Early Cartoon Sunday: Charlie Murphy Tribute

How's it going lukers? Since tomorrow is Easter, I thought I would share this Cartoon Sunday blog 1 day in advance. JoJo's Bizarre Adventure's season finale is TONIGHT at midnight on Adult Swim's Toonami block.

Tokyo Ghoul is postponed because Toonami wanted to rush JoJo's Bizarre Adventure and replace it with the 2nd season of Attack On Titan. 

Supposedly, after Attack On Titan ends, JoJo's Bizarre Adventure will return to Toonami with its 2nd season, Stardust Crusaders.

Honestly, I thought Attack On Titan ended 2 years ago. I really do hope JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Stardust Crusaders premieres on Toonami, after Viz Media finishes dubbing it.

While Toonami tards nitpick, whine, and fixate on every show's ratings, viewers like yours truly just happen to be enjoying other Seinen Action Anime such as JoJo's Bizarre Adventure and Tokyo Ghoul. The preceding are NOT  the stereotypical Toonami Anime.

I was originally going to make today's blog about the JoJo's Bizarre Adventure franchise. That was until I learned about the death of Charlie Murphy, last Wednesday.

Billboard: Charlie Murphy Made His Own Name Thanks to Epic Prince & Rick James Stories on 'Chappelle's Show'

Charlie Murphy's death was shocking and sad. I will never forget meeting him inside my original dorm's lobby at Carthage College 12 1/2 years ago. 

Before Charlie and the cast of Chappelle Show did their stand-up comedy routines, I had the chance to meet the comedian! 

The cast of Chappelle Show was doing their comedy tour in tribute to Rick James. Luckily, they visited us at Carthage College that year.

This event happened during the time, when my family was forced to attend and partake in my uncle's wedding, while my grandfather was terminally ill. 

On September 10, 2004, I had just moved back into the dorms for the fall term at Carthage College; My uncle's wedding was the same day as Dave Chappelle's Comedy Tour in tribute to the late Rick James.

At the time, I was broke and my cell phone was shut off. Therefore, I HAD to use my previous dorm's pay phone in the lobby. (Yes, pay phones STILL existed during 2004 but they were fastly becoming obsolete.) Luckily, their skits were performed at my college and were free for us Carthage students.

As I was talking to my youngest aunt via pay phone, Charlie Murphy jogged passed me, shouting, "Hey! How's it going?" He made me do a double take. I was "star struck."

You may be wondering WHY  I'm explaining this to you. For those who did NOT  already know, Charlie Murphy voiced the character, Ed Wuncler III on Adult Swim's Black Animated Sitcom, The Boondocks.

The character, Ed Wuncler III was an affluent, white, Iraqi war vet and a domestic gangster with the so-called "blackcent."

The Boondocks: Ed Wuncler III Explains About His War Experience In Iraq (2005)

Samuel L. Jackson voiced Ed Wuncler III's war vet friend, Gin Rummy.

The Boondocks "The Absence Of Evidence Is Not The Evidence Of Absence!" Scene (2005)

 

Wearing that "W" medallion, Ed Wuncler III could be viewed as the spoof of a young President George W. Bush combined with the characteristics of the rapper, Eminem. "Ed" somewhat reminded me of a white version of the rapper, 50 Cent because he wore medallions. 

 

For years, I always assumed the "W" stood for Wuncler and war.

Some of my favorite scenes from The Boondocks usually consisted of Ed and Gin Rummy committing crimes together. 

Not that I condone and glorify the criminal lifestyle, but watching it in a Black Animated Sitcom meant for sociological and political satire is hilarious.

In tribute to the late Charlie Murphy, here are scenes of he and Samuel L. Jackson voicing their characters, Ed Wuncler III and Gin Rummy. 

In the episode, "Thank You for Not Snitching," Ed and Gin discuss the stupidity of cell phone technology, while invading people's homes. Click on the bold link below.

The Boondocks: Ed & Gin Rummy Discuss The Stupidity Of Cell Phone Technology (2007)

Cartoon Sunday: Watch Mojo's Anime Villains Countdown

How's it going lurkers? Recently, I learned that Toonami is replacing JoJo's Bizarre Adventure with Attack On Titan on April 22nd. Next Saturday night, Toonami will air the final 2 episodes of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Season 1. This means Tokyo Ghoul will be preempted.

As soon as Attack On Titan's 2nd season ends, I really hope Toonami returns to premiering JoJo's Bizarre Adventure's 2nd season, Stardust Crusaders.

I must admit that I am automatically biased to watch JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Stardust Crusaders. It gives me a reason to listen to The Bangles' "Walk Like An Egyptian" as the Anime's ending theme song. Talk about '80s nostalgia.

Speaking of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, Dio Brando made Watch Mojo's Top Anime Villains. Apparently, Watch Mojo loves doing Top Anime Villains countdowns.

There are at least 4 of these countdowns made about Anime villains. Some countdowns are repeats for each type of villain.

So far, Dio Brando from the JoJo's Bizarre Adventure franchise made Watch Mojo's Top Anime Villains at least twice. 

Meanwhile, characters such as Lord Orichimaru from Naruto, Light Yagami from Death Note, and other Shonen Anime characters made the Top Anime Villains countdowns several times or more.

Judging by the looks of it, Watch Mojo tends to favor Death Note's Light Yagami as a major villain. 

Even though Light was a villain, Dio Brando should've made the countdowns just as much, if not MORE than him.

Dio is as deplorable of a character as Light was because Dio was evil from the very beginning of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure. Light on the other hand, became evil AFTER obtaining notebooks from Shinigami.

Light Yagami originally had good intentions in the beginning but gradually developed a serious God Complex and let the power of executing criminals overtake him. 

After watching these 4 Watch Mojo Top Anime Villains countdowns for today's Cartoon Sunday, you be the judge.

1) Watch Mojo: Top 10 Anime Villains (2013) 

2) Watch Mojo: Top 10 Smartest Anime Villains (2015)

 

3) Watch Mojo: Top 10 Sexiest Male Anime Viilains (2016)

4) Watch Mojo: Top 10 Sexiest Female Anime Villains (2017)

What Are My Thoughts About Grimm's Series Finale?

How's it going lurkers? Looks like us "Grimmsters" (Grimm fans) will no longer be saying, "Thank Grimm it's Friday!" At least the creators did NOT screw over their fans like we assumed.

‘Grimm’ Series Finale: Creators On That Killer Twist, The Jump In Time & Leaving “Options Open” For More

The episode from 2 Fridays ago left me shocked and livid.

Grimm: "Three Against One" (2017)

A lot of Grimmsters were pissed and felt cheated. Killing the entire cast of any type of TV series is an easy way to infuriate and repulse fans from wanting to watch the rest of the series. 

Do you remember last year, when I published my blog about the new writers killing Abigail Mills on Sleepy Hollow?

Were Sleepy Hollow Fans Screwed Over? Anna H's Thoughts (2016)

I stopped watching Sleepy Hollow after the show became too focused on Abbie's sister, more irrelevant characters, and OBVIOUSLY after the writers killed Abbie.

It would not surprise me, if more Sleepy Hollow fans quit watching the show after last year's shitty Season 3 finale. Speaking of Sleepy Hollow, I did NOT  bother watching its series finale 2 nights ago because its 3rd season was like someone's shitty fan fiction turned into a TV show.

Now that Grimm is over, I am down another Friday night show, which leaves me with only Hawaii Five-0. So far, I have lost at least 3 primetime shows within the last year.  

Grimm was a primetime TV show that I consistently watched, since its premiere 6 years ago. I have watched a nice portion of primetime shows, which were Horror and Supernatural shows throughout these last 7-8 years, if they weren't Comedy, Dramedy, or Action. 

I watched Grimm throughout the last 6 years because it was 1 of very few primetime shows WITH originality. Throughout these last 6 years, critics compared Grimm to Once Upon A Time. Both shows had to deal with fairy tales. However, Grimm was different. The creators of this Supernatural Police Procedural Drama were inspired by Grimms' Fairy Tales, international folklores, occult themes, and other sources.

Grimm has been criticized for its cheesiness but there are very few shows with much of any originality today.

How many viewers today can say there are primetime shows with some level of originality?

When I ask this, I don't mean another reboot, remake, or another reality show.

Who has ever watched a primetime TV series based on international folklores (especially Germanic folklores), used various foreign terms for creatures, and incorporated them, along with occult themes into a Police Procedural Drama?

All those features made Grimm engaging to watch and made viewers invest time into watching the show. I don't recall much less believe that a primetime show like this has ever been done. In a way, I was automatically biased when it came to watching Grimm.

When I learned that a former MTV Reality TV Show cast member from Road Rules: South Pacific was casted as the star (David Giuntoli) of the show Grimm, my interests were piqued. Watching a former Road Rules cast member, who is originally from my county of WI (Milwaukee to be more exact) and is 1 year older than me, made me invest in watching Grimm.

It felt weird yet somewhat exciting seeing David casted as THE STAR of a primetime show. Also, I was excited for him as a former Road Rules viewer and really wanted to see how he could pull off such a bizarre primetime show. He has done very well.

While watching the final 2 episodes, I was angry that 2 of Grimm's major characters (Detective Hank Griffin and Sergeant Drew Wu) were killed at the precinct. I was almost tempted NOT to watch the final episode.

With the direction the writing was heading, I had no idea if David Giuntoli's character (Detective Nick Burkhardt) would live at the end. I started having flashbacks to both Buffy: The Vampire Slayer and Angel.

When Buffy: The Vampire Slayer and Angel had apocalyptic arcs, Buffy normally died and/or other significant characters from both primetime shows were ALWAYS killed BECAUSE the shows were ending. Thankfully, this wasn't the case for Grimm.

After watching Hank and Wu be killed, I somewhat lost hope as a Grimmster. The last 30 minutes of Grimm made me apathetic because all the characters except Nick, his son Kelly, and soon to be step-daughter, Diana were the only surviving characters.

Suddenly, we the viewers were surprised within the last 10-15 minutes of Grimm's finale. We learned that the "skull guy," Zerstörer (meaning "Destroyer" in German) had a catch. He could heal and revive all Nick's friends, if Nick would give him back the missing piece of his staff.

The missing piece of the staff was usually referred to as "The Magic Stick" (Get your minds out the gutter!), that Nick and Monroe found during their trip to Germany in the 5th season. 

Nick was willing to give up that stick. Because he was desperate and vulnerable enough to give the stick to Zerstörer, Nick ended up fighting the vagrant runaway and fellow Grimm (Theresa "Trubel" Rubel), who he took in about giving away the stick. 

Nick gave Trubel a nasty beat down and wandered away with the stick to give to Zerstörer. 

Before giving the missing piece of the staff to Zerstörer, the ghosts of Nick's mother (Kelly Kessler Burkhardt) and aunt (Marie Kessler) intervened. 

Both gave Nick a pep talk about being a Grimm and warned him NOT  to give the stick to Zerstörer. 

Within the last few minutes, Nick, Trubel, Aunt Marie, and his mother Kelly defeated and killed Zerstörer.

Grimm: "Family Affair" Scene (2017)

The portal to "The Other Place" reappeared and sucked Nick back through to the other side, only to be returned to the present.

Grimm: Nick Returns To The Present (2017)

Nick's friends were alive the ENTIRE time on the other side of the portal. 

During the last 2 minutes of the show, another man narrates what Grimmsters just watched. We learn that it is Nick and Adalind's son, Kelly.

Grimm: Final Scene (2017)

The final scene happened to be 20 years later. We finally learned that Trubel was Nick's 3rd cousin on his mother's side of the family and, that Monroe and Rosalee had TRIPLETS like Adalind and Captain Renard's daughter, Diana prophesied.

The ending for Grimm was definitely an interesting and satisfying twist. I am so GLAD the show did not end with another tragic ending like Buffy: The Vampire Slayer and Angel did, 13 years or so ago.

Even though they are completely different Supernatural Horror Shows from Grimm, I honestly dreaded a bittersweet and tragic ending like Buffy and Angel. I am sure fellow Grimmsters are overjoyed with a happy cliffhanger.

Overall, I feel that Grimm's last 2-3 seasons could've been MUCH better. The writers wasted too much time politicizing the show and focusing on Captain Renard, Adalind, Juliette/Eve, Monroe and Rosalee's relationship, and making insignificant characters seem relevant. 

As a viewer, I would've LOVED to have seen more international folklores be explored. During the previous season, there was an episode about the Inugami from Japanese folklore. 

Because Shinigami (the Japanese equivalent of The Grim Reaper) are very popular lately in Japanese entertainment, it would've been awesome to have Nick either fighting against, OR collaborating with a Japanese Grim Reaper.

It most definitely would've been better to have discovered more about Hank and Wu as characters, especially Wu. 

Wu got the shortest end of the stick so to say out of the entire cast of Grimm and he was the SERGEANT of the show. 

Something tells me that with Grimm's cliffhanger ending, there will probably be a remake, reboot, or spinoff show in the near future.

Regardless, I am so GLAD that Grimm's series finale wasn't an absolute Shit Sandwich. Anyway, what are your thoughts?

Cartoon Sunday: Tactics (Anime)

How's it going lurkers? Earlier this morning, Tokyo Ghoul premiered on Adult Swim's Toonami block. 

Hopefully, this Seinen SciFi Horror Action Anime does well in the ratings, despite the Toonami nitpickers acting like crybabies and throwing their tantrums ad nauseam because it does not live up to being the stereotypical Toonami Anime.

To all those who have never watched episode 1 of Tokyo Ghoul, if you liked Parasyte -The Maxim-, you should enjoy Tokyo Ghoul.

Over the last 2 weeks, the Toonami fans that watch One Piece have been acting like crybabies because One Piece was replaced with Tokyo Ghoul. 

Meanwhile, there are the other Toonami fans who LOVE ruining everything for other fandoms with their incessant nitpicking of shows, which do not fit their personal Toonami archetypes.

Those Anime fans in particular are partially to blame for the cancellation of Chiller TV's Anime Wednesday block from 2 summers ago. Toonami brats and other Anime fans nitpicked Anime Wednesday so much, that their incessant nitpicking was the straw that broke the camel's back.

Their constant bitching online contributed to the downfall of Anime Wednesday.

Nearly 2 years later, I am still reeling over the fact, that Chiller TV not only did a piss poor job of advertising Anime Wednesday, but also canceled their own Horror Anime block within the first 3 weeks.

About 10 years ago, SciFi launched their Ani-Monday block. Shortly after, Chiller TV began airing Ani-Monday.

Because Chiller TV and Syfy are sister channels owned by NBC Universal, Horror Anime that premiered on SciFi was eventually sent to Chiller TV. This wasn't the case for Chiller's Anime Wednesday block the last time.

The Anime Wednesday block actually premiered Anime that SciFi NEVER aired, which was a positive. However... the Horror Anime for Chiller TV's Anime Wednesday block did NOT  necessarily qualify as Horror Anime. Both Anime AND Toonami incels threw the biggest toddler tantrums online about Is This A Zombie? premiering on this Horror Anime block. 

Is This A Zombie? NEVER qualified as a Horror Anime. 

In fact, 1/2 Chiller TV's Anime Wednesday block were Comedies for a Horror Anime block. 

Even though I enjoyed watching Black Blood Brothers and Is This A Zombie? years before Chiller acquired them, they were mostly Supernatural Comedy Anime.

Devil May Cry and Tokyo Majin were THE ONLY 2, which came close to being Horror Anime. Devil May Cry is a Horror Action Anime and Tokyo Majin is more Supernatural Action.

There is a plethora of Horror Anime, which Chiller TV could've acquired and premiered at decent times.

I believe if Chiller really wanted to compete against Adult Swim's Toonami block, the network could've possibly premiered Horror Drama and Mystery Anime at 9pm Central on Saturdays or Sundays. 

This would've been MUCH better than premiering Horror Anime on Wednesdays at midnight.

The Horror network also could've premiered its Horror Anime block starting at 9pm on Fridays. Then again, that would've been too logical.

I am somewhat surprised that Chiller TV did NOT acquire the Occult Supernatural Detective Anime, Tactics. SciFi originally premiered it on Ani-Monday in 2008.

Then again, Tactics might've lacked suspense for Horror Anime fans. The Anime is set, during the Taisho Era as opposed to the Meiji Era in the Manga. 

Regardless, Tactics focuses on the young man, Kantarou Ichinomiya. Since childhood, he had the ability to see yokai and was of course, ostracized for having this special ability. 

Kantarou's yokai friends told him, that he must find the oni-eating tengu, in order to become stronger. Shortly after, Kantarou vowed to find the oni-eating tengu and name it. 

Long story short, the florist/part-time exorcist finds this oni-eating tengu on an assignment in the mountains and names him, Haruka.

I could explain more, but it would be much better for you to watch Tactics for today's Cartoon Sunday.

Tactics Episode 1: "The Black Goblin Awakes" [English Dub] (2004)

Want To Learn More About Leprechauns?

 

How's it going lurkers? Thank Grimm it's Friday and Happy Saint Patrick's Day! This weekend, there will be no Song Saturday or Cartoon Sunday blogs.

Yesterday I realized that I have published about a dozen Saint Patrick's Day and Irish-themed blogs, throughout these last 4 years. 

In case you missed any of those blogs, 2 will be linked in this blog. The rest you can find in my Blog Archive, which is located at the bottom of this page.

Meanwhile earlier this week, we began with Bill Tytla's animated short, The Wee Men for Cartoon Sunday. Tytla's The Wee Men somewhat explained about leprechauns and their roles in Ireland. We already established that leprechauns run and hide with their crocks of gold but do we REALLY know why? 

Before explaining any further about their antics, let's explore the origins of the word, "leprechaun."

According to Irelandseye, "leprechaun" may have derived from the Irish term, "leath bhrogan." Leath bhrogan means "shoe maker," which was what we watched this past Cartoon Sunday in Bill Tytla's The Wee Men. The leprechauns in the short were shoe makers.

However, there is a possibility that "leprechaun" may have derived from "luacharma'n," which is Irish for pygmy.

Even though leprechauns are considered to be the national fairies of Ireland, those in the north Leinster area originally used the term "leprechaun." 

"Lurgadhan," "lurican," and "lurachmain," are 3 other variants of leprechaun.

Apparently, it is a common routine for these "wee men" to be found in an intoxicated state caused by home-brew poteen yet they still manage to be productive workers.

So, why do leprechauns run and hide with their crocks of gold?

Roaming and pillaging throughout Ireland, the Danes supposedly left behind ancient treasure. 

The roaming and pillaging led to the leprechauns appointing themselves as the guardians of the gold. This could also be a reason why leprechauns avoid any social interaction with humans.

Leprechauns view humans as being "foolish," "flighty," and "greedy creatures."

Once a leprechaun is caught by a human, the leprechaun uses his gold coin as a bribe from 1 of his 2 leather pouches. Most people don't know that leprechauns carry 2 different coins in separate pouches.

2 Coins That Leprechauns Carry:

1) Silver Shilling- Leprechauns carry this magical coin in 1 pouch, which returns to the purse every time it is paid out.

2) Gold Coin- Leprechauns carry this in a different pouch from the silver shilling. It's used as a bribe for anything they feel is a "difficult situtaion," after being caught by humans. The coin also has the ability to turn into leaves or ashes after it is given away.

In addition to having 2 different pouches for 2 different coins, there are 2 distinct classifications of the so-called leprechaun family. There are the leprechauns, that hide and protect the gold and there are the cluricans, which have the tendency to borrow or steal almost anything.

Cluricans wait until it is dark to raid wine cellars and larders in people's houses. This is along with harnessing sheep, goats, dogs, and domestic fowl. 

Then, cluricans will ride them throughout the country at night.

After conducting research about leprechauns, I find this all to be very fascinating. It's amazing what you can learn, especially online.

As said earlier, if there are any previously published blogs you may have missed about Saint Patrick's Day and the Irish in general within the last week to 4 years, my Blog Archive is below on this page.

Song Saturday: Henry Cowell's The Banshee (2017)

Cartoon Sunday: Bill Tytla's The Wee Men

How's it going lurkers? Looks like some of you really enjoyed yesterday's Song Saturday blog. 

So, how creepy was it to re-read yesterday's blog about the banshee with Henry Cowell's song, "The Banshee" playing in the background?

Since we are already on the topic of Horror, I read yesterday morning on Anime News Network, that the Seinen Horror Action Anime, Tokyo Ghoul will replace One Piece on March 25th.

Toonami Replaces One Piece Anime With Tokyo Ghoul Starting On March 25

Even though One Piece fans get the shaft as usual, this is fantastic news for us Horror Anime fans.

For a year or so, I have said that Tokyo Ghoul should've aired on Adult Swim's Toonami block after Parasyte -The Maxim- ended. It would've been the perfect replacement for Parasyte.

With the constant promotion during the shortly lived Anime Wednesday block, it originally seemed as if Chiller TV was going to air Tokyo Ghoul.

Speaking of Chiller TV, Dish Network removed the channel from its package, last month. This means the channel will be even MORE niche than it already was on for the last decade. Both Dish Network and Direct TV were the ONLY packages, that carried Chiller TV.

Right now, I shouldn't complain too much. Tokyo Ghoul is a series that I never had a chance to watch in its entirety online because of my hectic schedule and because of Hulu. That online streaming site shafted all its loyal users, who watched free online streaming shows.

In order to watch Hulu's programming, it NOW requires you to sign up using your social media accounts. 

This is all because the company wants to track our personal information and because Hulu wants to compete with Netflix.

Since I don't have Netflix or use Hulu anymore, both are irrelevant to me. At least I will have another show to watch on Adult Swim's Toonami block on the weekends.

In 2 more weeks on Toonami, I will be watching Tokyo Ghoul, Naruto Shippuden, and JoJo's Bizarre Adventure. Tokyo Ghoul's a small victory for Horror Anime fans and for yours truly.

Meanwhile, I have another animated short by Bill Tytla for today's Cartoon Sunday. 

Last week, I shared his 1949 short, Leprechauns Gold. 2 years before Leprechauns Gold, Tytla created The Wee Men. You are probably wondering why I did not share his 1947 short before his 1949 short. 

I purposely saved The Wee Men for today's Cartoon Sunday because Saint Patrick's Day is on Friday, this year. Therefore, you may consider today's blog an early Saint Patrick's Day Cartoon Sunday blog.

This 1947 animated short by Bill Tytla has relevance to Saint Patrick's Day. The Wee Men is similar to the 1949 animated short, Leprechauns Gold.

Legend supposedly has it in Ireland, that leprechauns live with a hidden pot of gold.

If anyone succeeds in capturing 1 of the so-called "wee men," he must lead to the gold's hidden location.

In The Wee Men, the leprechauns make shoes and deliver them to poor people. 

On Patrick's 121st birthday, he wants to prove his manhood by delivering the shoes he and the other leprechauns make to the poor.

In the process of shoe delivering, Patrick is caught by a greedy landlord, who wants to steal the leprechauns' gold. Their pot of gold has been buried under a tree stump and the landlord wants Patrick to reveal the location to it.

Bill Tytla's The Wee Men (1947)

Song Saturday: Henry Cowell's The Banshee

How's it going lurkers? Was the last Song Saturday NOT  creepy enough for you? Chances are great that you will say, "Yes." The last blog wasn't intended to be creepy. However, you are in luck today!

Before listening to today's song by the Classical Music composer, pianist, and theorist, Henry Cowell, learning about the banshee is a MUST. Growing up, I have always heard people loosely mention the banshee in discussions but never really knew much about it.

According to Irelandseye.com, the banshee is widely known in Irish Mythology as a female spirit, that is appointed to warn those from certain Old Irish families about their times of death.

Wikipedia additionally mentions that the banshee is also known as "the woman of the fairy mound" or "fairy woman." The spirit warns 5 Irish families with her shrieking and "keening." 

Keening is supposedly a traditional form of vocal wailing in grief of a dead person. This is something customarily done at Irish and Scottish funerals by women.

Who are these 5 Old Irish families?

The O'Niells, O'Briens, O'Connors, O'Gradys, and the Kavanaghs are the 5 Irish families in need of warning. Notice that most of these Old Irish family names have last names starting with "O'."

While the banshee's shrieks and keens forewarn the 5 families at night about death, she can appear in 1 of her 3 guises. She can appear as a young and beautiful woman, a stately matron, or a frightful, old hag. The banshee is most commonly known as a frightful, old hag.

The preceding 3 guises of the banshee represent the triple aspects of the Celtic Goddess of War and Death, which happen to be Badhbh, Macha and Mor-Rioghain.

Even though those 3 guises are the banshee's most popular guises, she can also appear in a few other guises in the form of animals associated with witchcraft in Ireland. 

The banshee can appear as a hooded crow, stoat, hare, or a weasel.

After stumbling upon Henry Cowell's song, "The Banshee," listening to it automatically gave me the chills. Listening to this bone chilling song is like listening to a Horror film score. The way he played this piece on his piano exudes horror.

Imagine listening to "The Banshee," while reading a Horror novel, short story, listening to an audiobook, or simply watching something on your TV or computer screen with a really creepy vibe. 

Actually, I have a better idea. After reading today's blog about the banshee, re-read it as Cowell's "The Banshee" plays in the background. It should enhance your fear about this creepy spirit from Ireland.

Early yesterday morning, I was in the middle of reading an online article, as Henry Cowell's "The Banshee" played in the background. I began to dose off and suddenly awoke by the sound of the strings on his piano. "The Banshee" scared me awake. 

The sound of the piano strings was more effective than waking up to an alarm clock.

The creepy sounds of "The Banshee" automatically causes me to imagine heavy gusts of wind and gray fog, ice cold rain, and falling temperatures from a thunderstorm. 

Someone wakes up from howling and shrieking noises, while everyone sleeps on a dark and dreary night. 

The sounds linger and a man emerges battling insomnia. As badly as he tries falling back asleep, the howling and shrieking noises continue.

The man leaves his bed to roam around the dark hallways, in search of where those loud noises are coming from and from who. After getting closer to those noises, he opens a door and witnesses a frightful-looking old hag, crouching over someone's corpse, in a large puddle of blood!

How morbid is the imagination of yours truly before Saint Patrick's Day?

When listening to Henry Cowell's "The Banshee," what imagery comes to mind? Is it just as dark and creepy as what I imagined? If so, let me know in the comments section below.

Before I forget, make SURE to turn your clocks 1 hour AHEAD tonight for Daylight Savings. We will be "springing forward."

Anyway, re-read today's Song Saturday blog, while listening to Henry Cowell's "The Banshee."

Henry Cowell "The Banshee" The Piano Music Of Henry Cowell (1925)

Cartoon Sunday: Bill Tytla's Leprechauns Gold

How's it going lurkers? These next 2 Cartoon Sunday blogs somewhat have creepy tones to them.

Is it just me or does it seem like animated shorts from the 1920's to 1970's had creepier illustrations?

I don't recall of any animated shorts from the 1980's and '90s, especially animated shorts with creepy art illustrations. We had more cutesy illustrations. Otherwise, some looked really generic, abstract, or were just horribly illustrated cartoons.

If there were any animated shorts, that aired on local and cable channels, during the 1980's and '90s, I don't recall of them. Then again, I reached puberty very early in the early 1990's and outgrew MOST of the cartoons and TV shows meant for children. 

Now, here I am in my mid-30's discovering and watching cartoons, again.

We already know there is a stigma to watching animation as an adult. However, there is always a justification for why it is highly acceptable for adults to rush to the movie theaters to go see the latest Disney film.

Regardless of how adult animation elitists want to justify it, most Disney films ARE cartoons in movie form. Disney films are usually sugarcoated and dumbed down content meant for children.

As an adult, I view the characters and stories in animation differently.

Yes, I know those characters are NOT real people. Although, the characters and the stories DO have some "human-like" (also known as anthropomorphic) qualities with more realistic topics.

Bill Tytla's animated shorts somewhat reflect realistic characters with human-like qualities to them. 

Only judging based on 2 of this Ukrainian American animator's shorts, which I have seen, Tytla's works were similar to Ub Iwerks.

Cartoon Sunday: Ub Iwerks' Skeleton Frolics (2016)

Cartoon Sunday: Ub Iwerks' The Skeleton Dance (2016)

Like last October when I featured Ub Iwerks' animated shorts, these next 2 Cartoon Sundays will feature Bill Tytla's animated shorts in the spirit of Saint Patrick's Day. Today we have Bill Tytla's Leprechauns Gold. 

Leprechauns Gold is an Irish themed animated short depicting leprechauns, during their annual gold-washing ceremony. 

They also manage to outsmart an evil landlord, who plots to steal their gold in the process.

Bill Tytla's Leprechauns Gold (1949)

Song Saturday: VNV Nation's Darkangel

How's it going lurkers? It has been nearly 3 years, since I last published a Song Saturday blog featuring the Irish Industrial-Electro duo, VNV Nation.

Song Saturday: VNV Nation {Double Dose} (2014)

Since it is March and because Saint Patrick's Day is just around the corner, these next 2 weekends will have Irish themes to them.

What better way to start today's Song Saturday than with an Irish, Industrial-Electro duo?

Generally speaking, it has been a while, since I last shared a little Industrial-Electro Music on here. It doesn't hurt to switch things up a bit.

As much as I love Rock and Metal, I still love Industrial-Electro Music. Maybe someday, Industrial-Electronica, Industrial Metal, and House Music will make their comebacks here in The Midwest.

This is AS LONG as someone like Rihanna, Katy Perry, or Taylor Swift does NOT  ruin another fun music genre and sub-genre like they already have in the past.

Anyway, to get into the Irish spirit, let's revisit the Irish Industrial-Electro duo, VNV Nation for today's Song Saturday.

VNV Nation "Darkangel" Empires (2000)

Cartoon Sunday: JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Phantom Blood & Battle Tendency Music References

{This Cartoon Sunday blog was previously published in 2017. As of 2021, videos containing the following music references have recently been updated.}

How's it going lurkers? It appears that more musicians from the 1980's were name dropped in last night's episode of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Battle Tendency. 

Lately, more musicians from the '80s are being referenced to in Part 2 of this series. Hirohiko Araki's characters are named after many groups (mostly Rock bands) and singers in general.

It has been about several months, since I last mentioned the JoJo's Bizarre Adventure franchise. 

Recently, I learned that JoJo's Bizarre Adventure is considered to be a "multi-generational" franchise and the first 2 parts of the franchise are combined into Season 1.

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Phantom Blood was only Part 1 of the franchise. It had a Dark Shadows, Gothic Horror Soap Opera tone and was set during the 19th Century in England, when the ORIGINAL protagonist (Jonathan Joestar) was learning how to use Hamon.

Hamon is supposedly a form of Martial Arts, which uses the sun's energy.

Will A. Zeppeli taught Jonathan how to use Hamon to fight his sinister, adopted brother, Dio Brando and Dio's minions of vampires. Part 2 of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure is Battle Tendency.

Now that JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Battle Tendency premieres on Adult Swim's Toonami block, the franchise takes place, during the 1930's with Jonathan Joestar's grandson, Joseph Joestar (in the picture above) in America. Lately, there have been a lot of 1980's singers being named dropped.

Last week, the character "Lisa Lisa" was introduced. There was also a song sample of Yes' "Owner Of A Lonely Heart" being used, when Joseph was doing Hamon training.

In Battle Tendency, Joseph Joestar trains to defeat The Pillar Men. The Pillar Men are members of an ancient vampiric race. Last night, he managed to defeat Esidisi. Esidisi is named after the Hard Rock band, AC/DC.

Even though the illustrations of these characters look like dated characters from the 1980's, watching JoJo's Bizarre Adventure is quite an entertaining franchise for a Seinen Supernatural Thriller Action Anime. 

Then again, Hirohiko Araki created his Manga during the 1980's, which explains why some of his characters are named after Lisa Lisa, Wham!, REO Speedwagon, Dire Straits, The Cars, etc.

The characters being namesakes of celebrities, songs, albums, etc. add to the JoJo's Bizarre Adventure franchise's campiness. Whenever watching this particular series, I usually laugh because they are namesakes.     

Rather than sharing the usual animation, I thought it would be better to learn more about the names of the characters from the JoJo's Bizarre Adventure franchise for Cartoon Sunday.

1) JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Phantom Blood Music References (2021)

2) JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Battle Tendency Music References (2021)

Suddenly, I have Led Zeppelin's "Immigrant Song" stuck in my head.

Song Saturday: Dokken's Back For The Attack {Horror Triple Dose}

How's it going lurkers? I originally planned to publish this blog last Saturday. February 10th was the 30th anniversary for Dokken's release of their single "Dream Warriors." 

"Dream Warriors" was not only written and used as A Nightmare On Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors' theme song, but can also be found on Dokken's 4th album, Back For The Attack.

"Dream Warriors" brings back childhood memories. So does A Nightmare On Elm Street. Dokken released their single 3 weeks before the Slasher Horror film released in theaters; A Nightmare On Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors released on February 27, 1987. 

At the time, I was only 4 going on 5 years old. I remember the band's music video for "Dream Warriors" being heavily played on MTV. My mother would usually change the channel so that I wouldn't get scared of Freddy Krueger in the music video.

Most people don't know, that some of today's Hollywood "A-List actors and actresses" made their film debuts in Slasher Horror films. Johnny Depp made his film debut in the original A Nightmare On Elm Street, for example. 

Watching Freddy Krueger pull the character, Glen through the bed only to slash and spit Glen into pieces saddens me, until this day. Poor Glen.

Another A-Lister, who debuted in a Slasher Horror film was Patricia Arquette. Patricia debuted in A Nightmare On Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors.

A Nightmare On Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors Trailer (1987)

She also made her cameo appearance in Dokken's music video for "Dream Warriors." Dokken used movie clips for their music video, along with filming their own original video scenes. 

The actress' character, Kristen ends up being "rescued" by Dokken from Freddy by the band performing the sequel's theme song, "Dream Warriors."

At the end of their music video, Freddy wakes up from his "nightmare" about Dokken. When you watch the music video, you have to laugh at how silly it looks. Luckily, the music video was MUCH better than the actual movie. Dokken was heavily advertised for A Nghtmare On Elm Street 3.

About 10 minutes into the movie, the character Taryn was shown in the hallway wearing a Dokken T-shirt.

Even though A Nightmare On Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors heavily advertised Dokken and gave the band more commercial success, this Slasher was a joke. Giving mentally disturbed teenagers "special powers" to fight Freddy Krueger in their dreams felt TOO contrived. 

Yes, I know the movie is titled "Dream Warriors" for a reason. However, that movie is as God-awful as Sharknado and other movies, which are currently airing on Syfy. 

I tried watching Dream Warriors years ago and ended up turning it off because I couldn't take it seriously at all. It was LAME.

Have you ever noticed that the original A Nightmare On Elm Street (excluding the 2010 remake) still gets aired on cable whereas the sequels usually don't?

After watching MTV Classic, I realized a number of Dokken's music videos had Horror in them yet their songs consisted of topics regarding love, relationships, heartbreak, fear, etc.

Judging by this Metal band's music videos, album covers, and instruments, I assume they are fellow Horror fans. If not everyone from Dokken, at least a small percentage of them may be Horror fans. 

Throughout the years, guitarist George Lynch had skulls, bones, snakes, and demons designed on his guitars.

In addition to Lynch's guitars, Dokken has a song on Back For The Attack titled, "Mr Scary." George Lynch and Jeff Pilson wrote the song. 

Mr. Scary" is a guitar solo following "Heaven Sent" on the Back For The Attack album.

Also, I want to add that the success of Dokken's "Dream Warriors" for A Nightmare On Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors led to the following sequels to include a Heavy Metal song on its soundtrack.

Those of you reading today's blog are probably wondering about my favorite songs from Dokken. Right now, I have their song "Breaking The Chains" stuck in my head, which is on their 1981 debut album, Breaking The Chains.

As for the Metal band's Back For The Attack album, my mother bought me that album, when I was a little girl and I have owned it on vinyl for nearly 30 years. Although, I haven't played the album on my turntable in 17 years. Decades later, "Heaven Sent" is still my favorite from Back For The Attack.

I believe Dokken is 1 of the most HIGHLY UNDERRATED Metal bands from the 1980's. Not that I hated listening to every Glam Metal band, during my early childhood in the '80s, but there were other Metal bands, that did NOT  get the amount of exposure and praise as they should've.

Dokken was NOT  the stereotypically flamboyant, '80s Glam Metal band that constantly wore Androgynous Fashion for female fans and groupies.

Anyway, to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Back For The Attack album, here are 3 Horror themed music videos by Dokken for Song Saturday.

1) Dokken "Dream Warriors" Back For The Attack (1987); A Nightmare On Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors Soundtrack (1987)

2) Dokken "Burning Like A Flame" Back For The Attack (1987)

3) Dokken "Heaven Sent" Back For The Attack (1987)

Happy 52nd Birthday To The Late Brandon Lee!

How's it going lurkers? Remember when I said, that I wouldn't be gothing it up hardcore as much this week? Well, I couldn't help it, especially not today.

The last 2 days, I have been updating more previously published blogs that I published, throughout the years. 

In fact, I JUST  updated a blog that I published about Bauhaus' Peter Murphy. 

Then, I linked that exact same blog with my most recent Cartoon Sunday blog. 

Suddenly, I remembered that today is the day Brandon Lee would've turned 52 years old. 

I believe Brandon would've been a sexy, 52-year-old man had he STILL been alive today. He probably would've also been getting more acting gigs.

Yes, I know. It sounds like I'm fangirling over a dead sexy (pun intended) actor more than 2 decades later. 

Honestly, I can't help it. Men with long, dark hair, especially if they happen to be musicians and/or Goth have always been hard to get out my system.

Even though I retired from dating 10 years ago, dark hair, musicians, and Goths will ALWAYS be my types.

As usual, I digress. Because it is the late Brandon Lee's 52nd birthday and since there are so many other readers, who have never read my previous blogs about him, I thought I would share and re-share them with everyone for today. 

Simply click on this LINK and you will be directed to several links about the late Brandon Lee.