Bay Area creative Valentin Saqueton aka Veeejzilla is a man of many talents. From photography to graphic design to his own clothing line to wisdom and positive scattered throughout his Twitter to a podcast where he converses with like-minded individuals. Enough hyperlinks for you? Every day is different for Platonic Playboy aka Pupusa Papi, and with an eclectic portfolio, it only made sense that I reached out for the latest edition of the Five column. So without further ado:
One TV Show: The Wire
"Off top, watching The Wire is an essential watch for anybody. If you don’t know, it’s a look into the Baltimore drug scene through the lens of drug dealers, drug users, and drug enforcement as well as everybody affected by the drugs flowing through the streets. The best part is the seasonal approaches to the story line which include people from the hood, how the media sees it, how it affects schools, etc. A lot of people don’t make it past the first few episodes or seasons, but with patience, it becomes something real and gritty. It’s one of those shows where I got real attached to characters and really felt for their struggles, but nobody’s safe, so don’t get invested."
Honorable mentions: Breaking Bad, Daredevil, (Early) Misfits, Black Mirror
One Anime: Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood
"FMA Brotherhood is my most favorite anime ever. Not sure if anything could top it. Everything about it is beautiful, from the animation to the story line. How can you not get invested in a show where the idea is about equivalent exchange and two kids trying to bring their mom back to life only to fail and lose their bodies to alchemy? The whole show, they go through struggles of what they had done which was the ultimate taboo and like every anime, their journey brings them in contact with dilemmas, danger, and new friends and foes. I can watch Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood on infinite loop and never get sick of it. I dread the day they make a live-action film of this (which i think is in the works) because they would never be able to do it justice."
Honorable mention: Hunter x Hunter
One Place: Tokyo
"I haven’t even seen a fraction of the world, but my favorite place in this little slice of the universe we have has got to be Tokyo. I was fortunate enough to live part of my life here, with my dad being in the military. I would roam the streets of Tokyo, finding myself in Shibuya and Harajuku the most. I feel like Tokyo molded much about who I am and my sense of adventure. I was lucky enough to go back in 2015, experiencing it as an adult was just as amazing as growing up there."
Honorable mentions: San Francisco, Oakland, New York
One Artist: A Tribe Called Quest
"In high school, I finally discovered hip hop. I think it first started when I heard 'Above the Clouds' by Gang Starr on somebody’s MySpace. I instantly downloaded it off of Limewire. I then did my research on the OGs like De La Soul, Souls of Mischief, Mos Def, etc. but A Tribe Called Quest stuck out to me. It must have been the way Q-Tip and Phife (RIP) put words together and the occasional Busta Rhymes verse. They definitely helped me get through high school. My favorite song ever has gotta be 'Find a Way', but that might just be the hopeless romantic in me.
Honorable mentions: Kanye West, (Old) Dom Kennedy
One Movie: Oldboy
"Korean revenge movies have gotta be my favorite genre. I’m forever thankful to Netflix for having Oldboy in their arsenal of foreign films. If you don’t know, it’s about a man who was imprisoned in a room for 15 or so years and he has no idea why. So upon release, he embarks on a journey for answers. The cinematography, story, and plot twist is the perfect combination for a revenge flick. I’m still mind blown to this day. I have a soft spot for dark films. Oh yeah, don’t watch the American version by Spike Lee. He was trash for that.
Honorable mentions: Belly, Kung Fu Hustle, The Raid 1 & 2
