Toy Review – Batman Begins 1:10 Scale Batman from NECA

The first thing I have to address is the fact that you guys probably know how I feel about Nolan’s “Batman” movies and, as such, are probably wondering why I would buy a figure from one of them. Especially after rage-selling all of Mattel’s Movie Masters a few years ago.

The Increasingly Confusing Star Wars Chronology

by Beth

I was at work the other day when I heard a coworker about 10 years younger than me trying to explain Star Wars to a much younger coworker. The second girl is in her early 20's, and had never seen any Star Wars anything. As shocking as this was to me I was even more surprised that the girl explaining the correct order was 4,5,6 followed by 1,2,3. I felt forced to jump in at this point of the conversation and tell them that chronological order would make more sense than order of release for someone who knows nothing about Star Wars. Then I got to thinking about all of the media, and the order everything should go in. I'd still suggest chronological, but suddenly things were a lot more complicated.

Phantom on Marvel – The Comics

By Phantom Troublemaker

Since I started the Needless Things Podcast the frequency of my commentary and speculation pieces has been dwindling. I enjoy talking a lot more than I enjoy writing and I enjoy conversation more than I enjoy tossing lengthy essays out into an unresponsive void.

Plus, now that I have paying supporters on SupportPhantom.com (few though they may be) I feel a little more obligated to post stuff there when I am taken with the desire to write.

But every once in a while I still get the itch to post something here that’s a little broader and more interesting than a toy review. Which is why I’m here today.

I want to talk about Marvel – comics, TV shows, movies; everything. Or at least, everything I’m qualified to talk about. Obviously I can’t read every comic book Marvel publishes and right now I’m choosing to read even less than I normally do because a lot of them seem to be terrible. And I’m going to discuss that, too.

Today is comic book day. I’m going to write some about my history reading Marvel comics and some about what I think of Marvel right now.

Needless Things Podcast 135 – BlackFriday/Hollywood

Phantom Troublemaker tries something new with an audio version of Vintage Troublemaker!

Toy Review - The New Batman Adventures Firefly from DC Collectibles

Firefly is a character that I honestly don't even remember being used in The Animated Series or The New Batman Adventures all that much. I like his design but I could swear he wasn't on more than one episode. But he's cool and he has a history from the comic books and is definitely more badass than Killer Moth.

Vintage Troublemaker - The Unborn and The Haunting in Connecticut

By Phantom Troublemaker

Originally posted in 2009 on the Phantom Troublemaker MySpace page.

Giving Thanks

By Phantom Troublemaker

This is the time of year when we gather together with our friends, family, and neighbors to give thanks and to take some time to appreciate the things that we might take for granted in our day to day lives.

It is a time for reflection and contemplation. A time to embrace the wonders of life and find the joy in simply  being. Whether you believe in a god or fate or simply the power of your own life force, this is a special time of year that crosses denominational and cultural borders.

Thanksgiving is one of the few holidays that is relatively untouched by crass commercialization and can be appreciated as simply a time to commune with others, oneself, or the universe.

As such, I’m going to take this opportunity to write about toys and wrestling and stuff.

Needless Things Podcast 134 – ThanksKilling Needless Commentary

Part of an ongoing series – the Needless Things Irregulars gather in the Phantom Zone to provide their own unique commentary on classic genre films!

Toy Review – The New Batman Adventures Nightwing from DC Collectibles

I’ve gone back and forth over which Robin is my favorite (right now it’s Tim), but Dick Grayson will always be my favorite Nightwing.

Yes, I know. Dick is the only Nightwing.

An Hour With Brandon Sanderson

by Beth

The coolest thing I saw at Dragon Con (besides the Dirty Dirty Con Con Game Game Show Show of course) was the Brandon Sanderson panel. I think I've already mentioned how great it was, but I took the trouble to record it to share with all of you. I didn't get any interviews this year so this was as close as I was going to get to an author that I really enjoy and respect. Unfortunately I had major issues with my recorder, and hadn't been able to recover the audio. I was pissed since it was a really long, and extremely in-depth panel. I couldn't possibly remember everything that he talked about well enough to relate accurately to you. At long last I have gotten my audio back (and will be buying a new recorder for next year), and can at last bring you some of the many highlights of this great panel.

Rebooting the X-Men

By Phantom Troublemaker

In the world of comic books, the X-Men are second only to Batman to me. I’ve loved Marvel’s (not so) Merry Mutants since 1988. If I had to list my top ten favorite comic book stories, I’d be willing to bet that the X-Men are in eight of them.

Needless Things Podcast 133 – Mike Check

Mike Gordon returns to the Needless Things Podcast!

Phantom on Marvel – The Movies

By Phantom Troublemaker

Since I started the Needless Things Podcast the frequency of my commentary and speculation pieces has been dwindling. I enjoy talking a lot more than I enjoy writing and I enjoy conversation more than I enjoy tossing lengthy essays out into an unresponsive void.

Plus, now that I have paying supporters on SupportPhantom.com (few though they may be) I feel a little more obligated to post stuff there when I am taken with the desire to write.

But every once in a while I still get the itch to post something here that’s a little broader and more interesting than a toy review. Which is why I’m here today.

Toy Review – The New Batman Adventures Killer Croc from DC Collectibles

By Phantom Troublemaker

I have a love/not-totally-satisfied with relationship with DC Collectibles’ animated line.

Christina's DragonCon2016 Wrap-Up: Part 2

By Christina Sizemore

The shenanigans continue.  Well, the milder variety, anyway.  But hey, still cool DragonCon stuff regardless right?  Time to wrap-up my DragonCon wrap-up, guys!

Needless Things Podcast 132 – Dragon Con 2016 – Big Trouble in Little China

A presentation of the Dragon Con American Sci-Fi Classics Track! It’s the final podcast from this year’s Dragon Con - a live panel celebrating the thirtieth anniversary of John Carpenter’s classic Big Trouble in Little China!

Also, Phantom breaks down the benefits of SupportPhantom.com and how you can help keep Needless Things independent and free.

Comic Book Wednesday – Previews November 2016: “The Previews Challenge”

If you don’t know, Previews is the catalog 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 are typically about three months away. Most of this month’s offerings are scheduled to ship in January.

Now it’s time to discuss a few of the weird and/or wonderful items offered in this month’s edition!

32nd Day of Halloween: Give Me Back My Monsters

By Beth V

I'll admit it, I was sick of goofy monster movies. As much as I love cheesy shit like Lake Placid, Deep Blue Sea, and Deep Rising the SyFy moster movie machine churned out silly monsters faster than I could keep up. Certainly faster then I wanted to watch them too. I got sick of zombies for God's sake. Me, sick of zombies. What kind of a world is that for a horror fan like me to live in?