these sets from Ulta, or Bath & Body Works, and Lush is that if the person never tried them before this is how you can try them. That is how I got into Lush by the way, Mommy Gondras did work for them seasonally back in 2007 and I got a gift box from their Christmas line and I was addicted, even to Snow Fairy. So, every year is Snow Fairy right after Christmas! So yes, sets are a good way to go!

Luxury Brand Sets: I can’t forget about this because there are times where we know someone that loves that luxury skin care brand or makeup brand and there are times where the singles are a bit pricey. A lot of the luxury brands do come out with their own holiday sets and if you have saved up a lot over time then getting a set like this would give the luxury lover a ton to try. One good set definitely to recommend are the mud mask sets from Glam Glow because you get to sample some of their more popular masks in one single set rather than trying to buy it for $50 (just guessing) and around this time there is the Sephora sale depending on your membership level you get 15% as a Bauty Insider and 20% for VIB and VIB Rouge which does help even when it comes to early gift shopping.

Train Cases: I feel like bringing these up as a possible gift item especially when I mentioned the Ulta sets before and that is train cases. If you don’t want to get the Ulta sets, there are the usual train cases that we love to travel with, heck I am going to be using my pink caboodle for Holiday Matsuri since that is what I use for my convention makeup stuff. These last you for a long time and they do come in many sizes and price ranges. I have a six tray one and it was $24 if I remembered and I got it from WalMart two years ago. Trust me, I have a lot of stuff to put in, lol! Anyways, besides WalMart selling these, you can find at Target, Ulta, and I believe Sephora too and of course Amazon and EBay does carry some of the older ones you may not be able to find in store anymore.

MakeUp Bags: Besides train cases, you can also get a loved one a makeup bag because a lot of us do travel and having that makeup bag is very handy! They come in all shapes and sizes and even in nerd memorabilia, heck I have a Pikachu and an Artemis one from Hot Topic since you know me, plus they do come as sets depending on the brand. For instance, Too Faced has a set where you get three mini shadow pallets, their Better Than Sex Mascara, and other items in a makeup bag. Even MAC has some such as their mini lip glass trio, which you can use the little makeup bag afterwards for lip stuff, bobby pins, and other things when you are on the go. Also, Sephora has really big ones every holiday and they come oujt with new designs for every holiday so you can get what you like. And in case if you are at a department store browsing makeup counters, some of the brands do include makeup bags as gifts with purchase, I do admit I take my mom’s Lancome ones due to how spatious they are. Lol! Speaking of gift sets…

Perfume and Cologne Sets: Besides beauty and clothing, there are the loved ones that love to smell good! I usually ask for perfume but due to how many bottles I have I have slowed down incredibly! Anyways, sets are a good thing to go with because there are times when a brand wants to treat the customer or their loved ones by selling the set together and they do come with pretty sweet stuff like a shower gel and lotion and sometimes even a bag to go with. For instance, my Nicole Richey perfume set came with a carrying bag. A good set that people suggest is the one from Sephora because they include a coupon to get the full-size perfume or cologne that is included in the set of minis of your choice.

Gift Cards: If you have a hard time choosing what you want to get someone, gift cards are a way to go! In my gift advice, I say pay attention to where your loved ones shop or ask where they like to go. If you can’t get an answer, you can get them a Visa gift card so they can spend it anywhere. Another good idea is if the person loves to play games on their devices or game systems, you can get them either a Google Play card, an ITunes card, or even the systems’ cards to use in their stores such as the PSN card in case if they want to get a classic game or pay for their membership at the end of the month.

Food Sets: Finally, there are times when we want to give a person a little something extra especially in their stocking and that is either something sweet like candy or a box of cocoa packets. Heck, my mom gave me a can of blueberry tea bags one year as her stocking stuffer gift because I love blueberries especially as a tea. Not only that, if you have a party to go to or your friend loves savory foods, Hickory Farms always, always, ALWAYS have stands every year! If you have not tried Hickory Farms, I suggest trying their turkey summer sausage. Anyways, this place is a good idea for any party platter or as a gift even the day after Christmas has a good sale with them which is buy one get one 50% off and that includes their food sets that come with pretty good mustard spreads to tell you the truth.

Etsy: Finally! Finally! If Didn’t mention this earlier, Etsy is also a good place for gifts! This has a lot of craft items made by people, think of it a craft version of EBay. Not only that, this is where most of the people I meet at Artists Alley sell here as well such as Black Flame Creations, Aunt Matilda’s, and a bunch more. You can find a lot of great jewelry, some people even sell kitchen items, even candles if you can’t walk into a Yankee Candle. Plus, a lot of stuff is really well priced and they do ship as soon as possible even in time for holiday time! For instance, I got Vivi a wolf necklace for her since I was her Secret Santa last year and I did remember how she loved wolves and found it when looking for steam punk jewelry and it did arrive on time. So, I would say look around Etsy and also sign up for their newsletters because they will give you some items as ideas and some of the stuff does get discounted depending on the seller.

That is it for this post! Hoping you got some inspiration from this post! Christmas is my fave time of year not only just for gifts and sales but also Holiday Matsuri and the Doctor Who special that comes around every year. So, good luck on your gift hunt! What is next? A new cosmetic controversy that may want you to think carefully of swatching a tester on yourself! Until next time!

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by moonleopard85 on November 12, 2017  •  Permalink
Posted in anime, beauty, clothing, Food, Gaming, haul, Internet, shopping, Tips and Advice, Travel

Posted by moonleopard85 on November 12, 2017

https://nerdyshiqueuniverse.com/2017/11/12/shopping-holiday-gift-guide-2017/

Convention Spotlight: Holiday Matsuri 2017

Hello Shiquers and welcome back to Nerdy Shique Universe! It is time! What time is it!? It’s Convention Spotlight Time! Which one is it?

Convention: Holiday Matsuri 2017
Location: Marriott World Center Resort and Convention Center in Orlando, FL
Dates: December 15th-17th, 2017

Yes it is back for another year! Orlando’s #1 Holiday Themed con is back for another year and at the same location as last year, Holiday Matsuri! Also, this is our third year of press and that means new coverage, hoping new people to interview this year since you guys love those things when it comes to the Shique Hot Seat, and seeing about events to cover for this year too. I will update at Twitter @ Nerdy Shique with the events the convention chooses for us to cover so I would suggest to follow that. Also, I did put in a panel form this year so hoping you guys will get to see a new panel from me! Let’s see the info for anyone new who wants to check this convention out!

Location: Holiday Matsuri is returning to the World Center Marriott here in Orlando! If you guys have not been to this during last year’s convention or during Omni Expo Year 1, you may have seen how huge this place is! It is located at 8701 World Center Blvd. which is close to the Walt Disney area. If anyone wants to book a room, there is a convention rate for this year, You can book the room at:

http://holidaymatsuri.com/2017hotel/

And make sure to use the code for the discount rate and I have seen the rooms all thanks to Nerdy Shirts staying there last year and they are nice and depending on the floor, you do get a nice view! If it is still warm in Orlando this year, you do have a nice pool area, then you have the Pantry where you can get food and it is pretty nicely priced but if you don’t want to buy there there are restaurants in the surrounding area including Wendy’s, CiCi’s, and so much more! I also heard they decorate the hotel nice for Christmas, I know in the event rooms they do but haven’t seen the outside so get your cameras ready!

Registration Info: Of course we have to mention Registration which is important for any of you going to any convention! To buy tickets you will be buying them through Event Bright, you can also do it through the Event Bright app on your IOS and Andorid devices which once installing the app and signing up, you search for Orlando, FL and Holiday Matsuri will be listed or you can try searching for this event too to make it easier. The passes availkable now are the Three Day pass, the VIP Pass, and the Forever Festive Pass. If you want single day, those will be available online closer to the event so keep an eye out on the website as December gets closer.

If you bought any tickets during September, $5 of sales went to Save The Children which is a charity that helped displaced kids during Hurricane Irma. You can donate through their link on the Registration page which I will link to here:

http://holidaymatsuri.com/2017registration/

It will also include all the registration and pass info! I would say pre-register as soon as possible even if you are getting a pass for aloved one as an early holiday gift! (Not bad of an idea!)

Guests: This year there are a variety of guests which you can check out here:

http://holidaymatsuri.com/2017guests/

Some of the guests include:

Christina V.: She is the new voice of Sailor Mars and of course Homura Akemi in Madoka Majica.
J. Michale Tatum: Scar in FullMetal Alchemist: Brotherhood and Sebastion in Black Butler.
Brandon McInnis: Appeared in Black Butler as well.
Fred Tatasciore: He was just announced and you may know him as the Incredible Hulk in Avengers Assemble!

Vendor’s Room: For anyone who needs a last minute holiday gift, Holiday Matsuri is your best stop for that nerd who loves anime, movies, video games, etc. in your family or your significant other! You can find a variety of merch and artist made items in this room. Can’t wait to see what vendors they bring to this room this year!

Events and Contests: If you are wondering about events and contests, you can find information about contest sign up and other info here: http://holidaymatsuri.com/2017contestsandevents/

If you haven’t seen our cosplay gallery where we included pics of the winners from last year’s Holiday Runway COntest, I would say search for it on here! It is a very fun and festive contest where people do holiday themed versions of characters that we know and love!

Well, that is it for this Convention Spotlight! This year’s convention will be exciting and hoping to see you guys there in holiday cosplay or in regular clothes! In case if you guys need some night life outside of the convention, there is always Disney down the road even Disney Springs since they will be going through their Holiday Events especially Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party and Universal doing their holiday stuff as well. And of course, Last Jedi is opening in December and Thor Ragnarok will still be in theaters which Gondras and I are excited for that!

Hope to see you guys there! What is next? I am thinking of updating the Convention Snacks post because I do have two new entries to add and it would help in the snack department for you all who are staying at any hotel during any convention, even for Holiday Matsuri! You guys can also find our past Holiday Matsuri coverage which includes the Cosplay Galerries from the past two years, our interviews with Josh Seth, Mary Elizabeth McGlynn, Steve Blum, and Todd Haberkorn! You can head over to our YouTube channel for all of our Holiday Matsuri videos!

SO that is it! Until next time and stay tuned for our Last Minute Info post in December!

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by moonleopard85 on October 14, 2017  •  Permalink
Posted in anime, Cartoons, conventions, cosplay, Gaming, Internet, Travel

Posted by moonleopard85 on October 14, 2017

https://nerdyshiqueuniverse.com/2017/10/14/convention-spotlight-holiday-matsuri-2017/

Cartoons: RWBY Volume 4 Review

Disclaimer: This review is based on opinions and observations of the Lead Writer and Producer of this blog! Please respect her thoughts and feelings on what’s ahead and there may be spoilers!

Hello Shiquers and welcome back to Nerdy Shique Universe! Looks like I found something to write and that is the review on the latest season of RWBY! Yes, a season has come and gone and man it was quick for one too. Let’s see what I have to say!

Show: RWBY
Season: Volume 4

The Story So Far: So, it’s been months since the fall of Beacon and our heroes are now scattered. Weiss is at home in Atlas, Blake is heading home to get away from her friends, Yang is upset after losing her arm and Ruby is now traveling with the remaining team members of JNPR, Jean, Ren, and Nora to form the newer team RNGR in order to head for Mistral.

Things start to come together when the White Fang starts popping up again when Cinder returns with the Fall Maiden powers but has a hard time harnessing them due to what had Ruby done to her. Blake figures out that she wants to change the White Fang to a group that is not so sinister. Weiss ends up with family issues and feels that she doesn’t belong in the world of the rich and sets out on her own in hoping to reunite with the others. Yang gets a newer arm and heads out on her own after going through a life lessons with dad and Ruby encounters her uncle on the road and a new member of the White Fang who wants revenge on her for what she did to Cinder and even encounters a Grimm that shown up in Nora’s and Ren’s past that they still have nightmares about.

Thoughts: Oh man! Where to start? This season seems to have a lot of things since it did fill in the blanks after the end of Volume 3 and does show what had happened to the rest of Team RWBY. I found interesting, even though it did kind of annoyed Gondras with each episode, that they not only focus on one character for one episode but multiple characters as in it starts one person in one episode and then cuts to another which I can see it takes a George R. R. Marten idea when he wrote Song of Fire & Ice (in case if anyone is wondering, no I don’t catch up with the show, I just read the books and I do know what had happened with seasons 4 and 5 with how the story was taking a turn away from the books…soooo yeah!) What I mean by this is that in A Storm of Swords, Marten explained that time goes differently with hwhre the characters are as in it may be one week with one character and then a month later with another which I see it in this volume. As in, it is breakfast time with Weiss and her brother, Whitley one day and then it’s evening with Crow at a bar somewhere else. I did like that about this season and plus it gives us newer aspects of the adventure instead of doing one single character for every episode. I think the only character focused episodes wher where Blake went home to Minagery, when Crow tells them everything that is going on after Beacon fell, and when they told Ren’s and Nora’s back story since they were heading for their old village and how they came to be. I did like that back story episode the most since I did realize when I first watched the second episode Iad onward where I noticed Ren being a little off, I saw why he was after seeing what had happened in his past. Now I can see why he went to Beacon and same with Nora.

There was one part I wished they focused and that is a bit more on Cinder. When they cut back to her, Salem mentioned that she was scarred from what Ruby had done to her and that is causing her newer powers to cause her not to harness them. I wished that was shown a bit more and how she was suffering from the pain and finally getting to harness them. That would be an awesome episode or do one where the Fall powers inside of her are trying to fight her because they know they aren’t inside of Amber and should be in her or in Pira since she had one part of them in the end of Volume 3. That would’ve been a great character driven episode and would start incorporating the other maidens to see what had happen to Amber since at the beginning of the season that Spring is next. I am hoping by the next volume that they really start showing the other maidens. Another thing they should’ve shown was what was the deal with the visions of Pira we kept seeing in the first two episodes. I was wondering if that is a sign that she might not be dead or if she is telling them something about the powers? They didn’t really say much until Crow shown up to explain more things about the Fall maiden’s powers and how Pira chose to take the other part when Cinder had the first half. They should’ve done something more about those visions unless Rooster Teeth is waiting to put more ideas about that in Volume 5.

The Cast: The next thing I want to talk about is the cast! Of course they brought everyone back for the main cast but I kind of feel like Blake’s voice was a little off. I noticed how it went from low to high like someone has gone through a major voice change from kid to adult. I love Blake and her character design but I feel that the voice should’ve had a better recording and stick to what I loved back in the first three volumes.

I did like how they were starting to bring more anime actors as the season progressed. Vic Mignogna did return as Crow and Jessica Nigery arturned as Cinder but they brought in more for this season like J. Micaael Tatum as Weiss’ butler Clyne, Tara Platt as Blake’s mom, and the ones that surprised me the most were Kent Williams as Blake’s dad and Josh Grelle as Tierion. With Kent, I was hearing his voice and thinking, “I know that voice from somewhere!” That was when I searched on Google and was like “No way!” when it was frevealed. I almost thought it was John Burgmeier but I remember his Shigure Sohma voice is usually used, especially for Freed in Fairy Tail. Nope, it was Kent Willians since he was using more of his Akisami voice from Kenichi the Mightiest Disciple. I think what gave a subtle clue was how he told Sun, “I really hate you.” In one episode of the show. While Josh, on the other hand, I did not know it was him until Gondras saw his name in the very ending credits. This voice was new to hear for me since I am used to Josh doing more of the gentler characters like Kennichi and Arman but here he is a psycho. As in, a dude that ends being found out as a fawnness with a scorpion tail looking for blood.All I have to say is that Josh did an excellent job with the script he was handed and the character he had to portray. It normally takes a lot of skill to do something like that but with his voice acting background, he knows what he is doing even in screams.

Music: Now it’s time for the music in the series. Normally, we get a mix of metal and orchestraic music but this volume had more orchestra tracks to it. I hear more of the softer tones to this volume because this season had more of a dramatic tone to it even with all the dots being connected in each episode. We even hear music that is sinister to go with more of the parts that deal with the White Fang and enemies revealed which means the music was made to fit with the different tones and moods in every episode. The opening theme song for this volume, “Let’s Just Live,” fits with the season because it just says in its title and goes with the idea of how each character is going through their own conflicts in every episode. I find it funny how the other themes went from rockin’ in “This Will Be the Day” to alternative in “Time to Say Goodbye” and then to pure metal in “When It Falls.” This one seems to be more uplifting despite how deep and dark this volume became to be. I am wondering what they will be doing for the next volume’s soundtrack including the theme song.

Rating: 4.5 Pawprints Out of 5! I bet you are wondering why I took a half of a point off, I would say it’s due to some of the unanswered questions of why the visions of Pira and not focusing an episode on Cinder since I would love to know how she copes with things. Yes, they did kind of address but it felt a bit short in that during episode 11. I did like some of the other points taking place and I am hoping that Volume 5 would add the missing blanks such as in what is Whitley doing with this when he is acting so strange, then of course the kid with Ozpen in his head since Crow mentioned there were two parts to him and it was answered slightly. I hope that part gets addressed in the next volume. Plus, I kind of felt like the ending was a bit abrupt and that that there should’ve been more added to the season. Who knows how the next volume would be done, we have to wait until around September to find out.

That is about it! I know it was long but hey there is a lot to cover when it comes to RWBY. What is next? I think another book review may happen, so stay tuned!

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by moonleopard85 on February 12, 2017  •  Permalink
Posted in Cartoons, Internet, Reviews

Posted by moonleopard85 on February 12, 2017

https://nerdyshiqueuniverse.com/2017/02/12/cartoons-rwby-volume-4-review/

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