so... 2021 was a Year. worse than 2020 in some aspects, better in others. and considering the way 2022 has started, i don't have high hopes LMAO.

but anyway!! this isn't about the existential crisis i fall into whenever i realize i've now spent 3/4 of my high school years in a global pandemic!! this is about all of the media that came out in 2021, and my favourites that came out of it!!

so, without further ado, here's my favourite media that came out of 2021!!

TV SHOWS

SHADOW AND BONE, SEASON ONE

rating: 4/5 stars

review: while this didn't turn out to be as good as i thought it would be, shadow and bone was a really good show that i ended up binging in the span of two days!! i thought the idea to merge six of crows and shadow and bone was really interesting, and the fact that the crows were sent to kidnap alina was GENIUS. i ended up liking this more than the shadow and bone book, but six of crows is far superior tbh. this did have a CRIMINAL lack of wylan, and i wanted more nina and matthias screen time, though i could understand why they couldn't add them more.

overall, though, this was super fun, and i really enjoyed it :)) i'm excited for season two, and how they're going to continue alina and the crows' stories!!

THE OWL HOUSE, SEASON TWO A

rating: 5/5 stars

review: SO GOOD. season two of the owl house was a step up from season one in my opinion, and not just because of the introduction of some of my new favourite characters (raine, hunter, and vee, to name a few), nor because of the episode "knock, knock, knockin' on hooty's door" (if you've seen the show, you know what happened). it was just overall written phenomenally (you'll see me use this word too much throughout my reviews, lmao), though i do wish willow and gus got more screen time. i loved it so much, and i'm looking forward for season two b!!

THE MYSTERIOUS BENEDICT SOCIETY, SEASON ONE

rating: 3/5 stars

review: okay, yes, i rated this 3/5 stars, but i'm still putting it as one of my favourites anyway, because it was pretty good!! the mysterious benedict society was one of my favourite book series as a child, and when i heard there was going to be a show (literally a week or so in advance, lmao), i was super excited. and then it came out, and i jumped to watch it!!

i'm putting this as one of my favourites because the first episode was SO GOOD. although there were a few changes to the books (which i pretty much know off by heart, lmao), it was one of the most accurate book-to-show adaptations i've ever seen. i thought all of the actors that were cast were super on-point (except for constance, though i understand why they couldn't have had an actual two-year-old play her, lol). reynie's actor actually made him more tolerable (i hated him in the books), which is something i always appreciate, and tony hale played an amazing mr. benedict. 

but as the series went on, it started straying further and further from the books, and i couldn't understand why??? i mean, i liked some of the changes (the subplot with kate and martina becoming friends was actually really sweet, and i loved how s.q was portrayed), but between some of the others (what was up with the waiting room in the show?) and the fact that they spent SO MUCH TIME on the adults (seriously, nobody cared what they were up to!!) i had to lower the rating a little. still a solid show, though, and i'm excited to see how they'll do season two!!

SQUID GAME, SEASON ONE

rating: 5/5 stars

review: this was an unexpected favourite!! i don't usually watch k-dramas, but after i saw the hype of squid game take the internet by storm, i decided to finally check it out!! i watched it over the span of a few weeks, i think (i was super busy with school), and... WOW. this show made me feel so many emotions.

just like everyone, episode six made me sob my goddamn eyes out. i was watching it literally ten minutes before i had to go to the dentist, and when i was lying there getting my teeth polished afterwards, i couldn't stop thinking about it. it was impressive how much you got attached to each character, even though you knew most of them were going to die. and, even though i got spoiled for some twists, it didn't damper the experience for me at all.

i also really liked gi-hun's character arc throughout the show, i started off finding him super annoying but grew to like him by the end. sae-byeok and ji-yeong were amazing, ali had my whole heart, and i fell in love with jun-ho. overall, a fantastic show, even if it was more gory than i was used to. i don't even care if there isn't a season two, because this definitely holds up on its own. SO good.

MOVIES

SHANG-CHI AND THE LEGEND OF THE TEN RINGS

rating: 5/5 stars

review: YES. i'm not the biggest marvel fan, but i decided to go to this movie anyway, because it looked amazing. and it was!! it was an instant classic, to be honest, and there's not much to say about it other than i loved it. i'm glad there's beginning to be more diversity in marvel movies (though they still have a long way to go, lol), and that more people can find themselves represented in superheroes. we all deserve to feel like we can be the hero.

SPIDER-MAN: NO WAY HOME

rating: 5/5 stars

review: hello??? can someone pass me a handkerchief so i can WIPE AWAY MY TEARS??? this was SUCH an unexpected marvel movie but a refreshing change in pace. the whole thing honestly felt like a fever dream in the best way possible. i cried, i laughed, i remained engrossed throughout the entirety of its screen time. mcu peter parker has officially entered my top comfort characters list, and i wish i could give him a big hug <333 SO GOOD.

FEAR STREET PART TWO: 1978

rating: 4/5 stars

review: i'm only putting the second movie in this trilogy here because it was my favourite of the three. if you want to know, in my personal opinion, the best movie of the trilogy is this one, while the worst (3/5 stars) was part one. it was so cool of netflix to release a whole trilogy within the span of a month, and i had a great time watching them.

part two: 1978 was definitely the superior out of the trilogy. this isn't just because it had sadie sink; i just loved the camp setting, the cast as a whole (alice and cindy <3333), and i thought it had the best action of the three. it wasn't perfect, but it was a really fun ride, and i'll definitely be rewatching the trilogy soon!!

(also, spoilers, but for some reason while watching it, i knew all along that ziggy was c. berman?? i didn't even know we were supposed to think cindy was her lmao. so at the end, when the revelation came that ziggy was the survivor, i was like... yeah???? i don't know how that happened lol. i wasn't even spoiled)

LUCA

rating: 4/5 stars

review: this was super cute!! i really liked the animation style, and the whole italian setting was so immersive and made me wish i was on vacation, lol. luca and alberto owned my HEART (and obviously each other's, wink wink), and giulia was pretty cool, too. the whole idea of it was also super fun, and i thought the conflicts (especially between luca and his parents, and alberto and his absent father) were done really well. overall, an adorable animated film that i will definitely rewatch at least twice a year!!

ENCANTO

rating: 5/5 stars

review: OMG??? i did NOT expect this movie to be as good as it was but it snuck up on me. i really liked how it focused more on family instead of being this big quest, and the relationship dynamics were all phenomenal. the animation was so cute, and the songs??? YES. my favourite was obviously we don't talk about bruno (and i still have it stuck in my head, lmao), but surface pressure was a close second. my favourite characters were definitely luisa, camilo, antonio and the person that we don't talk about ;))). such a beautiful movie, and an instant disney classic. i definitely will be putting this is as one of my favourites. 

BOOKS

THE GALAXY, AND THE GROUND WITHIN BY BECKY CHAMBERS 

rating: 5/5 stars

review: at this point, i'm convinced that becky chambers can do no wrong. the whole wayfarers series was literally perfection, and i didn't rate a single one of them less than five stars. i definitely recommend checking out this series if you want excellent sci-fi with impeccable worldbuilding, lots of aliens (this book didn't have a single human main character!!), and complex characters. this book was definitely a character study of the conflicting perspectives of its main characters, but i loved every minute of it. tupo was a gem (xe was right when xe made xyr password "Tup0 1s Gr3at"), and i loved pei and roveg, too. ugh i'm going to miss this series so much, but i can't wait to see what becky chambers releases in the future!!

MALIBU RISING BY TAYLOR JENKINS REID

rating: 4/5 stars

review: taylor. jenkins. reid. i don't know HOW she does it, but all of the new books she's released have been such bangers. the seven husbands of evelyn hugo? YES. daisy jones and the six? AMAZING. and now this book, featuring the best summery vibes ever, along with wonderfully flawed characters you get attached to regardless of the mistakes they make. this was such a fun ride, and i loved the fact that the main plot took place over one day. this was super great overall, even if it wasn't my favourite tjr book (that spot goes to the seven husbands of evelyn hugo). 

SHE WHO BECAME THE SUN BY SHELLEY PARKER-CHAN

rating: 4/5 stars

review: THIS IS THE POPPY WAR I WANTED. i ended up SO disappointed by the end of the poppy war when i first read it, which really sucked because i loved the first half of it. when i started reading this book, i was immediately reminded of the poppy war, but, unlike that book, this one stayed solid throughout its entirety. i loved zhu as an unlikable narrator, and her relationships and exploration of her gender identity (as she poses as a man for most of the book). the whole plot in itself was super interesting; i've never read a story where one of the main characters is a monk. and ouyang as a character was also super interesting, even though he wasn't my favourite. overall, a phenomenal debut, and i'm definitely looking forward for the sequel!!

THE BOX IN THE WOODS BY MAUREEN JOHNSON

rating: 5/5 stars

review: how is this book so good??? wtf??? i loved the truly devious series, but when it was announced that there was going to be a fourth book that didn't take place at ellingham academy, i wasn't sure if it would hold up. but it DID. the camp setting was awesome, david was more tolerable, and the mystery was super intriguing. i ended up figuring out who one of the killers was, but the second one definitely surprised me. such a cool mystery, i loved it so much. 

i hoped you enjoyed my reviews of the top media of 2021!! i ended up writing way more than i thought i would lmao. i hope i at least made it a little interesting.