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Valerie Estelle Frankel
Valerie Estelle Frankel

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Published in Pop Off

·Jun 8

Ms. Marvel: The Fan Superhero Starts Slow

Some fans had been eagerly awaiting this one more than any of the MCU shows, for a long long time. At last we got her in live action. Ms. Marvel was recognizable from the comics but different. She’s still an icon for first generation Americans with awkward immigrant families. …

Ms Marvel

5 min read

Ms. Marvel: The Fan Superhero Starts Slow
Ms. Marvel: The Fan Superhero Starts Slow

Jun 3

Worldbuilding Timeline: Calithwain

First Age correspond to earth time? Year 1: Founding of Calithwain and silver pillar 3000 years ago, myth. Year 278: The warlike Aesir invade from their realm of Asgard. Year 352: Humans enter realm of Calithwain from realm of Earth. They arrive on the isle of “Delos”. Year 352: Humans…

9 min read

Worldbuilding Timeline: Calithwain
Worldbuilding Timeline: Calithwain

Jun 2

Worldbuilding: Beasts of Calithwain

Calithwain: Major powers: Academy (Jixil attacks book two) Elves/Forest Dwellers (Jixil attacks book one) Dwarves/Goblins (dark Wolf starts fighting each other over something stupid) Nomads (dark “convinces them to only care about themselves) Sea Creatures (dark Wolf sends a monster or natural disaster) he sends the leviathan. Evil Powers: Jixil/tzalmaveths …

24 min read

Worldbuilding: Beasts of Calithwain
Worldbuilding: Beasts of Calithwain

Jun 2

Worldbuilding: Plants of Calithwain

Heartthorn: Purple Flower, grows in Seln, in out-of-the-way spots. Heals people who are deathly ill. (Nerana) Lavaroot: One of the more deadly poisons, grows in forests of north Calithwain (Magic Portal) Nulaan’s Kiss: little white flower used in spells, enhances water element, found on Nulaan’s isle and nearby, right beside…

4 min read

Worldbuilding: Plants of Calithwain
Worldbuilding: Plants of Calithwain

Published in Pop Off

·May 11

Multiverse of Madness, Feminine Roles of Sameness

Without knowing anything about Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness, I had no particular expectations. Wanda and America Chavez (yay) would be main characters, and they’d hurtle through the multiverses being toyed with in the rather unsatisfying allusions and lead-ins offered in Loki and What If, then presented a…

Marvel

5 min read

Multiverse of Madness, Feminine Roles of Sameness
Multiverse of Madness, Feminine Roles of Sameness

Published in Pop Off

·Apr 27

Returning to the Real Spirit of Potter: Thoughts on Fantastic Beasts 3

Fantastic Beasts 3 was a pleasant return to what we were missing in movie 2. In fact, The Crimes of Grindelwald was terribly dark, with the problematic racist and sexist fridging of Nagini the show animal/sacrificed heroine. Another criticism of movie two is the muddled plot and very muddled characterization…

Harry Potter

4 min read

Returning to the Real Spirit of Potter: Thoughts on Fantastic Beasts 3
Returning to the Real Spirit of Potter: Thoughts on Fantastic Beasts 3

Published in Pop Off

·Mar 27

Bridgerton Season Two…What’s the Draw Again?

Fans loved Bridgerton season one. It brought a sweet joy to the pandemic and the cast was clearly having fun too. This time, the racial diversity doesn’t feel new — the Sharma sisters are from India and describe the culture there a bit, but they’re dressed as traditional English misses…

Bridgerton

5 min read

Bridgerton Season Two…What’s the Draw Again?
Bridgerton Season Two…What’s the Draw Again?

Nov 6, 2021

Review: Under the Whispering Door

cover from Amazon.com T.J. Klune’s Under the Whispering Door shows a whimsical multistoried multicolored building on the cover, visually suggesting it’s a sequel to the beloved The House on the Cerulean Sea, which won such acclaim. The latter book celebrated tolerance and difference as it taught a pencil-pusher to embrace…

3 min read

Review: Under the Whispering Door
Review: Under the Whispering Door

Published in Pop Off

·Sep 11, 2021

Xialing: A Real Warrior Heroine

Xialing was a delight in Shang-Chi. She balances Katy the perky American girl as a disciplined martial artist, raised in a sexist family. Abandoned by her brother, ignored by her father, she becomes a spectacular warrior all on her own. After they discover her in her fight club (where she…

Shangchi

3 min read

Xialing: A Real Warrior Heroine
Xialing: A Real Warrior Heroine

Published in Pop Off

·Sep 5, 2021

Shang-Chi Plays with the MCU

Shang-Chi enjoys subverting expectations even as it leans into them. It begins nodding to Iron Man, with a privileged man crashing his jeep far from home. Next, he meets a gifted woman, suggesting it will be a kung fu adventure, with its warrior heroine flying through the air and invoking…

Shang Chi

3 min read

Shang-Chi Plays with the MCU
Shang-Chi Plays with the MCU
Valerie Estelle Frankel

Valerie Estelle Frankel

Valerie Estelle Frankel has written 75 books about pop culture. https://www.amazon.com/Valerie-Estelle-Frankel/e/B004KMCLQK

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