The works of JRR Tolkien that fall outside the realm of Middle-Earth often go unnoticed compared to the likes of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, but that doesn’t mean that Tolkien had any less skill when it came to other forms like the novella. “Smith of Wootton Major,” originally published on Nov. 9, 1967, is just that: a brilliant novella that tells the story of Smith Smithson and his Faery power, all falling outside the scope of Middle-Earth. The story also, and perhaps more importantly, was the last known and published piece of Tolkien’s work while he was alive, and the themes and ideas that are contained in the novella act as a sad goodbye to the world of fiction.

Lana Del Rey has become something of a mythical figure; over the course of her decade in major-label production, she has generated a cult following punctuated with controversy and adoration alike. On her most recent track, “Did you know that there’s a tunnel under Ocean Blvd,” the lead single for her upcoming ninth album of the same name, Del Rey is keenly aware of her own dichotomous image, and ruminates about its inevitable downfall. 

*Spoilers Ahead* 

The finale of Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities is upon us, bringing two unique and engaging stories with it and providing excellent characterization, designs; this is the culmination of everything the anthology has been leading to. Although these episodes are nowhere near similar in plot, they deliver on every front—a worthy send-off to this anthology’s first season! 

For the first time since the release of her hit 2017 album Ctrl, contemporary R&B artist SZA has finally given the people what we have wanted and needed for so long—a new album. While this album takes great strides in SZA’s genre experimentation, there are moments aplenty where long-time SZA fans can catch her quintessential vulnerable lyricism, her effortlessly smooth rhythms, and her addictive sound.

Parasite Eve is a unique entity in the larger gaming landscape. Released on Mar. 28, 1998 in Japan and Sep. 9, 1998 in North America by developer Square Soft, the game is part action role-playing game and part horror, centering around an apocalyptic event emerging in New York City. One plays as New York Police Department rookie Aya Brea as she chases down the all-powerful Eve who plans to destroy all humans via spontaneous combustion—bizarre premise for a Christmas game, right? Despite that, Parasite Eve is an intriguing and fast-paced adventure through an incredibly interesting premise, leaving the modern player wondering why its name goes so unheard in gaming history.

Episodes five and six of Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities demonstrate some of the best uses of settings and atmosphere in the entire series, offering two gothic tales that are bound to encapsulate any viewer’s attention by design alone. 

Continued from the 11/11 edition of The Lamron!

One of the most popular bands of the 70s and 80s hit something of a resurgence within the last several years, attributable to a number of reasons. A popular TikTok circulated with a man riding a skateboard, drinking cranberry juice, and listening to “Dreams” by Fleetwood Mac; Harry Styles performed live with the band as well as covered their hit song “The Chain.” Stevie Nicks continues to perform live with popular artists like Taylor Swift, Gorillaz, and more. Throughout this resurgence, one band member, responsible for a large portion of the band’s catalog, remained on the sidelines, out of the spotlight, and thus not credited nearly as much as deserved for making the band as successful as they were.

Ethan is a history major with an American Studies minor. His inspiration comes from many different 19th and 20th century novelists such as Joseph Conrad, Kurt Vonnegut, and Jane Austen, but the writer who has had the most profound effect on him is Ernest Hemingway.

The new comedy horror show Wednesday debuted on Nov. 23, 2022. It rose to Netflix’s top ten list and is now number one on the United States charts. The story follows the famous character of Wednesday Addams, a nightmarish girl whose family decides to send her to Nevermore Academy for teens with strange powers, who finds herself in a mysterious situation involving her parents and an unsolved murder from twenty-five years prior. The show constantly unfolds new plot-twists in every episode, making the binge-watching so worthwhile. So far, the show has received excellent reviews, with a score of eight point five out of ten on IMDB and a sixty-nine percent rotten tomatoes rating. I started watching it a couple of days after it came out and finished it two days later. 

*Spoilers Ahead* 

Episodes three and four of Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities series offer some of the most exciting and thought-provoking editions to the series so far, making these two entries not just a fun watch but something that will stick with the viewers long after the episode’s end. These are two of the most contrasting, diverse entries to the entire series and ones I find by far the most compelling of the anthology. 

Though Stepehen King has become synonymous with horror throughout his decades-long career, the more intense fans of his will know that horror is in no way his only genre. Is it his most popular? Sure, but like many readers and writers-to-be, the love for the craft came from a variety of sources, one being fantasy. As King says in his introduction essay for his seven-novel-long Dark Tower series, “On Being Nineteen,” he was inspired by an author many know and love: “J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings was madly popular in those days, [...] I suppose I was at least a halfling-hippie. Enough of one, at any rate, to have read the books and fallen in love with them. The Dark Tower books, like most long fantasy tales written by men and women of my generation [...], were born out of Tolkien’s.”

Mollie McMullan is a sophomore. She receives inspiration from poets like Warsan Shire, Olivia Gatwood, and Richard Siken, and often writes with a feminist lens. When she’s not in class, she can often be found visiting the turtle in the ISC Greenhouse.

Have you ever thought to yourself, “Wow, I really want to start writing more, but I haven’t been given that push to kickstart that process”; or, maybe you just want to keep track of the continual progress you’re making within your own work? Well, look no further for a solution to your ponderings! This month both the English Department and the Creative Writing Club have decided to participate in “National Novel Writing Month.” You are in no way mandated to write a novel this month; we have extended it to be somewhat flexible, allowing you to write a novella, a briefer work. However, this does not require you to complete a piece, but rather acts as an intensification to get some ground covered! 

As the weeks go on and the thought of Halloween leaves the minds of most, Guillermo del Toro has arrived to deliver another memorable and jarring experience to his viewers through his new series Cabinet of Curiosities. As each episode continues, the anthology continuously delivers, ramping up the stakes and offering a unique directing experience that will stick with most viewers. Vincenzo Natali, the director of this episode, uses several camera angles and color pallets to create a distinct experience from what was offered in the first episode. This is an overall more enjoyable episode than the first, offering viewers a lot more when it comes to storytelling and protagonist relatability. Before I go any further, this remarkable experience will keep you engaged throughout the sixty-minute runtime—so beware, there are minor spoilers ahead! 

This article contains spoilers for Frank Herbert’s first Dune novel.

Think of the most famous sequels to ever grace storytelling: The Empire Strikes Back, Terminator 2, Catching Fire, Lord of the Rings; what do they all have in common? They all build upon their predecessors in meaningful ways. But when it comes to Dune Messiah, the question instead is what do they not have in common, as Frank Herbert drastically reimagined and reinvented the characters, world, and conflicts that the first Dune novel brought to the table.

Anyone who has played the popular video game Skyrim is familiar with the controversial debate of which side of the war to fight for. For reference, Skyrim is a country in the Elder Scrolls universe inspired by medieval northern Europe. During the time the game is set in, Skyrim is at the very beginning of a brutal civil war. Here’s the breakdown of what happened:

“Celestial Separation” and “Class Photo, Undeveloped”