Alright, recently I got a book (I know! For like the first time in forever). Actually, I ordered three different books, but only one of them satisfied me. I didn't even finish the other two. They just didn't hold my interest. But the last one that took FOREVER to deliver to my house turned out surprisingly well. I had to share my opinion with the world.
"Joseph: A Story" by Terri L. Fivash. It's basically just telling the story of Joseph in Egypt from the bible. You know, with the colored coat and the 7 year famine and stuff.
While it's not the most well written book I've ever come across in my 21 years, it certainly keeps you engaged. If you know the story of Joseph, of course you know the ending and all the twists and turns his crazy experience in Egypt is going to take, and yet somehow the author still managed to keep the story up in the air and fresh. She wasn't simply reiterating the story straight from the bible and just adding some dialogue and a few descriptions of scenery and stuff. She actually made an effort to show us what it was like to be a slave in Egypt, to show us Joseph's steady journey to becoming head of Potiphar's household, and so on. The author definitely did her research on Egyptian culture. (If you're going to read the book, I would recommend reading the notes at the beginning first. It helps.) Or when Joseph becomes second in command over all Egypt, she puts a whole new spin on things. I mean, I've always had it in my head that the Egyptians just happily accepted Joseph as their leader without a second thought and just got right on preparing for the famine. But if you really think about it, it probably took quite a bit of doing and everyone probably wasn't all that cooperative (at least not willingly).
The author is very good at including descriptions. I've learned that it is sloppy writing to just have one super long paragraph describing someone or something. While you can have that once in a while if it can't be avoided, you should just mention small details here and there throughout the writing (and keep repeating them) so that the reader can get a picture of whatever it is as they read, instead of all at once and then promptly forget it all. This author was very good at that. I still remember that Joseph had red hair and a very unique shade of blue eyes. It was ALWAYS emphasized throughout the book.
Also, it is VERY true to the original story. Probably the most accurate retelling I have ever come across. It includes details you don't normally see in other adaptions like that Joseph had two sons, that he becomes the keeper of the prison, that Potiphar's wife came to him repeatedly not just once, that he spoke through an interpreter while speaking to his brothers at the end, or that he had to actually leave the room twice to cry when reunited with his brothers.
Like I said above, the book isn't just a reiteration of the Joseph story. Besides the descriptions and the overall storytelling, there are also a few subplots thrown in created by the author. I will say that those were the less interesting of the story in my opinion, but by no means unentertaining. Of course there's a little romance subplot thrown in there. Nothing too elaborate and not heavily focused on. My favorite part(s) (since it sort of went on through a lot of the book) included the whole dual identity thing.
And actually, for not being written by an LDS author, there were plenty of references to God in all the right places and it held up all the right values, not misinterpreting any messages or turning anything around. It gets the overall message that I've always got from the story across really well: God always has a plan, even if we can't see it at the present moment.
So I think this book had a little bit of everything. Research, romance, mystery, suspense, religion, etc.
In case you're curious (you probably aren't, but I'm going to tell you anyways), I came across this book one day because I was randomly wondering if there were any fictions written on this story. (We recently had the lesson in Sunday School which is why it had been on my mind lately. I've always really liked this story). I first looked on Deseret Books, but there was nothing, so I just did a general search on Google Shopping- books. I did have to scroll a little bit, but I found one that was actually a fiction and not an essay or part of a Sunday School book or something. I decided to click on it to see details. The summary made it sound intriguing enough and it had 4.5 stars with tons of reviews praising it to the skies. I had not planned on purchasing anything when I made the search, but after looking at all this stuff on it and having recently been disappointed with my last two books, I decided to go for it. It gave me a couple options of where I could purchase it and I went for one of the cheaper ones. Of course I hadn't counted on it taking almost two weeks to deliver.
Have you ever read a book or watched a show where a a character dies and you just get all kinds of feels from it, but it helps move the plot along? Like Mufasa in The Lion King for example. By golly, that death hurt so bad, but if he didn't die, Simba wouldn't have run away, Scar wouldn't have become king, and so on. Some character deaths matter and they hurt and you cry, but they make sense. But then... there are some character deaths where you're just angry like, "WAS THAT ACTUALLY NECESSARY??? WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT!?!! YOU COULD HAVE GONE SOMEWHERE, ANYWHERE ELSE WITH THAT BUT KILLING THEM!!!" And that's what I'm going to talk about today. Well, more specifically I am going to rant about a few of the worst I have experienced in my past. The ones that cut my heart out and smashed it into the dirt.
I could only think of three off the top of my head.
First up is Fred from Harry Potter (and the Deathly Hallows). Who didn't cry when he died? You must be inhuman if you didn't. Just... WHY??? How could JK Rowling DO that!? The twins were like my favorite part of the books. The fantastic duo! They were inseparable! And then she goes and kills one of them? *cries* It didn't progress the plot along in any way except to be a part of the killing off a bunch of people in the battle at Hogwarts (I mean, a load of beloved characters died. Like Remus and Tonks too!). But why did it have to be Fred!? The only purpose it served was to hurt us readers. And it did its job well! Argh!
OK, next is Gabriel from Supernatural. So practically everybody dies at least once in this show, but this death... no. Just no. When the angels die, there's no bringing them back (at least so far) because they don't really have souls or bodies per say, so I know he's gone for good. And... I can't! *sobs* He was just such an awesome character! He was in all the best episodes. And he wasn't supposed to die! He always escaped death. He always had a trick up his sleeve (that's why he got away with pretending to be the Trickster for so long). But no. It just came out of nowhere. It didn't move anything along at all. It just happened. Out of the blue. You think everything's going along fine and then... he gets killed! Ugh! Noooo! No reason to kill him off whatsoever. Why do I watch this show with these sadistic writers? Always killing the best characters. Gah! WHY!?!!
SPOILERS FOR HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER
Lastly, the mother/Tracy from How I Met Your Mother. I cannot even begin to describe how much I did not like the ending to this show. The show itself was awesome, one of the best. But the end... :/ Anyways, killing off the mother at the end so that Ted could go pursue Robin once more. Just ugh! No! It makes me so angry! Like it did progress the plot along, but in a completely unnecessary way. The whole point of the show was so Ted could end up with the mother. Not to find out that she's been dead during the entire narration and that Ted's still in love with Robin (like he has been through the entire show! Ugh! Just get over her already!). No! Just no! How could they do that?
Sooooo basically I watch a couple of TV shows. Three very famous TV shows that all sort of attract the same general audience (therefore explaining why I am included on that list). I've just decided to briefly go over each one for the ignorant bystanders so you won't be so ignorant anymore (yes, I will be promoting them as best I can).
First up...
SUPERNATURAL
Starring: Jared Padeleki, Jensen Ackles, and (recently added to the main cast) Misha Collins
The basic idea of it is about two brothers, Dean and Sam Winchester, traveling all over the country in their '67 Impala, hunting demons, ghosts, monsters, and other supernatural creatures. They use fake IDs, police badges, credit cards, and so on to get where they need to go.
The overtone of the show is sort of dramatic, a little angsty, horror, and suspense. But it's not always like that. There are some flat out random and/or funny moments or entire episodes. The Supernatural fandom is known for having a gif response for literally anything. The show is that random (yet, when you watch it, it doesn't seem so random, because the characters are just getting thrown into an alternate universe or something which makes perfect sense in the show).
I know that this show is definitely not for some people. If you're a hardcore religionist, you really won't like this. It always warps your perception of creatures you think you know about (like vampires, werewolves, etc). Well, they do the same to the biblical aspects of things, particularly angels and heaven. Also, if you aren't all into the exorcising of demons, chopping off heads, stabbing, slashing, etc. type of thing, you probably won't like this either.
It is more than just "hey, we found a monster, let's kill it! *stab*". A general plot is they have to identify the problem, what the monster is, how to kill it, track down the weapon, trap the monster, then kill it. That's a general plot though. Sometimes there's not even a monster involved. There's also cursed objects and stuff too. Then you get into the story arcs of each season where
Castiel
they're trying to stop the apocalypse, where they're hunting down the demon that killed their mom when they were kids, when all the angels fall out of heaven, and so on. Then of course there's brotherly bonding which is probably one of the most brilliant aspects of the entire show. And while we're mentioning my favorite aspects of the show, there's also the constant breaking of the fourth wall, and the obvious spoofs on our reality (ex: Ghostfacers, Thinman), and of course Castiel-- their angel friend (called Cas for short). Oh, he is the best! He deserves a post all on his own.
I resisted watching this for the longest time. I was a WhoLockian forever and absolutely refused to watch this show. I was so sure I would not like it for the reasons I listed above (being all into religion, not really liking horror or slashing, etc). However, I always, always, ALWAYS saw references to it all over the place and just wanted to understand the general idea. So a few months ago, I gave in and decided I would watch the pilot just so I could understand what it was about. But that did it. It was so interesting, I had to watch the next episode... and the next one... and the next one. Soon I had finished the entire first season. I always say, it's the plot that brings me back above all other things and this definitely has one heck of an intriguing plot.
I chose this one because it's pretty short, it gives you a general idea of the plot, and it includes a lot of the funny parts of the show rather than focusing on the dark, action-y stuff. If you want to see a more epic one with awesome editing and stuff that focuses more on that, go to this link.
Next...
DOCTOR WHO
Starring: (currently) Matt Smith and Jenna Louise-Coleman
The general plot is probably the most complex out of all three of the shows. Prepare yourself for what I'm about to spew out... OK, it's about a humanoid alien named the Doctor, who travels through time and space in his time machine-spaceship (called the TARDIS) that looks like a police telephone box that's bigger on the inside, with different companions (usually human and usually female) that he picks up along the way, and he fights monsters/aliens and saves planets. Get all that?
The overtone of the show constantly changes. It can be funny and cheery or it can be angsty and dark. Mostly, you feel like you're watching a mad professor running around trying to solve whatever problem(s) have arisen.
You would think that this show is not for a lot of people because of the sci-fi aspect of it, but it is becoming more and more popular. It is HUGE in the UK (where it is made), but it has found its way over here to America and is getting bigger and bigger all the time. It is the longest running sci-fi TV show ever (50 years
TARDIS (Time And Relative Dimension In Space)
last November). They are able to accomplish this because when the main character is dying, he can change his face. So every few years, they bring in a new actor. Right now the current Doctor just got killed off, so Matt Smith is leaving and they're bringing in a new actor (Peter Capaldi).
However, the reason most people really love Doctor Who is not necessarily because of the primary basis I listed above. Ask any true Whovian. It's because of the pure emotion put into it. Seriously, never have I seen a fictional show that can make you feel so good about life and how important you/everyone is, but also make you sob your eyes out over... whatever it may be. (Of course there's lots of funny stuff too. I laugh my head off a lot of the time). Also, I love how intricate the plots/story arcs can be. Wowy wow wow! It is mind boggling!
This was the first of the three shows I started watching. I sat next to my friend Alex in Trigonometry class my senior year of high school. And instead of paying attention to the lessons, she would tell me all about this new show she was completely obsessed with lately. Knowing how it felt to be obsessed with something and having no one to share it with, I let her rave about it to me and kindly listened to her. However, gradually I became interested in what she was saying and eventually I went and looked up the first episode. I was weirded out. But she insisted that the next doctor (played by David Tennant) was the best one so I decided to persevere through the first season until I got to him. However, by that point I was hooked.
I chose this one because it sums up the show very well, it includes
all the new!who Doctors, and the editing is epic!
Lastly...
SHERLOCK
Starring: Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman
The basic idea is Sherlock Holmes in modern days. If you don't know what Sherlock Holmes is, I pity you. It follows the original stories pretty closely, just adapting them into the modern world.
The overtone is kind of grim with a bit of a quirky side to it. Really it's all about the characters and Sherlock is a "high functioning sociopath" as he puts it himself so he's not quite... normal.
This show has a much broader audience than the other two. That is to say, the fans are much more diverse. Everyone loves a good mystery. Like Doctor Who, it started out in the UK, but is now becoming larger and larger here in the US. It is actually the same writers as Doctor Who. There's not a single bad episode. It's been running for four years, yet despite this, there's only three seasons and nine episodes. Yeah. I know. And still despite this, it is wildly, insanely popular. The episodes are 90 minutes long though as some consolation and there's not a single dull moment. Like seriously, every second is cinematic eye-candy. I am not exaggerating!
Like I said above, it's really all about the characters. Not that the plots aren't absolutely brilliant, because they are. Sherlock, John, Lestrade, Mycroft, Mrs. Hudson, Molly, Moriarty, and so on. I love how they've all been updated and how they're all portrayed. Each's personality is carefully thought out and well done.
The friendship between Sherlock and John is of course one of the central aspects of the show. If that didn't work, the entire show would crumble. But boy, does it work!
I can't exactly recall how I began watching this. I think I just came across it through Doctor Who (same writers and all) and was instantly interested because Sherlock Holmes! It took me a while from first discovering it, to finally actually watching the first episode though. But I did eventually and I was hooked from the start. There was only one season back then and I had to wait two years for the next. But it was worth it!
It gives you a really good feel for the overtone of the show and the editing is epic!
Anyways, explaining what SuperWhoLock is briefly. It's all three of the shows/fandoms conjoined. It's as if they all exist in the same universe and all the characters know/interact with each other. Fandoms do this all the time, it's called a crossover. But this is one of the most popular and long-running crossovers out there. These three shows are just always associated with one another.
An incredibly well done fan video someone made. It's like a trailer for a
SuperWhoLock movie. I would watch the crap out of this!
