Author Archives: Jennifer

Alexa Asks, Jen Answers #5: Tofurky or Not Tofurky? That is the Question.

November 14, 2014

Alexa is working toward a vegetarian diet, and is loaded with questions. Jennifer’s got answers. We talk about anything as long as it is vegan. Are tattoos vegan? How do I politely not eat Thanksgiving dinner? How do I order without pissing off the waitress? We know you are dying to ask!

My Mom is a little M.I.A in the kitchen this year for Thanksgiving. It is up to me to cook. Since I am the one cooking, should I make a Tofurky for myself?

The Thanksgiving tradition of turkey is one that is ingrained in Americans. Hearing what many other people do and won’t do during Thanksgiving, it seems that turkey is the only constant. I’ve met Italian families that serve a soup, a salad, and a pasta dish before the Thanksgiving. I suggested a soup for Thanksgiving once, everyone in my family looked at me like I grew a third head. Some people don’t have mashed potatoes, while I have never heard of a Thanksgiving without them.

I recently was asked if I bought my Tofurky yet for Thanksgiving, and I never even considered getting one. Even before going vegan, the idea of eating turkey freaked me out. I heard about how freakishly huge they were to get that picture perfect roast. The new added weight makes it difficult/impossible for turkeys to walk. So I was already starting to get grossed out. Then the first few years I was able to avoid Thanksgiving since my family was all over the US, and it was GLORIOUS. (secret, I kind-of hate Thanksgiving style foods) But once I started to eat Thanksgiving again, since my husband seems to “love it,” I found that I didn’t care about having vegan or vegetarian replacement for turkey.

But that doesn’t mean you don’t have to. If you find yourself enjoying faux meats, then why the heck not try and eat some Tofurky? But consider your other options. Tofurky kind-of gets all the credit and is starting to dominate the faux Thanksgiving market. But a Slate Article ranked all the turkey roast options out there. The top two? Tofurky and Gardein.

I wouldn’t worry about calories, proteins, or whatever since it is one dinner for the entire year. But there are plenty of vegan options to give you that stuffed stick to your ribs feeling. You could just type in “vegan thanksgiving” in any google or Pinterest search and get lots of results. Some popular vegan blogs even have lists of great Thanksgiving dishes in their blogs like Oh She Glows, Olives for Dinner, The Post Punk Kitchen, and Vegan Richa.

Another tip? Have some food prepped the day before. For example a lot of casseroles can be prepped the night before and then baked the day of. Cranberry Sauces are great to make ahead, but the canned stuff is usually vegan. And of coarse pies can be made the night before. If you love crescent rolls, don’t worry they are accidentally vegan!

What would I serve at my Thanksgiving? Well here are just a few of the recipes I would love to make if I was hosting Thanksgiving- and yes, there would be three pies. Blame Jon for that, he loves pie.

Saweeet! Potato Casserole with Crunchy Nut Crumble via Oh She Glows
Spicy Cranberry Apple Sauce via Connoisseurus Veg
Roasted Brussel Sprouts with Shiitake Bacon via Olives for Dinner
Quinoa “Stuffing” (butternut squash, cranberries, & pistachios) via Gimme Some Oven
Thinly Sliced and Roasted Root Chips
My classic green bean casserole (which will be posted soon but there is one on The PPK)
Savory Mushroom Gravy via The Post Punk Kitchen
Sweet Potato Drop Biscuits via Appetite for Reduction
Maple Bourbon Pecan Pie via May I Have That Recipe
Voluptuous Pumpkin Pie via Vegan Pie in the Sky
Cosmos Apple Pie via Vegan Pie in the Sky

Funny thing about this list? Some of the food I don’t even like, but it made the list because I know my husband would want it. Cranberry sauce? Blech. Not a huge pie fan, but I sure do love the Maple Bourbon Pecan Pie I make (which isn’t listed on here since I made it myself- future recipe?). I had a sweet potato casserole once and it was awful, but I am willing to give it another try.

As I get older I’ve realized I don’t hate Thanksgiving, I just hate what other people make. They are too heavy and too cream and cheese based. No thanks. I’m not trying to “watch my weight” or eat healthy, just prefer different flavors than other people. So sit and think, do I LOVE turkey? If you do, maybe you should get a faux turkey. But if you could pass on it, I would recommend just skipping it.

Posted by Jennifer in Alexa Asks, Health Tags: alexa asks, thanksgiving, tofurky

A Frosted Slice of Sunshine Smoothie: Carrot & Cantaloupe

November 12, 2014

frostedsunshine1

I just came home from my trip to Sebring Florida for my Nanna and Pappy’s 60th Wedding Anniversary. And I have to point out, when the average American cuts out meat and dairy from their diet, they are stuck with carbs and sugar! As all vegans do, my husband and I packed a lot of clif bars and snacks, and I was shocked how close we were to eating all of them. Oddly I think it would of been easier to go vegan for the trip if we didn’t have to spend it was family. Then we could of had free reign over restaurants and breakfast.

But when I came home I scarfed down lots of proteins as I didn’t really eat what I normally would during the trip. Then decided I would go on a detox afterwards. And man, did I really need a detox. I am a little hesitant to talk about detox or cleanses, since they have earned themselves a bad rep. I am not really a fan of extreme cleanses where you juice all day or drink lemon water. I prefer cleanses that involving eating more whole foods. In fact my most common detox is a smoothie cleanse, drinking smoothies and soups throughout the day. I like this approach because I don’t deprive my body of calories and fiber that keeps me full. I usually add salads after a few days, and transition into raw foods.

I’ve mentioned my detox diet in the past. I posted an recipe for a Kimchi Detox Soup, which I am thinking I should make pretty soon.

frostedsunshine2

Well, this smoothie was like a slice of summer in all this cold weather. I used cantaloupe that I got from my CSA during the summer. The cantaloupe was so ripe it was pretty mushy, and didn’t really taste great by itself. Freezing it was a perfect decision, as it was just the texture I needed for a smoothie.

I use to drink juiced carrot, cantaloupe, and orange all the time. So I thought that carrot would give a great flavor to the smoothie. It is only a small amount but it gives depth to the flavor. It also helps with the body of the smoothie, preventing too much a slushy texture. Plus, you are adding a veggie to your breakfast! You can also add a handful of green to the smoothie, it will just not be such a pretty color.

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Posted by Jennifer in Recipe Tags: almond milk, brown rice protein, cantaloupe, carrot, dairy-free, flax seed, gluten-free, oats, peanut-free, soy-free

Sunday Reading 11-09-14 #10

November 9, 2014

You might have noticed we were gone for two weeks, which means I have so much to share this weekend for Sunday Reading! I changed the format a little since there are so much to share, so bear with me guys. I hope I don’t overwhelm you with too many articles, videos, and blog posts. I tried to summarize faster for everyone as well.

I am also being pretty brief since I just got home from my trip to Florida. Most of my Mother’s side of the family lives there, so we went down for my grandparent’s 60th wedding anniversary! I will be sharing some photos, a restaurant, and a cool state park. I am just home to be back in crabby and dense Jersey.

I’ve been a huge fan of The Bite Size Vegan. I find Emily great for teaching people about veganism, whether it is about nutrition or how animals are treated. She covers so much and has the cutest puppy ever. That was why when she started the Nugget Army to help support her YouTube channel, I was happy to contribute. Go check her out, and see what you think.

Check out this cool lady who decorated her house with bottle caps.

Jamie recently posted a review on a manga called In Clothes Called Fat. I love comics, and I love how in Japan they are used as a serious medium for a message. I need to pick up this comic.

The Kitchn had a quick article about galactagogue foods, foods that increase breast milk. I thought it was cool because all the foods listed are vegan. Not saying all vegan food are galactagogue foods, but still interesting meat isn’t on there.

Logical Harmony make a quick cheat sheet of vegan friendly brands at Sephora. She even breaks down how vegan friendly they are!

Heard about Advanced Fashion yet? Well, get an introduction with this interview with the very inspiring Tziporah Salamon. Even if you aren’t a fashionista, she really inspires you to keep faith in art, and doing what you like regardless of age.

Jenny at She Loves Dresses wrote a loving letter to her late father. This is one of many posts where she opens up with her struggles in life. Something not enough people are open about.

(Another) Jennifer at Grimmricksen posted an interesting article about adult female ADHD.

The New York Times wrote a humbling piece about how complicated microbiome in our bodies is. We all know that Jamie Lee Curtis is trying to sell us poop-gurt, and all the hipsters are guzzling kombucha, but there is so much we don’t understand.

M.F.K Fisher is well known for her literature about food. Her writing is inspiration for pretty much every food blog, magazine, or book you pick up. But there is a good argument against M.F.K Fisher.

While on vacation my husband was looking at my tablet and wanted to make this Spicy Cranberry Apple Sauce.

Speaking of my husband- I really enjoyed Gena’s post on How to Date a Vegan Without Even Trying. It reminded me so much of my husband. I think he only asked two “annoying questions” about me being vegan which was “So you’ll never eat a hotdog again?” and “So you’ll never eat ice cream again?!” Aside from those two very spaced out questions, he never asked something stupid like “Is semen vegan?”

Since I talked about vegans and calcium, you might want to read this post about calcium.

Jess calls out the problem with Plus Size Models. It is a great step forward, but is a small step backwards.

Cara wrote a quick and helpful post about surviving the holiday season. I am planning on posting my own similar post

Crash Course & Self-Love Part 1

I was hesitant to share this Crash Course video on Eating Disorders. But after reading Raechel’s blog post about Self-Love it made me remember how crappy education was for eating disorders. Was I the only one who watched that TV special with Calista Flockheart? All the lessons about about eating disorders seemed to be targeted to the girls, and it came off as a wag of the finger. “Now don’t go crazy with your dieting girls!”

I think if I was shown this video in school my point of view would of been totally different. I think there is so much shame associated with bulimia and anorexia since it is often viewed at dieting gone wrong. I’ve had a friend who was anorexic, and pressures to look a certain way seemed to be on the bottom of the list. It was much more about control over something in her life. She talked about how she had to compulsively look at a watch and take bites when the hands were on certain numbers. Although she might of started to eat this way because she wanted to look thinner, she never talked about that being a concern about what and when she ate.

I also enjoyed the video because they switched genders around all the time with different disorders. They also mentioned many different disorders, saying that their root is similar- different environmental pressures.

Posted by Jennifer in Sunday Reads Tags: art, bite size vegan, crash course, in clothes called fat, manga, rebel grrrl living, sunday reading

3 comments

Alexa Asks, Jen Answers #4: What’s the beef with Calcium?

November 7, 2014

One doctor told me that soy milk doesn’t have as much calcium as dairy milk, then one doctor told me there is MORE calcium in soy milk than normal milk. Which is it?

I’ve been on and off again vegan long enough to see the calcium in milk shift. Like any young female vegan, I got a lot of pressure about my protein and calcium intake. I spent a lot of the time reading the back of soy milk, almond milk, rice milk, or whatever new milks were coming out. Back then brands varied widely.

Older brands were completely unfortified. Whatever calcium was present in soy beans was available in the milk. But more mainstream brands would add fortified calcium to the soy milk to match regular dairy milk. I remember being advised to drink the flaky bits on the bottom since that was the added calcium.

So your first doctor is right. If you made soy milk at home, it wouldn’t have as much calcium as cow’s milk.

“But Jen,” you might say “soy milk and almond milk containers say it has 50% more calcium than dairy milk!” And you would be right. Most major non-dairy milk brands have taken up the practice of adding more calcium than normal milk. This might be a way to appeal more to older women, who are particularly concerned about osteoporosis and hot flashes (which soy has been found to help keep in check)

Then you get into the whole world of whether or not fortified vitamins are bad for your health. Most of us know that fortified nutrition doesn’t absorb as well as getting from a natural source. Some people think it is down right dangerous for your health to process vitamins in an unnatural state since it causes unnecessary work for your body. I believe you should always strive for natural sources but I don’t think you’re doing your body harm by drinking fortified vitamins.

But if you are concerned about calcium, start being concerned about your vitamin D levels. The absorption of calcium is aided by vitamin D. The best vegan source is just getting some sun, 15 minutes a day is all you need. There are supplements that you can take as well if you find that you have a vitamin D deficiency (Alexa takes Vitamin D pills because she works inside all day as an artist and store manager. Be sure to get outside kids – your body loves the sunshine!). Just check the label for gelatin and fish in the ingredients.

Still worried about fortified calcium? Some soy milks are out there with only the naturally occurring calcium, Eden Soy being one of them. There are lots of foods rich in calcium as well. Many beans contain a decent amount of calcium. You might hear a bunch of fish have great calcium, but ever wondered where they get calcium? Sea vegetables of coarse! Most greens have a large amount of calcium, including greens on veggies like turnips and beets. Juice them with oranges to get more of a calcium boost. Sesame seeds, almond, blackstrap molasses, figs, and quinoa are also great calcium sources.

And remember, just like protein, calcium is in EVERYTHING! So it adds up by the end of the day. Unless you have a super specific health reason for needing more calcium, relax. Just eat a little of everything and eat as fresh as you can get.

Posted by Jennifer in Alexa Asks, Health Tags: alexa asks, calcium, dairy, milk, soy

Blog Recipe Round Up: Cauliflower

November 5, 2014

This recipe round up is a little more interesting this time around. One reason is because Alexa reviewed a recipe! Whooo! She devoted a whole post to it, but we are putting it up again. Why? If you are searching for a good cauliflower recipe it is simple to find! Duh!

Since there are two recipes we talked about in the past, that means we have some bonus photos! I think it is a little fun to include them to compare photos. Funny thing is sometimes to non-model shots of food seem more yummy than the actual photo!
cauliflower

Oh and there is a bonus recipe on the bottom! It was featured in the Everything Free Recipe Roundup. I figured I would tack it on the page for any cauliflower fans. I think our grouping is really eclectic. Different food styles, Indian, Chinese-American take-out, pasta, salad, and a side dish. I know mind blowing! So start reading what you should make:

BBQ Cauliflower Salad

I am sure everyone has seen this recipe lurking on pinterest. Even Alexa pinned it, which gave me push to go ahead and make it for this recipe roundup. (Alexa claims responsibility for this recipe by the way) I personally like Fork and Beans, and I remember making her Cauliflower “Risotto” but wasn’t thrilled by it.

As I started the recipe red flags went up. “Oh this won’t work!” but I wanted to stick the recipe. Maybe something is going on that I am not noticing? When I pulled the cauliflower out of the oven I thought that the cauliflower was too hard. But I bit my tongue and finish up the salad and thought “just wait till you eat it.”

It. Was. Amazing. I everything was in perfect sync. I didn’t follow the recipe to a T since I didn’t have corn, and couldn’t make the ranch dressing since I didn’t have a blender. But it still worked out amazingly. The ONLY thing I would change would be that I would put the BBQ on the cauliflower before tossing in the oven, then again after 5-7 minutes.

Otherwise this is a great recipe to prep for lunch the night before. Got the oven on? Toss in the cauliflower for a few minutes and assemble the night before. It is super yummy!

Bottom Line: Helllllo new lunch fav.

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Posted by Jennifer in Food Review, Reviews Tags: cauliflower, cooking light, cupcakes and kale chips, fork and beans, gobi mutter keema, indian, recipe roundup, spoon fork bacon, vegan richa

Quinoa and Lentil Sloppy Joes

November 4, 2014

sloppyjoe1

Oh man! I am so excited to be back! Our host had too many sites on their server, which is why our page was taking so long to load. So for one week the site was locked, and we couldn’t make any changes, but it was still viewable. Then we had to spend another week with the site being 100% down. It was awful and I was itching all week to work on the site.

But now the site is back up, and everyone can see our new link buttons on the side, and our big ass blog directory! But first let me share this super easy recipe.

sloppyjoe2

This recipe I’ve been holding on to for awhile now. It just seemed a little boring. I mean sloppy joes? With lentils? I mean don’t all vegans know about this? Surely?! Well, I gave some leftovers to my husband for work and everyone at his work commented on how clever it was. Sometimes when you are drenched in a subculture, you forget what is or isn’t common.

So even though this dish isn’t something uncommon with vegan blogs, I think it can still reach others to give inspiration. The recipe is also really non-vegan friendly- meaning if you are a non-vegan and you making something for your vegan guests, this is a great option. Quinoa and lentils are pretty frequently used in recipes, and the only “hard” work is reading the buns ingredients to make sure there aren’t any eggs or milk in them (which milk is often added to pre-made breads!) I used sprouted buns, but they taste best with the cheap fluffy white buns.

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Posted by Jennifer in Recipe Tags: lentils, peanut-free, quinoa, red lentils, soy-free, tomatoes, vegan

2 comments

Blue Pants and New Links

October 21, 2014

10-07-14-2

Shirt: Fervour via Modcloth | Pin: Vintage | Pants & Belt: Target | Shoes: Blowfish

First let me talk about how I added new buttons on the side. There are some new blogs that Alexa and I have been following and I wanted to reflect that. I made new cute and chubby buttons, and made a new page with a link to ALL the blogs we follow. I didn’t realize how many there were on feedly and bloglovin until I made a big list. So check those all out!

I kind-of forgot why I like having fashion posts. I forget why I think fashion blogs are a powerful movement. We all know that there are tons of standards of beauty, and we even get told things that contradict each other (like my Grandma saying I was too thin, but fashion models are clearly thinner than me). But fashion blogs give the people the power to say what is in. Sure there are lots of fashion blogs with really common body types in the industry. There are also some that are totally different.

There are blogs we follow that have skinny girls, girls with glasses, girls who are curvy, girls who are short, sizes that are large, girls who have wide thighs, girls who are flat, whatever. It really puts into perspective that we all have different body types. In fact, most of the fashion blogs I follow tend to have totally different fashion senses and body types.

I think Kate from Scathingly Brilliant made a great point in her Truth in Fashion post– posing in front of a camera in outfits really helps your self confidence. When I first started to do fashion posts I harped a lot over how I looked, little wrinkles in my clothes, my belly poking out, my arm looking fat whatever. But I learned a few things

1) I learned how I look good while posing. Sometimes I look awkward in a photo and that okay. We all can’t be perfect, so never get discouraged about a “bad picture.” In between taking my own photos and getting photos taken professionally for my wedding, I learned some people are just bad at taking photos. I had a string of bad photos taken of me in college, so when wedding photos came along I was a little nervous. When I got them back and saw that I looked great, I finally came to the conclusion some people are simply bad at taking photos. There is a difference between getting candid photos taken and being able to pose. Confidence in yourself makes a big difference on how you look.

2) Accept how I look. I look the way I look, and somethings I can change with make up or certain styles. But there is a difference from how you look on camera compared to real life, which is a big thing to discover. Some people “know” but it is really hard to understand until you start jumping in front of a camera.

3) Contrapposto Bitches! If you took an art history class or learned about Greek and Roman sculpture you probably had to learn about contrapposto. If you never heard of the term, it is basically when I body is posed with one leg bent/flexed, while the opposite arm is bent/flexed. In the process it slants your hips and shoulders. Once you get it, you notice that models today pretty much replicate the look. It is the secret to posing for every body type and sex.

I only mention these things since sometimes I feel a little silly posting photos of myself. But honestly, I think everyone should be doing it. Everyone needs to get over their fears about getting their photo taken because the fear of it really makes people tense. The end result is more bad photos.

Posted by Jennifer in Clothing Tags: blog, fashion, ootd

2 comments

Sunday Reading 10-19-14 #9

October 19, 2014

Another week went by. I went practically the whole week without sitting on the computer, and learning the joys of tablet using. (IE just browsing the internet!) Alexa stepped up and posted three times this week! Sweet. She had a bunch of posts that she has been working on, so she was glad to finally get them up.

I hope everyone is having a great time this October season. I’ve been watching a lot of horror films and drinking pumpkin beers with my husband. Forget pumpkin spice lattes, I am really into seasonal alcoholic drinks. So I just wanna take a moment to talk about scary movies. It is a love hate relationship. Horror films are known for being pretty weak, and mostly for thrills. So almost every year I get excited then annoyed at finding good horror films. Well, I really love Suspiria, the Italian horror directed by Dario Argento. So I watched the movie created after Suspiria, Inferno. Man. It was a mistake.

inferno_1980_poster_italian

Visually the movie was pretty awesome, and has a lot of cool scenes. But the plot was confusing and all over the place. The basic story is about Rose who lives in an apartment in New York City. She discovers unsettling information about the building she lives in. She sends an letter to her brother about it. Not reading the whole letter, her brother Mark arrives in New York not knowing what is distressing his sister. Once he gets into New York, he can’t seem to find her, and stays in her apartment to figure out the mystery.

I am not sure why Mark is the main character since he seems to be the thickest and most easily prone to witchcraft compare to all the characters. The first hour has a formula of female finds out the secret of the building, they become frantic, they start to run, they get killed in a horrible way, Mark walks in a is terribly confused. But the story hardly follows Mark around, and hardly any personality was given to him.

The movie has some merits. I personally love movies from the 70s about witchcraft or the occult. The color is the film is amazing, more so than Suspiria. The underwater ballroom scene was a great way of building suspense. There are plenty of extravagant deaths in the film, which I found in some ways a negative, but if that is what you are like, this movie will be a gem.

I normally wouldn’t go on about a movie, but it just left me with such a downer. I love Suspiria, and it is one of the film I watch every year for October. So I was expecting so much from Inferno. Anyone else have some Halloween movie suggestions? I would love to hear them! But moving on, I know you want to see my favorite reads.

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Posted by Jennifer in Sunday Reads Tags: 1980, brunch, choosing raw, halloween, healthcare triage, inferno, milk, movies, new york times, scishow, spooky

Blog Recipe Round Up: Pumpkin Spice Edition

October 18, 2014

Hey guys! It’s me Jen! I’ve been missing all week due to really unpredictable electricity. For some reason the power randomly flickers which causes my computer to crash. It was happening so often, at random times of the day, that I just turned the computer off and ordered a battery backup. I kept the computer off until it came in the mail. Which has been cool since Alexa got time to post all her backed posts! Yey! So I hope everyone enjoyed reading those.

pumpkinspice

I know everyone is excited for the fall and pumpkin spice everything! So I thought I would do a sampling over pumpkin spiced goods. Ranging from drinks, to syrups, to baked goods. But everything is sweet. Most were pretty good, but everything I think I would change ever so slightly. But check out which ones to give a try!

Pumpkin Spice Latte Syrup

This was really tasty. I was a little surprised how nicely it came together. I first used it in a soy latte in a coffee shop. It helped it was an amazing latte without the syrup, but the syrup added the perfect amount of sweetness and flavor. Though I might amp it up to 3 to 4 tbsp for more mediocre lattes.

The syrup also works well in smoothies. I used it to add some sweetness and flavor to my husband smoothies. It would also be a great topping to for various other snacks like yogurt bowls, cupcakes, cookies, or ice cream. It makes a lot of syrup, so I would recommend even halving the recipe so it doesn’t go bad in the fridge.

Bottom Line: Great to make for the pumpkin spice season, put it on everything.

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Posted by Jennifer in Food Review, Reviews Tags: Alaska from Scratch, almond butter, cupcakes and kale chips, energy balls, frappuccino, free people, latte, minimalist baker, pancakes, pumpkin spice, recipe roundup, so let's hang out, syrup, the minimalist baker, vegan richa

1 comment

Alexa Watches Sailor Moon Crystal Act 2

October 16, 2014

Woops! This is definitely an old drawing of me…but I still stand by it!

Crystal

Part of me feels as if the initial Sailor Moon craze has died down a bit – so I am even more sorry for the delay on these posts! The good news is, however, that I have plenty of material to catch up on. Again, the point of these segments is to simply look at the differences between each episode of the new release of Sailor Moon Crystal and the original adaptation of Sailor Moon. I originally wanted to go through and do EVERY episode…but then I remembered how long the original show ended up being. I am going to review the first arch at least and if I like where it is going I will go further with the reviews! But for now, we’ll start with episode 2…

In this episode we meet Sailor Mercury! It is very clear to me already that they are speeding the story up as opposed to the original, where you meet Mercury in episode 8. I actually don’t mind this so much. The viewer gets the idea that Sailor Moon, while the leader of the team, cannot defeat everything all on her own. It builds off the idea of togetherness and team work which is a really great model for girls (and even women) to see and put into practice. Not that every woman on earth needs to rely on someone else all the time, but we are all part of a team in one way or another, I think.

When Ami Mizuno is first introduced the only thing we know about her is that she has good grades. The best grades even, in the whole school. This leads to the other kids assuming that she has little to no friends because she is only ever seen studying, even on her lunch break during the day. When we catch up with Usagi and her friends they are chatting about how all Ami does is study, goes to cram school after school ends, and how her mother is a talented doctor. They all go on to assume that her family is loaded, puts her in the best cram school that money has to offer and that must be the reason for her expertise. Instead of making assumptions Usagi just listens and waits to figure out who Ami is for herself. This is a very interesting and good thing about her as a character. Most kids of that age (15-18) usually take the words of friends as fact, so for her to do some of her own investigation seems to make a strong trait. When they do eventually meet up, thanks to Luna who had been scouting her, Ami is immediately accepted by Usagi and they become fast friends. I also think that this is a good lesson to teach girls and women alike. I feel as though we’ve all been taught somehow to label each other or silently judge from afar, when in reality we could meet our new best friend if we’d just be open to it.

It was made very apparent that Luna’s “Secret Base” was actually in the basement or some hidden room in the arcade that Usagi would frequent. In this incarnation you just find her in some top secret facility. Again with the telling and not showing. It’s not the biggest deal in the world but I found it kind of fun to find out exactly where she ended up going to report back every night.

The episode’s climax is Usagi trying to fight the Demon (controlled by Jadeite) to free Ami and the other kids who have been brainwashed at cram school. She can’t do it on her own and Ami transforms into Sailor Mercury! I think I said it in our last Sailor Moon post…but I REALLY dislike the cgi transformation sequence. I think it looks incredibly tacky and I don’t see the need for it. Yuck…but that’s besides the point. This episode was a good introduction for Ami and Sailor Mercury and it’s refreshing to see that we didn’t have to wait for seven episodes to pass before doing so.

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Posted by Jennifer in Movie & TV Reviews, Reviews Tags: Ami Mizuno, anime, Magical Girl, review, Sailor Mercury, sailor moon, Sailor Moon Crystal, Usagi Tsukino