![At the bottom of the third inning, the Lions are still scoreless. Rowe stands at home plate, preparing to bat, while Vandenbrink stands off to the side as the next batter up. Despite having the bases loaded, the team was unable to score any runs. “It’s just the beginning of the season. We’re just going to be playing out best by June, [and] that’s where champions are,” Rowe said.](https://wlhsnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/IMG_3077-1200x900.jpg)
![All smiles. The group poses for a photo with last year’s book, “This is Our House,” along with their award for third Best in Show. Meikle, who was an Editor-in-Chief for the yearbook last year as well, holds both and stands at the center of the group. “That was an amazing feeling, going and grabbing the third place award,” Meikle said. “All of it paid off. I cried so much over that book, being able to receive [the award] was one of the highlights of my high school career, it was like the coolest thing ever.”](https://wlhsnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/8bookpose_philly-1200x800.jpg)
People are caught in the hype of seeing their favorite characters again in sequels but often have their dreams dashed when they realize it is only a sloppy rehash. Scary movies are repeat offenders of this, for example Insidious 2. The first one was exciting, something abstract that I had never experienced before. It left me frightened. The second was nothing new, with the same ghosts and the same plot lines. With all the wonderful special effects and advances in movie production you would think that the writing would catch up. Every year, people in the movie industry release unoriginal films just for the easy, big money.
The number one offender of rehashes are often superhero movies, no contest. Don’t get me wrong I love the Christopher Nolan’s “Batmans”, but come on. There’s been three “Hulks”, including three different lead actors, three Iron Mans, and an upcoming “Thor 2”. We all love a hunky, snarky, Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man but it’s just cheap entertainment.
One of the few exceptions in movie installments are series based on books. They have already gained popularity from readers and don’t need as much creative writing. It is truly hit or miss whether movie companies will interpret the novel’s characters the exact way the readers want.
As Americans it seems we love to be completely zoned out and not have to think through what we are watching. We need filmmakers to step up, bring forth some new ideas and translate them well to the big screen. You don’t have to be a movie buff to enjoy a film made to be thrilling, thoughtful, or resonating.
