Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2

I actually watched this on the second opening day thanks to one my close friend’s insistence. What can I say? The movie was really good, better than my expectations. I thought it would be an uphill task to end it all, as the movie tagline says, but they have managed it. Its like the movie producers had a bit of Felix Felicis. The movie was of course, bittersweet considering that it closes a chapter in a young wizard's life that has spanned a decade. The success in the tale of Harry Potter was that it has so many interesting and passionate supporting characters in it and all of them shined in the movie, even if briefly. The special effects also, instead of being the centerpiece of most action blockbusters, actually complements the movie brilliantly. I won’t forget the scene where the teachers set up the defences around Hogwarts anytime soon. Like what many fans around the world have foretold, I will be experiencing HP withdrawal syndrome after this. I’m going to miss all the characters but I’m also going to miss owl post, Hogsmeade weekends, Bertie Botts Every Flavour Beans, all the quirky spells (expecto patronum!), the Burrow, Quidditch and Hogwarts. It’s such a magical place that I’m sure I’ll be rereading J.K. Rowling’s books just like how I’ve been rereading Tolkien’s. That’s the power of a good story. Sure, some books may not be perfect but when they hit a note that resonates with you, you embrace the story and the story becomes part of you.
Btw, this is what my patronus looks like :P

天使

私は守護天使を必要とする

Curious Scene

I was driving home from a short trip to the grocery store and came upon an unusual scene in the sky. There was a dramatic downpour complete with continuous flashes of lightning earlier and so the whole sky was covered with grey clouds. However, I noticed a blue patch among the grey. It seemed very curious, it was a bit out of place but it felt comforting seeing it. It was like the sky was saying that no matter how grey life could be, there will always be a little blue sky waiting to come out from behind.

Prayer

Yesterday, the people of Japan observed a minute’s silence in respect of the victims and those affected by the Tohoku-Pacific Ocean earthquake which has caused a tsunami as well as a nuclear crisis. In Malaysia, the government observed a minute’s silence during the Dewan Rakyat on Thursday. I pray that the engineers working on the Fukushima Daiichi plant would be able to stabilise the reactors soon so that Japan may finally focus all her attention and resources on recovery.

The Lost Canvas

It is happening again! I'm being hit with the Saint Seiya bug. I recently stumbled upon Saint Seiya - The Lost Canvas. Its about the war against Hades that happened 243 years before the original Saint Seiya. So, most of the characters are different from the original anime but a lot of them are familiar ^-^ The character design and storytelling style is different as it is adapted from a manga done by a different artist but I like the style somehow. I also like the quotes:

"We don't fight to die. We live to protect the truth and love of this world. That is our destiny; not to die. We fight to fulfil our will. Sometimes it leads us to death, sometimes to something else. We'll keep fighting, till the moment our life burns out." - Shion, Aries Gold Saint.

"I've lived my whole life with these poisoned roses but for the first time, I find them beautiful." - Albafica, Pisces Gold Saint.

"Even if you're not a Saint and not on the battlefield, you must always have the strength and kindness to protect the weak." - Aldebaran, Taurus Gold Saint.

Taiping Lake Gardens

I feel so zen-like here.

매리는 외박중

I’ve recently concluded watching a nice K-drama. Marry Me, Mary was shown on the KBS channel on Astro recently. Knowing me, it was another funny romantic drama, and not the tearjerker type. I stumbled upon the drama as I was channel surfing. The drama was showing one of the main characters performing on stage. I’m embarrassed to say that he caught my attention for two reasons: one, he’s cute and the second reason was that he reminded me of Hyde from the J-rock band L’Arc-en-Ciel. It turns that the actor had always been a L’Arc-en-Ciel fan! The drama was already four episodes along but it wasn’t hard for me to catchup. It’s a typical story where the girl’s parent wants her to marry his good friend’s son. The girl’s name is Mary and she’s a typical optimistic girl who patiently deals with a father who’s always running from loan sharks. Now, Mary’s not one to go quietly into an arranged marriage, so she pretends to have a fake wedding with a band singer she just met. Who does that in real life but hey, this is a drama. Not willing to be brushed off by his daughter’s attempt to evade the wedding, Mary’s father and his friend sneakily register her as married to the other guy. How you can register someone to be married without the person in question being present is something I’ll never figure out but again, this is TV. From there, they come up with some sort of agreement: the girl has to live with the two guys (alternating between them each day) for 100 days and at the end of it, decide who she really wants to marry. The girl doesn’t want to and only agrees to stop her father and his friend from harassing her further. So, in a way, the girl has two husbands (her father doesn’t know the wedding was fake). It’s a ridiculous start to a story but maybe it’s the absurdity that attracts us to it; the fact that it could never happen in real life perhaps makes us more curious to see how the story unfolds. Or maybe it’s the really good-looking guys that make us watch. The guy the girl had the fake wedding with is a singer of an indie band and he is so cute, he kinda looks like a girl sometimes. Good thing his voice is rather deep. I’m not sure I am familiar on how J-rock singers dress but how this guy dresses sort of reminds me of J-rock singers. He’s the typical guy who doesn’t like commitment and changes girlfriends every other month. His only passion in life is making music. Now, the other guy (the one she has a marriage license with) is the typical cool, phlegmatic character you find in any manga. He however has an overbearing father who expects him to do everything he asks him to. He’s the relatively young owner of a drama production company. He has a history with Mary, having known her since she was young but had not seen her in years. To sum it up, they have a past connection. So, who would Mary choose? Would it be the cool indie band singer or the calm and collected entrepreneur? At first, it seemed obvious who she would ultimately choose but as the story progresses, things don’t seem so certain. There’s also an ex-girlfriend that enters the picture but not in the way K-dramas would usually portray. The ex-girlfriend is actually a cool character and not annoying and whiny. Basically, I like the story because it feels different from other K-dramas; it’s funny, it’s entertaining and real (despite the unrealistic start). I also love the music. Of course not every drama is perfect. I liked the first half better. Towards the end, the storyline kind of shifted to the typical drama where one character easily misunderstands another over trivial things. There was also something that annoyed me: the two guys are always having to save Mary from one incident or another (rolls eyes). The whole thing makes it seem like some shoujo manga. Oh right, it’s a shoujo manhwa. I forgot. The drama was adapted from a manhwa done by the same creator of Full House.