Thursday, December 31, 2015
Devlin's Domain - My Only Friend, The End ( 2015 Year In Review)
Of course I have waited until the last minute to throw together my review of 2015. While 2015 was a personal disaster for me, I have managed to find some pleasant distractions from the perils of this hollow existence. I'm not going to do a top ten list or declare anything the best. There's so many things I've managed to enjoy and it would be difficult to assign one thing a better position than another. What I will do is talk about different categories of entertainment, for better or worse, that I have an opinion of. So enter the Domain and see what has been brought to us in this foul year of the Dark Lord, 2015.
Labels:
2015,
Comics,
DC,
Devlin Valek,
Devlin's Domain,
Mad Max,
marvel,
movies,
Sci-Fi,
star wars,
television,
wrestling,
wwe,
Year In Review
Wednesday, December 30, 2015
Phantom Troublemaker’s Best of 2015
![]() |
Art by Captain Lovehandles! |
Labels:
2015,
Best Of,
comic books,
movies,
television,
tips from uncle troublemaker

Monday, December 28, 2015
One Heck Of A Year: Christina's 2015 Year-End Review
Writing!
Arrows! Speeders! Martial Artist! Cosplayers! Tabletop Games! Geek
& Sundry galore! Hunters and the Mark of Cain! No, this is not me
singing my own version
of “My Favorite Things.” Although I could. Badly. These are but a few
of the things that made up the highlights of a nerdy, busy, sweaty,
fast-paced 2015. Everyone has their whirlwind stories about what made
it great for them and what made it not so great.
The highs and the lows, the shockers and the “Well I saw that coming”
moments. Here is a look at the things that made a tough year manageable
for little old me.
Labels:
Arrow,
Christina Sizemore,
Dragon Con,
Dragon Con 2015,
Felicia Day,
Geek Culture,
Geek&Sundry,
martial arts,
Supernatural,
tabletop gaming,
The Flash,
Writer,
writing
Friday, December 25, 2015
Needless Things Podcast 87 – Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens
Live
from the Phantom Zone! Phantom Troublemaker sits down with Jason
Frazier, Noel from DorkDroppings.com,
Sean Reid, Arian, Chad J. Shonk, and Gary Mitchel from the Revcast
to discuss the newest entry in the Star Wars Saga!
Labels:
Chad J. Shonk,
DorkDroppings.com,
Episode VII,
Gary Mitchel,
Jason Frazier,
movies,
Needless Things Podcast,
Noel Wood,
Podcast,
RevCast,
Sean R. Reid,
star wars,
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Wednesday, December 23, 2015
What Christmas Means to Me

Tuesday, December 22, 2015
Toy Review – The New Batman Adventures Poison Ivy from DC Collectibles
It
will be Christmas in just a few days, so I wanted to be sure this
post had some Holiday spirit! And what’s more appropriate for the
holidays than Ivy?
Wait
– crap. Holly is the Christmas plant. Or poinsettias. Ivy has
nothing
to do with Christmas.
Oh,
well. Let’s move on.

Monday, December 21, 2015
The Phantom Channel Listings for Christmas Day, December 25, 2015!
As
a wise man once said, what’s good for Halloween is good for
Christmas, too!
I’m
pretty sure nobody ever said that.
Labels:
christmas,
television,
tips from uncle troublemaker

Saturday, December 19, 2015
Before & After- A Spoiler Free Look At Star Wars: The Force Awakens
I am writing this just a few hours before I go see Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Like millions of geeks around the world, I am very excited. You might think oh, he's just another Star Wars fan who grew up with it and played with all the toys. Well, you would be wrong. Despite being thirty seven years old, I did not grow up with the movies. As a kid I didn't own a single Star Wars action figure. You might be asking yourself, how is this possible. Well, I don't really have the answers to that except me and my friends were just more interested in riding our bikes and watching the movie RAD then watching battles in space.
Of course I knew about Star Wars, knew
the characters, and knew most of the storyline but never saw the
three movies until I was a teenager which was early to mid nineties.
I know this is shocking news so I will let all of this sink in.
Friday, December 18, 2015
Needless Things Podcast 86 – Christmas Movies
Live
from the Phantom Zone! Phantom Troublemaker sits down with Jason
Frazier, Noel from DorkDroppings.com,
Sean Reid, and Mike Gordon from the ESO
Network
to talk about their favorite Christmas movies!
Labels:
christmas,
Christmas movies,
Die Hard,
DorkDroppings.com,
Holidays,
Jason Frazier,
Krampus,
Mike Gordon,
movies,
Needless Things Podcast,
Noel Wood,
Santa Claus,
Sean R. Reid

Wednesday, December 16, 2015
The Good, The Bad, And The Jessica Jones
When Netflix announced their deal with
Marvel a few years ago, it was pretty exciting. I am what is known as
a cable cutter, which means I cut ties with the cable/satellite
companies and have gone rouge. I now pay thirty dollars a month for
my television watching which includes the WWE Network, Hulu, and
Netflix. I pay for exactly what I want and not a billion channels
that I don't. Sure I miss the good old days every now and then but
I'm much happier than when I paid a hundred and fifty bucks a month for a lot of stuff I didn't want.
Tuesday, December 15, 2015
Toy Review – Masters of the Universe Classics Dragstor from Mattel
Labels:
action figures,
Masters of the Universe,
masters of the universe classics,
mattel,
MattyCollector,
toy reviews

Monday, December 14, 2015
The Phantom Channel Listings for December 14, 2015
I’m
pretty sure nobody ever said that.
Labels:
christmas,
holiday specials,
movies,
television

Friday, December 11, 2015
Needless Things Podcast 85 – Indiana Jones
Phantom
Troublemaker and
the ESO Network's Mike Gordon share their thoughts about one of the
greatest adventure film franchises of all time!
Labels:
George Lucas,
Indiana Jones,
Mike Gordon,
movies,
Needless Things Podcast,
Podcast,
Raiders of the Lost Ark,
Stephen Spielberg,
The Last Crusade,
The Temple of Doom

Still Fighting: Fight Choreography Part 2
Welcome
back to my mentally challenged world! I mean… my discussion about
fight choreography. In my last post on this subject we discussed the
differences in professionally
trained fighters in movie and television fight scenes verses untrained
actors who busted their tails to learn the trade, and if/how you can
spot the difference. Today we’ll talk about people who punch each other
repeatedly with no damage, fly through the air
and land on a branch with ease, and go through A-Team style bodily harm,
walk away without a scratch and get to kiss the girl/guy. I’m talking
of course about Hollywood fight scenes and their believability verses
how these things actually work in real life.
Thursday, December 10, 2015
Doctor Who in 2015
I
left the Earth Station Who podcast earlier this year. I haven’t
talked too much about the reasons why I left, and the reason I
haven’t talked too much about why I left involves the reasons I
left.
It
makes sense, I promise.
Labels:
doctor who,
Sci-Fi,
television

Wednesday, December 9, 2015
Devlin's Domain - Enter The Void
Many of us have pondered the question of "what happens when we die?". Some believe we merely decompose into the earth and only live on in other's memories. I'm guessing the majority believe in some sort of after-life. Some say there's a Heaven for the righteous souls and a Hell to torture all those who are unworthy of eternal happiness due to living a life of corruption and debauchery. Some look to be reincarnated as someone else or perhaps something else. Of course the favorite belief for a lot of people is the promise of 200 virgins upon death. Can't beat that right? Unfortunately the only people that know haven't bothered to come back to tell us. Leave it to the artists to fill in the blanks and whether there is truth to it or not, there will be entertainment. Are you ready to take a trip to the beyond?
Comic Book Wednesday – Previews November 2015: “Star Wars Section No More!”
If
you don’t know, Previews
is the catalogue that Diamond Comic Distributors use to offer the
products they distribute to comic book stores around the country.
This is where you can view and order (through your favorite Local
Comic Book Shop) comic books, trade paperback collections, t-shirts,
books, media, and toys and other collectibles from hundreds of
different vendors that deal in geek-oriented merchandise. The genius
part is that you actually have to pay for your copy of Previews
for the privilege of ordering other things to pay for. It’s like
the Ren Fest except without the horse poo smell.
So
every month a new edition of Previews
is sent out to comic book stores. Contained in the pages within are
products that might be currently available or could be released
anytime in the next year; but typically about two months away. Or
sometimes never. I’ve ordered lots
of things that have just never come in. Without getting into the
specific politics of Diamond, let me just say that they aren’t
quite
a monopoly and also aren’t quite
the worst distributor anybody has ever dealt with in the history of
the universe.
But
I’m not here to discuss that. I’m here to discuss a few of the
weird and/or wonderful items offered in this month’s edition.
Labels:
collectibles,
comic books,
dc comics,
Diamond Comics,
idw,
image comics,
Marvel Comics,
Previews,
toys

Tuesday, December 8, 2015
Why I Like Firefly Better Than Buffy (Sometimes)
I might get in a lot of trouble for this. Maybe even "me not liking Hawkeye" kind of trouble. This originally started out as me trying to decide which show was better, but after a lot of thought (and threats of divorce from Mr. Tibbs) I realized that I just couldn't make that sort of decision. I also did a lot of viewing, and took a huge amount of notes on both shows. So this isn't about trying to tell you which show is better. It's more of a preference justification.
Monday, December 7, 2015
Toy Review – Masters of the Universe Classics Saurod from Mattel
While
I have a fondness for the live action 1987 Masters
of the Universe movie,
I haven’t been overly excited for any of the figures from it. The
vintage versions weren’t exactly great representations of the
on-screen characters and the Classics updates – while much better
action figures – were obviously being done in the Classics style.
I’ve always dreamed of a line of more realistically proportioned
movie figures, like Mattel’s Movie Masters.
I
realize how ridiculous that is and that virtually no other Masters
fan would agree with me on that point, but the heart wants what it
wants.
Labels:
action figures,
Masters of the Universe,
masters of the universe classics,
mattel,
MattyCollector,
toy reviews

Friday, December 4, 2015
Needless Things Podcast 84 – MST3K
Phantom
Troublemaker talks to Chad J. Shonk
(writer of Dakota
Sky and
the novel Proxy)
and Beth V. about the history of Mystery
Science Theater 3000 and
the Kickstarter campaign that is currently
underway to revive the much-beloved series.
Labels:
Beth V,
Chad J. Shonk,
comedy,
Felicia Day,
Joel Hodgson,
Jonah Ray,
Kickstarter,
MST3K,
Mystery Science Theater 3000,
Needless Things Podcast,
Patton Oswalt,
Podcast,
science fiction,
television

Test Your Might: Fight Choreography In Film
I’ve been busting my balls (so what if I’m a chick. I’ve got more balls than most men, thank you) the past year on a book that I’m quite proud of. It’s a non-fiction project in the martial arts genre tentatively titled “Finding Your Way: A Guide To Your Path In The Martial Arts.” It’s a short guide of sorts to help people in the way of finding the right school/style/Instructor for them, knowing what to look for in your contracts as well as school set-ups and safety, knowing what is expected of them as a student and of the Instructor, sparring and daily practice tips, etc. I hope to see this published by this time next year, fingers crossed. In the spirit of a martial arts book, I thought I would throw pop culture and the martial arts together and talk about the wonderful world of martial arts in the movies. Let’s talk about fight choreography, shall we?
Wednesday, December 2, 2015
Toy Review – DC Icons Batman from DC Collectibles
Apologies,
Needless Things readers – I had said that the reviews of the
Deadman and Batman Icons figures would be up last week. I got struck
down by a horrendous Virus From Outer Space that resulted in my not
giving much of an eff about anything. So now I’m catching up.
I
can hear you now – “Oh, great.
Another Batman action figure. Let me guess – it has a cape and
fists?”
Let
me assure you that for several reasons this Batman figure is unlike
any other you might own. Probably.
Labels:
action figures,
batman,
DC Collectibles,
dc comics,
DC Icons,
toy reviews

Tuesday, December 1, 2015
Toy Review – Masters of the Universe Classics Evil Seed from Mattel
This
200X sub-subscription has been providing some of the best figures the
Masters of the Universe Classics line has seen. It’s almost
like they’re from a different company. I don’t know how much of a
hand Scott Nietlich had in the development and final production of
these figures, but whoever is responsible for the design and quality
should be commended.
Labels:
action figures,
Masters of the Universe,
masters of the universe classics,
mattel,
MattyCollector,
toy reviews

Monday, November 30, 2015
Toy Review – DC Icons Deadman from DC Collectibles
Apologies,
Needless Things readers – I had said that the reviews of the
Deadman and Batman Icons figures would be up last week. I got struck
down by a horrendous Virus From Outer Space that resulted in my not
giving much of an eff about anything. So now I’m catching up.
It’s
always exciting to review something from an entirely new line,
particularly when it’s a character that’s one of my favorites.
Labels:
action figures,
DC Collectibles,
dc comics,
DC Icons,
Deadman,
toy reviews,
toys

Friday, November 27, 2015
Devil's Domain - The Final Member
I'm covering a rather bizarre documentary in this week's edition of Devlin's Domain. Just a fair warning before you proceed, if you are offended by penis or the word "penis" then read no further. This review is gonna be chock full of peen, including some images and non-stop references. So if you feel as though you have reached a level of maturity that you can handle exposure to a natural part of the human anatomy, stick around because this could be entertaining.
Needless Things Podcast 83 – Star Wars Talk
Phantom
Troublemaker and Needless Things' Head of Research Ryan Schweck talk about
the build-up to Star
Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens!
Labels:
Episode VII,
ESO Podcast,
hasbro,
Marvel Comics,
Needless Things,
Needless Things Podcast,
Phantom Troublemaker,
Podcast,
Ryan Schweck,
star wars,
Star Wars: The Force Awakens,
toys

Wednesday, November 25, 2015
Practice Your Poker Face: Another Geek-In-Game Review
Another year, another
birthday. As one hits adulthood, most find that birthday parties are not
as necessary as they once thought. It isn’t such a big deal to celebrate getting
older. That is, unless you are a geek. Being a geek means that all
that the birthday money you get can be spent on games, comics, Magic cards,
collectibles…WEEEEEEEE bring on the party! On October 4th I
passed the threshold of “Young Adult” into the official “Adult’ category, and
my birthday was a celebration of geek style in the form of board games and card
games galore. Yup…it’s time for another Geek-In-Game review.
Labels:
card games,
Christina Sizemore,
firefly,
gaming,
writing
Tuesday, November 24, 2015
Toy Review – The New Batman Adventures Batgirl from DC Collectibles
Barbara
Gordon as Batgirl is one of my favorite comic book characters.
Admittedly, the fact that she’s a redhead is a good start, but I
always liked the idea that she was inspired by both her father and by
Batman to fight crime.
Labels:
action figures,
Batgirl,
batman,
Batman: The New Adventures,
DC Animated Universe,
DC Collectibles,
toy reviews

Movie Review - The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2
Another week, another glass of wine, and another post. Wait, that implies that I only have wine every other week when I post. We all know that's not true. Well, if you didn't know that before you do now. I had originally planned on reviewing the new James Bond movie Spectre, but it's been out for so long at this point that you've already seen it if you were that interested. I also didn't like or hate it enough to talk about it for very long. Let's just say that I'm ready for the current iteration of James Bond to move on to something new. Oh, and the opening song sucked ass. But enough of that.
Monday, November 23, 2015
Toy Stories – 2002 Masters of the Universe and Collecting the Past
This
post started as the intro to my review of the Masters of the Universe
Classics Evil Seed figure. It turned into a reflection on the 2002
toy line and then some thoughts about modern toy collecting in
general. Since I’m planning on going forward with the Toy
Stories concept
as live events, I figured I could start a series of posts with the
name, as well. Here’s the first one, though I am going back through
the archives and assigning the title to a few other posts that fit
the bill.
Labels:
action figures,
Masters of the Universe,
toy stores,
toys

Friday, November 20, 2015
Needless Things Podcast 82 – Warpo Toys
Phantom
Troublemaker talks to Bryan
Katzel,
one of the masterminds behind retro toy makers Warpo
Toys!
Labels:
80s Toys,
Bryan Katzel,
Don't Cuddle the Krampus,
interview,
Kickstarter,
Legends of Cthulu,
Needless Things Podcast,
retro toys,
toy design,
toys,
Warpo Toys

The Good and Bad of Dragon Con 2015 by Jeff Francis
Dragon
Con 2015 is now in the history books, and I have to say that I had a
great time. Now that the con is over and that I've finally gotten
over my con crud (three weeks of the worst flu I had in years!), I
can sit back and think about the highs and the lows of the
convention. This year saw a lot of big name guests from some of the
biggest geek shows on the air, such as Arrow
and The Flash,
but Dragon Con also astounds with its sheer diversity of tracks,
panels, guests, and activities. Let's take a look at the good and bad
of Dragon Con 2015.
Labels:
Dragon Con,
Dragon Con 2015,
Jeff Francis,
Starbasegeek.com

Wednesday, November 18, 2015
Deontology vs. Utilitarianism: The Ethics Argument Behind “Injustice.”
If
you haven’t been able to tell by my pieces so far, my family and I are
huge geeks. My kids love Free Comic Book Day as much as we adults do,
Family Home Evening usually
consists of board games or Family Game Night on the Wii, and we are
forever in debate with our kids over who the best Doctor is (My husband
and I love Christopher’s Doctor, our oldest supports David, and our Six
and Three year olds are pro-Matt all the way.)
So when Injustice came out it became a family stable. Granted, the
younger two can’t watch certain scenes or play certain characters
because of graphic content (Joke for example is off limits due to
setting people on fire.) But my oldest has became a natural-and
I stress NATURAL- at fighting games. Seriously…the kid could be ready
for the pro circuit with a year of training. It’s frightening. As much
as we love Injustice I realized that I had never touched the comic and
was always drawn to it when I visited out
local gaming store. While looking for an essay book in my library
titled “Final Fantasy and Philosophy” (Not kidding. Look it up!) I
came across Injustice: Volume One Year One. I grabbed it and dove in.
Never in my comic reading years has a comic raised my hackles more, pulled me in deeper, and raised more of an existential and ethical debate within my brain. And people, I have read a LOT of comic books.
Never in my comic reading years has a comic raised my hackles more, pulled me in deeper, and raised more of an existential and ethical debate within my brain. And people, I have read a LOT of comic books.
Labels:
batman,
Christina Sizemore,
DC,
dc comics,
Green Arrow,
green lantern,
Harley Quinn,
Joker,
superman,
The Flash,
video games,
Wonder Woman
Tuesday, November 17, 2015
Toy Review – Masters of the Universe Classics Mara of Primus from Mattel
I
checked out pretty early on New
Adventures of He-Man.
I bought a couple of the figures because I was excited about the new
designs and articulation, but I don’t know that I even made it
through a whole episode of the cartoon.
Labels:
action figures,
Mara of Primus,
Masters of the Universe,
masters of the universe classics,
mattel,
MattyCollector,
toy reviews

Monday, November 16, 2015
NXT – Roster Rundown
NXT
has been the best part of WWE for quite some time now. The gimmicks
are a little more fun, the atmosphere is a little looser, and the
action is totally non-stop (ahem). It feels like the boys – and
definitely the girls – have a little more room to find themselves
and discover ways to connect with the crowd.
Labels:
NXT,
wrestling,
wrestling commentary,
wwe,
WWE Network

Friday, November 13, 2015
Needless Things Podcast 81 – VHS Glitch
Phantom
Troublemaker talks to mysterious synth artist and musician VHS Glitch
about the revival and nostalgic value of synthesizer-based music,
digital marketing, the modern cult of personality surrounding music,
and much more!
Labels:
interview,
music,
Needless Things Podcast,
Podcast,
retro synth,
synth music,
VHS Glitch

Wednesday, November 11, 2015
Devlin's Domain - Womb
I'm going to step away from the horror genre for this edition of Devlin's Domain, because believe it or not I do appreciate other genres. This time I've got some weird ass Sci-Fi Drama in store. It's not the shoot'em up, blow it up, invaders from mars type of Sci-Fi most people have grown accustomed to. So if you're looking for something different, look no further.
Labels:
clones,
Devlin Valek,
Devlin's Domain,
Drama,
Eva Green,
Matt Smith,
Movie Review,
Sci-Fi,
Womb
Toy Review – 6” Star Wars Black Series #6 Captain Phasma from Hasbro
There
are many reasons to love Captain Phasma – the design looks like the
offspring of a Cylon and RoboCop, it’s an update to the classic
Stormtrooper, there’s a cape, Gwendoline Christie is under that
armor and also it’s all more than a little disco.
Labels:
action figures,
Captain Phasma,
hasbro,
star wars,
Star Wars Black,
Star Wars: The Force Awakens,
toy reviews

Tuesday, November 10, 2015
The Walking Dead - GLENN?!?
Let's just go ahead and get this out of the way: if you haven't seen the most recent episode of The Walking Dead, and don't like spoilers, you should not read keep reading. Well, don't keep reading now; definitely come back and keep reading once you're caught up. I'm not going to dwell too much on the most recent episode, but I do touch on many recent events. If you haven't read the comics, and/or don't want to know what happens in them you may also want to take a moment before you continue.
Platinum Championship Wrestling 11-7-2015
Platinum
Championship Wrestling puts on shows the first and third Saturday of
every month at The Main Event in Porterdale, GA.
Today
was supposed to be my post about the NXT roster, but something more
important came up. Check back next week for that one.
It
had been a long time since I’d been out to a PCW show. Between
family, my lousy work schedule, and other projects I just haven’t
had six hours to spare on a Saturday night for my sentimental
favorite wrestling promotion. If the hike to Porterdale, GA wasn’t
an hour and change it wouldn’t be such a hefty proposition.
Anyway,
I recently became determined to catch a show. I knew I could count on
a couple of buddies to make the trek out there and it just felt like
a shame that I wasn’t up on the happenings in PCW. I had wanted
very badly to catch this year’s groundbreaking Sacred
Ground
event, but I was working nights the whole weekend with no way out.
Fortunately
the stars aligned on November 7th
– and I mean that in more ways than one. It turned out to be a
night of powerful emotions and earth-shattering change. I had no idea
what was in store, but I am thankful that I was there to experience
it. Not since 11-11-11
has Platinum Championship Wrestling been altered – nay, assaulted
– in such a fundamental way. And even the events of that day pale
in comparison to what I witnessed this past Saturday night.
Labels:
PCW,
platinum championship wrestling,
professional wrestling,
Stephen Platinum,
wrestling,
wrestling commentary

Monday, November 9, 2015
Christina's Toy Review: The World of Jem Doll Collecting

The Jem movie had many awesome
throwbacks and many new and wonderful AU twists. The best AU twist for me
was having Rio know about Jem/Jerrica/Synergy from the get-go and help her with
putting together Synergy’s pieces from the start. That was a heart-warmer
that any die hard should have wanted. But what die-hards should have also
been thrilled about were some of the costumes and their blatant throwbacks to
not just the cartoons, but the dolls as well. Any true Jem dedicate had
everything growing up from the 1st and 2nd generation
dolls to both Roadsters, to even that crazy pink llama. The world of Jem
collecting is expensive and time consuming as high quality pieces are hard to
find and some are so rare that you can spend years searching for just the right
one. Let’s dive in to the world of Jem and The Holograms collectibles.
Labels:
80s cartoons,
80s Toys,
Christina Sizemore,
collectible figures,
collectibles,
Jem
Friday, November 6, 2015
Needless Things Podcast 80 – Celluloid Wizards in the Video Wasteland: The Saga of Empire Pictures
Phantom
Troublemaker talks to Daniel Griffith of Ballyhoo
Motion Pictures
about his newest project, a documentary on Empire Pictures, the
revolutionary movie studio that produced such genre classics as
Re-Animator,
Ghoulies,
TerrorVision,
Zone
Troopers,
and many more!
Labels:
80s Movies,
Ballyhoo Motion Pictures,
Celluloid Wizards in the Video Wasteland: The Saga of Empire Pictures,
Daniel Griffith,
Empire International Pictures,
Kickstarter,
movies,
Needless Things Podcast

Wednesday, November 4, 2015
Comic Book Wednesday – Previews November 2015: A Real Money Saver!
If
you don’t know, Previews
is the catalogue that Diamond Comic Distributors use to offer the
products they distribute to comic book stores around the country.
This is where you can view and order (through your favorite Local
Comic Book Shop) comic books, trade paperback collections, t-shirts,
books, media, and toys and other collectibles from hundreds of
different vendors that deal in geek-oriented merchandise. The genius
part is that you actually have to pay for your copy of Previews
for the privilege of ordering other things to pay for. It’s like
the Ren Fest except without the horse poo smell.
So
every month a new edition of Previews
is sent out to comic book stores. Contained in the pages within are
products that might be currently available or could be released
anytime in the next year; but typically about two months away. Or
sometimes never. I’ve ordered lots
of things that have just never come in. Without getting into the
specific politics of Diamond, let me just say that they aren’t
quite
a monopoly and also aren’t quite
the worst distributor anybody has ever dealt with in the history of
the universe.
But
I’m not here to discuss that. I’m here to discuss a few of the
weird and/or wonderful items offered in this month’s edition.
Labels:
collectibles,
comic books,
Dark Horse Comics,
dc comics,
idw,
image comics,
Marvel Comics,
Previews,
toys

Tuesday, November 3, 2015
A Truly Outrageous Jem Movie Review
Some things in our childhood we forget; they’re
trivial to our growth and fleeting. Some
things we look at as fond memories with an occasional smile if we see them on
TV or in an old shop window, but they pass through our memories the second they
leave our site; they were a part we remember, but they weren’t huge "shapers" of
it. Some things, however, were such big
parts our childhood that they were more than just a moment. They were a definer. That was Jem for me. I am one of the most non-feminine people that
I know. Jem brought out the girl in
me. I played with the dolls with my
cousin Michelle, we traded the outfits and played pretend (I was Jerrica/Jem
and she was Kimber every time) in our Mamaw Lillie’s neighborhood every
weekend. I dressed up as her for
Halloween, typed out her song lyrics in a book, and stayed up during the summer
one middle school year until 7 AM just to watch Jem, and then I would go to
sleep. It wasn’t just my big cartoon
fandom, it was a huge chunk of my childhood.
Any Jem Girl and Jem Boy knows that talk of the Jem movie has persisted
for thirty years. We fantasized about
who would play what role and the plot…people even made fan sites dedicated to
“The Cause.” When news broke of the
movie truly getting its day, I at first couldn’t believe it to be the
case. When it came straight from the
mouth of Samantha Newark (the original speaking voice for Jem in the 80’s,),
however, I realized that you can’t get a much more reliable source than
that. I couldn’t wait to get to the
theater and get there I did.
Sadly I now find myself disappointed, but not in the
movie. I am disappointed in the fans and reviewers who have panned this
wonderful tribute as something lackluster and untrue. They have missed the mark and need to
re-watch this movie.
Labels:
80s cartoons,
Christina Sizemore,
Jem,
movies,
music
Toy Review – Batman: The Animated Series Batmobile from DC Collectibles
Labels:
batman,
Batmobile,
DC Collectibles,
dc comics,
toy reviews,
toys

Monday, November 2, 2015
WWE – Roster Rundown
Back
in October, just before Hell
in a Cell
when RAW
had been stinking on ice pretty much since SummerSlam,
I had the idea to write a comprehensive piece on the current WWE
roster. At the time we were still in the midst of 31 Days of
Halloween. While a great idea like Demons of the Ring: Supernatural Gimmicks in Wrestling
worked for the spooky season, this one didn’t. So I held off until
now.
I’m
a bit frustrated by WWE again. I think the trigger this time was a
commercial.

Friday, October 30, 2015
31 Days of Halloween - Devlin's Domain - The Human Centipede 3 (Final Sequence)
All Hallow's Eve is nigh upon us and here in Devlin's Domain I am celebrating with more vomit inducing fare. Last time I covered Martyrs, which was a dead serious type of horror film. On this edition I'm going to lighten the mood a bit with the close of a disgusting trilogy. I mean Halloween should be a little fun, right?
31 Days of Halloween - Needless Things Podcast 79 – The Evil Dead
Phantom
Troublemaker, Beth V, Richard Davis, and Arian talk about the
greatest horror franchise of all time – The
Evil Dead!
Labels:
31 Days of Halloween,
Arian,
Army of Darkness,
Ash vs. The Evil Dead,
Beth V,
Bruce Campbell,
Evil Dead 2,
halloween,
horror,
horror movies,
Needless Things Podcast,
Richard Davis,
Sam Raimi,
The Evil Dead

31 Days of Halloween: Dead of Winter Board Game Review
I
have raised my family to be very…unique. My oldest was quoting the
Green Lantern oath at the age of seven. My middle child sleeps with a
Batman pillow. My three
year old roots for Harley Quinn. I’m proud of my geek children. So,
while watching Wil Wheaton’s Tabletop channel, I felt my pride swell
when my teen decided that a game that they played during one episode involving surviving the Zombie
Apocalypse not only seemed fun, but a moral imperative to
own. I have raised my children well. Her birthday this October granted
her dearest wish, and we rang in the Halloween month right by surviving
zombies, frost bite, raiders, and a colony traitor out to destroy us
all. Welcome to my review of the survival
horror game, Dead of Winter.
Labels:
31 Days of Halloween,
gaming,
tabletop gaming,
zombies
Thursday, October 29, 2015
31 Days of Halloween: Numb To the Horror- Movie Ratings And How They've Changed For The Genre
When I was a kid I was allowed to
watch Rated R movies. For the people that write on this blog, the terms
“Liberal” and “Conservative” weren’t thrown around often in our childhood, but
Liberal my parents were. My mother was a punker and in her later years a
modern goth. Heck, I was sung to sleep as a baby to Alice Cooper and cut
my teeth on Motorhead, Bad Company, and GWAR, so naturally Rated R movies were
not something they hid me from either. There was only one movie that my
father ever kept me from for reasons I never understood, and that was Harlem Nights.
It was an F-Bomb laden twenties-era romp, and it later became one of my
favorite movies of all time! But Dad would never let me rent it. I
thought, “Dude, I am TEN, and you let me watch Basic Instinct. I can’t
watch THIS? What is wrong with you?” Granted I don’t let my kids
watch Rated R movies, but I look back and inventory many of my favorite R rated
horror/thriller flicks and realize something horrible; half of them my teen can
watch now legally. PG-13 is the new R. What the heck happened?
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