Thalia Castro

“Walter Mercado is a force of nature” a declaration made by the Puerto Rican astrologist himself. Adorned in gaudy jewellery and extravagant capes to match his mystical affectation, we are inclined to believe him. At 87 years old, Mercado exudes the same cosmic magnetism that has endeared Latin American audiences to his shows for decades.

From the initial trailers, I was skeptical of what Tony Cervone’s Scoob! was selling. Promising an epic new spin on the long-running story, the 2020 reboot boasts a star-studded cast—Zac Efron (Fred), Amanda Seyfried (Daphne), Gina Rodriguez (Velma), Will Forte (Shaggy)—and a beginning to an imagined cinematic universe for classic Hanna-Barbera characters. Though promising to be different from the Scooby-Doo that I love, this franchise has proven its longevity is in its malleability.

Reboots, remakes, and spin-offs have plagued the landscape of film and television over the last decade. Given the trend, it’s not hard to see Freeform’s Party of Five reboot as just another attempt to cash in on 90’s nostalgia. However, creators Amy Lippman and Christopher Keyser have been hard-pressed not to revisit the property unless the story warranted revival. And with headlines of family separations becoming far too common, Lippman and Keyser found that the story was not just warranted but urgent.

Since the release of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, the final film in the “Skywalker Saga”, the internet has been ablaze in untangling its divisiveness. The reception to the J.J. Abrams-directed feature has been mixed at best, however, most critics agree that the film is a messy ending to the Skywalker story. The Rise of Skywalker defies a logical narrative conclusion in favor of empty franchise iconography. Abrams and co-writer Chris Terrio disregard character arcs built from the previous films and sloppily come to an unfulfilling conclusion. The Rise of Skywalker has been widely regarded

From the mind of Fred Armisen, set in an unnamed Latin American country, HBO’s Los Espookys follows the plights of four horror enthusiasts as they turn their passion for the strange into a business of the same name. The Los Espookys team consists of leader Renaldo (Bernardo Valsco), the goth make-up artist whose unwavering optimism brings the group together; Andrés (Julio Torres), the enigmatic heir to a chocolate fortune with a self proclaimed mysterious past; Úrsula (Cassandra Ciangherotti)...

For myself and many others, the coming-of-age genre is a favorite because of the warm, fuzzy feeling that accompanies nostalgia for youthful innocence without reliving the stress of those formative years. Last year’s Ladybird was a welcomed addition to my favorite genre. Written and directed by Greta Gerwig, the film was a standout during awards season garnering several Academy Award nominations including Best Director, making Gerwig the fifth woman to ever be nominated in the category. Despi...

Brittany Runs a Marathon tells the story of Brittany Forgler (Jillian Bell), a slightly overweight, predominantly directionless 28-year-old woman as she trains to run a marathon. The film opens with Brittany at the doctor’s office — a moment that fat people know all too well. Brittany goes to the doctor in search of Adderall, but what she gets prescribed instead is a weight loss plan to lose 50 pounds to cure her ‘unhealthy’ lifestyle...

Ghosts and goblins and ghouls, like Zoinks! This sounds like a case for our favorite gang of mystery-solving teens: Fred, Daphne, Velma and Shaggy, and their talking Great Dane Scooby-Doo. On September 13th 1969 the first episode of Scooby-Doo, Where Are You?, created by Joe Ruby and Ken Spears, was released as a Saturday morning cartoon, introducing the world to the newest addition to the Hanna-Barbera collection. The ‘Mystery Incorporated’ gang first graced our screens in the episode “What a Night for a Knight”.

The changing leaves and crisp autumn air can only mean one thing: it’s officially spooky season. As the ghosts and ghouls come out in full force, it’s the perfect time to curl up with a cozy Halloween film. My favorite Halloween movies give me that same warm, fuzzy feeling I felt as a kid dressing up and getting ready to go trick or treating. As a kid, nothing felt more in the spirit of the holiday than watching Disney Channel. Disney Channel has had a long tradition of its Halloween themed television movies playing every October...

Few people look back and remember their preteen years fondly. Still, as you get older, the rose colored glasses come on and the memories become tinged with nostalgia. It’s easy to forget the tiny moments that felt huge back then. For those of us who have forgotten what it feels like to be thirteen years old, 2018’s Eighth Grade forces us to remember. It’s been a few years since I was an awkward, perpetually sweaty preteen but Eighth Grade grabbed me by my ankles and dragged me back in.