Daddy Daughter Days: Impov Is Key!

 So I recorded part of my next plush video last night. This is my first time filming in public, and me and my friend getting that "What kind of crack are they on?" kind of glare. Last night was also one of the rare occasions where mom tagged along, so it was nice having a change of pace! Though....The cats seemed to really miss her. 

Anyways, dad and I have the Dollar Tree dinner + movie night this evening. Here's hoping we can get some good eats instead of the "iconic" dollar store chili we make fun of. I'll update with our ratings on the food of course. But until then, here are some behind the scenes photos! 

Got these from the one of many claw machines.

The cast + Groucho

Brendon and his clapperboard

Shannon and my friend's Budsie.

BACK FROM DOLLAR TREE! (or as my dad now puts it, the "$1.25 Tree").

So for my ratings on the food? I got my usual "SNAPPS Mozzarella Sticks" as well as some chicken fingers and cookie dough bites! 

Cheese sticks: As usual, very good! We undercooked em last time we did a Dollar Store dinner, so we made up for that little mistake. (10\10 as always)

Chicken Strips: Soooo I kinda effed up with this one. Turns out these are SPICY chicken strips. Now I HATE spicy food, though a little cheese dip at a Mexican joint never hurt me. But when I first picked up a slab of poultry from the tray, it was all rubbery and floppy. Red flag! I took a small bite, wasn't too bad, the next bite was when the spice caught up to me, so I stopped. If you're into spicy food, that's all but fine! This just isn't in my league. (4\10)

Cookie Dough Bites: They had two different flavors in stock. Those being fudge brownie and birthday cake! Birthday cake tasted really good! Kinda like biting into actual cookie dough. Great emulation, folks! (10\10) As for fudge brownie....Kind of a disappointment. (6\10)

Chocolate and sea salt caramels: My dad snatched these on our way to the check-out line. We snacked on them during the drive home. These were delicious! The addition of a sprinkle of sea salt added some extra flavor! Totally plan on buying these again! (10\10)

Now onto our official ratings for Balto II: Wolf Quest!

I've only seen this movie one other time, which was on Kimcartoon. I had some pretty high expectations for this film as the late Mary Kay Bergman was in it for a small period of time. 

Story: Pretty good! Seemed like something I would have been into 6-8 years ago! But being a furry of 8 years, it was definitely something to enjoy. I especially liked the elements involving things like the totem pole and Balto having these visions. Totally adds that little extra suspense to the matter. (9\10)

Characters: Also quite good! Aleu is probably my favorite character, and frankly the most relatable. I'm still trying to figure out what I wanna do with my life once I finish school. So Aleu's story really resonated with me. As for the other characters, they were quite good too! A few were pretty generic, but that's no biggie. (9.5\10)

Acting: The voice acting was really good! Extra points for MKB being in the cast prior to her passing. Aside from her small role, the other casts members were wonderful. (10\10)

Was Balto II worth the $5 we paid for it at Savers? In my opinion, yes. Though...My dad says otherwise. 

Care to throw in your 2 cents on the food and movie, dad?

OK.  I thought that BALTO II: WOLF QUEST was well-done enough, visually.  Story-wise it was a  pretty by-the-numbers mish-mash. It was like a Frankenstein graft of several movies, from WATERSHIP DOWN to THE LION KING. There were lots of fake dangerous situations involving falling off cliffs and/or into the water. The "mystical spirit animal" element were pretty ho-hum. It just never seemed to find the right groove. 

We ended up going to two different "Dollar Tree" locations, as the first one didn't have the frozen food section. Not a complete bust, as I scored a few crossword puzzle books and a couple promising-looking DVDs. (See above photo.)

The Jamaican Jerk Chicken pocket and Bean and Cheese Burrito were both pleasantly edible.  I'll keep them in mind for further cheap-food runs.  I got some Snack Pack pudding cups for desert.  As Abraham Lincoln famously noted, "It's all good, yo!" 

(Pretty shocked that I didn't GAG at the sight of them pudding cups. Story behind THAT will be a chitchat for another day).