extravagantGEEK

Just a geek and her thoughts…

  • A Whole New [Live-Action] World?

    A Whole New [Live-Action] World?

    This post contains spoilers from the film, proceed at your own discretion.

    I saw the live-action version of Disney’s The Little Mermaid a few days before its official release. As a millennial who was 2 years old when it came out in theaters, the original was a huge part of my childhood. Saying I am a fan of The Little Mermaid as both a Disney property and as a beautifully written but sad story by Hans Christian Andersen… would be quite an understatement. Miss Ariel may have been in denial about her obsession with humans but I will admit without hesitation that my obsession with mermaids began immediately after seeing the animated version of the film.

    My addiction to TLM (The Little Mermaid) was so strong that I’m honestly surprised that the VHS tape didn’t pop from being played too many times over the years. I wish I still had it but that and several other things in my childhood have been lost over time. I do however have it on Blu-Ray DVD. I have watched the animated series that was on the Disney Channel. Seen both of the spin-off movies. I had a Little Mermaid themed birthday party when I was 4, lots of TLM toys (including the slides from the movie to look at on the Red ViewMaster 3D). Even my bedsheet and comforter set were TLM.

    I read the lore of the Disney story from books that were released through the years and of course the real thing as well. Hans Christian Andersen was an amazing writer and I have been a fan of him ever since my mom had me watch a movie about his life starring actor Danny Kaye.

    However, I’m glad that I was older than 2 when I came across his version of the story, because toddler me was not ready. To be honest I’m not sure 8-year-old me was ready either. When I finally watched a short animation about the “real” version of the story… despite being a little sad, it resonated with my young heart. I found a story of a young girl in love, refusing to kill that person just because it would set her free. Seeing her let her love for the prince overcome her selfishness was just awe-inspiring to me.

    If you have never read the original version of the story, I highly suggest it. I can understand why Disney would want to change the story to make it more digestible, and I like their original changes. I’m not sure about the most recent ones they made though. There is a reason why I’m just now posting my review a couple of weeks after seeing the film. I felt like I need to marinate on it and also give time for others to give it a watch before reading my thoughts. I’ll now get into the thing that I did and did not like, in no particular order.

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  • Diablo IV Open Beta – Impressions

    Diablo IV Open Beta – Impressions

    As you may be able to tell, April has been a very busy month for me. I almost went the entire month without any posts. I started this article at the beginning of the month shortly after playing the open beta for Diablo IV.

    If you have followed me since the days of Google+ you may recall an article I wrote called The Resurrection of My Gaming Life. In it, I detailed how Diablo III was one of the main games that sparked my love of gaming as an adult. I enjoyed playing through the acts of the game with my best friend Jameson on multiple platforms. I would even go as far as saying that it is my favorite MMORPG! That’s a huge statement as it’s my favorite genre… ever.

    I have also played Diablo II although I did not get a chance to finish the game. I plan to give it another go once I have my PS4 back, or if I end up getting a PS5. I have the digital game so it will work with either console. What I love so much about the Diablo series is that it was the first RPG I ever played where the campaign can be fully done with your friends. It also lets you level up faster if you had a friend way ahead of you and pick up the gear they drop without putting it up in a market. I love that! The story was also very well constructed and engaging. It was literally everything that I could want in a game and more.

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  • Step One Complete.

    Step One Complete.

    So, I did my first stream a little over a week ago. It went pretty well for a first (in my non-expert opinion). I did really well on my overlay edits so visually it was near perfection. My roommate suggested that I add better lighting which I will try next time… especially since I already have a ring light that is still unboxed after like 4 years. Oops.

    The biggest problem I ran into was the audio, which I, unfortunately, did not know about until after my stream ended. I’m a very soft-spoken person so the game easily took over my voice for starters. This was followed by the fact that my sound settings for the output of my headset’s microphone were muted. *Insert facepalm* I managed an average of 3-4 viewers throughout the stream and had a total of 17 people stop in all together.

    I mentioned in my last article that this is not something I expect to be a major source of income and that remains the case for now. However, I do want it to help me get out of my comfort zone and improve my social interaction skills. I am one of those people who may seem shy or even stuck up initially, but I just need to get a feel for people before I let my guard down. Sometimes I get lucky and meet people that I instantly “click” with, but it does not happen as often as I’d like.

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