Previously Not-Released Post: This week’s assignment from the League Of Extraordinary Bloggers: “Spacemen"

The following post was written in 2013 but for some reason I never released it. So here it is 6 years later. Back in those days I was a member of 'The League of Extraordinary Bloggers'
________________

For this weeks league assignment I am going to give 5 reasons why my favourite character that works in space is awesome, and he has been featured in TV, Film, comic books, novels, etc. And that spaceman: Captain James Tiberius Kirk!! And after discussing Captain Kirk I will make 5 honourable mentions for cool 'spacemen'. 

Captain James Tiberius Kirk (At A Glance):

1: Captain of the best ship in Starfleet: The USS Enterprise is legendary and really there is no other ship that compares (looking at you Voyager!). In the original series he was at least 33 years old when he got command, maybe even younger. In the JJ Abrams rebooted timeline he was even younger. And why not, he truly is a born leader and a natural when commanding a ship. And he commands the greatest ship of them all!! 

2: Ladies man: He has a way with the ladies, whether they be human or alien. He even got Joan Collins in her prime!! What teenage boy (or adult man) did not want to be Captain Kirk with his track record with the ladies. Who hasn't had a fantasy about an Orion slave girl? Kirk has lived such fantasy! 

3: Rules do not apply: The Kobayashi Maru scenario is said to be the no win scenario, but Kirk won it in both timelines! How? Because he changed the rules! Some would call him a cheat, a rule breaker, etc. I call him freakin awesome!!

4: Not just an awesome traveler in space but time as well: He has saved history and Earth several times by using time travel. He's help save the world from the Nazi's, saved the whales, argued with 80's punkers, and even traveled to the future in his final appearance sacrificed himself and saved a planet of people he never met. Truly a great time traveling hero. 

5: Kicks some serious ass: This dude can fight. He fought the Gorn on Cestus 3, fought a genetically engineered Khan and won! This guy does not always want to fight but will and kick ass when he does. 

5 Honorable Spacemen Mentions:

1: Han Solo: Coolest character from the Star Wars franchise! And he got Princess Leia! (I'll bet he gets her to wear the gold bikini in bed....whoohoo!)

2: He-Man: Coolest cartoon character ever! He qualifies as a spaceman because he does have some cool futuristic vehicles and uses portals to travel to different planets. When I say He-Man I am referring to the original MOTU series and 2002 series. Not the He-Man from the lame He-Man New Adventures series. 

3: Captain Jean Luc Picard: Also an awesome Captain of the Federation starship Enterprise. 

4: Superman: He is a hero that can go into space and battle in space. Plus he's from the planet Krypton. 

5: Starbuck: Whether it be the Dirk Benedict character from the 70's Battlestar Galactica or the super sexy Katee Sackhoff character from the 2000's BSG reboot, Starbuck is a character that every guy wants to hang out with. Guys want to be Dirk Benedict, and guys want to be with Katee Sackhoff. Excellent kick ass character. 

Be sure to check out these other blogs also part of the League Of Extraordinary Bloggers: 

www.coolandcollected.com

 

www.goodwillhunting4geeks.blogspot.com

 

www.infinitehollywood.com

 

This week’s assignment from the League: Pet Peeves

This week’s assignment from the League: Pet Peeves

Let’s all take a deep breath this week and let off a little steam. This week’s assignment for the League of Extraordinary Bloggers is…

—

Pet peeves.

—

Being a comic book fan I have some pet peeves with the current state of the industry, especially when it comes to the big 2 (Marvel & DC). So here is a list of my peeves in regards to comics from Marvel & DC:

- Enough with the crossover characters. One character has 1 solo title and 1 team title:

I’m getting sick of these comics over exploiting their characters. ‘Wolverine’ for example has the following ‘solo’ titles: Wolverine, Savage Wolverine, Wolverine Max and Wolverine & The X-Men. Then he is a member of The Avengers, X-Men, Astonishing X-Men, All-New X-Men. I understand that they have their top tier characters that prove to bring in money, but enough is enough.



- Allow creators to bring in their own characters and take them with them if they choose to leave:

Problem with Marvel & DC is they own characters that their creators create for the company, unless they do have some deal in place, which does not happen too often. So that is why we see the same old villains and heroes guest starring over and over again and very little ‘new’ characters or concepts making their way into the books. Which is why you see more creators going to Image Comics with their creator owned properties. Allow these people to make their own characters and if they leave they can take them with them or sell them to the company. Why not? The stories that were told during their tenure with the company would stay with the company, even if some of the characters do not. Give them more creator control and we would see more creativity. Makes sense no?



- Enough with ‘BIG EVENTS’ for a while!

I’m really getting sick of ‘big events’ from the big 2 every year, sometimes twice a year. They need to take a break for at least 3 year before attempting another company wide crossover event. I know I am getting burnt out (AVX, Zero Issues, Villain’s month, Battle of the Atom, Infinity, Trinity War, etc, etc, etc). We the readers need a break!



- More variety in the ‘Team’ books’…

Avengers, New Avengers, Uncanny Avengers, Mighty Avengers, Young Avengers, Avengers Assemble, Avengers AI. These are some of Marvels ‘team books’. Now here is that same list with what the title should be called: Avengers (Avengers), New Avengers (The Illuminati), Uncanny Avengers (West Coast Avengers), Mighty Avengers (Heroes for Hire), Young Avengers (New Warriors), Avengers Assemble (Force Works), Avengers AI (Artificial Intelligence), Avengers Arena (Arcades Arena). Now I know the ‘Avengers’ name brand is hot now considering the success of the 2012 film, but why not try some other team names and maybe they too could be spun off into a successful film one day?



I have more peeves when it comes to Marvel and DC, but I think this is enough for now.

The Random Nerdness Blog is a proud member of 'The League Of Extraordinary Bloggers'. Go to www.coolandcollected.com

to get all the addresses of the other League blog members. These blogs are also part of the league, please check out their blogs too:



www.goodwillhunting4geeks.blogspot.com



www.infinitehollywood.com



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





Also be sure to check out the 'Random Nerdness Podcast'!! Available to stream at www.randomnerdness.podbean.com

and download from iTunes.



Chris is also a Co-Host of the weekly 'Geek Fallout' podcast. Give that podcast a listen at www.geekfallout.podbean.com , download from iTunes and available on Stitcher!



See you in the future!!

This week’s assignment from the League: I have a dream…

This week’s assignment from the League: I have a dream…



We all have them. Some are ambitious, some are farfetched, and some might even be attainable. This week’s assignment for the League of Extraordinary Bloggers…

–

I have a dream…

–

For those who know me, or have read my blogs or listened to my podcasts, you would know I am a huge comic book fan. I have been a fan of the comic book art form for most of my life, except for about 8 years in my 20’s when my focus was on partying, then girls, then eventually getting married with children. So for a good 20+ years of my life I have enjoyed comic books in some form or another. At first I was all about the art: the style & the colors is what sold me. But as I got older and matured I actually began to read comic books and appreciate them as a print medium, rather than just art.

I was about 12 years old when my Mom, who would often pick up random comics for me while grocery shopping in town, brought me a copy of ‘The Incredible Hulk’ issue 397.

It was part 1 of Peter David’s epic ‘Ghosts of the Past’ 4 part story leading into issue #400. This story (with art by Dale Keown) literally blew me away. And for the next 6 years I did not miss an issue of Peter David’s run on the Hulk comic book. I caught the last 6 years of David’s 12 year run writing this book, and it is in my opinion THE BEST run in comic book history, period. I remember being upset when Peter David left the book with issue 467. Marvel Editorial in their infinite wisdom questioned David’s future plans for the book and character. They wanted him to go back to Savage Hulk (“Hulk Smash”) depiction of the character, and that conflicted with his goals for the book so he left. And the Hulk took a plummet in sales numbers with Marvel losing a lot of money.

In 2012 I got a chance to meet Peter David at the Calgary Comic & Entertainment Expo. I spent probably 20 minutes asking him questions and getting him to sign some of my Hulk comics. Peter David really is a great guy. Sadly Peter suffered a stroke last Christmas while on holidays in Florida. He has made a remarkable recovery since but as you can imagine he has a lot of medical expenses. So if you are a fan or at all interested in discovering his work go buy his graphic novels or novels, that will definitely help him out with the bills.



Anyway back to this week’s league topic: I have a dream. In 1996 while reading the Hulk I decided my ultimate dream job is to be a comic book writer. My dream is to one day write for comics. Even after all these years that’s still something I want to do. I’ve got a couple of proposals I’m going to submit to DC Comics, and some creator owned stuff I have been developing, some since 1996… But work, family and ‘real life’ have slowed me from pursuing my dream to be a comic book writer. But I am about to get off my ‘butt’ and get cracking on this dream. At least one day I can say I tried…

The Random Nerdness Blog is a proud member of 'The League Of Extraordinary Bloggers'. Go to www.coolandcollected.com

to get all the addresses of the other League blog members. These blogs are also part of the league, please check out their blogs too:



www.goodwillhunting4geeks.blogspot.com



www.infinitehollywood.com



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





Also be sure to check out the 'Random Nerdness Podcast'!! Available to stream at www.randomnerdness.podbean.com

and download from iTunes.



Chris is also a Co-Host of the weekly 'Geek Fallout' podcast. Give that podcast a listen at www.geekfallout.podbean.com , download from iTunes and available on Stitcher!



See you in the future!!

This Week’s Assignment from the League: The First Time

This week’s assignment from the League: Feels like the first time

Summer is a time of first loves and first-run movies, and sometimes those two things can be one and the same! This week’s assignment for the League of Extraordinary Bloggers…

It feels like the first time… Write about your first experience with something. 

Disneyland Vacation: The First Time!

March of this year the family and I made a trip down to Anaheim California, and spent 5 wonderful days enjoying the sights, sounds and attractions of Disneyland. It was a great vacation and I would recommend Disneyland & Disney’s California Adventure parks for every family. But this was my second trip to Disneyland.  I originally wrote a blog post 4 years ago about my first family adventure to Disneyland, thought it would be appropriate to revisit this post as it fits in with the theme of this week’s League Assignment

Easter Holidays 1994 (19 years ago...)

We never really went far for vacations as a family growing up, most summers we never went anywhere. But for Easter holidays 1994 Mom and Dad made up for it by taking us on a trip through the states to California. We were like the Griswold's from "National Lampoons Vacation", we were going to Disneyland by car.

- Mom and Dad rented a car for the long trip. They also rented a video camera from Radioshack and I became the official documentary guy of our little trip.

- Driving seemed like a good idea, that way we could see more destinations. We could visit multiple states along the way. The truth is it nearly drove us insane. Mom and Dad would argue over driving and directions. Brianna would get bored and pinch me on the arm when I wasn't looking. I would get her back and return the pinch and she would cry. Dad would get mad at me. Mom would threaten to turn the car around. We would spend up to 12 hours a day travelling by car- way too much time to spend in a confined space with bored family members.

- We often would eat at fast food chains as we drove, to save time. One thing I noticed about fast food restaurants in the states is that their food is way better than our fast food in Canada. We often ate at Burger king and it was awesome. We would order whopper meals and Mom, Dad and Bri could never finish their meals. It was too much...for them. At the time I was a 14 year old garbage disposal and I would clean up their left overs. It wasn't always easy, and I actually at times turned away their left overs. Those Yankee fast food restaurant owners don't cheap out when it comes to their food. You definitely get your money’s worth.

- Speaking of food the night we stopped in Salt Lake City we went to the nearby "Denny's" for supper. While having supper some woman crashed her car into a lamp post between the Denny's and our hotel. It was the first time I had ever seen a fresh car crash. The fire department showed up and had to use the Jaws of Life to free her, and she was taken away by ambulance.

- We spent a day at Disneyland the day after arriving in Anaheim. It really is a great experience to visit Disneyland. It really does bring out the kid in everyone. My Dad is not known for having fun unless it involves golf, hockey or some other kind of sport. When we got there he was kind of in a grumpy mood but after about a half hour of being in Disneyland he was laughing, smiling and having a great time. It really did bring out my Dad's inner child. It was really great to see my Dad let loose and have a good time.

- The lines for rides dampers the good time at Disneyland. For some rides we stood in line for up to an hour! It was worth it most of the time but it made for a long boring wait.

(Parental Advisory Warning: The following paragraph has adult content. Parental discretion is advised):
- But waiting in line for space mountain was totally worth it. Not for the ride itself but for what I saw while waiting. We're outside on the steep steps leading into Space Mountain. The line was long and the day was hot. Dad and I were standing side by side in line and Mom & Bri were behind us. In front of us was this ugly nerdy-type guy with this real smoking hot blond woman on his arm. This guy had to be loaded because there is no way a guy that ugly could get such a hot babe unless he was rich. If he was famous I didn't recognize him. Anyway I was busy staring at the ground below (because we were probably 3 stories above ground level) when the line advanced. As I looked forward realizing the line had moved up several steps the smoking hot blond (who was wearing a very mini skirt) was bent forward tying her shoe I think. Well her skirt was hiked up and she was wearing NO UNDERWEAR! I gasped in excitement and joy, staring me right in the face was a real life naked vagina, which was on the body of one of the hottest women I had ever seen. I was frozen in time, my heart pounding and thoughts racing. I couldn't believe it...it was like looking into the face of god. Dad bumped me on the shoulder and time resumed normally again. I looked at him and he had a smile on his face.
"We better move up" I think he said to me.
I don't know if he saw what I saw. Overall it was a great trip. Definitely one I will always remember.

God bless Space Mountain.

The Random Nerdness Blog is a proud member of 'The League Of Extraordinary Bloggers'. Go to www.coolandcollected.com

 to get all the addresses of the other League blog members. These blogs are also part of the league, please check out their blogs too:

www.goodwillhunting4geeks.blogspot.com

www.infinitehollywood.com

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

Also be sure to check out the 'Random Nerdness Podcast'!! Available to stream at www.randomnerdness.podbean.com

and download from iTunes.

Chris is also a Co-Host of the weekly 'Geek Fallout' podcast. Give that podcast a listen at www.geekfallout.podbean.com , download from iTunes and available on Stitcher!

See you in the future!!

 

This Weeks Assignment from The League: Auction Wish List!

This Weeks Assignment from The League:

Hake’s shopping spree (redux)

It’s been a slow summer, and the heat seems to have taken its toll on a lot of us, but this week’s League challenge should get the ol’ blogging adrenaline going again. Hake’s Americana and Collectibles has, once again, generously offered to sponsor this week’s topic for the League…

Go on a fictional shopping spree at Hake’s current auction #209 to make your collection a little more amazing.

Hake’s has given us permission to reuse their photos and descriptions in our responses to this week’s League challenge, just be sure to link back to their auction. One blog entry will be selected to receive $100 credit to spend at Hake’s!

Well this is going to be a fun assignment. I went to the auction website and was blown away by some of the items up for grabs. Some of the items are amazing, but the bids are a little too high for me, so for my selection that is featured below I chose items at low bidding right now. I tried to pick a variety of different items, unique and not related in any way. I’m a geek/nerd with many tastes. I’m a fan of a variety of different genres, whether it is ‘Star Trek’, Comic Books or The king of Rock & Roll, my interests are varied and many.

 My 5 selections are all different, unique and absolutely awesome. I’ll break each item down then explain why I chose it. Here we go….

1-    "DICK TRACY" METAL LUNCHBOX WITH THERMOS.

Auction Description: Embossed metal by Aladdin. ©1967 Chicago Tribune. Box features Dick Tracy and Sam Catchem in hovering "Police" vehicles chasing down bank robbers on front panel. Back panel features group scene showing Dick Tracy w/Tess Trueheart, Dick Tracy Junior w/Moon Maid and Honeymoon, B.O Plenty and Gravel Gertie w/Sparkle Plenty, others. Band shows crime-sighting techniques and equipment and has partial Aladdin sticker on right side. Box has moderate edge/rim wear, w/some areas of bare metal showing. A few raised areas show small areas of bare metal. 1.5" and 2.75" hairline scratches on front panel. Box retains a bright and glossy appearance and is Fine overall. Comes w/6.5" tall metal thermos w/plastic cap. Thermos features differing illustration, showing group watching Junior, Moon Maid and Honeymoon on "Luna TV." Some loose rust particles within, but thermos displays Exc. (G - $100 to $200)

I was a huge fan of the 1990 ‘Dick Tracy’ film. I bought all the action figures and had a blast playing them along side my TMNT action figures. But anyway I developed an appreciation for the Dick Tracy character; in particular I started watching the old cartoon and my Mom bought me a of collected Dick Tracy newspaper cartoon strips. I loved that book and still have it on my book shelf to this day. Anyway the long and short of it is I am a fan of classic ‘Dick Tracy’, and having this classic lunch box and thermos on my shelf would look so freakin awesome on my shelf.

2-    "STAR TREK" SIGNED PHOTO LOT

Auction Description: Lot of four photos signed by main stars or prominent guest stars on the classic 1968-1969 NBC sci-fi TV series. 3.5x5.25" screen-capture snapshot shows DeForest Kelley (1920-1999) as McCoy and photo has been signed in black felt tip pen. Exc. 8.25x10.25" glossy bw photo shows James Doohan (1920-2005) as Scotty and photo has been signed in black felt tip pen. Photo has some lt. handling wear but is o/w Exc. 8x10" glossy bw photo shows Mark Lenard (1924-1996) as Spock's father Sarek and photo has been signed in blue felt tip pen "To Vern, My Best, Mark Lenard." Exc. Glossy 8x10" photo features William Campbell as Trelane from the classic "Star Trek" episode "The Squire Of Gothos." Signed in black felt tip pen "To Vern, Tally Ho! William Campbell." Exc. Comes with Hake's COA and JSA COAs. (G - $100 to $200)

I am a huge Star Trek fan. In 1994 I met actor James Doohan at a Trek Con in Edmonton and I got his autograph. He was an amazing man a Canadian legend, but unfortunately he is no longer with us. And also unfortunate is the fact I lost my James Doohan autographed picture, that I got signed when I met him, in one of the many moves I have made over the past decade. I never got to meet the other actors listed in this photo lot, but they all seemed like good people and I would love to have their autographs, and I would love to replace my lost James Doohan autograph.

3-     "CAPTAIN MARVEL" PREMIUM PORTRAIT PICTURE VARIETY SIGNED BY C.C. BECK.

Auction Description: 7x10" on stiff glossy paper. c. 1941. Great action pose w/facsimile signature "Best Wishes - Your Pal, Captain Marvel." Below this Beck, perhaps Captain Marvel's best-known artist has signed his name in blue felt tip pen. Text on bottom margin reads "Captain Marvel Appears Monthly In Whiz Comics." Thin top margin as originally printed, not trimmed. Scattered lt. margin wear, but picture remains bright and clean. VF. The only example of the picture we have ever seen signed by Beck. A superb vintage item to have signed by Captain Marvel's premier artist. From the Robert M. Overstreet Collection and comes with Hake's COA. (G - $100 to $200)

Captain Marvel (Shazam) is a character I have a lot of affection for. I have come to learn a lot about the history of this character and I really think if certain things hadn’t happened in history that directly affected the character, he would have been bigger than ‘Superman’. I like what Geoff Johns has done to reintroduce the character and the ‘Marvel family’ into the DC ‘New 52’ as a back-up story in the Justice League title, but I would like the original ‘Captain Marvel’ and his family of characters to have their own book. I never watched the ‘Captain Marvel’ serials from the past, but I have seen clips and it looks awesome for the time. I just think this portrait picture would be a cool artefact to have and framed in my living room.

4-   “ELVIS PRESLEY (MR. DYNAMITE) SOUVENIR PHOTO ALBUM” VARIETY WITH DISCOGRAPHY

Auction Description: 1956. Subtitled “Nation’s Only Atomic Powered Singer”. 8-3/8x10-7/8” w/eight pages published by “Elvis Presley’s Advertising and Promotional Department”. Front cover photo is same one used on Elvis’ first album. Photos throughout include performing, signing autographs, parents at home. Back cover has RCA record list. Light handling creases, front cover has faint moisture marks but still glossy and bright. Overall VG/Fine. Limited distribution, mainly sold at personal appearances. Historic, the first magazine devoted solely to Elvis. (H - $200 to $400)

I am a huge fan of the King, and I think this discography and photo album would be amazing to have. This summer I will be volunteering at the ‘Blue Suede’ festival in Busby, Alberta. It’s a great festival where Elvis impersonators come out perform for hundreds of Elvis fans. I am looking forward to attending and volunteering my time at the festival this year. The festival runs August 24 & 25^th in Busby. Check it out at www.bluesuedemusicfestival.com

5-   “JOHN ROMITA SKETCH BOOK” WITH PETER PARKER/SPIDER-MAN SPECIALTY ORIGINAL ART

Auction Description: 6-7/8x10.5” hardcover w/dust wrapper ©2002 John Romita. Published by Vanguard. 112 b/w extensively illustrated pages and introduction by Stan Lee. Inside front cover has original pencil drawing w/classic double face image of Peter Parker and Spider-Man. Art is signed “To Charlie + Joan San Diego July 23, 2006 Jazzy John Romita”. Exc. Romita began work on Spider-man w/issue #39 Aug. 1966. Over the years he would draw 50+ covers and stories for 46 issues. Art was commissioned in person from the artist. From the Charlie Roberts Collection. (H - $200 to $400)

Again, I am a big comic book fan and I have a definite appreciation for the artists that helped define the characters I love. John Romita did some incredible work on Spider-Man and this sketch book would be amazing to read and have as part of my collection

That was fun. Be sure to check out the auction at: www.hakes.com

And check out some other blogs that are part of the league, including:

www.blog.paxholley.net

www.coolandcollected.com

www.goodwillhunting4geeks.blogspot.com

www.infinitehollywood.com

See you in the future!

"DICK TRACY" METAL LUNCHBOX WITH THERMOS.

  "STAR TREK" SIGNED PHOTO LOT

“ELVIS PRESLEY (MR. DYNAMITE) SOUVENIR PHOTO ALBUM” VARIETY WITH DISCOGRAPHY

"CAPTAIN MARVEL" PREMIUM PORTRAIT PICTURE VARIETY SIGNED BY C.C. BECK.

“JOHN ROMITA SKETCH BOOK” WITH PETER PARKER/SPIDER-MAN SPECIALTY ORIGINAL ART