By Logan Thomas – Staff Reporter 

The comedy film “Grown Ups” was released on June 25, 2010. The star of the movie, Adam Sandler, plays the role of Lenny, a very rich man with three kids who married a fashion model. This movie is a household favorite for many people and has many funny scenes that will leave viewers giggling.

The movie involves five childhood friends named Lenny, Eric, Kurt, Marcus, and Rob, who reunite after their childhood basketball coach passes away. They decide to go off on a boys trip with their spouses and have a fun weekend together, feeling nostalgic about the experience. Lenny and his family have to leave for his wife’s fashion show but they decide to skip that and stay at the Lake. All the grown-ups have a great weekend away from their homes.

“Grown Ups” is full of hilarious scenes, including when Eric goes on a rope swing and bangs into a tree, killing a bird. There were also many surprising parts. When Lenny was a kid, he never missed a basketball shot from a certain spot, they revisit the childhood memory and he still ends up making the shot.. “Grown Ups” included great flashbacks  from their childhood to the present day. During the movie, many scenes included jokes that were delivered in a way that viewers had to understand the context of the movie to realize that they were jokes. 

As good as “Grown Ups” was, there were some elements that could be improved. For example, “Grown Ups” doesn’t go into detail about the coach that died. Viewers should be able to see what his life was like before he died because this is how the movie started. The producers could have added a flashback to before he died or flashbacks from the five friends. The coach’s relationship with the guys could have been added as well.

All in all, “Grown Ups” is a great movie to watch that gets audiences in a humorous mood. Those who don’t want to watch a horror movie or an adventure movie should watch “Grown Ups.” This is a great movie to watch with a bowl of popcorn and some candy by your side with your friends.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

By Aiden Ramos – Staff Reporter 

The first half of Season 4 of Netflix’s “Outer Banks,” released on October 10, brings the Pogues back to the Outer Banks after their incredible discovery of El Dorado’s treasure. With hopes for a quieter life, they set up “Poguelandia 2.0,” planning to live together and establish a small business in their coastal home. However, as financial pressures build up, their dreams of peace fade, and the allure of another legendary treasure pulls them back into the high-stakes world of treasure hunting. This time, the quest is even more intriguing, they’re offered a lead on Blackbeard’s treasure, a fabled fortune with a temptation that seems irresistible.

The cast’s chemistry remains a highlight in Season 4. The bond among the Pogues feels more grounded and authentic, reflecting the deep ties they’ve built over seasons of shared trials and victories. John B, Sarah, JJ, Kiara, and Pope are all back, and their relationships add emotional weight to the adventure, making their struggles and victories feel even more meaningful. The series also does an excellent job showcasing the stunning scenery of the Outer Banks and other dive locations, which enhances the sense of real adventure and immerses viewers in the journey. The underwater sequences, particularly during JJ and Kiara’s tense dive where they encounter an unexpected guest, add a thrilling quality to the show. This moment becomes a standout scene, raising the stakes and keeping viewers on edge.

The addition of Blackbeard’s treasure introduces a fresh layer of intrigue. Unlike their previous quests, this treasure comes with a storied past that deepens the plot, offering both historical fascination and a dangerous allure. The mystery surrounding Blackbeard’s lost fortune raises the tension and adds a supernatural edge.

While Season 4 maintains a strong momentum, it’s not without its flaws. Some plot elements can feel repetitive, especially the familiar pattern of the Pogues attempting to settle down, only to be drawn back into treasure hunting by circumstances beyond their control. This cycle, while central to the series, risks feeling predictable for long-time viewers. Additionally, a few new antagonists introduced this season don’t quite live up to the more compelling villains of previous seasons. Their motivations feel underdeveloped, which lessens their impact and reduces the stakes in some scenes. The show’s fast pace, while exciting, sometimes sacrifices character development, leaving certain emotional moments feeling rushed. Spending a bit more time on the characters’ personal growth and dilemmas could have given the season complexity.

“Outer Banks” Season 4 delivers another thrilling, adventure-filled installment that balances suspense, loyalty, and the allure of the unknown. Fans will enjoy the blend of high-energy scenes, unexpected twists, and the unwavering bonds among the Pogues.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

By Aaryan Doshi – Staff Reporter

“Happy Gilmore,” released in 1996 and directed by Dennis Dugan, is a classic sports comedy starring Adam Sandler as Happy Gilmore, a hot-tempered, unsuccessful hockey player with a surprising talent for golf. The movie begins with Gilmore’s struggle to succeed in hockey, where his lack of skill and explosive temper prevent him from making it as a professional. However, when his grandmother’s house faces foreclosure due to unpaid taxes, Gilmore realizes he quickly needs to earn money to save her home. By chance, he discovers that his aggressive hockey slapshot translates into an incredible and unique golf swing.

The story follows Gilmore’s journey as he battles his way through various golf tournaments, all in pursuit of the prize money he needs. His loud personality, crude behavior, and unusual style create a significant culture clash in the world of professional golf. As he gains popularity among fans for his wild antics and incredible power on the course, he also earns a powerful enemy, Shooter McGavin, an arrogant golfer who despises Gilmore’s newfound success. Determined to remove Gilmore from the sport, Shooter becomes his main rival, and the two face off. 

The movie’s appeal lies in its creative mix of sports and comedy. Sandler’s humor and high-energy style bring a fun, unconventional perspective to golf, a sport that’s typically seen as serious and slow-paced. Happy Gilmore is rough around the edges and has a short fuse, his genuine love for his grandma and determination to save her home make him more likable. Watching him navigate the golf world while trying to hold his own against other professionals is both ridiculous and entertaining. The heart of the story comes from Gilmore’s motivation, which is saving his grandma’s home.

Though Happy Gilmore is beloved for its humor, it has some weak points that may not appeal to all viewers. The film leans heavily on crude jokes, slapstick comedy, and exaggerated physical humor, which some might find repetitive or immature. The story follows a somewhat predictable underdog sports movie formula, making the plot easy to anticipate. Shooter McGavin, while an effective enemy for Gilmore, is somewhat one-dimensional and cartoonish. The over-the-top nature of some scenes, from Gilmore’s incredible golfing abilities to his explosive reactions, makes the movie feel like a series of funny skits.

Ultimately, “Happy Gilmore” is a memorable comedy that turns a typical sports movie into something unconventional. Sandler’s performance and the mix of humor and heart make it a rewatchable film. The movie’s simple charm, combined with a feel-good story about unlikely success, appeals to fans of lighthearted comedies. 

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

By Will Smith – Entertainment Editor

“The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom” released on September 26 and was published by Nintendo. The game is a new spin on the Zelda title as it is the first game in the series where users play as Princess Zelda.

Instead of fighting with a sword in the game, players obtain the Tri rod from the spirit Tri which allows them to create echoes. Echoes are recreations of objects and monsters found around Hyrule. As players travel through Hyrule, they will encounter rifts that plague the world. Rifts are a mysterious portal to the still world that will swallow everything that they touch. With some help from the companion Tri, players can mend the rifts to save Hyrule.

With the new Echoes feature it allows for more strategy in the game. Each echo is limited depending on how hard it was to obtain and what it can do. With each rift players close, the more Tri’s power can become available to use. Players can then create either stronger echoes or make more weaker echoes. Using echoes requires strategy and some puzzle solving depending on each situation. Each adventure will be unique in the way players decide to go about doing things with echoes.

Players don’t just get the Tri rod in the game; they can also obtain the sword of might. The sword of might allows the player to go into sword fighter mode and use a sword, shield, arrows, and bombs like in previous games. Sword fighter mode can only be used for limited amounts of time. Players can upgrade sword fighter mode by collecting might crystals around Hyrule. This will allow players to stay in sword fighter form for longer and increase damage dealt in this mode.

One downside to the game is that the world is too small. There are not a whole lot of places to visit in the open world of the game. It feels like it takes a few minutes to get from one end of the map to the other, unlike “The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom” where there are a lot of different places to visit. While the map does feel small, dungeons certainly make up for it as they take a decent amount of time to complete.

Overall, the game makes a great addition to the “Legend of Zelda” franchise with its new game mechanics and finally being able to play as Zelda. 

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

By Will Smith – Entertainment Editor

“EA Sports: College Football 25” was released officially for consoles on July 19. The game is the first college football game to be released since “NCAA Football 2014” in 2013.

The game has a multitude of game modes to choose from. Play Now is a game mode used to play a game of college football. This game mode can be played with friends both online cross platform included or users can play together on the same console. Players pick their teams, select the settings they want to use, and enjoy.

Road to Glory is a game mode where players can make a custom character and play through their time in college football. Characters can be a middle linebacker, cornerback, halfback, receiver, or quarterback. The character the player creates will also start with a certain level of skill. Once a player has completed character creation, they choose which college they want to attend. Each week, users have energy to do various activities such as keeping grades up or building a character’s fame. Players should put some energy into each one and not put all of their eggs in one basket. Additionally, players are able to transfer their characters to “Madden 25” after they’ve graduated from college. 

Dynasty is a game mode where players become the coach of their own college football team. This game mode features an online mode (not compatible with cross-platform), so users are able to create their own league with friends. In this game mode, the biggest priority is recruiting talent for one’s team so that the team can become better off than it was before. Depending on how well the team performs each week, players will earn EXP to improve their coaching styles such as tactician, recruitment, or motivator. 

Road to College Football Playoffs is a head to head game mode. There are 10 teams if players win against eight of them, they are put into the College football playoffs. Each team is a different tier – the better the team, the higher tier the team will be. If users play as a lower tier team and win, they can earn more ranked points. Playing as a higher tier team will earn less points playing against lower tier schools.

Lastly, College Football Ultimate Team is an online game mode where the goal is to create the best team possible by purchasing or earning packs of players to use to make the ultimate team. There is a wide variety of players that users can win from packs. Challenges which can be used to earn points can vary in difficulty which can result in different amounts of points being earned or even exclusive rewards.

The game boasts lots of variety in its gameplay and designs. Each college has its own unique intro to the football game that will be played depending on the college. If a team is the visitor, the opposing crowd can interfere with their screen. The screen can shake and even make users forget their play calls. 

The only negative about the game is it’s not innovative enough. EA took the most basic ideas and put them into the game. The game is essentially a Madden game with college teams. It feels like sports video games have stagnated when it comes to innovation while the game has good graphics and mechanics it lacks any real growth when it comes to differences in previous games. Besides the graphics, who’s playing, and how high the players overall are not a lot changes when it comes to how the game is played. There’s always been a Play Now, Custom Character, Dynasty Mode, and Ultimate Team in “Madden.”

Overall, the game is a step in the right direction for EA as “College Football 25” shows some growth from previous “Madden” games.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

By Ava Grippo – Entertainment Editor

“Clown In A Cornfield” is a young adult horror novel. It is the first book in the trilogy written by Adam Cesare, followed by “Clown In A Cornfield: Frendo Lives” and “Clown In A Cornfield: The Church of Frendo.” The novel was published on August 2, 2020. The story follows Quinn, a teenage girl moving to Kettle Springs, a run-down town with a clown as the mascot. 

Cesare writes about the setting, “Philly ate its rot, was constantly demolishing the old to make way for the new. Looking at these houses, Quinn was struck with the feeling that Kettle Springs had left its best days behind. The town had given up.”

Quinn’s father recently received an offer to be the town’s new resident doctor. Quickly after moving, Quinn is able to meet several new friends. One night at an annual party the kids throw, a group of killer clowns dressed up as the town’s mascot, Frendo, make it their goal to murder the kids the night of the party. 

The story follows Quinn and her newfound friends – Cole, Janet, Matt and Ronnie, along with her new neighbor, Rust – as they try to survive the murderous clowns with machetes. 

The novel is essentially a 1990s slasher film in the form of a book. There are also elements of humor, betrayal, and romance wrapped up into one 300-page novel. 

Cesare does a great job keeping readers entertained as they follow Quinn and other characters’ points of view through the night of horror. The story keeps people reading, one unexpected event after another. 

One thing that the book could have done better is fleshing out the characters. The book relied heavily on the plot. Although the characters did portray backstories and emotions and have distinct personalities, they were pretty one-dimensional. The characters include:

Quinn, the strong, independent new girl who says, “Yeah, Well, I’ve decided a change will do me good.” 

Cole, the troubled boy: “He’s pretty cute, for an arsonist.”

Janet, the tough girl: “Quinn had met girls like Janet before. Ameatur lawyers.” 

Ronnie, the princess: “She had blond ringlets and a side ponytail. Chewing gum snapping. White jeans and a T-shirt so tight it might’ve been body paint. She looked how Quinn had expected the popular girls in Kettle Springs to look” 

Matt, the jock: “Quinn sniffed and realized that she could no longer smell Janet’s perfume. Because Matt stank of booze”

The book was incredibly fast-paced, which had a positive effect on the story, but it also made it more difficult to develop the characters. The characters do each have their special moment in the story, where they get to either have their breakthrough or hero moment. 

Fans of slasher films will definitely love “Clown In A Cornfield.”

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

By Ava Grippo – Entertainment Editor

“That’s Not My Name” is a YA thriller written by Megan Lally and published on December 26, 2023. The book follows a teenage boy trying to solve the mystery of his missing girlfriend while being the main suspect in the case. Meanwhile, a girl is found on the side of the road with no memory.

The book is told from two points of view. Drew, whose girlfriend, Lola, has recently gone missing, is on a search with his cousin and his girlfriend’s best friend to find out where she went. Together, the three of them follow any leads they can get their hands on without attracting more attention to Drew. 

“I need Lola to call,” Drew says. “All these weeks later, I still expect to see her name on my screen every time it rings. With every ping of a text message, I think it’s her. And every time it’s not, I feel it all over again – the suffocating loop of hope turns to dread.”

The second point of view follows Mary, the girl found in the woods who is brought in by a man who claims to be her father. Her story follows her as she gets adjusted to her ‘new’ old life with no memories. 

“How can my own father not know what I’m allergic to?” Mary thinks.

Lally does a great job keeping readers on their toes with both points of views, wondering what happened to Drew’s girlfriend (and is this guy really Mary’s father?) The characters are well written with depth and personality. 

Drew is a teenage boy who will do anything to figure out what happened to Lola. He is determined to find her and prove his innocence to the entire town who has painted him as the boyfriend who hurt his own girlfriend. 

“Worst of all: Would she still be here now if I didn’t do what I did,” Drew wonders.

Mary is curious and confused as she navigates her life with no memories. She stays strong throughout the novel even as things get more and more suspicious. 

This book rivals other YA mystery novels such as “A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder” with an intense plot that does a fabulous job of keeping the readers enticed in the story with twists and turns, where they feel the need to keep reading to figure out the truth. 

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

By Molly Lynch – News Editor

Sabrina Carpenter released her highly anticipated sixth studio album, “Short n’ Sweet,” in August. 

“Short n’ Sweet” debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200, making it the third biggest first-week debut in the United States in 2024. There are 12 songs on the album and the lead single “Espresso” hit #1 on the Billboard 200 and has around 1.2 billion streams. The album consists of both more mellow and easygoing songs like “Sharpest Tool” and “Dumb and Poetic” as well as more upbeat songs like “Taste” and “Please Please Please.” The album has a variety of songs which makes it easy for anyone to resonate with them. 

“Espresso,” “Please Please Please,” and “Taste” have music videos with the songs. Fans are anticipating more music videos with other songs on this album. “Please Please Please” stars Carpenter as well as Barry Keoghan, her boyfriend. “Taste” stars Carpenter as well as Jenna Ortega. 

Carpenter’s song, “Please Please Please” is about relationship insecurities and falling in love with someone who doesn’t make good decisions. Throughout the song, Carpenter pleads for the person she is in love saying, “Please, Please, Please, don’t prove I’m right,” and “Please, Please, Please, don’t bring me to tears when I just did my makeup so nice.” These lyrics explain that her love interest is doing things that upset her and she is pleading for them to not prove her right and to not make her cry. 

Carpenter’s song, “Taste” is about the lasting influence one has on an ex after a breakup. The first lyric of the song “Oh, I leave quite an impression, five feet to be exact” explains how she leaves an impression on her ex despite her height. Fans speculate that this song is about an alleged love triangle between Carpenter, Shawn Mendez, and Camila Cabello. 

Out of the many new albums released in 2024, Carpenter did an amazing job standing her ground against artists like Ariana Grande, Charli XCX, Billie Eilish, etc who also had albums released around the same time. Many would argue that “Espresso” was the song of the summer due to the fact that it was being played everywhere, which is my only weak point I could find about the album. The song is great, but after a few months it is still continuing to be played on the radio and in stores. It has had its time and should be put to rest.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

By Julia Ryan – Staff Reporter

Taylor Swift announced her 11th studio album, “The Tortured Poets Department,” on February 4 at the Grammys, after she won Best Pop Vocal Album for “Midnights.” On April 19, the album was released at midnight with 15 songs. But, this was not the end of the album because she also dropped a surprise double album at 2 a.m. called, “The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology.”  Swifts calls herself the chairman of, “The Tortured Poets Department,” and believes that once we have spoken our saddest story we can be free of it; Then all that’s left behind is the tortured poetry. The album genre consists of a synth-pop sound, with rock and folk styling. Her music and storytelling reflects everything that she has gone through within the past two years, while on tour and re-releasing many of her previous albums. Swift’s storytelling comes into play as many of these songs on the album are about her ex boyfriend of six years, Joe Alwyn, her short lived relationship with Matt Healy and Travis Kelce, her current boyfriend. From the second this album was dropped Taylor Swift’s fans, also known as Swifites, have been continuing to analyze her lyrics and the poetry among it all. 

Track number one on the album is called, “Fortnight.” It is currently the first track to be announced as a single that has a collaboration and music video with Post Malone. The lyrics in the song repeatedly come back to, “I love you, it’s ruining my life.” In this exact lyric Swift leaves nothing to the imagination by expressing exactly how she feels. The music video she directed and produced is an accurate representation of what she pictured as the song’s message. The music video takes place in a mental hospital/insane asylum where she is dressed as Clara Bow. Throughout this music video and the track from “The Anthology,” “Clara Bow,” Swift draws parallels between her and Bow’s respective careers and highly publicized lives in the spotlight. Another collaboration on the album is, “Florida!!! Featuring Florence + The Machine.” This song is unlike any other on the album because it is not about a former boyfriend or exciting new one, it is a message about escape. If you could guess it, Taylor Swift meant for that escape to be Florida and continues on in the chorus where Swift and Florence Welch belt, “Florida/ Is one h*ll of a drug/ Florida/ Can I use you up?”

“So Long, London,” was one of the most anticipated songs on the album and it did not disappoint. Joe Alwyn, from Swift’s previous 6 year relationship, was from London. Fans went wild when they first heard about the title to this track because he was her muse for many years especially when writing the album and song, “Lover.” The lyrics towards the end of the song are, “For so long, London, had a good run, a moment of warm sun, but I’m not the one.” Ultimately Swift gave up on the relationship after she knew she wasn’t the one and no longer felt the joy she felt when she was writing her song, “London Boy” on the album, “Lover.” Not only did Swift write about Alwyn, but she wrote about Matt Healy and her interesting relationship with him. Fans were surprised that there were a lot of songs about him, but it was blatantly obvious when many of her lyrics were gravitating towards him. In the song, “The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived,” Swift wrote, “And I don’t miss what we had, but could someone give, a message to the smallest man who ever lived.” As Swift talks about Matt Healy and the small man he is, she gives insight on how the short lived relationship, that many people had thought fizzled out on its own, clearly had more to the story within the lyrics in this song. 

Travis Kelce was the subject of two songs on the album: “The Alchemy,” and “The Anthology” track “So High School.” “The Alchemy” is a representation of the chemistry between Swift and Kelce and how they could not deny that there was something between them. Their relationship was rumored to start sometime around after Kelce attended her concert and tried to give her his number on a friendship bracelet after the show. Their “Love Story, ” is so entertaining, that some might say they are the real life Grabriella Montez and Troy Bolton. Expressed in the lyrics, “You know how to ball, I know Aristotle,” Swift compares how different this relationship is for her and how she feels so giddy around him, like she is back in high school. The mix between moods and emotions on this album is something that no other album has done.  

Other songs on the album are rumored to be about her fans, showbiz, her career, Kim Kardashian, Kanye West, and her childhood.  In, “Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me,” Taylor touches upon her career and how showbiz has changed her in many ways. This connects with the song, “I Can Do It With a Broken Heart,” where it is believed that she is talking about how she had to go on and perform for her fans during her famous world record breaking tour, “Eras Tour,” after having ended things with Joe. It is no secret that Swift’s severely famous lifestyle isn’t easy but through her songwriting she has the ability to let it all out and leave it in the past. Although many people tend to gravitate towards her pop albums it still contains many great hits. The folk styling is just like her albums, “Folklore,” and “Evermore.” Many people say it is a long lost cousin to the album, “Midnights.” Either way Swift has a way of reaching large audiences of more than just Swifities because she is able to resonate experiences with others. Between the entire 31 songs on the album there is a good mix between sad and upbeat songs. 

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

By Ava Grippo – Staff Reporter

“Daisy Jones & The Six” is a novel by Taylor Jenkins Reid, who is also popular for her works “Malibu Rising” and “The Seven Husbands Of Evelyn Hugo.” The book was released in 2019, and became a miniseries in 2023.

“Daisy Jones & The Six” is about a band of seven members. Billy Dunne and Daisy Jones, the songwriters and singers, Karen Sirko, the pianist, Graham Dunne and Eddie Roundtree the guitarists, and Warren Rhodes, the drummer. The book follows the band through their rise to fame and success. The book contains a whole lot of drama that keeps readers turning the pages. 

The band starts off with Billy, Graham, Warren and Eddie as the members of the band, Karen joining during their first tour, and Daisy joining in on their second, changing the whole course of the band. Daisy and Billy had this intense connection from the start. Their voices blended perfectly together when they sang, and when they worked together to write songs, great ones were produced. 

“Daisy Jones & The Six” is a page-turner. It is written in an interview format, which is unique in itself. A journalist is asking the band to share the drama that went on during their success. Romantic relationships and Friendships were challenged throughout the book. It shows how the band went from being best friends, to slowly falling apart. Billy and Graham’s sibling bond, Billy’s loyalty to his family, Eddie’s loyalty to Billy, Karen and Grahams feelings for each other, was all tested several times throughout the story. 

During their second album, called Aurora, also a song in the album, was featured in both the book and miniseries. The song was one of their biggest hits. The song starts off with “You found me in flames/Its daylights of change/Baby, all that stuff is done/You’re my morning sun.”

The book does a great job creating music. The story is loosely based off of Fleetwood Mac, the songs in the show sounding quite like them. The vibe and beats are similar. The songs feel as if they could have been songs released by an actual band, and enjoyed by all. They are catchy, sweet, and fun. You can really tell how the characters are feeling through the lyrics. 

The characters in the book are also complex and interesting. Each one had a story. Billy was someone who likes things his way, who after missing the birth of his kid while in rehab for alcoholism and drug use, he works hard to not relapse and be a good father. Graham tries his best to be there for his brother and the band, even if personal issues come in the way. Eddie, who is fed up with Billy, tries his best to stay calm and work with him. Daisy, who’s just as stubborn as Billy, tries to work with him and the band, working through her own issues of self-worth. 

This book is a character-driven story, full of drama that keeps readers entertained. If you like a fun ride, “Daisy Jones & The Six” is for you. 

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

By Alexia Poloski – Staff Reporter

Olivia Rodrigo released the pop-rock album “Guts” in September 2023. “Guts” is Rodrigo’s second studio album following her massive debut album “Sour.” 

“Guts” was predicted to be a radio hit ever since it was first announced in June 2023. The album includes 12 songs and spans 39 minutes. There is also one bonus song, “Obsessed,” that comes with the physical record if fans purchase it. 

“’Guts’ is another instant classic,” Rolling Stone Magazine said. “It includes some of her most ambitious, intimate and messy lyrics yet.”

The singles on “Guts” include “Vampire,” “Bad Idea, Right?,” and “Get Him Back.” While all of these songs are singles, they are all extremely different from one another. “Vampire” is a timeless ballad that captures Olivia’s real and raw emotions after a break up. “Bad Idea, Right?” is a classic radio hit with catchy lyrics and an upbeat melody. “Get Him Back” could also be considered a classic radio hit but it also has a very “campy” feel that makes the song all the more relatable.

The “Guts” album is most widely known for its punk rock ballads but it also has a number of heartfelt, slower, and melancholy songs as well. These songs include “Lacy,” “Making The Bed,” “Logical,” “The Grudge,” and “Teenage Dream.” “Lacy” touches on themes such as jealousy and desire. “The Grudge” is considered a fan favorite and speaks on a relationship that hurt way more than it hurt the other person – which a lot of young adults find relatable. 

While the “Guts” album was mainly produced by Olivia Rodrigo herself, it also featured work from co-producer Dan Nigro. Nigro also helped with the production of Olivia’s first studio album, “Sour”.

Songs featuring a music video include “Get Him Back,” “Vampire,” and“ Bad Idea, Right?” However, fans are anticipating more music videos in the near future.

While fans anticipated Olivia’s second album they were worried it would not live up to her first. However fans and the general public have quickly come to realize that the two albums serve two completely different purposes. As Teen Magazine writes, “Sour was so authentic and relatable to anyone going through a deep breakup. Whereas Guts was about every teenager’s life, heartbreak stereotypes and just life in general.”

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

By Ava Grippo – Staff Reporter 

Remember that show about the boy with no belly button? “Kyle XY,” a sci-fi series released in 2006, was about a teenage boy who was found alone and naked in the middle of the street with no memory. The Tragers, a middle class family, took him in and the lost boy quickly found a home.  

“My birth was unconventional at best,” Kyle says. “My first memory was waking up in the forest. Like a newborn baby, I had no idea who I was or what was happening. My eyes weren’t sure what they were seeing. Every sight, sound and feeling was unfamiliar. Every species is born with instincts that ultimately create a balance with nature. Every species except the one I was born into.”

The cast consists of Matt Dallas, who plays Kyle; April Matson and Jean-Luc Bilodeau, who play Kyle’s new siblings, Josh and Lori; and Marguerite Maclntyre and Bruce Thomas, who play Kyle’s new adoptive parents. The show ran for three seasons with 44 episodes total. 

The mystery of where Kyle came from is explored throughout the show, with each episode revealing new clues that lead up to the big reveal. Kyle has no bellybutton, super smarts, polarity manipulation, holographic memory, superhuman senses, strength and durability, can manipulate his body electricity, and can heal injuries and diseases. 

The show gives you a look into Kyle’s minds and thoughts as he adjusts to his new life and the mysteries surrounding him. Kyle is determined to find out the truth of who he is. 

Kyle XY is full of drama, family, romance and mystery. Characters bonds are memorable, such as Kyle and Amanda, who’s dynamic has you rooting for them throughout the show. Josh, and his girlfriend Andy’s relationship is one that everyone desires. Kyle and his bromance with a character named Declen should be a friendship that people strive for. The family bonds with Kyle, Josh, and Lori warms the heart. The family and romance drama really keeps viewers entertained throughout the show. Even with the show bringing on quite a load of second hand embarrassment, it still manages to fill viewers with joy. 

“Life is a journey, and the road we travel has twists and turns which sometimes leads us to unexpected places and unexpected people,” Kyle says. “The road we travel is unpredictable, sometimes it’s smooth and sometimes it’s filled with bumps. But if we’re lucky, we find people to travel with us. Our journey is really a search, a yearning for love and connection,  and sometimes it leads us back home.” 

Don’t miss out of this sci-fi series just because it’s old and may seem a little odd. Want to find out the secret of Kyle’s past and why he has all these abilities? Hulu has you covered with an all three seasons! 

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

By Zack Sulkis – Social Media Editor-In-Chief

Kanye West and Ty Dolla $ign dropped their long awaited collaboration album “Vultures 1” by surprise on February 9. This is the first of three editions the duo is going to release and if Volumes 2 and 3 end up sounding anything like Volume 1, they are going to have three instant classics on their hands.

“Vultures 1” demonstrates a sound that’s both experimental yet very signature to Kanye West. The album has some striking similarities to some of Ye’s past work like “Yeezus” and “Life of Pablo.”

“Vultures 1” feels like a much needed return for Kanye West, leaving the clean era of albums like “Jesus is King” and “Donda” behind and going back to his gritty ways with hard hitting beats and iconic features.

The best example of this is on the song “CARNIVAL.” “CARNIVAL” is a song by the duo that additionally features Playboi Carti and Rich the Kid and is truly a masterpiece. “CARNIVAL” is a fast-paced, hard-hitting song that shares similarities to Travis Scott’s “FE!N” which was released last year which also featured Playboi Carti. The song has a chanting chorus with multiple fast verses that give off the vibe of some of Kanye’s earlier work on albums like “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy,” where so many artists are featured that every rapper has one verse and they switch from one person to another, dropping iconic lines one after another. 

Other notable songs include “BURN,” “PAPERWORK,” “PAID,” “VULTURES,” “BACK TO ME,” and “KING.” All the songs feature very unique sampling, most notably with “BACK TO ME” having audio samples from the 90s comedy Dogma which make up the majority of the chorus. 

Kanye West is a very controversial rapper who is always making headlines for many different reasons. His wild persona and unhinged behavior had many outlets writing off the album before it even released but that didn’t seem to phase Kanye. 

In the song “KING,” Kanye raps, “Still the king, still the/They thought headlines was my kryptonite/Still the king, still the king.” 

Although Ty Dolla $ign is one of two in the duo, it’s obvious the whole center of attention on this album is being given to Kanye, for better or for worse.

At the end of the day, love him or hate him, it’s impossible to stop Kanye from doing what he loves and making iconic art. 

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars 

By Ava Grippo – Staff Reporter

The new Percy Jackson adaptation is better than the movies – by a landslide. 

The first episode of “Percy Jackson and the Olympians” was released on December 18, 2023. The show was long awaited by fans. The first season consists of eight episodes that span from 30 to 45 minutes. Walker Scobell plays the iconic demi-god Percy Jackson, alongside Leah Jeffries and Aryan Simhadri, who play Percy’s closest friends, Annabeth Chase and Grover Underwood. 

The series kicks off as if straight from the novels, with the iconic speech from Percy: “Look, I didn’t want to be a half blood. If you’re reading this because you think it might be one, my advice is: close this book right now. Believe whatever lie your mom or dad told you about your birth, and try to lead a normal life. Being a half-blood is dangerous.”

The show follows a 12-year-old boy named…Percy Jackson. He discovers he is a half blood and the forbidden son of Poseidon. He is sent on a quest to retrieve Zues missing lightning bolt and return it to the king of the gods. The eight episodes follow his journey through fighting a minotaur, adjusting to Camp Half Blood, a sanctuary for all demigods, coming face to face with medusa, battling the mother of all monsters, encountering Ares, confronting the god of the underworld, encountering Ares once again, and finally returning the lighting bolt to Zues, bringing Percy, Annabeth and Grover on one chaotic adventure. 

The Percy Jackson TV show follows the storyline of the books much more than the movies ever did. Even with the few changes that were made, the TV show still left fans satisfied with what was given. The differences were thought out and nicely done, while the movies felt all over the place and felt completely different from the original story they were trying to portray. The movies followed a completely inaccurate plot and the character did not honor the ones shown in the books. 

The new adaptation did well in developing the relationships between Percy, Annabeth and Grover, as well as the situation between the gods, portraying the depths written in the books. Although the show did feel as if it was a little fast paced at times, it was still able to hit all the important plot points and scenes that were needed. 

The important and most memorable scenes from the books – Percy’s battle with Ares; and the Betrayal of Luke, the son of Hermes who took Percy in when he arrived at Camp Half Blood – were both written well. The show did a good job of bringing the beloved characters to the screen and giving the watchers an entertaining story which the movies had failed to do. 

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

By Will Smith – Entertainment Editor

“Retro Bowl College” is a brand new sequel to the beloved “Retro Bowl.” The game came out in September of 2023 and was developed by New Star Games. In the game, you play as the manager of a college football team your goal is to rise through the ranks and become a top of the line coach. When playing the game, there is a lobby where you can manage your facilities, coaches, and players. From there, you can play against other teams to progress through the season. If you win enough regular season games, you can play in the postseason which offers extra benefits if you can win.

With a new title comes several additional features. There are more teams, players stick around for a maximum of four years, and your scholarship budget for new recruits is based on what your former players decide to do.

Some of the biggest strengths of “Retro Bowl College” are what make it different from “Retro Bowl,” including the fact that you don’t need draft picks to get new players. Instead, it’s the amount of money donated by the alumni of your football program. Another strength is there are definitive rankings so you can see where your team ranks among either the major or minor leagues.

Some weaknesses of “Retro Bowl College” are you only have a player for three to four years depending on when you want them to go for the NFL Draft. Another weakness is that if you want to increase your scholarship fund cap, you need to spend 100 coach credits. This takes many seasons to build up as the maximum coaching credits you can earn after a game is three. You can also use it for more affordable upgrades such as training and rehab facilities to help players stay healthy and improve or the stadium so that the fanbase will dislike you less if you lose.  

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

By Zack Sulkis – Social Media Editor-In-Chief

Drake recently released his eighth studio album, “For All the Dogs,” where he showed why he will always be on top of the music industry. “For All The Dogs” is 82 minutes of rap music with a wider variety of sounds ranging from fast-paced, hard-hitting songs like “Daylight” to softer, fast-paced rap on songs like “Virginia Beach” and “Calling For You (feat. 21 Savage.)”

The album features an R&B sound on songs like “Amen (feat. Teezo Touchdown),” “Slime You Out (feat. SZA),” and “Bahamas Promises.” The album has many different artists featured including Teezo Touchdown, 21 Savage, J. Cole, Yeat, SZA, PartyNextDoor, Chief Keef, Bad Bunny, Sexyy Red, and Lil Yachty.

The feature however that has gotten the most attention has been his collaboration with J. Cole. The song got so much attention due to Cole’s feature becoming his first song to go #1, and this song would later go on to be Drake’s 13th #1 song. 

Drake having 13 #1 songs is significant because it ties him with Michael Jackson who Drake references on the album. Drake raps, “I’m one away from Michael” “Beat it, what? Beat it, what? Beat it, what?” 

“For All The Dogs” also got a lot of attention on the song “Daylight” due to it having a feature from Drake’s son Adonis who is just six years old. Adonis went on to release his own song entitled “My Man Freestyle.”

On November 17, Drake released “For All The Dogs – Scary Hours Edition,” an extended version of “For All The Dogs.” This extended version features six more songs with one including another J. Cole feature. 

The best song on the extended version is definitely “You Broke My Heart.” “I put careers on shelves like Amazon Distribution Center help, Really hate to call lil’ broski for the dirty work, I’d rather do it by myself,” Drake raps. 

Overall, the album is very good with many songs fans would want to add to their playlist however there are a few songs that are not necessary and needed. “Gently (feat. Bad Bunny)” is a prime example of this. This song that does not fit the theme of the rest of the album whatsoever and Drake’s fake accent in the song’s intro can only be described as cringy and uncomfortable.

Rating 4 out of 5 stars

By Logan Mullarkey – Staff Reporter

“Marvel’s Spider-Man 2” was released on October 20 for the PlayStation 5, and broke records by selling 2.5 million copies in 24 hours, becoming the fastest-selling PlayStation game in history. It is currently the third best-selling game on the PlayStation 5.

“Marvel’s Spider-Man 2” takes place 10 months after the previous game, “Spider-Man: Miles Morales.” The game starts off with Peter Parker and introduces the basics of the game while fighting one of Spider-Man’s villains, Sandman. Throughout the story, there are a variety of characters that can be chosen such as Peter Parker, Miles Morales (Spider-Man), Mary Jane Watson, and even one of the main antagonists Venom. Within the story, there are other missions and side quests to stop crimes around New York. 

At the beginning of the story, Harry Osborn is introduced who is a returning friend who went away with an undiagnosed sickness to heal. He comes into the story as a surprise, showing up at Peter’s aunt’s house. Later in the story, it turns out that a symbiote (alien) named Venom was healing him while being attached to him. But while Venom was attached it was giving Harry inhuman strength and powers which he uses to help Peter fight crime shortly after. 

Around the middle of the story a main antagonist is introduced, Kraven The Hunter. Kraven’s goal is to find a worthy opponent to duel with to end his life, so he hunts all of Spider-Man’s villains for an opponent. While Spider-Man was dealing with Kraven, he ended up getting very badly damaged and could die if not healed. To save his life, Harry gives him the symbiote to heal him, which works. Now that Peter has the symbiote he feels stronger and better. But he doesn’t know that it is slowly corrupting him, turning him away from his friends, and even almost killing Miles. But Kraven finally finds his worthy opponent which is Harry when he has the symbiote. He gets Peter to rip it off, and it crawls right back into Harry, which Kraven wanted, and he ends up dying because of it.

There are many positives to “Marvel’s Spider-Man 2,” which is why it’s the fastest-selling game in Playstation history. It has a fantastic storyline and plot. Many fans love how it’s able to change the suits that Spider-Man wears within the game, both Peter and Miles. Fans also thought it was amazing how they switched between Peter and Miles for certain missions for both characters. There is also lots of character development noticed from both protagonists and sometimes antagonists as well. The game broke video game history and left fans very happy.

Although there are many great aspects of the game, there is one weak point that fans pointed out. Some fans were upset that they changed the antagonists a bit. It ended up working it out, but many fans agree that the original was better with a news reporter named Eddie Brock being Venom instead of Harry. Harry was supposed to be a Green Goblin who is one of Spider-Man’s main rivals. 

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

By Ava Grippo – Staff Reporter

“The Naturals” is a book series written by Jennifer Lynn Barnes, who is well known for writing “The Inheritance Games” series. The Naturals series consists of four books, “The Naturals,” “’Killer Instincts,” “All In,” and “Bad Blood.” “The Naturals” was released on November 5, 2013. The cover was designed by Abby Kuperstock. 

“The Naturals” follows Cassie Hobbes, a seventeen year old girl who was recruited into a special FBI program for her expert profiler ability, meaning she can figure out a great amount about someone, and their likely actions and decisions just by looking at them. Cassie meets the other members of the special program, Michael Townsend, who can cleverly read emotions, Lia Zhang, a human lie detector, Sloane Tavish, who specializes in numbers and statistics, and Dean Redding, an expert profiler, just like Cassie. Together, the 5 of them assist the FBI with criminal cases. 

Barnes does a great job with the development and lore of the characters, giving each one a distinct personality and reasonable trauma to what influenced them to be who they are. The characters are deep, and complex, making them each highly interesting and compelling. The book also does a great job with keeping you on your toes with the mystery and the question ‘What will happen next?’, causing you to be very engaged in the story. 

The Goodreads reviews of The Naturals are excellent, but the book is much overshadowed by the author’s other book series, “The Inheritance Games.” The Naturals is a book that should be recommended to every book lover, especially if you enjoy crime, mystery or young adult books. 

“The Naturals” does a much better job in developing characters and complex emotions than “The Inheritance Games” does. The mystery is much more enticing and interesting. The plot and development seems to be done with more thought and planning. The book’s characters and mystery surpass other popular young adult mystery books such as “A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder,” with the characters’ personalities and influences, making it feel much deeper than “A Good Girl’s Guide To Murder.”

“The Naturals” is packed with heartfelt scenes. Barnes writes, “Sloane slipped an arm around my waist, ‘There are fourteen varieties of hugs’ she said, ‘This is one of them’”. The book is also filled with humor. Barnes jokes, “‘My inner Boy Scout had to try’, If this guy had an inner Boy Scout, I had an inner flamingo”. 

This is a book that anyone will be sure to enjoy. When going to the bookstore, instead of picking up the more well known ‘The Inheritance Games’, take a look at the “The Naturals” and give it a read. 

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

By Julia Ryan – Staff Reporter

Taylor Swift released “1989 (Taylor’s Version)” on October 27, a re-recording of one of her most popular albums, “1989”, from 2014. When Big Machine Records was bought out in 2019 it made Taylor Swift lose the ability to buy out her albums. She was so young at the time when she signed with Big Machine Records that she couldn’t have predicted this happening. Taylor Swift began rerecording her albums because when she switched over to Republic Records in the fall of 2018, she negotiated for rights to own all of the music she creates in the future. By rerecording her albums with Republic Records, she owns the copyright to all of her songs. “1989” was her fifth studio, Grammy-winning album, and was her first ever album in which her genre of music shifted from country to pop. “1989 (Taylors Version)” is a huge milestone for her because it is her fourth re-recorded album. “Fearless” TV came out in April of 2021, “Red” TV came out in November of 2021, and “Speak Now” recently came out in the summer of 2023. Popular songs on the album are “Style”, “Shake It Off,” and “Welcome To New York,” The entire album consists of 21 songs, five of them “from the vault” that she never released until now. Taylor Swift’s fans, also known as Swifites, have been going crazy for these new songs. 

Taylor Swift is most well known for her break up songs. Around the time of the original “1989” release, Taylor was writing about her relationship with Harry Styles. In the rerecording you can still tell to this day that she is expressing what she felt during the time of their break up. In the song “Style,” Swift sings, “You got that long hair, slicked back, white t-shirt.” This is definitely written about Harry Styles considering that the title of the song is based off of his last name and she describes his looks and clothing. Taylor Swift really gets into it with these break up songs screaming what she feels. A true Swiftie knows that Taylor Swift also writes stories about much more than men. “Bad Blood” was about her feud with Katy Perry and it goes like this, “Now we got Problems. And I don’t think we can solve them.” Taylor Swift also wrote about her experiences, good and bad. Taylor Swift was harassed and wrote about it in the song “Clean”. The song lyrics that represent this experience are, “You’re still all over me/Like a wine-stained dress I can’t wear anymore.” By “1989 Taylors Version” coming out it marks a milestone in Taylor Swift’s life because she can look back at her experiences and say she made it out. 

The lyrics in this album are out of this world. Taylor Swift manages to reach out to her fans with slow, emotional songs, and fast, upbeat songs. The five new “from the vault” songs are, “Slu*!”, “Now That We Don’t Talk”,  “Suburban Legends”, and “Is It Over Now?” Most of these songs are targeting her haters and Harry Styles. The fan favorite is, “Is It Over Now?” Popular lyrics from the song are, “And say the one thing I’ve been wanting, but no.” It is very catchy and repetitive. Fans believe that is about Harry Styles and their relationship coming to an end. 

Unlike the other “Taylor’s Version” albums there is only one collaboration. “Fearless Taylor’s Version” has three collaborations with Colbie Caillat, Maren Morris and Keith Urban. “Red Taylor’s Version” has four collaborations with Chris Stapleton, Phoebe Bridgers, Gary Ligthbody, and Ed Sheeran. “Speak Now Taylors Version” has two collaborations with Fall Out Boy and Hayley Williams. In the original “1989” there were also no collaborations except for “Bad Blood Ft. Kendrick Lamar.” Because of the popularity with him she released a deluxe version of “Bad Blood” with Kendrick Lamar in it. It makes her fans extremely happy to see a collaboration like this again because their voices together have changed so much. At her international record-breaking Eras Tour, there is a chant that the crowd does when she sings “Bad Blood.” It is Kendrick Lamar’s part, “You forgive/You forget/ But you never let it go.” Taylor Swift explains in a post announcing the release of this version with her that she did it for her fans. Taylor Swift adores her fans and constantly acknowledges that she wouldn’t be where she is today without them. 

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

By Aislyn McKernan – Staff Reporter   

The movie “Five Nights At Freddy’s,” an adaptation of the popular video game series, came out on October 27. There are a total of 13 games but the movie revolves around the first game. “Five Nights At Freddy’s” has also be featured in a total of 28 novels and comics. 

“Five Nights At Freddy’s” is about a security guard named Mike Schmidt who takes a job at the abandoned Freddy Fazbear’s Pizzeria. He has to make sure no one tries to break in, but he didn’t know he also had to make sure nothing got out. Mike has to try to survive the night with animatronics that move. The animatronics’ names are Freddy, Bonnie, Chica, and Foxy. These animatronics all have a crazy backstory – the reason why they move is because they got possessed by the kids that got murdered by the creator of the pizzeria, Willam Afton. 

The movie got very mixed reviews from fans. “Five Nights At Freddy’s” was intended for older fans but the younger fans ended up being the ones who enjoyed it the most. While some long-time fans of the game were excited and pleased with the live action adaptation, others thought the movie lacked plot and they weren’t pleased with the horror. The game had many jump scares and the franchise was based off of disturbing backstories and gory imagery. While the movie had one or two good jump scares, it didn’t have as much of a scare as people thought it would have. The plot was also confusing to follow at points and the backstory wasn’t explained much. 

There most impressive features of “Five Nights At Freddy’s” are the visuals and the casting. The suits used for the animatronic were very life-like and the CGI was very well done. It all looked real and the movements were very smooth. The movie also had a very good cast with Josh Hutcherson, Elizabeth Lail, and Matthew Lillard. Hutcherson was the main character Mike Schmidt and did a very good job conveying his lines and emotions throughout the movie. Lail played the sidekick Vanessa, a security guard. She did an amazing job with the plot twist of her being the daughter to Willaim Afton and is overall a great actor. Matthew Lillard played the villain William Afton and made the actions and lines feel very realistic. 

Overall, the “Five Nights At Freddy’s” is fun for long-time fans and for people who just want to watch a fun, eerie movie.

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars 

By Alexia Poloski – Staff Reporter 

Taylor Swift’s eighth studio album, “Folklore,” was released on July 24, 2020. “Folklore” is an alternative rock/indie folk album that has a cozy feel. 

This was Swift’s most surprising album considering the sudden release and genre change. Swift mostly produces pop albums with catchy beats; however, this wasn’t the case with “Folklore.” The songs are heavily slow-paced compared to past songs. The lyrics were also surprising. They seem to have a deeper meaning that fans can connect to more. 

Another aspect that separates “Folklore” from the rest of Swift’s albums is the fictional love triangle. The songs that touch on the fictional love triangle include “Betty,” “Cardigan,” and “August”. However fans believe that the whole album can connect to the love triangle. “I kind of created characters that I would sort of infuse my emotions into, and it was really fun for me,” Swift said.

“Folklore” also has amazing features and co-writers including Aaron Dessner, Jack Antonoff, Joe Alwyn, and Justin Vernon. However, the only actual feature on the album is Bon Iver on “Exile.” “Exile” is a duo song that captures two sides of a failed relationship. The song is incredibly real and raw, similar to other “Folklore” songs. Other memorable songs of the album include “This Is Me Trying” and “My Tears Ricochet.”

“My Tears Ricochet” with its captivating lyrics and metaphors. One lyric that stands out is, “You had to kill me, but it killed you just the same,” which indicates betrayal and says it in a more graceful and beautiful way. 

“This is Me Trying” is a song about addiction and wasted potential. Swift reveals she wrote this song from the perspective of someone who heavily struggles with their mental health and addiction. The song includes beautiful instrumentals from strings and percussions to create an enthralling melody. 

With “Folklore” Swift wanted to create a very niche vibe. “The folklore world in my head was very woodsy, super forestry, very cottage core, Victorian nightgowns, feather quill, poetry, typewriters,” Swift said. 

Overall, this album is amazing and nothing like anything Swift has ever put out. “Folklore” has captivating lyrics and melodies that pull listeners in for an experience like never before. The album really defined Swift as one of the best lyricists of the 21st century.  

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars 

By Jordyn Torres – Staff Reporter

“Edward Scissorhands” is a movie directed in 1990 by Tim Burton. Burton has a very unique style when it comes to filmmaking; his style is called “Burtonesque.” Burton grew up in the suburban Burbank area. He felt isolated and found it hard to communicate to others and these feelings inspired him to create this film. When this film was made it left a message of loneliness, alienation, and to never judge a book by its cover. 

A scientist builds Edward, but dies before he can finish him. Leaving him with peculiar features like scissors for hands. After he died Edward lived in an isolated worn down factory far away from society. A sales lady named Peg was trying to sell makeup and came upon a dark worn down “house.” She walks in and sees Edward sitting in this house all alone. She gets scared after seeing he had scissor for hands but Edward asked her not to leave, she stayed and discovered that Edward was gentle, kind and had good intentions. Peg brought him home and despite all the hate her friends gave her, she let him live at her house. He meets Peg’s daughter Kim and falls in love with her but she has a boyfriend. Her boyfriend Jim does all he can to keep Edward away from her because he looks dangerous. Edward runs away back to his mansion factory because of all the hate. Jim follows him and they get into a big fight. Edward sees Kim and she kisses him telling him that she loves him before they separate forever.

This film is memorable because viewers can find comedy, horror, romance and drama all in one movie. The Gothic music makes the movie very intense. Edwards’ character is very childish in the best way possible, seeing him eat dinner at a dinner table for the first time or when he was shocked by a water bed makes people fall in love with his character instantly because he is so innocent. This movie is sure to leave a lasting impression on the viewers.

Some people may not enjoy “Edward Scissorhands” as much as others because the movie is a little dark and creepy. The language from 1990 to 2023 has changed quite a bit and may leave some viewers confused. People may not like Edward and think he’s weird and the thought that he is weird can change the whole plot of the film.

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

By William Smith – Entertainment Editor

“The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom” came out on May 13. The game is an action-adventure game for the Nintendo Switch. The game won the most anticipated game of the year last year. It is also the first Nintendo game to be priced at $70. 

Tears of the Kingdom takes place a couple of years after the event of the previous game Breath of the Wild. When starting the game Link (you) and Princess Zelda go below the depths of Hyrule castle to investigate the source of the gloom that is plaguing Hyrule. While investigating the gloom the place the source is coming from is filled with Zonai ruins. The Zonai are an ancient race of people who lived during the creation of the kingdom. When they finally find the source of the gloom it’s an old and rotten corpse with a glowing magic hand on his chest, and when they try to investigate further the hand disappears and the corpse wakes up. The corpse wakes up and attacks you causing you to lose all of your abilities and the master sword while also causing Zelda to fall off a ledge Link goes to catcher but fails and she falls but before she falls she glows and is transported somewhere while Link is caught by the glowing hand that was sealing the corpse. It cuts to black then Link is transported to the great sky island where he gains new abilities and recovers his strength. After he completes his recovery he is free to leave the sky island and find Zelda.

Some positives about the game are that there are so many things to do it’s easy to get distracted from discovering a new cave, doing the lucky clover gazette quest line and just exploring the old but changed Hyrule. There is so much to do. The game also fixed everything that was bad from the last game, so now every mainline dungeon and every shrine are way harder than they were in Breath of the Wild, they made it so side quests would give relevant rewards like armor or food instead of just currency, they also made the story slightly more linear unlike that last game but you can still go straight to the final game boss just it’s less hinted at in this game on where it is and what to do but you still can go do it just like Breath of the Wild.

There really isn’t anything negative to say about the game besides that the game was priced at $70 when normally all other mainline Nintendo games are priced at $60. Another negative is the game can get very laggy when the game is in a dense area.

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

By Kruthi Nandam – Staff Reporter

The movie “Uncharted” was released on February 18, 2022 and features Tom Holland and Mark Wahlberg. 

Tom Holland stars as Nathan Drake and Mark Wahlberg as Victor Sullivan. Both of these actors did a great job portraying these characters. This movie is supposed to be a prequel to the events in the 2007 video game.

Nathan and Sam were at the orphanage and only had each other. They both got caught trying to steal the map for the treasure which later led to Sam being evicted. Before he could get evicted, he left and promised to return but hasn’t. 

Nathan is determined to go on a journey to find the ancient treasure later on Victor “Sully” Sullivan joins him in his quest. Sully claims that he knew Sam and helped him through the process. Both of them want to find this treasure because it can change their lives and Nathan can try to find his brother who disappeared a while back. 

On their journey, they encounter many other people who are hungry for the treasure and try to steal the map or clues Nathan and Sully have to get one step closer to finding the treasure. Turns out that there were a lot of people aware of the treasure and came after it. 

As the movie goes on there are a lot of twists and turns and people betraying each other. When Nathan and Sully are in a hidden cave they find an old ship that was wrecked very badly. They decide to check it out and all of the gold was inside the ship this whole time. 

Many more people come across the ship at the same time and they start arguing over who the gold “belongs’ ‘ to. Sully gets hold of a helicopter and tries to take the ship out but there was more fighting and in the end the ship sank to the bottom of the ocean floor. Later, Sam comes back and explains what happened with him trying to find the gold. 

A strong point in this movie is that the characters showed a lot of determination to find the gold. They worked together and put their very best effort to find what they wanted. Near the end Sully has a character development of learning how to value the right things and not be greedy. 

A weak point in this movie is that sometimes there was too much going on and it was hard to keep up. Newer characters came up which kind of messed up the understanding of the movie. 

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

By Alana Pires – Staff Reporter

“The Summer I Turned Pretty” is a book written by Jenny Han that is a part of a three-book series and is about a girl named Isabel Conklin, who is nicknamed Belly, and her summer in a town named Cousins.

The book starts off with Belly first arriving at Cousins, the town that she goes to every year to spend her summers with the Fischer family, and stay at their home. Belly loves summer, and only lives during the months of June, July, and August, where she gets to spend time with the people she loves.

Susannah Fischer is the woman in the Fischer family, and is a mom to two sons Jeremiah and Conrad, who is best friend’s with Belly’s mom Laurel, who is also a mom to Belly’s brother Steven. Susannah and Laurel have been best friends since forever, and Belly has visited the summer house ever since she was little. Both families have had a hard past few months, with Susannah previously battling cancer, and Laurel being recently divorced with Belly and Steven’s father. 

Belly is 15 in the summer, and is happy to be back at the place where she loves to spend her summers. She is mostly happy to see Conrad however, the oldest Fischer boy, who she has had a crush on for years. She had always tried to grab his attention ever since they were little but Conrad had always thought of her as no more than a little sister.

But this summer Belly has changed since the last time the boys have seen her, physically and personality wise. Conrad is one to notice anything, and this summer he’s noticing Belly. But Conrad isn’t the only boy who notices Belly, Jeremiah does too, which leaves Belly even more confused with her emotions.

But Conrad is different this summer, Belly notices, since he has quit football, broke up with his previous girlfriend, and even smokes now, she can’t seem to think why he is acting differently. This leaves Belly with trying to forget about Conrad, and focusing on other people, like Jeremiah. 

Confused about her new and old feelings for the brothers, Belly struggles with a major decision to make, whether she should pick Conrad or Jeremiah? To complicate things even more for Belly, a major family secret emerges that causes new emotions and explains what is so unusual about this summer, and would change the two families forever.

Some strong points in this book would definitely be character development, and plot twists throughout the story. Over the course of the book you can see how Belly grows into maturity, along with how she interacts with the rest of the characters and grows to be more confident in herself. Conrad’s character developed throughout the story emotionally and his character was opened up to readers more. Overall, this book was really good and is a perfect read for summer. 

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

By Reilly Hungerford – Entertainment Editor

Singer/songwriter Lana Del Rey released her ninth studio album, “Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd” on March 24. The genre of this album is Alternative/Indie. It was an immediate fan favorite and to most fans, one of her most personal albums.

This album has a bit of a more personal feel to it because she talks about her personal life a lot more than she does on her other albums. She talks about how she contemplates having a child in her song, “Fingertips.” She sings, “Will the baby be alright? / Will I have one of mine? / Can I handle it?” She also talks about her childhood a bit, as well as her love life.

A few notable songs are, “Let the Light In,” and, “A&W” The acoustic guitar in, “Let the Light In,” is so beautiful. Father John Misty and Lana’s voices just combine so well together as well. In “A&W,” she samples vocals from an unreleased song of hers.

Overall, this album is a modern masterpiece. The way she beautifully crafts her songs is amazing.

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars.

By Kruthi Nandam – Staff Reporter

*WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS*

“Monday’s Not Coming” is a YA book written by Tiffany D. Jackson that addresses the issues of depression, abuse, and bullying. 

This book starts off with the main character Claudia looking for her best friend named Monday. Claudia is searching for Monday because she hasn’t seen her in a long time and she is starting to get worried about her and her safety.

Claudia and Monday always spend time together to the point where they are inseparable. They both know where they are at all times and never miss a chance to see each other. One day, Monday didn’t come to school and Claudia was concerned but didn’t think much about it.

A few more days pass by and Monday still hasn’t returned to school so Claudia starts to worry. She goes to Monday’s house to check if she’s OK and her sister April says that Monday was doing good but she wasn’t at the house. Claudia wasn’t satisfied with the answer so she started a private investigation.

Claudia does some digging and soon finds out that Monday hasn’t seen her siblings in a really long time. So all this time she was being lied to by April. Claudia tells her parents about Monday’s absence, but it doesn’t really get in their head. Claudia still continued her investigation where she found out more details. 

At school, everyone knows that Claudia and Monday are best friends and they have never seen each other without one of them not talking. As some kids start to notice Claudia isolating herself, they take this opportunity to bully Claudia and tease her about her friend.

The bullies started absurd rumors about Monday and Claudia and how Claudia may have something to do with Monday not coming to school. The bullies made fun of Claudia’s dyslexia. All of this chatter about the both of them got to Claudia and she started to have random outbursts of anger causing her trouble at school.

She decided to break into Monday’s house to clarify what is happening. When she got into to Monday’s house, she could tell the house was not kept very clean and it seemed very dirty. As she looked around for Monday, she couldn’t spot her.Claudia soon finds Monday’s diary and takes it to read it. The door opens and someone was yelling very loudly. That someone was Monday’s mother. She seemed to order April to do things for her and verbally abused April. Before Claudia left, she saw Monday’s younger sister in dirty clothes and she looked like she hasn’t taken a shower in a long time.

Claudia manages to escape and she starts to read Monday’s journal. The journal contained hidden secrets of Monday and the struggles she has been going through at home. No of which Monday has ever mentioned to Claudia. Claudia starts to go through depression and she finds it hard to cope and manage her stress.

A few days pass by, and a news story drops which it said that 2 kids were found dead stuffed inside of a fridge. Claudia soon found out this incident was taking place on her street. As she looked for the house, she discovered that the news story was about Monday’s house.

Claudia went inside the house and she discovered that her best friend was killed and stuffed inside the fridge along with her younger brother. Claudia didn’t know how to process this information and she had a huge mental breakdown about her best friend.

April knew the whole time of what happened to Monday but she was forced by her mother to not reveal anything. Monday’s mother suffered from a mental problem and she took out her rage on both Monday and her brother Tuesday. This went so far to the point where her mother killed them. April was forced to stuff her siblings in the fridge and not speak about it.

Claudia goes into shock leading her to go to the hospital. It has been two years since she found out about her death and Claudia still relives the day like it was yesterday. This incident happened when she was 14 and now that she is 16 she can’t stop repeating it. 

Claudia was diagnosed with extreme post-traumatic stress disorder and disassociative amnesia. This really set back her and her family mentally and took a long time to make some progress. For those that like realistic fiction with real-life situations this is a great book to read. 

The strengths of “Monday’s Not Coming” are that the book shows how some kids in the real world may rely on their friends for everything which references to Monday and Claudia’s friendship. The book also had an interesting plot twist at the end; it took a wild turn and truly was an experience. The author also had a different way of writing the chapters. Instead of the chapters having numbers, they are titled “the before,” “the after,” and “one year the before.” Overall, this book was a very compelling read.

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

By Will Smith – Entertainment Editor

“Dumb & Dumber” is a 1994 comedy film directed by Peter Farrelly. The movie stars Jim Carrey as Lloyd Christmas, Jeff Daniels as Harry Dune, and Lauren Holly as Marry Swanson. The movie can be found on Amazon prime video, YouTube, YouTube TV, and Apple TV. The movie follows two friends Lloyd Christmas and Harry Dune as they attempt to return a briefcase to Marry Swanson who left it there under mysterious circumstances.

While Lloyd is working at his job one day he meets a woman named Marry Swanson who seemed to be very sad about something Lloyd brushes it off as she’s going to the airport to go to Aspen, but as she is about to get on an escalator she puts a briefcase on the ground. Lloyd sees this and takes the briefcase before the two who were supposed to take the briefcase did. In an attempt to return the briefcase Lloyd and his roommate/best friend go on a road trip from Rhode Island to Aspen Colorado in an attempt for Lloyd to return the briefcase and to try a chance at love. Along the way, they get up to many antics as they try to return the briefcase.

Some of the strengths of the movie include Carrey’s and Daniels’s chemistry throughout the film, the over-the-top and absurd humor, the soundtrack that perfectly complements the story of the film, and it became a timeless comedy classic that influenced seen some modern comedies today. The movie will leave viewers laughing as they think about the shenanigans Lloyd and Harry get up to on their road trip to Aspen.

Some of the flaws of the movie are it relies heavily on crude humor which may or may not appeal to everyone’s taste and the plot is predictable which may make it less enjoyable. Most of the movie is about those two doing something or getting into a stupid situation which could lead viewers to yell at them on the screen for even thinking something dumb they did was smart. If people don’t enjoy the dumb comedy then it’s best to not watch as it gets dumber and dumber as it continues.

Overall the movie has very few flaws and many strengths. The movie is great if people are looking for something funny to watch with friends and family or bored with nothing to do. It’s become a classic comedy over the years.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

By Lana Hanania – News Editor

Morgan Wallen released a new album called “One Thing At A Time” on March 3. His new songs revolve around breakups, regrets, and reliefs. Eric Church, “The Chief,” makes a significant guest appearance on the album’s song “Man Made A Bar,” and Wallen’s longtime pals and partners, HARDY and Ernest, appear on the songs “In The Bible” and “Cowgirls,” respectively.

The album has 36 songs in total. As predicted, “One Thing at a Time” raced to the top of the albums chart and had the best first-week sales of any album in 2023 by units sold and the fifth-largest streaming week ever.

Morgan Wallen states that the album represents the last few years of his life and showcases his growth. In the song “Last Night,” he sings “You say I gotta get over you/I got a lot of habits I gotta kick/But weigh out all your options and take your pick.” These lyrics show that Wallen is not just trying to forget about a female; he’s also confessing that he lacks the willpower to give up that girl. The drums and guitar in this song mix perfectly, and make it a must-listen. 

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars 

By Truman Martin – Entertainment Editor

“Loser on the Ropes” is Brian Dunne’s fourth studio album and it was released on April 14. The album features 11 tracks and is exactly 45 minutes long. Dunne has slowly been gaining popularity as a potential great in terms of songwriting in recent years. He has also worked with other amazing songwriters in a supergroup called Fantastic Cat.

Dunne has taken pretty obvious inspiration from artists like Bruce Springsteen and Bob Segar in the past with his songwriting and subject matter. His songs often talk about growing up or going through life in some way. In this album, Dunne is definitely focusing on the harder times of life. Take the song “Bad Luck” for example. In the chorus, he literally says “You can go ten for ten, but bad luck will find you anyway.” 

Even though his new album is focused on hard times, Dunne also focuses a lot on resilience in this album. For example, in the song “The Kids are all Grown,” he says, “My back’s to the wall, I’m not ready to go home yet.” This balances out the album so that it doesn’t feel too “doom and gloom.”

Dunne is one of those artists where you think “Why hasn’t this guy blown up yet?” On Spotify, he only has 60,000 monthly listeners. Despite having a small following, he has this energy that reminds listeners of Springsteen or Segar. This album is just another example of why he’s up next as a great singer/songwriter. 

Overall, “Loser on the Ropes” has 11 great songs and a great message of perseverance. 

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

By Will Smith – Entertainment Editor

“A Night at the Roxbury” is a 1998 comedy film directed by John Fortenberry and starring Will Ferrell and Chris Kattan. The film follows the story of two brothers, Doug and Steve Butabi, who dream of becoming successful clubbers and gaining entrance to the exclusive Roxbury night club.

The film is a spin-off from a famous sketch on Saturday Night Live, where Ferrell and Kattan played the Butabi brothers. Night at the Roxbury received mixed reviews upon its release but has since become a cult classic, particularly for its iconic dance scene and quotable lines.

One of the strengths of Night at the Roxbury is the chemistry between Ferrell and Kattan. The two actors play off each other well, and their over-the-top antics are hilarious to watch. The supporting cast is also strong, with memorable performances from Molly Shannon, Richard Grieco, and Dan Hedaya. The film’s humor primarily results from the Butabi brothers’ cluelessness and their attempts to fit in with the club scene. The characters are absurd and cartoonish, which adds to the film’s comedic appeal.

The script is packed with one-liners which keep the laughs coming throughout the film. The soundtrack is another highlight of Night at the Roxbury. The film features several iconic dance tracks from the 1990s, including “What is Love” by Haddaway, which became synonymous with the film’s dance scene. The music is an integral part of the film’s appeal and helps to create a fun and nostalgic atmosphere.

Despite its comedic strengths, Night at the Roxbury has its challenges. The plot is thin, and the film relies heavily on the Butabi brothers’ hijinks to carry the story. Some of the jokes fall flat, and the humor can be hit-or-miss depending on the viewer’s taste

Overall, “A Night at the Roxbury” is a silly, fun, and nostalgic comedy that has become a cult classic. Its over-the-top characters, quotable lines, and iconic dance scene make it a must-watch for fans of 1990s comedy. While it may not be everyone’s cup of tea, it is a film that has stood the test of time and continues to entertain audiences today

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

By Reilly Hungerford – Entertainment Editor

With Fiona Apple’s release of her 2020 album “Fetch the Bolt Cutters” fans grew to love her even more.

Apple has been widely recognized since the release of her hit debut EP, “Tidal,” in the late 1990s. The fact that she was only 14 when she wrote some of the songs on that EP really impressed people. She had a large cult following back in the 1990s and early two thousands, and recently some of her songs have began to get popular on Tik Tok.

“Fetch the Bolt Cutters” was released on April 17, 2020, right at the height of the pandemic, even though Apple had been recording it since 2015. This album tackles topics such as thinking of the past, love, relationships, and much more. When it was released, it debuted at #4 on the Billboard 200. The genre of this album is electro-pop; it takes quite a step back from her older albums in that sense.

One notable song is, “I Want You To Love Me.” “It started as a love song to somebody I hadn’t met yet,” Apple said. This song is about being in love and wanting that person to love you back. The instrumentals in this song are absolutely amazing and they totally set the mood for the whole album. The piano is the first thing listeners hear and piano is used throughout the album. Her vocals in this song will remind fans of her old songs.

Another very notable song is, “Shameika.” This is actually one of the best songs on this album. It is about a girl Apple met when she was younger. Shameika is actually a real girl who told Fiona she had potential. The drums in this song are accentuating her point in the song. 

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

By Zack Sulkis – Social Media Editor

Trippie Redd’s “Trip at Knight” is a masterpiece of modern rap. The album has many familiar songs fans of rap would recognize through the popularity the album has gained over social media since its release in August of 2021.

Trippie Redd, real name Michael Lamar White II, is an American rapper from Canton Ohio who gained popularity on Soundcloud in the mid-to-late 2010s along with rappers such as XXXTENTACION, and Playboi Carti. 

“Trip at Knight” is the fourth studio album by American rapper Trippie Redd. The album, similar to all of Trippie’s work, it’s a very high energy masterpiece that is best when experienced at a concert. 

The album features popular songs such as Betrayal, Demon Time, Matt Hardy 999, Holy Smokes, and Miss the Rage, and Danny Phantom. Majority of the songs on the album also have features on them from artists such as, Drake, Playboi Carti, Lil Uzi Vert, XXXTENTACION, Lil Durk, Ski Mask the Slump God, Polo G, and more. 

Most of the songs have a very 8-bit sounding beat with lots of bass as well for songs that sound like they can be in anything from a video game to a movie soundtrack. The best example of this is on the song Betrayal (feat. Drake), which is also one of the most popular songs on the album. 

Betrayal has lyrics that have continuous rhyming with no plot but everything about it works so well. Trippie raps, “Paper planes (paper planes), Novocaine (Novocaine) Mary Jane (yeah) Say one thing to me, you Texas toast, no Raising Cane’s I can’t lie, life’s good, man, I can’t complain (yeah) Walkin’ through the hood undoubtedly without a stain.”

The album broke ground for Trippie on its release due to it not being a part of a series. Most of his albums are a part of the “A Love Letter to You” or the “Pegasus” collections. It was refreshing to fans to have an album with a different pace compared to the typical slower sad songs on the “A Love Letter to You” albums, instead it compared more to Trippie’s earlier album.

“Tripp at Knight” didn’t just do well as an album, it did incredibly as a tour as well, selling out shows across the country with high energy mosh pits and featured opening acts Iann Dior, and SoFaygo. 

Rating 4.5 out of 5 stars

By Truman Martin – Entertainment Editor

‘The Last Of Us” is a TV show that was released on the streaming service HBO Max on January 15. The series was created by Craig Mazin and Niel Druckman, and stars Pedro Pascal as Joel and Bella Ramsey as Ellie. It is based on the 2013 video game developed by Naughty Dog, and it follows Joel and Ellie as they travel across a zombie-ridden America 20 years after an outbreak. The show is one of the biggest produced shows in Canadian History, and the first season is nine episodes long. 

The first episode opens up with a talk show where the host is interviewing a specialist on fungi. They talk about how if a fungus could infect a human, it would be the end of the world. It then shows ‘outbreak day’ through the eyes of Joel’s daughter, Sara. The episode then skips 20 years to 2023, and that’s where the actual story begins. 

“The Last Of Us” is a surprisingly good show. Just from the first two episodes alone, you can tell that they put a lot of effort into being both faithful to the source material and enhancing the story as a whole. It does a good job of building up the world that the fans of the game love so much. It is way better than it has any business being, since it’s a show about zombies. The acting is on point, and the banter between Pascal and Ramsey is fun to watch. Right from the start the visuals are great as well. Craig Mazin also created the limited series Chernobyl, which won a lot of awards, and it’s clear why. 

The show does change some things from the game. For example, Tommy, Joel’s brother, is not mentioned very much in the game until later. Right off the bat in the show, though, it is clear that Joel finding where Tommy went is part of the plot. All of these changes just enhance the story rather than ruin it though. Most video game adaptations are either really bad or pretty shaky. “The Last Of Us” is showing neither sign. In fact, it’s shaping up to be one of the best video game adaptations ever.

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

By Lana Hanania – News Editor 

The new song “Flowers” By Miley Cyrus dropped on January 13 and hit #1 on the Billboard charts in its first week. 

“Flowers” By Miley Cyrus is pointed directly to her ex-husband Liam Hemsworth. Cyrus came out with her new song the day of his birthday. She co-wrote the song with Michael Pollack and Gregory “Aldae” Hein. “Flowers” is a classic, disco-style, self-love song. For Cyrus the song serves as a reminder of her own value and the kind of love she needs. She wrote the script for the video, Jacob Bixenman directed it, and Stephen Galloway was the creative director. She reflects on courage and self-love in the song, stating that she “started to cry” but then realized she could “buy myself flowers” and “write my name in the sand” before singing, “I can love me better than you can.”

The song hit 59.8 million streams by the end of January, and many people have the song on repeat because they can relate to a heartbroken, self-loving song. The song is very catchy and the beat as well is poppy and trendy. The thing most people love about the song is the lyrics, they relate and make single people feel empowered, as they can write their name in the sand, rather than having a significant other do it for them. “Flowers” is starting to get overplayed as it can be heard almost everywhere – Tik Tok, Instagram, etc. Overall, “Flowers” by Miley Cyrus is a song audiences will listen to – but not for long. 

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars 

By Olivia Hudak – Entertainment Editor 

“Elf” is a 2003 film about the famous elf, Buddy. This is a hit Christmas comedy movie that is a must-watch every Christmas. This movie stars Buddy (Will Ferrell), as well as his love interest Jovie, his long lost father Walter, and his “step-brother,” Michael. This is a family comedy movie that consists of jokes, laughs, and holiday cheer.

“Elf” is about Buddy the elf who was a human raised by Santa’s elves. He goes on to learn about his origins and leaves the North Pole to head to New York City to meet his biological father. His father, Walter Hobbs, is a very serious business man who isn’t interested in any games or laughter, which buddy opposes. Walter thinks that Buddy is just a random crazy elf that just roams the city streets but then after a while gets a DNA test to see. It comes back to show that he is Buddy’s father so they then try and form a closer relationship. The theme that is developed in this film is the idea of finding your place in the world where you belong. Buddy has a hard time fitting in with the elves and even with humans. Viewers watch throughout the film how he is accepted and watch as his true self is discovered. 

This movie really shows the holiday spirit need in every Christmas movie. It’s a great movie for children and even adults. It shows you the real life Christmas spirit that you always need even as an adult. “Elf” focuses on different holiday themes in a nice, heartwarming way. This movie is also very unique and unlike any Christmas movies people have seen. It’s very original and it incorporates a lot of well thought-out humor. It’s a fun and cheerful movie but it also captures a message for viewers to take in and learn from. 

The only weakness in the movie “Elf” was how Buddy and his father’s relationship was kind of very sudden and not realistic. In the movie, Buddy annoys his dad and makes him angry. He then ruins his important business meeting and makes him lose out on money. So how did Walter forgive Buddy so easily and come to quit his job for him when they didn’t even have that close of a relationship before? The directors could have fixed that part of the movie. But overall, “Elf” is a great movie that everyone needs to watch during the holidays.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

By Gemard Guery – Editor-In-Chief and Editorial Editor

“Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” was released on November 4. It was directed by Ryan Coogler and produced by Marvel Studios. It was the sequel to the original “Black Panther.” The movie was also intended to be a tribute to the late Chadwick Boseman. It stars Letitia Wright, Lupita Nyong’o, Angela Bassett, and Michael B. Jordan.

The story takes place in Wakanda who’s mourning the loss of their King T’Challa (Boseman’s old role).  Queen Ramonda, Princess Shuri, M’baku, and the Dora Milaje must protect the country from a new underwater foe who also has access to vibranium, the strongest metal on Earth.  While they try to protect Wakanda, they must also try to prevent war from starting between Wakanda and this new kingdom.

“Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” was an amazing sequel to a wonderful movie. The movie was quite emotional and often had the audience getting teary-eyed.  The movie was incredibly bittersweet and full of various cliffhangers that audience could not see coming. It was also such a phenomenal tribute to Chadwick Boseman and truly touches upon the grief people feel when they lose a loved one. It was also rooted in actual history and simulates real life issues that countries face today. The story was so creative and unpredictable. It also maintained an amazing sense of humor despite being sad because grief was such a big part in it. The soundtrack was also top-notch.  It truly added to the various feels of the movie and had people listening to it just in general.  From the set to the plot to the soundtrack, everything about this movie was amazingly creative and innovative.

The movie didn’t really have any weak points. (Maybe it needed more Lupita Nyong’o.)  Other than that, “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” was perfect.

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

By Asim Medina – Staff Reporter

This past Friday (12/9/22), SZA had dropped her new album “SOS.” 

“SOS” by SZA is a follow up album to her debut album “CTRL” which was released in 2017. Before dropping this album, SZA had stated in an interview with Rolling Stone that new music will be coming out, but it may not result in an album. The singer had also stated that she plans on releasing a trilogy of albums, then she’ll retire from music. For this album, SZA has worked with producers such as Timbaland, Babyface, Benny Blanco, DJ Dahi, Freaky Rob, Shellback, etc.  

Musically, the album is contemporary R&B-inspired, with influences from hip hop and pop. The album samples sound references from soul, gospel, jazz and melodic rap. The sound of the album was described as “a varied palette,” combining “surf rock” and “grunge” elements, alongside “her beloved lo-fi beats.” 

“SOS” has received widespread critical acclaim upon its release. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 based on reviews from critics, the album received a score of 91 out of 100, based on 14 reviews, indicating “universal acclaim.”  

Rating; 5 out of 5 stars

By Zack Sulkis – Social Media Editor 

The Muppets’ take on the Charles Dickens classic, “A Christmas Carol,” is a must-watch during the holiday season. While it isn’t as talked about as much as the traditional Jim Carrey version, it is still an entertaining and charming version of the story everyones probably heard is a great movie to watch on a cold winter night. 

The film takes place on Christmas Eve in 19th century London and is narrated by Gonzo, who is Charles Dickens, along with his friend Rizzo the Rat. The two make appearances throughout the film in which they tell the story of Ebenezer Scrooge. 

Scrooge is a heartless moneylender who no one likes; all he cares about is money and he hates Christmas. When he goes home on Christmas Eve he is greeted by several different ghosts who show him the past, the present, and the future if he changes his ways. At the end Scrooge is a very nice guy to everyone, donating to charity and attending Christmas dinner at Bob Cratchet’s (played by Kermit The Frog).

Throughout the film, there are many appearances from Muppet characters playing roles in the story such as Kermit as Cratchet, Statler and Waldorf as Scrooge’s dead heartless co-workers, Fozzie Bear as “Fozziwig,” the Muppet version of Fezziwig (Scrooge’s boss when he was younger), as well as many other familiar classic Muppet characters like Beaker, Sam, and more. 

“The Muppet Christmas Carol” is a heartwarming holiday movie that has some funny moments in it as well. It is a movie that shows how you should treat others how you want to be treated and know that what you put out into the world comes back to you.

Because it is a play on the classic “A Christmas Carol,” this film has many musical numbers from the Muppets.

This movie is not talked about enough for how well-filmed it is, especially for a movie with lots of puppetry from the early nineties. This is the first film featuring The Muppets that was made after the passing of Jim Henson, the creator and puppeteer. He founded The Jim Henson Company, a modern day entertainment juggernaut that makes Muppet films to this day as well as Sesame Street and Fraggle Rock.

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

By Maddy Gaillard – Entertainment Editor 

“Home Alone” is arguably one of the best Christmas movies of all time. After its release on November 10, 1990, it has gained an insane amount of attention and love from fans worldwide. The film follows Kevin McCallister and his family as they prepare for a Christmas trip to Paris. The movie idea stemmed from John Hughes (the writer and producer of the film) while he was on vacation. 

The film begins with the entire McCallister family in a hassle to try and get things organized the night before their trip. The mom, Kate McCallister, and her son Kevin get in a fight and she punishes him by sending him up to his room. When the family wakes up late the morning of their flight, they are in such a hurry that they forget Kevin. Since Kevin is home alone he has to create obstacles to defend himself and his home from two burglars. 

This film is a Christmas classic and gets whoever is watching into the holiday spirit easily. It is entertaining and funny which keeps the watcher involved. The movie does a great job in letting the audience build sympathy for Kevin and also appreciate his intelligence and wit. There is never a boring scene and how the movie stays interesting for the entire time. 

“Home Alone” truly captures the Christmas spirit and keeps the viewers entertained throughout the film. The plot is interesting and entertaining for viewers of all ages. It builds different kinds of emotions for the audience which allows this film to fit into different genres. “Home Alone” gives the viewer a hint of suspense but it is overall a great holiday movie and will forever be a classic in many homes.

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

By KruthiNimilya Nandam – Staff Reporter

“The Selection” is the first book in a five-book series by YA author Kiera Cass. America Singer, the main character, is a a member of a middle-class family and they live in a world of kings and queens. 

America is an average 16-year-old. America and her family live in a country called Illéa. In this country, everyone is rated by their caste number – one being the highest and eight being the lowest. America and her family are fives. This means they have barely any money, they are required to get a job as an artist or musician. It doesn’t matter if they are good at it or not. 

America receives a letter from the castle about taking part in The Selection. Basically, it’s a reality show competition where 35 young women come to “fight” to win the prince’s heart. This can be a great support for their family because of their status but America doesn’t seem interested. His mom wants her to participate but something stops her from accepting. This is because America has a secret boyfriend named Aspen. 

They have been together for a while and are even talking about getting married soon. But if they do get married, America would be even more broke because Aspen is a six. Even if they do marry each other, they would be breaking the law. Aspen suggests that America accepts the offer thinking that she won’t be selected. But, later she does get selected. 

When she gets to the castle she unexpectedly meets the prince of IIea, the reason she had a panic attack on the first night there. They had a rocky start but slowly started to be a little more than friends. Keep in mind Aspen and America broke up because Aspen felt that he couldn’t trust America when she went to IIea. Aspen got a job at the castle and he saw that Maxon and America were always together which made him mad.

Later on, America finds out that he was also working there. So they started to meet up to talk about their relationship secretly without Maxon knowing. So now America has to choose between Prince Maxon and Aspen. For readers who enjoy love triangles, this is a really great book to read.

Some of the strong points in this book are character development. Not only does the main character go through changes but the people around her also do as well. It is up to them to choose if they want to be a better person or ruin their reputation because of their ranking in the social class. It is interesting to see the characters grow throughout the story. Seeing these changes shows the reader the ups and downs the main characters come across. In addition, emotion is very vividly written in this book. Maxon has 35 girls to observe and their characters and emotions are expressed through a reality show.

Some weak points are that this book can stay on a topic for a few chapters. “The Selection” starts off slow and near the end, progressively feels a little rushed. It also contains some violent scenes so it may not be suitable for all ages. 

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

By Tanner Matchett – Staff Reporter

Aubrey Drake Graham, or Drake, officially released his 7th studio album entitled “Her Loss” on October 22. The album was set to be a collaborative album with rap artist 21 Savage. 

The album consisted of 16 songs total. Eleven songs were colab songs by the artists, four songs were by Drake, and one song was by 21 Savage. The album consisted of one feature, including other popular rap artist Travis Scott. The artists have collaborated before for a couple songs, “Jimmy Cooks” which came out on June 17 and “Knife Talk” which released on September 3, 2021. They also came together on a song called “Sneakin’,” which was released on October 29, 2016. 

“Her Loss” pulled in a lot of great reviews and positive feedback. Drake and his producing team did a good job creating different types of songs. Some songs are slow and relaxing, other songs more exciting and can pump listeners up. A couple of the songs consist of both, having a transition from the slow beat to more upbeat and exciting. The album length was perfect for its listeners. Not a small amount of songs and not a large amount to tire its fans. The most listened to songs included “Rich Flex,” “Major Distribution,” and “Circo Loco.”

Their audience did notice that the album was a little lopsided. They noticed that Drake had done a lot more singing than 21 Savage had done. If they had split the singing down the middle, the album could have been slightly better according to its audience. Other than this, fans and listeners did not have a lot of negativity towards this album. Everyone thought 21 Savage and Drake collaborated very well together as they did with their previous couple songs. 

Overall, this album should definitely be recommended to all fans, not just hip-hop/rap fans. 

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

By Zachary Santarcangelo – Staff Reporter

The Season 5 finale of “The Handmaid’s Tale” ended with a cliffhanger that left viewers of the show shocked. 

Based on the book of the same title, by Margaret Attwood, the show is about June Osborne (Elizabeth Moss), a handmaid in the theocratic Republic of Gilead, a regime that takes over the US and treats women as second-class citizens, forcing women, including June, to be impregnated in response to a fertility crisis. 

The season followed June’s journey and her new life in Canada after being saved by humanitarian workers from Canada in Season 4. The finale follows June’s journey from Canada, toward Hawaii with her husband and daughter. She leaves as an escape from the people of Canada who are starting to support Gilead. The episode includes the struggles she faced and the familiar faces she sees on her journey to more freedom. The show writers and guest-director/star of the show Elizabeth Moss both worked together to create an absolutely heart-racing finale for the second to last season. The writers created a great script and Moss helped capture the fear in the main characters’ as they escaped from something they thought they had gotten rid of. 

Elizabeth Moss’ directing is just one small part of her help on set. She and co-star O-T Fagbenle who plays her spouse Luke, do an amazing job of portraying the character’s fear as they continue their escape from their armed, gilead supporting, pursuers. 

What is seen of June’s journey ends with her bleak realization that anywhere can become Gilead and no one is safe. However, there is some hope to be found in the sacrifices of three men so that June could escape with her baby. 

Some viewers of the episode may think that it was a bit slow moving in some parts of the episode, and well they may be right, this adds suspense to the show. By making the choice to use slow camera movements, the camera crew adds suspense for the viewer and makes them feel like they are there, with June experiencing her harrowing escape to what she hopes will be freedom.

The Season 5 finale of “The Handmaid’s Tale” was extremely well written and even better directed. The combination of suspenseful writing from the team of writers, the direction from star Elizabeth Moss, and the work of the camera crew, all come together to create this masterpiece of an episode that any fan of the show is sure to enjoy.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

By Maddy Gaillard – Entertainment Editor 

“The Watcher” is a new thriller Netflix series that premiered on October 13. The series is based on the true story of Derek and Maria Broaddus, who bought a home in Westfield, New Jersey in 2014. The Netflix show was created by Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan. The idea for this Netflix series stemmed from the article, “The Haunting of a Dream House ” by Reeves Wiedman which goes in depth into the true cold case the mystery series is based on. 

The show follows the Brannock family who are based on the real people from this story. The series starts off with them moving into a beautiful new mansion. The family then begins to receive creepy letters that are weirdly detailed about how someone has been watching them. Through the season the family has to overcome these threatening letters and try to solve who is behind them. 

The series does a great job in building suspense with the anticipation of jump scares and scary music. The show leaves you on the edge of your seat for the majority of the season. It keeps the viewers guessing on who is behind the letters. There are multiple plot twists which keeps the show interesting and fascinating. 

The ending of the show was a little underwhelming. Without giving any spoilers, the ending did not live up to many fans’ expectations. Other than that, the show was super suspenseful and interesting. 

The series starts off with the family moving into the house and reviewing the first letter. The suspense then begins to build which was enjoyable. The show also does not give many clear answers throughout the season. It makes the viewers guess along with the characters and it ultimately makes the show much more interesting.

With the few weak points, the series is still very fascinating, especially since this is based on a true case. Additionally, it is fun to guess what is actually true crime and what is fiction. Someone who is interested in cold cases and enjoys thrillers will love “The Watcher.” 

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

By Zack Sulkis – Social Media Editor

Ken Carson is slowly turning heads with the Deluxe version of his album “X” titled “Xtended.” “Xtended” was released on Halloween with 5 new songs added to “X.”

Carson, real name Kenyatta Lee Fraizer Jr., is a 22-year-old from Atlanta, Georgia and started rapping in 2015 initially releasing music on SoundCloud. In 2020, he released two small albums – “Boy Barbie” which did not get much fanfare, and “Teen X” which mostly got recognition for the fact that the album has Yale on it.

When “X” was released not many actually knew who he was or that he was even signed by Playboi Carti. The few who did know of him did so for his song Yale, which became well known through TikTok.

“X” was incredible – it featured songs such as “Go,” Gems,” “Freestyles 1 & 2,” and “Murda Musik.” “Xtended” was all of the original 20 songs off of “X” featuring five new ones – “Freestyle 3,” “Fashion Habits,” “Shoot,” “Swag Overload,” and “Lookbook.” 

The freestyle songs by Carson have become staples of his careers with “Freestyles 1 & 2” both dropping on the original “X” and three dropping on “Xtended,” they have been progressively getting better as each one drops with “Freestyle 3” even being promoted by Trippie Redd. Every song Carson makes has one recurring theme – the beats.

“Freestyle 3” has a beat that’s constantly changing with aggressive rapping by Carson. He sings, “You can tell by the way I stand/I’m too high/I’m too geeked/You can tell by the way I stand/I got swag/Marni my jeans/I put Marni on her and her team/And then I put my gang in Balenci.”

It didn’t make it onto the album, but Carson was recently featured on rapper SoFaygo’s song “Hell Yeah” that has been getting recognition from many different rappers. SoFaygo is preparing to drop his first complete album after making a name for himself through a few EPs and opening for Trippie Redd on the “Tripp At Knight Tour.” 

Similar to Playboi Carti, who signed Carson, the beats in all his songs can only be described as violent. Like Carti’s “Whole Lotta Red,” these are songs meant for mosh pits. Every Carson album leaves no room for breathing for his listeners with constant beat drops and heavy bass on every song that can blow the speakers out of a 2001 Nissan Altima.

By Kaitlyn Goldberg – News Editor 

The movie “Purple Hearts” starring Sofia Carson and Nicholas Galitzine is a romantic drama that shows how people from completely different worlds can come together, even with extremely different views. 

“Purple Hearts” is about an aspiring singer-songwriter and waitress Cassie Salazar who has type 1 diabetes and needs medical insurance to get her life saving medicine who meets Luke Morrow, a marine, whom she meets at her job, and owes $50,000 to his old drug dealer. After Cassie asks her best friend Frankie who is also a marine to get married so she can get health benefits and he declines Luke offers.  They decide to get married, although only knowing each other for two weeks and having completely different values and political beliefs. Luke is being deployed to Iraq and they need to act like a married couple during that time.  While away Cassie writes songs, some about her feelings about Luke.  

One of the most memorable moments in the movie is when during a mission Luke was injured and in the hospital, and Cassie accidentally called Luke’s father instead of his brother.  Luke has a strained relationship with his father and this also makes things even more complicated for Luke and Cassie, because now they need to live together to make sure Luke’s dad believes they are a real couple.  This adds a new dynamic to Luke and Cassie’s relationship and makes them grow closer, though still having tension with one another.  

A more upsetting, but important, moment in the movie is when Luke is staying at Cassie’s apartment and Cassie begins to have a diabetic attack after performing her music at a local bar.   Her sugar drops and she goes into shock and Luke was there to help her. It was a pivotal moment in the movie because it showed that Luke really does care about Cassie, even though in the beginning of the movie they showed no interest in one another. 

Something else in the movie that was exciting was when Cassie got a dog named Peaches for Luke to help him through his recovery.  This was a very cute and heartwarming moment in the movie, and even though Luke didn’t think he needed the dog he grew to love her. Peaches also was there and helped when Cassie was having her diabetic attack.  It may seem like a small moment in the movie, but it shows that Cassie also cared about Luke and his well being throughout the time they were living together. 

Overall, the movie exceeded expectations.  It had a great message about people from two different worlds coming together, and also highlighting the issues with Medicare. 

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

By Olivia Hudak – Entertainment Editor

“Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” came out on November 14, 2001. The movie is directed by Chris Colombus and distributed by the Warner Bros. Company. This movie was based on the famous books written by author J.K. Rowling. In this series of movies, “The Sorcerer’s Stone” was the first one to come out, which is why it holds lots of importance. This series of movies consists of a total of eight films. This movie’s characters are Harry Potter, Hermoine Granger, Ron Wesley, Lord Voldemort, Professor Albus Dumbledore, Draco Malfoy, and many more. 

This movie is about the main character, Harry Potter, and his friends, who arrive at a wizarding school for magic. It starts off where Harry learns on his eleventh birthday that he is the orphaned son of two very powerful wizards and he possess magical powers of his own. He starts to receive letters to Hogwarts and he soon becomes a student there. When there, he meets several friends who become his family and they then help him discover the truth about his parents’ mysterious deaths. J.K. Rowling explores some essential themes within “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.” It shows the importance of friendships, love, and life lessons to tell apart absolute good and evil. Love is a recurring theme in the entire movie, and it dictates the dynamic of the plot. Sacrifice is another major theme in Harry Potter. Harry Potter’s mother, Lily Potter, sacrificed her life to save her son.

The “Harry Potter” series is a phenomenon because it tells a story that millions of people loved, and it introduced the world to an enormous and magical world that millions of people have dreamed of escaping into. This was a very important and magical movie. It opened peoples eyes to the world of magic. Hogwarts was a new world that was so thought out and planned so well that it stuck with everyone that had watched. Also, millions of people read the books before this came out and the books were already so popular. So when the movie came out, it was met with popularity, positive reviews, and success worldwide. 

The “Harry Potter” movies are one of the most celebrated movie series of all time – especially “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” because it introduces all of the characters and the magical world of Hogwarts. 

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

By Maddy Gaillard – Staff Reporter 

Mac Miller was an American rapper and record producer. In 2010, he signed a record deal with the independent label Rostrum Records. He then released his breakthrough mixtapes “K.I.D.S” (2010) and “Best Day Ever”(2011). Miller also saw a ton of success with his debut studio album “Blue Slide Park” in 2011. In 2013, he founded the record label imprint REMember Music. After his sophomore album, he signed to a new record label and released four studio albums: “GO:OD AM”(2015), “The Divine Feminine”(2016), “Swimming”(2018) and “Circles”(2020). Miller has been nominated for a Grammy with his release of “Swimming”. Miller later died in 2018 due to an accidental drug overdose. 

The mixtape “Faces” is the eleventh mixtape by Miller. It was independently released for free download on May 11, 2014. The mixtape is a follow up to his second album “Watching Movies With The Sound Off” (2013). On October 15, 2021, “Faces” was commercially released on streaming platforms and vinyl. The mixtape goes in depth to Miller’s addiction problems and he portrays this by creating more psychedelic and jazz songs. Miller produced most of this mixtape himself, because of this he incorporated many dark lyrical themes. The mixtape has multiple features including Rick Ross, Earl Sweatshirt, Schoolboy Q, Mike Jones, Sir Michael Rocks, Vince Staples, Ab-Soul and Dash. The mixtape has 25 songs and runs for about an hour and a half. 

The strong points of this mixtape are that it has multiple features which can be good for a listener to have because it can switch up the flow of the music. It is also nice to have a numerous amount of songs that gives the listener more chances to like something. The mixtape has features of rap, jazz and R&B. The selection of songs is overall very catchy and it does not all sound the same which is widely appreciated amongst many listeners. 

Some weak points of the mixtape are that it can be similar to his older music considering it was originally created in 2014. If someone is primarily a fan of Mac Miller’s new music, this may not be the mixtape for them because it is not as similar to his new releases. Additionally, some people may not like the amount of features this mixtape has. It overall really depends on the listeners personal preference of music and how this mixtape can compare to Miller’s previous releases. 

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

By Maddy Gaillard – Staff Reporter 

Artist Rex Orange County recently released his fourth album, “WHO CARES?” Rex Orange County is a singer from the United Kingdom. His professional name is Rex Orange County but his legal name is Alexander James O’Connor. O’Connor rose to fame in 2017 after multiple features on Tyler the Creator’s Grammy-nominated album “Flower Boy”. He released his debut album, “Bcos U Will Never Be Free” in 2015. Following that release, his sophomore album, “Apricot Princess” which came out in 2017 gained him more popularity. “Pony” was the next album released and now his senior album, “WHO CARES?” is his latest release. In addition to that he has a live album titled “Live at Radio City Music Hall” in 2020 which is a compilation of many of his songs in one album. 

The album “WHO CARES?” was confirmed to be in the process of being made by O’Connor in October 2020. In January 2022, O’Connor officially began teasing the album by sending out postcards with a phone number that revealed a part of a song on the album. The first single from the album, “Keep It Up” was released as a single at the end of January 2022. The album was fully released on March 11, 2022. The album contains a pop/slow album that has a few songs that are slower and a few songs that are upbeat. The studio album has 11 songs and runs for about 35 minutes. 

Some strong points of the album are that it is very upbeat compared to his past albums. Many listeners like the different feel and how O’Connor switched up the genre for his fourth album. Tyler the Creator, an American rapper, was featured on the album. The song he was in was “OPEN A WINDOW” which was a fun upbeat song. Overall, the new feel and the pace of the album is what a lot of listeners appreciate and love. 

A few weak points of “WHO CARES?” are that it is pretty short and compared to other albums, all of the songs together are only 30 minutes. Many people also would have liked more features on the album and not just Tyler the Creator who Rex Orange County has collaborated with many times. 

Rating: 7 out of 10 stars

By Truman Martin – Entertainment Editor

Denzel Curry is an American rapper who released his album, “Melt My Eyez See Your Future” on March 25. Curry has five studio albums under his belt, and 7.5 million monthly listeners on Spotify. The album has 14 tracks, and it debuted at #51 on the U.S. Billboard 200 charts. 

This album has a much more mature sound than Denzel’s earlier works. There is a lot of smooth, dream-like production all over this album, which is the polar opposite of what Denzel has done on his previous albums. On this album, Curry is introspective, meditative, and calm. For example, on the opening track, “Melt Session #1,” Denzel says, “Penniless, I await the emptiness enlightened / wenty-six years on Earth, my soul fighting” With these spiritual lyrics and smooth production, Denzel creates a vibe that the listener can just put on and chill to. 

Some definite strong points on this album are songs such as “Sanjuro,” “Walkin,” and “Ain’t No Way.” Especially “Ain’t No Way,” and “Sanjuro” because they are vital breaks from the slower sound of the album in order to keep the listener from getting bored with the album. If these tracks weren’t, the listening experience would be a little repetitive.

A lot of people like more upbeat hip hop, and this album is pretty much all slow and lyrical, so this album might not be for everyone. A weak point on this album is its length. Less is more, and there are one or two tracks that could have been left off the album to make it a more succinct experience. 

Overall, this album has a very fresh sound to it and Denzel created something really different. This album shows that he has matured as an artist. 

Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars