Mecha Builders--Interesting Random Facts

Admittedly this entry is less of the random fact variety and more of the "Did you know this bizarre show exists" variety, but... did you know this really bizarre show exists?  I've found out about it recently because my kids are really into it. It takes Sesame Street characters and re-imagines them as superhero robots.  To quote Wikipedia: 

The series focuses on "mecha" versions of three legacy characters: Mecha Abby Cadabby, Mecha Elmo, and Mecha Cookie Monster, all reimagined as mechanical beings with the power to enlarge to giant size in addition to unique built-in tools and gadgets. The trio usually solve a problem using a three-step formula: plan, test, and solve. Later episodes would add a fourth main cast member in the form of Elmo's pet dog Tango

 

Darby O'Gill and the Little People--Movies I've Half Watched

I've seen this movie once before (in its entirety) back when I was young, so this is actually a rewatch.  (Or rather a half-rewatch).

I saw this movie when I was around 10 years old, on the Disney channel.  (Back in the 1980s, the Disney Channel reran a lot of old Disney movies.)  I remember I really wanted to like it, because the commercials for it (which ran on the Disney channel) made it look really fun--a fantasy story about Leprechauns and Ireland--but the actual movie itself was very slow paced and hard to sit through.

Recently, however, my children have become obsessed with leprechauns after learning about them during their first Saint Patrick's Day here in the U.S.  And so I was trying to think what children's movies contain leprechauns, and this is the only one I could think of.

My kids lasted only 30 minutes before they got bored.  Which was about what I expected, quite frankly.

Although I don't remember the plot of the movie in detail, the feel of the movie (or at least the first 30 minute of it) was pretty much as I remembered it.  It's got great scenery, a good looking cast, great acting, and you really want to like this movie, but... the plot just moves too slowly to be interesting.

The movie is also notable for starring Sean Connery before he became famous for being James Bond.

Man's Fate by Andre Malraux translated by Haakon M. Chevalier: Book Review

(Book Review--Historical Fiction, Reread)

Started: March 11, 2025

This is a reread.  I originally read it back in college, as I mentioned in previous blog posts: here, here, here and here. However, since this is my first time reviewing this book on this blog, according to my new rules, it gets a video only review.

Man's Fate by Andre Malraux translated by Haakon M. Chevalier: Book Review

Links to things mentioned: 

* My review of Homage to Catalonia by George Orwell: https://youtu.be/1Y79H7QAfwU

* Christopher Hitchen's essay on Andre Malraux: http://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/10/books/review/10HITCHEN.html?pagewanted=all

Quotation from that essay: “Published in 1933, [Man’s Fate] did for fiction what Harold Isaacs’s “Tragedy of the Chinese Revolution” did for scholarship.  It pointed up the increasing weight of Asia in world affairs; it described epic moments of suffering and upheaval, in Shanghai especially (it was nearly filmed by Sergei Eisenstein); and it demonstrated huge respect for Communism and Communists while simultaneously evoking the tragedy of a revolution betrayed by Moscow.  Somewhat lushly Orientalist in its manner, the novel was ridiculed for its affection by Vladimir Nabokov and hailed as prescient by Arthur Koestler."

Le Monde's 100 Books of the Century (this book is number 5): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Le_Monde%27s_100_Books_of_the_Century

Also, I didn't mention it in this video, but in "Has Steve Read it Season 2", Steve Donoghue gave me a facepalm for suggesting that there might be any books of Andre Malraux that he hasn't read, because Andre Malraux is one of the canonical authors of the 20th century.  See that video here: https://youtu.be/LhSS6P_NeKY?si=4GmrPQofyDMw92DD

Related playlists: 

* Books I read in 2025: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x7Fev7Uv6_tzuSf84LtYwQu&si=Im1rdozRXrgGnr99

* Book Reviews Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x7dao6py7ODX_PkUvrAEch7&si=EJ7CG8iO9IouNaYY

* Rereads Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x5dMXnK5v4Yc7a8MF5p32Bx&si=HJZkQ7gk8J-EXB9f

* Historical Fiction Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x6aPjnfogXT4vyaZ6934DkU&si=thpc_WSscVPUaJWr

* Literature Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x4PjU8NX0_OGClFlA44DpdS&si=2x2pIzH3YCj-hcmI

Support this Blog:

Did you enjoy this review? Consider supporting me on Ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/joelswagman

Support me on Patreon: https://patreon.com/JoelSwagman

Check out this book on Amazon: https://amzn.to/4iGO5Tt            (This is an Amazon Associate's Link.  If you buy anything through that link, I get a commission.)

Starting: Assyria: The Rise and Fall of the World's First Empire by Eckart Frahm

Check out this book on Amazon here: https://amzn.to/3Y4ggUq               (This is an Amazon Associate's Link.  If you buy anything through that link, I get a commission.)

The Crimson Shadow Book Tag

Original Tag from Bucky749: https://youtu.be/7-Lt5fX1I2A?si=U-Z13bCGVs2f49r9

1. What is the first manga , comic or graphic novel you ever read? One or all three if you like. If not, what was the first movie you saw that was based on a comic?

2. Which book or series have you reread the most ?

3. The shadow or the phantom: Which is the better character ?

And have you read any stories containing these characters? 

4. H.G Wells or Rex Stout? Who in your opinion is the better writer and why ?

4. Biography or collection of essays: Which would you rather read?

6. Tag some people

 @WilliamsLibrary  

 @ReadingIDEAS.-uz9xk  

 @mindysbookjourney  

 @JzyShzy  

 @booksimnotreading  

 @danecobain  

 @jimsbooksreadingandstuff  

Links to my reviews of some of the stuff mentioned in this video:

* The Death of Superman: https://youtu.be/JCe0O7k32N0

* The Bible: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x7_mCy4E6zi0MGTnFuQhSHH

* The Invisible Man by H.G. Wells: https://youtu.be/8LSyEHM3Bc4

* Men Like Gods by H.G. Wells: https://youtu.be/0Gkl_RrRoNM

* The Time Machine by H.G. Wells: https://joelswagman.blogspot.com/2014/08/the-time-machine-by-hg-wells.html

* The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells: https://joelswagman.blogspot.com/2014/10/war-of-worlds-by-hg-wells.html

* George Orwell: Essays: https://joelswagman.blogspot.com/2014/09/george-orwell-essays.html

My Tag playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x68GfUHYtDeSJLo6gwRKIID&si=rclnqa36Yds9UNWa

Stupid, Stupid Rat-Tails by Tom Sniegoski, Jeff Smith, Stan Sakai: Book Review

(Book Review--Bone Series)

Started: March 20, 2025

(This is my first time reading this book, so according to my new rules, I'm doing this as a video only review.)

Stupid, Stupid Rat-Tails by Tom Sniegoski, Jeff Smith, Stan Sakai: Book Review

Related Playlists: 

* Graphic Novel Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x6NMoYW6CBw6Qj_cqK8DIeb

* Books I read in 2025: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x7Fev7Uv6_tzuSf84LtYwQu&si=Im1rdozRXrgGnr99

* Book Review Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x7dao6py7ODX_PkUvrAEch7&si=EJ7CG8iO9IouNaYY

* Bone Series Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x5KLbFLyQFO6CTdp_XzdCbs&si=qswidW7z7fU1uvjr

Support this Blog:

Did you enjoy this review? Consider supporting me on Ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/joelswagman

Support me on Patreon: https://patreon.com/JoelSwagman

Check out this book on Amazon: https://amzn.to/4kHQfUO                   (This is an Amazon Associate's Link.  If you buy anything through that link, I get a commission.)

Started: The New Teen Titans Volume Six by Marv Wolfman and George Perez

Check out this book on Amazon here: https://amzn.to/4kPWzJT                     (This is an Amazon Associate's Link.  If you buy anything through that link, I get a commission.)