Tag Archives: Review

Travel/Food

Crumbl

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By: Sylvia Yannsdottir & Maya Song

Image by Revoleikooc via Wikimedia Commons

Introduction to Crumbl

Crumbl is an extremely popular, and widespread cookie shop across the United States of America. With its vibrant appeal, fun flavors, and trendy advertising, it has become one of the most well known dessert places, with over 1 million desserts sold every single day.

Crumbl was based in Utah, and founded in 2017. Since then, it now has 1071 store locations across the United States of America.

What’s the appeal?

One thing that makes Crumbl truly unique is the flavor variety and creativity. The company is known for its weekly rotation of 6 new, fun flavors that come out every Monday. Crumbl is also widely known for keeping up with current trends.

Crumbl’s flavors are mainly inspired by popular existing treats, or candies, and the company frequently collaborates with exciting brands to come up with new flavors.

While they maintain a surprising variety of flavors, the company keeps one cookie the same every single week, the Classic Milk Chocolate Chip cookie, which was their first invented flavor.

Rise to fame

There are a lot of aspects to what has made Crumbl so remarkably well known, and to sum it up a mix of its innovative design, publicity, and its appeal have led it to its success.

When we analyze Crumbl’s design, one thing that stands out is the iconic pink box. Since the company started, desserts come in a signature bright-pink box, with the company’s well known logo on top. Aside from that, stores are also designed with bright, intriguing colors.

A key factor to the success of Crumbl is its publicity. Specifically directed towards younger generations, a huge wave of influencers across social media platforms post reviews, start trends, and add to the fame of the brand. Crumbl would not be the company it is today if it weren’t for social media platforms.

Lastly, its appeal. The typical Crumbl cookie is neatly and creatively decorated to correspond to its flavor. With all of the flavor options, it’s hard to resist trying one.

Criticisms

Whenever there is something new, and popular, there will always be something that needs improvement.

One huge criticism about Crumbl is the nutritional value. Although of course, it is a dessert company, it has a ridiculous amount of calories per cookie. One of the typical cookies has anywhere from 800-1000 calories, which is kind of insane if you think about it.

Typically, when you go to Crumbl you’d get a box of between 4-6 cookies, and indulging in this sweet treat can easily be up to 6,000 calories, which is almost double the amount of calories a grown person is encouraged to consume in a single day.

While it is known that desserts aren’t going to be the healthiest thing ever, it eventually gets to a point where it’s just too much. Along with that, there are thousands of content creators who’s pages are dedicated to trying, and reviewing Crumbl every single week. Not only does that normalize an extremely unhealthy habit, but it is rather concerning in general.

Aside from that, another thing that Crumbl could improve on is its pricing. A lot of people can agree that it’s rather overpriced for what it is. Oftentimes, a box of 6 cookies is $26. When you compare that to other places, it’s quite a bit pricier.

Competitors

Crumbl is not the first innovative dessert brand like this, and definitely won’t be the last. There are of course a lot of other dessert brands out there, but specifically there are a few that have reached a similar status as Crumbl.

One very popular dessert brand out there is Insomnia Cookies. Insomnia Cookies is a dessert brand that was founded back in 2003 in the United States, with over 150 store locations now.

Insomnia Cookies are known for having freshly baked goods, especially their cookies. Just like with Crumbl, there are a lot of flavor options, and typically their cookies are large, and have fillings in the interior of the cookie.

A few aspects that set Insomnia Cookies apart from Crumbl is the availability of the cookies. A big part of the brand is how it’s known for staying open until 3 in the morning serving its fresh cookies. Besides that, there’s a variety of other dessert options that come with the cookies.

Some people say that they prefer Insomnia Cookies over Crumbl cookies, because of the freshness, the more realistic nutritional value, and availability. Others would choose Crumbl over Insomnia Cookies because of the flavor variety, constant change, and because Crumbl is typically seen as a rare treat.

Personal Opinion

We would highly recommend trying Crumbl cookies. We say this because they are genuinely delicious, and it’s really fun to go try out new flavors with friends or family.

Although they’re not the best for you nutritionally, life is about balance and we believe it’s more than okay to have them occasionally.

Crumbl is an extremely innovative brand, has come really far, and has maintained its platform very well. It’s very exciting to think about what will come from it in the future.

Movies/TV/Theaters

‘The Summer I Turned Pretty’ review

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By: Sasha Deans

The show is a coming-of-age story that follows Belly, who is no longer the awkward little girl she once was. Now that she has grown up, she begins to catch the attention of boys around her, including her longtime crush and family friend, Conrad. However, she soon finds herself in a complicated love triangle.

I believe the show features strong performances. Lola Tung brings a lot of depth to the character of Belly, while Christopher Briney and Gavin Casalegno shine as the Fisher brothers, effectively portraying their contrasting personalities.

The cinematography is also stunning. The show’s coastal setting at Cousins Beach, combined with its warm color palette, enhances the nostalgic and summery feeling.

The soundtrack, featuring artists like Taylor Swift and Olivia Rodrigo, perfectly complements the emotional tone of the series. Songs like “Cruel Summer” and “August” from Taylor Swift brought so much to the whole entire vibe of the show’s scenery and they are also just so significant to the entire show. Like, “August” in the last scene as they are leaving in August and the “Cruel Summer” it really was with that intriguing love triangle. It also has so many fun songs like “Summer Nights” from ‘Grease’ at a party giving it a certain vibe of nostalgia. And there are also ones that just really tell the scenes story like “ARE WE STILL FRIENDS” by Tyler the Creator and it really is definitely asking are we still friends! That’s for sure.

However, the show does have some weaknesses. Some side characters, like Belly’s best friend Taylor, feel underdeveloped. Like, you kind of just see her really as a side character but I feel it only really represents her as a mean annoying best friend which wouldn’t exactly make sense since Belly is portrayed as a very kind, sweet, and shy girl. So, if they have been friends since childhood I don’t think that she is actually all that mean as the show shows her as the whole season one. Additionally, the pacing is quite slow at times, with unnecessary filler episodes that drag the storyline.

Final Verdict:

‘The Summer I Turned Pretty’ Season One is a nostalgic, warm, and heartfelt coming-of-age drama that captures the magic of youth and romance realistically. With strong performances, beautiful cinematography, and good storytelling, it is an enjoyable watch.

Rating: 4/5

You can watch ‘The Summer I Turned Pretty’ on Netflix

Travel/Food

Red Velvet Chocolate Chip Cookie review by: Sallys Baking Addiction

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By: Alice Rapacz

Ingredients:

  • 1 and ⅔ cups all purpose flour
  • ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • ½ cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
  • ¾ cup packed brown sugar
  • ¼ cup granulated sugar
  • 1 large egg, at room temperature
  • 1 tablespoon milk
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • ¾ teaspoons red food coloring (more if you want them brighter)
  • 1 cup white or semi-sweet chocolate chips

Instructions:

  1. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt.
  2. Using a hand held mixer or stand mixer, on medium speed cream together your butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until creamy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the egg and vanilla extract and combine on high speed.
  3. Add the dry ingredients into the wet and add in the milk and food coloring. Mix on low speed until combined. Add the chocolate chips and mix on low speed.
  4. Cover the dough and chill for at least 1 hour or up to 3 days. If you chill the dough for longer than 2 hours allow the dough to sit out at room temperature for at least 15 min before rolling out the dough.
  5. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
  6. Scoop and roll each cookie to about 1 ½ tablespoons. Arrange on the baking sheet 3 inches apart from each other and bake for 11-13 minutes.
  7. Cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet before transferring to a wire rack to let them cool completely.
  8. Enjoy the cookies now and with any extra cover and store at room temperature for up to 1 week.

Review:

I thought this recipe from Sallys Baking Addiction was great and easy to follow. I started by getting all my ingredients measured out and ready to use, which made the process very smooth.

The dough came together really well. I was able to follow the instructions with ease and just combined all the ingredients together. One extra thing I did was when adding the dry ingredients to the wet, I did them in batches. This made it easy not to have the bowl overflow with all the ingredients when I turned on the mixer.

I let the dough chill for around 4 hours so when I went to roll it out, even after 15 minutes it was still very hard. I had to let it sit out for an additional 15 minutes before it became soft enough to roll into balls.

I baked my batches for 11 minutes because I like my cookies soft, that time seemed perfect. They came out of the oven with a soft interior and they had a slight crunch to the exterior.

Flavor wise I thought they tasted pretty good. The chocolate chips added a needed bit of chocolate flavor, because although there was cocoa powder in the cookie, I felt it wasn’t chocolatey enough on its own. Besides that, they were the perfect sweet treat for the night. I added white chocolate chips and semi-sweet chocolate chips, the two paired well with the cookie, and while warm and gooey they coated your tongue and they were very delicious.

This recipe, I have made before for my neighbors and let’s just say, I didn’t even get to eat one because they were gone that fast. Nonetheless, this is a great and easy recipe that is a crowd favorite and I think you should give it a try the next time you are craving something sweet.

Movies/TV/Theaters

‘Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire’

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By: Samson Belihu

*Warning: This review contains spoilers

First off, let’s start with those who don’t know let’s recap what’s happened so far: King Kong and Godzilla have fought before, and it was due to multiple misunderstandings. But when Mechagodzilla was created by humans to replicate Godzilla due to the power he carries, that’s when they put their differences aside and fight as one to destroy their enemy. At the end, they separate with Kong going to the Hollow Earth, which is a hidden ecosystem deep beneath earth’s surface, while on the other hand Godzilla stayed on the surface due to the potential threat of humans in his residential area in an ancient monument.

‘The New Empire’ starts off with Kong being chased by a pack of monsters, and he gets cornered, but that doesn’t matter due to the intelligence of Kong, who has set up a trap just in case of emergency. This trap kills almost all the monsters, while the rest fled back to where they came from. That’s when we’re told King’s species is a social one, meaning they like interacting with other kinds of his own, and he has been looking for his kind. There’s an issue though: he hasn’t been able to find anyone like him for a long time.

The humans detect the movement of Kong, and that’s when they decide to check up on things.

A moment later we meet a special girl named Jia who can see and understand Kong’s feelings but feels displaced because she’s at school and not where she’s being drawn to. The reason for this is because “She’s the last living member of the Iwi tribe” who are an advanced tribe that lives in Hollow Earth.

A bit later we see that Kong has left the underground to go to the humans to ask for help. He has an infected tooth that has to be taken out, and the job was perfect for the “Best doctor in town”, who helps him. That’s when Kong decides to leave the surface again, but before he leaves, they decide to follow him into Hollow Earth.

That’s when the humans find out that Hollow Earth goes even deeper where there are many strange things and creatures, and there potentially could be others like Kong.

Will Kong find others like him to keep him company? Will Jia ever find where she belongs? You will need to watch ‘Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire’ if you want to know the answers to these questions. I think it is worth the time and would give this movie a 9/10.

You can watch ‘Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire’ on Netflix, Max and other streaming platforms.

Music/Concerts

Songs meanings of ‘0.1 flaws and all.’ album by wave to earth

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By: Christine Yang

Wave to earth is a three-member band, Daniel Kim (singer-songwriter), Dong Kyu Shin (drummer), and John Cha (bassist) based in Seoul, South Korea. They want their band’s aspiration to “become the new wave” and expand their universe across the world. The band’s songs consist of indie pop with a lo-fi sound rooted in jazz drumming. The album ‘0.1 flaws and all.’ was released on April 20, 2023, with 14 songs (12 lyrical songs and 2 instrumental) on the album.

Lyrical Songs:

“bad”:

The song “bad” is about being with someone you love, and how the days will never be bad when you see/be with them. Which basically means their presence lightens your day or mood, and how in love you are towards them. 

“sunny days”:

“sunny days” is an expression of appreciating the joy and warmth that love can bring into someone’s life.

“peach eyes”:

“peach eyes” is an expression of the sweet bond between two people, showing how love brings light, comfort, and motivation. The song also symbolizes the partner’s “peach-colored eyes”, which are also the representations of beauty and warmth of the person/love.

“evening glow”:

The song “evening glow” is about a person’s flaws and how they feel “broken” or “unloveable”, and trying to find healing and acceptance while struggling.

“pink”:

“pink” is a poetic way of exploring the short lasting nature of life and love. Also, seeing the person you love in nature sceneries.

“calla”:

“calla” is about spending time with someone you love no matter the conditions, and hoping it’s not just you daydreaming about it. It’s also about how strong love and hope are, and staying strong while facing difficulties/misfortune.

“love.”:

The song “love.” is about the human connection, emphasizing the individual desires that are wanted to be brought into relationships, friendship, community, etc.

But Daniel Kim’s definition of the song “love.” is about his band members, expressing the emotions that the whole band felt during times they spent together. But also memorializing the growth that each individual member went through, and how far they came in life.

“homesick”:

“homesick” is about the feeling of an unfamiliar place and wanting to be at home due to the familiar comfort.

“dried flower”:

The song “dried flower” is about the person you used to love that doesn’t hold a special place or meaning to you anymore, and how you don’t want to get back with them because it won’t be the same.

“sunburn”:

“sunburn” is about dealing with “pain” (struggles), no matter if you try to get “rid” of them the pain won’t go away, and trying to seek freedom from it.

“nouvelle vague”:

“nouvelle vague” talks about the struggle of growth, and wanting to stay/memorize the past instead of moving forward in life. This is due to the desire of not wanting to move forward in life is because of unfamiliarities or just fearing you’ll lose yourself as you go further.

“so real”:

“so real” is about emotional imprisonment and deep isolation, while yearning for freedom, understandment, and connections. Also, having to know the challenges that will be faced in achieving those goals. 

Instrumentals:

“pink horizon”

“akira”

Tech/Games

‘Marvel Rivals’ review

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By: Munira Ahmadad

‘Marvel Rivals’ is a new multiplayer hero shooter by NetEase games. It was released on December 6th with 33 playable characters to start with (there have been 4 more added since). Outside of skins, the current roster consists of popular Marvel heroes and villains, designed after their comic looks. You play against other players in teams of 6 and each character fits into role categories that are based on what they’re meant to do. Some characters work well with others, and it’s encouraged for players to consider team-ups for more efficient matches. This also gives incentive for people to try out multiple heroes.

 When I first started to play the game, I didn’t expect to enjoy it a lot, but so far it’s been really fun, which is a pleasant surprise. Initially, I was leaning towards the option of skipping it since it’s a third-person shooter game, and I usually get tired of them quicker than other games. I ended up getting it just because it’s Marvel. The game uses well-known characters who are superhero icons like Captain America, Spider-Man, and Iron Man, and heroes that aren’t in the spotlight as much such as Psylocke, Squirrel Girl, and Jeff the Land Shark.

So far, I’ve only played in quick-play as Mantis, a strategist/support character, and I think the movement in the game is clean. The locations chosen for battle maps are cool. I’d give the combat a 6/10 for my own personal experience, but that’s likely to change since I’m still not familiar with the gameplay style and how to play optimally. I’m sure someone who actually knows what they’re doing would have a different opinion on it. Also, these types of games with objective-based game modes become repetitive for me. ‘Marvel Rivals’ is still in its early days, so I do have hope it develops well over time.

I give the character design a 10/10. I absolutely love the look of every hero, especially Scarlet Witch, Squirrel Girl, Mantis, Iron Fist, Rocket Raccoon, and Namor. I have no complaints about the designs and each character looks incredibly cool. The designs take from the comics rather than the animated shows or the films. Even with how faithful the designs are to the comics, they still have their own unique feel to them. Players who are fans of the MCU characters can purchase various characters’ movie equivalent designs as costumes.

Due to its similarities with ‘Overwatch’, a popular game, I’ve seen people online refer to ‘Marvel Rivals’ as a knock-off version of it, while others say it has potential to be a hero shooter that won’t decline the same way ‘Overwatch’ does over time.

Overall, I give the game a 8/10 for its initial release. I don’t have time to really play it a lot, and as it is right now, I don’t know if I’ll continue playing but the experience of playing as some of my favorite characters has always been something I really like.

‘Marvel Rivals’ is available on the PS and Xbox systems along with PC.

Travel/Food

Peanut butter chocolate chip cookies review

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By: Norah Hoglund and Max Cahoon

While chocolate chip cookies are very delicious, what is even better is peanut butter chocolate chip cookies. We tried this recipe out because right now is the perfect time to make cookies and share them with your friends and family. Just make sure no one is allergic to peanut butter!

Review

Taste

These cookies had such a good taste; we would say they were probably some of the best cookies we have ever made. The peanut butter makes them really really good because the saltiness of the peanut butter contrasts the sweetness of the cookie and it is a really great flavor, especially if you love peanut butter. A lot of people know that chocolate and peanut butter go really well together, and that fact does not change in this instance.

All of the ingredients in this cookie just go very well together and make for a great cookie. It is also not too sweet, due to the peanut butter. When they came warm fresh out of the oven, they were the best. We had them with milk and we agreed that they were some of the best cookies ever.

The only downside is that once you taste them when they are warm it’s a little underwhelming when you eat them at room temperature, but you can always warm them up.

Our rating: 9.9/10

Ease of making

These cookies were a bit of a challenge to make. We decided to brown the butter (see how in the recipe notes), even though the recipe doesn’t call for it, because it makes for a richer cookie. The recipe said to melt the butter anyway, so we browned it in a pot and added the peanut butter to the butter.

Once we had mixed together all the wet ingredients and dry ingredients, we mixed the two together. The dough then was very thick and we had to mix it with our hands because a whisk or spatula couldn’t mix it.

We filled up two trays with all of our dough and decided to put both trays in the oven at the same time, to save time baking them. The only thing we had to change was to bake them for 2-3 extra minutes.

The rest of the instructions were fairly easy and these cookies were definitely worth the effort we put into them. It was also a really fun experience making these, especially if you love baking. Our rating: 8/10

Overall

Overall, these cookies were so delicious and fairly easy to make for a high-quality cookie recipe. These cookies were very good and absolutely worth all of the effort we put into them. It was a fun experience. We rate this recipe a 9/10 and you should absolutely try it.

Here is the link to the recipe: https://handletheheat.com/peanut-butter-chocolate-chip-cookies/

Recipe

Ingredients

  • ▢ 2 1/2 cups (318 grams) bleached all-purpose flour, measured correctly
  • ▢ 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ▢ 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • ▢ 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • ▢ 1 stick (113 grams) unsalted butter
  • ▢ 3/4 cup (202 grams) creamy peanut butter
  • ▢ 1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated sugar
  • ▢ 1 cup (200 grams) packed dark brown sugar
  • ▢ 2 large eggs plus 1 egg yolk, at room temperature
  • ▢ 2 teaspoons vanilla
  • ▢ 2 cups (340 grams) semi sweet chocolate chips

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
  1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
  1. In a large heat-safe bowl, microwave the butter until melted. Vigorously stir the peanut butter into the hot butter until well combined. Stir in the granulated sugar and brown sugar until well combined. Add the eggs and yolk, one at a time, stirring well after each addition. Add in the vanilla. Gradually stir in the flour mixture until just combined. Stir in the chocolate chips.
  1. Dough may be loose and slightly crumbly. It will not appear like normal chocolate chip cookie dough. If it’s unbearably crumbly, that’s likely due to discrepancies among brands of peanut butter and if you used unbleached flour. Add 2 tablespoons milk if that’s the case.
  1. OPTIONAL: If time permits, cover the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 24 hours but no more than 72 hours. Let the dough sit at room temperature just until it is soft enough to scoop.
  1. Divide the dough into 3-tablespoon sized balls using a large spring-loaded cookie scoop and drop onto prepared baking sheets. Flatten dough slightly into disc shapes with your palms. Dot each disc with a few extra chocolate chips for picture-perfect cookies.
  1. Bake for 12 minutes, or until golden brown. Let cool for 5 minutes before removing to wire racks to cool completely.
  1. Cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.

NOTE: to brown butter, cook it in a pan on medium heat until it turns golden brown. This should be 5-7 minutes after it melts.

Tech/Games

‘Sky: Children of the Light’

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By: Cleo Newton

Screenshot

For about the last year, ‘Sky: Children of the Light’ has been my favorite mobile game.

It’s a game where you have to find and gather winged light (which take the form of glowing children). After acquiring your first winged light, you form a cape and your first wedge. This wedge is the amount of times you can flap in a row before having to recharge when flying. The amount of times you can flap is displayed on your cape to other players. The cape in this game is key when flying, without one, you can’t fly. Flying is crucial in many parts of this game; you may not be able to get to certain places if you can’t fly. The animation for the capes in this game mimics the way wings flap.

You can gather more winged light as you explore the world and discover new places. In each place, there’s a shrine where you can log down the new area and add it to your map.

There’s a reason why this game is called ‘Children of the Light’, in the game, there are supposedly no adults (they have all passed). All the adults are spirits. Spirits are another important aspect in this game. As you find more spirits, you get to relive a short but important part of their life. After finding out their story, you gain an emote, or in some cases, a new voice (The voice changes every time you “honk”).

Honking can be used to find other players in the game or to summon nearby butterflies. These butterflies can be used to recharge your cape. Another use for honking is to flip over crabs. The crabs in the game are hostile and will attack you, “yelling” to flip them over keeps them from hurting you.

Throughout the game, you’ll find red candles with bits of light/wax floating above the flame. You can collect these and use the wax to forge candles; these candles are your main form of currency in Sky. You can use it to buy cosmetics from the spirits or from temple elders. Cosmetics include pants, masks, hair, capes, and props.

In this game, you can light up other players with your candle to see what they look like; it’s kind of like saying hi. After this, you can spend a candle to either talk to them on a nearby bench (if available) or friend them. If you don’t want to spend a candle to friend someone, you can send them a code which then can be typed into a bar (in settings).

Sky has annual events that last a few weeks. During this time, you can buy limited time cosmetics and props. You can also do this with the seasons Sky hosts. The seasons are like events but last longer and have more things you can buy.

Lastly, there are different realms you can explore. The last one being “The Eye of Eden”. Here, you climb a mountain before giving your winged light away to statues. I think these statues represent fallen skykids. After giving away all your winged light, you die and then get reborn. Part of getting reborn means you get ascended candles, a more difficult form of currency to acquire.

After getting reborn, you will lose all your winged light but you will also gain a new winged light which will be added onto the total count after you regather all your winged light again.

After reading this, I hope you’ll consider playing ‘Sky: Children of the Light’. I would give it a 4.5/5.

You can play ‘Sky: Children of the Light’ on multiple platforms including, the Switch, Steam, and mobile devices (Android & Apple IOS).

Music/Concerts

Song meanings of the EP ‘Superclean, Vol.II’ by The Marías

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By: Christine Yang

The Marías is a psychedelic-soul lovechild of Puerto Rican-bred band with María Zardoya, Josh Conway, Jesse Perlman, and Edward James. The EP ‘Superclean, Vol II’ was released on September 28, 2018, with six songs on it. The EP is a blend between alternative and indie (Latin indie).

“Ruthless”:

“Ruthless” can be about someone who’s in love with somebody that they haven’t seen in awhile, but still have affections towards them and want to have a relationship with them. 

“Cariño”:

“Cariño” can be interpreted as a song to appreciate a romantic lover, and how you find peace just being with them. Or it can be about someone you love and how you’re telling them they’re special in many different ways.

“ABQ”:

The song “ABQ” can be interpreted as about anxiety, how you feel this constant feeling that you’re never alone and crave that loneliness or time with yourself.

On a personal level, it’s about María Zardoya’s struggle with anxiety of not wanting to let anyone down, and having so much pressure to get things done (songs related) to please the audience, but also be on track with her band members too.     

“Loverboy”:

“Loverboy” is about a partner being unfaithful towards you, and how you can’t really process or accept that fact, but also can’t bear to hear a word from their mouth.

“Over the Moon”:

“Over the Moon” is an idiomatic expression that means a state of extreme happiness. It’s also viewed as a bittersweet love song about the struggles of an uncertain but passionate relationship.

“Clueless”:

“Clueless” is about a relationship that failed due to not being able to handle it anymore (due to lack of emotional awareness, miscommunication, and growing apart). Also, being confused about their words/actions, and having moments of being able to feel free, but being reminded of them.   

Overall, I would give ‘Superclean, Vol II’ a 10/10.

Movies/TV/Theaters

‘Home Alone’ movie review

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By: Sophia Elmstrom and Lily Sheldon

*Warning: this review contains spoilers

‘Home Alone’ is an American holiday comedy film directed by Chris Columbus and was made in 1990. The film stars Macaulay Culkin as Kevin McCallister, and the cast features Joe Pesci, Daniel Stern, John Heard and Catherine O’Hara. This film is also the 1st movie out of 4, along with 2 other versions. The film grossed $476.7 million worldwide, becoming the second highest grossing film of 1990. This movie was a big hit, but before we share our thoughts here is a rundown of the plot.

The movie starts with Kevin and his huge family getting ready to spend Christmas in Paris. Everyone is staying at Kevin’s house the night before they leave. Kevin’s siblings and cousins are running around the house preparing for this vacation. No one in the family will help Kevin pack his bag which results in Kevin eventually getting sent up to the attic after ruining the family dinner when arguing with his cousin. Kevin is very upset and is sick of his family picking on him. When he is up in the attic Kevin wishes that his family would disappear.

That night, there is a power outage due to snow, and all the alarm clocks in the house were reset. This causes everyone in the house to oversleep, and they have to rush to get to the airport in the morning. While Kevin’s family is rushing to get to the airport in the morning, Kevin accidentally gets left behind. Kevin wakes up to the house being empty, and is very happy that his wish to not have a family came true. Kevin loves having the house to himself, and is taking advantage of that. Kevin’s house then becomes watched by the “Wet Bandits”, Harry and Marv who are neighborhood burglars. Kevin tricks Harry and Marv into thinking that his family is still home. This makes them hold off on their plans to rob Kevin’s house.

Kevin’s mom, Kate, realizes on her flight that Kevin was left at home. When they get to Paris, Kate tries to get on a flight home. Kate makes it to Pennsylvania, but cannot get on a flight back home to Chicago because all the flights are booked and the phone lines are still down in Chicago. Kate meets a guy named Gus at the airport, and Gus offers to let her travel with them to Chicago in a moving van with his band.

On Christmas Eve, Harry and Marv realize that Kevin is the only one inside his house. Kevin hears them discussing plans to break into his house that night. Kevin sets up his whole house with traps. When Harry and Marv break in, they set off all of the traps in the house, making them regret the robbery. Kevin calls the police and Harry and Marv get arrested.

Kevin is disappointed that his family is still gone on Christmas Day. Kevin’s mom finally makes it home and surprises Kevin. The rest of Kevin’s family comes home shortly after. Kevin is glad that his family is home.

‘Home Alone’ received a 66% on Rotten Tomatoes and 7.7/10 from IMDb. Overall, the audience rating summary was a 4.8 with many people saying it was a classic Christmas movie with a nostalgic feeling.

We agree with this rating of the audience but we believe that Rotten Tomatoes and IMDb should have given it a higher rating as it is a very good movie. We both watch this Christmas movie every year with our family and it brings us lots of Christmas memories. We overall rate this a 9/10 because it has that nostalgic Christmas feeling and reminds us of our childhood.

You can watch ‘Home Alone’ on Disney Plus.