Ever since he was a little boy, it’s been Plankton’s dream to take over the world—a dream he believes he can fulfill if he can only steal the infamous-but-secret Krabby Patty formula. The reason he believes this is a bit convoluted; but suffice it to say that Plankton’s plans have always failed, often foiled by SpongeBob himself.

Unfortunately, that repeated failure has taken a toll on Karen. She’s always supported her husband’s dream, but she believes he’s going about it the wrong way. Karen’s something of an evil genius herself—being a cross between a computer and a robot, after all—but for 25 years, Plankton has neglected to acknowledge her brilliance.

Well, enough is enough for Karen. So when Plankton refuses to listen to her ideas once again, Karen decides to end their evil alliance and take over the world for herself.

Realizing he can’t stop Karen alone, Plankton reluctantly teams up with SpongeBob. But the happy, yellow sponge doesn’t just want to save Bikini Bottom: He wants to save Plankton’s marriage.

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A rabbit was the first to go. Enraptured by the sight of the tiny purple meteorite, which had just crashed into its enclosure, the bunny took a bite. It wasn’t long before the once adorable critter transformed into a fanged, gummy-like zombie. And with one bite with those sharp teeth, other animals at Colepepper Zoo transformed, too.

The chicks and sheep went next.

Down went the goats.

Then, they came for the monkeys.

Pretty soon, the whole zoo was gone—save for a wolf, mountain lion, capybara, ostrich, lemur and proboscis monkey.

But the gummy zombies are coming for them, too.

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Grace is a misfit twin. She and her brother, Gilbert, lost their mother at birth. Grace’s mom was a malacologist, or, in Grace’s mind, a snail scientist. In a twisted sense of symmetry, Grace recounts how female snails must biologically die to successfully give birth.

From the moment her mother passes away, Grace has felt a connection to snails. In fact, apart from Gilbert, her pet snails are the only living things giving her life purpose.

Grace and Gilbert’s father, who had been an aspiring French street performer, sadly became a paraplegic due to a roadside car accident. He eventually passes away due to sleep apnea, which is a bitter example of Memoir of a Snail’s comedic tone.

Orphaned and separated from her brother in an unfortunate foster care decision, Grace ends up with a new set of parents more interested in joining a nudist colony than raising their foster daughter.

Moving through the badlands and suburbs of Australia, Grace ends up confined in her room, while Gilbert arrives at an apple farm that resembles a religious cult. Though they exist on separate sides of the Australian continent, Grace and Gilbert remain linked. Their story and hopeful reunion is recalled through future, older Grace’s narration, which is mainly focused on the cast of characters who wade in and out of her life.

Grace claims she’s an optimist—a perpetually glass half-full kind of girl. Yet as her glum disposition settles in, she becomes a hoarder, addicted to food, and reclusive to the point of sleeping entire weeks away with her snails and a local eccentric named Pinky as her only companions.

As Grace trudges through the doldrums of her life, she does her best to learn lessons from her snail friends. Admittedly, stop-motion animation provides an effective medium for the themes at play. Grace’s epiphanies arrive when she is patient, thoughtful, and measured. To face her life’s problems though, she’ll need to change who she is.

If only she could learn how to come out of her shell…

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Perhaps it was inevitable. Because after generations of people are born and grow up in space colonies, it doesn’t seem fair that the blue planet with which they have no immediate connection gets to be in charge of how they live. That’s why some of the stronger colonies rebelled against the Earth Federation, calling themselves the Principality of Zeon and sparking a devastating year-long war. And as both sides gear up in giant robotic mobile suits armed with both guns and blades, billions of people perish.

If you’ve seen the original Mobile Suit Gundam movie, you know what happens next: a Zeon reconnaissance team begins attacking a Federation colony, while a teenage mechanic Amuro Ray climbs into the Federation’s newly prototyped RX-78 Gundam and saves the colony. His decision, ultimately, would help Earth win the war against Zeon, too.

Except, what if someone else got to it first?

That someone is Char Aznable, a soldier in that Zeon recon team and (in the original timeline) a major antagonist for Amuro. And after using the mobile suit to achieve victory, Char recognizes that these Gundam models are powerful. And, after reverse engineering the stolen tech, Zeon wins the war.

But independence doesn’t always look pretty, as high schooler Amate Yuzuriha may tell you. She’s living in a space colony independent from both the Federation and Zeon five years after the war’s end. It’s a world where police care little for civilians and few feel like their freedom means much of anything…especially when a Zeon ship appears in overhead.

It turns out, the ship was on a secret mission, hoping to find the location of Char and his Gundam. Both vanished at the close of the war following a strange explosion—before the Gundam suddenly reappeared near the colony and began attacking the Zeon ship. Moments later, colony police, who have donned mobile suits, engaged, too.

Zeon quickly deployed its newest Gundam model, codenamed GQuuuuuuX, in defense … but it wasn’t long before its inexperienced pilot came crashing down into the colony, bringing the battle directly onto Amate’s head. She had been busy learning how to pilot a mobile suit to engage in illegal-but-lucrative underground mech combat fights.

And, like Amuro Ray, Amate acted in desperation, jumping into the GQuuuuuuX pilot seat to escape from the battle. And though she’s likewise inexperienced, she suddenly feels a connection to the robot, one that allows her to control the mech with her willpower alone.

And it’s a connection that just may change her life for good.

The post Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX: Beginning appeared first on Plugged In.

Hey, lots of kids are like that, right? But in Ne Zha’s case, the results can be … bad.

See, Ne Zha is a demon, and not just any run-of-the-mill, dime-a-dozen Chinese demon, either. He’s part and product of the Demon Orb, and as such he’s incredibly powerful and destructive. Why, if left to his own demonic nature, he just might be so destructive as to threaten heaven and earth themselves. So the orb was slated for destruction by the Supreme Lord, Yuanshi Tianzun. And what the Supreme Lord says, the Supreme Lord does.

But through a series of adventures and surprising relationships (as chronicled in 2019’s Ne Zha), Ne Zha saved his parents and his hometown of Chentang Pass. And thanks to help from his enemy-turned-friend, Ao Bing (a reincarnation of something called the Spirit Pearl and the son of a very important dragon), Ne Zha even staved off the Supreme Lord’s destructive curse. The only downside? He and Ao Bing lost their corporeal bodies. Bummer.

But as Ne Zha 2 opens, good news! Master Taiyi Zhenren uses (and exhausts) his sacred lotus to regenerate both Ne Zha and Ao Bing.

Bad news. Chentang Pass is soon under threat again: Ao Guang, Ao Bing’s very important dragon father, believes his son died in the last movie, so he unleashes a few other dragon rulers from their lava-y locale, which are ushered into the fray by the demonic Shen Gongbao. Before Ne Zha and Ao Bing can truly get their bodies back, they must defend the town—and Ao Bing’s corporeal form is quickly destroyed. (Naturally, Ao Guang feels just terrible about this strange turn of events.)

But more good news! Ao Bing’s spirit doesn’t need to dissipate forever! Taiyi says that Ne Zha can host the spirit of Ao Bing for seven days. During that time, if Ne Zha can pass three trials and become one of the immortals, he can claim a potion that will restore the sacred lotus and, thus, give Ao Bing another shot at having a real-life body again.

But more bad news. Demons aren’t allowed to perform these trials. In fact, the trials are all about fighting demons—something that gods and immortals love to do. And if anyone detects Ne Zha’s true nature during these trials—inescapable if he fights as Ne Zha—he’ll certainly get booted out of heaven.

The only solution: Ao Bing’s spirit must take over Ne Zha’s body during these critical trials. And he can only do that if Ne Zha knocks himself out somehow.

Follow all that?

Well, in truth, we learn all of that within, like, the first 15 minutes of the movie, and then things get much more confusing. But in short, Ne Zha—the spirit of Ao Bing in tow—and Taiyi mount a flying pig and fly to heaven to embark on a series of spectacular adventures. And perhaps they’ll right a few long-festering wrongs along the way, too.

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Officer Knight may not be the sharpest tack in the box, but he’s athletic and strong. His dog Greg, however, is as bright as they come. He just can’t communicate well because he’s, you know, a dog.

Together though they make a great pair of crime stoppers. (And hey, they don’t even need a police siren, since Greg’s doggy howl attracts far more attention.) They’re the best of the best and they get the job done.

Until, that is, they don’t.

One day while giving chase to the vile villain Petey the Cat, Officer Knight and Greg accidentally set off a bomb. And PAZAW! The two find themselves in a conundrum. They’re rushed to the hospital, and the doctor proclaims that the poor officer’s head is just no good anymore. And poor Greg’s body is no good either.

All is lost … until a nurse steps up to suggest that they simply sew Greg’s head on Officer Knight’s body. Which, of course, is a brilliant idea. Greg’s smarts matched with Knight’s athleticism results in nothing less than Dog Man, a truly terrific Supa Cop!

This incredible law officer can’t talk anymore, but hey, talking is overrated. Dog Man can lick crime better than the best of ‘em. He treats baddies like a dug-up bone. He’s incredible!

Of course, villains like Petey won’t just hiss and run for cover. Petey is still scratching up insidious inventions and hairball hoodwinks. He even goes so far as to clone himself! (Though his clone, Lil Petey, is just the cutest little thing. Ahem.) Anyway, Petey the Cat is up to no good.

So, Dog Man will have to put his nose to the ground and get to do-gooding and crime-solving. I mean, after he chases a stick and a tennis ball or two.  

Ruff!

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Her father, Simba, has temporarily left to be with Nala, her mother, as she prepares to give birth. And sure, she’s got Timon, Pumbaa and Rafiki to look after her while Simba’s away, but that approaching storm makes her tremble even more.

That’s why Rafiki sits her down to tell her the story of another scared cub who overcame his fear and became the lion king: her grandfather, Mufasa.

Yes, Mufasa was also terrified when that flash flood swept him away from his parents and into a foreign land. But he found a brother in Taka, the cub who pulled him from the water and helped Mufasa find acceptance in a new pride.

Taka is royal blood, son of King Obasi. And he’s ecstatic to finally have a brother with whom he can grow old. And one day, when Taka is king, he and Mufasa can rule over all the creatures of the land.

But the truth is … Taka is no leader. He is a coward, which is why he fled when outsider lions ambushed his mother.

The lions are led by Kiros, a fierce, white-coated feline who has slaughtered his way through the lands to crown himself the lion king—and he’s soon to arrive at Taka’s pride. That’s why Taka and Mufasa are commanded by King Obasi to flee to order to preserve the royal bloodline. They take off, hoping to take refuge in the far-off Milele, a mythical land of peace and prosperity.

But something nags at Taka. Because as they journey, he can’t help but see the animals they encounter along the way look at Mufasa as leader, not at him. They admire Mufasa’s traits, not his.

Isn’t Taka the one who’s supposed to rule?

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He doesn’t do it for fun, or to impress the ladies, or because he’s a particularly chivalric sort of guy. No. He does it for the coin. Even a witcher’s gotta eat, after all.

But even though killing monsters is just punching the clock for Geralt, that doesn’t mean he’ll kill just any ol’ thing.

Take Geralt’s latest contract. Some pearl divers hired the witcher to take care of an Allamorax—essentially a cross between a dinosaur and a tank that lives in the water. The critter’s been snacking on fellow divers, Geralt is told, and that’s just not very nice.

But when Geralt tangles with the Allamorax, some mer-people come to its defense. The monster can barely open its mouth, much less gobble up pearl divers. The critter’s being framed, the mer-people insist. “Its only crime is being hungry,” one of them says,

So Geralt lets the Allamorax sail on its merry way. And that, it would seem, is that.

But Jaskier, the bard who accompanies Geralt on all of his adventures, reminds the witcher that they could still use some cash. “Your moral code is getting in the way of my eating,” he grouses. Jaskier tells Geralt that the next time a contract comes along, he needs to take it.

That next contract isn’t long in coming. As Geralt and Jaskier loiter in Jaskier’s old seaside hometown of Bremerford, a sailor staggers by with a blade sticking straight through him. He says that he was attacked by a fish-man creature known as a vodnik. And he promptly expires.

Bremerford’s king wants Geralt to deal with this vodnik—knowing full well that vodniks rarely work alone. They’re often employed by those pesky merfolk who live off the coast. Tensions between Bremerford’s humans and the nearby mer-people have been building for years now. Maybe now, those tensions have finally burbled over.

Geralt balks at the contract. “I’m not helping to justify a war.”

“But maybe you can help prevent one,” Jaskier says. So Geralt—joined by Jaskvier and his one-time childhood friend, Essi—begins his investigation. And it’s not long before he realizes that there’s something fishy going on.

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Moana teamed up with Maui to find and return the heart of Te Fiti. In so doing, they calmed Te Ka (who, it turns out, was just who Te Fiti became without her heart). And the ocean was finally safe to traverse again.

Well, Moana’s been doing just that. As her village’s Windfinder, she’s been sailing across the sea, searching for new islands and new peoples.

As of yet, she’s had no success. Sure, there are plenty of other islands in the area. Some even show evidence of other tribes having lived there once. But nobody has responded to her conch-shell calls.

Then, Moana receives a vision from her ancestor Tautai Vasa, the former Windfinder of her island. According to him, Moana’s mission is doomed to fail unless she can find the legendary island of Motufetu. In ages past, the island served as a central connection point, a place where all the currents of the ocean (and all the peoples) met. Unfortunately, Nalo, the god of thunder and chaos who hates humans, sunk the island to the depths of the sea, cutting off the currents and preventing passage from one island group to the next.

Moana learns that unless she finds Motufetu and breaks Nalo’s curse, her people will eventually wither away and die alone in isolation. And not just her people, but the people of each island she’s yet to discover.

The voyage will be long and dangerous. In fact, it could take a lifetime to succeed—if Moana is indeed able to succeed at all. But she won’t let her people down. And so Moana chooses, once again, to leave all she loves behind to learn what lies beyond the horizon.

The post Moana 2 appeared first on Plugged In.

Totsuko, for her part, is fascinated with the various hues that exude from others. But she also learned rather quickly that other people think she’s weird, since they can’t see what she sees.

And then, Kimi passes by, covered in the most brilliant blue she’s ever seen. It’s so beautiful that when Kimi suddenly drops out of school, all other colors seem dim. That’s why Totsuko sets out to find her.

It’s not long before she locates Kimi behind the counter of a bookstore, practicing on her guitar. And once again, there it is: that dazzling blue color.

Caught staring, Totsuko quickly pretends to have been looking to buy a nearby piano book, which sparks a conversation about their mutual interest in music. It’s overheard by another customer in the store, Rui (exuding a lovely green), who asks if the two are in a band.

Totsuko, enraptured by their colors, fumbles out an answer.

“Actually, we’re looking for band members,” she mumbles, before realizing what she’s said.

Still, Rui and Kimi agree to it. Pretty soon, the trio is jamming out on a mixture of guitar, keyboard and theremin. And Rui challenges them all to start writing original songs.

And Totsuko knows exactly what she wants her song to be about: Kimi’s beautiful color.

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