VentralVex

I’m not new to storytelling. Ever since I was a little kid, I’ve created innumerable stories. I played out some of my favorites with my toys and my younger brother, weaving narratives from my imagination. The few times I convinced myself to commit my stories to writing, I soon abandoned my work, fearing that it could never reach a satisfactory quality. A few years ago, as I was speaking with a friend about the nature of self-esteem, I envisioned a story about the worth of human life in a nihilistic setting; I later refined this concept after reading Berserk and a webtoon called The Horizon, two works whose themes I saw the need to portray in a modern setting. I outlined some concepts for a story about a hardened mercenary who grows as a person after meeting two orphaned children in his trek across a desolate wasteland, but didn’t write a word of the actual story. I was passionate about the idea, but I struggled to distinguish it from its two major inspirations. I recalled a dream I had...

  A few months ago, I finished watching Better Call Sau l. I praise this show endlessly. I’ve consumed countless stories, but Better Call Sau l is one of the few I label a gold standard for storytelling. Most stories make subjective storytelling choices that readers may consider flaws. For example, some One Piece fans dislike Oda’s decision to give Luffy power-ups during battles. Though Better Call Saul is not flawless, it follows objective writing principles, such as show don’t tell, better than any other story I’ve seen. One of the most fascinating ideas Better Call Saul explores is the power of communication. All communication contains inherent assumptions. Recall the times you’ve clarified the meaning of a text message. Chances are, you omitted details necessary for comprehension because of your hidden assumptions. One reason these assumptions appear more commonly in texts than in other communication channels is that body language conveys additional information. For instance,...

I finally did it. I absolved myself of my sins as a MyAnimeList fan by becoming a casual Anilist enjoyer (the UI and database are superior). After a year of reading terrible reviews, I’m finally free. At least, that’s what I thought before encountering a slew of terrible anime takes on the internet. The ubiquity of these horrendous takes prompts me to crystallize my opinions on what constitutes quality anime discourse. Without being an elitist, it’s first important to understand common issues plaguing discourse within the community. 1.Elitism Axiomatically, people’s opinions regarding anime are subjective. Rating anime, while fun, should keep this fact in mind. All too often, anime fans will react to someone’s ranking of specific anime, celebrating commonalities of opinion and belittling differences. Even I’m guilty of this. This notion that some people’s taste is superior to others detracts from the fun of anime. It’s excellent that so many kinds of shows exist because it means that t...

Through many years of avid reading, I’ve never had a favorite author. I adore many books, but few authors have produced multiple literary books I can proudly label as some of my favorites. As a storyteller and writer, I understand that this is because creativity can be spontaneous; the flash of inspiration that shapes one’s magnum opus cannot be easily reproduced by even the most skilled of storytellers. Many of us storytellers can identify with struggling to continue writing better stories. We often cultivate excellent writing skills, like character development and worldbuilding, but can’t capture the same novelty of previous work. Notwithstanding, Carnby Kim, creator of webtoons Bastard, Sweet Home, Pigpen, Shotgun Boy, and Flawed Almighty has cemented himself as my favorite author with his Midas touch.  I place Kim’s Bastard and Sweet Home in my top 10 list of book series, but his other three webtoons are nothing to scoff at. Although I haven’t finished Pigpen , Shotgun Boy , ...

It’s been a long time since I last posted an article. When I originally started this blog, I planned to post daily articles. However, I soon realized that it conflicted with my vision of what I wanted this blog to be. At the time, I was obsessed with Mark Manson’s blog after discovering his book, The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck —a witty, life-changing book that showed me the potential of the self-help genre I had become so disillusioned and jaded by. My first articles were written in a similar style to Manson’s work and loosely classified as self-help articles. I’m proud of those articles but decided that this blog should not focus exclusively on the self-help genre and be a medium for me to share insightful, meaningful ideas with the world. I want to continue writing about topics I’m passionate about, without tarnishing my ideas with sensational marketing labels. I don’t care if my blog doesn’t achieve the status of Tim Ferriss's or Mark Manson’s blogs. I refuse to post about ...

I’ve become jaded by the fantasy genre. When I first discovered it as an elementary schooler reading Harry Potter, I was mesmerized by the genre’s world of creative characters and magical abilities. However, after years of devouring fantasy novels, TV shows, games, manga, and anime, that same mystique of the genre had faded. The plot became predictable, the worldbuilding excessive, and the once colorful cast of characters coated in monotonous tropes. While several elements of the fantasy genre continue to fascinate me, many authors fail to consider why these elements exist in the first place. I thought I could never experience the same joy of unraveling a fantastical world again–that was until I watched Mushoku Tensei. I started the series with low expectations because it was an isekai, but I was quickly amazed as Mushoku Tensei set the standard for what isekai should be. It crafts its world carefully, and each of its tropes subverts expectations through deliberate character design. In...

The Boys is one of the best-written TV shows of all time. It depicts a world where superheroes are celebrities and the spotlight of the media industry. Unlike regular superheroes, warriors of justice who work to protect the people, superheroes in The Boys are depraved, greedy, dishonest actors of capitalism–much like real celebrities (the show is iconic for its satire). The show follows the titular group of non-superhero vigilantes as they battle the corruption of the superhero industry in 24 of the most thought-provoking, exhilarating episodes of television history. This article won’t contain major spoilers for The Boys , but I highly recommend you watch it. The most exciting part of The Boys is the way it plays with morality. Most shows have morally nuanced characters who objectively lean towards good or evil, such as Naruto or Doflamingo. However, The Boys ’ riveting cast is also fleshed out with morally ambiguous characters. This ambiguity, in conjunction with an intricately wov...

  With my final exams over, I’ve returned to writing articles after nearly a month. During finals season, I finished Barakamon, a slice-of-life anime about calligraphy prodigy Handa Seishuu, who is begrudgingly sent to a rural island village by his father after punching an esteemed member of the calligraphy community. He begins the series as a moody, antisocial, narcissistic man, but after meeting energetic seven-year-old Naru and the other villagers on the island, he changes for the better. Unfortunately, Barakamon’s superb anime adaptation only covers about one-third of the manga, so I had to switch mediums partway through the experience. The anime was produced in 2014, so it is unlikely that the series will be renewed for a second season. Although Barakamon isn’t particularly well-known in the anime and manga communities, it is regarded highly by its dedicated fanbase. I also kept up with the anime and manga for Spy x Family, another slice-of-life series about the illustrious sp...

  I’ve been co-authoring a book with a friend for roughly one month now and there is some information I would like to share regarding my progress. More specifically, I’m writing a book about the ways the American education system can be changed on an institutional and pedagogical level. I chose to focus on these two levels because I wanted all of the book's content to be actionable, meaning I had to refrain from discussing entrenched systemic issues whose resolution is the domain of politics.  Strangely, my inspiration for writing is my despise of the American education system, especially in its traditional modes of teaching (I think you’ll find no shortage of people who share my sentiment). After becoming a college student through the TAMS program, I’ve begun to consider a career in academia, where the concepts I develop from writing this book can pay off in professorship.  Before committing to the book, I asked a friend of my dad’s, a published author, for advice in my ...