Christmas Eve Morning with Blood and B00bs.....

It's X-Mas eve morning and I'm finally done with all of my holiday chores. All gifts are purchased and wrapped.

Tonight I head to my sister's place where my family will eat a nice dinner, followed by driving around looking at the neighborhood's' lights and decorations, then we'll head back and exchange gifts. Tomorrow we all head to my cousins place to eat drink and be merry. It is the final reward for a week long battle fighting off hordes of idiotic shoppers while trying to find those perfect gifts.

While wrapping the last of my gifts this morning I popped in a rented DVD of the cable TV series Spartacus: Blood and Sand that I watched while I absolutely crucified the art of using wrapping paper. Over the last few years I've grown accustomed to renting TV series that I miss out on when they originally air due to bad timing or not having the premium cable channel in my already overly expensive cable set up.

I'll get back to Spartacus in a minute, but I'd also like to touch upon some other jems I came across and would definitely suggest to someone who enjoys watching intriguing television.

Deadwood - I've raved about this Wild West TV show which aired on HBO years ago in past posts. But, one can never boost the popularity of what I feel is the greatest TV western to grace the small screen since The Wild Wild West.

Deadwood takes you back to the days when people were settling out west and the small town of Deadwood, South Dakota was fighting off inevitable domestication and still clinging on to being a gambling, whoring, booze ridden hole of depravity and sin. Leading the charge of depravity and sin is local "businessman" Al Swearengen, brilliantly played by Ian McShane. Swearengen has become one of may favorite TV characters despite the fact that he is pure scum. How McShane actually has you rooting for the villain towards the end of the series run proves that the Golden Globe her received for the role was well deserved.

The dialog of the whole show is spoken in what I like to call "vulgar Shakespearean". There is a very formal cadence to the way the characters speak, intermixed with a lot of "F" and "C" bombs being dropped every few seconds. It's not a show for the faint of heart as it depicts the depravity and violence of the old west in graphic detail.

The entire ensemble cast are all incredibly dedicated to humanizing their characters and there isn't a "phoned in" performance in anyone in this show. Sadly the show stopped dead in its tracks after the 3rd season, so there is little resolution to the stories being told. But, it is well worth your time if the kiddies are away for a weekend or two.

ROME - It took me awhile to get into this sword and sandals drama about the ancient Roman empire. It's another show that's very adult in nature. This show featured several stories interweaving in and out of each other. One storyline followed the adventures and friendship of two Roman Centurion soldiers. Another storyline covered the corruption and power of the Roman Senate during the fall of Julius Caesar. In yet another storyline we see a rich and powerful family try and grasp and claw for their status among the elite. Excellent writing and fine acting are the benchmark of this show.

Spartacus: Blood and Sand - More like Spartacus: BOOBS & BLOOD! This is an INSANELY adult oriented view of ancient Rome that is far more geared for the Fanboys than any drama loving historian. This series follows the hardships of the infamous gladiator character of Spartacus, originally portrayed by Kirk Douglas in the classic film. This time around the story is being somewhat reinvented and told in a serial format.

Much like in the series ROME there are power struggles and manipulations of the wealthy portrayed here. But the corner stone of this show is the abundance of computer animated gore which is a constant in every episode. The gladiator arena scenes are always filled with fountains of blood as someone is being struck by a sword.

Another factor of the show is there is overt nudity and sex everywhere. Much of the time the story is overshadowed by the shock factor. But for the fanboys in all of us, this series has to be seen to be believed, especially with the likes of Lucy Lawless and Erin Cummings presence in the show.

Fringe - When this first started to air I, unfortunately and misguidedly ignored it, assuming it was going to be no more than a poor man's X-Files. But after deciding to catch up with it through rentals I've really become enamored with the show. It was a bit slow to get into, but after sticking in there for a few episodes, I became hooked!

In a nutshell, FBI agent Olivia Dunham teams up with a "mad scientist" and his recently reunited, former con-artist son to solve crimes and incidents that reach outside of a scientific range of simple explanation. One such storyline has them dealing with an alternate universe. That sort of thing.

I think that the main factor that turned me into a fan was actor John Nobel's portrayal of Dr. Walter Bishop. Dr. Bishop is a scientific genius who's specialty is Fringe Science. Along the way Walter experienced some horrible professional and personal losses that rocked his world to the core and put him into a mental institution. Having been released by Agent Dunham and his own son he works with them under their custody.

To my recollection, Dr. Walter Bishop is the first character in a Sci-Fi / Fantasy genre that deals with mental health issues that is portrayed positively. This is where Nobel's portrayal really shines. You do not see Walter as a mad man or crazed lunatic. He is a caring, loving person who simply does not function in, or see the world the same we do. His observations are either delivered in grim straight forwardness or creepy exuberance which can lead to some good chuckles at times. He has a childlike quality that makes us want to reach out to him and protect him. He's becoming another one of my favorite characters on TV.

Warehouse 13 - Imagine, if you will, that the warehouse that is shown in the very last scene of Raiders of the Lost Ark actually existed. All of it's treasures and dark secrets that are locked within have to be protected by someone, right? This show is about two agents that are given just that task in a similarly imagined warehouse. Along with a few other oddball characters, agents Lattimer and Bering find themselves attempting to keep the inventory of Warehouse 13 safe and sound. But that's not an easy task when these powerful artifacts have a tendency to get out and have to be put back in or trouble will ensue.

This show isn't that much of a departure of the late 80's Horror influenced show, Friday the 13th: The Seires. But, instead of collecting cursed items in a creepy atmospheric peice, Warehouse 13 is more fantasy, and slightly, comedy driven.

This show is also far more family friendly than a lot of the other shows that are on my list. You don't have to worry about Little Tommy getting an eyeful of Xena's bare gazongas flapping about (not that there's anything wrong with that....ehem. I digress. I'm sooo getting coal in my stocking.).

I've only seen the first season and can't wait until I can find time to get a gander at season two which has already aired on the Sci-Fi channel. I may have to wait for DVD rentals again.

I'm enjoying catching up with these shows on DVD. I may review mare if I find the time. And speaking of time, I've wasted enough here for the day.


I'll leave you now with this thought,

Have a wonderful Christmas and enjoy whatever holiday you're into! Here's hoping it's full of family, food, fun, and warmth.

Zangz.

RINGing in the Holiday Season

I know that traditionally I use the weeks after Halloween to bemoan the coming holiday season here in my blog. It's just the way people seem to go mad and turn their D-Bag meters onto full tilt during the season that really gets to me. Just try and go to one store or mall and not have some jerk-wit not do something rude or just plain stupid to you.

In any case, I'd like to start the holiday season off on a good note and tell you of a yearly tradition I've started with myself that helps me get through the holidays.

It all started in the winter of 2001. A upstart New Zealand filmmaker named Peter Jackson released upon the world a gift of geek greatness. It was the first of the film trilogy of J.R.R. Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings" fantasy stories called "The Fellowship of the Ring". It was followed up with "The Two Towers" in 2002 and "The Return of the King" in 2003 both being released right around the holiday season.

These spectacles brought back the feel of epic filmmaking that hadn't been seen since movies being made by the likes of Cecil B. Demille had graced the silver screen.

A few years later the movies were released on DVD in their basic form. I decided to hold out. I waited for the uber-awesome 4 disc directors cut, extended editions of each of the films and I'm very glad I did as they play a part in my new holiday tradition.

Within the weekends between Thanksgiving and X-Mas, I'll sit down with a bowl of chili, a couple of beers, some sodas, chips and dips in front of my TV set and watch one of the movies all the way through. Then I'll go through the documentaries that are included in each set. This usually takes an entire afternoon. But it is so wonderful. I'm not out in the cold trying to shop with the god-awfulness of the throngs of greedy yuppie culture knocking each other over to grab the newest fangled techno gift.

I'm snug and sound, warm and cozy with grub and beer and Frodo, Merry, Pipin, Gandalf, Gimli, Aaragorn and the whole Rings lot of them enjoying their adventures within Middle Earth. Not too shabby.

I suggest you all get the extended additions of the movie and take a few Saturdays in the cold of the holiday season and watch them. I'm sure they're available on Amazon or Ebay. They're well worth it.

On that note. I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving and enjoy the rest of the holiday season

Zangz.

Zangz's Early as Heck 2010 X-Mas Wish List.

Every year my family members ask me what I want for X-Mas. Within the last few years I have gotten in the habit of putting the list up on my blog for a couple of reasons.

1. To be able to give family a concise list with linked examples so they know exactly what to get me without getting too confused.

2. To force them to actually visit and read my blog at least once a year. I need the hits.

3. A desperate need for some form of attention.

You may be asking, "Hey Zangz, why are you posting your X-mas wish list when we're barely out of the Halloween season?"

The few who read my blog know that the X-Mas season isn't really my favorite time of year for various reasons which I've blogged about in the past. And god knows that I'm already going through post Halloween DT's. But, last year my Mom and sister caught me completely off guard and demanded to know what I wanted for X-Mas a day before I planned to post my X-Mas wish list blog up (you can read about the whole sordid incident HERE). So this year I'm beating them to the punch.

I'm also making the print a little larger than usual because my mom complains that reading my blog gives her a headache due to the small type.

So, friends and family, get you pens and paper out and start jotting notes. Here we goes....

VIDEO GAMES:
Pleas note: All video games are for the Xbox 360.

Fallout: New Vegas - The quasi-sequel to Fallout 3. The first person RPG takes place in the post apocalyptic world that Fallout 3 was in. Except instead of traversing the wastelands of Washington DC, you're now exploring the semi-rebuilt tourist town of Las Vegas.

Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare - Not to be confused with it's predecessor, Red Dead Redemption, this add on is a game pack for the original Red Dead. In non-gamer speak: it is extra missions not included on the original game that focuses on the wild west being infected by zombies. The add on disc will not be released until late November. Make sure you get the box with the DISC in it. Not the one that offers the game as down loadable content since I don't have my system hooked up to the Internet.

Fable III - The 3rd installment of the popular Fantasy game where not only is action a part of the game-play, so is managing your own Kingdom.

CLOTHES:

Cargo Pants - A couple more pairs wouldn't hurt. Finding the right size for me is the grand mystery.

Leather Winter Gloves - The ones I have are falling apart

OTHER:

Cologne - I haven't had a decent cologne in years. In fact the one I have is the "organic" one that my sister, Dizzy Lizzy, sold when she worked at Bath and Bodyworks. It's time for a change. I wouldn't know what type to get, though.

Surprise me - Do you think you know something you'd like me to have, but isn't on the list. Go a head. Knock yourselves out.

That's it. That's all there is for me. That's the list.

I gotta get my ass in gear since I just found out 30 seconds ago that I'm meeting some friends in Madison within the next couple of hours.

See ya.

Zangz.

Bobby the Bully.

There's been a lot of hubbub in the media lately regarding bullying. A few young people have taken their own lives as a result of being bullied recently and now the media has jumped on the subject.

Even Hollywood stars are speaking out against bullying. There are news specials on the subject and students around the country are starting anti-bullying task forces at their schools.

I just have one question regarding all of this. WHERE THE FRELL WHERE ALL THESE ANTIBULLYING SENTIMENTS WHEN I WAS IN GRADE SCHOOL????

Seriously! From 3rd to 7th grade there wasn't a day that went by where I wasn't teased unmercifully or given a good smacking around by classmates. Both teachers and parents could have cared less back then. They were of a generation where a good beating would "build character".

Back in the day being a geek wasn't as counter culture cool as it is today. Back then being a kid who collected action figures rather than following professional sports teams wasn't exactly the cool thing to do. It got me into boatloads of trouble.

There was this one kid in my class who made it his main point in life to make sure I was miserable whenever he was in my presence. We'll call him "Bobby" in this post.

Bobby was a young, typical good looking, freckle faced, popular kid who all the teachers and students loved. He was good at athletics and was always the star player out on the blacktop. He also came from a, not rich, but financially comfortable family.

I started at the new school in the 3rd grade and Bobby, already being a fixture at the new school, took an instant dislike to me. I was gawky, had crazy curly hair, big goofy glasses and set of buck teeth that not only stuck out of my face, but had big gaps between them (I was a thumb sucker when I was a wee lad). On top of that, my Mom would always go way out of her way to dress me in the silliest looking outfits that usually included flood pants. I was cruising for a bruising the minute I first walked through that front door of that school.

I think I was starting to be pushed around within the first week. Bobby made sure that everyone else in the class disliked me and would follow suit in his abusive treatment of me.

The bullying lasted 3 years solid and had me at a point of severe depression and fear. I would wake up in the mornings wondering what was the purpose of waking up. I was only 10 years old for crssakes! I didn't understand the concept of suicidal tendencies.

On a daily basis I would have to calculate every move I made and everything I would say to avoid my classmates ridicule. Because no matter what I did, it was met with disdain. Even my best friend at the school would join in with the teasing and pummeling. It was pretty frackin' harsh.

A few short days before I entered the 7th grade and what was to be yet another year of torture from Bobby and his followers, we got the news that Bobby was hit by a car and died. No frack. The big assed beast known as karma came and reared her ugly assed head in a way that could only be described as the ultimate God Smack.

In the days and weeks that followed I didn't feel vindicated, I was far more blown away by the fact that someone my age could leave us in a split second. It wasn't until later in life that I felt a slight satisfaction in what all went down. But, now, as an adult, I feel for his family, but at the same time I wonder what 7th grade would have been like with him there. Would I have survived it?

Things got better in the years after. I was far less teased in grade school and in high school, though still an outcast, I found a good group of friends that I'm still close with.

So it's not just young gay people who are targets of bullying. There are plenty of us heterosexuals who are, or where, outcasts and targets and probably have an inkling of knowledge of what it's like to be different and not fit in.

It saddens me that people feel the need to end their lives at such a young age due to bullies. It got better for me. It can for them also. Unfortunately it's all about patience. Something the youth of today don't have.

And as for the bullies of the world, Karma is a big assed beeotch! A chance meeting with the front end of an automobile could be the cure to bullying.

Zangz.

Van Helsing's Curse- Haunted Attractions

Bruahahahahahahaha.........

Have a safe and spooky Halloween from Zangz's Blog of Geekdom!

Movie Reviews from the Grave Part Duex.

Before we get to more of my Horror movie review buffoonery, I found that I actually got a comment from the performance group The M.U.T.E.S whom I mistakenly referred to as mimes in my review of their opening gig for the Night of the living Dead Puppet Show. Please see below......

Vine Pewter said...

Hi Zangz!

Thanks so much for giving The Marvelous Unspeaking Troupe of Entertaining Scoundrels aka The M.U.T.E.S. a shout out and we are glad you liked the show! I just want to clear up that we are NOT mimes! This misconception has haunted us from the beginning. We don't talk when we do our skits because the idea is that you are watching a silent movie live and we paint our faces white to add to the black & white effect. We do however use props-lots of them at times! We don't pretend that things are there that aren't. We just want to put that out there because so many people are afraid of or hate mimes. We don't want to lose potential fans because they avoid our shows thinking that we are mimes. Find out more about the nation's premiere silent film style sketch comedy troupe at themutes.com.

PS We audition for AMERICA'S GOT TALENT on Nov. 7 in Chicago!!

So there you go folks. I've been educated. My apologies for misconstruing what The M.U.T.E.S. are all about. I'd also like to thank Vine for actually reading and responding to my blog which will make Vine the third or fourth person to not only visit, but actauly acknowledge openly that they've visited my blog of geekdom! This makes Vine the #3 of the 3.5 people who've actually visited my blog!

Please keep your eyes open for their next performance since it's something quite original and fun! And good luck to the gang on their tryout for America's Got Talent!!


So on to just a couple of reviews from my Halloween / Horror movie viewing this season. I've saved the best of them for last.....

Paranormal Activity - Before everyone starts screaming "BLAIR WITCH CLONE" just hear me out. Yes, much like The Blair Witch Project, this movie is presented as home movie footage of unexplained events. And yes, the actors keep their real names in the movie. Admittedly, there's a lot to compare with Blair Witch. But, Blair Witch was an experiment that went wild and Paranormal Activity is more of a spawn from Blair Witch type film making.

It is shot from the point of view of a young couple who are experiencing odd happenings in their condo. The strange events seem to be focusing mainly on Katie, the girlfriend of Micha. In an attempt to document the strangeness, Micha, a day trader with a tendency to not listen to his girlfriend's warnings, buys a home movie camera and sets it up in their bedroom.

Through the eyes of the camera we witness the strange noises and bumps in the night that plague the couple as they try and sleep. At first the haunting is very subtle which helps turn up the creep out factor. As Micha becomes a little more obsessed with trying to document and provoke the "spirit" the entity becomes far more active and angry. At the pleadings of Katie, they decide to bring in a psychic who tells them that he doesn't think it's a ghost. He believes it's something far more sinister.

For whatever reason this drives Micha to try and provoke the entity even more while Katie becomes far more reluctant to mess around with it. You see how their relationship starts to fall apart and how the activity starts to get far more disturbing at the same time, leading up to the climatic ending of the relationship.

Compare it to Blair Witch all you want. I won't disagree. I will say that I found Paranormal Activity to be even more creepy than Blair Witch. The scene in Blair Witch when they're in the tent and can hear little ghostly children laughing out in the woods creeped the the frack out! Well, paranormal Activity has scenes that trump that! I found myself pausing the movie to look down my darkened hallway to make sure there was nothing lurking down there during my viewing.

I really liked this flick. It focused on the "creep out" rather than buckets of blood and obnoxious teens getting sliced and diced. It's a nice breather from the usual fare. The prefect film for a cold, spooky evening. Best viewed in a dark room only lit by Jack-O-Lanterns! View trailer HERE!

Trick 'r Treat - Not to be confused with the hard rock influenced shlock fest from the 80's, this 2009 flick completely captures what a Halloween driven horror film should be. This anthology of horror revolves around a small town's Halloween festival where wondering if you have enough candy for the Trick or Treater's should be the least of your worries. Each little story saturates itself in gallows humor and usually leads into the next little vignette until the stories come full circle. Undead spooks, werewolves, a serial killer and a nasty little phantom Trick or Treater all take part in the gory shenanigans of the holiday festivities. I really loved this movie, if for nothing else, the whole spirit of Halloween is always present! View trailer HERE.

That's it for today. I'm off to help put up a giant inflatable Haunted House for my Friends' kid party. Before I leave you, keep in mind, tonight is Halloween Eve, be sure to close the windows and lock the doors. The dead can be pesky SOB's.

Zangz.

Undead Puppets and other Halloween Hijinx.

The old Oriental Movie Theater holds court over the pub scene of my town. It stands vigil over the city streets, adorned with spiral towers that hint at it's Asian motif.

Within it's walls visitors are taken back in time when going to a movie was a real event. There's a grandiose staircase leading up to the balcony. Within the main theater statues of Asian deities watch over the crowd from the walls. It is probably this city's most beautiful landmark that hearkens back to more easy going times.

But, there's also something slightly sinister about the place. It's almost as if there's something watching from behind the curtains and corners of the old establishment. Something no longer living.

There are ghost stories about the place. I knew one girl who said she saw a "shadow person" in the women's' room. Other tales of netherworldly visitors who lurk about the theater are told in hush voices.

Last night I was at the theater and experienced a far different form of undead entity. Zombies! Not just any type of zombies....PUPPET ZOMBIES!!

A performance troupe known as Angry Young Men Ltd have been putting on a puppet show version of George A Romero's Zombie classic, Night of the Living Dead (I'm not going to Wiki link all of that since I've been doing so in the last few blog posts) for a few years now. I first heard about it last year at the now defunct ZombieconX. I didn't get to see the show but I heard it was quite funny.

When I heard they were coming to the Oriental Theater to do their show, I went down to the box office and bought me a ticket!

The next night was the show and I had arrived there just in time. The line was large but moved quickly once they opened the doors. To say that it was a good turnout would be an understatement. It ended up being standing room only for a few late arrivals.

The show started with a puppet zombie host who had a Draculaesqe accent slinging one liners here and there and then introducing the opening acts. This is where the show became very reminiscent of the old Vaudevillian days of theater as a sideshow circus group, Dead Man's Carnival, and a very interesting mime group, The M.U.T.E.S., went back and forth with skits and tricks of daring do. I found the The M.U.T.E.S. particularly interesting since usually I REALLY.... HATE.... MIMES. The M.U.T.E.S. were something different entirely. Imagine an old black and white silent films from the early 1900's being brought to the stage. The skits were all fun, creative and quick....the only way I can like mimes.

Once they were through, out came the zombie MC again with more hilarity and then on to The Night of the Living Dead Puppet Show!

The puppets themselves were life size torso, cartoonish likenesses of the characters in the movie. They were operated with the puppeteer in full view, but draped in black to hide their faces. The show took the 90 minute movie and condensed it into 30 minutes of dark humor and puppet gore!

What is puppet gore, you may ask? The Angry Young Men used red fabric and red ribbons as blood splatter. At one point there were red ribbons flying everywhere with zombie puppet heads exploding after shotgun blasts! Yes, it was pretty awesome!

All of the main plot points and famous scenes were kept in the show. "They're coming to get you, Barbra" had new meaning when the poor girl is literally torn to pieces by flesh eating zombies. Even her puppet entrails were being gnawed on by undead puppets.

The show may have been short, but it was certainly sweet and brought forth a standing ovation at the end. Well deserved, I must say.


On to other Halloween news....

Sadly, I don't think I'm going to make it to any other haunts this year. Not enough interest from others and a tight schedule put a damper on my haunt attendance this year. But, in my own sad and pathetic little way I did get to "virtually" visit a few through the YouTube channel Hollywood Gothic.

Hollywood Gothic is run by a guy who lives in LA and visits as many local Haunted Attractions out there that he can. You can check out the website also HERE.

My Halloween weekend will be far from a total bust. Tomorrow I'm going to a family friendly Halloween extravaganza thrown by the wonderful DelAmorte's that will feature an inflatable Haunted House and lots of sweets.

Then on Halloween my family will get together and have a nice diner and watch a Horror movie.

Then the next day I immediately dive into seasonal effective disorder since I consider November 1st to be the first day of the 6 months of crap that is the Holiday and winter season. Yuck!

I'm hoping to do some more movie reviews and post tomorrow. We'll see.

Until the next time, make sure you do something spooky this weekend!

Zangz.

The Zombie Plague is Here and Strong!

During Halloween seasons in the past, Zombies never got their fair due. You'd see vampires, werewolves, mummies, Frankenstein and ghosts decorate houses, appear all over TV and be represented in costume shops all over the place. But, there wasn't much adoration for Zombies.

Within the last ten years or so, this has drastically changed. Zombies are limping and shuffling their way into the higher echelons of pop culture.

In the beginnings of the Zombie mythology the walking dead seemed to originate out of Voodoo curses and superstition. It was far more paranormal and occult than what it has become today.

In recent years the Zombie origin in most media and print is usually some form of disease or virus that sweeps it's way across the globe at an alarming rate. First the plague would infect the living individual with flu like symptoms. Then the sickness would progress quite rapidly within the next hour or so until the individual would die. Within seconds or minutes of death that person would be resurrected as a mindless Zombie with only one thing driving them.....the hunger for human flesh. Primarily the living human brain!

Of course if someone is bitten by a Zombie the infection is transferred to that individual who will go on to become a Zombie themselves and will then bit someone else and so on, and so on and so on.

There's also the old toxic spill story where either some greedy, scientific corporation, or our own military accidentally unleashes some chemical somewhere and it starts to infect people as well as those that are already deceased.

Formulaic example: Greedy corporation+mysterious chemical that needs to be dumped somewhere+ graveyard = Zombies.

In any case, Zombies are "alive" and well and here to stay! A new horde of Zombie films are finding their way onto the silver screen within the last few years.

Zombie movie demigod, George A. Romero has released a few newer Dead movies recently. Danny Boyle's 28 Days /Weeks Later movies scared the living bejeezers out of moviegoers a few years back. We've also seen the comedic likes of Shawn of the Dead and last year's Zombieland receive critical acclaim.

Premiering this Halloween, AMC will be bringing the wonderful Zombie comic, The Walking Dead to cable TV. I'm jonesing out for that one!!

Check out the trailer.....



Most recently author Max Brooks has brought zombies into modern day literature. His dark humored The Zombie Survival Guide and the serious toned World War Z: An oral History of the Zombie War are bestsellers.

Which is a nice segue to the main part of this post. A book review.


World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War - I read this book on a nice relaxing weekend where some friends had rented a small lake house and invited me along. I pretty much dove into the book expecting it too be creepy tale that featured the eating of flesh and other gory visions. But, what I got was a lot more frightening.

Told as a series of interviews from those that survived a worldwide Zombie infestation, World War Z is far more a scary social commentary on how we, as human beings, may not be that much better than the zombie hordes. In many stories throughout the novel, we are our own worst enemies.

As the Zombie plague breaks out and spreads itself rapidly, humanity finds cut-throat ways to back stab and obliterate itself. Evil corporations find new ways to make money off of the tragedy while governments take holocaust-like steps to protect the elite. And that is the most terrifying thing about this book. It mirrors what may very well happen if some sort of international tragedy, such as a deadly virus, actually comes to fruition. As we humans are continuously tortured by big corporations and the politicians who help support these companies, it's easy to see where it would all end if the unthinkable would take place.

Max Brooks captures that image very well in these interviews (stories) that accumulate into one big vision.

Some may be disappointed that the Zombies themselves are pretty much there as a setting for the more social and political themes in this book, but there are some pretty good, edge of your seat, type stories here also. There's one about a military helicopter pilot who crash lands into a Zombie ridden swamp and is helped by a mysterious stranger.

I'm not much into sociopolitical books whatsoever, but throw in a heaping of Zombies and it isn't so bad.

If I were a poli-sci professor, I'd put it on the reading list for my students for sure!


Alright then, kiddos. I'd move onto other Halloween subjects, but I'm in a bit of a rut with having a low key Halloween this year. There was no ZombieConX this year and outside of watching a plethora of Horror movies, I've only visited one haunted attraction this year.

Once again we went to a local gun club's Fin and Feather Haunted Woods. They changed it up a bit this season. My favorite addition was the ghostly bride who followed you down the path with caged corpses hanging from the trees above your head. Creepy. The attraction ended on a bit of a downer when we ran into a bunch of monsters (teenagers) all mulling about in a large group just goofing off and having some form of conversation. At first I thought we took a wrong turn and were in a "backstage" area. Nope. It was just a bunch of young scare-actors standing around when they should have been in full on scare mode. I know help is hard to find, but I'm becoming less and less of a fan of letting teeny-boppers take part in haunts.

In any case, it was still a good time and I have one more weekend of Halloween bliss to try and con...er I mean drag....er I mean take someone to go with me to another haunt.


And with that a bid you all a fond farewell. It's supposed to be a full moon tonight, be sure to go out and enjoy the spirits and ghouls it will beckon.

Zangz.

Zangz's Horror Movie Reviews from the Grave....

.....I dare you to come up with a more generic and lame post title than that!

Hello, fellow fans of fright and the wonderful Halloween season! The colors are coming into their own and allowing the early morning and late afternoon sun to blaze across them giving them blinding beauty. The pumpkins are invading the markets, Halloween decor is popping up in yards and the local Haunted Attractions are popping up all over the rural suburbs.

'Tis the season of ghosts and ghouls and I couldn't feel more rejuvenated because of it. In fact, on my day off yesterday, I did something I wouldn't usually do on a vacation day. Usually, I sleep in late and then get up and lay on the couch and watch horror movies. Before you know it, it's noon and I've wasted half a day. But, yesterday I got up as early as I usually do on a workday and went outside to watch the sun rise over the lake. The way it bounces off of the clouds on the horizon creating blues, oranges and reds is quite Autumnly spectacular!

I then walked on down to the local diner and gorged on a meal of Greek breakfast skillet. Good gosh-darn times, I tell you!

And since it is that spooktacular season there are a few annual events taking place right now. First we have the local Haunted Attractions running full force. I'm going to try hard to get to at least a couple this season. Perhaps next weekend. Stay tuned for a review.

Second, we have the annual Al's Run for the local childrens' hospital. It's a huge marathon that runs right down my street in front of my apartment every year. In fact I'm looking out the window and watching the participants running down the street right now, as I type this. At least I'm hoping it's Al's Run and not neighbors running from the oncoming, flesh eating zombie hordes! No one knocked on my door to warn me to get my skinny little butt running! Rat-Bastards!

Ehem....anyway. The third annual event is my Horror movie reviews here in my blog. So lets get right down into the thick of it, shall we....

Rob Zombie's Halloween II ("H2") - Rob Zombie is an artist I really dig. His live shows are theatrically Horror driven extravaganzas. His love of the Horror genre is infused within the music he makes and the movies he writes and directs. Rob, also, pulls no punches when it comes to controversial use of disturbing violence and gore in his flicks. So if you enjoyed the brutal non-stop blood fest that came from his first Halloween movie as well as, House of 100 Corpses and The Devil's Rejects, you'll know what you're in for.

I really enjoyed his first homage to John Carpenter's original Halloween (probably one of the best darn Horror movies of all time) but, only when I looked at it from the perspective that it is an homage (pronounced OHMAJ for you snootier types) rather than a reboot. In my eyes, he succeeds in the same way with H2, while at the same time, opening up a whole new avenue of telling the story of the cursed Meyers family. Rather than it being just a tale of poor Laurie Strode being stalked by her infamous serial killer brother, Michael Myers, it is also a twisted tale about the links between sister and brother and how you can never really escape family.

A lot of Carpenter / Halloween purists have decried a befouling of the series in Zombie's two interpretations of the first two originals. I can understand that if I were only looking at Zombie's works as reboots. But when you look at them as simply his homages and personal interpretations, you may enjoy them a lot better.

I didn't get into H2 as much as I did Zombie's first Halloween movie. Perhaps this was due to the fact that the first movie paralleled the first original Halloween movie much better and gave you more of a grounding for the story. H2 starts off like Carpenter's Halloween 2, but then ventures into it's own original plots and twists.

Once again Scout Taylor-Compton takes on the roll of Laurie Strode with a energy that I hope movie goers will get to see in many more movies to come. She's a force to be reckoned with. Keep an eye on her. And I don't mean that in a dirty-old-man kind of way either.

Again, Zombie's Halloween movies are great homages to the originals if you're willing to see them that way. If you're a purist, stick with Carpenter's originals.

View trailer HERE!

The Crazies - Another remake of an '70's classic. It's an interesting play on the zombie genre with a switch. Yes, there's a biological plague, but it is not turning the people of a small farm community into brain eating zombies. It is turning good natured town folk into creepy raving lunatics. And of course this movie gets a big boost with George Remero's finger in the frosting since he is executive producer.

I've enjoyed Timothy Olyphant's work since his strong as nails portrayal of Sheriff Seth Bullock on Deadwood.. Here he plays a sheriff whose town is falling pray to the virus changing his friends and neighbors into homicidal maniacs. He, once again, does a fine job of being the strong character amongst a metric butt-load of craziness.

The plague victims are a far cry from Remero's zombies. Unlike zombies these "people" don't mindlessly plod around looking to eat brains. They're a little more methodical in their endeavors. Instead of going for the jugular of their victims they lean more towards options such as locking their family in an upstairs closet, then dumping gasoline all over the house and then setting fire to the house and watching it burn to the ground. So there's a bit more of a sinister urge these folks have.

Of course the military and government are knee deep involved with the virus and they're just as much of a threat to the surviving townsfolk as the crazies are.

The movie does come with a good dose of stock, thriller trappings. But, I did enjoy this movie for what it is, a real good spook thriller.

View trailer HERE!

The Wolfman - This Victorian based horror movie is one I seemed to enjoy more than most. But, I'm a sucker for history based Horror such as Sleepy Hallow and Interview with a Vampire. There's something about the Horror genres that are told from historical times that seem far more creepy and spooky than those of modern day to me. And this movie has all of those old, creepy motifs well planted. A creepy crypt, some spooky bogs, dark forests and a huge, Gothic mansion all decorate this film. It definitely stroked my love of the macabre in a visual way.

However, I can see where it didn't make a big of a dent in the box office as was hoped. The plot is predictable and some of the acting was "called in".

Sir Anthony Hopkins is quite entertaining as the patriarch of a seemingly cursed family and dives into his role with great relish.

If you're into Gothic Horror it is something to check out. If your a slasher fan, there's plenty of blood and guts to satiate your gore-hound tastes.

View trailer HERE!


Deadgirl - This is probably the most disturbing zombie film I've ever seen.

It's not disturbing in the way The Exorcist keeps you up at night. It's disturbing because a couple of the main characters are valueless turds of human beings and their actions are unspeakable. And it's not a "zombie film" in the traditional way where there are loads of zombies taking over a small town. The film revolves around one main, young female zombie who spends much of the movie helplessly strapped to an old gurney.

The movie gets going after two high school burnouts are exploring an old, empty asylum. They come upon a forgotten back room where they discover the "deadgirl" strapped to the gurney. This is where things get pretty fracked up.

I'm not going into detail of what one of the burnouts spends much of the movie using the zombie for. Suffice it to say, he is king of all perverts. The other burnout goes back and forth with his conscience with the whole twisted situation and in the end he is no better than his pervo friend.

An interesting view on the zombie genre, but I think this is more of a Horror film for those that are into disturbing, art house, independent films. Not my cup of tea.

Jennifer's Body - I thought I wasn't really going to like this film. The Horror fan crowd didn't seem to jump onto this one. Megan Fox is perceived as being a one-trick eye candy actress and Diablo Cody's dialogue might seem trendy and clever for one movie (Juno), but in a Horror film it might be a bit overboard and over saturated.

But, for the most part, I dug it. It was a well told tale of two friends, one hot as hell and the other a bit nerdy, and how their relationship hits a pretty big snag when the hot one (Fox) becomes possessed by a demonic succubus and has to feed on the flesh of humans to keep her powers.

Fox does a fine job playing the hot cheerleader with a dark secret. And the dialog, while peppered with great Cody-isms, doesn't go too overboard.

This film took me back to movies like Heathers, a teen comedy with a real dark side.

While it's not very creepy, or scary it still has a good dose of blood and guts in it. There's also a bunch of real cool cameos and small roles that are fun to see in this film. J.K. Simmons, Amy Sedris and Lance Henrikson all pop up in various rolls.

A fun Horror flick to be sure, home skillet! View trailer HERE!

This is going to be it for me today. Don't be discouraged as I have a few more reviews coming within this eerie month of the dead. So stay tuned and stay vertical!

Zangz.

Into the Autumnal Dark Magic We Go....

Well, folks, we can now honestly say that it is officially Halloween season! This past weekend my bro-in-law and I worked on his front yard decorations.

On Friday night we had to replenish his gravestone and "Grave Buster" supply due to the fact that he kept them up in the rafters of his garage during the off season and a mother squirrel decided that the box would be a great place to build a nest for her babies.

The squirrel family has moved on but left behind chewed apart fake corpses that appear to come out of the ground (Grave Busters) and torn apart Styrofoam grave stones.

One prop that we really needed to find was a fake black raven that sits atop one of the gravestones. This was missing from the chewed up box and we were wondering if the squirrel had eaten the whole thing or taken it with her. Crazy b*&%h squirrel!

So, on our travels on Friday night we scored some headstones and a grave buster at Walgreens. We then found some cool decorations at Target including a skeleton who's head, arms and legs pop out of the ground.

Our last stop would be the big, inflatable Jack-O-Lantern that houses a big Halloween Express store located in the parking lot of our state fair park. But once we got there we were met with a great shock. The giant inflatable pumpkin was gone!! The gates that would surround it were there, the rotating doors to get into it were there, but the big inflatable pumpkin store itself was gone.

The night before there had been some pretty strong winds and, as we learned later on, they tore down the store. This isn't the first time it has deflated. Some pranksters forced a hole in it one year and the next year another storm brought it to the ground.

We still had not found the raven. So we drove across town to another Halloween Express store and wandered through the place. Still no raven to be seen.

Luckily, yesterday my bro-in-law found a fake raven at a party store that has a lot of Halloween decorations.

So today we put together the little fake graveyard in his front yard. He also has some assorted pumpkin and ghost lights and a light up Halloween themed gateway leading up to the front porch. His house is all set.

I'll have to put my apartment into Halloween mode this week. I have gobs of stuff that I didn't use last year that will have to rise from the grave this season.

In other Halloween news, Elvira, Mistress of the Dark has returned to TV in Elvira's Movie Macabre, a grand throwback to her original late night horror movie show from the '80's. The debut episode was Romero's Night of the Living Dead. You can't go wrong with Elvira and Zombies!

When I was a young lad I had a door sized poster of her taped to my bedroom door. It didn't need much tape to stick to that door, ifayknowwhatI'msayin'............(Eeewwwww).

I know, I know. It's a sick and sad, old joke, but I couldn't resist. Isn't Halloween supposed to be about things that give you the creeps.

A quick reminder to start locking your doors and boarding up your windows. For the season of the undead, ghouls and creepy crawlies has arrived!!!!

Before I leave I'd like to leave you with an example of some way cool Haunted Attraction props for this Halloween season.

Click HERE for a video of a Haunted Attraction convention. I want the gravestone that turns into an angel of death. It would take up my whole apartment and cost my entire savings, but I think I can swing it. Enjoy.

Until next time Stay Vertical!

Zangz.

Halloween Dreamin'

Anyone of the two or three people who visit this blog know that I'm a Halloween addict. So I don't really have to tell you all that I'm already getting psyched for the season.

And the season is already rearing its wonderfully undead head around the corner as the Octoberfests hit the beer shelves and the Halloween costume and prop shops start popping up in malls and empty storefronts.

The days get shorter and the nights longer while trees start to spew out wonderful colors. Oddly the weather is still trying desperately to hold on to summer. That isn't a problem with me, but I do think we eventually need to get that chill in the air to summon the spirits and the dead so they can roam about during the most imaginatively driven holiday of them all!

My mindset has already put forth subliminal messages about how much I love the holiday. I had my first Halloween themed dream. Apparently I was living in this imagined apartment with my girlfriend (I'm a geek, I have no girlfriend and the apartment wasn't the one I live in now. It was one with lots of windows that looked over a park, a place that I've never come across in the woken world.) and we were getting ready for a Halloween party and dressing up in costumes. I was a zombie and she was a sexy vampire (I told you this was a dream). But, we kept getting interrupted by Trick or Treater's who kept ringing the doorbell as we were trying to leave for the party.

We had tons, upon tons, of candy for them, but didn't want to leave it at the front door after we left because we knew some nasty kids would just take the whole lot of it and leave nothing for the rest of the children. Finally we decided to put together a lifelike dummy of a zombie to place by the barrel full of candy to scare the kids into leaving enough for everybody. I woke up at this point.

Now when it comes to this "dream girlfriend" of mine, she wasn't any supermodel or anybody like Summer Glau or Shirley Manson or Olivia Munn or anybody like that. She wasn't even Katie Sackoff with a bubble bath scene.

She was a cute, short, brownish / blond haired, girl next door type who is completely unrecognizable to my awake self. So I have no idea where, subconsciously, she morphed from. Wishful thinking perhaps?

Well, that isn't the only Halloween themed dream that I had a part in. Apparently a co-worker (who I'll refer to a Rufus) had a dream where I appeared. We were at work and I was playing electric guitar really, really well ( I can't play a note to save my butt! I even suck at Rock Band!). I responded to him as such, "Well when you're a vampire, like myself, you have a lot of time on your hands at night and have to have something to do." (outside of all the blood drinking I guess).

Rufus knows too much and will have to be extinguished relatively soon. If there is anyone out there who is looking for work in an inventory department that has no problems working with people in the adjacent department being members of the undead, my workplace may have an opening soon.

Ok, so this Halloween season I can't really promise any reviews on local Haunts since I believe a lot of my co-horts are getting older and fed up with me dragging their asses to Haunted Attractions, but I will use my vampire charm to get somebody to go with me and do a review or two. One thing I do have is a lot of horror movies in my online movie club queue. I'll be doing a few reviews on them and will have some other things lined up to give you the shivers and shakes. I've already brought in the Halloween them into the blog for all of you. So, please enjoy.....

Here come the dead, kids. You better be ready.

Bru-ahahahahahahahahahahaha. (Thunder / Lightening).

Long live the dead!

Zangz.

RED or DEAD, The Marston Family Name has been REDEEMED.

The old Wild West of America was going through a real odd transition stage around 1911. Slowly but surely the Victorian lifestyle was giving way to the age of industry. Covered wagons were being threatened to be replaced with automobiles. Trains were a far quicker and more comfortable method of transportation when compared to horseback. Technology was slowly starting to peek around the corner, but it had yet to completely wipe out the old west, cowboy hero archetype.

It is in this setting that Rockstar North, creators of the Grand Theft Auto series of games, decided the place their latest open world action video game, Red Dead Redemption.

The epic Western tale is set around a cowboy named John Marston. We start the game with John in a bit of a situation. John's outlaw past has caught up with him. We first see him being escorted by two federal agents (Pinkertons, perhaps?) to the Southwestern town of Armadillo (in a state which could quite possibly be California or Texas). The federals want Marston to hunt down his ex gang members and as a reward, the Feds will let go of his wife and son who they are holding captive. It's been quite a long time since John has seen anybody from that old gang. He's left those days behind and is trying to make good with his life by living off of the land as a rancher. But, now he seems to be thrown back into the world of violence and danger. It's up to you, as the player, to decide if he follows the path of the righteous or falls back down into the world of the outlaw.

And that's how Rockstar North starts you out and this epic, grand adventure. With "Redemption"being an open sandbox game, much like it's more than comparative gameplay siblings in the GTA series, the "do anything you want, go anywhere you please" philosophy is wonderfully enforced. They give you a big ol' wild west world to ride around in and explore. There's tons of characters to interact with. Some are quite lecherous and seedy, others are good and decent people, while some are just plain odd and downright creepy. Many of them will put you on quests and ask you to help them out on jobs. Performing these tasks will earn you money, fame and notoriety.

The settings and graphic design work on this game is breathtaking. I found myself gazing up at the sunset that silhouetted mountain range more than a few times. I also came across many small towns that dot the old west. From the classic township of Armadillo to the white walled Mexican town of Las Hermanas to the spooky and swampy Thieves Landing. Every town has it's own character which helps give this open world setting a good amount of variety which can get lost a bit when you and your horse are traversing the constant open plains. Rockstar North does make sure to pepper the plains with lots of wildlife to hunt and / or run away from. There's also snowy, wooded mountainsides to venture into. I also had Marston exploring old gold mines, outlaw hideouts, graveyards and a couple of old forts. Suffice it to say, there's a ton of stuff to do and see in this game!

There's also a good amount of weapons and tools to use to make your stay in the wild west a little more safe. A lasso, rifles, shotguns, throwing knifes, Molotov cocktails all fall into the mix and come in handy when a gang of thieves pop out of nowhere to try and take your money.

The combat system is much like its GTA counterparts where you're able to take cover behind objects while popping up to take shots. What makes it unique is the Dead Eye feature which slows down the gameplay and zooms into the action allowing you to bead in on multiple enemies at once. Once the Dead Eye feature is released (or runs out, since it can only be used for limited time) Marston unleashes bullet furry in a flash of time. The next thing you know, a bunch of bad guy bodies are hitting the dirt ground. Some players found this feature made the shootouts too easy to get through. I found it very addictive. But, it is true that you won't always want to rely on the Dead Eye alone. I mostly used it when I found myself outnumbered or on horseback.

The main feature about this game that helps it stand out amongst others is that you get lost in the epic storyline. You'll want to see this adventure through to the very end, not just because of the gameplay, but because the game designers make you care about the story through the wonderful characterization and voice acting work. The voice acting is the very best I've heard in a game, squeaking past the work done on Mass Effect 2 by a hair. This is the closest I've every come to feeling I was actually playing a full fledged Hollywood movie. It's that frackin' good!

SPOILER ALERT (Highlight to read if you haven't finished the game yet)

There's also a huge plot twist right towards the end of the game that will stop you in your tracks! It'll have you screaming at the TV screen, "But that CAN'T be the end!?!?! They can't close the story this way!!!!" Don't worry. They don't. The story picks up several years after the plot twist and now you're in another pair of boots out for justice, or revenge. However you want to look at it. I can't recall that kind of element ever used in the story of a video game before.

You're probably hearing a lot about how this is THE best game of the year. I have to admit, it is certainly up there. However there were a couple of times where I was ready to toss the controller into the TV screen. The control scheme of the game can be quite dodgy at times. More than once I found myself trying to reach for my gun in a dire situation and the controls refused to respond, leaving my cheese in the wind and Marston's ass on the dirty ground. Not cool. Horseback riding is pretty darn smooth for the most part however you horse is a dumb animal and will fall off cliffs taking you with it if you're not careful. I also found myself getting Marston caught against surfaces I was trying to keep him under cover on. Sometimes I couldn't pull away from the surface I was hiding behind. I feel the controls could have been quite a bit better, especially when Rockstar North put so much time and effort into this epically detailed story they were telling. Some people are complaining that this game is no more than Grand Theft Auto game set in the wild west. That may be so, but there's nothing wrong with that! GTA has more than proved itself as being an excellent gameplay experience. Heck, maybe for their next game they can do something similar in a medieval setting, or perhaps a Gothic horror setting.

Once I completed the game and the credits finally rolled, I sat there a while and found myself thinking about what I had just experienced. I rarely, if ever, do that after I play a game. That's what kind of an impact this game had on me. There are those art-house curmudgeons out there who say that video games will never surpass the art of film. Well, Rockstar North took a few strides closer to that reality with Red Dead Redemption.

Check it out if you have the time.

Until the next mindless post, as a wise man once told me, stay vertical!

Zangz.

Gen Con Milwaukee Remembered: Part 6

Here is the last of the Gen Con series of journal entries that I wrote back early last decade when Gen Con was held in Milwaukee. This particular entry chronicles the last days of Milwaukee's Gen Con.

So dig in and enjoy.....

Saturday August 11^th, 2002.

- Another healthy walk to the Midwest Express Convention Center brings me to Sci-Fi Saturday. It is the day in which most of the celebrity Q&A sessions are to take place.

- I get there at about 9:30am and see that certain Gen Con traditions will never die. The entire schedule has indeed changed. I get on the pay phone and leave a message on Spanky’s cell phone (THAT HE SHOULD HAVE HAD TURNED ON!!!) and tell him to get here STAT ‘cause Lisa Ryder’s (Becka from “Andromeda”) Q&A was a few minutes away.

- I’m not much of an “Andromeda” fan at all. I think I watched half of one episode once. But I’ll tell you this, if you thought Lisa Ryder was pretty on television…. you need to see her in person! I made sure I got a good seat near the front.

PEOPLE WATCHING LESSON #4:

WHEN OGLING THE FEMALE CELEBRITIES… revert back to Lesson #3!

- Miss Ryder seemed very personable and happy to see everyone. Half the people there were from her fan club which seemed to consist of young, giggling girls. Go figure.

- I walk across the way where officials were getting ready for the costume contest.

- I took a picture of a gentleman in an incredible Legolas (From Lord of the Rings) outfit.

- There was still no sign of Spanky or Koreboy by the time Ethan Phillips (Star Trek: Voyager / Benson) showed up for his Q&A.

- Surprisingly he didn’t talk a lot about Voyager. Instead he talked about what it was like starting out as a stage actor in New York. It was quite interesting and entertaining until…

- Suddenly the door to the room swings open. A figure wearing a tie-dye Darth Maul T-Shirt stands in the doorway… It’s Spanky.

- Spanky makes his way over to where I’m sitting right in the middle of Mr. Phillips Q&A. Spanky is accompanied by Koreboy and his friend Tom.

- Mr. Phillips makes the wise decision to ignore the interruption and go on with his story.

- The Q&A session ends and Spanky shows me his bag of free con swag. He’s in geek heaven.

- About 15 minutes later the next Q&A session starts. It’s Warwick Davis who played the title role in the fantasy film “Willow” as well as Wickett the Ewok in “Star Wars, Episode VI: Return of the Jedi”.

- Warwick was very funny and seemed to have a great sense of humor about things. He was very outgoing and charming.

- After he waddled on off Spanky, Koreboy, Tom and I decide to head to the mall and get a bite to eat.

- Outside of one unfortunate incident involving Tom, his wedge fries and the floor, lunch at the mall was pretty uneventful.

- We decide to head back to the main hall where Spanky wanted to get some celebrity autographs and play some form of “Family Feud” that would win him MORE free swag.

- We head to the autograph area where Ethan Phillips is signing. Spanky is in front of me in line and reaches Ethan first.

- At this time Spanky decides it’s time to play Mr. Comedy with Ethan and asks poor, tired Ethan to sign his autograph “ To the president of the James Noble Fan Club. (James Noble is the actor who portrayed the Governor on the TV sitcom “Benson” on which Ethan Phillips played Pete Downey) Ya see, in Spanky’s mind an obscure character actor reference = big side splitting laugh from Star Trek celebrity. Mr. Phillips gives a quick chuckle. No side splitting laugh as was expected by Spanky.

- When I get to Ethan, he asks me if I’m a member of the same fan club.

- I reply, “…umm, I think I let my membership laps.” At which he gives a bit more of a laugh than he did with Spanky.

- We move off the autograph stage and over to the hallway to get our swag in order when “it” hits my nostrils…

- Either rotting corpses have risen from the grave and are lurking up and down the halls of Gen Con, or somebody decided that three days of non stop gaming with no bathing would be a welcoming idea. Think again, B.O. Boy!

- I decide that it would have been a good idea for convention officials to hand out bars of soap to people entering the con.

- We decide to split up because Spanky, Tom and Koreboy want to go “play the Feud” while I stay in people watching mode.

- I walk up and down the isles a bit more and run into the Clyde Caldwell art booth.

- I have a very good time looking at his wonderful fantasy art.

- I have an even better time looking at his wonderful model dressed in skimpy barbarian clothing…. Not that I’m into that or anything. Hey, I’m an art lover. What can I say?

- I run into Hope, Mario and a few other people I have gamed with including Dave and Jim. We walk around a bit together and end up by the autograph stage to just shoot the breeze a bit.

- While I’m in mid conversation I hear what sounds like Daffy Duck having his liver pulled out of him through his nostril with no anesthesia. The sound seems to be coming from the autograph stage.

- I suddenly realize that it’s Spanky calling my name.

- I look up to the stage, and sure enough, there’s Spanky holding up the line of people who want to get Don P. Davis’ autograph.

- He sees I have my camera and wants a picture of him and Don together.

- He continues to hold up the line until I get the picture taken.

- Just as I’m about to go back to Hope and Mario, Spanky grabs me as he comes off the stage and pulls me over to a smaller autograph table where Lisa Ryder is signing.

- He has her sign a picture and write, “Spanky, SHUT UP!” on it. Ya see, this way when people who know Spanky see the autograph, they’ll figure Miss Ryder is a close friend of his too seeing as most of his friends spend a lot of time telling him to “SHUT UP!” Not gunna happen, Spanky.

- I take his picture with her. She looks freighted.

- I finally get back to Hope, Mario and the others and finish our conversation.

- We no sooner head out into the lobby when Bruce and Leslie show up dressed in full Rebel Trooper outfits (You know, the guys who wore those goofy white helmets, who ended up being cannon fodder at the beginning of “Star Wars, Episode IV: A New Hope”). Not far behind them is a fellow dressed up as infamous Imperial leader, Grand Admiral Thrawn (From the SW novels Aire to the Empire, The Last Command…etc.), blue face and all!! Very cool!

- I take many pictures of them all!

- Not much happening after they close the main hall doors, so I head home.

Sunday, August 11^th, 2002.

- I arrive at Gen Con at 9:30am to meet Koreboy in the main lobby of the Midwest Express Center so he can drop off something he picked up for me at this year’s Wizard World Convention (a big comic book convention in Chicago).

- I’m in a rather melancholy mood with this being the last day of the last Milwaukee Gen Con. But, what can ya do. Incompetence and greed always seem to come out on top, don’t they?

- After a while Koreboy shows up with Tom and Spanky in tow. He hands me a bag with a small treasure inside. A 6” Chianna from “Farscape” action figure. Now I have my little own GiGi Edgley to put up in my work space at my job. Do you see how sad, little pathetic things can make me happy.

- They head into the main hall while I wait for two of my fellow Cthulhu players who have never been to Gen Con to show up.

- After a while Muffy and Shifty show up and we head into the convention.

- After fiddling around with getting Shifty and Muffy registered and trying to put together the annoying, little, cheap plastic chain that holds the con badge around one’s neck, we head up to the show room.

- Within the first 10 minutes, Muffy and Shifty have dropped $30. It’s going to be an expensive day. Especially because I have to get my hands on whatever’s left here that I want!!

- During the day, Muffy, Shifty and I lose the contents of our wallets to crap such as…

- More beanie-plush Cthulhus (They’re so damn cute when they suck your soul from ya!).

- I get 5 more sets of dice to make up for whatever years of Gen Con I’m about to miss.

- A compilation of Lovcraftian, Cthulhu mythos stories.

- Mini remote control cars.

- Miniature replicas of Star Wars vehicles and ships.

- A T-Shirt with a shield and skulls designed by Brom.

- A Mystatonik University Student Parking sticker (an inside Cthulhu joke).

- A KFC (Kids For Cthulhu) T-Shirt.

- A life-sized, anatomically correct mannequin of Herve Villachez that says, “I love the Cheese Castle” in Portugese, when his pinky finger is squeezed.

(I made up that last one just to see if you were paying attention.)

- After Shifty and Muffy were taped out and exhausted, they decided to hit the road. I stay and do the last of my people watching.

PEOPLE WATCHING LESSON #5:

MASKING TAPE HAS FAR MORE USES THAN I THOUGHT. EVIDENTLY, IT CAN BE USED AS A BIKINI.

- I meet up with Bruce and Leslie again. We all plan to meet Hope and Mario at the entrance to the main hall at the last minutes of Gen Con and head out to a restaurant and toast the end of the biggest gaming convention known to mankind!

- I take one last walk around the main hall and at 3:55pm, I head to the main entrance and meet up with the rest of the gang. As we leave the convention center there are no tears, just disappointment that this is the end.

As the curtain finally closes on Milwaukee’s last Gen Con, many gamers wander slowly back to their cars and hotels and get ready to leave the city, not to return to Milwaukee next year or possibly ever again.

There will be another gaming fair next year in Indianapolis, which I’m sure will be very, very good. Who knows, I may even make the trek out there in the next few years. But one thing is for sure, it won’t have the same charm as it did in Milwaukee! Let’s face facts; if it ain’t in Milwaukee…it just ain’t Gen Con!

The End………


I hope you enjoyed my homage to the Gen Con's of old in these last several posts. For the next blog we'll be back to normal as I wax poetic on the video game masterpiece Red Dead Redemption.

Stay vertical, true believers!

Zangz.