Friday, December 30, 2016

Scythe (Neal Shusterman) fan made script

Disclaimer: I do not own the scythe characters and setting. All rights belong to Neal Shusterman. No copyright intended. For entertainment purposes only. 

Spoilers ahead!






Where Mortals Don’t Belong

Citrus Aldrin and Nelson Kant get sent forward in time to Midmerica.
Nelson: “Where are we?” *Looks down at a machine that spews smoke and briefly sparks. The date says 2045* “Oh scythe! The time machine’s broken!”
Citrus: “How are we going to get back?”
Nelson: “How should I know? Do I look like an engineer?”
Citrus: “No, you look like the idiot who wanted to go to the future to become a superhero!”
Nelson: “Oh sure, that’s more dangerous than you wanting to stomp among the dinosaurs.”
Citrus: “You just can’t appreciate the greatness that is Jurassic Park!”
*They look around and spot a large building with columns in the city of Fulcrum. People cheer as scythes in robes of many colors greet the crowd.
Citrus: “Wow, look at this place! It reminds me of ancient Rome!”
Nelson: “Holy Shusterman! We must be in one of his books! It’s the Scythe one!”
Citrus: “How do you know?”
Nelson: “You were the one who was reading it while we were in the time machine.”
Citrus: “Could that be a reason we traveled here?”
Nelson: “I don’t know, but Dr. Who would be so mad right now.”
*The two friends merge with the crowd and hear the names of the characters.*
Nelson: “That’s so cool that many of the scythes are named after mathematicians and philosophers! Hey, are you people gods or super humans?”
Citrus: “Nelson! You can’t ask people those things! We will get noticed and not in a good way.”
Nelson: *Looks ahead* “You can say that again.”
*An older scythe in an ivory robe notices them and walks towards them away from the other scythes.* “You two! Follow me, hurry.”
*They move towards a quieter area, protected by a building wall.*
Faraday: “To answer your question, we are not gods, but we can live long lives and reverse our ages. The Thunderhead provides all the knowledge of this perfect world. Who are you and where did you come from?”
Citrus: “Well, time wise or biologically? We came…”
Nelson: *interrupts* “Is your world really so perfect though? Sounds kind of boring to me.”
Faraday: “Don’t let the other scythes hear you say that!”
Citrus: “Or what? They will ‘glean’ us, or will it be by random choice?”
Faraday:  *Looks around nervously* “Listen, both of you must be careful here. I don’t know how you know about this world, but I want to make sure that you are protected until we can figure out how to get you back, but not all scythes are as nice as I am. Until then, you must blend in as much as possible.”
Citrus: “Sounds easy enough. *Moves her body slowly and speaks in monotone voice* “Good day citizens. I am your friend Cirtus 2.0, age 30, 80% Caucasiod, 15% Afric, and 5% Pleidian. Mortality? What’s that?”
Nelson: *Joins in* “Why of course I want to be a part of your murdering, Sycthedom cult! I shall glean unworthy people based on random criteria that makes so much sense! I will dazzle in golden robes, be a weapons expert, and shall learn more fighting moves than a Super Saiyan!”
Faraday: *facepalms* *Grabs hold of both of their shirts. “Are you young mortals? How in Xenocrates name did you get here?!”
Citrus: “How do you know we are mortals?”
Faraday: “You two seem to have knowledge of the Age of Mortality that none of us can fully grasp. There are mortals here, but very few. Your knowledge could change this world…and that’s what makes you a threat.”
*People walking by start whispering* “Who are those kids?” “Are they apprentices?” “How dare those mortals interact with a scythe!”
Faraday: “In addition, you two are young teens, while the rest of the mortals are older. How did you reset your age that far?”
Nelson: “I am a thousand years old, and I reset my age back to 17!”
Faraday: “You are lying, I know it. No one has lived to be a thousand years old and the youngest age we can set back to is twenty.”
Citrus: *Punches Nelson in the arm* “Nice going, dumbass. You obviously didn’t read the book well enough back at home!”
Faraday: “What book? Are you on drugs or something? Oh wait, there are no drugs here. You know what, I suggest you two leave at once!”
Nelson: “We can’t leave unless we can get the time machine fixed!”
Faraday: Oh no! Does the Thunderhead know about this? If it did…
Faraday: “I never thought I would say this to anyone, but you two are going to get yourselves killed. Unlike the rest of us, you two are not connected to the Thunderhead and you have no healing robots in your system. If you die here, then there is no telling what will happen back in your time.”
*Dead silence*
Nelson: “Okay, this is a nice world and all, but I think we should be going back before…”
Goddard: “Hey, you three! What’s going on?”
*A group of elite scythes stride over to where they stand. One has an orange robe with rubies, one has a green robe with emeralds, and one has a golden robe. The leader has a blue robe adorned with diamonds. They walk with arrogance and display extravagance.*
The leader spoke first:
Goddard: “What are you all dong out here? You should be going upstairs for the next conclave meeting.
Faraday spoke with distaste in evident in his tone. “It’s nothing Goddard. I just needed some fresh air.”
Goddard: “You are missing out on the chatter, the food, and the cheers of the crowd!” *Goddard extended out his hand where his diamond ring stood. There was a peculiar darkness that moved in the center, like an eye leading to unknown depths. The crowd reached over to kiss the ring, granting them immunity from death by the scythes for another year. Goddard looked suspiciously at Citrus and Nelson.*
Goddard: Who are the two kids with you, Faraday?
Faraday: These two got really excited to see me, and I was telling them to move along.
Chomsky in the orange robe muttered: “More like taking their time with their talking.”
Randa in the green robe spat, “Are they mortals? They look like they don’t belong here. We should glean them right away!”
Volta in yellow held her arm back. “Not here in front of the crowd. We don’t want to lose our reputation.”
Chomsky: “Our reputation is excellent as it is, and we can expand it further! 
Goddard: “We should get going soon. Are those your apprentices, Faraday?”
A brief silence follows. “Yes they are,” he lied. “I offered them apprenticeship, but they declined, of course.”
Nelson was about to say something, but Citrus elbowed him. “Oh yes! Learning how to glean is the last thing we want to do.” It was true that both of them did not want to be apprentices to a stranger in a strange world. Which made them perfect candidates for apprentices.
Goddard: “Getting two apprentices in one day? How impressive.” He said it with as much enthusiasm as a blank wall. “Let’s go.”
Volta: “Kiss his ring if you kids want to live.” The scythes leave.
Citrus reached for his hand, but Faraday pulled his hand back. “No! If you kiss it, the Thunderhead will find out you are not from the world and that will put you in danger.”
Nelson: “But I thought people hundreds of years old could reverse their ages.”
Faraday: “They can, but I have a feeling that you can’t. You two are from the Age of Mortality.” They walked up the stairs toward the conclave. “Keep still and don’t look anyone in the eye,” Faraday said, still staring straight ahead. Faraday reached into his pocket and pulled out two pocket knives, passing them quickly to Nelson and Citrus.
Faraday: “These weapons are for self-protection. No one is allowed to have weapons except scythes and their apprentices. Stay close to me, don’t cause any trouble and we will see if we can get the tools we need to get you back.”
Nelson: Thank you…um, what is your name?”
Faraday: “’Your Honor’ is the most appropriate name for right now, for the sake of your safety.”
Citrus and Nelson: “Yes, Your Honor.”
They made their way up the stairs, past the nervous faces of the other apprentices.
Faraday: “There will be a test for the apprentices to take. There will be questions on gleaning methods, types of weapons, and potential situations. If you fail, you will be sent back to me to be disciplined and we can go find some tools.”
Nelson: “Are you saying that you…expect us to fail?”



The doors creaked open before Faraday could reply. 

Monday, December 12, 2016

Moana review

What a fantastic movie! It is probably one of my favorite Disney movies to date.

Animation: One word: breathtaking. The bright colors in the movie brought life to the scenes and land. The way that the animators made the ocean look so real was spectacular. The facial expressions of the characters, were spot on.

Characters: Moana is an amazing protagonist in the movie. I like how the movie presents a woman of color who is brave, kind, adventurous, and the qualities of a great leader. Maui has an interesting backstory, and good character development throughout the film. I love Moana's grandmother, the lovable "crazy lady" of the village. The pig was a cute animal companion, and the crab was an example of an egotistical vain villain with a catchy villain song. The chicken was there for comic relief and I don't know what to think of the coconut pirates.

Music: The music was very catchy and fun to sing along to. "You're Welcome," "How Far I'll Go." and "We Know The Way" are my favorites. These songs in my opinion, are better than "Let It Go" and Frozen songs. (Sorry Frozen fans).

Emotions: I cried and laughed both times I saw the movie. The moments between Moana and Maui, as well as his moving tattoos having a personality of their own was funny. I cried during the scenes with Moana and her grandmother.

Cultural accuracy: This is where many people think the movie falls behind. Different Polynesian cultures were combined into one culture in the movie. I liked how the culture showed respect for the elders. It may not be completely accurate, but then again, it is Disney.

Overall: 5 out of 5 in my opinion. Highly recommend watching it.