Blog #24: Calgary Comic Book & Entertainment Expo 2012

Bought my Photo-op tickets for the Calgary Expo, April 27-29th. Had an issue with my VISA getting double billed but it is now resolved. The tech support for the Calgary con were able to address the problem with my visa getting double billed quickly, so I was very relieved. 

 

I'm getting my picture taken with 3 Star Trek: TNG stars: Brent Spiner (Data), Patrick Stewart (Captain Picard) and Wil Wheaton (Wesley Crusher).  But the entire cast of TNG will be there that weekend for a special 25th Anniversary Reunion Show called 'Star Trek: TNG EXPOsed', which is part of the Calgary Con but a separate ticketed event. Got my ticket for the Star Trek: TNG EXPOsed Reunion Show for Saturday April 28!!! Row 25 on the floor seating!!! They are offering photo-ops with the full cast of Star Trek: TNG at the con, but sadly a photo op with the TNG cast is $500!!! Way out of my budget...

 

Other stars I'll be getting my pic with are Jon Bernthal (Shane from 'The Walking Dead'), Adam West (TV's Batman!!), Katee Sackhoff (Starbuck from the newer 'Battlestar Galactica'), and John Noble/Jasika Nicole (from 'Fringe').

 

And I'll be getting a pic with the legend Stan Lee. If you are not a Comic Book fan you would still know Stan Lee, maybe not by name but by what he has created. He is perhaps the most famous Comic Book Writer and Creator and his most famous creation was 'Spider-man'. He's a man who will be turning 90 this year!! Yet his personality and stamina is that of a 30 year old. Really an incredible person who I am looking forward to meeting.

 

April 27-29 in Calgary at the BMO Centre. Other Celebrity Guests include Robert Englund,  Adam Baldwin, James Marsters, Hayden Panettiere, Dave Prowse, and Amanda Tapping, and Richard Hatch from 'Battlestar Galactica'.

 

Also some very great comic book creators and animators will be there including: Peter David. His 12 year run on 'The Incredible Hulk' is the best run in comics in my opinion. Comic Artist's George Perez and Tony Moore will be there too! Very excited to meet these men!

 

But there are more celebrities and creators and vendors to check out at the con. Check out their new website: http://www.calgaryexpo.com for all the details!

 

Looking forward to the Calgary Comic Book & Entertainment Expo 2012!

Meeting Kate Vernon and Michael Hogan from 'Battlestar Galactica' at the 2011 Calgary Expo

My wife Crystal and I meeting 'Elvira' at the 2011 Calgary Expo

This & That: Remembering 'Wheels'

Being a Canadian kid I grew up watching the following shows: 'Kids Of Degrassi Street', 'Degrassi Junior High' and 'Degrassi High'. These shows were must see TV for many Canadian youth, and I was fortunate enough to have parents that allowed me to watch the series as it dealt with many serious topics such as abortion, sex, aids, drugs, etc. But some parents didn't allow that show to be shown in their homes. Anyway one of the main characters of that series was 'Wheels'. Wheels had a troubled life. His parents were killed by a drunk driver, then he himself had issues with alcohol and drugs and he alienated his Grandparents who were raising him. By the end of the series he had become an alcoholic and he himself became a drunk driver who killed. 

Sadly real life mirrored his fictitious life for the actor who played Wheels. Guess the Cops found his body 5 years ago but didn't realize until just recently that he had been a teen Canadian celebrity. He had alienated his family so badly with his real life problems with booze and drugs (like the character Wheels) that they haven't talked with him for years and they themselves didn't know he had died 5 years ago. But one article I read said they did know he had died but didn't go public with it. Real sad. The actors name was Neil Hope. 

Wheels, Joey and Snake. All part of the 'Zit Remedy'

May he find the peace in death he didn't find in life. 

On The Menu #3: 'Spring Sun Restaurant'

I am a huge fan of Chinese food when it is done right. In my home town of Barrhead Alberta the best place for Chinese food in my humble opinion is the Spring Sun Restaurant. They have a wide array of Chinese and western cuisine, and often have daily specials which come with soup or salad and ice cream for dessert.

 

On special holidays like 'Mothers Day' for example they usually have a Chinese buffet. I regularly order the combination 'B' which consists of Chicken Chop Suey, Chicken Fried Rice, Sweet & Sour Boneless Pork and Sweet & Sour Chicken Balls. And being a big guy I have a healthy appetite and this combination fills me up.

 

The Spring Sun Restaurant is located 4816 53 Ave, Barrhead, AB. If you are ever in the area and in the mood for Chinese Food be sure to check this place out! 

Beer Goggles: April 2012

As part of my 'Random Nerdness' Blog I have included a monthly update I am calling 'Beer Goggles' where I will share a brief outline on what I am drinking, reading, viewing and listening to for the month.

 

Beer: I just purchased some 'IPA' India Pale Ale from Calgary's 'Big Rock Brewing Company'. I also have some Rickards Red's that I am finishing. Although not a beer I have been enjoying 'Orangina' sparkling orange beverage. 

 

Comics & Books: My favourite comic book right now is 'Batman' written by Scott Snyder. His 'Court Of Owls' storyline is reaching new heights and is just getting better each and every month. I'm also enjoying Fantastic Four, FF and The Ultimates, all written by Jonathan Hickman. 

I bought several 'Star Trek: Titan' books at the Edmonton toy show last Sunday and I am very excited to read the further adventures of Captain Riker and the USS Titan. 

I'm also still reading 'The Great American Cereal Book'. Awesome history about breakfast cereals that Canadian consumers share with our American neighbours. 

Last month I bought and continue to read the 'Compendium' of the comic book series 'The Walking Dead'. In March I finished the first trade and I was blown away by what I read and saw. I loved it so much I went out and ordered the first Compendium of this comic series, and I will buy the second one when it is released. Robert Kirkman is perhaps one of the greatest comic book writers in history!

Viewing: I am watching season 2 of 'Game Of Thrones' on HBO and season 5 of 'Mad Men' on AMC. But I recently bought season 1 of  'Game Of Thrones' on Blue-Ray which I will be re-watching. I also bought the newest DC Universe animated movie 'Justice League: Doom', which I intend to watch shortly. Look for a future review on 'The Cola Dog' blog. 

'Commander' Shelby assisting me in this hard photo shoot. 

Listening: Having a long drive to work every workday I tend to do a lot of listening. 'The Atomic Geeks', 'Nerd Lunch' and 'Classic Film Jerks' are all great podcasts I love to listen to. Some other great podcasts I listen to are: 'iFanboy', 'Comic Geek Speak' and 'I Sell Comics'. I've also downloaded some great audiobooks I hope to crack open this month: 'Bradbury 13', radio-like drama's about some of Ray Bradbury's classic sci-fi tales. Also 'World War Z: An Oral History Of The Zombie War'.

 

Well that is all for April's 'Beer Goggles'.

 

Cheers!

This & That: 'The Hunger Games'

Quick Review: Last night I went to the local theatre and watched the new film 'The Hunger Games'. I had never read the books but from what I had heard I determined this was a film I had to see. Although this wasn't the best film I have seen I did really enjoy it. The film looked great and so did Jennifer Lawrence. She was incredible in the role of Katniss Everdeen, and I really liked her in last summers 'X-Men: First Class'. The action was great although it is a little disturbing to see kids killing kids, but it is not too graphic and there is a real sense of realism to this film. This film is a little bit of 'Running Man' and 'Lord Of The Flies'. I'm looking forward to the next 2 instalments of this franchise and I really hope that Katniss puts an arrow into the head of the character Donald Sutherland plays, I really did not like that guy. 

This film gets a 4.5 out of 5 rating by me. Go see this film!

Jennifer Lawrence as 'Katniss Everdeen'

Blog #23: Edmonton Collectible Toy And Comic Show 2012

Last Sunday, despite the monster snow fall and poor road conditions, my Wife, youngest daughter Shelby and I made the trek into Edmonton to attend the 2012 Edmonton Collectible Toy And Comic Show. This is a fun little convention which is held at the Shaw Conference Centre. This year they included 'Photo-ops' at the convention, where a photographer will take a picture of you and the celebrity of your choice and develop the picture on site, something they have done at the Calgary Expo but a new option at the Edmonton show. This year the celebrity guests included John DeLancie, better known as 'Q' from Star Trek: The Next Generation, and Julie Benz best known to me as being 'Rita' from the TV series 'Dexter'. I had the opportunity to get my photo taken with 'Q' which was very cool. He was extremely nice and shook my hand. 

I could have had a photo taken with Julie Benz but I chose to get her autograph instead because I just didn't have the time to wait for a second photo to be developed. Julie Benz was extremely nice and even talked with my daughter who was waiting in line with me. I did manage to ask her a few questions of my own. I asked her if she would be making a return appearance on 'Dexter', perhaps in a flash back sequence and she said No, she will not be on 'Dexter' again. *** SPOILER WARNING *** I also told her how devastated I was when her character 'Rita' was so brutally killed off on 'Dexter', so much so that I couldn't sleep that night after seeing that episode. She thought that was sweet and she admitted that she herself couldn't sleep after watching that episode. Another celebrity my daughter in particular was excited to meet was R2-D2. We got our picture taken with him. 

This was also my first opportunity to start rebuilding my classic 'He-Man' toy collection. I managed to secure many figures:

I also bought myself a complete set of the 1991 Star Trek/ Star Trek: TNG trading card set. I also bought several of the 'Star Trek: Titan' book series. And finally I got my own replica 11th Doctor 'Sonic Screwdriver', as seen used by The Doctor on season 5 and 6 of the 'Doctor Who' television series. It wasn't cheap but the hours of enjoyment I have got out of playing with it makes it worth every penny. I am a huge fan of the Matt Smith 'Doctor Who', and I intend to discuss that series in a future blog post. 

The Edmonton Toy Show was an excellent time, and apparently there is supposed to be some big announcement coming in the next few weeks from the organizers of the event. 

It was really awesome having photo-ops!!! But to improve the show it would be awesome if this were a 2 day event, maybe later in the year too like June-ish. So us people driving in from out of Edmonton don't have to brave the roads in April snow storms. The drive in last Sunday was not pleasent, and not much chance of a snow storm like that in june. All in all it was a great event!

This & That: Save These Shows!!

Fringe (Fridays on FOX, CityTV in Canada)

I am a huge fan of the TV series 'Fringe', which is currently in it's 4th season. A 5th season is still up in the air, and the Producers have said if they are not renewed they will do season 5 in comic book form. I'm sorry but a comic book season 5 will not do for me. This is a great series and if it takes a 5th season to complete the story I'm hoping the FOX Executives wake up and allow them to finish their show properly. This is a series which has had it's ups and downs and lately this series has really hit it's stride and it would be a damn shame if it were not able to finish it's run on Television. 

Alcatraz (Mondays on FOX)

This series just finished it's First season last Monday. I'll admit that this series is a little bit hard to follow at times, much like the TV series 'Lost', but it definitely has great potential and the first season ended in a cliffhanger with the shocking death of a very important character, or is that character really dead?? Again this is a show with potential and it would be a shame if it were not to be completed. Too many questions have yet to be answered. If this series is not renewed by FOX is it possible for someone else to pick it up, like FX for example? 

Both series are Executive Produced by JJ. Abrams. Both are great series and both need to be renewed for new seasons. Period.