Critical Hits Cocktails Takes Over Geek & Sundry Vlogs To Make Your Geek Drinking Dreams Come True...

Geek and Sundry Vlogs has a stable of great geek related videos over at their Youtube page. That is a given... but some are definitely more appealing to my particular geek sensibilities than others. Critical Hit Cocktails does just that, with host Mitch Hutts, takes nerd friendly characters and properties and comes up with awesome drink recipes to satisfy your geeky palate. They make both alcoholic and non alcoholic recipes, and the best part is that if you take some of their non alcoholic drinks and just add a spirit of your choice you can still get a buzz out of it! These are great, and Hutts minds the classics for his inspiration. TMNT, Harry Potter... hell, the newest video is a Star Lord inspired drink, which is fitting since Guardians of the Galaxy is killing it right now. The best part is the instructions are easy to follow and the ingredients are simple and easy to obtain. So in just a few minutes you can turn yourself into the Nerdiest Mixologist of all time! All of them are fun, so make sure you check em all out... I will be making some of these behind the bar this weekend, so I will let you know how they shake out!



Star Lord:

 

Donatello from TMNT:

A Usagi Yojimbo Film Is On The Way... Watch The Short That Got The Filmmakers Permission From Stan Sakai To Make It!

My earliest memories of Usagi Yojimbo come from the TMNT cartoon series of the early 90s. I loved that show, and Stan Sakai's samurai bunny rabbit was always a highlight for me. He is so serious, and such an absolute badass... so when I was able to read some of the Yojimbo comic stories later in life I found them amazing! Sakai's art is also spectacular, and the stories are true samurai epics even though they feature talking animals. So when my buddy Tommy Lombardozzi (who is a huge Usagi  fan) sent me a new short film that was created in order to secure the confidence of Sakai in making a full length feature. Lintika Films presents Usagi Yojimbo: The Last Request. It is really well done, and Sakai was so blown away that he gave his blessing for them to move forward with a full length feature. Keep track of the films progress by following their Facebook page, and watch the embedded short film after the jump for a taste of things to come!!!



Poster:

Teenage Mutant Ninja X-Men by M7781

I came across artists m7781 (Marco D'Alfonso) over on Reddit due to his awesome Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and X-men mashup that is making the rounds on the Internet. When I moseyed on over to his Deviant Art page I found an incredible collection of art mashups of pop culture characters that will make your head spin. There are a bunch of good ones, but I still find myself rotating back to the TMNT/X-Men one the most. What a great piece. Leo as Cyclops (the leader), Donatello as Beast (the scientist), Mikey as Iceman (the funny guy) and Raphael as Wolverine (the maniac). We also get April as Jubilee (they did rock the same colors!), Casey Jones as Cable, and my personal favorite side character Metalhead as Colossus. Pretty amazing. Lets hope m7781 decides to do a Brotherhood of Evil Mutants/Footclan mashup.... Shredder as Magneto? Kang as The Blob? Rocksteady & Bebop as Pyro & Avalanche? Yup... that would be great! Check out the full size pic after the jump...

You See... Michael Bay Isn't So Bad, He Is A Perfectionist !!!

You gotta love The Onion. Those guys know how to exploit a situation. When the 2014 SD Comic Con rolled around people from every news outlet, both reputable and unreasonable, flocked to Cali to cover it. But while all of these people were trying to gets scoops, attend panels, and  be the first ones with some sort of "news"... The Onion just does what it does best: Make shit up that sounds good enough to fool people to be true!!! First they leaked a great story about a new "Green Goblin" that would be left handed... and people all thought it was true. Then they outdid even themselves... they created this amazing behind the scenes documentary that captures the in depth nature that Michael Bay goes to in ensuring that everything is factually correct in any films he is associated with. Everything... down to the turtle cocks in his newly produced TMNT film!!!! Hol-y SHIT, this is amazing!!! And they even had to CGI the fake dongs in order for the footage for the faux behind the scenes feature... which means the footage is in fact REAL (if you follow my logic anyway...). Yup, this is great. The Onion, never stop being the best at what you do....




Comic-Con Exclusive: Michael Bay Gives Fans Sneak Peek At Ninja Turtles’ Hyper-Realistic CGI Genitals

Gallery Nucleus Presents: Heroes In A Half Shell - A Tribute To The 30th Anniversary of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

I am always on the lookout for cool pop culture art shows that are held around the country... after all, other than Bottleneck Galleries in Brooklyn we have very few places in NYC that conduct shows of that nature. But through the magic of the Internet we not only get to view the pieces of these shows, but we have access to PURCHASE prints and original pieces of all this great stuff! Gallery Nucleus is located in Alhambra, California and is currently executing one hell of a show. It is called 'Heroes In A Half Shell' and is meant to pay tribute to the 30th Anniversary of our favorite crime fighting reptiles (yup, turtles are reptiles... why don't you go to science class!). On the cusp of the release of the new live action TMNT film, this show highlights all the classic characters as well as some of the rarer ones from the many iterations the property has been through (Fish Face seems abundantly more popular than he should be as a subject). There are over 30 artists in the show, and it also features sponsorship tie ins to the cartoon and IDW comics. There are giveaways, door prizes and the best part is that anyone that shows up in costume gets in free!!! The pieces vary in style and execution, and there are even some non-print pieces (a skate deck, stuffed animals, and scultures) to spice things up. Now that is one show I wish I lived on the Left Coast for!!! The show runs until August 3rd, but if you can't make it in then make sure you pop by the Gallery Nucleus webpage to peruse the art and maybe make some Turtle-Tastic purchases. Enjoy my faves after the jump....

World Upon a Turtles Shoulders by Tohru Awa

Ninja Beatdown by Miki Brewster

Raph Walks Alone by Micah Gunnell

Pizza Party by Nicole Gustafsson

Turtles In A Half Shell by Laura Hohman

Family by Jermaine Jose

TCRI Skate Deck by Jack Rossi 

A New Tenant by Sachin Tang 

  

Eastman & Laird Both Coming Back To IDW's 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles' For A 30th Anniversary Issue ??? YES PLEASE !!!!

One of my favorite NY Comic Con experiences happened about 5 years ago with my good friend Sam James. Sam and I were walking the floor and he is a huge TMNT guy. So he sees Peter Laird of TMNT fame and starts going bonkers. He runs over to the table and buys a lithograph from Mr. Laird, which he is super happy about. As we started around the floor again, Sam mentioned that he wanted to meet Kevin Eastman, the other man responsible for TMNT... who was also somewhere at the show. As we sought him out I wondered out loud why he wasn't near Laird's table, considering how their creations were so related. Sam explained that they had a huge falling out and that they didn't really like each other much. That made the situation funnier and much more understandable. When we found Eastman, Sam asked him to sign the same lithograph... he explained to Eastman it would be an honor to have both guys signatures on one piece. Eastman promptly said "This is the shitty pieces Laird is selling at his table? I ain't signing that...". But he wasn't a complete dick, he did one better... he turned over the lithograph and did a full on Leonardo sketch right there on the spot. When he finished, he looked up at our shocked faces and said something to the effect of "Fuck Laird... now you got your very own TMNT original, not some generic piece of shit". He signed it, and so Sam was faced with the dilemma of getting both signatures on a piece, albeit one on each side... lol. This was first hand proof that these guys despised each other. So imagine my surprise when I opened my email and see that both Eastman & Laird will be working together on a 30th anniversary one shot issue that will feature a bunch of one off stories about the green foursome. I for one couldn't be any happier...

Click after the jump for more info on the release....



The book will be a 48 page full color one off that features some of the creative talent responsible for 30 years of TMNT goodness such as Eastman, Laird, Dean Clarrain, Chris Allan, Tom Waltz and Dan Duncan... the stories will hit on various eras of Turtle history. The book doesn't have an official release date yet, but I am sure that it will coincide with the August 2014 movie release that is rapidly approaching. I am excited, and being a day one comic fan boy of the property I will be pre-ordering my issue. Glad to see that the guys are able to put their differences aside in celebration of the great characters they created all those years ago! You can see the full press release below...

Here is the full press release;

San Diego, CA (February 24, 2013) – The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are celebrating a milestone 30^th anniversary this year and the festivities are ramping up! This May, co-creators Kevin Eastman andPeter Laird karate-kick into high gear with a very special 30^th Anniversary issue at IDW.  Featuring a brand-new cover created by the original team, this issue marks the first time in over 20 years the pair has worked together on the property.
 
“TMNT has been an important part of countless fans' lives, including myself,” said series editor Bobby Curnow. “Getting the chance to celebrate this rich history is an amazing opportunity. Almost as amazing as getting to see new material from these creators again!”
 
"Working on the TMNT Comics with the wonderful and amazing IDW team over the last three years reminded me how much I MISSED and LOVED the four green guys.” said Kevin Eastman, “getting to work with my Co-Creator Peter Laird again is the icing on the cake - and then some! It really took me back thirty years, to the earliest days, with the fondest memories, and why we got into this business in the first place."

The 30^th Anniversary Special will be a cavalcade of all-new short stories by the top talent that has built the rich TMNT world over the past 30 years. Each story is inspired by a different era of TMNT's rich history, and features the unique look, feel and voice of that time period. From Dean Clarrain, Chris Allan, Gary Carlson, Frank Fosco, and Jim Lawson to IDW’s own Tom Waltzand Dan Duncan, the creators showcased in this 48-page full-color special issue spin fantastic TMNT tales from the sewers to the stars!
 
Considered one of the most popular kids’ television programs of the 1980s, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is a classic, global property created in 1984 by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird.  It first debuted as a successful comic book series and then became a hit animated TV show, a live-action television series and later spawned four blockbuster theatrical releases.  The property also has translated into a significant consumer products business—with DVDs, video games, toys and more--that has generated billions of dollars at retail. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles debut on Nickelodeon in 2012 and ranked as the number-one new boy series for the year in the United States.  In Aug. 2014, Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Films' CGI/live-action hybrid will hit theaters.

New York Comic Con 2013 - Great Pictures from the Show Floor

The show floor at the 2013 NY Comic Con was epic... all the construction on the Javits Convention Center is done, and the flow of the floor was at an all time high. The new badge system and spreading of the Comic Con event throughout the WHOLE building made the floor much more manageable to navigate. Once again, the displays didn't disappoint and there was a lot to see. All of us amateur photogs affiliated with CCD decided to share our floor pics with you guys that couldn't be there to see what was hot. what we enjoyed and what you missed out on. Hope you enjoy the pics...

Marvel had a surprise in a brief case....

Whose house? Run's HOUSE! Run of Run DMC!

The dude from The Last Dragon!