sff chat – Alyssa Lost in Space

Book Chat: The Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski

February 29, 2020March 5, 2020Alyssa Flynn

I love to over-analyze the heck out of a good story, whether it’s a movie, a video game, or of course, a novel. It might be because I’m an English major, or because I’m myself a writer, or because I’m such a huge nerd, but there is something deeply satisfying about unpacking the events of a novel and peeling back those layers to understand the narrative on a deeper level.

I’ve posted lengthy, rambly analyses before for trailers and movies, and in 2020, I really want to write some word nerdy analyses for amazing books, but I’ve also mentioned that I don’t like ‘reviewing’ books. I can only give my thoughts and impressions, and I certainly don’t like assigning them a rank. So if you were looking for a review, this might not be quite what you’re looking for. Still, I hope that I can find and discuss great books, and maybe you’ll want to read them too.

We’re starting the bookish fun with The Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski.

Let’s Talk About The Rise of Skywalker

December 23, 2019March 22, 2020Alyssa Flynn

If you want the short version: I enjoyed it, and I would watch it again. It was not a perfect Star Wars movie, it did not have the most satisfying ending, and it was not the best of the Star Wars movies. But it was an enjoyable ride. There were some fun moments and some touching moments, and lots of cool space stuff.

Now let’s get into the discussion. From this point, I’ll be heavily spoiling the plot and discussing what I thought of the final movie in the Skywalker Saga. If you don’t want to be spoiled, do not continue.

Rise of Skywalker will be a Kylo Ren Redemption Story and Here’s Why

December 13, 2019March 22, 2020Alyssa Flynn

We only have a week until the release of Episode IX, and like any crazy fan, I’ve been pouring over the trailers and rewatching the movies to see if I can piece together some theory about the plot. Might be interesting to compare it to the movie and see if I got anything right, don’cha think?

Rise of Skywalker Final Trailer Deep Dive

October 25, 2019December 10, 2019Alyssa Flynn

So, the final trailer dropped and being the die-hard Star Wars fan that I am, I’m obsessed with it. Now I’m going to pick it apart and see what I can learn from some of my favourite moments. If you’re interested in watching it yourself or you’re not one of the 20 million who already have, here you go:

I’m not going to tackle the scenes in chronological order the way they are in the trailer. Instead, I’m going to try and piece together scenes and try and connect some of the dots that way. I’m not going to be making any outright theories – that’ll be in a different post. This is just speculation based on what we’ve seen in the trailers thus far.

Game of Thrones: Did We Get a Satisfying Ending to the Biggest Fantasy Series of All Time?

May 20, 2019December 10, 2019Alyssa Flynn

NOTE: This is a discussion of Game of Thrones as a whole as well as the ending, so there will be SPOILERS for Season 8.

Also, be prepared for a long post. I’ve got a lot to say.

Game of Thrones was a series that defied expectation. If you’ve been watching from the beginning, you know how quickly and easily events get turned on their head. Maybe more so in the beginning when there were more characters on the board, but the appeal of the show has always been the depth of its characters and sheer unpredictability.

It should be no surprise that as the final season aired, it would also take us by surprise. But it’s gone down in a way most people did not expect. And as a storyteller myself, I’ve been intrigued watching this epic fantasy finale unfold, and felt like discussing it a little.

5 Tropes I Can’t Stand

May 10, 2019December 10, 2019Alyssa Flynn

A couple of weeks ago I shared some of my favourite tropes – the sort of things that make me want to watch a movie or read a book. This week I decided to do the reverse – the tropes that pull me out of a story or make me likely to put it down and never pick it back up. The sorts of tropes that can really ruin an experience.

For obvious reasons, I’m not going to call out any books or movies that are guilty of this. Many of these are common enough, that I’ve no doubt you can think of a few that have one or several of the tropes I’m about to mention. I’m not here to spill any tea.