Outpost: Texas Renaissance Festival 2020

Heroes and Villains Weekend

If memory serves me correctly, this is my twelfth visit to the Texas Renaissance Festival in Todd Mission, TX (just northwest of Houston). I love this festival. Not only do you get to step back in time, but the music, the shows, the food, and the fun are wonderful. Having been to this festival a number of times now, I’ve seen a few of my favorite acts come and go. Thankfully, a couple of my favorites are mainstays and new acts are added all of the time to keep me coming back for more.

This year’s festival was a bit different than prior years thanks to COVID-19. Regulations and requests were put in place in order to provide a safe environment for performers, employees, and visitors. The biggest change this year was that tickets had to be purchased ahead of time on the web for specific dates. A limited amount of at-the-gate tickets were available, but only for military, seniors, and students.

Clan Tynker, one of the mainstays of TRF that also happen to be my favorite performers.

As I have done every single time that I’ve attended TRF, I checked out the Clan Tynker show first. As always, they brought smiles to the crowd with their mixture of magic, music, and mind-blowing stunts. I love this group and I look forward to watching them every year. I normally grab a photo with at least one of the group each year, but I had to skip this year due to the restrictions at the festival. I guess I’ll have to grab two photos with group members next year.

The gypsy dancers are beautiful and their band is nothing short of wonderful.

I attended a number of other favorite shows including Gypsy Dance Theatre and Cirque Olympus. I know that the lovely dancers get all of the attention when it comes to Gypsy Dance Theatre, but folks need to show a little appreciation to the band as well. They are simply amazing.

Apollo gets “loopy” as Athena encourages him during his performance.

Three of the hardest working performers at the festival, at least in my opinion, are Apollo, Aphrodite, and Athena, collectively known as Cirque Olympus. Their dazzling display of rope work, balancing, hula hoop spinning, archery, and more is simply fun to watch. On top of that, they are hilarious as well. Athena brings high energy and neck-breaking stunts while Apollo juggles and balances his way into our hearts. Aphrodite flirts with the audience, does amazing ribbon work, and shows off her archery skills as well. If you’ve never been to TRF, add Cirque Olympus to the top of your list of shows to see when you visit!

Aphrodite spins gracefully (but with plenty of power).

A cool addition to the festival this year was the Pirate Museum. Featuring actual artifacts from sunken ships, this museum was a welcome surprise. Not only was it educational, it was awesome to see a number of items such as blunderbusses, dubloons, and cannons.

Yours truly, yo-ho-hoing!

This was the first year that I tried a gyro, a Greek dish that’s not to be missed! I tried one from the Greek Agora where the Gypsy Dance Theatre and Cirque Olympus shows take place. It was delicious!

My “gyro!”

There were also a ton of wonderful shops and plenty of other performers to check out. I visited the Museum of Cruelty again and also took two strolls through the Magic Garden.

Museum of Cruelty.

If you happen to be visiting the Houston or Conroe area in October or November next year, be sure to check out the Texas Renaissance Festival. It has become an annual treat for myself and my family. There are still three weekends left this season, but be sure to purchase your tickets ahead of time. Also, if you can’t make it this year, keep an eye on the festival’s social media outlets for the date of the Sale of the Century, a sale in which they slash ticket prices for one day only. I highly recommend taking advantage of the deep discount offered!

TRF valiantly fought the plague this year!

Thanks for reading my post. If you’ve ever been to TRF, let me know what you thought about it in the comments section. Also, feel free to tell me about your favorite shows, performers, and food as well!

Just one of the many displays in the pirate museum.

Spin Master 4″ DC Comics Figures

All of your favorite heroes and villains….

Earlier this year I made a post that focused on Spin Master’s acquisition of the DC Comics license for toys. I mentioned that there were a number of new figures coming out in a 4″ line that looked really great. I recently acquired some of those figures and decided to give a brief review of them.

I managed to get my hands on not one or two figures, but five new figures released in the Spin Master The Caped Crusader line and the Heroes Unite line. I’ll focus on the Caped Crusader figures first and then move on to the Heroes Unite line afterwards.

The three figures that I received from the Caped Crusader line were Nightwing, Robin, and Catwoman. While they aren’t specific with which Robin that I received, it looks like a cross between Damian Wayne and Tim Drake, as it features the colors of both Damian and Tim, but lacks Damian’s hood. Because of this, I’m leaning towards Tim Drake. That being said, there’s also another Robin in this line that does have a hood but looks like an older version of Red Robin. In any case, the figure looks great.

All of the figures, including the Heroes Unite figures, come with three mystery accessories and a perforated collector card. According to the included pamphlet, there are rare versions of each accessory and multiple variants of coloration. The Catwoman accessories appear to be colored with the Septic Sludge variant. Of all of the variants it is my least favorite. The accessories just look dirty.

The Heroes Unite figures that I received were Shazam! and The Flash. Just like the other figures, they feature eleven points of articulation and come with mystery accessories. Shazam! is especially cool because one of his accessories is Billy Batson! Almost all of the other accessories are lame, but a Billy Batson figurine almost makes up for it.

The collector cards for all of the figures are pretty cool. I’m especially fond of the card that came with Shazam! It features the best artwork, but the Flash/Cyborg card looks pretty awesome as well. All of the figures are brightly colored and are very easy to pose.

Other figures in this line include King Shark, Bronze Tiger, Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman. All of them look awesome and they appear to be very popular as the shelves are emptying out everywhere. I’ve been looking for some of the other characters such as Aquaman and Cyborg, but they are proving to be difficult to find.

I hope that Spin Master continues producing these figures. They look great and are excellent as both toys for children and as collectibles. I plan on keeping all of them on my shelf at work and plan on adding more of these figures to my collection soon.

Let me know what you think about these figures. Do you have any of them? If so, which ones are your favorites? As always, thanks for reading my post. Look for more toy reviews in the near future!

The Mandalorian Season 2

Episode 1: The Marshal

This is a spoiler free review for the most part. Some images may hint at a few suprises/Easter eggs.

The second season of The Mandalorian finds our hero (Pedro Pascal) continuing his mission to return the child to its people. In order to do so, he is instructed to find another Mandalorian. This leads him to Tatooine and a would-be Mando named Cobb Vanth (Timothy Olyphant), the local marshal in the forgotten town of Mos Pelgo. Realizing that Vanth isn’t a Mando, the Mandalorian demands that he give up the armor. This results in a Western-styled face-off that is interrupted by a krayt dragon.

Knowing that he’ll most likely die in a shoot out with the Mandalorian, Vanth cuts a deal with him: the armor in exchange for assistance in killing the krayt dragon that’s terrorizing the town.

The Mandalorian agrees with Vanth and the duo set out to hunt the beast down in its lair. Along the way they meet up with some Tusken Raiders. An uneasy pact is formed between the Tuskens and the citizens of Mos Pelgo. Do they remain united long enough to kill the krayt dragon? Where did Vanth get his armor? You’ll have to watch The Marshal in order to find out!

This was an excellent start to the second season of the series. Along with the child, another familiar (and friendly) face shows up and we get another glimpse at Tusken culture. There are nods to the films and one specific character from the Star Wars universe, but you’ll have to watch the show to see what I’m talking about.

Of all of the episodes so far, this one feels the most like a classic Western. From the stand-off to the reveal of a surprising character that sets up future episodes, this episode was great. Pascal and Olyphant did wonderful jobs and I hope that Olyphant returns later in the season. The pacing was excellent and the music was simply amazing.

Be sure to check out this episode of The Mandalorian. If you haven’t watched any of the other episodes, be sure to do so. Thanks for reading my post. I’ll review Episode 2 next week!

Cosplay Break: Ivy Doomkitty

Doom!

I had the honor of meeting cosplayer Ivy Doomkitty a few years ago. She was extremely nice and didn’t mind answering questions about her many costumes. If you’re familiar with her work, you know that she tends to put a sexy spin on her cosplays or gender bends characters.

Photographer unknown.

Ivy has become known as an advocate for body positivity and is in high demand for appearances at conventions. She is also involved with a number of charities.

To learn more about Ivy Doomkitty, check out her website or look her up on social media.

Photographer unknown.

This is the first in a new series of cosplay focused blog posts for my page. I plan on giving a quick glimpse at different cosplayers from all over the world. I’ll be posting about cosplayers that I like and sharing a few of their images on this page. I chose Ivy first because I appreciate the work that she does not only on her costumes, but with charities and body positivity as well.

She was not made aware of this post. It’s simply an appreciation post.

If you know any cosplayers that might want to be highlighted on my blog, just let me know. As always, thanks for checking out my blog.

Election Day 2020

Make your choice!

Today is Election Day in the United States of America. While there are a number of things that voters will be deciding today at the local, state, and federal level, the focus will obviously be on the presidential election. Please know that I will never try to sway anybody that visits this blog to vote one way or the other. Voting is a personal matter and it is each individual’s duty to seek out information on all of the candidates running for a specific office.

With that being said, I hope that everyone takes this election and any other election seriously. Don’t simply waltz into the voting booth and check off the candidates that have the same letter after their name that you have after your name. Study each candidate. If you have the chance, visit a rally even if it’s for a candidate that you don’t support. Cherish your right to vote.

I plan on voting later this afternoon whenever I get off of work. I’ve never been a fan of early voting because candidates will often change their tune just a few days prior to election day. I’ve seen it a million times over and I’m sure that it will continue long after I am gone.

I have friends that span the entire voting spectrum. We don’t always agree on politics, but we remain friends. No matter who wins the election today, I hope that most Americans will remain friendly with one another. Let’s all agree to disagree and get on with our lives.

If you do live in the United States of America, I hope that you exercise your right to vote. Again, I’m not going to sway you one way or the other, but I do hope that you get out and make your voice heard!

Thanks for reading my post. There will be more nerdy goodness coming soon!

McFarlane Toys DC Multiverse Superman: Action Comics

“Look! Up in the sky!”

Batman is, was, and always will be my favorite DC Comics superhero. He’s my favorite overall as well, with Marvel’s Nightcrawler having been nudged into second place after a thirty plus year run as my co-favorite with Batman. Superman was popular with me as a child, but as I grew older, I became bored with the character. He was too powerful in my mind and thus, almost impossible to defeat. This meant that no matter who he faced off against, he really had no equals in the world.

Well, perhaps in my old age I have become tenderhearted or maybe I’m just feeling really nostalgic, but over the last five or so years I have grown to love the character of Superman once again. He’s still not my favorite, but he’s squeaking into the top five. The character is simply iconic and impossible to ignore. When McFarlane Toys took over the DC toy contract, I was immediately on the hunt for some of their six and seven inch characters. The first one that I purchased wasn’t Batman, however. It was the DC Rebirth Action Comics Superman. It’s wonderful.

Yes, you can play with this action figure, but it’s entirely too brilliant to be wasted on such juvenile things. This figure needs to be displayed prominently! With twenty-two points of articulation, swappable hands (fists or open hands), a soft plastic cape, and a display stand that allows for Supes to be “in flight,” this figure will look great in a display case, on a shelf, or on a desk.

The attention to detail is excellent, but the figure isn’t without a few issues. For one, notice in the photo above that there are a few specks of white on the figure. Those specks are blue in real life, but show up as white in the photo. They are actually small abrasions on the figure either from packaging or from the mold. You can’t notice them when looking at the figure in person, however.

Similar abrasions are found on the legs but, again, they aren’t visible to the eye in person. If these types of things bother you, you may want to hold off on purchasing this figure. Personally they don’t bother me since I didn’t notice them until looking closely at the figure.

The figure looks great on my desk at work and I’ve had a number of people ask me about it. Of all of the action figures and collectible items that I have on my desk, Superman is the one that gets the most compliments and comments. His mass appeal is not lost on hardened contract workers, older employees, or even retired military. Everyone seems to love the Big Blue Boy Scout, myself included.

There are a number of other figures in this line, and I’m eyeing Nightwing and one of the many Batman figures that have been released so far. I hope that you enjoyed this quick glimpse at Superman. Thanks for reading this post.

A Look At November

Lift Your Cares…..

With Thirty-One Days O’Horror behind us for the year, let’s take a quick glimpse at what’s ahead for Ken’s Alternate Universe in November. The first episode of season two of The Mandalorian was released on Friday, October 30th, and instead of giving a general review of the series, I think that I’m going to do a weekly review of each episode as it is released. Look for my first review later this week.

I also plan on reviewing Hollywood Gothic by David J. Skal. I hoped to review it in October as part of Thirty-One Days O’Horror, but work prevented me from completing the book in time to give it a proper review. That review will be hitting within the next couple of weeks.

I also plan to continue my regular posts such as Throwback Thursday, Classic Horror, and the occasional Focus On entry as well. I’m also going to have a couple of Outpost entries starting up after next weekend. The first one will be for one of my favorite events of the year: The Texas Renaissance Festival.

I’ll have more toy reviews, collectible reviews, movie reviews, and a few other surprises as well. I hope that you join me.

As always, thanks for reading my post. See you soon!

Thirty-One Days O’Horror: Monsters, Inc.

“We scare because we care.”

Almost exactly nineteen years ago, Disney and Pixar released the wildly popular Monsters, Inc. The film starred John Goodman and Billy Crystal as James P. “Sulley” Sullivan and Mike Wazowski, respectively. In the film, monsters harness the screams of children to power their city, Monstropolis. To do this, the monsters enter children’s bedrooms at night via their closet doors and scare them. In a twist, however, the monsters are actually scared of the children because the touch of a child is considered to be toxic. When Sulley accidentally lets a young girl enter the monster world, chaos ensues and a wicked plan to kidnap children is uncovered.

Sulley and his co-worker, Mike, team up to get the young girl, nicknamed “Boo,” back home and battle the wicked Randall (Steve Buscemi), who is intent on capturing children and using their screams forever since it is becoming more difficult to scare children in modern times. Do Mike and Sulley save Boo? What truths do they reveal while attempting to save her? You’ll have to watch Monsters, Inc. to find out!

The film features a wonderful cast that includes Jennifer Tilly, James Coburn, Frank Oz, Bonnie Hunt, and John Ratzenberger. There are a number of laugh out loud moments for both children and adults as well. It’s a great twist on being afraid of the monsters in your closet and probably eased the troubled minds of a few youngsters as well.

Goodman and Crystal work well together in this film. Crystal’s frantic voice makes Mike one of the funniest characters in the movie. Goodman’s “aw, shucks” delivery makes Sulley the most lovable character in the film. Steve Buscemi has always done an awesome job as sleezy, deceptive characters, and because of this, Randall is the perfect foil to Mike and Sulley.

One of the standout characters in the film is Roz (Bob Peterson), a cranky Scare Floor worker who seems to really, really hate her job. I won’t spoil the surprise twist to her character revealed in the film, but it’s wonderful.

The movie was a real beast at the box office, earning the top spot for two weeks straight until finally getting knocked into second place by the first Harry Potter film. It has remained a consistent performer on home media and streaming services.

While it isn’t necessarily a scary film, it does have a few spooky moments. When Mike goes into a rage, it can definitely scare little ones, and the plot point involving kidnapping children in order to capture their screams is scary all on its own. Overall, though, the film can be enjoyed by all ages. It’s easily in my top ten for Pixar films and falls somewhere in my top thirty for Disney films. It’s fun to watch even as an adult.

This is my final Thirty-One Days O’Horror post for 2020. The year has been pretty scary itself, but I do appreciate any and all of you that have visited my blog, liked my posts, or left comments. I didn’t get to post about all of the things that I hoped to such as David J. Skal’s book, Hollywood Gothic (I’ll catch that in November) due to the fact that I’ve been working twelve hour days, seven days a week ever since Hurricane Laura hit, but I am glad that I was able to post on every day of October. I’m going to dial it back for the rest of the year, but I hope to throw in a few more spooky posts before 2020 is over.

As always, thanks for reading my post. I hope that you enjoyed this year’s Thirty-One Days O’Horror topic, Disney Horror, and all of the other Halloween goodies that I threw in throughout the month. Let me know which topics you’d like me to cover next year in the comments section and feel free to tell me which posts were your favorite as well.

Thirty-One Days O’Horror: Disney’s Greatest Villain

“I’ll find her! I’ll find her if I have to burn down all of Paris!”

Disney has tons of memorable villains in their films. From the first feature length villain, the Evil Queen, to characters that have been given their own franchise films such as Maleficent, Disney knows how to make a great villain. But which one rises above the pack to be crowned Disney’s greatest villain? That question is tougher than you’d think.

There are plenty of sound arguments for characters such as Scar from The Lion King or Jafar from Aladdin. Both of them wanted to rule their respective worlds and went as far as murdering others to gain power. Scar even convinced his nephew and would-be king, Simba, into believing that he was the reason for his own father’s death. To that end, Scar definitely moves up the list. There’s someone more sinister than him, however.

Then there are villains like Callaghan/Yokai from Big Hero 6 and Syndrome from The Incredibles. One is driven by vengeance and the other by jealousy, but neither one of them comes close to my personal choice for Disney’s greatest villain.

So who is Disney’s greatest villain in my opinion? None other than Judge Claude Frollo, Minister of Justice of Paris and the cruel and twisted adoptive guardian of Quasimodo in 1996’s The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Not only was Frollo a murderer, he raised Quasimodo to fear the world and trust only in him. He utilized his power and his station in life to manipulate others into doing vile things such as driving out the “heathen” Gypsies while at the same time harboring great lust for Esmerelda, a Gypsy woman who befriends Quasimodo.

Hiding behind religion, Frollo convinces himself that Esmerelda must be his or die for the greater good. His twisted interpretation of Roman Catholicism and attempts at legitimizing his own failures and shortcomings as the work of others reflects failures within not only organized religion, but in society as a whole. I say all of this as a Roman Catholic myself, so please don’t tell me that the Church or any of the Protestant branches do not include people like this. I have personally known people that used their version of faith as a tool to perform cruel acts in the name of God. These people, like Frollo, are hypocrites and downright evil.

Frollo abuses Quasimodo mentally and emotionally and bastardizes Quasi’s ideals about faith and religion. He declares Esmerelda to be the source of his lustful desires, passing the blame onto her so that he can remain pious. This guy is straight up bad news.

He already has power. He’s one of the most respected and feared men in all of Paris. His true desire is to rid himself of Quasimodo by hiding him away from the world in an attempt to clear his own conscious for murdering Quasi’s mother, and to take Esmerelda in all of the worst ways. This guy ticks off most of the seven deadly sins, and justifies doing so in his own twisted way. Frollo’s drive is grounded in reality: adult, selfish, and evil.

Brought to life by the voice of Tony Jay, Frollo is also the owner of one of Disney’s greatest (and most adult) songs: Hellfire. Going to great lengths to describe his desires for Esmerelda and with visuals that push the limits of a kid’s movie, Hellfire is simply great. Along with Be Prepared from The Lion King, Hellfire is one of my favorite Disney songs.

So, do you agree with me? Is Frollo the greatest Disney villain? Let me know in the comments section.

As always, thanks for reading my post. Tomorrow I’ll be finishing off Thirty-One Days O’Horror for 2020!