The End To 'The Cola Dog'

'The Cola Dog' blog has come to an end. It's not that I haven't enjoyed working on the blog, but it just hasn't been getting the views to warrant getting the weekly attention it has been getting from me. And really maintaining 3 weekly blogs while holding a full time job (and having worked over 300 overtime hours so far in 2012) is just a bit much, so I decided to let go of 'The Cola Dog'. But you need not worry I still intend to write blogs about comic books and animation from time to time, and those blogs can be found on my 'Random Nerdness' blog. So if this is your first time checking out 'The Cola Dog' blog be sure to check out my otherblogs:

www.randomnerdness.blogspot.com

(A blog about anything and everything, especially stuff in the Sci-fi/fantasy/comic books/television/movie/beer/books realm)

And

www.trek1701.blogspot.com

(A blog devoted to the world of Star Trek) 

I have something else I intend to branch into, another form of multi-media, but I cannot say anything at this time. Look for an announcement this summer or fall (hopefully). Anywho if you are a reader of 'The Cola Dog' or have checked it out in the past allow me to say "Thank you". It has been a fun experience. See you on the other blogs!

Blog #19: Potential Comic Book Movies!

- 'Shazam' (Captain Marvel) from the DCU would make a cool movie I think if done right, with 'Mad Men' star Jon Hamm in the title role. 

- 'Moon Knight' with 'True Blood' star Stephen Moyer (Bill Compton) in the title role. 

- 'Irredeemable' with another 'True Blood' star in the title role. Alexander Skarsgard would make an awesome Plutonian. And although he is older than the character I would have Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad) as Quibit. 

- 'Incorruptable' with Tom Hardy or Ben Affleck playing Max Damage. Scarlett Johansson as 'Headcase', Steve Buscemi as 'Police Lieutenant Louis Armadale' (this guy is one of my favourite actors!!) and Emily Meade as 'Jailbait'. Emily Meade may not sound familiar but she played the future 'Ella Dunham' on the 3rd season finale of 'Fringe'. 

- And finally I would love to see Mark Waid & Alex Ross's masterpiece 'Kingdom Come' done as a movie.

Blog #18: He-Man & Me

Anyone who knew me back in the 80's knew I was the biggest fan of He-Man there was. A few years back the entire cartoon series of He-Man and She-Ra from the 80's was released on DVD and of course I bought it. My kids loved watching them and I loved re-watching them. In my part of Canada we got He-Man on TV a few years after it's release in the US. In 1984-85-86 I got up every Saturday morning for 7 am and tuned into He-Man on channel 12 CFRN , and watched his adventures battling the evil Skeletor and his minions. Not only did I watch the show but I had almost all the action figures and toy sets. My Mom and Dad spoiled me as a kid and almost every time going to town I picked up the latest action figure. I remember shopping at the Medicine Bottle in Barrhead and Mom buying "Castle Greyskull" for me. My Aunt Margaret also bought me He-Man toys and usually had a new one for me almost every time I would visit her and Granny. I pretty much had most of the toy line at one time. The snake hand puppet you guys made reference to in the podcast actually was part of the Hordak swamp set, even though Hordak was never in a swamp on She-Ra. It really is weird they didn't continue the He-Man cartoon and ended it when they did. From what I remember it ended at the height of it's popularity. 

In 1987 a live action show called "Masters of the Universe Power Tour" came to Edmonton to Northlands Coliseum. It was a stage production that featured actors playing He-Man and She-Ra and a bunch of other characters. My Mom and Dad took me, my sister Brianna and cousin Lenny to the show. I was so excited. Lenny and I got our own He-Man swords, which were plastic of course. We even got sworn in as honorary members of the "Masters of the Universe" which was very exciting for us. Brianna cried when the show was over because she didn't want She-Ra to leave. I remember we got to go through a McDonalds drive-thru for the first time and I ate my one and only fillet-of-fish burger. 

In 1987 the real life action "He-Man" movie hit theatres featuring Dolph Lundgren. They made a lot of changes to the He-man story for the movie but the movie was cool for the time. It also featured a young Courtney Cox, "Monica" from the TV show "Friends", in her feature film debut. It has not stood the test of time and is very dated if you watch it now but back in 1987 it was awesome. 

I never liked the 'New Adventures', but I loved the 2002 series and the new toys being released are awesome. I'm actually re-collecting all the lost He-Man toys of my youth and collecting the new stuff. Most of my original collection was either sold by me in my teens at a Garage sale, or was destroyed by my Cousin Tyler and his BB-Gun. My favourite toys were Hordak, Man-E-Faces, Stratos. There was also a Horde solider who had a tire on his stomach, which allowed him to travel like a motorbike-robot. Can't remember what he was called but he was awesome.

 

More He-Man discussion to come in the not too distant future...

Blog #17: Captain Power

Although technically not a comic book or animated series I did watch this show as a kid Saturday mornings and they did have some of the first CGI characters on television. Back in 1987, I was 7 and I remember watching a new series called 'Captain Power And The Soldiers Of The Future'. It was a series set in the future following an apocalyptic war between man and machines and the machines won. Now humans are hunted down and 'digitized' into a the computer ruler of the future: Overmind. Captain Power leads an elite human strike force fighting 'Lord Dredd' and the Bio-Dred Empire in the hopes of defeating the machines and taking back the Earth for mankind.

This show only lasted 1 season and I loved every minute of it. By to days standards this show does not hold up, even with it's 'cutting edge' 80's special effects it is very dated. Still I am excited to have bought this series on DVD back in December. It was a series filmed in Canada with several Canadian actors taking lead roles. Also J.Micheal Stracynski (creator of 'Babylon 5' and writer of the recent 'Thor' movie) was a main writer for this series. The special effects of the 'Bio-Dreads' were some of the first computer-generated-beside-live-actors I think ever done for television. They looked cool in 1987 because that had never been done like that, but now they look very bad. I actually caught most of the series on the 'Space Channel' up her in Canada back in 1999, and 13 years ago I thought it looked dated. Plus the target audience was toy buying kids so JMS & crew were limited on what they could do. Although the 'suicide bombing' death of a beloved character on the season 1 (and ultimately series) finale was both shocking and made me shed a tear. I bought this series for nostalgia purposes as this was one of my favourite series of my childhood. Also in some ways Captain Power could be seen as the grandparent of the much worse 'Power Rangers' franchise. Also some great Canadian actors were featured on the series, as it was filmed in Canada, such as Graham Greene and Peter MacNeill .

 

The Captain Power 'Extras' DVD Disc: Very awesome hour and a half documentary about the making of the series, with interviews with some of the cast and creators of the series. They gave some info on what they had planned for season 2 and it would have been cool to see. If you watched this series as a kid it is well worth picking up this DVD set.

 

See you in the future! POWER ON!

This & That: Avengers (Spoiler Free Review)

Saturday I watched 'The Avengers' for the first time. This has been a movie I have been looking forward to for a long time. The trailers and TV commercials have been doing a great job hyping up this film. I even pre-bought my tickets so I was sure to get into the film, and it was probably a good ideas I did because the theatre was filling up fast. This is a spoiler free review, but I may reference moments seen in trailers or commercials. That being said here is my review:

This may just be the best super hero movie ever made. No I change that answer, THIS IS THE BEST SUPER HERO MOVIE EVER MADE (thus far). Marvel Studios has done a brilliant job building up to this movie, starting all the way back in 2008 with the first 'Iron Man' movie. Now here we are 4 years later and everything has come together beautifully. Also Marvel did the awesome move of hiring Geek Icon Joss Whedon not only to direct  the film but to write it too. And judging by the awesome dialogue and references Whedon is definitely a comic book fan who applies his knowledge and passion to the art form to this film. The interaction between the characters is awesome and what a fan of the comic book would expect. The moment (seen in some trailers) where Hulk catches a falling Iron Man was so amazing I almost cheered out loud, but I didn't. 

When I had heard Mark Ruffalo had been cast as 'Bruce Banner' I wasn't too impressed by that casting call. Not that I hate Ruffalo or anything but I just didn't see him working in that role. I was never a fan of Eric Bana (Hulk, 2003) or Edward Norton (Incredible Hulk, 2008) in the role of Banner either. In my mind the only actor who ever captured the essence of Banner was Bill Bixby from the 70's Hulk TV series. But after seeing Ruffalo in the role I was wrong not to be impressed, in fact Ruffalo had a 'Bixby' quality he brought to the role. Ruffalo was excellent in the role and was my favourite addition to the Marvel Avengers film universe. I saw Ruffalo interviewed up her in Canada on 'Innerspace' and it was nice to see he was very excited and proud to be in the role and apparently he is contracted to do 6 more Marvel films playing Banner. Very cool. Also the CGI 'Hulk' was far better looking and realistic in this film than the previous 2 Hulk films, the Hulk was awesome to watch. 

In the sequel that is sure to come I have a couple suggestions for the Marvel Executives who may be reading this review. Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad) in the role of 'Hank Pym' as either Giant Man or Ant Man or Yellow Jacket, as Hank Pym has 3 super hero alter egos. Cranston is one of the best actors alive right now, as he has proven time and time again with all his Emmy wins, and he would do excellent in the role of a super hero who suffers from multiple personalities. 

And Yvonne Strahovski (Chuck) in the role of Ms Marvel. It is a role she was obviously born to play. 

Be sure to check out this film if you are a Avengers and/or comic book fan. 

***** 5 Stars out of 5

Blog #16: Side Kicks, Death and Captain Marvel

- My favourite super-hero sidekick is Rick Jones, as I had previously mentioned all the way back in The Cola Dog Blog #1.  Now in current Marvel he can turn into a Hulk-like creature called A-bomb but back in the day he was just a normal dude who hung out with super heroes. For a while he trained with Captain America and was his side kick, but most of his side kicking career was with the Hulk. I liked him because he was funny, hip and just a normal human with no powers just martial arts training. He was also indirectly responsible for Bruce Banner turning into the Hulk.

- Captain America's sidekick Bucky should have stayed dead. His death meant something and they ruined it by bringing him back and creating all this unneeded back story that is currently seen in Marvel. And speaking of side kicks who die Batman's side kick Jasen Todd should have stayed dead too. And on the subject of death when Aunt May died in the Spider-Man books it was a touching sequence, then again they ruined it by bringing her back.

- Although not a sidekick 'Captain Marvel' did have a few side kicks too. He is one character I've always liked but has never got the proper treatment.  Captain Marvel deserves his own title because I did like the series 'Power of Shazam' in the 90's, but since then the character just hasn't been used as he should have been. But recently Geoff Johns brought him back in the New 52 as a back up story in Justice League. I think the reason why he doesn't seem to fit in is because he wasn't actually part of the DC Universe for years and was acquired years later. Marvel was actually in competition with Superman back in the 40's and 50's. I don't mind having them in the same universe, it is neat to see Marvel and Superman fight. Superman has more powers to call upon but he is vulnerable to magic, which gives Marvel his powers. They had an awesome battle in 'Kingdom Come'. Looking forward to that and further adventures from CM!

 

See you next week!

This & That: He-Man Toy Collection Update

This last weekend I attended the Calgary Comic & Entertainment Expo and I managed to acquire some more toys for my He-Man toy collection.

And this is my entire collection to date:

Thanks to social media outlets Facebook and Twitter I was able to document my recent trip to the Calgary Comic And Entertainment Expo 2012. It was quite the quest filled with misadventure, good times and a few bad. Among my many activities that weekend it included the fact I got drunk with 'The Honky Tonk Man', I got to meet Stan Lee and most of the cast of 'Star Trek: The Next Generation', and I had a talk with comic book writing icon Peter David. 


Check out my 'Captains Log' blog posts about my Calgary experience over at the Random Nerdness Blog.


www.randomnerdness.blogspot.com


See you soon!

Blog #15: Green Lantern Mini Reviews

I'm a little behind the times I'll admit because I bought this flick last summer and just watched it about a month ago, now I'm getting around to writing about it. I really liked this flick. I have not seen 'Green Lantern First Flight' yet so this is my first time seeing a DC animation Green Lantern flick. I'll admit to not being the biggest fan of Green Lantern but I really did enjoy this film. A series of short movies in one movie may have pissed off some die hard Lantern fans but being someone relatively new to the GL Universe I really enjoyed them. I definitely liked this better than the live action film from last summer.

 

 

 

I am in camp Nathan Fillion when it comes to GL, he should have played Hal in the feature film rather than Ryan Reynolds. Reynolds would have made a perfect Kyle Raynor, not Hal. As said I'm not the biggest Green Lantern fan in any way but the Hal Jordan I remember from the comics was older. He even had the 'Paulie Walnuts' grey 'wings' in his hair, thus Nathan Fillion I think would be the perfect age and look to play Hal. Also Katee Sackhoff (Starbuck from the new BSG) should have played Carol in the movie.

 

Again In regards to the feature film live action movie: I bought the Blue-Ray extended edition and on that disc in the credits there is a brief scene where Sinestro actually puts on the yellow ring which suggests that the sequel will be about him turning bad. Way too freakin soon!!! From what I have heard apparently there is a sequel being planned. Although it wasn't a commercial success they are banking on the sequel to be better received like 'The Dark Knight' was as compared to 'Batman Begins'. 

Blog #14: Comic Pull List Review

- Star Trek: This ongoing series from IDW follows the adventures of Kirk and crew from the 2009 JJ Abrams 'Star Trek' film. The issues I have read so far are OK, but they are not original tales. They have taken plot-lines from episodes of 'Star Trek: The Original Series' are put them into comic book form with the 'new' crew putting their own spin on it. The art is good and the covers are awesome. From what I have heard they are going to be doing their own original stories for future issues. I am looking forward to those.

 

- Moon Knight: I didn't know too much about this character prior to this recent series but I am very much enjoying this series. Too bad that it has apparently been cancelled as of issue 12.

 

- Supercrooks: This week I read the first issue of 'Supercrooks' by Mark Millar, Story was good and the art was great. Check out this book! I love to read tales of super villains, and as the title suggests the main characters are not 'good guys'. 

- Superman: I wanted to like this title after they announced it with the relaunch of the 'New 52', especially that George Perez would be writing this book. The art is OK, but the story kinda sucks. Very wordy and the villains so far have been less than interesting to me. But a new creative team is debuting I believe with issue 7 so hopefully things will turn around for this Superman title.

 

- Justice League Dark: I have never been a big fan of the supernatural elements of the DCU, but this title had 'Justice League' in it so I had to try it out. And by golly I am actually loving this title. Story is good and the art is fantastic. A definite monthly must read for me.

 

- Avengers VS X-Men: Not sure what to expect with this title, wreaks of 'Been There, Done That', but I've decided to give this series a try. Guarantee a main character will die, only to return 6 months later...

 

And that is all for now. Talk to you soon! 

Blog #13: Irredeemable & Incorruptible

I started reading these tiles last year, got caught up by reading trades and I was kicking myself for not having read them sooner. Published by Boom studios and created by comic writing legend Mark Waid, these titles truly are some of the best comics being done today. But sadly from what I have read bot titles are coming to an end. But at least Waid was able to tell the story he wanted to tell. Here's a brief description from me, but really i cannot do these series justice. Definitely read the trades if you are a fan of Mark Waid.  

 

- Irredeemable: In this universe there is a 'Superman' like character called 'The Plutonian' who was beloved and ridiculed by the world and one day he snaps, and the worlds greatest hero becomes it's worst villain. Literally billions here on Earth are affected by his evil deeds. In this world there is a 'Justice League'-like team of which he too was a member, and now his former teammates are on the run from their former friend who continues to try and kill them. Ever wonder what would happen if Superman went crazy, well this is the comic for you!

 

- Incorruptible: Both series take place in the same world and do tie into each other, with this one is almost the opposite of 'Irredeemable'. A former super villain named 'Max Damage' is scared straight after witnessing first hand the Plutonian destroy the city he once protected. now Max is trying to do right by the world and if possible he wants a shot at the Plutonian because when he is at full strength he is almost as strong as Plutonian, if not stronger. Max Damage got his powers from a scientist who was selling powers to people. The longer Max Damage stays awake the stronger and more invincible he becomes. But if he is caught sleeping he's just as vulnerable as any human.

 

Sad to see these series end for sure. See you next week! 

Random Nerdness: Blog #23: Edmonton Collectible Toy And Comic Show ...

Random Nerdness: Blog #23: Edmonton Collectible Toy And Comic Show ...: Last Sunday, despite the monster snow fall and poor road conditions, my Wife, youngest daughter Shelby and I made th...

This & That: Update on the He-Man Toy Collection

For those who really know me know that I am a huge fan of He-Man/Masters Of The Universe, and when I was a kid I had a huge collection of toys and action sets. But as I got older I sold off most of my collection, but now as an adult attending comic cons I intend to rebuild my collection as best as I can. Here's a few pics of my collection as it is now. I managed to buy several figures this last sunday at the Edmonton Collectible Toy And Comic Show. At the end of the month I will be attending the Calgary Comic & Entertainment Expo where I intend to continue with my hunt for more vintage He-Man toys. 

The lunch box was actually used by me in Kindergarten

Blog #12: Comic Pull List Review

- New Avengers: Honestly I have given up on this series. Brian Micheal Bendis is apparently leaving the Avengers titles this summer or fall, maybe I'll check back in depending on who the new writer is. But as of right now this series is not doing anything for me.

- Ultimate Comics Ultimates: I love this book. Jonathan Hickman is doing great things with this title, and in my opinion this is what the 'Avengers' should be in the proper Marvel Universe. But sadly I have heard Hickman will be leaving this book, maybe he'll be taking over the 'Avengers'...

- FF: Again this is a great Jonathan Hickman book which is a perfect sister title to the 'Fantastic Four'. This is a must read title  for me, but again a little birdy told me Hickman is leaving this title too... I may not stick with FF depending on who the new writer is.  

- Daredevil: This is a great book with Mark Waid writing the new adventures of Matt Murdock. In the past 10 years or so Daredevil has become a very dark book, but Waid has brought Daredevil back into the light and made this book a fun and enjoyable read. This title no longer is dark and dreary, but is now a fun action adventure comic. The way Daredevil used to be. Waid is the go-to guy for retooling existing characters.

- Superbia: Haven't got this issue yet but I am looking forward to seeing 'the real housewives of super heroes'.

See you next time. Same Bat Time, Same Bat Channel!!

Blog #11: State Of Comic Book Sales

Comic book sales are at an all time low, and what seems to be the problem? There is a number of problems with the selling of comic books today.

 

 

 

1: Comic Books are no longer readily available.

 

I think the biggest hurdle for the comic industry is the availability of comics today. In the town where I live there is no comic or book store and the nearest ones are over an hours drive away. But when I was a kid comic book spinner racks were located in almost every grocery store, gas station and pharmacy. And they had a wide selection of comic books to choose from. But now most of those business's don't have spinner racks and most don't have any comics. And the ones that do have a small selection of titles to choose from. For example in my town the ONLY DC comics title available for purchase is 'Batman'. No other DC title is sold in my town. Comics are just not widely available as they used to be. From what I understand comic distributors will not take back unsold comic books from stores, like magazine distributors do. Meaning that a store who buys comic books cannot return them for a refund if they do not sell. Thus why would any store risk ordering something that may or may not sell, and if it doesn't they are out that money. And because they are not readily available for today's youth like they were when I was a youth the industry will not attract as many 'new' readers as they did when I was a kid.

 

2: Kids have so many other things that take up their time:

When I was a kid there was no Internet. I had a Nintendo, but the games were so expensive even back then that i only had a few games at any one time. For me comic books were a cheap alternative to occupy my mind as a youth. But now kids have incredible gaming consoles, Nintendo DS's, PSP, iPods, cell phones, the Internet, TV and movies at their fingertips... there is so much technology now that comics cannot compete for the attention of youth like it did back when I was a kid.

 

3: Superheroes and be found elsewhere like movies and television: 

 

It used to be that you would have to read the 'Spider-man' comic book to follow his adventures. Not now, 3 feature films are available for viewing with a new one on the way this summer. These movies are awesome for us comic book fans, but do they help to create new readership for the comic book on which they are based? I'd say maybe 50% of the time. My son for example loves the Spider-man movies, but he doesn't read the comic. The movies are enough Spider-man for him.

 

4: Not enough originality being used in todays creators and publishers:

 

After 40, 50, 60, 70, or 80 years of tales of the same characters how original can you be anymore? I find in a lot of ways comic book creators re-using old concepts and story lines and passing them off as something new. Is it realistic to have us readers believe that a pair of black framed glasses is enough for Superman to fool award winning investigative journalist Lois Lane into not seeing Superman in Clark Kent? No. Comics, especially those done by DC and Marvel tend to have their characters repeat cycles and never truly evolve. Characters change and die as a marketing ploy to boost sales, but then they always come back or go back to the way they were.  

Blog #10: New 'DC 52' Titles

There are a few new 'DC 52' titles debuting in May replacing some low selling titles. The ones that interest me, and that I intend to get are:

 

- Batman Incorporated: I liked Grant Morrison's first Batman Inc. series and I am looking forward to see what he has in store for this new Batman Inc. This will be the 5th 'Batman' title in the new 52, and I am cool with that. The new '52' has really renewed my love for Batman and anything that Grant Morrison writes is gold to me.

 

 

 

- Worlds Finest: From what I understand this is about Power girl and Huntress being trapped on our Earth, but they are from Earth2 and wanting to get back home. Not sure how i feel about this series but when I heard Power Girl would be in it I have to check out this series. I loved 'Power Girl' when Amanda Conner was drawing her, now that was a great run.  

 

 

- Earth Two: I like the idea of an alternate Earth where we will no doubt find the Justice Society. Honestly I was not much of a DC growing up so I wasn't reading these 'alternate Earths' pre-crisis, so I am very excited to read this series as a new reader.  

 

This 'soft re-boot' DC's New 52 has been in my mind a success. To be honest with you I have always been a Marvel Comics guy but now with all these new great titles out there I'm reading more DC now than Marvel. If anything the New 52 has soured me to Marvel Comics because they are doing such great things with the New 52. Granted not all of the New 52 are great and I feel they could have cancelled a few more series, but we'll just have to wait and see what DC has in store. I for one want a 'Captain Marvel' (Shazam) comic in the new DCU, and done right with the right creative team. Being a huge fan of Peter David I nominate him for the job of writing 'Captain Marvel'.

 

Anywho that's all for now folks! 

This & That: Road To The 'Nerd Lunch' Podcast

It was about a year and a half ago when I first discovered The Atomic Geeks Podcast, and at first listen I was hooked. This group of fun loving Canadian guys sounded a lot like myself and my friends when we have geeky discussions. It was while listening to their podcasts I was first introduced to CT, from the 'Nerd Lunch' blog. CT from time to time would guest appear on The Atomic Geeks (TAG) Podcast, and I really liked his appearances. CT fit right in with the other members of TAG, and last fall CT announced that he would be starting his own podcast called The Nerd Lunch (TNL) Podcast, and that it would be a part of the TAG Network. Immediately I was excited, and I know from his TAG appearances that he is a dedicated Star Trek fan like myself. TNL was a success right from the start as far as I was concerned and they had a fan/listener in me. The format of TNL is they have a different Nerd/Geek topic they cover every week with fellow bloggers Jeeg and Pax joining CT on the podcast. But they left a '4th chair' open for others to make guest appearances on the show. I had chatted previouslyon the TAG forum at www.theatomicgeeks.com with CT on several occasions, and after episode #6 of TNL I wrote CT an E-Mail asking if I could sit in the 4th chair for a future Star Trek episode. CT agreed to have me on board for a future Trek episode, we set up and had a Skype 'Test Call' in mid-January where CT and I had a conversation about geeky stuff for about 45 minutes. We were having such a good conversation I almost didn't want to end the call, but all was set and I would be making my podcasting debut in March.

As I continue this post it is Tuesday March 6th, and a few hours ago I finished recording my first appearance on the Nerd Lunch podcast. I'll admit I was a little nervous but the entire episode went well I think. CT, Jeeg and Pax were all great to talk with and were very kind to me during the recording. I was very nervous because I am not only a listener of the Nerd Lunch podcast but I am a fan of it, so being able to sit and chat with these guys was especially thrilling for me. It is episode 28 of the Nerd Lunch podcast and the concept for this particular episode is essentially some 'What If' scenarios regarding Star Trek. It breaks down as follows:

1. A Star Trek without Shatner. Jeffrey Hunter is not replaced when they make the second Star Trek pilot and Pike remains Captain instead of Kirk.

2. Star Trek: Phase II happens. In the mid/late 70s, a new Trek television series almost came to fruition called Star Trek: Phase II. This was to have most of the original cast except Spock and three new characters, Decker, Ilia, and Xon. Due to the failure of the new Paramount network, the show fell through and became Star Trek: The Motion Picture instead. However, in our scenario, the deal did not fall through and the show launched... what would have happened?

3. At the end of the third season of Star Trek: The Next Generation, Picard is assimilated by the Borg and Riker gives orders to fire a super weapon on the Borg ship. For months we had to wait to see what the resolution would be and it was made more tense because there were rumors that Patrick Stewart might be leaving the show. In this scenario, we discuss what would have happened if he had left the show.

4. Similarly, in the episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation, "Second Chances," the crew meets a transporter duplicate of Riker who is a bit testier and surly. An original idea was floated around that the show would kill off Will Riker and the duplicate, Tom Riker, would take his place on the show. What would have happened to Trek had they made that decision.

Also the Lightning Round:
- Didn't resurrect Spock in Star Trek III
- Michelle Forbes agrees to join the cast of DS9 (This was my lightning round scenario)
- Genevieve Bujold does not walk off the set of the filming of the Star Trek: Voyager pilot "The Caretaker" and remains as 'Captain Janeway'? (Everyone contributed to this scenario)
- Denise Crosby does not leave the cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation?

All in all it was a great experience, my first attempt at podcasting. Hopefully I didn't sound too much like a fool. Can't believe I forgot 'Julie Benz' in my 'Nerd-To-Do' list... again I was a little nervous. But if you are reading this post I urge you to please give this episode a listen. It is episode #28 of the 'Nerd Lunch' podcast and is available for free downloading off of iTunes. If you liked the episode be sure to check out their other episodes as they are all great to listen to. Also it would be much appreciated by the Nerd Lunch crew if you could leave them a positive iTunes review. iTunes reviews help them out on iTunes so please leave a review. Also check out the following websites:

The Nerd Lunch Blog: http://nerdlunch.blogspot.com/

and

The Cavalcade Of Awesome Blog: http://blog.paxholley.net/

I would like to personally thank CT, Jeeg and Pax for including me in on episode 28 of the Nerd Lunch podcast, I really appreciate that. I had a blast and it was great exposure for me and my blogs. Thanks guys, I appreciate everything and keep up the great work you have been doing on the podcast!

Take care and see you next time!

Blog #9: Comic Pull List Review

Continuing my reviews of the comics on my pull list.

 

Defenders: I'm really liking this series so far from what I have read. Doctor Strange and Iron Fist are two of my favourite Marvel characters and it is great to see them together in a team book like this. I never read much 'Defenders' prior to this but so far i am enjoying the ride on this series.

 

Captain America: I really liked the Mark Waid series in the late 90's but this one is almost as good. Captain America is a great character when done right and he is being done right with this series. If only someone would reboot Captain Canuck...

 

Fantastic Four: Jonathan Hickman is a genius. These past 3 years of his run on the FF has probably been my personal favourite for this title. The Fantastic four have never been better. He did kill off Johnny Storm and bring him back, but he did it in such a cool way he is forgiven for giving into that comic book cliche. This is on my top 5 favourite current reads, along with their sister title 'FF'. having Spider-man on the team was an excellent choice, but I wish FF was his exclusive team to be on. Hickman has made these characters fun, interesting and relevant for the first time in many years. I'm hoping he stays with this series for many years to come.

 

Justice League: The flagship launch book for DC's 'New 52' has been an excellent ride thus far. Geoff Johns is an amazing writer and Jim Lee is still one of the greatest comic book artists working today, although some of his designs are very much 90's based. The story thus far has been slow building, but I'm cool with that. This is one of favourite DC titles and one of my must read titles every month.

 

Supergirl: I am behind on my reading of this title and I have only read the first 2 issues but from what I've read I am very impressed and I am looking forward to future issues.

 

Batman: This is my favourite DC title!!! I just read issue #5 and it was amazing!!! Snyder and Capullo are doing an amazing job with this series and this is easily the best of the 'New 52' by far. This new Batman villain group 'The Court Of Owls' and their hit man 'The Talon' are the best new villains I have seen in a long time. Definitely a worthy foe to the greatest Detective. If you have never checked out this series I highly suggest you seek out issue 5, it was truly an amazing issue.

 

Catwoman: Like Supergirl I have only read the first 2 issues and from what I have read I am liking this series. That Catwoman is all kinds of sexy!!

 

See you next time!! Same Bat Time, Same Bat Channel!!

Blog #8: Robert Kirkman's Work

Fall 2010 I was introduced to a new television series called 'The Walking Dead', which i had heard was based on a comic book about zombies. I'll admit that I had never heard of that comic series as I had taken a break from comic books from 2002-fall 2010. My Wife is a fan of the horror genre and this series gave us the perfect opportunity to watch a series together, and we were hooked after watching the first episode. After watching the first season and getting back into comic book reading full time I decided to check out the works of Robert Kirkman, and he has since become one of my favourite comic book writers of all time.

 

After to listening to an episode of the podcast 'Comic Geek Speak' on an episode about the comic series 'Invincible' which was created and written by Robert Kirkman. From what I heard I was convinced  to give this series a try and like the TV series 'The Walking Dead' I was hooked from the start. 'Invincible' has become my favourite comic to read right now. I liked it so much i went out and bought the 'Ultimate' hard cover editions just so I could proudly display them on my book shelf. Also the 'Ultimate' format is packed with extras and the paper and colours is amazing.

 

With the second part of 'The Walking Dead' season 2 having just premiered I decided to check out the first trade of the comic book series. And not to sound like a broken record but I was hooked once again, and I have ordered the Compendium of the first 48 issues so I can read a bulk of the series in one shot. What makes Kirkman such a great writer for me is that he speaks to me. I find his characters and method of storytelling engaging and a breath of fresh air in the comic book writing world.

 

However he does have some stuff that i am not a fan of. Last fall I decided to try 'Infinite', his newest Image title with Rob Liefeld as artist and Kirkman as Writer. I found the story interesting and I had no real issue with Kirkman's writing, it was Liefeld who ruined this series for me. Liefeld may have been an Image founder and a force in the early 90's, but he is a terrible artist in my opinion. Which is too bad for Kirkman because he seems to have great luck with working with great artists on his projects, but Liefeld's work on 'Infinite' was absolutely terrible.

 

But if you are looking for some good comic books to read I highly recommend reading 'Invincible' and 'The Walking Dead' by Writer Robert Kirkman. Also check out 'The Walking Dead' TV series on AMC, and the first season is available on Netflix.

 

 

Till next time!

Blog #7: AMC's 'Comic Book Men'

Just watched the new AMC series 'Comic Book Men' which is a reality series shot in New Jersey at Kevin Smith's 'Secret Stash' comic store. I really love this show!! I am not a fan of reality shows but this one is fantastic. I love going to comic book stores and this series is all about a comic store and those people who work and hang out there. I am definitely going to be following this series. I recently watched episode 2 and I really am digging this show. I am a huge Kevin Smith fan to begin with but aside from him I'm liking everyone else on this reality series. I know it's a staged reality show, but at this point which reality show isn't staged anymore? It is a real comic book store and these are the real guys who run it, granted some of the 'guest stars' are no doubt being payed to show up but still it is a interesting show to watch. You can tell it's produced by AMC because that store seems littered with 'The Walking Dead' comics and toys. This is a fun series and a perfect companion to 'The Walking Dead' TV show.

 

Also there is a podcast you can listen to which ties in with this series. The podcast I'm referring to is yet another podcast from Kevin Smith's 'Smodcast' network and it is called 'I Sell Comics'. It is a podcast recorded in New Jersey at Kevin Smith's 'Secret Stash' comic book store. It's a great concept to have a podcast about comics recorded at an actual comic book store during business hours. A very fun listen and the hosts are Mike and Ming from 'Comic Book Men'. The guest stars of this show so far have been customers who join in on the conversation, and people who work on the TV series. I'm hoping that Kevin Smith will stop in on the podcast as he has not yet This show is very much a companion piece to the AMC reality series being filmed there.

 

Anywho again this is a great show! Check it out Sunday Nights on AMC after 'The Walking Dead'.

 

 

Blog #6: Peter David's 'Hulk'

Growing up I was a huge fan of comic books and my absolute favorite comic book was the 'Incredible Hulk' written by Peter David. I never missed an issue from March 1993 till January 1999. Peter David is an New York Times best selling author who is probably best known for his 'Star Trek' novels. David wrote the Hulk for 12 years from 1986 to 1998. Much to my disappointment he left the book over creative differences and wrote the best Hulk comic ever in his final issue. The Hulk character was created in 1962 by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby but it was writer Peter David that really defined the character and made him more than just a dumb green savage beast. Did you know that originally the Hulk was grey and not green. His skin color was changed to green because green was a cheaper color to print than grey. Peter David created a fascinating back story to the Hulk. And I am going to get my chance to meet him this year at the Calgary Comic & Entertainment Expo. I am very excited to meet him, and I am hoping to get a photo taken with this legend of Comic Writing. I'm hoping to get a chance to ask him about comic writing as this is a field I am very interested in trying to get into. 

Anyway this is what every one should know about the Hulk- A Very Brief History: 

Robert 'Bruce' Banner is a brilliant scientist. As a kid he was a victim of child abuse at the hands of his father, Brian Banner. After witnessing his father murder his mother in a fit of rage, young Bruce testified against his father at his trial sending him to prison. After growing up and getting a job with the military to develop a 'gamma bomb' Bruce's father Brian Banner received parole. Bruce allowed his father to live with him, hoping that he changed. Brian Banner was still very much upset with his son for having testified against him and sending him to prison, Brian attempted to kill Bruce but Bruce managed to kill Brian in self defense. This was just prior to Bruce becoming the 'Hulk'. 

As a Military scientist, Bruce Banner was developing a 'gamma bomb' for the US military. On a dare teenager Rick Jones drove out to the gamma bomb to prove to his friends that he was not chicken. As the gamma bomb was ticking down to it's test detention Bruce Banner noticed the rebel teenager by his bomb facing (unknown to him) certain death. Doctor Banner raced out to the test field and grabbed the clueless Jones and they ran to the safety of a bomb trench. Banner managed to push Jones into the trench and to safety but he himself didn't fall into the trench in time and was blasted with gamma rays. After that when ever Banner became angry he was transformed into a savage giant monster known as the 'Hulk'. 

Realizing the threat and potential that Banner/Hulk represented, military General 'Thunderbolt' Ross lead a team of military officers to capture the Hulk. The Hulk spent most of his time on the run from the military and from time to time fighting super villains or super heroes, his sidekick during many of his adventures was Rick Jones. Jones felt he owed Banner is companionship because it was he who helped to create the Hulk in a way. His greatest super powered nemesis is the gamma being who calls himself 'The Leader'. The Leader was a janitor who became exposed to gamma radiation and became green skinned, his head grew in size to accommodate his giant brain. The Leader was pure evil and used his super powered intelligence for his evil deeds. The Hulk often battled The Leader and despite his greater brain power the Leader was always beaten. Eventually Banner was separated from the Green savage Hulk. Free from the Hulk Banner married his girlfriend Betty Ross, who is the daughter of the military General who hunted him. But then Banner when it turned night time, he would transform into the Grey Hulk. The Grey Hulk was not as strong as the Green one, but he was a lot smarter. Banner and the Grey Hulk eventually relocated to Las Vegas where the Grey Hulk became an enforcer for the Vegas mob and became known as 'Joe Fixit'. Eventually the green Savage Hulk and the grey wise cracking Hulk merged with Bruce Banner creating a third Hulk, a larger green skinned version known as the Banner Hulk. The Banner Hulk had the savage Hulks strength, the Grey Hulk's wise cracking attitude and the brains of Banner. The Banner Hulk joined a secret super hero group known as 'The Pantheon' and eventually became their leader. Shortly after the Banner Hulk was visited by Janis Jones, the grand daughter of his sidekick Rick Jones from over 100 years in the future. She was sent to the past by way of Dr. Doom's time machine and her mission was to bring the Hulk with her to the future to help her and her friends defeat a super powered tyrant. The Hulk agreed but unknown to him the super powered tyrant was his future self. Apparently after nuclear devastation destroyed most of the world, the future Hulk became evil and more powerful and eventually made himself ruler of the kingdom of 'Dystopia', which was built over the ruins of old New York City. The future evil Hulk called himself 'Maestro' and the Hulk was almost killed by his future evil self, but the young good Hulk managed to send the Maestro back in time with Doom's time machine. He sent him directly beside the gamma bomb that created the Hulk at it's moment of detonation. The very gamma bomb that created the Hulk, also destroyed the future Hulk too. The Banner Hulk returned to the present but was forever changed by the events of the future, and he vowed never to become the Maestro. Banner Hulk and his wife relocated to the Pantheons secret headquarters, but eventually the Pantheon was torn apart by civil war and Banner and Betty fled. The Leader had been killed, but his spirit lived on through his apprentice who also had a large head with higher intelligence, he was known as 'Omnibus'. Omnibus through the Leader spirits direction tried to create a world war and turn the world's nations against one another. Seemingly the very war that destroyed the human race and created the 'Maestro' was unfolding. The Banner Hulk realized this and was able to stop Omnibus's plans and prevented the war that created his dark future. Thus he would not become the evil Maestro after all. Eventually Banner was once again separated from being the Hulk when he was pulled into a pocket universe created by Franklin Richards, son of the Fantastic Fours Reed & Sue Richards. Separated from Banner the Hulk was a new hulk yet again. He was green and had the savage Hulk's strength, but he was on the same intelligence level of the grey Hulk, but didn't say much. I'll call him Quiet Hulk. Eventually Quiet Hulk and Banner were merged back together. Banner was normal Banner, but the Quiet Hulk would emerge when Quiet Hulk wanted to. Betty Banner died from gamma radiation poisoning and Bruce Banner/hulk blamed himself. Betty's father, General Ross too blamed Banner and Banner/Hulk was once again a wanted man and General Ross once again started the hunt for the Hulk. 

(It was at this point when Peter David stopped writing the book and I stopped reading it soon after. Peter David did return for a one shot Hulk special story called 'The End' which takes place almost 200 years in the future) 

Despite stopping the war that would have changed him into the 'Maestro' the human race still went to war with themselves. Nuclear devastation occurred, killing almost all humans and all other super heroes. The Hulk fled in disgust and hid from the world by sealing himself (and Banner) in a cave. Decades and decades went by, Banner was able to survive because there was a small creek that ran into the cave. He didn't need food because the Hulk's regenerative powers prevented him from withering away to nothing. Banner was a prisoner of the Hulks disgust of the world. Banner when in his normal form was not strong enough to escape the sealed cave, and the Quiet Hulk wasn't going to let him out either. After decades of being sealed a alien android freed Banner from the cave and informed Banner that he was the last human alive. The android bid him farewell and left. Banner travelled all over North and South America for the next hundred years or so looking for survivors, but the android was correct. Despite his extreme old age Banner was unable to die due to the Hulks regenerative power. Banner tried to commit suicide several times but the Hulk always took over to stop him. Eventually Banner did die from natural causes, seemingly reunited in heaven with his Wife and all his friends and family. Banner's death was the final separation from the Hulk. The Hulk continues to live, the last survivor of Earth...all alone.