The Paw Print

A news publication created by Baruch's College Now high school journalism class

Reviews

XXL Freshman Review

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 In the year 2019, we have watched upcoming artists blow up with multiple billboard hits, record selling albums, and maybe a one hit song. The following artists are ranked from the best substance of music to the worst. 

 

 Standing at Number 1 is YBN Cordae from Suitland Maryland. Cordae is known for being in the group YBN with artist known as YBN Almighty Jay, and YBN Nahmir. YBN Cordae is known lyrically to be the best from the group, with hits Locationships( inspired by Jay Z’s song Girls, Girls, Girls), Target ( talks about racial profiling done by police),and his newest song Have Mercy( talks about life changes, and asks the lord for mercy). Listed at Number 2 is Tierra Whack. From Philadelphia, Tierra Whack is claimed to be the best female artist right now by Meek Mill, which says something because, when it comes to music Meek Mill can’t be compared to new age artist . “ Having flashbacks, Where yo’ past at?/Where the cash at? Ayo, pass that/ I will stab backs just for bags, racks, Tierra Whack said in her song Unemployed. Tierra’s starts off with vivid word play and uses something called slant rhyming. Slant rhyming is when rappers use words that don’t rhyme and make it rhyme.  Rico Nasty from Largo Maryland is listed at Number 3 . As a female artist Rico Nasty is most known for her emphasis towards black women expressing their anger. With dropping projects Anger Management, Nasty, and Sugar Trap 2 we can see what point she is trying to get across. “Yeah, your ass fat, but you a whack attack/Seek the money you can’t wait to latch”Rico stated in her song Big Titties from the Anger Management album . Rico Nasty raps about females getting attention for how their body looks ,but states when it comes to money with men they forget their value. From Houston,TX we have Megan Thee Stallion. As a Southern Rapper, Megan is known for her assured flow and sexual lyrics. Megan’s best songs are Big Ole Freak, Best you Ever Had, and her STALLI FREESTYLE. “ Come in the room and I’m givin’ commands/ I am the captain and he the lieutenant/ I need that neck like a muhfucking pendant,’’Megan stated in Big Oe Freak. From the rugged streets of Compton, at number 5: we have Roddy Rich. Roddy Ricch is known for songs Die Young, Down Below, Every Season, Project Dreams, and his latest song Out Tha Mud. One of his most known lines is, “Tell me legends always gotta die quick?’’, Roddy Rich stated in Die Young.  At Number 6: stands Da Baby from North Carolina. With collaborations from Louisiana’s Boosie Badazz, and Atlanta’s Offset, Da Baby is most known for songs Suge, Going Baby on Baby, and Next Song. When it comes to history, Da Baby shows what he knows about rap in Suge. “ I’m a young CEO, Suge( Yeah)/ Yeah,Yeah”, Da Baby vigorously repeats in his song Suge. From East St. Louis, Illinois we have Comethazine. Even though, Comethazine is listed at number 7 he stands with songs Walk, Bands, Piped Up, and 2 albums named Bawskee.

One of his most known lines is, “ I walk around like that nigga, finger on the trigger/ If a nigga want smoke, I let the chopper eats his liver(Boom)”, Comethazine vigorously repeats  song Walk. From Atlanta at Number 8 we have Gunna. Gunna is most known for his collaborations with Lil Baby, Young Thug, Polo G, Tory Lanez, Chris Brown, and etc. When it comes to Gunna’s own songs, One Call, Who You Foolin, Top Off, and Richard Millie Plan. Lyric wise nothing stands out ,but from his songs his hooks are the best. At Number 9 stands YK Osiris. YK Osiris best song of course is Worth it. In this song he talks to a girl about him being worth it because, he will give them the world. At Number 10 stands Lil Mosey. Mosey doesn’t stand at the bottom because of songs: Kamikaze, Noticed, and Pull Up. What makes him stand out is his enticing hooks, and his good selection of beats. Last but not least we have BlueFace. Although, BlueFace has songs: Bleed it, Next Big Thing, Dead Locs, Studio and Thotiana. Besides having decent hooks, catchy beats, Blueface can’t rap on beat making him sound like he doesn’t take any of music serious. 

 

The first part  of the XXL is the rappers freestyle. In the freestyle, we get to hear the rappers, go acapella with either a written freestyle or something off the top. With the freestyle we are doing no order from best to worst just who did what. Now the first person we look at is Comethazine. After listening to the freestyle I’m impressed. Even though I didn’t expect too much from a 40 second  freestyle, Comethazine shows us he wants to be in the XXL , and raps every line enhancing. “ Niggas wonder why I’m savage, you ain’t never put your buddy in a casket”, said Comethazine. When saying this line you can tell Comethazine means it, and is saying it because he feels like it. The second person we’re looking at is Da Baby. With a 1:28 freestyle Da Baby says everything like the usual. Even though, Da Baby looks like he  just woke up from a flight, Da baby shows high charisma, and proves he doesn’t need a freestyle to prove himself, which is good. However, the only problem with Da Baby’s  freestyle is him reusing lines from a previous freestyle, with Funk Flex. The only trick with Da Baby’s XXL freestyle, is the words being said slower, and on FunkFlex Da Baby uses a faster flow when saying it. The third person I am reviewing is YBN Cordae. My opinion is that Cordae has the best freestyle right now since a few more artists need to freestyle . However, what makes his freestyle unique is Cordae showcasing his lyrical abilities, and his good flow. “ Huh, never will I ever forget beginnings/ A country boy who humble and grateful for his position/ But never satisfied or complacent, my intuition”, Cordae said. In this freestyle Cordae raps about his life, and talks about what he wants to achieve. For the fourth person we have Megan Thee Stallion. In my opinion,  Megan’s freestyle is Top 3 right now with Rico Nasty, and YBN Cordae. What makes her freestyle good is her mixture with her raps and bars. In this freestyle, Megan’s subject is mostly about topics Cardi B, or Nicki Minaj will talk about ,but she says it in a compelling way. “ They done fucked up and let Houston, Texas get up in here/ They saying I’m a freshman but I spit like I been here”, said Megan Thee Stallion. In my own words this isn’t relative to what I was saying, but this was a good way to start a freestyle. The fifth person I’m reviewing is Rico Nasty. Rico Nasty is in my top 3 because, every line she says differently, she has a fast flow, and Rico showcases her rapping skills. Her placing right now in my Top 3 is the 2nd best. In Rico’s freestyle she constantly switches from topics about modern day females, and  people playing her even though she knows she isn’t the one. “ Promise my mama that I won’t fuck with no fucking nigga/ Seems like they only pay attention to who butt bigger,” said Rico Nasty. While rapping about these things, when she freestyles you can picture the things Rico talks about, and why she said her lines so aggressively. Up next we have Lil Mosey. Lil Mosey right now is put in my Top 10 because his freestyle is trash, he recycled most of his lines from a snippet called Aye Royce, and when he freestyles I’m not even interested to begin with. For our 7th person we have Roddy Rich. Roddy Rich in his freestyle has done something other rappers have not done. In Roddy Rich XXL freestyle, while he was freestyling he made a beat by using his jewelry , and also used his melodic sound to rap.  In my opinion this freestyle is going to keep him at the Top 4. When he started freestyling, I gained an interest in listening to it more. “ You get 20 years fed time, for the 6 months you balling hard,” Roddy Rich said. In other words, I can be hustling to get money the only way I can , but that can lead to me serving long time, even if I’m doing what I’m doing. Now I am not going to review YK Osiris, Gunna, and Blueface because their freestyle isn’t out. Also Tierra Whack would probably not do a freestyle because, she wouldn’t need one. This is my prediction for the top 10 best freestyles to worst: 1)YBN Cordae, 2)Rico Nasty, 3)Megan Thee Stallion, 4)Roddy Rich,5) Comethazine, 6)Gunna, 7) YK Osiris, 8)Da Baby, 9) Lil Mosey, and 10) Blueface. 

 

The last part of the XXL is the cypher. In the cypher, the rappers are grouped together based on their rap skills, and how they fit together. I will not be reviewing the cypher because, it is not out at this moment , but I will show my prediction for the  groups. Group One: YBN Cordae, Tierra Whack, and Rico Nasty. Group 2: Megan Thee Stallion, Da Baby, Gunna, and Comethazine. Group 3: YK Osiris, Roddy Rich, Lil Mosey, and Blueface. Overall, the XXL 2019 Freshman is better than last year ,and have more to give. Even though, the list could’ve been better, the artist in 2019 have shown their skills, and what they can do.

Review: Lunar Chronicles excels at representing women

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“Her whole body was wound up tight. She was ready to storm the palace herself – an army of one.”

The thrilling conclusion to the series The Lunar Chronicles, by Marissa Meyer wins hands down as one of the best sci-fi fantasy novels of 2015 that has just about everything you could hope for in a book. Action, romance, suspense, a diverse set of characters, a chilling villian, and more.

Picking up from the last installment Cress, the characters Cinder, Cress, Scarlet, Wolf, Thorne, Iko, and Kai, are aboard the Rampion a space pod ship. They are getting ready to hatch a new plan in order to take down the ruthless Queen Levana of Luna once and for all, so Cinder can rightfully claim her throne. Throughout the novel Cinder also receives help from Winter, a princess of Luna (a moon colony), and Jacin, a royal guard.

In Winter, the readers are introduced to the characters, Winter and Jacin, hence the title. Winter is a character undergoing a disease called “Lunar Sickness” where she experiences hallucinations, as her mental state is deteriorating. 

“…the walls have been bleeding for years, and no one else sees it.” 

Very rarely in the Young Adult Novel world are characters written with this dynamic. 

Including a character who is at the mercy of a disease, with no cure, adds a touch of realism to the book. Including a character who isn’t doing well mentally, adds representation to a large group of people, something that was needed in 2015 and still needed in 2019.

The representation doesn’t stop there. Winter is a manifestation of the tale Snow White, but instead of Winter being caucasian she is described with skin as “black as ebony wood”, and the characters Cinder and Kai, are both from China. 

What has made this series unique is its a series based off of classic fairytales, but the women are strong,  “I was always much more drawn to those strong, empowered female characters — both as a reader and as a writer,” Meyer said in an interview in the Bustle. 

Winter is the final installment in the series, where Cinder, who ever since book one, has been set with the ambition of taking down the queen, and throughout the series we see her grow with new friends along the way. The dynamic between the women in the series is what makes this book so refreshing in the Young Adult genre. These women have stuck together, and do not immediately hate each other, which is what makes them realistic portrayals of women, and therefore this series accurately establishes women empowerment. 

“When they arrived, they arrived in force- a dozen military ships surrounding the safe house, guns drawn.”

Not only does Meyer portray women relationships in an accurate manner, but she also makes them strong. Meyer makes her characters have the will to use weapons and fight, to overthrow a queen. It’s important that women read about characters who are strong, that way they believe they too can fight, and no longer be silenced. 

Even though there were many characters in the novel, 830 pages were enough to pace the story properly, which shows how well done the writing is. Each character was given a solid amount of time, for the reader to get to know, and be able to enhance the plot, leading up to the big showdown between Cinder and the queen.

Is ‘Thirteen Reasons Why’ Safe for Teens to Watch?

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Thirteen Reasons Why is a Netflix original series in which a teenage girl, Hannah Baker, commits suicide and leaves behind 13 tapes for each person she deemed responsible.

The producer of the series, Selena Gomez, has battled with both depression and anxiety in her life.

On one hand, the series is very gruesome and has trigger warnings for almost all episodes. On the other, it is very eye opening and sparks discussion for taboo subjects that need to be discussed such as sexual assault, addiction, suicide, bullying, sexuality, gangs, criminals, the justice system, peer pressure, PTSD, anxiety, depression, mental disorders, relationships, friendships, grief, intervention, recovery, and racism. The show sheds light on these subjects by presenting them in a sort of in-your-face manner.

It is no secret that the episodes can be upsetting to some, but it is the viewer’s job to determine whether or not to keep watching as well as which episodes to skip (if any). The writers and producers of Thirteen Reasons Why have repeatedly advised both young and old viewers not to binge, but to take breaks between episodes.

Anyone below the age of 14, anyone with severe depression, victims of sexual assault experiencing PTSD, anyone who does not like serious topics discussed onscreen, anyone autistic, anyone homophobic, and/or anyone with severe anxiety, should not watch the show for their own safety.

Each season consists of 13 episodes and because there is a small amount of episodes and a large amount to discuss, many upsetting things, both verbal and visual, are packed into one episode. In the second episode of Beyond the Reasons, a piggyback series off Thirteen Reasons Why, the meanings behind the episodes and the purpose of scripting them the way the writers did was a major discussion. There were also professional psychologists on the writing team because the writers needed help to figure out what was okay to script and what was not.

Triggers were also discussed during Beyond the Reasons because copycat suicides are a risk. However, the creators were trying to open people’s eyes and get them to understand that there is absolutely “nothing glamorous about suicide” and it should never be seen as an option. Brian Yorkey, the series co-writer, said during an interview. He makes it known that Hannah’s death was portrayed as a painful experience and should not be repeated by anyone in any way.

The 13th episode of the 2nd season depicted a scene of an especially brutal sexual assault and a murder attempt. A character, Tyler Down was jumped then sexually assaulted in a school restroom with a mop by a group of guys on the baseball team. He then went home and gathered a few handheld weapons to put in a car before driving to the school with the intent of shooting up the dance. He’d never gotten a chance to because another character, Clay Jensen stood in front of Tyler’s gun and stopped him from entering the school. Tyler eventually surrendered after hearing Clay out.

A couple of obvious triggers in this episode are sexual assault and gun violence. Although these are concerning for viewers, there is a clear warning before the episode starts that states, “The following episode contains graphic depictions of sexual assault & drug abuse, which some viewers may find disturbing. It is intended for mature audiences. Viewer discretion is advised.”

Watching the show on Netflix will give viewers an opportunity to choose whether or not it’s in their best interests to continue watching. The show is safe for mature teens and adults that can handle the topics being depicted and discussed in the show, being that it is rated TV-MA.

However, it can be educational to watch but also worthwhile. In the first season, the story line is more of a mystery whereas the second season has more of a “law & order” story line. This eases the tension of the suicidal background and gives a more slightly entertaining side of the story to make it easier to watch while still taking in the information the way it should be.

Dunkirk Film Review

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For a movie about World War 2, Director Christopher Nolan’s ‘Dunkirk’ seems to lack actual combat.

 It depicts the historical events of the Battle of Dunkirk through a beautifully shot and composed series of scenes; (Nolan again used film for this movie rather than digital,) but with all the astonishing visuals and sound, the movie was at times incoherent. In addition to having a choppy feel throughout, ‘Dunkirk’ leaves out critical details about the battle, which would have greatly enhanced the film.

The Battle of Dunkirk: The defense and evacuation of British and Allied forces in Dunkirk, France from 26 May to 4 June 1940. With the German Army closing in on over 400,000 troops on all sides, the only option was to evacuate all soldiers to Britain, just 26 miles over the channel. However, since the water was too shallow for large navy vessels, hundreds of civilian boats came to the soldiers’ rescue from Britain, and in the end 330,000 troops were rescued.

The movie does a good job of documenting that last part, but it fails to show anything other than the British perspective; Canada, France, Poland, Belgium, and the Netherlands all had men on the beach as well. Furthermore, there were some 40,000 French troops left behind and forced to surrender to the Germans – ‘Dunkirk’ never once acknowledges this.

Other disappointing qualities in the movie are some meaningless dialogue, and unessential plot elements at times. Although the cast is filled with stars like Cillian Murphy, Tom Hardy, and Harry Styles; they are unable to save the movie from the sparse and mediocre writing. There’s no real ‘message’ in Dunkirk. Also, the film has a sub-plot line about a man’s son, whose friend is injured on a rescue boat, and while adding nothing to the story, it provides a superficial layer of emotion.

Now with all that set aside, ‘Dunkirk’ is a beautiful film. The score, sound effects, and cinematography are fantastic, and it’s great in 70mm film IMAX. But with its greatness comes many, many flaws – and it doesn’t really compare to some of the other great WW2 films in past decades.