Monthly Archives: November 2023

Clubs and Activities, Movies/TV/Theaters

‘Murder on the Orient Express’: Why you should watch it and how to get involved

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By: Erin Moore

This coming weekend, Highland Park’s theater department will put on its first play of the school year, ‘Murder on the Orient Express’.

From November 16th to November 18th at 7PM—with an additional Saturday matinee at 2PM—the cast and crew will perform for around two hours, with an intermission occurring halfway through the show, where snacks, merchandise, and beverages will be sold.

Agatha Christie’s ‘Murder on the Orient Express’, is a play written by Ken Ludwig, set in the 1930s. This play follows Hercule Poirot, a famous detective, as he takes a vacation for the first time in years. He boards the Orient Express, excited to finally have a break from his tiresome job. After one night on the train, however, a murder occurs, forcing Poirot to solve the case. Eight potential suspects remain on the train, all with a variety of stories and backgrounds. Could it be one of them? Could it possibly be someone else who snuck onto the train? Watch to find out.

Preparation for performances have been going very well, and as a member of the cast, I can confidently say that this is going to be a great show; potentially more so than our previous fall plays. All the actors are incredibly talented, the tech crew is efficient and hard-working, and the director is absolutely amazing at putting on productions here.

If you’re considering auditioning for future productions, you can find information all over the school and on the hptheatrearts Instagram page. When auditioning for ‘Murder on the Orient Express’, I found a QR code in the school and it brought me to a Google form to sign up for an audition slot after school, and provide information about availability.

In my audition, the director, Nancy Michael, had my group read for different characters in selected scenes from the play. Because the main characters come from different countries, we also were asked to try accents for the audition.

The rehearsal schedule was soon posted in the Theatre’s Schoology group, informing the cast when they would rehearse and who was needed each day. In rehearsals, cast members worked on memorization of the script, blocking, character development, and general scenes.

A week before performances, “tech week” began. This is when lighting, sound, costumes, sets, and every other aspect not added earlier in rehearsal, joins with what’s already been rehearsed.

Now that the fall play is almost over, auditions will soon be held for the winter one acts; eleven of which will be performed over the span of two weekends. If you would like to be involved in cast or crew, contact Nancy Michael.

So, if ‘Murder on the Orient Express’ sounds interesting to you, and you’d like to help support the school’s theater department, I highly recommend attending one of the four performances this coming weekend.

Advice/How To, School Life

How to manage your time wisely

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By: Abisola Dosunmu

Image created with AI Art Generator

With all the chaos at the end of the quarter and the start of a new quarter, it’s really easy to fall behind. Especially now when we have a lot of stuff to distract us. Our phones, social media, and video games are only some of those distractions, so here are some ways we can utilize our time and hopefully stop procrastinating.

Setting Goals 

  • Set goals to motivate yourself – Some ways you could start doing that is creating a timeline that you have to get your work done by and going from there. Have little rewards (like a snack every twenty minutes of studying) to motivate yourself with, and adjust your goals if deemed necessary.
  • Set SMART goals – Set Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Timely goals. Remember to take a break if necessary.

Organizing Yourself

  • Build a routine – Remember, consistency over perfection. This applies to most things, including studying. Carving out time and making studying a habit will leave less room to procrastinate and make you more productive.
  • Balance is key – Avoid stretching yourself too thin and spending too much time studying. Spend time with the people you care about, exercise, read, journal, take a nap. After recharging your batteries, your brain will be more relaxed and willing to learn.

Study Methods

  • “Chunking” – Break big tasks into smaller tasks. Use a timer and set a time you know you can focus long enough for, then take a break after. Repeat.
  • “Eat your frog” –  Do the most challenging tasks early in the morning so the rest of your day feels stress free. Benefits of doing this is getting the most difficult task out of the way will make the rest seem easy,
  • Use the internet to your advantage – Websites and apps like Khan Academy, Guides.co, and Squareknot can help you delve deeper into the subject matter and understand it more. And they’re all free.
  • Revising Method – Once you finish taking notes for a particular subject, look over it at least once, revise it again the next day, revise again after three days, then revise it again after a week. This is how you help your brain remember information.

Planning Ahead

And finally, how do you plan ahead so you don’t fall behind? Some methods could be knowing yourself and your study habits so you can figure out what to work on, evaluate your schedule, finish something before it’s due so you have time to do other stuff, and always think ahead.

For more information, please go to:

Advice/How To, Basketball

Best places to play basketball around the St. Paul area

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By: Jafar Abdi

Basketball is one of the most popular sports in the country, with this fame comes the creation of many different places to play basketball. Whether it be an outdoor park or a gym there are many different places to play this sport. But which ones are the best? Let’s get into it!

#1 YMCA Midway: The Y is a gym franchise found all over the country with many different locations. It usually contains a pool, weight-lifting area, a basketball court, and many other places to get active. The YMCA I will be talking about is the Midway location. The gym is on the upper floor and is only 1 court, it has 2 rims and many benches dotted around the floor. The hoops are single rim, but regulation size and height. It’s open from 7 AM-5 PM on the weekends but 5 AM-9 PM on the weekdays. It isn’t usually too packed during the school year, but with the addition of summer memberships, it can get filled with younger kids during the break. It earns 7/10 from me.

#2 YMCA East-Side: The YMCA gets featured again? Yes, and I am here to review it. The YMCA has multiple locations around the area so I am going to do it again. I’ve already gone through the motions and you must know what the Y is about, so let’s actually review the court. The hours are the same as the Midway location, but the court is different. It has 6 rims: the 2 regulation ones and 2 more 9ft rims on either side. The traffic is a bit different since there is no summer membership, but it’s more popular than its Midway counterpart throughout the year. It also has a laminated wooden court, different from the other YMCA. It earns 8/10 from me.

#3 Hamline Park: This will be the only outdoor court I will be reviewing and also the only park on the list so it is a bit unique. Hamline Park takes up a whole entire city block, featuring a soccer court, a playground, a jungle gym, and a blacktop which is the only thing we are reviewing today. It is a typical outdoor court with 2 hoops regulation height and dimensions but double-rimmed. It is placed in a pretty central location but still doesn’t get too much traffic; the only regulars are pretty much people who live close by. It is a bit old with the 3-pt line faded out on either side but for an outdoor park that’s pretty normal. It earns 6/10 from me.

Tech/Games

‘Danganronpa’ review

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By: Persephone Pond

‘Danganronpa’ is a Japanese visual novel video game franchise that is available on consoles such as Playstation, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and Linux. Total, there are five official games, a few anime series, manga adaptations, and more.

The first game in the series is ‘Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc’, released in 2010, and is the basis of all the world building and lore. This first game is followed by ‘Danganronpa: Goodbye Despair’, released in 2012, which is then followed by ‘Danganronpa: Killing Harmony’, released in 2017. ‘Danganronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls’ was released in 2014 and takes place in between the first and second games, and finally there is ‘Danganronpa S: Ultimate Summer Camp’, a mini game series containing all the characters from throughout the series. In this article, I’ll be covering a small fraction of the basic lore and timeline, in addition to what makes these games so good.

In addition to all these games, there were many anime adaptations of this game, the most important ones being ‘Danganronpa: Despair Arc’, ‘Danganronpa 3: The End of Hope’s Peak High School’, and ‘Danganronpa: Hope Arc’(chronological order). There are more anime adaptations of different aspects of the characters and lore, but these specific three cover a huge part of the lore that is only spoken of in the games, and add on to the end of the second game. If you like knowing the canon events more than interpreting your own ending like me, then you’ll love watching these three arcs after finishing the second game.

‘Danganronpa: Killing Harmony’ is separate from the lore of the first few games, and was added on to the franchise years after the previous games and anime were released. This game holds the same basic plot, but it’s more self-contained and not involved in the overall storyline of ‘Danganronpa’. I do think this game has an amazing atmosphere and some of the best and worst characters throughout the franchise and is worth playing, but it’s more of just an add on to the series instead of an important part.

The whole concept of ‘Danganronpa’ is that there is a class of students at/or from Hope’s Peak Academy, the most prestigious high school in Japan who are forced to fight to the death. In order to be scouted to attend Hope’s Peak, you must be the best in your field of talent, such as baseball or writing. Sixteen students are brainwashed and trapped together, the only way to escape being to get away with murdering a fellow classmate. Once a dead body is found, a trial will begin after a brief investigation time, and if the culprit is discovered, they get executed on the spot. If the culprit is not uncovered, the culprit alone escapes, and the rest of the class is sent to execution. The overall goal is to find out who’s behind these murder games, and how to escape together.

This complex mystery game creates elaborate murders to investigate, and really challenges the player during the trials to piece it all together. Along with the thrilling plot and gameplay, the extensive lore and world building of these games creates an amazing mystery, and every time a new piece is uncovered, more to the overall story is revealed.

One of my favorite parts of the franchise is how it takes many games and anime series to piece it all together. The first ‘Danganronpa’ game can be played as a self-contained game which is better for some people, but if you want to get deep into the lore, playing the second game is essential. In addition to the anime, the game ‘Ultra Despair Girls’ is a great game to play if you want to get into more details of world building and smaller parts of the lore. There’s so much media out there around ‘Danganronpa’, so getting into it really isn’t too hard.

In addition to the wonderful storytelling and lore, the characters in these games are easy to get attached to. Usually, my favorite parts of video games and shows are the characters and their relationships, and there is definitely no exception for this game.

Each character has been scouted to attend Hope’s Peak Academy for their own talent, and that aspect of these characters is very well developed. Of course there are many exceptions as there usually are with anime characters and their strange stereotypes, but overall the good balances out the bad. The protagonists are always underdeveloped at the start to give you that sense of control over your actions and development, yet they’re still their own character with their own story for the player to learn more about.

The hangout scenes and events for all the other students are also interesting, as there’s no character that can be analyzed at surface level. These optional hangouts are a great way to get immersed in the characters, and this creates a more sinister atmosphere as the characters you’re getting attached to could be killed or executed at any turn.

Everything from the elaborate mysteries to the beautiful artwork and backdrops of these games is absolutely wonderful, and I would recommend the ‘Danganronpa’ games to anyone interested in dark story driven games. I’d rate this series overall a 10/10.

Events, Getting To Know/History

Dia de los Muertos

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By: Stephanie Caballero Benitez

Image created with Wonder

Día de los Muertos is a celebration that happens every year on November 2nd. This celebration is most popular amongst the Hispanic community. Día de los Muertos is a celebration and remembrance of the life of loved ones. This tradition originates from Mexico, from the Aztec ancestors.

One of the most popular ways to honor and remember a person is by making them an ‘altar’. An altar is a decorated table with pictures of dead loved ones. These altars are usually decorated with things that the dead once enjoyed; it can consist of foods, books, and drinks.

Another way that people decorate these altars is by putting colorful candy skulls. Another thing you may notice in an altar are non edible skulls also known as catrinas and catrins.

A flower that is very popular in these altars are the golden marigolds. Usually people create small paths with the petals of these flowers to help guide the loved ones to the altar.

Another popular thing in these altars are lighting candles, with some even believe that the candles are a way to communicate with the dead.

Lastly, one of the things that is not often used here in the US but in other countries, music. People play their favorite songs to the dead, some even go to graves and take what is called a “mariachi’ or ‘banda’ to play them live music.

In Mexico, where this is more popular, the altars can stay up for weeks. Here in the US, it is not as common to see the altars up for that long. The longest an altar stays up for the public is only for a week.

This tradition is not only for the Hispanic community but for all. Many around the United States have taken up this tradition in remembrance of their loved ones; this even includes pets! Dia de los Muertos is sometimes confused with something evil, but not to worry, as once again this is only to celebrate and remember the life of ones who have passed.

Travel/Food

Seasonal recipes: Cinnamon Swirl Cupcakes

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By: Austin Bailey-Zimmerman

Are you looking for a cozy fall treat while the weather is getting colder? This is the recipe for you! The cinnamon swirl cupcake pairs perfectly with the frosting on top. It is very easy to make, and with perfect results, leaving your mouth watering for more.

I chose this recipe because it looked so unbelievably delicious, and was very quick and easy to make at home! I got this recipe from TikTok @sarahkraffty. She has found the perfect recipe for fall. The moist cake with the cinnamon swirl is perfect with the creamy sweet frosting on top.

I had my friends and family try it and they thought it was delicious. They said that it was very moist, and thought it was the perfect amount of cinnamon swirl. Enjoy this sweet treat for fall!

Ingredients for batter:

  • 1 stick of butter (melted)
  • 3⁄4 cups of sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 tsp of vanilla
  • 3⁄4 cup of milk
  • 2 cups of flour
  • 1 3⁄4 tsp of baking powder
  • A pinch of salt

Ingredients for cinnamon swirl:

  • 3 tbsp of melted butter
  • 1 tsp of cinnamon
  • 1⁄3 cup of brown sugar

Ingredients for frosting:

  • 2 sticks of browned butter
  • 3 cups of powdered sugar
  • 2 tsp of vanilla
  • 2 tsp of cinnamon
  • 4 tsp of heavy whipping cream

Directions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 350F.
  2. Brown 2 sticks of butter on the stove (cook over low heat and stir until it becomes brown), then freeze for later.
  3. Mix together the butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla, milk, flour, baking powder, and salt into a large mixing bowl.
  4. Mix butter, cinnamon, and brown sugar together in a small bowl.
  5. Line cupcake pans with liners.
  6. Add a small scoop of batter into each cupcake holder, then a small amount of the cinnamon combination, and then take a toothpick and swirl the two together. Repeat once more (or until filled 3⁄4 of the way).
  7. Bake for 22-24mins.
  8. Take your frozen/chilled butter and whip it until smooth. Then add the sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and heavy whipping cream into a mixing bowl.
  9. After cupcakes have cooled, pipe frosting onto tops.
  10. Enjoy!
Editorials/Student Voice, Travel/Food

The importance of traveling

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By: Aliana Romo

The world is open to many opportunities and new beginnings; there’s a lot to see and explore. Most of the world hasn’t been discovered yet, for example the ocean and space. Although just being able to explore new things, like visiting new places, is also important for our health and overall well being.

Traveling is important because it opens our minds to new things. It allows us to learn more about different cultures, languages, beliefs and overall to appreciate diversity. This occurs mostly when traveling out of the country, an example of this is when I went to Mexico. Before that I had never traveled out of the country. Going to Mexico helped me appreciate diversity and understand the social values of the world.

I knew that Mexico was very different from where I lived, although that trip helped me understand so much more. Along with that, without traveling to Mexico I wouldn’t be as comfortable speaking Spanish as I am now. I’ve been learning Spanish since I was young. Before the trip, I wasn’t as comfortable speaking it although after, I understand it much more and have a better understanding. This is a great example of how traveling can be beneficial for opening our minds to new things. It allows for us to open our minds and understand the different ways of living. Along with that, it also helps our minds to understand other people and learn more about each other. It can overall shape new understanding.

Traveling can get expensive at times, especially if you’re planning a trip out of the country or the state. But exploring and traveling doesn’t only mean to explore the world, it can even be what’s around you. There’s many ways to travel and get out of the house besides using an airplane. Nowadays it’s very expensive to book a flight. Whenever a trip is looking too expensive, me and my family love to plan smaller trips. Trips that allow you to get out of the house and take a break without leaving for long periods of time. An example of this is going to a national park or a hiking area. Although vacation wise, even booking a hotel for a couple nights is also a great way to take a vacation without the cost of travel fees.

Not only does traveling allow us to open our eyes to new things, but it also benefits us to open a world of creativity. Being around new things can strengthen mental health. Goabroad.com says that “It can help reduce stress and anxiety and also can offer a sense of adventure and excitement.”  After getting used to the same routine and being in our own space, it’s important to be somewhere new and disconnect from your everyday life.

This is one of the main reasons as to why vacations are popular to many people. After a day to day lifestyle, it can often get stressful and people need a break. Being able to look forward to a trip or a vacation is often a lot of help for people during long months. For example, to get through a long winter, it might be helpful to be able to look forward to a vacation at the beginning of the spring.

Overall, it’s important to know more about the world that we live in. Taking breaks and going on adventures is key to balancing a busy lifestyle.

Movies/TV/Theaters

‘MORBIUS’ review

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By: Joey Briseno & Cade Sullivan

Rating: 3/5

WARNING: SPOILERS FOR ‘MORBIUS’ AHEAD

‘Morbius’, directed by Daniel Espinosa, is the latest addition to the ever-expanding Sony Cinematic Universe, which began with ‘Venom’ in 2018. The story is centered around a lesser-known character named Micheal Morbius from the Spider-Man comic books. While it may not be the most groundbreaking or memorable entry into the superhero genre, the film manages to be an entertaining and visually interesting experience for fans of the Marvel franchise.

Jared Leto stars as Dr. Michael Morbius, a brilliant but tormented scientist who suffers from a rare blood disorder. Driven by a desire to find a cure for his disease, he captures dozens of vampire bats, hoping to splice their DNA with his. However, his cure backfires and transforms him into a living vampire. Leto’s performance is convincing if a bit wooden, and his portrayal of Morbius is a bright spot in such a subpar film.

One interesting character dynamic in this movie is the one shared between Morbius himself and the movie’s antagonist, Milo. Morbius and Milo are lifelong friends who met in the same hospital as kids, both suffering from the same blood disease. The two also shared a surrogate father named Emil Nicholas, but Milo feels that Morbius was always the favorite of the two. Morbius grows up to be an intelligent doctor nominated for a Nobel prize, while Milo establishes himself as the rich benefactor to Morbius’ research of vampire bats.

The two take drastically different paths, however, when they both gain vampiric powers from their cure. Milo leans into his new abilities, feeling powerful for the first time in his life, while Morbius is wary and tries to convince Milo to take an antibody. Eventually, Morbius is forced to eliminate his surrogate brother, as he becomes too corrupted and begins to lash out at the human race.

The film’s visual effects are undoubtedly one of its strongest aspects. The transformation sequences, flight scenes, and battles look realistic and add a layer of thrill to the film. The dark, gothic aesthetic of the film is convincing and captures the tone of Morbius’ character and situation very well.

While Leto’s performance is the standout, the supporting cast, including Adria Arjona as Martine Bancroft and Matt Smith as Lucien Crown/Milo, offer support, although some performances are much better than others. Unfortunately, the character development outside of Morbius himself is lacking, leaving the supporting characters feeling ignored by the plot and one-dimensional.

The plot of ‘Morbius’ skims familiar ground, taking some elements from other superhero origin stories. This copy of other stories may disappoint some viewers seeking a more innovative and unique kind of story. Additionally, in some parts, the pacing can be irregular/bumpy at times, with the film struggling to find the right balance between character development and action in most scenes.

Unfortunately though, another one of ‘Morbius’s’ biggest weaknesses is its connection to the bigger Marvel Cinematic Universe. Even though it attempts to tie into the Sony Spider Verse and the broader Marvel Universe, it feels forced and is somewhat lacking the spotless integration we’ve come to expect from the Marvel Universe.

‘Morbius’ is a somewhat mediocre addition to the Marvel Universe, with Jared Leto’s performance and the stunning visual effects being its most outstanding features. However, we feel the film falls short in terms of originality and its character development, and its connection to the broader Marvel Cinematic Universe may leave some fans wanting more. It’s worth a watch for the superhero enthusiasts, but it may not leave a lasting impression beyond the initial viewing.

(‘Morbius’ is streaming now on Amazon Video, Apple TV and Netflix)

Editorials/Student Voice, Fashion/Make-Up

Fast fashion

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By: Mira Kaufman

You’re looking for a homecoming dress and Shein pops up on your screen with your perfectly trendy, cheap dress and you can’t resist the urge to put it in your cart. Pause, stop, and know what you are supporting by buying this dress. It’s cheap and easy, but unfortunately it’s just not that simple.

According to Oxford Languages, fast fashion is defined as “inexpensive clothing, produced rapidly by mass-market retailers in response to the latest trends.” Although this system sounds great, there is more to it than what we can see with the plane eye. That dress that you buy will eventually end up in the landfill, polluting our earth, and taking up to 1,000 years to degrade. This we can avoid.

Fast fashion has lasting impacts on our world. Their use of water for instance shows us how un-environmental fashion industries are. According to Nature, every year fashion industries consume anywhere from 20 trillion to 200 trillion liters every year. After we buy clothing, commonly made from polyester, we wash it, releasing plastic fibers which make up 20-35% of the micro plastics killing our oceans. The cotton that many of these clothes are made with are also farmed using pesticides which join runoff and chemicalize our oceans.

Fast fashion is not only killing our earth, but the workers too. Fast fashion companies purposely move and take advantage of countries such as Vietnam, India, and Bangladesh because they can get away with horrible working conditions due to those countries’ lack of oversight in textile production.

Brands like these are known for using sweatshops, giving people life threatening working conditions. According to Emma Ross on GW, over 75 million workers are employed and it is estimated that less than 2 percent of these workers make a living wage. This means that 98% of these workers are held below the poverty line, leading the term of these conditions to be “slave labor.” Many of these workers spend 16 hours a day, 7 days a week, and many of these textile factories exploit children into their workforce at very young ages.

Health conditions for these workers are a worry of their own. Workers are exposed to numerous chemicals, many life threatening, leading to cancers and death. These factories also admit numerous types of waste. Their emissions pollute our air, many empty their liquid waste into streams and rivers resulting in flooding poor towns with chemical waters, making children and families ill.

Fast fashion factories have the goal in mind of making as much money as possible. This not only includes giving their workers close to nothing but how their factories and facilities are built. According to Emma Ross, in 2013 1,100 were killed with more than 2,500 people injured due to the Rana Plaza Factory collapsing. This building had already been marked as expired and even so they ordered workers to continue working there and it led to this tragedy. One of many like it.

So many brands we all see online are not as incredible as they look. Many brands that do not use sweatshops still do not meet fair standards for the environment and the workers, so we must be careful to whom we grant our money and support. Common brands such as: Shein, Mango, H&M, Boohoo, Forever 21, Urban Outfitters, Primark, Zara, Victoria’s Secret, Romwe, and more are all fast fashion and follow extremely unfair standards for our environment and workers.

If you have come to understand the truth of fast fashion brands, then let’s make the transition to sustainable clothes easier for you. Common brands such as: Pact, Yes Friends, Etsy, Patagonia, All Birds, Eco Vibe, and so many more are amazing options for sustainable shopping.

Next time you click on that dress, check the brand, what they support, and make the right decision by supporting sustainability for our earth and working people.

Getting To Know/History

The rise and fall of Blockbuster

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By: Manuel Avalos Mateos

Founded in 1985, Blockbuster went from being a king in the entertainment industry, and thriving in the era of physical movie rentals, to filing for bankruptcy in 2010.

Blockbuster was widely known for its chain of movie rental stores. They offered a wide variety of different movies and video games that customers could rent, take home, and later return them.

Blockbuster was booming during the 1990s and early 2000s when renting movies meant taking a quick trip to a store. People loved going to Blockbuster, especially on Friday nights. Families and friends would rent movies for the weekend making it a big deal. Blockbuster was also a community that connected all sorts of people with movies. People would talk about new releases and grab copies of popular films during that time, which would be all a part of the experience.

Blockbusters blue and yellow signs were iconic, easily recognizable, and everyone was familiar with it. The best times for Blockbuster was when new movies were released and people would rush to their local Blockbuster for a copy of the movie. Blockbuster however, would not last for very long.

Netflix, at one point, when it was still a small company and still growing, offered to sell their company to Blockbuster for 50 million dollars. The CEO “laughed them out of the room”, rejecting their offer.

Its fall can be attributed to the rapid growth of digital streaming services. Blockbuster had always stayed with having physical stores instead of having to change or create their own online service.

Blockbuster would continue to show its downfall as the digital age for watching movies began to grow and gain more and more popularity. The quick shift to digital streaming services, and the decline of physical movie rentals caused Blockbuster to face major challenges and eventually file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2010. Blockbuster eventually had no choice but to close all of their locations through 2014 which left under 100 stores sitting globally.

Blockbuster, at its peak, had roughly over 9,000 stores worldwide. Today, only one store remains in Bend, Oregon.