Vote for Your Christmas Shelf Review! (Plus Life Updates)

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Greetings, all! Hope you’re enjoying this spooky season! It’s often around this time I open the blog to vote for multiple Christmas-related specials and films for me to review, but things will be going a little differently this year.

In September I began a new job as an Assistant After-School Tutor at the largest library in my district. It started simple enough, just helping out kids with homework and doing activities with them twice a week. The staff and clientele are great and the pay is decent, no complaints. In fact, I did well enough flying solo in my first weeks there that I got promoted! As of October 24th I will officially be the Lead Tutor, with all the raises, responsibilities, and extra workdays the position entails.

How does this bode for the blog? Well, the holidays are a busy time for me, as some of you already know. Writing three lengthy posts on top of the Faerie Tale Theatre reviews is pretty stressful even before taking the new job into account. That’s why I’m limiting myself to just two Christmas reviews – and I already have one of them picked out.

What can I say, it’s a stone-cold classic that’s hitting a milestone this year and I don’t want to pass up the chance to talk about it.

“So what do I get to vote for?” you may ask. The answer is simple, dear friends: anything on the Christmas Shelf that’s under the category “Very Special Specials”. Let me know the special you want me to look at in the comments or by emailing me at upontheshelfshow@wordpress.com. Don’t worry, you’ve got plenty to choose from.

Thanks, happy voting, and I’ll see you on October 20th with the next Faerie Tale Theatre review!

Vote for Your December Reviews!

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November’s just getting started but you know what that means – the floor is once again open to voting for Christmas-themed reviews! Visit the Christmas Shelf to see what shorts, specials and movies you can vote for. Pick one of each and let me know in the comments or by emailing me at upontheshelfshow@gmail.com before November 25th. The winners with the most votes will be reviewed all throughout December (never fear, the next Faerie Tale Theatre review will still be up on December 6th).

Can’t wait to see what you pick! Happy voting!

A Public Patreon Poll!

Hi everyone! I’ve been hard at work on the reviews for December when I hit a crossroads concerning a certain character who’s popped up more than once (hint: he’s mean, he’s orange, and he’s due to be homeless by January). Without going into too much details, a recurring joke I had planned for him which fit in rather nicely with the short I’m reviewing spiraled into something of a sendoff for the character. I knew I wanted to “fire” him after the election, and what I had in mind was nothing short of apropos (and more than a little cathartic). Then I had second thoughts: since what happens to him is a subversion of what I’m reviewing, would it be too mean-spirited, even for a monster like him? I made a poll to gauge your opinions on whether or not I should keep what I had planned in the review or just leave him out altogether. Click HERE to learn more and let me know what you think. I’ll see you in December, and I hope you have a happy and safe Thanksgiving.

(If you don’t have a Patreon, just leave your choice in the comments.)

Vote For October’s Movie Review!

I know this isn’t the fifth anniversary review, but I feel all the other reviews have been held up long enough. I’m going to try to get it out by the end of the year (hopefully it’ll end this disaster of a year on a high note) but for now, I’m moving ahead to October…which is in a few days, I know. It may not be ready by the first of the month, it’ll be there in time for Halloween! Just take your pick:

• Phantom of the Opera (1989)
• Bram Stoker’s Dracula
• Hocus Pocus
• Dante’s Inferno: An Animated Epic
• Poltergeist
• Corpse Bride
• John Carpenter’s The Thing

You can leave your vote in the comments or email me at upontheshelfshow@gmail.com. Remember, unless you’re a Patreon supporter, you can only vote once. Supporters get perks such as extra votes, early access to certain posts and adding movies of their choice to the Shelf. Special thanks to Amelia Jones, Gordhan Rajani and Sam Minden for their contributions!

Movie Review/Blog Updates AND The New Series Reviews Winner

Hello, everyone. It’s a funny thing about this social distancing/quarantine we’ve all hopefully been partaking in these past few months; one concern that briefly crossed my mind was running out of things to do before boredom or cabin fever set in. It turns out the opposite has happened: so much to do and not enough time in the day! All this to say that unfortunately, May’s movie review isn’t ready yet (spoiler warning: it’s The Great Race, one of the most underrated comedies ever filmed). I sincerely apologize and will try to get it up as soon as I can.

“She said, knowing full well how long it took the last time she promised that.”

Okay, so in order to complete May’s review without collapsing under my workload or burning myself out, I’m afraid I’m going to have to forego June’s movie review. That way I can still have the energy to finish the May movie review, work on the new series reviews, and prepare a review I’ve long had in mind for the blog’s fifth anniversary (it’ll five years come July, holy fishpaste…) I assure you, these delays and work piling up is due to some pretty major things I’m currently doing with my life. It all ties back to a certain conversation I had a few weeks ago with my mother (my mother who, by the way, is a blonde progressive hard-working passionate woman I owe much of my personality to):

“Hi honey, you remember the dean of the college you graduated from that I also taught at for over thirty years, you knew her since you were three, practically your godmother?”

“Yes, mom, what about her?”

“She’s heading an online summer program and she thinks YOU would be a great teacher for one of the classes.”

“Me?! I barely had any patience teaching you Microsoft Word, why would you both think I’d be able to teach a class?”

“She said it would be geared towards younger kids as a way of getting them interested in the arts.”

“Well, it’s one thing if it’s for kids, but I’m still not sure if I’d be the right -“

“She wants you to teach them storyboarding for animation.”

“…Mother, you had my curiosity. Now you have my interest.”

So yes, I got a summer job. As of this June you may refer to me as Professor Shelf, storyboard emeritus. It’s my first time teaching a class, if it wasn’t obvious enough already. I’m excited because it’s a topic I’m more than well-versed in, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous also. Though I’ve got my hands a little extra full making the preparations, learning Google Classroom and such, I promised you that I’d be reviewing a new series again, and I’m holding myself to it, though I hope you can forgive me for delaying it a bit while I square away my syllabus. You voted, I counted, and I’m here to announce what show I’ll be covering next. Drumroll, please!

And the winner is…

It’s Time For Tv Series Reviews Again!

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In the space of a year and a half, I covered the entirety of Gravity Falls’ television run. It’s been fun sharing what I loved about my favorite show, and it brought in some loyal readers who have stuck around since. Once my Patreon was up and running, I promised that I would review another series the day I reached my goal of making $100.

Today is not that day. I don’t know when it will come, but I know there are better places that extra bit of money could go to right now than in my pocket. So after much deliberation, I’ve decided to return to series reviews – but with a catch.

Much like the first time, what I review will be up to your vote. Some are shows I recommended the first time around being trotted back out for your consideration, and some are newcomers given a chance to prove themselves. Which one will come out on top is anybody’s guess.

“It’s probably going to be Avatar. That’s the one everyone knows and loves the most.”

As for the twist, I’m reinstating Charity Bonus Votes: For every donation of $5 or more to the COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund, you get an extra vote. Every little bit means the world right now, so even if you can’t give anything at the moment, please spread the word.

And the nominees are –

Movie Review Voting for May!

We made it to April, folks! Congratulations on keeping your social distance and don’t stop washing those hands! Anyway, you don’t have to worry about spreading germs here. Voting is open to everyone, and here are your options, tailored specifically for comedic purposes:

• Pee Wee’s Big Adventure
• Heavyweights
• Breakfast at Tiffany’s
• The Great Race
• UHF

You can leave your vote in the comments or email me at upontheshelfshow@gmail.com. Remember, unless you’re a Patreon supporter, you can only vote once. Supporters get perks such as extra votes, early access to certain posts and adding movies of their choice to the Shelf. If I can get to making $100 a month, I can go back to making weekly tv show reviews. As of now I’ve got $20 to go before I reach my goal! Special thanks to Amelia Jones, Gordhan Rajani and Sam Minden for their contributions!

Movie Review Voting for April!

Hello, all! Just in case you didn’t catch it at the end of the Fantasia 2000 review, the next movie I’ll be reviewing is Sleeping Beauty, which will be out some time this month. As for next month, let’s take a trip down fantasy lane…no, not the Fantasy Lane, you need an ID to get in there. Here are the movies you can vote for me to review in April:

• Matilda
• Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
• The Court Jester
• A Series of Unfortunate Events (2004)
• The Pagemaster

You can leave your vote in the comments or email me at upontheshelfshow@gmail.com. Remember, unless you’re a Patreon supporter, you can only vote once. Supporters get perks such as extra votes, early access to certain posts and adding movies of their choice to the Shelf. If I can get to making $100 a month, I can go back to making weekly tv show reviews. As of now I’ve got $20 to go before I reach my goal! Special thanks to Amelia Jones, Gordhan Rajani and Sam Minden for their contributions!

Sequel Month Returns…

…Next year. But not for a bit.

Hi everyone, I had plans to post the next batch of movies to vote for today, but I’ve got some good news to announce: I’m heading to the Society of Children’s Books Writers & Illustrators Winter Conference in February! I need to devote as much time as possible to getting my portfolio and book ready for this event, so I’ll be taking January off to prepare. You can still vote for what movie you want me to review once the hiatus is over, however, so with any luck I can try get something out before February’s over. I’d hate for the blog to be thrown off schedule as badly as it was last year.

And of course, if you’re subscribed to my Patreon, I regularly post excerpts from upcoming reviews so you won’t be left completely high and dry during that time.

So let the continuations commence! Here are the follow-up films you can vote for:

Coming this December…

Hope you had a Happy Halloween everybody! Your voices were heard, and I’m…thrilled(?) to report that you can expect a heaping dose of Rankin-Bass reviews all throughout December. Am I going to prattle about how these specials are cheaply-animated, outdated glurge like a heartless Scrooge, or do they truly stand the test of time and deserve an in-depth discussion?

I’ll see you on December 1st when I kick off Rankin-Bass Month with the one that started it all, Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer.