Ken's Alternate Universe!

Huge Weekend Ahead!!!!

Hattiesburg, MS

I have to admit that I am totally stoked for this weekend! Southern Geek Fest is almost upon us and it is looking like it will be a blast! Rafe White, Tim Nicholas, and a whole bunch of other excellent nerdy people have managed to put together what I believe will be one of the best fan-run first time conventions to come along in a long time.

I’ve been to many conventions over the last few years and a few of them were first timers. In fact, the very first convention that I ever went to was a first timer and, considering the state of fandom and conventions at the time and the size of the area it was serving, it was very good. Another one that I went to was in a large city (Houston) and while it didn’t have many guests, it was very well attended and had very few bumps. That particular convention has grown by leaps and bounds over the years and has become one of my favorite conventions to attend (I’m looking at you, Space City Comic Con).

Southern Geek Fest has an excellent (and lengthy) list of guests, and you can find most of them listed throughout other posts I’ve done about this convention, but two of the biggest guests that I’m interested in meeting are Ann Mahoney of The Walking Dead and Tim Russ of Star Trek: Voyager and Star Trek: Renegades. Both of these actors are amazing talents and happen to be a part of two of my favorite shows. Mahoney portrays Olivia on TWD and that particular character is still growing and forming on the screen. Russ portrays Tuvok on both Voyager and Renegades. He’s one of my favorite Vulcans and a real source of humor despite lacking all emotion. I’m really excited to meet them both!

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

There are plenty of other wonderful guests that will be in attendance. The above slideshow gives you just a taste of all of the excellent cosplayers, podcasters, comic artists, and other talent that will be present. There will even be a village idiot at the event (The Discount Dark Knight, me)! To get a glimpse at the full lineup, head on over to the convention’s website and check out everything that’s going to be at the event!

I’ll be arriving on Friday evening for the convention. If you’re going to be in attendance, be sure to let me know and we can hang out for a bit. I’m looking forward to meeting a few old friends that I haven’t seen in awhile, a few other friends that I’ve never met in person (courtesy of ye old Facebook), and hopefully I’ll make a few new friends as well.

Also, DDK will have a slightly different look at the convention. Be sure to check out his new cowl and cape combo. The cowl is in the photo below. Sexy, isn’t it????

If you can’t make it to Southern Geek Fest this weekend, have no fear! Next weekend is CyPhaCon in Lake Charles, LA! It’s also a fan-run convention but it has been around for a few years and has grown consistently larger and better each year. I’ll be in attendance at that convention as well, so be sure to come by and say hello to me. They’ll have Nana Visitor from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and a whole bunch of other guests as well. I’ll be posting more about CyPhaCon next week, so be on the lookout for that post. For now, go to CyPhaCon’s website for more information.

Again, I’m really excited to be going to Southern Geek Fest this weekend and I really hope that this convention is a hit. I personally know some of the folks involved with this event and I want it to be a success for them and for all of Mississippi and the rest of us nerds on the Gulf Coast!

As always, thanks for reading my post. Talk at ya soon!

Black N’ Blue

On The Big Screen And Across The Web

(No Spoilers, So Read With No Worries)

With the dust settling on the recent Deadpool movie (which I still haven’t seen) and plenty of hype surrounding the upcoming Captain America: Civil War, DC Comics and Warner Brothers decided to sneak in a little flick hoping to cash in on the seemingly endless flow of Marvel’s comic book movies.

Nah, there was a ton of hype for Batman Vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice, and despite bad reviews from “professional” critics, BvS still managed to have the largest opening for a comic book film in the world and the biggest opener for Warner Brothers ever.

Was it perfect? Absolutely not. Was it still a good film? You betcha!

BvS, for those who may not know, is a tale that takes place about eighteen months after the events in Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel (which, for the record, wasn’t that great in my opinion). After witnessing the destruction of Metropolis firsthand and then watching other events unfold that seem to be a result of the reckless actions of Superman, Bruce Wayne sets out to put an end to the alien’s godlike reign. Clark Kent, on the other hand, sees the actions of Gotham City’s resident vigilante to be out of control and intends to uncover who really is behind the mask. Of course, a lot of things are happening behind the scenes and both of our heroes are being manipulated to an eventual endgame, but I don’t want to spoil that for any potential moviegoers.

The film takes a fair amount of time to develop, but that shouldn’t be a surprise to anybody that has ever viewed a Zack Snyder film. However, I will say that this film has plenty of action laced throughout and I never found myself bored while watching it as I did with Man of Steel, Sucker Punch, or Watchmen. If you managed to tolerate the development of the first Iron Man film, you’ll be able to make it through BvS.

The cast is fairly solid in my opinion. Gal Gadot is excellent as Diana Prince/Wonder Woman. Jeremy Irons drew laughs from the crowd as Alfred Pennyworth. Henry Cavill does a decent job with what he’s given to work with as Clark Kent/Superman, but I still believe that the character is terribly underdeveloped. Holly Hunter, Tao Okamoto, Laurence Fishburne, Harry Lennix, Christina Wren, and Kevin Costner provide solid support as new characters and a few old ones revisited from Man of Steel.

Two other members of the cast were written off almost as soon as they were announced. Ben Affleck was ripped to pieces by plenty of angry fanboys and other idiots, but he pulled off both of his characters with brilliance. “Both”? Yep, I consider Bruce Wayne and Batman to be two different characters. Up until this film’s release, I considered Michael Keaton to be the superior Batman on the screen and Christian Bale as the best Bruce Wayne. Ben Affleck has replaced both of them as my favorite actor in both roles. His portrayal of an aged and mature Bruce was perfect. His grizzly and violent portrayal of Batman injected some much needed fear and brutality into the character on the big screen.

While most people share my opinion of Affleck’s performance, Jesse Eisenberg doesn’t get as much love. In fact, he’s probably the most polarizing presence in the entire film. People either love him or hate him. I happened to really enjoy his performance in the film. He’s young, aggressive, and a bit stuck on himself. To me, that’s the perfect base for the future power-hungry and intelligent man he will become. Let Eisenberg’s portrayal grow on you a bit, because I believe that big things are coming for the character later on.

Many have said that the plot is off balance, convoluted, and just plain trash. Those people have every right to express their opinion, but I just don’t see where they are coming from. Yes, there are a few bumps in the road, but in no way is this film trash. The story develops just fine in my opinion, with action on par with both of the Avengers films and, in the case of Batman, brutality that gives the R-rated Punisher films a run for their money.

The big face-off between Supes and the Dark Knight was excellent. Borrowing heavily from the same sequence within Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns, the fight is paced well, is believable within the confines of a comic book, and has a decent payoff.

Of course, you can’t expect two of the comic world’s greatest heroes (and best friends) to end their feud on a sour note, so a new threat makes its presence known in the third act as the result of the actions of the grand manipulator. While I won’t name that villain here, the name and image of that character has been plastered in countless articles and even in trailers for the film.

When this baddie shows up, a third hero pops into action. That hero, Wonder Woman, enters the battle and takes the action up a notch. Many people were glad to see Diana Prince on the screen (I was one of them) and while she’s only in the film for a brief time, she makes full use of every second.

When the dust settles, we’re left with the foundation for the future of DC on the big screen. In recent years, only the Christopher Nolan Dark Knight films have impressed me. As mentioned earlier, Man of Steel isn’t a favorite and Green Lantern could have been a whole lot better….really, a whole lot, but I do believe that BvS gives DC some solid footing in the market.

Marvel is way ahead of the curve when it comes to comic-to-film adaptations. They’ve got many years of developing their stories and characters under their belt, and I believe that because of this there is a lot of unfair comparisons between Marvel and DC on the silver screen. Yes, DC is playing catch up, but where critics give Marvel a pass on plot holes and foreshadowing that may or may not make sense at first, they hammer DC in this film for doing the same thing.

NEWSFLASH: DC FILMS ARE NOT MARVEL FILMS

Once critics get this through their heads and decide to hop off of the “Marvel makes nothing but awesome films” bandwagon (I’m looking at you, Age of Ultron, Iron Man 3, Thor: The Dark World, and The Incredible Hulk), I believe that the playing field with critics will level out a bit. Until then, ignore the critics and give this film a shot. It’s the basis for what looks to be great things to come, and I can’t wait to see some of my favorite heroes on the screen together for the first time.

CyPhaCon!!!

One Month And One Day Away

Hot on the heels of Southern Geek-Fest in Hattiesburg, MS, Lake Charles will host the sixth edition of one of the most successful fan-run conventions in the state of Louisiana. CyPhaCon opens up for what looks to be another successful year with an excellent gathering of media guests, comic artists, cosplayers, performance groups, vendors, and panelists that are sure to please.

Sci-Fi Guests of Honor include the lovely Nana Visitor of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and the dashing Aaron Douglas, perhaps best known for his work on the reimagined Battlestar Galactica. Both of these guests have a long list of performances that range from stage to screen and include appearances on shows such as Grimm and The Flash.

Tony Amendola is this year’s Pop Culture Guest of Honor. An actor with a long and successful career, Amendola is known for roles in features such as Blow, The Mask of Zorro, and The Legend of Zorro. He has also appeared on multiple television programs including Once Upon A Time and Stargate: SG-1.

Anime fans, the folks that I consider to be the foundation of much of CyPhaCon’s success, aren’t left out of the fun this year. Monica Rial (Dragon Ball Z Kai, Tokyo Ghoul) joins the guest list as does returning local favorite, Kyle Hebert (Naruto, Wreck-It Ralph) to give anime fans the chance to meet the faces behind beloved voices in anime.

Sure, celebrity guests are excellent, but what can be done for the rest of the day? CyPhaCon has you covered with a room full of artists, vendors, and crafters. They also have excellent entertainment that includes cosplayers like Silly Little Missy and Cute Classy Chaos, performance groups such as Take One Productions and the lovely ladies of Orion’s Envy, as well as three bands for your listening and viewing pleasure. The Tugboats open things up on Friday night, and the Suzaku 7 and Bedlam Bards offer up entertainment during the weekend.

10551548_1172718272755344_1400152015886887974_o — Orion’s Envy

CyPhaCon has a ton of other excellent things to see and do over the second weekend of April. Visit them on Facebook or check out their website for more information. Be sure to be a part of this excellent weekend one week after Southern Geek-Fest!

Suzaku 7’s lead singer

Orion’s Envy

Oh, and here’s a couple of photos of myself with some of the excellent guests that will be in attendance at CyPhaCon.

As always, thanks for reading. I can’t wait to see all of you in a few weeks at Southern Geek-Fest and then CyPhaCon one week later!!!

Southern Geek-Fest!!!

One Month Away!

It’s hard to believe that Southern Geek-Fest is just one month away. I know that this has been a major project for Rafe White, Tim Nicholas, and their vast army of geeky support to put together, but everything appears to be coming into place for this first year event! I cannot wait to be a part of this excellent convention!

Over the last few of days, the convention staff has really amped up the push for the convention by adding even more guests, linking the convention to Twitter (@SGeekFesT) and Instagram (SGEEKFEST), and posting videos from guests like Tim Russ and Kimberly Battista on Facebook. The list of guests has expanded greatly, so be sure to check out www.southerngeekfest.com for all of the latest info.

For just a little primer, here are a few of the guests that they plan to have on hand for the event:

And if that isn’t enough for ya, here are a few more:

12628567_10208378660768532_3113241540305483709_o

12419033_10208223608932333_4857243410685908640_o

12466286_10208229702764675_9105885229703823226_o

12493436_10208335875938938_8800077668140034584_o

Still not convinced? Well, you drive a hard bargain, but some excellent cosplayers will also be on hand like these gifted young ladies right here:

Look, folks, there are literally a ton of other guests that will be on hand for this event. Fan-run conventions of this caliber don’t come along very often, so be sure to go out and support Southern Geek-Fest next month.

I hope I get to see all of you out there and if not, maybe you’ll run into my boss:

Yep! That’s right! You’re ol’ pal DDK will be in attendance at this event. Come by and say hello to him, get a high five, a hug, free candy, or who knows what else he’ll have in his utility belt!

Thanks for reading as always. I plan on trying to get at least one or two interviews at this convention and will post them as soon as I can after the convention.

I hope to make these convention posts a regular thing in this blog. Be on the lookout next week whenever I’ll focus on CyPhaCon, which happens exactly one week after Southern Geek-Fest!

Disney World!!!!!

The Happiest Place On Earth!

(Note: As a rule, I never publish photos of my children in this blog. That’s why everything you see features me and no one else)

For most folks in southern Louisiana, Mardi Gras is a magical time of year that starts with Twelfth Night and finishes with Ash Wednesday. While Ash Wednesday is primarily a Roman Catholic holiday, The weeks that build up to it and Mardi Gras have been embraced by people of all sorts of religious (and non-religious) backgrounds and is basically a huge world holiday.

Well, being from Louisiana and having lived all of my life here, Mardi Gras is fun, but it never hurts to miss it every now and then. For starters, there’s a large influx of tourists in the larger cities like New Orleans, Lake Charles, and Lafayette, that are only familiar with the glitzy and heavily commercialized version of Mardi Gras that most people know and love. In rural Louisiana, it’s an entirely different story, but I’ll save that for another post.

With the large amounts of visitors comes large amounts of traffic, inebriated drivers, and a few bad guys as well. This year, my family decided to skip Mardi Gras and head for sunny central Florida to visit Disney World. It was one of the best ideas we’ve had as a family in a long time.

Our adventure started with our arrival at the Port Orleans French Quarter Resort. The resort was extremely nice, and as always, Disney went to great lengths to recreate that old New Orleans/Mardi Gras feeling that we all know and love. We were offered Mardi Gras beads upon entry to the main building, given a quick rundown of what our plan included, and shown where our room would be.

Our room was located in Building 7, right near the water. It was a lovely place to be both day and night. The courtyard was reminiscent of many New Orleans homes in the Garden District, and the early morning fog only added to the atmosphere.

We went to Disney’s Hollywood Studios first. There, we rode the Great American Movie Ride, took in the Indiana Jones stunt show, and survived the Hollywood Tower of Terror. We had an excellent meal plan and took in some great food with it.

We did a ton of walking and visited a few shops as well. Hollywood Studios is, at least to me, the smallest park in the bunch, and it was a nice way to spend our first (and shortest) day at the park.

Day Two found us at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. This is, was, and always will be my favorite park. From the wonderful Festival of the Lion King show to the hilarious It’s Tough To Be A Bug production to the excellent Expedition Everest, I love everything that this park has to offer.

My daughter and I were handpicked by an African band in the park to help them out with some traditional African dancing. We, along with a few other volunteers, did our best to do justice to Africa’s wonderful traditions.

Yeah, that’s me in the Batman hoodie trying to get my groove on!

Our next day was spent at the Magic Kingdom. It’s a close second as far as favorite parks go, primarily because it has some of the best rides and activities. We took the Jungle Cruise, rode Splash Mountain, Space Mountain, Seven Dwarves Mine, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Pirates of the Caribbean, the Haunted Mansion, and many other rides. Myself and one of my children took on A Pirate’s Adventure~Treasures of the Seven Seas, a map-based game that sent you on the hunt for pirate treasure in Adventureland. It featured realistic treasure maps and interactive points of interest. It’s a whole lot of fun!

Our fourth day at the parks included a visit to Epcot. We took more photos with characters here than at any other park. We toured the various countries, rode almost all of the rides, and had a generally great time. What I love about Epcot is that the emphasis is on educational fun. Each ride and exhibit we toured featured multiple educational opportunities. From weather to space to communications and countries, we learned a lot on this visit!

Our final day at Disney World featured a return trip to Disney’s Hollywood Studios. We rode the Rockin’ Rollercoaster and took an extensive tour of the Star Wars Launch Bay. It was an excellent journey through the films, characters, and music of Star Wars. We also got to meet Kylo Ren and a couple of First Order Stormtroopers (and a Jawa)! One of the kids also visited the Star Wars Droid Factory and built two custom droids!

This was a much needed trip for my family. It has been a rough few weeks at work for both myself and my wife, and the kids needed a break as well. We were sad to go home, but know that soon enough we will be returning to Disney World again.

For the record, this was my third time to visit the Mouse That Walt Built, and a first trip for one of our kids. We had a blast!

As always, thanks for reading, and just so you know, the characters that we took photos with included Goofy, Mickey, Pluto, Chip and Dale, Belle, Kylo Ren, King Louis, Baloo, and Flik!

It’s Con Season!!!!

Lake Charles, LA

Sure, sure, plenty of folks have already turned on their geek in 2016 at Wizard World New Orleans, but for me, con season doesn’t really start until April 2nd, whenever myself and tons of other geeks meet up for the first ever Southern Geek-Fest put on by, you guessed it, Southern Geek. This fan group (which I’m proud to say that I am a part of) has become a major force in the southern United States, attending multiple conventions and spreading the Southern Geek message for anybody that will listen (and a few held against their will).

I’m going to be volunteering at this convention and I cannot wait for it to get here! It’s going to be a great event featuring guests such as Trina Nishimura of Attack On Titan fame, Tim Russ from Star Trek: Voyager and Star Trek: Renegades, Ann Mahoney (Olivia) and featured Walkers from The Walking Dead, numerous talented artists like Ken Davis, Cave Moran, and Gavin Michelli, cosplayers that include Angie Starr and Alice Infinity, and so much more!

It will take place in Hattiesburg, MS at the Forrest County Multi-Purpose Center. It’s going to be a fun time and hopefully I’ll get to meet a few of my wonderful readers at the convention!

11407273_1854547714770840_3633296518084608331_n

12115751_1909741889251422_9049287839111044921_n

12493743_1952210181671259_6869557977887514384_o

Be sure to check out the convention’s website here. Also, visit their Facebook page and check out all of the cool stuff that’s going to go down in Mississippi!

Literally one weekend later, I’ll be manning the USS Lafitte table at CyPhaCon 2016. This convention has been growing each year and shows no signs of slowing down. The event will take place at the Lake Charles Civic Center from April 8th to the 10th. I’ve always had a good time at this event, and this year doesn’t look like it is going to prevent me from doing so again.

The Anime Guest of Honor is Monica Rial, best known for her work on Michiko & Hatchin, Dragon Ball Z Kai, and Tokyo Ghoul. She was supposed to attend last year, but something came up and she was unable to attend. This year, however, it looks like she is locked in and I’m sure anime fans will have a blast getting to meet her.

Fans of Battlestar Galactica and a recent episode of The Flash might recognize CyPhaCon‘s media guest, Aaron Douglas. He is the latest big announcement and, according to the convention’s Facebook page, there’s at least one more major media guest announcement still to come! Be sure to check out there website by clicking here.

Other guests will include authors like S. Usher Evans, T.S. Barnett, and Chris Hayes. Comic artists, cosplayers, and other guests will also be in attendance. The convention’s Facebook page is very active and is constantly posting new additions to their lineup, so be sure to check’em out.

Oh, and did I mention that Orion’s Envy will be there????

Next up is Space City Comic Con! This event will take place at the end of May, from the 27th to the 29th at the NRG Center. At the moment, I will probably only be able to attend on one day of the event. Hopefully that will change and I’ll get to hang out with my Texas geeks all weekend long.

The guest list is amazing…..and long! Media guests include Ron Perlman, Doug Jones, Gates McFadden, Marina Sirtis, Michael Dorn, Rene Auberjonois, Alex Kingston, Adrian Paul……you get the idea! There will also be writers, comic artists, tons of vendors, cosplayers and a whole lot more. As the event gets closer, I’ll post more info. Until then, check out the event here.

Space City has always been one of my favorite events to attend. I remember going to the first one at the Galleria a few years ago and have always been amazed at how much the event has grown over the years.

As you read above, the guest list is very extensive BUT I’m super excited to let everybody know that one of my favorite doctors, Doctor McKennah (Michele Specht) from Star Trek Continues, will be returning for her second go round at this event! I met her for the first time last year and HAD A BLAST. This year, Chris Doohan (yep, James Doohan’s son) will be attending the event with her. He portrays his father’s character, Scotty, on STC. Also in attendance will be STC guest star and Farscape great, Gigi Edgley, and Rod Roddenberry (Gene’s son).

The final planned event that I will be attending at the moment is Bayoucon in Sulphur, LA. The convention will take place at the WestCal Arena Events Center on June 24th through the 26th. The event is still adding guests at this time, at their current list includes Ann Mahoney of The Walking Dead, Bobby Clark (the Gorn) from Star Trek, and Scott Schwartz, who has guest starred on multiple shows including Star Trek: Enterprise, DS9, and Voyager, among other TV shows and films.

Bayoucon is a fun local event that features multiple artists, authors, cosplayers, and vendors. Last year was one of their most solid events to date, and hopefully this convention will keep growing.

There are other events that will be happening this year that I really would like to attend, but life happens, and I may not be able to make it. If I can, I’ll be sure to let you all know.

As always, thanks for reading. Let me know if any of you will be attending any of these events and maybe we’ll get to hang out!

End Of The Year Review

Adios, 2015

This post is going to be long, so be prepared. It won’t bother me one bit if you jump ahead to the stuff that interests you the most. Feel free to do so.

2015 was a pretty good year for me. I met a myriad of awesome people (celebs and plain janes like myself), lived to see another great entry into the Star Wars saga, celebrated my birthday with friends and Jurassic World, discovered some wonderful new bands, and attended some great conventions.

That Star Wars Flick

star-wars-the-force-awakens-john-boyega-oscar-isaac

Let’s start things off with the long-awaited Star Wars: The Force Awakens opening in December of this year. Fans of all ages flocked to see this film, and I was right there with them (on an early Saturday morning with my kids in tow). My family and I arrived early enough to pick out some great seats and I was instantly a kid again when “A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away…” popped on to the screen. My eldest child (who only saw Star Wars films on DVD or Blu-ray) finally saw a Star Wars film on the big screen. My youngest saw The Phantom Menace during its 3D release a few years ago. It was so great to share something with my children that had literally been a part of my entire life.

I’ll post a review of the film later (because spoilers will be included), and I want to give those who are waiting for crowds to die down a bit before going a chance to see the film. I may or may not have purchased a few action figures and/or shirts and other cool things emblazoned with the Star Wars logo on them.

Briefly, though, this film is awesome! If you enjoy the SW saga at all, you’ll want to check out this film.

Dinosaurs!

Another epic film that was released this year was Jurassic World. It was heavy on popcorn action and fun, and it was highly enjoyable. It held a lot of box office records until Star Wars came to town, and deservedly so. I reviewed the film earlier this year and if you’d like to check it out, hop back to my June posts and you’ll find it in there.

Marvel, DC, and TMNT!

Marvel and DC ramped things up this year. Marvel fired the first shot with Avengers: Age of Ultron, and kept things going with the excellent Ant-Man flick that, at least in my opinion, surprised a lot of people with just how wonderful it really was. Paul Rudd convinced me that he deserved to put on Hank Pym’s suit and for this reason, Ant-Man is easily in my top five of Marvel film favorites.

Of course, shows like Agent Carter, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Daredevil, and Jessica Jones also helped out Marvel’s power grab, but television remains the domain of DC in my opinion. Sure, everybody is talking about Batman Vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice, but Arrow, Gotham, The Flash, and Supergirl had everyone talking this year. The Flash is one of my favorite shows at the moment, and I love how the writers have managed to present the Scarlett Speedster and his enemies in a way that is a lot more lighthearted than Arrow and Gotham.

Legends of Tomorrow looks to be another hit for DC early next year, and Supergirl is continuing to pick up the pace. Gotham keeps getting better as well!

supergirl-melissa-benoist-supergirl-tv-show

Supergirl-Martian-Manhunter-Hank-Henshaw

Gotham-ep206_scn30_2054_hires2-1200x545_c1-1200x545_c

I’m particularly interested in which direction Gotham will be going when it returns from its midseason break. They’ve loaded up on villains this year (and promise to bring an even colder one into the fray after the break with Mr. Freeze), and I love how the writers have managed to intertwine all of the baddies together. Here’s hoping that they will keep up the pace!

Conventions, Conventions, Conventions!

Harley Quinn, DDK, and Poison Ivy.

Anybody that knows me knows that I love going to conventions. This year was particularly excellent because I got to attend more events than usual. To start off this year, I headed to Bossier City, LA, for Louisiana Comic Con. This was a brand new event and it was extremely crowded. Still, I got to hang out with some great friends and made a few new ones as well.

A few weeks later I ventured to Biloxi, MS, for my grand return to CoastCon! It’s one of the biggest little conventions that I’ve ever been to and I simply love attending it whenever funds and time allow.

After CoastCon, I headed home to Lake Charles, LA, for CyPhaCon, the best convention in southwest Louisiana. There I got to meet Vic Mignogna and Chuck Huber from Star Trek Continues, and made a few new friends as well.

Once the summer heat turned up, I headed to Sulphur, LA, for Bayoucon. I got to meet Todd Haberkorn, also of Star Trek Continues, at this local event, and it was the place where the Just Us League made their debut. For those of you who don’t know, the Just Us League is a group of cosplayers that are just out to have fun with silly costumes based off of superheroes. If any of us happen to be attending a convention near you, come say hello!

Space City Comic Con was next on my list, and there I got to meet the wonderful Michele Specht (of Star Trek Continues, do ya notice a pattern here?). Not only is she one of the nicest celebs I’ve ever met, she was a blast to hang out with as well! She showed the Just Us League some love and even sent a photo of myself and her giving the Vulcan “LLAP” sign to be a part of a large photo of Leonard Nimoy after his passing! It was such an honor to be a part of this wonderful print that William Shatner helped come to fruition.

The last convention for me this year was Louisiana Comic Con in Lafayette, LA. There, the Just Us League made another appearance. I also got to hang out with Orion’s Envy and made some new friends. I met Donald Fullilove and Lew Temple as well!

12112261_10206583918369917_6647614494632525144_n

12096428_10206584274578822_1650727439211406604_n

12112184_10206584274858829_1196768047531765531_n

Music

Guns n’ Roses

On the music scene, I picked up Game On from The Amorettes. They’re my new favorite band right now, and I just helped fund their next album that’s going to be recorded and released next year. Be sure to check them out if you haven’t done so already.

I also found Dark Sarah, a solo project by the former frontwoman for Amberian Dawn. I also picked up the newest project from Leaves’ Eyes, which was just as rocking as every other thing they’ve put out so far.

The year in music ended up and down for me, as rumors of a Guns N Roses reunion hit the web and the death of Lemmy from Motorhead landed just a few days later.

Downers

Including the aforementioned death of Lemmy, a lot of people passed away this year that have had some type of influence in my life. For starters, let’s talk about a few that made me laugh. New York Yankee great Yogi Berra was the epitome of a hard working and hard loving man. He is, in my opinion, one of the greatest baseball players in history. He’s known more for his “Yogiisms” now than he is for his excellent athletic ability, but I believe that it was his heart that was truly his greatest gift to mankind.

Dick Van Patten is another person that made me smile over the years. I watched Eight Is Enough in syndication and really enjoyed it. Donna Douglas, of The Beverly Hillbillies, was another person that I loved to watch on television. Watching her in syndication, Douglas quickly became an early crush for me.

We also lost some greats in film like the master of horror, Wes Craven, and one of the most prolific actors and renaissance men of all time, Christopher Lee. Lee made a great impact on my life, as his work in horror and fantasy was a huge part of my life.

Wrestling greats Dusty Rhodes and Rowdy Roddy Piper left us, as did legendary bluesman, B.B. King.

We also lost Leonard Nimoy. You all know and love him as Spock. Of all of the celebrities that we lost this year, his death had the biggest impact on me. I’ve wept for many celebrities over the years, especially Robin Williams, even though my only interaction with these people was through television, books, or films. In the case of Nimoy, however, I felt as if I was losing a great friend. Spock was and still is a huge part of my life, and Nimoy’s portrayal of the great character will be sorely missed.

The End Of It All

So, that’s a quick rundown of my year. I hope that 2016 is just as awesome, and I hope that all of you have a great year as well. As Mr. Spock would say, “Live long and prosper.” Happy New Year to all of you, and as always, thanks for reading.

I’m Back, Baby!

Somewhere Deep In The Marshes Of Louisiana

It has been a rather long time since I last posted anything. Reasons range from being very busy to just not having anything to write about. However, a lot has gone down since I last penned anything here and I figured that I owed it to my reader(s) to at least make an effort to summarize what’s been up in recent weeks.

!!!!WARNING!!!! POTENTIAL SPOILERS AHEAD!!! IF YOU HAVEN’T WATCHED THE LATEST SEASONS OF GOTHAM, THE FLASH, OR THE WALKING DEAD, STOP NOW!!!

For starters, Gotham heated up big time this season! When this show premiered last season, I suffered through the first few episodes (and Fish Mooney) but the series got much better as it progressed. The Penguin won over viewers in the first season and, in my opinion, kept the show afloat until it finally hit its stride toward the end of season one.

Season Two started with a bang and we got to see a few new faces enter the fray. Firefly made her debut this season (Yep, he’s a she in the television show) and outside of Jerome (Cameron Monaghan), Michelle Veintimilla’s portrayal of Bridgit Pike was one of the most interesting characters to join the show. Gotham has a way of making the viewer feel sorry for the villains every now and then (heck, Robin Lord Taylor’s Penguin gets cheers from me at times), and Firefly definitely had my sympathy.

Other characters weren’t so likeable. For instance, everyone that is and/or was a part of the Galavan clan. Theo Galavan (James Frain) managed to rise to power in Gotham City, and gave Jim Gordon a ton of trouble. Tabitha traded blows with Alfred, and Silver St. Cloud (Natalie Alyn Lind) attempted to bluff Bruce Wayne, which made Bruce up his own game against villainy in Gotham City.

The season was brutal, bloody, and more fun than a bag of monkeys. Cory Michael Smith let us watch as his Edward Nygma fought a losing internal battle with The Riddler and we also got to see him team up with Penguin. Poor Barbara became even battier than she was last season, and this guy showed up in the mid-season finale…..

Yep, that’s Mr. Freeze, and while the villains heated things up this season on Gotham, it looks like the back end of the season is going to be put on ice!

The Flash‘s sophomore season took things up a notch. It had a slightly darker tone than the first season, and expanded on the rifts in time that Barry opened up last season in order to right the wrongs of his past. Zoom (Tony Todd) made his appearance in the series, bringing with him a varied lot of Barry’s villains including King Shark, Sand Demon, Doctor Light, and Tar Pit. The Jay Garrick version of The Flash (Teddy Sears) showed up and sparked up a relationship with Caitlin Snow, the Arrow gang popped in to help battle Vandal Savage (Casper Crump) and a few other guests popped up as well.

A few familiar faces returned, including Captain Cold, the Trickster, and Weather Wizard. The sent off the mid-season finale with a bang, and it was great seeing them work together against Barry.

Shantel VanSanten brought love to the show in the guise of Patty Spivot, a character that has it in for Weather Wizard and has the hots for Barry. A surprise guest popped up at the end of the mid-season finale as well, but I won’t give his name out just yet.

The Walking Dead managed to drag just a few days (or hours) into an entire half-season this fall, giving us character specific episodes that focused on a small group or individual. Rick, Daryl, Glenn, Morgan, Abraham, and Sasha were all given lengthy treatments (especially Morgan), and we got to see how each one of these characters has developed since the beginning.

Tara (Alanna Masterson) really won me over this season, as she seems to have found her place in the group and even flipped off the Rick-tatorship in one episode!

The Alexandria Safe Zone had to deal with a massive herd of walkers, remnants of The Wolves, and internal fighting. Carl manned up to an adversary as well.

Daryl had to survive on his own, as did Sasha and Abraham when things headed south while they were leading the herd away from Alexandria. Glenn spent the entire season in flux, with viewers not knowing if he was alive or dead. Fan theories set the web on fire, but the resolution was both excellently played out and a happy ending as well.

After surviving so much turmoil, the mid-season finale mentioned a new enemy by name: Negan. Things are definitely going to get worse!

Finally, I’d like to say that I have only managed to watch thirty minutes of Supergirl. It’s not because I don’t want to see the show, but it came on against Gotham, and the little bit that I did see did not impress me that much.

However, the introduction of Martian Manhunter has definitely grabbed my attention. I hope to play catch up with it soon.

I’ve been very busy as of late with personal matters, and I hope that you’ll forgive me for having such a long spell between posts. However, I am thankful for all of you that read my blog and I hope that you continue to do so in the future.

Thanks for reading. I plan to make at least one more post before the end of the year.

The Star Trek Series You SHOULD Be Talking About!!!

Continuing To Boldly Go

With CBS’ announcement on Monday that a new Star Trek series is in development and will be released to the viewing public in January of 2017, speculation about the show’s plot, setting, crew, and timeline have set the web on fire. Like most fans of Star Trek, I’m excited that a new series is apparently on the way. Some fans aren’t excited with the fact that CBS plans to premiere the show’s first episode on network television and then jettison episodes two through who knows to its small but growing subscription service, All Access. Yes, streaming shows, specifically streaming original programming through web-based services such as Netflix and Hulu, might be growing, but for a show like Star Trek to be done properly, I fear that the budget just won’t be able to handle the demands of fans. I also don’t believe that the state of Trek as it stands right now is strong enough to allow a small subscription service to piggyback onto it in the hopes of attracting subscribers. CBS stands a better chance of doing something like this with some of their more current and established shows.

I refuse to go any deeper into a discussion about CBS’ handling of their new Trek series since very little is known about the show itself and pretty much everything outside of the doors of CBS is fanboy speculation and opinion.

However, I will say that CBS is late to the game when it comes to reviving Star Trek. The recent reboot films were successful as far as profits are concerned, but most fans didn’t care for the direction that J.J. Abrams took the crew of the Enterprise. While I enjoyed the films myself (particularly the first one), I felt that the second one was only a mild success.

The real success stories can be found on the web in independently produced fan series such as Star Trek: Renegades, Star Trek: New Voyages, and my personal favorite, Star Trek Continues. These three programs, as well as a few other well-produced fan shows and films, are doing their best to keep Gene Roddenberry’s vision alive. While Renegades and New Voyages are doing excellent work, Star Trek Continues has taken things to an entirely different level.

Anime voice artist Vic Mignogna headed up production and development of the series and has had a hand in just about every aspect of the show. The quality of the show’s writing and production is excellent. Sets, costumes, and props all seamlessly blend with the original series’ look and feel. The stories make you think (just like TOS did), but are also injected with enough humor and action to keep the viewer interested for the entirety of each episode.

The show has all of the key original series characters like Kirk (Mignogna), Spock (Todd Haberkorn), Bones (Larry Nemecek, episodes 1 and 2, and Chuck Huber, episodes 3 and on), Sulu (Grant Imahara), Uhura (Kim Stinger), and Chekov (Wyatt Lenhart). Scotty is brilliantly portrayed by Chris Doohan, the son of the original Montgomery Scott, James Doohan.

It also features excellent original characters like Dr. McKennah (Michele Specht), the ship’s counselor, and Lt. Drake (Steven Dengler), chief of security.

All of the cast members do an excellent job. It’s a bit of a tearjerker to see Chris Doohan portraying his father’s character, but it’s so wonderful to see Scotty back on the original Enterprise. The show has also featured numerous guest stars from film and television, as well as from past Star Trek productions. Marina Sirtis, Lou Ferrigno, Daniel Logan, Michael Dorn, Michael Forest, Kipleigh Brown, Erin Gray, and Jamie Bamber are just a few of the many guest stars that have been a part of the series.

As of this writing, five episodes have been released. Of the five, Lolani and Divided We Stand are my favorites. Every episode is excellent in its own right, and you can check all of them out at www.startrekcontinues.com.

Now, I must also add that I’m a bit biased when it comes to this program. I’ve had the opportunity to meet a few of the cast members for this show and I’ve loved each and every one of them. If you ever get the chance to meet any of the cast, be sure to do so. They are some of the friendliest and kindhearted people that you could meet. I’ve managed to get autographs from and/or photos with all of them, and I highly recommend that you do so as well.

So, while all of the other fanboys out there are screaming over what is right and what is wrong with CBS, Star Trek, the production company and/or writers of the new series, and anything else that rubs them the wrong way, YOU should tune your browser to Star Trek Continues. You will not regret it!

As always, thanks for reading. I’ll be posting in the very near future about a few things that I’ve been neglecting lately such as Gotham, The Flash, and The Walking Dead.

Keep boldly going, friends!

Louisiana Comic Con 2015 (Lafayette Edition)

Lafayette, LA

For a city that has been growing rapidly over the past few years, Lafayette has yet to attract a solid pop culture convention. Sure, there have been a few fan-run conventions, but they seem to be primarily focused on anime (LouisiAnime is a prime example). While there’s nothing wrong with having an anime-centric convention, it would be nice to have an event that takes in all aspects of geekdom, from horror to science fiction and everything in between.

On the weekend of October 17th, AVC Conventions changed all of that for the Lafayette area. Louisiana Comic Con (which took place earlier this year in Bossier City, LA, had its first event in Lafayette and, at least in my opinion, it was a major success. The event was attended by a solid amount of fans, nerds, geeks, and collectors. There was a long line waiting to enter the convention and there was also a long line for day-of-event ticket sales.

Foot traffic grew with each hour of the event on Saturday, and Sunday had a very nice crowd as well. The venue was sized right for the convention and there was a decent mix of vendors, comic artists, and celebrities. A few guest cosplayers were also on hand.

A highlight for me was getting to meet Lew Temple (Axel from The Walking Dead) and Donald Fullilove (Mayor Goldie Wilson from Back to the Future). The Walking Dead cast members have consistently been some of the friendliest celebrities that I’ve ever met, and Lew Temple did not disappoint. I talked to him about his character’s death in TWD and his character’s death in The Lone Ranger. I told him that he was becoming another Sean Bean and he quickly told me that he was actually killed in a film by Sean Bean (whose character later died in the same film)! It was fun moment that bled over into talking about Carol from TWD with the people in line behind me.

Meeting Donald Fullilove was my primary goal at this convention. Mayor Wilson (particularly 1950’s diner employee Goldie Wilson) has always been one of my favorite characters from the Back to the Future franchise. Fullilove was extremely cordial, and was taken aback by my “very Louisiana, very French” last name. He was a very cool guy and I’m glad that I got to meet him.

I also got to hang out with some of my friends from the Lafayette area as well as the lovely lady’s of Orion’s Envy. The Just Us League showed up on Sunday (with the Discount Dark Knight trying to keep them in line). On Saturday evening I attended the convention after party at City Bar. There was an artist’s Draw Off with an auction of their work immediately after they finished working on it.

For a first year event, there was a large amount of cosplayers in attendance. Their level of skill ranged from novice to pro and everybody seemed to be having fun getting dressed up as their favorite characters. My favorite cosplays for the weekend were Chef from South Park and Penguin from Batman Returns. Sooner or later I’m going to create a decent costume and show it off at an event.

AVC has already confirmed that they will be returning to Lafayette next year. I’m happy to hear that. Why? For starters, there’s a quick drop off in conventions close to my home after Space City Comic Con in August. Also, I don’t always get to go to CoastCon in Biloxi in March due to work and distance. I’ve given up on Wizard World events for the most part because they are both expensive and not as fun as they used to be. CyphaCon and Bayoucon are excellent local events in April and June, respectively. With Louisiana Comic Con guaranteeing a return next year and Southern Geek Fest opening its doors for the first time next April, I now have five conventions to look forward to next year. CyphaCon and Southern Geek Fest have already announced a few guests, and I’m sure that Space City and Bayoucon aren’t too far from making guest announcements on their respective websites and social media pages.

So, Louisiana Comic Con is my last convention for the year and that makes me both happy and sad. I’m happy because the event was fun, but sad that there are no more conventions in my area until next year. I do plan on attending a few nerdy events to end the year (including Halloween Comic Fest at Paper Heroes and local comic shops all over the country on Saturday, October 31st), but LCC is definitely a nice way for me to end my convention season.

I’ll be writing posts about any and every other nerdy event I attend this year and will most likely write a review of that little Disney/Lucasfilms project that’s coming up in December as well. I’m also hoping to snag an interview with a cosplayer or two before the end of the year and plan on featuring more of them next year.

As always, thank you very much for reading my post. Feel free to comment or share photos from any events that you’ve attended in the comments section and don’t hesitate to throw suggestions about things you’d like for me to blog about as well.

Hattiesburg, MS

Share this:

On The Big Screen And Across The Web

Share this:

One Month And One Day Away

Share this:

One Month Away!

Share this:

The Happiest Place On Earth!

Share this:

Lake Charles, LA

Share this:

Adios, 2015

That Star Wars Flick

Dinosaurs!

Marvel, DC, and TMNT!

Conventions, Conventions, Conventions!

Music

Downers

The End Of It All

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this: