Summer2020
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Entertainment Forum The Last Airbender
After 15-years and the Adventure of a life-time still awaits.
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Placed as the #6 show on Netflix this June!
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Subject- Aang Original Image from Net Sama on Flikr. Changes made by Stephinie Phan, Labeled for Reuse with Modifications.
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Editor’s
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Let’s be honest, 2020 has been going downhill. One thing would lead after another, and the chain has been occurring until right now. The world has been slowly going back to the way things were right now, but who knows how long one needs to wait. When quarantine happened, the only thing that would be all over the news, social media, or newspaper would be about the coronavirus or other significant topics. It was rare when one would see something on the media based on entertainment such as movies, events, the release of a book, what is trending on the streaming service, video games, and so on. Some of these stories will give you a flashback and make you laugh, you may find a new hobby, or maybe you will spend some time with your friends! But don’t forget to practice social distancing! - Or you could video chat with each other. Of course, bigger things are going on around the world, but don’t forget to give yourself time and do what you enjoy! We worked hard on this magazine and hope that this magazine would cheer you up - that’s if someone may need it and help them escape from reality for a bit. The theme for La Cima Magazine is color blue. This color is considered to be beneficial to the mind and body. Also, It could be a calming color for a person. Even if one may be lazy to read the stories, the pictures will give you an idea of what has or had happened in the media. Maybe you’ll enjoy this magazine or perhaps you won’t. There’s one way to find out Sign, The Editorial Team
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Animal Crossing New Horizons Your Getaway Island
Avatar: The Last AirBender a 15-year Comeback
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Sonic the Hedgehog Live Action Nostalgia Redesigned
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Celebration of an Almost Free Soul; Sounds of Juneteenth
33 Our Staff
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Leimert Park Rising
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Artists of Leimert Park
Table of Contents
Subject- Animal Crossing Picture Original Image from Bago Games on Flikr. Changes made by Stephinie Phan, Labeled for Reuse with Modifications.
Animal Crossing New Horizons Your Getway Island Stephinie Phan
On March 20, 2020, Nintendo developed and published a new game in the Animal Crossing line called Animal Crossing: New Horizons for the Nintendo Switch platform. This game is the fifth installment and got released in all regions. According to Nintendo, the game sold about 13.4 million units in about six weeks. New Horizons lets the player fully customize a deserted island presented by Tom Nook, the Tanuki (Japanese Raccoon Dog), who appears at the start of the game in every series. The main goal is for you to have a five-star rating and an established island town where J.J Slider, a famous music artist, holds concerts every Saturday. The player assumes the role of the island representative. They can explore their island, catch fish and insects, gather and craft, even design their clothing, and invite their favorite villagers. The players can develop their island to their dream paradise. They also use real-time so that you can open special events and get in-season creatures and plants.
Games "I'm playing this one game where you run your own town but also have to keep all these needy animals happy." -Goldie During the start of COVID-19, people got placed under a self-quarantine order in which people were not allowed outside. Digital platforms started booming, and Animal Crossing began to take over the internet. From popular villager polls to island tours to even fanfic and memes, almost overnight, the world was so obsessed with this game that even to this day, it’s still popular. A mock Amazon-like website got made where people from all over can sell or trade for all kinds of in-game services. Small businesses started blooming as well. One would begin making unofficial merch of the game from stickers to plushies, buttons, and much more. Trends followed after, having Animal Crossing birthdays, hangouts, dates, and even graduations. It became this normal for people to log in as if it was a social media platform similar to Club Penguin or even IMVU. The game also teaches you about real-world responsibilities, such as mortgages, payments, debts, profits, savings, and such. They have a higher government system
and even a social class telling you who’s your best friend and who’s not, letting you kick them off your island. They also have a museum that asks you to collect fossils, art pieces, sea life, and insects, giving you fun facts about all of it and a better understanding of your environment. They also let you learn the importance of economics with the various sales of goods and such. Also, you may have the opportunity to place your money to invest in stocks in the form of turnips. This whole notion lets kids learn in a safe environment and challenge how some people believe games aren’t good for kids, but this isn’t the case in this game. All in all, Animal Crossing New Horizons, has undoubtedly taken a part of 2020s pop culture in every aspect and has received a 9/10 rating from multiple sources like ING, Metacritic, PCMag, GameStop, and many more. Would you like to escape and build your paradise? Well, maybe this is the game for you, try it out. For this player, this game also receives a 9/10 from me.
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Avatar: The Last AirBender a 15-year Comeback Avatar: The Last Airbender is an action, fantasy, comedy, adventure, and an American animated television series created by Bryan Konietzko and Michael Dante DiMartino, with Aaron Ehasz as the head writer. In Avatar, some people can control elements with psychokinetic variants of the Chinese martial arts, which is known as bending. Those people are called waterbenders, firebenders, airbenders, or earthbenders, depending on which element he or she can manipulate. The show aired on Nickelodeon for three seasons. It started from February 21, 2005, to July 19, 2008. You may be wondering, why is it so popular all of a sudden? Why are many people talking about it? On May 15, 2020, Avatar returned to Netflix, and old fans were excited for this moment and relived their childhood. Since Avatar: The Last Airbender returned, it had substantial streaming numbers and was the number one show on streaming service in the United States. After 15 years of the show first being aired, Avatar had
the license to be aired on Netflix. Once the audience found out, many were surprised and became so popular. Aang, a 12-year-old monk, awakes from a hundred-year slumber and discovers that he is the last living Avatar. Aang has the power of bending all of the four elements. An Avatar is responsible for maintaining harmony between the world’s four nations, the Water Tribes, the Fire Nation, the Air Nomads, and the Earth Kingdom. Also, it is their job to act as a mediator between humans and spirits. The series is centered around Aang’s journey, along with his friends Katara, Sokka, and later on Toph, as they reach their goal to end the Fire nation’s war against the other nations of the world and bring peace. An Avatar is required to master each bending art and start with the element of their home nation. From there, they must learn the other elements in the Avatar’s cycle order, beginning at the age of 16. Since Aang is 12 years old and he is the only hope for the world, he has no time to waste. Avatar: The Last Air-
bender series was praised and claimed by the audiences that its art, humor, soundtrack, cultural references, themes, and characters were successful. It was nominated and won five Annie Awards, a Genesis Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, a Kids’ Choice Award, and a Peabody Award. If you do not wish to watch the show series of Avatar, one may be able to read the book, play the video games, or watch the 2010 live-action film The Last Airbender. For the live-action film, it is widely considered one of the worst movies ever made, according to many audience members, fans, reviews, and rotten tomatoes. The film was criticized by the screenplay, directing, casting, acting, characters, source material, editing, visual effects, plot holes, and 3D conversion. If you ask a person who watched this film if they recommend it, that person would most likely say no and prefer the show instead. One may ask, “Why should I watch this show? Is it worth watching it?” With Avatar: The Last Airbender, it does not matter
what age you need to watch it, and you will understand why. There aren’t many children’s shows that involve emotional and intellectual depth for these young audiences to compare within reality life. What’s missing today is entertainment while teaching one a vital life lesson. For example, like Spongebob Squarepants, it may be entertaining and have a sense of humor, but it does not engage children with emotional or intellectual stimulation. Avatar may teach essential life lessons, but it does have a sense of humor, goofy scenes, and entertaining. Many of those who watched “Avatar” as a child, are influenced by the messages. Besides that, let’s not forget that the characters will win over your heart. One can establish the characters’ relationships; some of the characters may remind you of your friends, feel the connection, or explore the emotions of the characters. Let’s be realistic, who would not want to relate with a character and have that connection?
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Subject- Aang Original Image from Net Sama on Flikr. Changes made by Stephinie Phan, Labeled for Reuse with Modifications.
“But now you’re not letting yourself feel anything. I know sometimes it hurts more to hope and it hurts more to care. But you have to promise me that you won’t stop caring.” -Katara
Leimert Park Rising “And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music.�
- Friedrick Nietzsche
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Sonic the Hedgehog Live Action Nostalgia Redesigned Leslie Lopez
Farley Santos took a photo of Sonic’s figure. Leslie Lopez modified the photography into digital drawing.
Movie “ Look at that. I was right. Note the lack of surprise.” - Dr. Robotnik Sonic the Hedgehog, directed by Jeff Fowler, is a 2020 action, adventure, and comedy film based on the video game franchise published by Sega that was created in the year 1991. You probably heard how the film needed to change Sonic’s design by now, and the number of memes made to make fun of Sonic’s weird looks. Because of this, the film got postponed. The film stars Jim Carrey as Doctor Robotnik, Ben Schwartz as the voice of Sonic the Hedgehog and along with other actors such as James Marsden, Neal McDonough, Tika Sumpter, Adam Pally, and Natasha Rothwell. Sonic the Hedgehog premiered at the Paramount Theatre on January 25th, 2020, and was released in the United States on February 14th, 2020. This live film set the record for the biggest opening weekend for a video game film in the United States and grossed around $306 million worldwide. Sonic became the second highest-grossing film of 2020 and the highest-grossing video game film adaptation in North America. As the audience was excited to see the trailer for the first time, they were surprised. The first trailer was released on April 30th, 2019. When the audience saw it for the first time, many felt uncomfortable. One had probably heard how the film needed to change Sonic’s design by now and the number of memes created to make fun of Son-
ic’s weird looks. The visual effects team created a realistic version of Sonic with computer animations. For Sonic to be made into CGI, the visual effect designers added fur, two separate eyes, new running sneakers, and a more human-like figure physique. That was the problem, the design of sonic. Including myself, many felt uncomfortable by the look of the eyes, judged how Sonic looked nothing like the games and made fun of the position of Sonic’s legs.As a result, the internet was using Sonic as a meme, and it went viral. Around two days, the trailer had received thousands of dislike ratings and was viewed more than 20 million times on YouTube. Because of this, the film got pushed back. According to Josh Miller, one of the writers for this film stated that Sega was not happy with the design of Sonic’s eyes. Former members of Sonic Team that created the “Sonic the Hedgehog” games, and Yuji Naka, the Sonic co-creator were also surprised by the results. They were not the only ones who felt that way. On May 2nd, 2019, Fowler got the message loud and clear from the harsh criticisms and decided to listen to the audience. Fowler announces on Twitter how Sonic was going to be redesigned. Because of that, the film was pushed back from its original release date of November 8th, 2019, and got moved to February 14th, 2020.
The real question was, who would recreate Sonic and how many changes he needed? Tyson Hesse, an American illustrator, was brought to lead the redesign. The second trailer with Sonic redesigned got released on November 12th, 2019. Sonic looked so much better than the first trailer. For the changes, Sonic had more enormous eyes, the eye color was different, got a smaller nose, added white gloves, had different sneakers design, and closer resemblance to Sonic’s video game design. Now, one will not be cringing by his looks anymore and able to enjoy watching the film. The first design, which had a more human-like figure, was not pleasant to see with your own eyes. An article called The Washington Post stated that “With the lightened color fur, the more appropriate body looks, and trademark eyes, the audience will finally watch the hero go to the Green Hills with the current condition of this creature.” The audience gave positive responses and liked Sonic’s new design. Since the audience wanted the improved Sonic compared to how it was before, they decided to give the film a second chance. As a result, Sonic’s redesign took an estimate of three to five months and an addition of a $5 million production budget. All of this could’ve got avoided if Sonic designed as close to the video game version.
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Artists of Leimert Park
Gerardo Hernandez
Leimert Park Rising allowed local artists to display their talents for their neighbors. The event advocated solidarity, community awareness of social issues, and creativity. During these times of intense social unrest, artists go to work and bring happiness to their neighbors and audience. The works of art included paintings 0f prominent figures in the Black community such as Barack Obama and Kobe Bryant, amongst others.
Art
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“I wish they’d had electric guitars in cotton fields back in the good old days. A whole lot of things would of been straightened out.” -Jimi Hendrix
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Celebration of an Almost Free Soul; Sounds of Juneteeth Gerardo Hernandez
Music
Leimert Park Village hosted its 11th Annual Juneteenth Celebration with art and music taking center stage. Local DJ’s made sure to get the party started playing hits from artists such as Kaytranada and the latest album by Larry June and Cardo. As the day progressed, several hometown rap groups took the stage to shout out their city and celebrate Black Independence proudly. Juneteenth is the celebration honoring the end of slavery in the United States. On this day in 1865, thousands of federal troops marched to Galveston, Texas, to announce two truths: that the Civil War had ended, and that slaves were now free. Although the Emancipation Proclamation took effect in 1863, it wasn’t until this fateful march to Texas led by Union General Gordon Granger that all beings were deemed free. Fast forward to the Juneteenth Leimert Park Rising festival in 2020, where there was an overbearing sense of community. This day is significant in more lives than Black, and the citizens of LA were sure to prove it. Artists of eclectic backgrounds were there to display their talents. Local eateries offered refined cuisine, and other fashion store owners even put out some merchandise for people to browse as they walked by. There were people of all races present because they are friends and family of the historically disenfranchised. It speaks volumes that a suburb in Los Angeles, California, can host such an important community event amidst national turmoil over police brutality. Not to mention the coronavirus pandemic that still plagues the city. Dom Kennedy, arguably the most famous Leimert Park native, used social media to promote the event. Kennedy has traveled the globe on several world tours to promote his rap/hip-hop albums but has always stayed humble. He’s not one to shy away from shouting out Leimert Park in countless hits. “Leimert Park Forever” rings out in Still Callin’, the single from the Get Home Safely album, which pays homage to the neighborhood that saw him earn his stripes. It’s feasible to fall under the umbrella of “Los Angeles Native” and run with the positive stigma of being associated as an LA Legend, but that’s just what makes Dom’s self-produced willingness to shout out his city that much more admirable.
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Our Staff...
These three staff members who did the entirety of this magazine is responsible for layout, writing, editing, and design. The Content is 100% student based work from start to finish. As well as the help of David Medina on Photography on page 33.
Leslie Lopez has enjoyed movies since she was a child. When she joined an academy in high school that revolves around film, acting, scriptwriting, editing, production, Leslie fell in love with it and decided to major in film after graduating from college. She is majoring in Mass Communication Mass Media, Journalism, and Humanities and is planning on transferring with associates and plans to get her masters in film in the future.
Leslie Lopez Stephinie Phan has always dabbled into some form of art of every kind, whether it be music, painting, or photography. Pursuing an education at Rio Hondo College, she majors in Journalism, which is a continuation of her passion from high school from doing yearbook. With a bright future ahead, she would hope to get her Associates for Transfer and be on route for Dominguez Hills Cal State, where she will hone her crafts.
Stephinie Phan Gerardo Hernandez is a student at Rio Hondo College, double majoring in Journalism and Psychology. He is passionate about artistic expression and spending time in nature. His hobbies include playing music with friends and spending quality time with his family. Once Gerardo completes his bachelor’s degree, he plans to travel and build his reporting portfolio for a career in Journalism.
Gerardo Hernandez
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