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Poems

‘Heartaches’ by Donovan Lord: Poetry Review

We’re at the end of Pride Month and our very last post of the month is an incredibly special one. We were so lucky to be given an advance reader copy of Heartaches by Donovan Lord. This collection of poetry is an extremely personal narrative of the author’s life. Lord, a bi-racial, gay man, takes on the task of documenting great portions of his life, often painful and challenging. The content of Heartaches reflects exactly what its title denotes: a montage of painful moments. Of mental health, and mental illness. Of love and loss. Of unrequited love. Of racism. Of…

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Movies

Rocketman: Movie Review

I am a lover of musicals. Pretty much any musical, of any genre, finds its way onto my ‘to-watch’ list and is included in my ‘Musicals’ playlist on Spotify. So, of course, when I found out there was to be a whole movie dedicated to the life and songs of Elton John, there was no doubt I would be buying a ticket to see it. Last week, I finally got around to watching it, and let me tell you: emotions were felt. For those of you who have been living under a rock, Rocketman stars Taron Egerton portraying Reginald Dwight…

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Reviews

Fluid Sexuality in ‘Striking Vipers’

If you’ve seen the new season of Black Mirror, you’ll have seen the show’s heavily lauded first episode, “Striking Vipers”. And boy, was it a real doozy – from its strong cast, unpredictability, and the way it tackled certain societal topics, it has easily become one of my favourite episodes. Warning: Major spoilers for Black Mirror‘s “Striking Vipers” below (S5E1). Read at your own risk. The episode begins with two people, Danny (Anthony Mackie) and Theo (Nicole Beharie). They seem to be strangers at the bar at a busy club, only to reveal a few moments later that they were…

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TV Shows

The Importance of Queerness in ‘Sex Education’

Netflix released an original series called Sex Education, which premiered in January 2019. I’ll admit, though I used to love seeing what new additions Netflix had, they’ve come to the point where they’re pumping out so much new material that it’s hard to decipher which one is worth watching. Upon seeing the title Sex Education, I assumed the show would be another denomination of other Netflix series’ like Lovesick, Easy, or Love. And don’t get me wrong: the shows I just listed are amazing. However, it’s just another case of ‘the more the shows, the harder it is to have…

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Books

Seeds of Dissolution by William C. Tracy Book Review

Happy Pride Month! For many countries around the world (namely Western ones), June is Pride month—a month of recognition, and in the recent decades a celebration, of the rights and equality of all members of the LGBTQ+ community. It is no revelation that to many, literature is a form of escape from reality. And in the case of the LGBTQ+ community, it has similarly been turned to as a source of validation. Literature featuring homosexual characters is not as new as some may think, with evidence of same-sex relationships being hinted at, or even described, in as early as the…

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Reviews

Game of Thrones: Final Season Review

Foreshadowing Isn’t Character Development (And Here’s Why) WARNING: There are major spoilers for Game of Thrones, Seasons 1 through 8 including the series finale, below. Read at your own risk. Seriously, stop reading now if you aren’t up to date on the show. Let me start by saying that Game of Thrones has been a show that I have fiercely loved since the very beginning. Though I must admit that the first five or six episodes were overwhelming for a newcomer, it was precisely the moment that Eddard Stark got his head chopped off (RIP Ned) that I was in…

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