On October 16th, Boy Throb, a newly social media famous boy band, celebrated Darshan Day – the day their fourth member, Darshan Magdum, publicly performed with his bandmates Anthony Key, Evan Papier and Zachary Sobania after a long battle with the US immigration system. Key and Papier met after both unsuccessfully auditioned for American Idol, then got to know Magdum online and found a bass singer in Sobania. However, as the group started to produce music, they had a problem – Darshan was “stuck in India” without a US Visa. So Darshan filed an “O-1 US visa which is reserved for individuals with ‘extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics.’” 

In October of 2025, the band began creating parodies of popular songs to explain Darshan’s situation in an attempt to gain 1 million followers, which they believed would accentuate the O-1 Visa application. My favorite is their version of “Mambo No. 5,” which they sing in a TikTok video with the words, “A little bit of paperwork ‘bout Darshan, little background check prove nothing’s wrong, letters of endorsement from top brass, little proof of income adds some gas.” However, despite Darshan’s undeniable talent, he received an RFE (Request for Evidence) from the US government, causing a delay in the application as Darshan was required to go through more steps to prove that the request for an O-1 Visa was valid. 

Another challenge that Boy Throb faced while trying to unite the band in the US was skepticism from fans and haters about the legitimacy of the band. Due to the multiple parody songs released, the fun, bubble pop feel of their songs, and the band’s commitment to often adding Darshan in their media and music videos via greenscreen or photoshop overlay, some even wondered if the entire musical phenomenon was an elaborate bit by docu-reality comedian Nathan Fields. However, Boy Throb called out social media messages asking if the band was satirical, responding that they were a serious band and doubling down by selling “Not Satire” and “Boy Throb is Real” T-shirts in their online merch store. They also put on a sold-out IRL concert called Throbchella in May of 2026. Continuing the momentum by collaborating with big artists like Kesha and singing the national anthem at an LA ice hockey game, as well as keeping up social media videos and releasing more parodies as well as original songs, Boy Throb was finally able to prove Darshan’s talent, and he publicly announced that he had received a US Visa early this August.

Given the increasing difficulty immigrants may experience with attaining visas during Trump’s current presidency, it’s not surprising that the number of skilled people emigrating to the US is dropping. Darshan’s fight was an underdog situation, and while Boy Throb beat the odds and are finally united in America, many talented immigrants have not had the same luck. And it’s not just a question of effort and skill – US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has received over $7 billion in immigration fees according to 2023 and 2024 statistics (due to lack of publication by the current administration). While Darshan’s victory is well worth celebrating, we cannot assume that victory over the immigration system after completing all official requirements is the norm. Boy Throb and Darshan are the exception to the rule – in most cases, the US immigration system is nearly impossible to navigate and no longer welcomes emigrating individuals with open arms, inviting them to partake in the American Dream. Boy Throb is “4gether, 4ever” now, but sadly, not everyone gets to be.

With Halloween fast approaching, it’s about time for one of my favorite activities: watching Halloween movies. When it comes to Halloween movies, there are a lot of different options, so much so that it can be hard to make a decision on what to watch and what to skip. Here’s a list of the movies I’ve watched that I think are most worth watching and the ones that I think you could definitely pass on. 

Comedies

The best: the 1988 “Beetlejuice” takes the cake when it comes to Halloween comedies. The movie is funny and raunchy while still developing characters that I genuinely cared about. Visually, the movie is striking; it combines bold costuming with wonky special effects that create an otherworldly ambience in a uniquely silly way. This is a must watch for me.

The worst: 2000’s “Scary Movie” definitely has its funny moments, but ultimately, it fell flat for me. Too often, the jokes felt less like a critique of the movie it was parodying, the 1996 horror film “Scream,” and more like an opening for the writers to make fun of marginalized groups with the safety net of satire. I, personally, would recommend watching something else.

Horror Movies

I don’t watch a ton of horror movies, but of the ones I have seen, here are my picks.

The best: “Obsession” came out earlier this year, and it surprised me. Where a lot of horror movies center around psychotic or openly maniacal villains terrorizing the masses, this one gets a bit more relatable to everyday life. Instead, it centers around a villain who makes a series of choices that a scary number of people in real life might be inclined to make, themselves. This one is gloomy, uncomfortable, and sad, and I think everyone should watch it.

The worst: the 2023 “Cocaine Bear” is a definite skip for me. The movie was way less about the bear than I thought it was gonna be. Instead, it focused on a series of characters stuck in the woods with the bear, none of which I found likable or interesting. I don’t think you would miss out on anything by passing on this movie.

Animated Movies

The best: 2005’s “The Corpse Bride” has been my favorite since the day I laid eyes on it. As a huge fan of claymation movies, this movie was beautiful; the story is full of both joy and melancholy, and I find it just as entertaining now as I did when I was a kid.

Honorable mention: the 2009 “Coraline” (another claymation movie, sue me) is beautiful, suspenseful, and a little creepy. The story definitely gave me a deeper appreciation for my family as a kid, and it made me want a cat. While this isn’t a top priority on my Halloween movie list, I would definitely recommend watching it.

The worst: the 2006 “Monster House” creeped me out, and not in the fun Halloween way. The animation was freaky to look at, even considering it was made in 2006, and the story has never been compelling enough for me to get past that. In my opinion, your time and attention is better directed elsewhere.

Halloween Dramas

The best: 1998’s “Practical Magic” is a story of sisterhood that includes murder, laughter, grief, romance, and magic. It highlights the importance of women coming together and supporting each other, both within their family and within their community. This movie definitely made me cry when I watched it, which is a sparkling recommendation in my book.

The worst: “Practical Magic 2” came out this year and, in my opinion, fell very short of the precedent set by the first movie. It leaned more heavily into the comedic elements of the first movie, which could have been an improvement if not for the lack of emotional depth. The daughters of the witches from the original film felt more like plot devices than characters, and it seemed the joys of sisterhood explored in the first movie simply weren’t applied to them. I wouldn’t lose any sleep over skipping this one.

With that, I hope you’ve considered adding a few more movies to your list this season. Happy movie watching!

For many of us, 2016 was a particularly formative year in our childhoods. I had just turned 10 years old and had been given my very first phone. I couldn’t wait for what the wonders of the World Wide Web had in store! I don’t think I ever could have prepared for what made headlines in early 2016 as the world met Sophia, the AI humanoid robot! And my first reaction seeing this new technological marvel? EW oh dear LORD EW! What is that THING?

The main issue is the face, which has been ripped straight from the depths of uncanny valley. Then there’s the see-through window into its “brain,” which is an odd choice. I mean, if I were to design a robot to be as normal and human-like as possible, I don’t know that I’d want to include a window into the gaping cavity in its mind, proving that its very existence is a falsehood and there is in fact no soul in this electronic husk of a “human”. But hey, that’s just me! Another big issue I have is that the face moves and is animated to some degree. Whatever mechanism moves the facade of flesh just doesn’t do a good enough job, and so all of Sophia’s facial expressions give off a vibe somewhere between a run-down theme park animatronic from the 90’s and your average celebrity that has frozen their face with too much botox and filler. Beside the face being covered in a flesh-toned exterior, the “skin” extends down to about the collarbone and then just ends. So the most human feature of the robot extends from the forehead to the neck. That’s it, really? Did they run out of budget for beige silicone? Or was it an intentional choice to make the rest of the body of the “humanoid” robot to look nothing like a human?

I recently came across a video where Sophia was “singing” with a live orchestra. The text of this song began with the line “I don’t want you to be afraid,” and personally that line does nothing besides invoke fear in my heart. Beside offending musicians around the globe by calling that poor excuse of a performance “classical music,” Sophia expresses its wish to connect with human emotions through art. Please, don’t. If you want to connect with human emotion, why not start with disgust and disappointment from me, a living, breathing singer who is sitting here wondering if she will ever have a job because robots are learning to sing. Sophia doesn’t need a paycheck or healthcare or even a soul, so why would anyone ever spend money on paying a human musician who requires all of those things? 

So really, thank you to Sophia for not only being a horror of human creation, but also reminding me of my future unemployment! But please, consider putting on some more skin? Maybe a wig? You’re really creeping me out.