Monday, December 26, 2016

Holiday haul highlights 2016:

-Liz Taylor Gardenia+Dior Poison, gift card for Bowlero (looks-incredibly-sexy alley) in North Brunswick (Bowlmor in Green Brook on Rt. 22 was the place Jules, Col, & I had gone laser-light bowling...I was getting them mixed up, but according to reviews the newly-renovated Bowlero is even greater...!)
-Ollivander's shop ornament (with Viewfinder hole on the back displaying Harry approaching the counter!)
-Dory coffee pot mug
-Beautiful Columbia fleece, Yankee candles, Beagle Funko, etc., etc.!
***5 lbs of Haribo Gold Bears!!!; Kiki the baby kiwi (#1606/2000, Open Squish design winner) & Chester the grilled cheese sammich (or Al, since Weird Al=Cheese Sandwich? "Specialty of the House?" Chester Al...an...something? XD) Squishables; Game of Thrones calendar (will use on fridge--Yearbook Dogs on my wall, princesses on fireplace as of now); "Essential Pokemon Book of Joy" (contains mad quotes from Team Rocket, including Cassidy & Butch!! <3); universal Harmony TV remote to replace my five different ones...although now I know I do need to replace the busted Blu-ray player too); Star Trek "beverage containment system" stein mug; coral-pink cardigan+purple hi-low tunic; candy apple hand sanitizer








Tons of pics and such...I really, really wish it had an album feature grouped by month or something, rather than just being an infinitely-scrolling monocolumnic (is that even a word??) thing... Also wish that .gifs weren't lumped in with your pics+vids. Love 'em, but they can be their own filter. Just one more won't hurt. ;p 

+More Hallmark Keepsakes! (with link to 2016 Dreambook video): 

Sunday, November 20, 2016

Imma Talk Pokemon! Gen 7! Whoo!

Time to add onto this! Favorites:
  1. Bruxish
  2. Litten
  3. Oricorio (Pom-Pom, Sensu, Baile, & Pa'u)
  4. Morelull
  5. Shiinotic
  6. Wimpod
  7. Lycanroc (fave forme is Midday)
  8. Xurkitree (Okay, now this one's clever. Berserk, circuitry, tree. Body of wires, fingers are exposed gold filaments, tail and toes have plugs, covered in bulbs, with a spiky light-up star thingy for a head. It's just...creative. And Christmasy. :D)
  9. Pheromosa (ooooh, the smexy lissome Pokemon ;p)
  10. Primarina
  11. Type: Null
  12. Brionne
  13. Golisopod
  14. Toucannon ("Follow your nose!")
  15. Popplio
  16. Minior
  17. Wishiwashi
  18. Charjabug
  19. Silvally
  20. Jangmo-o
  21. Crabrawler
  22. Comfey
  23. Cosmog
  24. Bounsweet
  25. Palossand
  26. Sandygast
  27. Tapu Fini (Lele reminds me a bit of Pinkie Pie xD)
  28. Lunala
  29. Nihilego (jellyfish-like, again)
OH, and of course the Alolan forms of Ninetales, Vulpix, Dugtrio, Exeggutor, Muk, Grimer, Sandshrew, Sandslash, Meowth, & Raichu! Those are great.

Other standouts:

Mareanie and Toxapex are...interesting...like some kind of sea star/urchin combo?? With a bit of jellyfish at first?? Hm.
Lurantis, the orchid mantis.
Dewpider (& Araquanid): Bubble helmet! And also, I WILL NEVER be able to pronounce this one without imitating Lump Maroon ("DEWPIDUURRRRRRR!!!")
Mudsdale
Crabominable is a Yeti crab!! :D xD
Salazzle--um, wow. xD;
Kartana: Whoo, origami! (And also chopsticks, and takeout boxes and menus?! :-o)
Celesteela: Okay, new Pokename to associate with Celestia over Cresselia. And what a bizarre design.
Buzzwole: Sheeeet, dat skeeter be swole AF!! Larry the Lobster+Crimson Chin+mosquito=Buzzwole. "Of all my muscles...my brain is one of them!"
Guzzlord & Necrozma are friggin' scary (& the former gross as well. xD)
Oranguru reminds me of the live-action (or, well, CG) King Louie.

The entry from 7/5/16 is the one where I attempted to rank 252 favorite Pokes prior to the full release of G7 (so there are now, total, as of this moment, 802.) Being able to narrow it down to <300 is quite the achievement, trust me.

Munna's a cute one too...kinda reminds me of a piggy bank, Easter egg, and pink version of a Parcheesi elephant smashed together. xD But, not nearly as much as Phanpy resembles the Parcheesi elephants!! ;-3

And then for MLP: FiM...

Best S5/6 eps:
  • Make New Friends But Keep Discord (TREEHUGGER!!)
  • The Mane Attraction (COLORATURA, AKA RA-RA!)
  • Hearthbreakers (LIMESTONE PIE!)
  • Amending Fences (LEMON HEARTS!)
  • Canterlot Boutique (SASSY SADDLES! Love seeing her turn up anytime! And that goth pony...oh lordy, so many minor/bg characters I had to note in the LJ! [6/25/16])
  • The Saddle Row Review (The 80s dancers...! xD)
  • Top Bolt (Vapor Trail!)
  • Viva Las Pegasus ("Siegfried & Roy"......XD)
  • A Hearth's Warming Tail (Professor Flintheart, aka Snape-pony!)
  • The Times They Are a Changeling
  • The Cutie Map
  • The Cutie Re-Mark
  • To Where and Back Again
  • Tanks for the Memories
  • On Your Marks
  • Scare Master
  • The Crystalling
  • Gauntlet of Fire
  • Every Little Thing She Does
  • Princess Spike
  • The Fault in Our Cutie Marks

Weaker S5/6 eps (ones I had the most issues/difficulty with--many others were kinda eh/mediocre/somewhere-in-the-middle):
  • Spice Up Your Life
  • The Cart Before the Ponies
  • Crusaders of the Lost Mark
  • The Gift of the Maud Pie (Maud rules, but they only did half the "Magi" story! Wtf??)
  • Stranger Than Fan Fiction
  • Applejack's "Day Off"

~*~*~*
EDIT: Ahhh, here we go at last...a ginormo banner/background/collage thingy of all my favorite Pokémon and then some! But just a few; all'd be imposhibru. ;b (And until they release yet another frickin' generation in a few years?? 😲😬 )
(Had to re-upload with a little Houndour sneaked in there 'cause like, what in HELL was I doing...?!?! Then again...past a certain point I don't even know what's in there exactly, and the "Fave Pokemon By Type" entry is somewhat more relevant/searchable...) 
^-^  
*~*

Thursday, November 17, 2016

MLPMerch.com

Holy shit, I just found the most invaluable website--or, rather, I just realized how fully awesome and useful it is. Got my checklist going, plus the "wishlist" (for most-wanteds, unacquired blind-bag figures & brushables, "non-character-characters" to keep track of, & generally other fave pieces.)
And, of course, my pony board! /)^3^(\

My suggestions to the site owners would be: a) If possible, let users switch their lists between the default release-date order and a custom most-to-least-favorite order. b) Have the lists display in many columns, not just two (utilize as much of the screen as possible, reduce the scrolling.)

Tuesday, November 15, 2016

Hollywood's Best Female Characters - HBFC

WELL, THAT was nuts...picked approximately 150, and nominated another 80+. I was guided by their list, which was nearly exhaustive (but still significantly lacking--hence my additions), and seemed to be sticking to adult (or at least teen) humans. 

Votes included:
Merida, Ariel, Belle, Aurora, Mulan, Cinderella, Snow White, Rapunzel, Tiana, Giselle, Jessica Rabbit, the Bride (aka Beatrix Kiddo); Daenerys, Arya, Margaery, Brienne, Katniss, Lucy Ricardo, Laverne & Shirley, Thelma & Louise, Sandy & Rizzo, the Golden Girls, Carla, Edith Bunker, Reba, Cruella, Maleficent (ONLY the animated one), Annie, Morticia & Wednesday, Marge & Lisa Simpson, Mrs. Robinson, Private Benjamin, Maude, Winnie Cooper, Carol Brady & June Cleaver, Blanche DuBois, the Carries, the Dorothys, the Marias, Daphne, Elle Woods, Piper Chapman, Elise, Eve, Heidi, Helen, Hildy & Holly, Ilsa Lund, Jeannie & Samantha Stevens, Jenny, Jo, Julia Sugarbaker, Janeway & Uhura, Ma Joad, Mallory Knox, Mame, "Hot Lips," Martha, a few Marys, Hit Girl, Miss Gulch/Wicked Witch of the West, Mona Lisa Vito, Mystique (just Rebecca's; no offense to Jen, but I really only loved her in X2), Nikita, Peggy Bundy, Rebecca, Rhoda, some Roses, Satine, Scarlett, Stella, Storm, Sugar Kane, the Hayley Mills Parent Trap twins, Velvet, Wilma & Betty, Xena, Annie Hall, Amelie, & Nurse Ratched.

My additions:
Elsa & Anna (Frozen); Effie Trinket (The Hunger Games); Miranda Hobbes (Sex and the City--HOW FUCKING DARE THEY INCLUDE THE OTHER THREE AND NOT THE CLEAR BEST ONE?!?!); Beverly Crusher (Star Trek: The Next Generation); Lilith Sternin-Crane (Cheers/Frasier); Ethel Mertz (I Love Lucy); Frenchy (Grease); Amber Mariens (Clueless); Elle Driver & O-Ren Ishii (Kill Bill); Ouiser Boudreaux  & the other Steel Magnolias; C.C. Bloom & Hilary Whitney (Beaches); Jane & Judy Jetson; Pocahontas; Jasmine (Aladdin); Melisandre, Olenna Tyrell, Ygritte (Game of Thrones); Alice Kramden & Trixie Norton (The Honeymooners); Mirage (The Incredibles); Megara (Hercules); Esmeralda (The Hunchback of Notre Dame); Mother Gothel (Tangled); Yzma (The Emperor's New Groove); Ursula (The Little Mermaid); the Evil Queen (Snow White & the Seven Dwarfs); Lady Tremaine (Cinderella); Madame Medusa (The Rescuers); Capable (Mad Max: Fury Road); Ulla (The Producers); Idgie Threadgoode & Ruth Jamison (Fried Green Tomatoes); the four stars of The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants and Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood; Roxie Hart & Velma Kelly (Chicago); Brenda, Elise, & Annie of The First Wives Club; Madison (Splash); Audrey (Little Shop of Horrors); Anastasia; Crysta (FernGully: The Last Rainforest); Thumbelina; the Sanderson Sisters (Hocus Pocus); Princess Mononoke; Annie Oakley (Annie Get Your Gun); Janet Weiss, Magenta, Columbia (Rocky Horror Picture Show); Ophelia (Hamlet); Allison Reynolds & Claire Standish (The Breakfast Club); Nancy, Rochelle, Sarah, & Bonnie (The Craft); Daphne Blake & Velma (Scooby-Doo); the Baby-Sitters Club; Galadriel (The Lord of the Rings)...you could go on with a few besides Hermione from HP, Kida & the other Atlantis ladies, etc., but that was enough. xD

[2/2/17: Aaaand, THR does it again! ~500 choices for favorite actors...top faves have check marks...
]

Thursday, November 3, 2016

Berenstain Bears Christmas Sweepstakes

Let's just see whether or not this HTML code for the giveaway shows up as the box it's supposed to, shall we?

<a href="http://www.oureverydayharvest.com/2016/10/berenstain-bears-christmas-fun.html"><img border="0"  src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMb34JUyPGmPlBKv7foS6riZ1UVXHGPOkHBmNQDlWN4XWLzaactiHV0lwhoiePZyHwahtNQPAWVHt9XiKp3P0EKNy2tL8Kbi5pccT9eO-Bwlk3b0PTQXpj27jkHMR4W0igS3ajU50e9rlw/s640/Berenstain-Bears-Christmas-Sticker-Activity-Book-Giveaway-Button.jpg" /></a>

...of course not.
Figures.
But anyway, the entry page is here.

Monday, October 17, 2016

Finding Dory: Tank Gang Deleted Scene

Oh, boy. Dory'll be out on Blu-ray already next month, and now I've seen me first deleted scene...which is quite possibly the most interesting one.

Sure, Bubbles the all-of-a-sudden-genius doesn't sound a bit like himself, and I wanted them ALL to have some significant moments/lines in the film (there are seven of them, they're like a Star Trek crew...or The Baby-Sitters Club...)--but, this little scene alone would have been 9,999,999% better than the little logic-challenged post-credits blip we received. The Gang deserved to be in the film BEFORE the credits, and they were pretty much the most exciting thing to me, alongside Dory's story itself. Confound it all! Even without Dory, such a subplot would have greatly enhanced the film!
I can accept what was included, but it can only be truly redeemed with another sequel or short film. So y'know what, since this exists and they REEEALLY didn't want to have to eliminate it, I am going to right now officially decide that it DID go down this way. Mission Impossible Tank Gang #SquadGoals, helping Marlin & Nemo rescue Dory...before getting captured by the institute themselves, then escaping, and then fiiiinally meeting up with Marlin/Nemo/Dory/etc. at the frick-frackin' Great Goddamn Barrier Reef. AIIGHT??!? Sound good?? Eeeeyup!!

 Eta: Just took a closer look at Nemo's classmates in this shot. You've got a parrotfish, and a yellow/purple one up top that looks like some kind of striped variation of the Bicolor cherub (Centropyge bicolor.) I love the color combinations here--seafoam+lemon on that generally butterflyfish-shaped one, the green-spotted yellow guys, the purple+red crab...I just can't understand why they, like Lisa Frank, included a combination of actual species and made-up ones. Real tropical fish are so stunningly beautiful and artistic-looking that there's no need for people to draw randomly-colored and -patterned "new" ones, though that happens all the time.
Thankfully, almost all of the speaking characters in Nemo & Dory are real species.
Of course Nemo, Pearl, Sheldon, & Ted are (Amphiprion ocellaris, Opisthoteuthis californiana, Hippocampus kuda, Forcipiger flavissimus.)

Edit: Judging from the art book, they should have not only included the deleted tank gang scene but also shots of little Blenny the psychedelic fish (Anchor's "fish friend" from the shark meeting in Finding Nemo), cow- and/or boxfish in the kelp forests (FOR SURE; Ostraciidae is one of my favorite families, how could you POSSIBLY even consider omitting those wicked-awesome dudes?!? Especially when you're spending so much time in KELP FORESTS?!?), and certain other interesting-looking (if not actually real?) creatures I don't recall seeing in the film.

Monday, October 3, 2016

Pottermore Patronus Perplexity

Golly, thanks, Reddit!
No wonder I didn't get any of the options that appear to have been specifically selected for me, the Saluki-owning sighthound nut (Borzoi, Ibizan hound, Deerhound, Greyhound, Irish wolfhound. I'd gladly take a mix of them.) Pretty randomly assigned strings of five or six words lead you to random species/breeds. Time to register a new Pottermore account.

What's really got me weirded out is how in the world these animals were chosen. Particularly the dog & cat breeds. Those few popular/common/well-known ones I could understand (though I still can't decide how and why they alone were picked), but the random rare or uncommon ones? Did they simply attempt to cover a variety of bases? If so, why include five sighthounds?! That is so odd (and noticeable to someone like me because it feels so personally tailored.) I mean, why Borzoi over Afghan or Saluki? Why Ibizan over Pharaoh? Why Greyhound but not Whippet? And why the other specific breeds chosen?! I'm just curious.

And then the quiz goes and gives me wildcat. Which is definitely cool--especially if there weren't dogs. At first I thought, "Oh, so I get to choose my wild cat? Cool; I pick cheetah!" (I mean, duh! ;) Then I realized that it means the actual wildcat-wildcat, Felis silvestris.

But anyway. The "Very Rare" Patroni make sense; they're frickin' magical fantasy creatures. But the "Unusual" ones...wtf?? There is no way to contend that a tiger, stag, doe, seal, shark, owl, rhino, raven, bear, orca, lion, leopard, elephant, cheetah, buffalo, vulture, peacock, or bat should be less "usual" than...the rare/uncommon dogs & cats. Or various others. The whole thing is. So. Weird. But whatever. I'm gonna game Pottermore and try to force it to give me accurate results (Ravenclaw, would accept Slytherin...Horned Serpent again...and...preferably the Borzoi. Will gladly accept Ibizan, Deerhound, Grey. Aaaand, probably the same or a similar wand to what I was first assigned, because unyielding vine+phoenix feather sounds fairly fitting. I like the sound of dragon heartstring & certain other woods, but y'know, they all have different associations/meanings, so...it's less of a you-can-choose/know-your-own-ahead-of-time thing? Yeah.)

There are a lot of really cool choices that I like very much (here's my long comment on Pottermore about it.)

...*re-registers* Okay. That's it. True accuracy is impossible with these Pottermore quizzes. They're overly simple, with too many choices that could equally apply, and give you a different result almost every time. (Except for the wand one.) I'm a Ravenslythergryffinpuff in that order, and a Horned Thunderwampuswudgie in THAT order. I know this. But even taking into consideration my well-roundedness and the fact that most/many of us are a little bit of two or three or all four houses in each school--the inconsistency of this site is remarkable. ;p

BUT, on the super-plus side, I got my Borzoi Patronus. 8D x3 And the lovely animation is probably used for all five sighthounds (or at least four; I think the wolfhound is a little different), because it looked like a staghound--almost certainly wasn't based purely on the Borzoi. I'm gonna venture a guess that THAT'S why they picked five sighthounds nearly at random to include: an artist designed a pretty sighthound Patronus animation, and they decided to use it (or a slight variation) multiple times. I'll bet that happened with other related animals as well. And I'd better be right, because I don't want there to be other animations for Deerhound, Ibizan, and/or Greyhound that I haven't seen. (Google can only find pics of the wolfhound one.)
Anyhoozer, I hope Merida's is a Deerhound...or a Clydesdale like Angus, I suppose. ^^

...Yikes, just saw somebody dismayed by getting a salmon and snake...they'd rather have a moose, bear, stag, etc., like everyone else...pas moi, I'd gladly be the snake or the salmon! I wish I were a salmon in Native American astrology. Fish are the second-coolest animals after dogs. ;D And snakes are gorge. I'd love to have a little hissy, forked-tongue-flicking necklace buddy. 

Tuesday, August 16, 2016

Old fave-movies-and-TV lists, because. {copy/paste}

*most relevant labels: cartoons, movies, tv, disney (esp. 8/6/18 + 4/20/20 comments, & obviously this one's comments)

Disney animation~
The Little Mermaid Oliver and Company Lady and the Tramp (& sequel, sorta) The Hunchback of Notre Dame Hercules The Fox and the Hound (& sequel) The Brave Little Toaster (& sequels; kinda can call it Disney) A(n Extremely) Goofy Movie Frozen!!!! Pocahontas Mulan Beauty and the Beast (+ The Enchanted Christmas) Aladdin 101 Dalmatians (& sequel, live-actions) The Great Mouse Detective The Lion King (& sequel) Cinderella (& sequels, sort of) The Jungle Book The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh Fantasia (+ 2000) The Rescuers (Down Under) Pinocchio Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs Alice in Wonderland (also love Tim Burton's!) James and the Giant Peach Dumbo Peter Pan The Sword in the Stone Sleeping Beauty Pooh's Grand Adventure: The Search for Christopher Robin Tangled Tarzan Atlantis: The Lost Empire The Emperor's New Groove [& Kronk's] DuckTales: Treasure of the Lost Lamp Raya+the Last Dragon Wreck-It Ralph The Aristocats Bambi Treasure Planet  Home on the Range The Black Cauldron Brother Bear The Princess & the Frog Robin Hood Lilo & Stitch

Pixar~
Finding Nemo/Dory Brave The Incredibles (2) Monsters, Inc./U Cars +2+3 Toy Story trilogy A Bug's Life Up Ratatouille Inside Out WALL-E The Good Dinosaur

Other (began adding onto numbers rather than continuing past 83 for some reason but there be huuundreds @ least)~
1. Kill Bill: Volumes 1 and 2! 2. All Dogs Go to Heaven (& sequel etc.) 3. Steel Magnolias/The Adventures of Milo & Otis 4. Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey (& sequel) 5. The Incredible Journey 6. Fluke 7. The Producers (both) 8.  Little Shop of Horrors 9. Balto (sequels be aiight)/Alpha & Omega (Wolfwalkers was cool too; similar "'wolves,'" very Brave/Merida-like) 10. Now and Then AND Stand by Me ;] (grouping them up so that the list doesn't go on forever) 11. Thelma & Louise/Leaving Normal 12. To Dance with the White Dog/Isle of Dogs 13. Millionaire Dogs/Roadside Romeo/MLP: Equestria Girls 14. The Ring (love Ringu as well)/Back to the Future 15. Fried Green Tomatoes/Bonneville 16. Beaches 17. Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood/Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (1 & 2) 18. The Craft/Practical Magic 19. Chicago/Enchanted/HUNGER GAMES series 20. Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street+Mamma Mia! 21. Beethoven (& his 2nd)/Bad Girls 22. The First Wives Club/Mad Money 23. Splash/Cats (stage recording) 24. Ponyo [& Princess Mononoke, Nausicaa, Grave of the Fireflies, all Miyazaki/Studio Ghibli films] 25. Rat Race/National Lampoon's Vacation movies 26. Napoleon (1995)/Into the Woods (stage show recording) 27. Forrest Gump/Bonnie & Clyde 28. Grease/Wild Hogs/Wild America 29. Father of the Bride (& sequel, + 1950 original) 30. The Joy Luck Club/Lost in America/Clue 31. Babe (& sequel)/Indian Summer/Meet Me in St. Louis 32. A Very Long Engagement/White Oleander/Wet Hot American Summer 33. FernGully: The Last Rainforest/Anastasia 34. Bingo/Shark Tale/Legally Blonde/Annie ('82/'99) 35. The Pebble and the Penguin/Rock-A-Doodle/Thumbelina/The Lorax (both) 36. Tiny Toon Adventures: How I Spent My Summer Vacation/Kung Fu Pandas 37. The Graduate/The Long, Long Trailer/Hocus Pocus 38. Matilda/Jumanji/The Indian in the Cupboard/Death Becomes Her 39. An American Tail [esp. Mystery of the Night Monster ;]/[The] Addams Family [Values]/Carrie 40. South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut/Animalympics/The Last Best Year 41. Miss Spider's Sunny Patch Kids =D/Rear Window 42. St. Trinian's/The Wizard of Oz/Dante's Peak 43. Best in Show/[Young] Frankenstein, Frankenweenie (both) 44. Animal Farm (1999, '54)/Rover Dangerfield/Cujo 45. Space Jam/Gumby: The Movie/The Little Rascals/Jurassic Park (trilogy I guess, #1 obviously best) 46. Whip It/Cats & Dogs/Misery 47. Labyrinth/Lolita/Who Framed Roger Rabbit?/Citizen Kane 48. Overboard/Shiloh/Look Who's Talking Now/The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas 49. Simon Birch/My Girl+sequel/Foxfire/Peter's Friends 50. Spaceballs/Galaxy Quest/My Cousin Vinny/Baby's Day Out 51. The Ref/La Femme Nikita/Plague Dogs/Cinema Paradiso/Kick-Ass + K-A 2 52. Tom and Jerry: The Movie/Flushed Away/The Witches (+ of Eastwick!)/Pet Sematary 53. Jungle 2 Jungle/The Secret Garden/Felidae/Sweet Charity/Edward Scissorhands 54. Dogma/The Muppet Movie (& other Muppets!)/Holiday Inn/Stepmom 55. Kung Pow: Enter the Fist/Help! I'm a Fish (A Fish Tale)/The Sweetest Thing 56. Flashdance/Dirty Dancing/The Jerk/Copycat/Rock of Ages 57. Love Actually/Waiting to Exhale/The Quiet Man/The Big Lebowski 58. Richie Rich/The Bucket List/Ghost World/Arsenic & Old Lace 59. The Land Before Time (+*some* of the sequels...)/Casper (Meets Wendy) 60. The Pagemaster/Tootsie/Fanboys/Creepshow/Annie Get Your Gun 61. Pirates of the Caribbean (& sequels)/Life is Beautiful/All That Jazz 62. The Shining/Into the Wild/20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954)/Boys on the Side 63. Charly (Flowers for Algernon)/The Banger Sisters/Terms of Endearment 64. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang/Spice World/Mary Poppins/Lorenzo's Oil/Truly Madly Deeply 65. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest/Easy Rider/Willard [2003; 1971 is good too]/Planes, Trains, & Automobiles 66. Mrs. Doubtfire/Monty Python & the Holy Grail/The Ten Commandments 67. Being John Malkovich/Fiddler on the Roof/Little Miss Sunshine/The Grapes of Wrath/Casablanca 68. Paint Your Wagon/Stagecoach/X-Men + X2/Oklahoma!/Hairspray 69. Rain Man/Natural Born Killers/Crossroads/Seven Brides for Seven Brothers 70. Harry Potter/Lord of the Rings/Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas/Titan A.E. 71. The Rocky Horror Picture Show/Rent/The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy/Ginger Snaps 72. Jules et Jim/La Regle du jeu/The King's Speech/Inglourious Basterds/Les Miserables 73. Hamlet (1996)/Footloose/Blade Runner/Monster House 74. The Women/The Motorcycle Diaries/Trucker/The Village/9 75. Charlotte's Web (1973; live-action's cute too, sequel's meh), and LOOOOAADS of holiday films/specials/shows, such as #76...films/specials that might not be features...pretty much ALL Rankin/Bass...yeah 76. How the Grinch Stole Christmas [both, actually; all Seuss animation thru '07=grand]/Dr. Strangelove/The Secret of NIMH/West Side Story 77. A Clockwork Orange/The Breakfast Club/The Sound of Music/Honey, We Shrunk Ourselves/Where the Boys Are 78. Austin Powers (series)/RV/Triple Dog/The Hot Chick/Sleepover 79. We're Back: A Dinosaur's Story/Girls Just Want to Have Fun/Sucker Punch/Prom/Piranha 80. Several Pokemon movies/The Spongebob Squarepants Movie/Good Burger!/Bratz (live-action) 80.5. Ugly Dachshund, Operation Dalmatian: The Big Adventure (worst subtitle ever lol), etc. x-3  81. The Leisure Seeker/Foxes/Megamind/Incredible Mr. Limpet 82. Titanic/Hello Dolly/White Fang/Call of the Wild 83. Gay Pur-ee/Singin' in the Rain/Billboard Dad x3 || +just ever so many that are+were in the vhs's + dvds {moar discs incl. my tower+the old version with Chi-Chi} ...etc. see actors & everything below.

TV~
I Love Lucy/The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour/The Lucy Show, Beyond Belief: Fact or Fiction, Are You Afraid of the Dark?, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, The Golden Girls, Laverne & Shirley, Tales from the Crypt & Darkside, Star Trek (ALL SERIES--TNG, DS9, VOY, TOS, ENT, + TAS!), Game of Thrones, Cheers, Frasier, The Wonder Years, Honeymooners, Odd Couple, All in the Family, Reba; -maaaaany- various classic or retro shows & several Britcoms; Krypto, all manner of cartoons/animation; game & kids' shows; most old-school/90s Nick/Nick, Jr., Disney, Cartoon Network, Kids' WB/Fox Kids/PBS Kids & such things; paranormal/supernatural/mystery + horror/scary + nature + home/antique/travel shows; Animal Planet; educational/documentary/real-life programming along the lines of the Discovery family of channels; AFV, Whose Line, MXC, World's Dumbest, SatC, etc...!! (All kinds of stuff on all kinds of channels. Largely preschool+classic cartoons ;D, classic sitcoms/dramas/films, game shows, spooky anthologies, educational+documentary shizzle...) See hurr 'n' whatnut.

some diggable male actors (& all great ones really ;): Alan Rickman, Steve Buscemi, Willem Dafoe, Patrick Stewart, Guy Pearce, Austin Pendleton, Tom Hanks, Dustin Hoffman, Michael McKean, Jack Nicholson, Martin Short, Steve Martin, William H. Macy, James Woods, Rick Moranis, Liam Neeson, Geoffrey Rush, Rufus Sewell, Michael Madsen, Gene Wilder, Will Ferrell, Jonathan Frakes, John de Lancie [actually, many of the primary Star Trek cast members from all 5 series--some more than others], Matthew Broderick, David Krumholtz, Jeff Goldblum, Jeremy Irons, John Malkovich, Kevin Spacey, Tim Curry, Henry Winkler, Judge Reinhold, Bill Nighy, Michael Keaton, Johnny Depp, Adrien Brody, Christopher Walken, Christoph Waltz, Hugo Weaving, Fred Willard, John O'Hurley, William Fichtner, John Hannah, John Cleese, Kelsey Grammer, David Hyde Pierce, Kenneth Branagh, Richard Kind, Christopher Lloyd, David Spade, Ron Perlman, Victor Talmadge, Crispin Glover, John C. Reilly, Peter O'Toole, Billy Crystal, Richard Dreyfuss, Michael Caine, Chuck Norris, Kurt Russell, Jason Isaacs, Jonathan Hyde, Alan Arkin, Jonathan Pryce, Sam Waterston, Malcolm McDowell, Victor Garber, J.K. Simmons, Charles Dance, Vincent Price, Peter Lorre, Paul Giamatti...etc.!!
Lotsa ppl/voices from fave movies/series.
+ #characteractorsrock #heyitsthatguy
*~*~*
some diggable female actors: {new #1, Carice van Houten! ANYTHING+EVERYTHING WITH HER IS AN AUTOMATIC FAVE EVEN IF ONLY DUE TO HER} Uma Thurman, Bernadette Peters, Helena Bonham Carter, Bebe Neuwirth, Kristin Chenoweth, Bette Midler, Goldie Hawn, Sally Field, Christine Baranski, Diane Keaton, Bonnie Hunt, Susan Sarandon, Meryl Streep, Cathy Moriarty, Stockard Channing, Emma Thompson, Debi Mazar, Kathleen Turner, the Golden Girl quartet (ESP BETTY), Shirley MacLaine, Lily Tomlin, Allison Janney, Didi Conn, Penny Marshall, Maggie Smith, Carol Burnett, Shelley Duvall, Anjelica Huston, Julie Andrews, Sigourney Weaver, Jo Anne Worley, Joanna Gleason, Daryl Hannah, Ellen Greene, Wendie Malick, Holly Hunter, Angela Lansbury...etc.!!
+most of the Old Hollywood folk (m&f) + such. [TCM<333 +the like...seriously all that stuff is usually good]

scores of names + again musical artistes (musical/movie musical tags...yadda yadda) • dog movies (noooo, the AKC removed the comment sections from their blog posts, which means my supreme long-ass list is gone! Oh wells...here be s'more +SEE 7/10/22 COMMENT) ... 

III


---EDITING to add this here list, because I recently saw a very right-up-my-alley question: "Who would be in your coven or Ocean's 8?" In other words, who would you cast in a movie/series about a group of women, preferably as friends and/or partners? WELL, we've plenty of excellemundo-to-good choices...really the above old list & any other candidates (some had only been mentioned due to one particular role)

Carice van Houten (the absolute greatest and most wonderful of all time omfg)
Bernadette Peters
Bebe Neuwirth

Uma Thurman

Christine Baranski
Kristin Chenoweth
Idina Menzel
Bette Midler
Dolly Parton
Bonnie Hunt
Natalia Tena
Debi Mazar
Sally Field
Meryl Streep
Sigourney Weaver
Reba McEntire
Helena Bonham Carter
Goldie Hawn
Susan Sarandon
Anjelica Huston
Barbra Streisand
Shirley MacLaine

Elizabeth Banks
Allison Janney
Daryl Hannah
Ellen Greene

Cathy Moriarty
Diane Keaton
Anne Hathaway
Emma Thompson
Cher
Julie Andrews
Stockard Channing
Kathleen Turner
Teri Garr
Fran Drescher

Wendie Malick
Lily Tomlin
Emilia Clarke
Gwendoline Christie
Didi Conn
Gates McFadden
Jo Anne Worley
Joanna Gleason
Patti LuPone
Penny Marshall
Helen Mirren
Betty White
Angela Lansbury
Maggie Smith
Judi Dench
Glenn Close

Holly Hunter
Naomi Watts
Cate Blanchett

Julia Roberts
Salma Hayek
Selma Blair

Carol Burnett
Kate Winslet
-
Angelina Jolie
Lena Headey
Rose Leslie
-
Annette Bening
Cynthia Nixon
Tilda Swinton
Anna Kendrick
Sarah Jessica Parker
Sandra Bullock
Julie Walters
Jennifer Lawrence
Kate Hudson
Embeth Davidtz
Jessica Lange
Amanda Seyfried
Blake Lively
Patricia Arquette
Drew Barrymore
Jane Lynch 

Rita Moreno
Chita Rivera
Charo
Liza Minnelli

Wednesday, July 20, 2016

Poké-doké-loké...

Oh, this sucks. You can't add new items into a numbered list on here. You also can't copy the list, paste it in WordPad, remove the numbers, and renumber it. -_- All you can do is add NEW numbers! So the original items then have two numbers, and the more you move things around the more wind up with just one for some unknown reason because computers are fuckin' weird..in which case...I should just start saving new potentially-favorites-list-worthy Pokemon here as they're revealed, then stick 'em all in come November! =D YEAH.

For now:

-Morelull
-Wimpod (definitely--cute lil' isopod! Slash-copepod-slash-trilobite with a tad bit o' horseshoe crab thrown in for good measure? 8D It'll probably have a "giant" evolution...! <3)
-Lycanroc: especially the midday/Sun form (like the Alpha & Omega wolves...wolfy head and mane/ruff, body is doggy :D)
-Type: Null (very intriguing...! Like its evolution, Silvally.)
-UB-01 (another jellyfish x~p) & UB-02 (Beauty ;p) & UB-03 (wires/Xmas lights/tree topper, lol)
-Wishiwashi
-Crabrawler 
-Jangmo-o
-Comfey
-Sandygast & Palossand
-Bounsweet
-ALOLAN NINETALES
-ALOLAN VULPIX
-ALOLAN EXEGGUTOR XDDD
-ALOLAN MUK! (tropical rainbow sludge...and the very interesting Grimer xD)
-ALOLAN GODDAMN BLONDE DUGTRIO (hawt 'n' smexy, lawl)
-Alolan Sandshrew
-Alolan Sandslash
-Alolan Meowth & Raichu
-Lurantis ('cause it's based on the perdy orchid mantis; Fomantis is cute)
-Minior (teh inner colorz!)
-Brionne & Torracat (I like Litten the best of the 3 starters, but I like Brionne's & Popplio's 3rd stage more than Litten's evolutions...)  
-Primarina 
-Decidueye  
-Oricorio and everypoké else I pinned here

And Salandit's cool; I like its marking and that it's based on the Japanese fire-belly newt. 
HOLY SHIT, PYUKUMUKU. XDD

*Just saw the leaked pics. OH NOES, why must I dislike the apparent final evolution of Litten (my favorite starter) so much?! Dx DAMMIT. I wanted to love it. I wanted it to be awesome. And...it's another wrestling-themed mon. >< Oy. I like the Popplio one, the pretty merseal...despite how WEIRD it is to think of THAT evolving from lil' Poppli. O_o And Rowlet's archer-owl is nice.  

Even, i cannot.

Tuesday, July 5, 2016

*eagerly awaiting reveal of the full seventh generation of Pokémon*

Sun & Moon are coming in November...guess I'll get them for Joe for Xmas...but when can we expect the rest of the Pokés to be introduced? I just made a rough "Top 250" (give or take; it's so hard to know where to stop)--last time I did my "Favorite Pokés" list was four years ago, and then three years ago I added my Gen-6 faves in a separate list (but in the same blog posts.) Well, this one happened last night when I went over the current full 721. Undoubtedly, it will change yet again with the reveal of Gen 7 (where my starter pick is Litten, but oh my word is Popplio a cutie-pie...and Rowlet too!!) Anyhoo, in anticipation, I shall post it now. 
Just like I finally created a Pokéboard on Pinterest.
 
Also wanna note that lots of the Pokémon Center items are super-cute--plushes, shirt designs, mini key chain clip thingies...etc. The problem with Pokémon, though, is HOW COULD YOU EVER CHOOSE? There are already over 700! What they need to do is sell customizable products that let you choose a set number of Pokémon out of ALL of them, including the variations/formes/alternate colors--which are then printed all over the thing for you (it could be anything...shirt/jacket/legging/etc., hat, pin, notebook, binder, art print, phone/laptop case, pillow, blanket, mug/cup/jar, bag/box, magnet, wallet, calendar, clock, comforter...any of those Zazzle/CafePress things.) DO IT, NINTENDO, AND DO IT NOW. Don't make me try and BS my own tons-of-Pokés-printed-on-nice-paper-to-slide-in-the-front-of-a-binder or something when G7 arrives. Which apparently won't be 'til November--GAUUGH! 

*ahem* Without further ado
.

1.    Furfrou
2.    Ninetales
3.    Jolteon
4.    Manectric
5.    Umbreon
6.    Suicune
7.    Vaporeon
8.    Glaceon
9.    Flareon
10.    Leafeon
11.    Sylveon
12.    Vulpix
13.    Electrike
14.    Fennekin
15.    Houndoom
16.    Houndour
17.    Espeon
18
.    Dragalge
19.    Mantine
20.    Bruxish
21.    Vileplume

22.    Trevenant
23.    Gourgeist
24.   
Victreebel
25.    Weepinbell

26.    Cacturne
27.    Exeggutor
28.    Carnivine
29.    Pumpkaboo
30.    Phantump
31.    Regice
32.    Torterra
33.    Cherubi
34.    Natu
35.    Phanpy
36.    Porygon2
37.    Porygon
38.    Rotom
39.    Gastrodon
40.    Shellos
41.    Mantyke
42.    Skrelp
43.    Vanilluxe
44.    Vanillish
45.    Vanillite
46.    Braixen
47.    Articuno
48.    Dragonair
49.    Cresselia
50.    Octillery
51.    Roselia
52.    Cacnea
53.    Litten
54.    Liepard
55.    Maractus
56.    Roserade
57.    Corsola
58.    Swalot
59.    Whiscash
60.    Barboach
61.    Qwilfish
62.    Amoonguss
63.    Foongus
64.    Jellicent
65.    Chandelure
66.    Litwick
67.    Xatu
68.    Herdier
69.    Glameow
70.    Stoutland
71.    Delphox
72.    Dugtrio
73.    Magcargo
74.    Ludicolo
75.    Sudowoodo
76.    Hoppip
77.    Whismur
78.    Slugma
79.    Forretress
80.    Meloetta
81.    Florges
82.    Gardevoir
83.    Altaria
84.    Seviper
85.    Avalugg
86.    Vivillon (absolutely love all patterns--Modern, Ocean, Sun, Savanna, Tundra, Polar, Icy Snow, Elegant, High Plains, Continental, High Plains, Archipelago, Sandstorm, River, Jungle, Marine, Meadow, Monsoon)
87.    Electrode
88.    Lillipup
89.    Gorebyss
90.    Huntail
91.    Metang
92.    Spoink
93.    Grotle
94.    Gothitelle
95.    Gothorita
96.    Lampent
97.    Cryogonal
98.    Diancie
99.    Bergmite
100.    Mightyena
101.    Chatot
102.    Eevee
103.    Xerneas
104.    Zygarde
105.    Duskull
106.    Combee
107.    Drapion
108.    Scolipede
109.    Cofagrigus
110.    Finneon
111.    Lumineon
112.    Seaking
113.    Lanturn
114.    Eelektross
115.    Eelektrik
116.    Cobalion
117.    Virizion
118.    Malamar
119.    Inkay
120.    Goldeen
121.    Linoone
122.    Ekans
123.    Arbok
124.    Serperior
125.    Skorupi
126.    Politoed
127.    Clauncher
128.    Sandslash
129.    Sandshrew
130.    Paras
131.    Parasect
132.    Dwebble
133.    Crustle
134.    Cradily
135.    Bayleef
136.    Keldeo
137.    Castform (Snowy/Rainy/Sunny)
138.    Sawsbuck
139.    Deerling
140.    Clamperl
141.    Clawitzer
142.    Stunfisk
143.    Camerupt
144.    Sceptile
145.    Milotic
146.    Snover
147.    Piloswine
148.    Quilava
149.    Trapinch
150.    Chingling
151.    Frillish
152.    Alomomola
153.    Luvdisc
154.    Mandibuzz
155.    Joltik
156.    Charjabug
157.    Galvantula
158.    Wormadam
159.    Burmy
160.    Vibrava
161.    Venomoth
162.    Koffing
163.    Remoraid
164.    Tynamo
165.    Ampharos
166.    Cloyster
167.    Electabuzz
168.    Chansey
169.    Azumarill
170.    Jumpluff
171.    Abomasnow
172.    Torkoal
173.    Aurorus
174.    Amaura
175.    Carbink
176.    Walrein
177.    Servine
178.    Swanna
179.    Staraptor
180.    Wartortle
181.    Chinchou
182.    Swinub
183.    Beautifly
184.    Dustox
185.    Ariados
186.    Spinarak
187.    Steelix
188.    Smoochum
189.    Magby
190.    Elekid
191.    Lopunny (mega form is cute w/ the ears)
192.    Luxray
193.    Shinx
194.    Luxio
195.    Crawdaunt
196.    Corphish
197.    Kingler
198.    Krabby
199.    Simipour
200.    Unfezant
201.    Tranquill
202.    Excadrill
203.    Heatmor
204.    Numel
205.    Lileep
206.    Spiritomb
207.    Reuniclus
208.    Duosion
209.    Solosis
210.    Zorua
211.    Lilligant
212.    Basculin
213.    Carvanha
214.    Drifblim
215.    Drifloon
216.    Volcarona
217.    Shaymin
218.    Giratina
219.    Dialga
220.    Sealeo
221.    Spheal
222.    Drilbur
223.    Ferrothorn
224.    Ferroseed
225.    Tornadus
226.    Thundurus
227.    Landorus
228.    Reshiram
229.    Breloom
230.    Shroomish
231.    Simipour
232.    Rockruff
233.    Pansage
234.    Sandile
235.    Helioptile
236.    Togetic
237.
    Masquerain
238.    Venipede
239.    Sableye
240.    Lunatone
241.    Solrock
242.    Staravia
243.    Relicanth
244.    Archeops
245.    Archen
246.    Whirlipede
247.    Sigilyph
248.    Claydol
249.    Kyurem
250.    Mienshao
251.    Hitmonchan
252.    Klefki



...Blogger. WHY you messin' with text size...?

Wednesday, June 22, 2016

Finding Dory, or "Fantastic Fish & Where to Find Them" (a seaworthy seaquel)

First off...I've been reacting to each Game of Thrones episode in Season 6, and storing the links to those as comments on this here pin.  So there be that.

Second...time to add something else to this blog! Nothing since MJ2 has felt worthy...in fact, without news of more THG, life hardly feels worth living. D-'} The probability of it is what's keeping so many of us tributes going. But in the meantime, we at last have the answer to another of my prayers: the one for a Finding Nemo sequel. Time to react! {#AllTheSpoilers!}

Wore my Nemo shirt (which would include all my faves if it had Bubbles, Gurgle, & Mr. Ray), with black pants & yellow sneakers (plus yellow nails, fishy socks, Moorish Idol earrings, seashell bracelet, & other fitting touches. ;) Brought along Ilsa the hyper-realistic plush Paracanthurus hepatus (could've brought plush Gill & Bubbles, plastic everybody, the other tangs and clownfish and rays, etc.--I have sooooooo many aquatic buddies, both fish & invertebrate plus some mammals...but we would have needed the whole row of seats, at least. xD) Not that that would've been a huge problem, since it was otherwise empty.  Anyhow, I'm wearing all my fishy clothes during the last couple weeks of June in celebration!

We went on Tuesday, which is the theater's $5 ticket day, so it was no surprise that such a hit movie was going to have a bunch of other viewers. The last few times we've gone here, the audiences have been tiny--occasionally as few as one or two other people/small groups with us. I still can't get over the ONE other lady who came in very late and watched most of the Mockingjay double feature behind us. But, anyway. This time the room was maybe, oh, 1/4-1/3 filled? Not too many children, I was glad to see, but oh how I wanted to kick out the obnoxious group of teenage dumbasses who seemed to be under the impression that they were at home instead of in a public place. Of course one had to keep hacking up her disgusting lungs over and over, apologizing in a way that suggested she found it amusing. Ma & I decidedly didn't. This group seemed to, like me, know when to expect what (did they also read the reviews and reports from earlier viewers?) You could tell they were prepared to bust out laughing at the "big funny moments" and gush over baby-Dory and burble to each other about "the lesbian couple," aka two random women. But almost everyone left during the credits! I counted four who remained, knowing there was more to be seen. Now, since Pixar saved the bonus scene for the VERY end, after ALL of the credits and not just after Sia's "Unforgettable" cover, it would be kind of understandable to leave...only...how had they not heard?! (Like, one had said, "Oh, Piper, I heard this was cute!") Were they not interested? Did they forget? Need to leave? I'd considered letting people know that there was a post-credits bit, in case they wanted to stick around, but over the course of the film I decided that it would be far nicer to watch it in peace. Most of those turds didn't deserve to be told. They couldn't be bothered to check out the cast and notice the Tank Gang there, or figure that people toward the back of the theater staying put during the credits might well mean there's a reason to stay. Especially when one's wearing a Finding Nemo shirt and has a plush blue tang, and it's a goddamn Pixar film. XD But OH WELL, their loss. Have a feeling a few of the others who sat tight might have heard me telling Ma before it started, but the noisy ones probably wouldn't have heard over their own constant gibberish.


Most interesting trailer aside from Moana was for The Wild Life--mostly because of Pango. Who is already my favorite critter on Crusoe's island purely for being a pangolin. Scrubby the goat & Tuesday the macaw are pretty cute too. Think the annoying people were Hamilton fans because they had another little outburst when Lin-Manuel Miranda's name showed up in the Moana trailer. The lights didn't go down 'til the short started (which of course was taken by certain parties as an invitation to blab through the previews.) Piper was beyond precious, and the photorealistic animation? KEE-RAY-ZAY.

So, the movie. A seaworthy "seaquel," if not quite as perfect as the first. Dory is both hilarious and heartbreaking. All the voice casting was spot-on; the actors were brilliant, especially Ellen's exceptional performance. There were lots of big laughs, starting with Dory's repeated attempts to enter the anemone (maybe even earlier.) And there was applause both when Dory reunited with Charlie & Jenny, and at the end of the film. To me, the most emotional part was when Dory began remembering her parents, and convinced Marlin (still a pessimistic, judgmental, worrywart stick-in-the-mud and reluctant adventurer with too little trust in the capabilities of others--just finding Nemo wasn't going to change him THAT much) to help her find them. (Plus, of course, the part where Dory believes she's lost everyone and is all alone in the deep, dark sea.)

Lemmee see now...

-"One year later." Okay, I noticed the lines cut out of the Dory-smacking-into-Marlin intro scene from FN the way I notice lines cut from "I Love Lucy" on commercial-addicted modern television. ;P But more than that, it seems to me that FD picks up not one year from the end of Finding Nemo, but one year from that initial meeting. That's what I'm goin' with because it makes more sense.
Because strangely, it didn't feel strange to me that Nemo and his classmates had grown so little. Assuming that animals in "Disney/Pixar/Animation-World" age a bit more slowly than ones on our plane of existence seems safe.

-The stingray migration was a predictably beautiful scene, BUT. Was it just me, or did it look as if they simply copy-pasted a shit-ton of Mr. Rays together? It's fine if all the spotted eagle rays migrate together, but then...why wasn't he with them? His job prevents him from joining in? Couldn't they have been more varied? Ah well.

-Yes, the trio got across the Pacific PDQ. Main reason I don't complain about that is that it IS believable...mostly they're passing through open water, sped along by currents, so there must not have been a lot to show that would've compared with the action inside the institute. (Thanks, Sigourney!! It's okay, Sigourney Weaver is going to help us. =D) Additionally, it legitimizes the conclusion that the Tank Gang HAD to have been transported rapidly across the Pacific somehow, in order to have gotten from Australia to California. I still call bull shark shit on them being in those algae-coated bags, which must have at least had small holes by the time they reached the coast. For real--all the ways they could have just gotten those damn things open and made it to the Great Barrier Reef already (Bloat's spines, Bubbles' scalpel, Jacques' claws, any sharp object they could have pushed them into, aid from pelicans or friendly sharks...) And we get another "Now what?" plastic bag joke. *screams into shirt for ten solid minutes* ...Okay. I can deal. Just because I've wanted to see the gang adjusting (or readjusting, in Gill's case) to reef life for 13 consarned years now, doesn't mean I couldn't laugh. Right? It's clearly a setup for a short (to be titled "Tanked," perhaps?) Tank Gang hightails it out of the institute, makes their way BACK across the Pacific, reaches their little buddy "Shark Bait" and family. Good stuff. PLUS, there is no possible way to believe for five seconds that any of them could survive inside a plastic bag for a year or more. So obviously, their passage across the ocean occurred shortly after their escape from 42 Wallaby Way, Sydney. They were then "treated/rehabilitated," got back into the ocean, and eventually wound up at the GBR. Frankly I would have simply added them to the final scene with Hank, Destiny, & Bailey, as a wonderful surprise every audience member would have seen and adored...but once again, I'm left with only one possible conclusion: We have not seen the last of this story. Also, Gerald was once again fabulous post-credits.

-Dat giant squid was one scary cephalopod. Reminded me of the glorious Megasquid from The Future Is Wild.

-Can I forgive the lack of ANY Garibaldi (Hypsypops rubicundus) or cow/box/trunkfish sightings in the kelp forest? No. I cannot. ='[ (And not even a leopard shark in the backdrop or anything else?) Here we go with my BIGGEST GRIPE (and this is exactly what I was afraid of): not enough variety, not enough species. You had coral reef scenes, you had a whole bunch of aquarium exhibits. I should have seen TONS more species of fish (including shark and ray) and invertebrate. The sunfish was good. The "purple Peach" sea star in the touch tank was awesome. The chatty oyster was cool, and did remind me of Audrey II (probably would have even if I hadn't seen a reviewer compare them.) The garden eels sticking out to warn of "Poker's Cove" were great (and also reminiscent of those creepy-as-shit slimy black slug things in FernGully, during the "If I'm Gonna Eat Somebody" song!) Then in the glorious Open Ocean tank ("Rainforest Cafe!!"), I took note of Red-Faced Chevron/Hooded Butterflies (Chaetodon larvatus), and the parrotfish who looked to be the same species as the one from Nemo's class (probably supposed to be Scarus bleekeri...) During the kelp-forest credits, I was pretty sure I was seeing butterflyfishes--specifically Chaetodon ulietensis, the double-saddled. The movie poster'd had me ready for some Chelmon rostratus (Copperbands!), but what I THINK I saw during the credits as well were...well, it's tough to pinpoint. You'd have to pause the video. Possibly could've been based on Parachaetodon ocellatus, or Chelmon muelleri, or Chelmonops truncatus, or Coradion melanopus...one of these very similar, mostly darker species all closely related to the Copperband.
So those were all lovely to notice. I just...there could have been dozens, scores, hundreds more. (Oh, I think I just spotted a Threadfin butterfly on the poster along with all the generally-based-on-striped-butterfly-species ones. Which remind me of my favorite fish in Lisa Frank's Skedaddle Squad image, except that EVERY fish in there is a made-up species, and I've assigned each made-up or variant LF fish a realistic name anyways. The Fantastic World of Lisa Frank can have those, fine, but why does the animated world encompassing Disney/Pixar/etc., etc. need them?)

I don't even care if they mix up species native to all different areas, because hell, there are no fences or walls or any sort of divisions between oceans! And natural waterways would ultimately lead there. So it's cool if they want to get creative and design one or two "Pixarian" species that don't really exist (same as I didn't begrudge Lisa Frank her right to invent or recolor some of her own, especially when they're clearly based on real species or families), but it truly takes me out of the story to watch some realistic animals living in this basically realistic world...mixing it up with made-up ones who look as though they were designed by SpongeBob artists. (Not knocking SpongeBob. And thumbs up to that discus in the Kuddly Krab!) I just don't understand. Hundreds, thousands of gorgeous species up for grabs. Another opportunity to be (semi-) educational. I didn't mind this issue of only certain "extras" being realistic/identifiable so much in the first one because a) I was just mindblown and grateful to see a fish geek's dream-movie, starring a clownfish and a regal blue tang...and b) the Tank Gang (plus little examples such as Blenny) made up for "random unreal background fish." The mostly gangless Finding Dory would've benefited immensely from throwing in as many fish as they could pull from my reference books. 

-Hank the curmudgeonly, impatient, PTSD-affected septopus was, as anticipated, my favorite new character. Nice development on him. Sure, he was kinda similar to Marlin, and the way he bonded with Dory wasn't dissimilar. But it sure was sweet. Loved her little speech to him in the back of the truck, finally convincing him to return to the sea with her instead of shipping off to jolly old Cleveland. (Why was I expecting one more reference to the three hearts? Something along the lines of, "Now I know I've got three hearts, because two of 'em are breaking." XDD) Plus, Hank was essentially the antithesis of Gill at first, as far as his goal. One wants to escape the box; the other WANTS to live in one.
Destiny and Bailey were awesome, too--as well as the sea lions (GERALD!!), and Becky the loon. xD I swear, Marlin's attempts at communicating with Becky sound like (a much less melodious, tone-deaf version of) my dog's "singing."
Other delightful things: Otter blockade/cuddle-party. "MINE MINE MINE" seagull flock cameo. Brain coral "doghouses" (fishhouses?) Speaking Whale to a whale shark. The best echolocation joke (i.e., "It's eating her!") "Free Destiny." Dory navigating while Hank steers--whether it's a stroller or a truck. And finally, the whole crew--well, family of misfits living together on the reef...except the Tank Gang, ffs, which is a major problem that must be corrected asap. -_- Short? Another feature? I don't care, but let's get on it--or at least, make with the assurance that the gang did NOT end up in bloody Cleveland!! Or even worse...separated. Nopenopenopenopenope.

-'Cause we really couldn't have expected to see EVERYONE again, right? I guess Bruce, Anchor, Chum, & Nigel could have potentially worked into it in some way, but the ones we REALLY needed to see more of and get some closure for were the gang!! And it better turn out to be a setup, because they require much more than some throwaway gag!

-What else did I like? Well, I wanted the little swimming blue tang toy from the gift shop tank (can join my swimming purple spotted eagle ray, Leroy, from Ripley's Aquarium in Gatlinburg, TN.) And the little girl's Destiny plush. 

-Hope none of the fish on board that truck actually wanted Cleveland over the ocean, lol. And hope none of them spread too much disease around (lookin' at you, snotty-sneezy fish who spit out the two smaller ones...hahaha. I shall call you Rustopher, after another dog of mine--the one afflicted with the permasnot nasal condition.) What a wonderful world, indeed...~w~

-"We see the undertow and we say, 'OH HAIL NAW!'" Was Alexander Gould the guy who said, "We are so fired?" Because speaking of forgetfulness--I plumb near forgot I was watching a PG movie, and expected him to say they were fu¢ked. XD Anyway. Sorta seemed as though Dory's parents picked a spot dangerously close to the pipes as their territory, didn't it? Well, I guess they already lived there when she (and other, less needy kids?) came along, and there certainly isn't infinite turf in an exhibit.

-Most reviews had warned that the "madcap third act" was almost to over-the-top to be believable...and nuts as it got, I prepared by deciding to always keep an eye out for the little details they surely must have employed to keep it grounded. Things that would make it plausible for all the slapstick, improvised insanity to actually work out so well for the characters. And y'know what? For a story that requires an octopus (sorry, septopus) to drive a truck off a highway into the sea, they did a pretty good job of that. Hell, this is Pixar we're talking about, after all. That's why I had faith and take the films this seriously in the first place.
All in all, it stirred many fond memories of public aquarium visits, and made me want to go back to one--or snorkeling, or diving. Finding Dory might as well be called "Fantastic Beasts & Where to Find Them"...because, fish, man. Short of dogs, there's no more fantastic beast on this earth.