A Cornucopia of Nerdiness

 

Food ns

     Thanksgiving greetings to my fellow nerds around the world. I’m back to the blogosphere with some random and miscellaneous thoughts, observations and updates. Hopefully a little something here to interest just about anybody…

MARVEL UNIVERSE LIVE!

Let the show begin!

Let the show begin!

     I took my 9 year old son to see Marvel Universe LIVE! last month in Birmingham, Alabama. Highly recommended if your kids (or you) are fans of the Marvel Universe. The show runs through 2016 and I gather has dates in Canada and the UK.

     The storyline, action, stunts, and special effects are all top notch and my son had a smile on his face the entire time.

     My only criticism is what you’d expect if you’ve ever attended one of these live action arena shows (Disney on Ice for example) and that’s the selection and prices of souvenirs. I realize it costs a ton of money to stage a show like this but $15 for cotton candy is just nuts.  And the selection of souvenirs was pretty much limited to super-cheap plastic junk. With the built-in fanbase swarming the halls, this show seems like a perfect venue to sell some comics and trade paperbacks. Unfortunately, except for a comic included with the program, none were in evidence.  It reminds me of the fact that neither Marvel or DC’s blockbuster movies do much to push the comics that inspire them…just odd to me.

REQUISITE COMIC BOOK RANT

     Since I’m on that topic anyway, let me just throw a giant WTF at the big two comic book publishers. There’s a sentiment among comic book fans out there on which I am entirely on board.  I almost can’t tune in to a comic podcast without hearing someone talking about Marvel and DC flooding the market with wayyyyyy too many titles.  Just throw another adjective in front of a well-known name and BAM! you’ve got a new title. Uh, nope.

     And I hafta ask, who exactly is reading them? Because it’s not me and I can’t find alot of buzz in nerd nation for them.  Every month when I do my DCBS order, I just shake my head at the sheer number of titles Marvel and DC solicit.  Can they even keep track of how many new #1s, reboots, special events, and spin-offs they are churning out? I sure can’t.

     You know what I want?  I want one Spider-Man title.  It’s called Amazing Spider-Man.  I want two Batman titles…Batman & Detective Comics. Invincible Iron Man, The Mighty Thor, Uncanny X-Man, etc. etc. etc.  You feel me?  Cause I really miss reading about these iconic characters who are essentially old friends I haven’t seen in years. DC and Marvel–cut all the fluff and crap and get back to basics.  Solid, well-written, well-drawn comics that preferably aren’t $3.99 a piece and I’ll be back and I suspect my fellow fans will be as well…in droves.

HOBBY LOBBY–FEEDING MY NERD DECOR ADDICTION

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     I’ve touted Hobby Lobby’s support for the nerds of America before.  And lately, Boy have they turned it up a notch.  Where they used to have comic-related merchandise scattered here and there, they’ve now got (at least at my store) two dedicated areas.  The area in which they are in particular affecting my wallet is in metal signs.  It seems like every time I roll in, they’ve got new designs: Marvel, DC, retro sci-fi, Looney-Tunes and others.  Just yesterday I picked up a really nice Planet of the Apes sign and a Justice League of America cover sign.  I’m struggling to find room to hang them in the Nerd Cave but where there’s a will there’s a way.  Just a little readjustment here and there…

DOING SOME MODELLING UP IN HERE!

Lindberg Visible Alien

Lindberg Visible Alien

     Ahhh, it feels great to get back in the Nerd Bunker carving some plastic and whiffing the sweet smell of Testor’s Liquid Cement. What?  That’s bad for me?  Hmmmm.

     Well, it still feels good.  Above we have my first project in awhile, Lindberg’s 19 inch Visible Alien kit.  I got mine off eBay about a year ago but I gather that the kit’s still available from various retailers.  It’s the second one I’ve built (the first one didn’t fare well in the house fire) and it’s a fun little kit.  My only gripe has been getting the soft plastic internal organs to go together as indicated in the instructions.  Both times I gave up and arranged them my way with a little cutting here and there.  I can’t tell the difference. Oddly, in this kit, they supplied me with two left halves of the ribcage so I had to omit them but the final result is still nice.

AMT Batwing kit

AMT Batwing kit

       My other recent build was another eBay acquisition: Batman’s Batwing from 1989’s Batman film by AMT.  I planned this one to be a ceiling hanger from the start so I didn’t put much effort into detailing the cockpit.  I was really jonesing to get some more stuff hanging from the Nerd Cave ceiling and this was a nice little project to fill the bill.  I ended up not including the Batman pilot figure which I regret but now I just figure it’s on autopilot while Bats kicks some Joker butt on the ground.

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DUST ME!!!

AMT Batwing model

Dat silhouette

NEW STUFF!

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     As usual, I am always on the lookout for new stuff to add to the Nerd Cave.  Above we have the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man bank and some new art I’ve added to the hallway outside the Cave, now known as “Nerd Street.”  Interestingly, as my decor spreads out of my room, my wife informed me that if she had to do it all over again, she’d just let me have the master bedroom to do my thing.  To quote Adam Sandler in The Wedding Singer, that’s “information that would’ve been useful to me yesterday” (or a couple of years ago).  While I’d like to think she digs my style, I think she’s more annoyed with how much time I spend in Le Man Cave.  Of course she does as well, but it really takes dynamite to get ME out of there.

BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA 2–LO PAN’S REVENGE

     HOW IS THIS NOT A THING YET!?!  I’ve always been a fan of John Carpenter’s 1986 film, Big Trouble in Little China.  I think I saw it on HBO way back in the 80’s for the first time and have owned it on VHS and DVD ever since.  The night before our daughter was born, neither my wife nor me could sleep a wink.  We watched Big Trouble. I don’t know why. It just seemed right.

     Recently, Big Trouble has made a come back in the comics with BOOM! Studios’ new mini-series. I haven’t read it  yet as I’m waiting to get the full series before ensconcing myself in a fleece blanket but the covers have got me wanting more.  Even my 9 year old loves this flick.  Just today he dropped a quote on me out of the blue.  I was so proud.

     With all the crap sequels out there (Highlander 2: The Quickening–I’m looking at you!) how has Big Trouble 2 not been made?  Seriously. Get this done somebody.

MISC. MUSINGS

–Was recently doing some X-mas shopping online.  I was on eBay and decided to search “refrigerator magnets.”  We like magnets in our house.  We always pick up a few on vacation and I’m frequently on Etsy, eBay or Amazon looking for them while I wait for Max at his Taekwondo class.

     Now, you might think searching “refrigerator magnets” would get you a ton of results. You are correct.  You might think it’d get you alot of plastic fruit magnets. You’d be correct there.  But did you know you’d get to see a bunch of naked (and 1/2 naked) women? Clearly somebody at eBay isn’t exactly closely monitoring that category cause what blur jobs are present are not well done.  Who freaking knew there was such a market for nudie girl fridge magnets?  Where are these refrigerators anyway? So yeah, don’t encourage your kids to browse that niche market.

–Went for Japanese food a few weeks ago for my son’s birthday.  He loves the Super Crunch roll and can kill a whole one himself.  In what has become our fun little family ritual, everyone was cracking open their fortune cookies.  People were scoring “you will make a new friend soon,” and “your hard work will pay off soon” and such.  Me?  I get this:
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     Do what?  Screw you cookie man.  You don’t know my life.  Maybe my bad back, arthritic knee and tennis elbow (no, I don’t play–it’s just a thing I have) keep me from “improving” my “exercise routine.”

     Well, that’s about it for The Kid.  Hope everyone has a happy T-giving.  Until next time, stay nerdy my friends…

 

Copyright 2014 It Came From The Nerd Cave