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Toys & Collectibles

Friends Are Magic: LEGO’s Central Perk and Harry Potter Hogwarts Clocktower

lego, friends, harry potter
LEGO’s Friends Central Perk and Harry Potter Hogwarts Clocktower Playsets.
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Andy Says Film & Television Series

Wanted Undead or Alive: A Look at the Aussie/Netflix Paranormal Drama “Glitch”

“Glitch” Season 1 Cast – Patrick “Paddy” Fitzgerald (Ned Dennehy), Kristen “Kirstie” Darrow (Hannah Monson), James Hayes (Patrick Brammall), Kate Willis (Emma Booth), Charlie Thompson (Sean Keenan), and John Doe (Rodger Corser)
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Toys & Collectibles

Little Wonders: Monogram’s Classic Wonder Woman Collection

bust bank, wonder woman, monogram international, dc entertainment, comic book heroines
One of Monogram International’s new Wonder Woman Bust Banks.

Just in time for the release of DC Entertainment’s much anticipated Wonder Woman film, Monogram International Inc. announces its Classic Wonder Woman Collection. As always Monogram will offer a wide selection of collectibles and novelties, enough to please any fan of the Amazon goddess.

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Toys & Collectibles

Ace Faces: Star Ace Collectibles @ NYCC 2014

Star Ace's Cast Metal Replica  of the Disney Submarine Nautilus Design.
Star Ace’s Cast Metal Replica of the Disney Submarine Nautilus Design.

Little “Leagues”…
For me, NY Comic Con is a chance to say hi to the purveyors of some of the fun stuff that I like the best and also a perfect opportunity to discover some new items to add to the “wow” list. This year was no exception.

While free ranging the Javitts Center aisles what to my wondering eyes did appear but a miniature replica of the Naultilus submarine. This representation of Captain Nemo’s sweet ride (Jules Verne’s grandaddy of steam-punk vessels) is based on Harper Goff’s design for Walt Disney Studios 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954.) The little beauty stopped me dead in my tracks and impressed me even more when I learned it was a die cast metal kit with working parts and lights. This one is a true gem for the builder/collector and is aimed at a winter 2014 release.

Want to know more about the genesis of Disney’s submarine design? A treasure trove of information can be found at DisneySub.Com.


Unique Steve McQueen Collectible will Join Star Ace's Growing Line (Pre-Approval Image)
Unique Steve McQueen Collectible will Join Star Ace’s Growing Line (Pre-Approval Image)

Escapism…
Once I pulled my eyes, and camera, away from the Disney Submarine replica, a look around revealed that I was in the display booth of Star Ace Toys Limited, and there were other delights to be seen. Giving me a steely stare from an adjacent display case was another iconic film entity, Steve McQueen, portrayed in his role as Captain Virgil Hilts from The Great Escape (1963). Though I was allowed to photograph it it should be noted that the McQueen likeness is shown here in pre-approval prototype form.

Lord Voldemort Conjures Up Some Trouble
Lord Voldemort Conjures Up Some Trouble

Say My Name…
Star Ace’s current franchise stock in trade is their growing range of Harry Potter film figures. Along with Harry and Ron Weasley, also displayed at the Yes Anime convention booth, Star Ace exhibited prototypes for Ralph Fiennes’ Lord Voldemort and Gary Oldham’s Sirius Black portrayals.

As the photos show these 1/6th scale articulated collectibles are rendered with exquisite attention to detail from their head sculpts and paint to the delicious scope of their accessories.


SkeletonPete Says…
I’m happy to see that Star Ace is giving some love to the interests of “boomer” collectors like myself, who in actuality are more likely purchase such high scale prizes. If they’re considering mining 50’s-60’s pop culture a Frank, Dino and Sammy Jr. “Rat Pack” would find a home in many “man-caves.”

Categories
Andy Says Books & Graphic Novels

There’s a New Sheriff in Magic Town: Angel & Faith Season 10 from Dark Horse Comics

angelfaithcover
Ever since Barnabas Collins bared his fangs for the 1960’s Gothic daytime soap opera, Dark Shadows, we’ve been enamored with repentant vampires. The idea of the ultimate bad-boy-turned-good by the love of a woman, captured our dark hearts. Like Barnabas, the path to true love never did run smooth for fellow repentant vampire Angel (created by Executive Producer Joss Whedon), and of course, there’s a twist to that epic love story as well.

 

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What it Was…

For those who are unfamiliar with the tale, Angel is a vampire cursed with a soul (in the Buffyverse vampires do not have souls, as a rule, with only two exceptions) by a group of vengeance-seeking gypsies, for the atrocities he has committed.  Now, feeling the full weight of the devastation he has wrought, Angel (once the worst of his vampire-kind – known then as Angelus / Liam – when he was human – who wasn’t that much better), seeks redemption for his sins.

When we first meet Angel (played by David Boreanaz – Bones) in the TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, he is watching over Buffy (Sarah Michelle Gellar). OK, he comes off like a creepy stalker whose motives are unclear at first, but he means well.

Eventually, he joins Buffy and her friends in the fight against evil. Unfortunately, Angel makes the mistake of falling in love with the young slayer. In a moment of unbridled passion, Angel loses his soul again (part of the gypsy curse). A moment of true happiness turns Angel back into a soulless, heartless, mass-murdering monster.

Once his soul is restored, Angel knows he can’t stay with Buffy, as he can’t risk the demon within returning to destroy her and all those around her. The star-crossed lovers must part. Heartbroken, Angel removes himself from Buffy’s life and relocates to Los Angeles (the City of Angels – where else?) where he sets up Angel Investigations – a detective agency with a mission to protect the weak and the helpless.

Along the way, Angel meets Doyle (played by the late Glenn Quinn – Roseanne), a half-human half-Brachen demon, whose painful psychic visions aid Angel on his mission. By chance he also re-meets friend and former mean girl Cordelia Chase (Charisma Carpenter – Veronica Mars), trying to make it big in Hollywood as an actress.

Later, Angel is joined by disgraced Watcher Wesley Wyndam-Pryce (Alexis Denishof – How I Met Your MotherGrimm), former-gang-member-turned-slayer Charles Gunn (J. August Richards – Arrow, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.), super science geek Winifred ‘Fred’ Burkle (Amy Acker – Dollhouse, Person of Interest), and the green, karaoke-loving, telepathic demon Lorne (played by the late Andy Hallett).

When the TV series ended in 2004 (in the finale Not Fade Away), we were left with the cliffhanger to end all cliffhangers. Angel, along with fellow vamp Spike (James Marsters), Gunn and Illyria (the Demon taking up residence in Fred’s body), were left with Hell literally raining down upon them — a parting gift from the Senior Partners from the evil law firm of Wolfram and Hart (The Wolf, The Ram and The Heart).

With an army of demons bearing down upon them,  a dragon flying overhead, the loss of their friend, Wesley, and Gunn wounded, our four heroes stand, seriously outnumbered. The last thing we see is Angel, leading the charge. That image burned into our retinas. We were left staring blankly at the screen in disbelief. This couldn’t be the end, could it? I hadn’t been this upset by a series finale since the last episode of Blake’s 7… but I digress… as I often do. Sadly, we never saw Angel and company grace our screens again.

 

Angel and Faith Season 10 #1, ULTRA Variant cover by Rebekah Isaacs
Angel and Faith Season 10 #1, ULTRA Variant cover by Rebekah Isaacs

Our Dark Knight Returns…

Joss Whedon resurrected Angel in 2007 (then with comics from IDW Publishing) picking up where the TV finale left off.  For the last two seasons, Joss and Dark Horse Comics have teamed Angel up with Faith the Vampire Slayer (played by Eliza Dushku in the series) to continue their adventures. Faith has come back from the brink herself, and in her own way, is also seeking redemption for her sins. Both lonely souls bond, becoming allies and friends.

Season 9 of Angel & Faith saw the return of Rupert Giles, Buffy’s Watcher (played in the series by Anthony Stewart Head). Angel had killed Giles while under the influence of magic in Season 8 of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. However, there was an unforeseen consequence to resurrecting our beloved Giles (formerly a middle-aged Englishman). When he returns, he comes back as a young, almost Harry Potteresque pre-teen, capable of wielding magic himself. As we have learned, magic can be unpredictable and dangerous at times. Welcoming Giles back to the world of the living comes with a steep price. Part of London is sacrificed in order to do it and now part of the city is flooded with magic and overrun with supernatural beings.

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Here Comes the Law…

When we return, we find our brooding hero, Angel, attempting to deal with the fallout from the previous season, in the section of London known as Magic Town.  As you can imagine, there’s plenty of brooding and self-recrimination that comes with that territory. Meanwhile, we transition over to Faith, who has joined Buffy and the Scoobies in Santa Rosita to help fight the dreaded “zompires” (zombie vampires), as we saw in the Season 10 opener of Buffy. Faith also delivers her comrades the greatest of all gifts in the form of a youthful Giles, though it pains her greatly to do so as she watches the joyful reunion from the distance, always the outsider.

For Season 10 of Angel & Faith, Victor Gischler and Will Conrad take the helm from the creative team of Christos Gage and Rebekah Isaacs (who have moved over to the main Buffy comic) and with them they bring an intense, dark flavor that suits this series quite well.

Far less colorful and light-hearted in tone than Buffy, Gischler and Conrad match the look and feel of the Angel TV series. Will Conrad’s artwork captures the likenesses of the actors from the show (especially Boreanaz and Dushku) beautifully, and that alone had me hooked.  The story itself is fast-paced, with plenty of tension and drama. Though I found the transitions between Angel’s scenes and Faith’s a bit jarring, I blew through the issue quickly, and found myself disappointed when it was over so soon.

 

Andy Says…

The skilled team of Gischler and Conrad hit the opening issue out of the ballpark and left me wanting more. As a fan of the series, what more can you ask for? Angel & Faith Season 10 Issue 1 from Dark Horse Comics is out today at a comic book store near you.