Category Archives: redtailhawk

Letter of Recommendation: The Samurai and the Prisoner

I haven’t enjoyed a movie so much since I saw Oppenheimer in theaters. The Samurai and the Prisoner is a tense, moody, perfectly paced whodunnit set in the Warring States period in Japan. The story is based by the Yonezawa Honobu novel of the same name, which is based (loosely) in turn on a realContinue reading “Letter of Recommendation: The Samurai and the Prisoner”

Loading…Metaphor: ReFantazio

In the immortal words of my friend Zach, there comes a time in the life of every JRPG player when they must make a spreadsheet. And, at least in my experience, that moment always arrives a bit sooner in an Atlus game. I played Persona 5 Royal several years ago on the Switch and reallyContinue reading “Loading…Metaphor: ReFantazio”

Friday Favorites: Loading…Updated Top Ten Video/Computer Games

Without further ado: 10: Spiritfarer. I’m not much of a cozy gamer—a little too boring for me—but I loved this game because it was about dying and what makes life worth living, and supporting the people around us through that process even when they get scared of it and aren’t the nicest. Very pretty, theContinue reading “Friday Favorites: Loading…Updated Top Ten Video/Computer Games”

Cartoons for Grown-ups…Gen Urobuchi and the Art of the Bromance

I feel conflicted about Urobuchi’s work, too, but in a very different way from Ōkubo’s. Urobuchi and I don’t have any political disagreements to speak of—on the contrary, I think our world views mesh. He’s just willing and able to spend more time in dark places than I am. He’s undeniably a phenomenal storyteller, notContinue reading “Cartoons for Grown-ups…Gen Urobuchi and the Art of the Bromance”

Wednesday’s Child: Storytelling

I noticed a while ago that a key difference between healthy and unhealthy responses to the misfortunes that life sent my friends’ way seemed to be the stories they were telling themselves. I was reminded of that while reading Hannah Reichel’s amazing For a Time Such as This: An Emergency Devotional. In chapter 16 sheContinue reading “Wednesday’s Child: Storytelling”

Cartoons for Grownups: A Deep(ish) Dive into the Universe of Ōkubo Atsushi (Soul Eater, Fire Force)

I can’t think of another writer whose work I feel this way about—loving it and hating it at the same time. I can think of writers or composers whose work I love and whose politics I hate, sure. But Ōkubo Atsushi is the only one whose *work* I both love and hate. That’s why it’sContinue reading “Cartoons for Grownups: A Deep(ish) Dive into the Universe of Ōkubo Atsushi (Soul Eater, Fire Force)”

Loading…Clair Obscur: Expedition 33

For those who come after…. This is the French-est game ever: that’s pretty much everything you need to know about Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. It’s a game of contrasts just as its title suggests—operatic and understated, carnivalesque and dark, austere and decadent, goofy and sexy. Until I got used to the visual style, I frequentlyContinue reading “Loading…Clair Obscur: Expedition 33”

A Brief but Spectacular Take on Teacher Burnout

Just had to share this: while I’m not a K-12 teacher, I am a university educator, and I can corroborate everything Micaela is saying about support for teachers: it’s no wonder they’re quitting in droves. I strongly believe we’re going to look back on the Covid-19 Pandemic in a few years and recognize it asContinue reading “A Brief but Spectacular Take on Teacher Burnout”

Loading…Ghost of Yōtei

I was pretty conflicted about playing this game. Don’t get me wrong: I *loved* Ghost of Tsushima, but for reasons that had nothing to do with the main point of the game, i.e., killing people. I loved riding my horse through the jaw-dropping landscape, taking screen-caps of the jaw-dropping landscape, soaking in hot springs, writingContinue reading “Loading…Ghost of Yōtei”