Updates on lyf

Hello Minions. I notice that I haven't been updating this blog recently, partially due to the facts that 1) Everything I do takes a loonngg time (except eating, which I'm quite adept at), so writing takes a lot of perseverance 2) My mom has been super nit picky about my SAT preparation lately 3) I'm good at distracting myself 4) I'm just too lazy okay

A few updates on stuff and hopefully tomorrow I'll be recapping again like a good? girl :)

-Internet Icon Season 2 came to a close on July 27th, 2013 hosted by Chris Riedell and judged by Ryan Higa, Christine Lakin, and Timothy DeLaGhetto. The original 10 contestants (well more since there were lots of groupies) were invited back for a Q & A session (awks but good). The Fu Bros and Lana McKissack (runner ups for last season) had a special performance of "Internet Icon Blues," one of The Fu's best songs in my opinion (super funny if you get the references). Out of the Kloons (clad in hippie wear), Bad Weather Films (clad in wanna-be-gangsta wear), and Matthias (clad in black), Matthias was declared the winner (my prediction was right yaaayy). However, I did agree with the judges on the fact that Bad Weather's final video was the best (it was funny, but I felt that's because they struck lucky). Will Pacarro was declared fan favorite, which means that he'll have the unique opportunity to stick around for next season as well. He's a Christian boi, so he pointed upwards with a shocked look on his face when his name was said. I'm glad he got fan fav (I thought he was super entertaining), however, I think if he wants a chance at winning next year, he's got to pull his act together. He needs some serious cleaning up to do in terms of his production quality and timing each of his jokes (and overall sharpening his strong suits). The kid's got a lot to work with, so I hope he continuously improves in...the six or so months he has left until next season. But congrats Matthias. You cool.

Watch the Finale here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5B7VEcIT8mM

-Joe Cheng has thoroughly impressed me with his acting chops in ISWAK and TKA (his attractiveness in TKA nearly rivals Ethan Ruan's, which is saying a LOT!). They Kiss Again is definitely the best sequel I've ever encountered (including both books and movies; just entertainment in general). Xiang Qin and Zhi Shu are just soo squishy-ly cute. I was apprehensive about it after watching the first two episodes (then again, I'm always skeptical when starting new dramas), but things just looked up from there. Obviously, this drama is not for everyone (for example, feminists may find it offensive), however, you cannot deny its captivating spark. Nevertheless, I've been turned into a committed ARJOE FAN. Watching their interviews are the best because it really acts as a crossover from reel life to real life. And they just balance each other out so perfectly; Joe loves talking and Ariel is reflective. Both are fans of literature and deep thoughts. I believe that Joe used to have feerings for Ariel (he has heavily hinted [look at that, 4 words that begin with h in a row!] this in many interviews), which is super cute. Check out iswakfansubs for many examples of these interviews as well as their real life stuff together.
As for their third collab, Love or Bread, it was funny, but that's pretty much it. It had no memorable moments to it and I really disliked how the director kept making Joe and Ariel do extremely exaggerated expressions and actions (I know it's part of the Taiwanese drama style, but it was wayy too overdone in my opinion). Check it out if you want, but it really ruins your image of the mysterious but chivalrous Zhi Shu.

-Van Ness Wu has officially applied for marriage with his long-time girlfriend Arissa Cheo on August 9th. He announced it online yesterday (which is Chinese Valentine's Day, so happy lovahs day!) with a "composite picture" of them as kids! I'm so excited for him; he's such a great example of a man after God's own heart and he's finally getting married to the woman of his dreams. They filed their application in Singapore (where the bride is from), so it'll take 21 days before their application is approved. Van Ness has stated that he wants kids, so I can't wait until Arissa gives him a bunch of Xiao Les (Autumn's Concerto!)! Ever since Van Ness released his single, "Marry Me," it's been pretty obvious that he's had intentions of puttin' a ring on Arissa's finger. So it's great that he's finally done it. God bless their marriage!

Internet Icon Season TWO Finalistss!!

As Season 2 of YOMYOMF's Internet Icon wraps up, the top three are finally revealed! After seeing Will Pacarro (yellowpaco) go home on the Trailer Challenge, we're left with (in order) Bad Weather Films, the Kloons, and Matthias.

In the judges eyes, the Kloons are probably leading the way with the most challenges won throughout the season with Bad Weather Films in second place. Which leaves Matthias last. However, the US and Canada are ecstatic for him, so he has a high possibility of winning this time around.

Although Matthias has been harped on plenty of times by the judges, I too am rooting for him to win! He has consistently showcased fine, entertaining videos throughout this whole competition (except for his first, which didn't get the message across too well) with the exactly the right amounts of unique quirkiness, professionalism, and of course, relatability (relatable-ness? the relatable quality?).

He has the quality of "eternal reassurance" (as said by Nick Carraway in the Great Gatsby) to him, but he doesn't rely on that to get him through the competition. Matthias constantly carries his own weight (and more), working hard to produce the best quality he can, and he achieves it. No other contestant can beat him in terms of how well thought out his videos are and how meticulously edited and shot they are. But that doesn't minimize how much his quirky personality shines through. The judges believe his strong suit is his camerawork, which they believe isn't as powerful as the other contestants' strong suits. However, they fail to realize that his strong suit is EVERYTHING; from vlogging to skits to trailers, he has shown exemplary precision in creating his own "face" on Youtube. Simply put, he's exactly what they're looking for with camera skills as an added bonus.

The final videos (links below) turned out unexpectedly. The Kloons have been consistent in their Kloony ways (I'll admit their quirkiness and professionalism is spot on, it's just that for me personally, I don't find them as relatable), yet their last video lacked the flow of small jokes to make their video entertaining. The concept was good, yet only the transporting flute could stand by itself as a legitimately funny joke, and when they stated the moral at the end, that made the whole video collapse. This ain't Aesop's Fables; in the 21st century we like to figure out the moral ourselves. And plus, the moral was so overused anyway that it was nothing short of cheesy.
Watch the Kloons' Final Video here.

Matthias took a different direction by making a  music video. He has done a music video on the competition once and is well-known for composing his own music for his videos, but he hasn't been portraying himself as a full-fledged artist throughout this competition. Additionally, his music video had no sort of plot; it was simply shots of himself sitting down and running backwards. Since his roots are in music, I understand why he would want to go back to something he's been doing for a loonng time (going "Backwards" teehees), and because of this, it seems targeted mainly towards his old fans. That being said, his fans that have been seeing more of the skit side to him may have a hard time relating to it. Nevertheless, their love for Matthias may outweigh the simplicity of the video (in comparison to, say, Bad Weather Films). Since Matthias is good friends with Joule Thief (most of America was shocked when he left), and was in an alliance with Will Pacarro and Megan Batoon as well (who are also fan favorites), I believe all those contestants' fans will inevitably vote for him. So he's not only garnering votes from his own fan base, he's likely to gain the votes from Alex's, Will's, and Megan's as well. However, it's still a very well-done music video, so he may get random votes on account of that as well.
Watch Matthias' Final Video here.

Bad Weather Films did a brilliant job with their candle-making skit. They played all their strengths very well, and this is, in my opinion, their best video so far. They know who they are and are pretty relatable, but they lack consistency. Throughout the competition, I thought some of their videos were awesome and some just didn't make me laugh. However, they've been improving as the competition went on. They struck lucky with this last challenge video (which is perfect timing on their part), and that will definitely give them a lot of votes. Their video also has the most views as of now, so that definitely gives some insight into who's winning.
Watch Bad Weather's Final Video here.

Yay!! Be sure to vote!