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Gretel’s Opp-ortunties

Hansel and Gretel are as cunning as you imagined them in the fairytales. My favorite thing about movies that plays around with fairytales is that they like to expand on the adventures while creating various cameos in the process. From famous magical items to classic fairytale characters, if you’re looking for some fun, Secret Magic Control Agency will give you a feast of desserts.

The story begins with Agent Gretel, with her goal of becoming “Best Agent,” doing all she can do to protect the kingdom. But when a mystery arrives that she can’t seem to solve, the kingdom seeks out help from her con-artist brother Hansel. From here this journey will have its magical ups and its mystical downs. Though I enjoyed the idea of Secret Magic Control Agency there were a couple of concerns that made me question its goals.

If there is anything that I love, it’s a great fairytale with magnificent villains. In stories we root for the heroes, but we really came for the villains. Secret Magic Control Agency managed to create a cool villain, but she became almost unbelievable due to forms of misogyny. Great characters have conviction where audiences are moved to feel strong emotions towards them. Whether you’re rooting for them, against them or if the goal is to create a strong gray area where you begin to question their ideologies, there is a substance that attracts you. Problem is, I felt sorry for the way the creators treated Elvira. The backstory of course is sad, being this wonderful cook where no one ever falls in love with you and you’re the “joke” of the kingdom feels alienating. Other characters clowned on Elvira for no reason outside of being “unlovable.”

A Case for Elvira Queen of the Oven

Elvira was banished after using dark magic cookies to manipulate the king’s love. In a kingdom full of queens where everyone calls her unlovable or scoffs at her on sight, it’s not surprising that she would want to extract sweet revenge. When we talk about humor and sass, if anything Elvira has all the tools available. The writers managed to create a character with a delectable grudge and the drive to keep that same energy for years. I loved everything that made her so hated because I felt like there was something to be explored. Hansel and Gretel were the stars of the show, but Elvira had a light that could have been expanded upon.

When it comes to plot, Secret Magic Control agency had its moments of nourishment and rollercoasters. I don’t want to go on this long exhaustive explanation as to how this movie is high key “copaganda” and doesn’t explore the extensive ways this system is probably exploiting the magical kingdom, so I won’t do it! Instead, I want to focus on how our stars Hansel and Gretel showcased their growth in beautiful ways. Hansel never loses his trickery and honestly that’s my favorite part. Often times when characters are shown to “grow” they have to lose a “bad trait” that makes up the bones of their character and how “good traits” are enhanced. The storytellers instead take both their good and bad and enhance them throughout the story.

Enhanced Magic

Hansel never stops yeeting artifacts. If there is something magical and shiny, he will yeet it ‘til the end. Gretel, the sibling that “stayed on the right path” bends the rules to work with her. Secret Magic Control Agency allows us to peer into the secrets of Hansel and Gretel’s relationship and showcase what sibling rivalry and love truly means. The duo showcased sacrifice, love, and adaptability. Their reimagined status as “young adults” versus them as kids allows viewers to see a vulnerable side to each of them. A fun time for kids, all while learning a lesson on how each of our qualities serves a purpose.

In all, Secret Magic Control Agency is a quick fun movie filled with stunning visuals and illustrious magic. It’s not the most captivating, but it has a light heart. If we were to explore the roles of magic and the movie had harder consequences, they would have had a recipe for a rollout! If you’re looking for background movies or something to catch the kids, this will do the job. There were moments where I was pulled in and practically begged them to explore certain ideas more, but then I got pulled away and I screamed with agony. If you’re not captivated by ideologies and exploration like me, then Hansel and Gretel will steal your heart away. If not, prepare your pitchforks for the Queendom of Elvira!

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Every now and then, it's time to just be terse and "kick straight facts," folks! It's the steam engine dba Afronerd Radio's Grindhouse airing this Sunday at 6 p. m. eastern on BTalk 100.  Join your exceptional AFROnerdist hosts as they unpack the following topics:  our thoughts about the Suicide Squad 2 trailer that hit the cyberwebs this week.  It also provides a glimpse into filmmaker, James Gunn's take on the DC property post his Marvel Guardians of the Galaxy work; 

The legendary "virtual band," Gorillaz, to commemorate 20 years since the release of their first album, are re-releasing new merch including NFTs (non fungible tokens) and that's where the controversy begins; our impressions of the first three episodes of Amazon's new Robert Kirkman penned comic book to animation streaming series, Invincible;  a recent New York Times piece highlights the blerd/"black nerd" phenomenon impacting popular culture;  notable actor, Keanu Reeves' second breath in Hollywood continues with the release of his comic book series, BRZRKR which just so happens to coincide with proposed Netflix live-action and anime iterations; similar to Thanos' (a la Darkseid's "cousin") words in Avengers: Endgame concerning inevitability-it seems that the HBO Max streaming success of Zack Snyder's Justice League has led to a #restorethesnyderverse campaign; more details pertaining to the Static Shock live-action project;  Lastly, just what happened relating to the on-air joust between journalist, Roland Martin and the 21 year-old founder of The X for Boys youth organization, King Randall?

One thing that Dburt is doing (finally) is investing in cryptocurrency, courtesy of Roundlyx. We would implore our followers to investigate, discern and then explore by using our referral code: afro-87A4BF

Call us LIVE at 508-645-0100. AFTER CLICKING ON THE HIGHLIGHTED LINK, GO DIRECTLY TO AFRONERD RADIO!!! 

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If you’ve heard of Sarah J. Maas’ A Court of Thorns and Roses book series, then you are possibly (likely?) a rabid fan. Frequently abbreviated to ACOTAR, the fantasy series tells the story of Feyre Archeron, a young mortal huntress who gets swept into a journey in the faerie lands of Prythian. With a sprawling world, deeply flawed and intriguing characters, and a whole lot of steamy love scenes, the ACOTAR series has attracted legions of fans since Maas published the first book in 2015. And now the four (well, four and half) book series is becoming a TV series for Hulu.

Maas shared the news on Instagram on Friday afternoon. She’s working with Ron Moore (Battlestar Galactica, Outlander) to adapt A Court of Thorns and Roses for Hulu. They’re working on the pilot now. And they have plenty of material. The first book, which carries the title of the whole series, is a loose adaptation of the Beauty and the Beast fairy tale. As punishment for killing a faerie, a faerie leader, Tamlin, imprisons Feyre in Prythian. He and everyone else in his court wear face-obscuring masks; a curse affixed the masks to their faces. Things just get progressively wilder from there in each of the 600 plus page books.

Bloomsbury Publishing

A Court of Thorns and Roses TV series would have a vast playground to explore. And given Moore’s experience in telling epic stories, he seems like an excellent choice to work with Maas. Especially given his role in bringing Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander to the screen. Given the rise of fantasy books coming to the screen, especially with Shadow and Bone dropping on Netflix in April, it’s no surprise to see that it’s ACOTAR’s turn.

Maas is also known for her Throne of Glass series (which Nerdist Book Club read a portion of). But just anecdotally, I feel like folks get most excited about A Court of Thorns and Roses. By folks, I mean myself. I definitely named my Animal Crossing: New Horizons character Feyre. I’ll just be over here daydreaming about who will play Rhysand.

Amy Ratcliffe is the Managing Editor for Nerdist and the author of A Kid’s Guide to Fandom, available for pre-order now. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram.

The post Ron Moore Developing Fantasy Series A COURT OF THORNS AND ROSES for TV appeared first on Nerdist.

Source: Marcus Ingram / Getty

Spelman College has broken a record with the amount of applications the school has received from prospective students. According to their website, the all-female historically Black college has received more applications for admissions than they ever have during their 140-year existence.

According to a news release, Spelman received 11,000 applications for the fall 2021 semester, which is a 20% increase in the number of applicants Spelman had in 2020.

“The increased interest in Spelman is a testament to the College’s reputation of graduating Black women with a competitive edge who rise to leadership roles across industries and impact positive change in their communities,”  Spelman’s president Mary Schmidt Campbell, Ph.D. said in the release. “Our admissions team has done an excellent job of sharing our stellar outcomes with prospective students from across the nation. We are excited that these bright young minds are seizing the opportunity to experience our unique liberal arts education by applying to Spelman.”

Chelsea Holley, the interim director of admissions, said the record-breaking amount of applications is a product of the campaigning for historically black colleges and universities that has been happening in the past few years.

“From founding inaugural Black student organizations at their high schools to advocating for voters’ rights in the 2020 presidential election, this applicant pool has been civically engaged, committed to leadership and dedicated to the very mission of Spelman College,” she said.

The news release added that Spelman’s applications for admissions has been increasing since 2014.

Spelman College, which was founded in 1881, is ranked number one on the U.S. News & World Report’s rankings of historically Black colleges and universities. It is also ranked number four on the list of top performing schools on social mobility and number 10 in most innovative schools. Well-known Spelman alumnae include actress Keisha Knight Puliam, Stacey Abrams and A.J Johnson.