It’s funny how at just the other end of Lane P’s unending queue for bobba remains BGC’s newest and best-kept secret: BirdBox’s creamy Thai Milk Tea and refreshing Calamansi Wintermelon Fruit Tea—probably the most affordable tea options in the area at just P70 each.
Yes, the price is unreal for drinks that pack a punch. But that’s not all this take-out stall has to offer. In fact, BirdBox wants to be known for the Asian flavors they have on the menu. Their food’s novelty lies in the countless combinations customers can come up with—all spiced up by the familiar tastes of Korean and Japanese cuisine that we love.
“There seems to be a limited options [in our menu], but we wanted to make sure that you can try out different flavors and combinations. You can come back everyday and come out with a different kind of meal,” BirdBox brand manager Nina Capistrano said.
With BirdBox around, BGC folks are treated to generous servings of juicy boneless chicken bites without the hefty price tag and long wait. Getting a loaded, non-fast food meal under P200 in the area used to be plain wishful thinking, but now, one can look forward to lunches that only cost as low as P149.
You already have a bit of expectation going into a Chinese restaurant. It is, after all, one of the earliest international cuisines Filipinos have grown familiar with. We immediately imagine circular dining booths, the classic rotating centerpiece, and white porcelain placed all around the table—the traditional Chinese dining arrangement.
That’s the first thing Hilton’s Shanghainese restaurant takes out of the picture—the monotony and predictability of the Chinese cuisine dining experience. Yes, it still has the staple of round tables—but entering Hua Ting restaurant is like being transported to Shanghai’s 1940s nightlife. Calligraphic steel sculptures by Zheng Lu welcome the diners into the space, where one could already witness the restaurant’s playfulness in details.
“The authenticity of what we bring here at Hua Ting is definitely unsung. The main difference on the way we do things is we’re bringing in a modern approach to how we present Chinese cuisine—from our tableware to the way food is served,” Hilton executive chef Dennis Leslie said.
Two favorite collections made their comebacks, and, as the cliché goes, it’s always better the second time around. Penshoppe came out with more collaborative pieces with the equally animated and adorable characters of “We Bare Bears” that fans of the cartoon series will go crazy over once again.
The collection has a total of 76 pieces, in fact. There are still some pastels here and there, but it goes for a more neutral palette this time around. The design details aren’t as subtle like those before either—there are bigger graphics and more all-over prints to choose from.
The hoodies of this limited edition collection are the real deal breakers. It doesn’t matter if you already have enough hoodies to last you a lifetime. You gotta have ones with We Bare Bears’ faces—it’s cool, casual, and great geeky merchandise. Oh, and so are the oversized tees!
The thing about messing with the classics is that it only allows a slim room for errors. The public is ruthless with their expectations and can be unforgiving. But Disney’s 2019 live-action adaptation of “Aladdin” need not worry about measuring up to its 1992 counterpart.
The film entices the senses with its constant motion and endless flashing of colors, and delivers the beloved folklore in a grandiosity of scale and opulence that immediately separates it from its source material. Its respect and awe for Arabic culture is an infectious fascination. Every scene of the film manages to cast its own enamoring enchantment, transporting every viewer to a fantastic land laced with magical realism.
Pikachu doesn’t just talk, he’s got some sass. This particular Pokémon sure has evolved on the screen in ways we didn’t expect it to. In the first live-action film of the Pokémon series, moviegoers are allowed inside the head of the franchise’s undoubtedly most famous character—a cuddly yellow electric mouse. “Detective Pikachu” is essentially science fiction for kids—and, more importantly, kids at heart. That’s what makes this movie special. It transforms the wildest of fiction into some sort of reality—a reality generations of fans have longed to be part of. As it shows a world where the fauna are different Pokémon types, it does nothing but reinforce that longtime geeky wish to have Pokemon in real life.
Long lines in the cinemas. Cryptic status updates about the movie. Annoying people who think spoilers would make them cool. Rotten Tomatoes rating. These are only some of the things that a Marvel fan who hasn’t seen “Endgame” yet can feel frustrated about. Don’t worry, buddy, you’ll get your turn soon, and when you do I promise it’s one of the best [Marvel] films you’ve ever watched.
Here’s how you can prepare for an awesome movie experience:
Rewatch “Infinity War”
It’s been a year since Thanos’ snap made half of the population turn into dust, and you probably need to be reminded how our favorite heroes lost the most important battle of their lives. You need to go into the theaters angry, hopeless, and impossibly optimistic that the Avengers can pull off just one more miracle for the sake of its cinematic universe.
You have to revisit the exact same moment where the story was cut off to be completely immersed in “Endgame.”
Choose your movie buddies wisely
Like I have once said before, everyone has the right to enjoy “Endgame.” There are many of us who have been following this cinematic universe for half of our lives, but that doesn’t put us on a pedestal. It does, however, make it necessary for hardcore fans to choose their movie-going crowd. Watch it with people who you know will enjoy it and will spend time digesting the film with you afterwards. “Endgame” takes on deep (and lasting) emotional tolls, that even the best fan theorists would need at least a week to process a culmination of an iconic superhero era.
Eat a heavy meal
Eating inside the cinemas is simply a distraction.
Bring a pack of tissues. Or maybe two.
Take it from Chris Evans, who reportedly cried six times while watching the film—and he even knew what was going to happen. If you ask me, I only cried once but it lasted all throughout the film (but Thor and Ant-Man gave fleeting comic relief in between).
There are no after-credits scenes
Save your bladder and run your way to the restrooms. The film is extremely long (but will never be long enough for my Marvel-loving heart) and has no room for you to even blink. Every second of it is essential and there should be no one leaving the theaters for a quick visit to the loo. The Russo brothers have thought this through, believe me. While it goes against Marvel tradition, the rolling of credits straight into blackout doesn’t mess with the film’s glorious momentum.
If you ask me, maybe you can stay until you see the six original Avengers’ names on the screen. Even that can easily make you tear up.
Put eating a cheeseburger on your post-Endgame plans
It’s the ultimate comfort food you’ll be needing after watching this film. Trust me. Again, an American cheeseburger—and maybe a shawarma, too?
Save money for a second viewing
“Endgame” is the kind of movie you’d want to see again and again, even if that means you’ll go broke.
Photos courtesy of Marvel Studios. “Avengers: Endgame” is showing in cinemas nationwide.
There can only be a few words that can describe the magnitude of greatness “Endgame” turned out to be. I can do a mental search of adjectives to match the intensity of praise it requires and deserves, only to find myself with the most common phrase to tell all its fans: You have to see it for yourselves.
Now I can’t exactly say the Russo Brothers have outdone themselves, but they did hit every expectation every fan had going into the cinemas. “Endgame” is the only Avengers film where they have complete command of one’s attention and emotion with every single scene they have set on the screen. In a screwed up sense, Thanos’ snap did bring balance. “Endgame” brings forth the proper culmination a decade’s worth of films needed—finally.
The anticipation “Endgame” drew from the world is actually one that it deserves. It wouldn’t be owing its blockbuster numbers just because it’s some monumental piece—a celebration of a cinematic universe—much like “Infinity War” did. That one felt too much like a calculated move to bring every known hero together, a jumble of frustrating scenes only meant to be a setting piece.
Sure enough, the Avengers film that came before it gave its viewers thrilling and visceral action, and undeniably handed its fans devastating losses. But the thing is, it was meant to only give us exactly that—and did so only at the latter parts of that movie. It was made to be a cliffhanger and nothing more.
The gravity and core the story Marvel has patiently built lies in “Endgame.” Here, fans become witnesses to every fiber of humanity our heroes have (left) in them (except, of course, for Carol Danvers).
“I keep telling people to move on. Some do, but we don’t,” Captain America (Chris Evans) tells Natasha Romanoff (Scarlet Johansson) after half the population of Earth vanished. Loss lingers longer than we imagined. “Endgame” does not fail to explore how Thanos’ act affected the lives of those who survived it. Time has made one Avenger a drunk, and the other, a vigilante. The mix of guilt, grief, regret, and hunger for justice aren’t just part of the story, it is the story itself. It explores our heroes’ helplessness and the tone is bleak for the most part.
But that’s exactly why this movie thrives: It actually turns the focus on its characters. The interconnectedness of the realities to which they belong to is no longer the emphasis of the story. It dedicates itself to emotion, which covers new grounds that make us understand exactly what our heroes are made of—their insecurities, fears, and what they value. The very essence of this film is to wield the emotion that brings into balance the action “Infinity War” has shown. But that doesn’t mean “Endgame” doesn’t pull out one heck of a final battle. It does and it’s unlike any we’ve seen before—it’s pure heart-racing majesty on screen. Viewers are latched onto every character’s struggle to win and survive at all costs. It is a battle we’ve been groomed to be emotionally invested in all these years—it’s a movie that makes their triumph ours to claim as well.
Each discovery is climactic. Every part of it is as momentous as its end. Marvel even attempts to blend all the genres it has experimented with, retaining the humor most moviegoers familiar with thanks to films like “Guardians of the Galaxy,” “Ant-Man,” and “Thor: Ragnarok.” And perhaps these slapstick moments may be the only scenes that don’t bring you into tears.
In a way, “Endgame” is a lot like the movies we’ve already seen: Hope is taken when it is most needed, and brought back by the most likely of circumstances. But “Endgame” is everything a fan had hoped it would be: A great narrative that carves itself a place in the history of reels, and makes a home at the heart of contemporary pop culture.
“The Avengers” have gloriously gone full circle, where the beginning is only as meaningful as the end. Yes, by that I mean Tony Stark.
VINNY VERDICT: 5/5
Photos courtesy of Marvel Studios. “Avengers: Endgame” is showing in cinemas nationwide.
Yesterday’s biggest pop culture news kept me up all night: Netflix’s “Stranger Things” will be premiering globally on July 4. There will be eight episodes for this season.
But unlike the previous seasons that had us submerged into a grotesque alternate reality where nighttime seemed to be longer than any of the days, the show’s third installment is giving us a glimpse of a warm, adventure-filled (and soon-to-be-gone-wrong) summer. It’s so much more vibrant than we remember it to be, and even lets its characters embrace the bold and eccentric neon colors of the 80s.
The first ever Netflix-produced Korean drama requires you to pay attention to every second it plays on the screen. The story has enriched itself with details that is revealed in perfect and patient pacing—a narrative that is intensely gripping, heightening its viewers’ senses with the atrocious politics it tries to depict.
There’s no denying that “Kingdom” is indeed an addition to the long list of Korean period dramas. But what makes it different is its effort to build the political landscape of the era. While it shows a power struggle, it gives time to communicate the difficulty of the times, the frustration of the people, and the battle of politics versus philosophies.
