Japan Expo: Hey Amie Lynn Hey!

Amie Lynn going CQC with all her fans

It's been a long time, I shouldn't have left you, damn...times up, sorry I kept you my C&D fam! Well, besides you hearing my nonsense on the Comics Conspiracy podcast and of course trolling on my other internet steez.


So... I am here reporting from the Japan Expo in the Bay Area (yeah, not France) taking in good live music, killer grinds, a wide variety of dance performances, and of course some button-mashing fun.

I also had the sweet opportunity to sitdown and talk story with none other than world-renown Amie Lynn, aka Miss Habit.

Got the full interview on soundcloud for you which is a nice intro to this fly mama for new and longtime fans of the cosplay killa herself. (I was kinda intoxicated--half from beer, the other half, well..from her habitness?!!?!) . M-A-Y-L-A-Y.  YES... don't judge me.

Apologies for the background noise as our room next door was a bit rambunctious. Thanks again for all the laughs Miss Habit and be sure to say hey to her at NYCC and stalk the hell outta her and dat rape-face here.

This post was written by:

big O

Read the full story

The Purge is Coming!

Like you, we are spending a good amount of time in the local theatres this week.  So why not get some free shiz in the process?!  We are running a great giveaway in partnership with Universal Pictures.  To enter in our The Purge giveaway, jump on twitter and warn your friends #The Purge is Coming tweet on the theatrical release date of June 7 with the #SurviveTheNight and of course a mention of @comicsanddakine (us!)  We will select from some of the most creative pics attached in theme with The Purge, or the most retweeted and the winner will be announced in the next few weeks to follow.

Thanks for getting in on the fun and enjoy a great survival quiz below to see if you will survive!!

 The story of The Purge:

If, on one night every year, you could commit any crime without facing consequences, what would you do? 

In an America wracked with crime and overcrowded prisons, the government has sanctioned an annual 12-hour period in which any and all criminal activity--including murder--becomes legal. The police can't be called. Hospitals suspend help. It's twelve hours when the citizenry regulates itself without thought of punishment. On this particular night in 2022, plagued by violence and an epidemic of crime, one family wrestles with the decision of who they will become when a stranger comes knocking. 

When an intruder breaks into James Sandin’s (Ethan Hawke) gated community during the yearly lockdown, he begins a sequence of events that threatens to tear his family apart. Now, it is up to James, his wife, Mary (Lena Headey), and their kids to make it through the night without turning into the monsters from whom they hide.

This post was written by:

big O

Read the full story

hawkeye vol. 1: my life as a weapon

I am probably the only girl in the universe who doesn’t swoon over hawkeye, but after reading hawkeye volume 1: my life as a weapon, I think I may be a bit of a swooner. A semi-swooner to say the least. hawkeye, volume 1: my life as a weapon written by matt fraction and illustrated by david aja and javier pulido collects the first 5 issues. This story arc focuses on clint barton, a.k.a. hawkeye, on his life when he is not throwing punches with captain America and the avengers. The story begins with an adrenalin rush with hawkeye falling out of building with his bow and arrow in hand. Matt fraction’s writing is impeccable as always (have you read Casanova? Enough said). Fraction's writing shows us a side of Clint Barton that we don’t see in the Avengers.

Reading this comic, I found myself really liking Clint. I liked his compassion as he rescues a wounded dog from a bunch of degenerates. I laughed out loud at his sarcastic banter with Kate Bishop (future hawkeye). Fraction’s Clint Barton is a guy I wanna hang out with and get to know (and not because he knows captain america). He is personable with a bit of inner angst and the underdog. Fraction reminds us that Clint may be an avenger, but he is an ordinary guy so to speak but with an extraordinary ability to aim and to attract trouble. This storyline is a fun ride that takes us with Clint as he fights slumlords and the like on his time off from the avengers.

The art in this is amazing. David Aja’s line work and subtle facial expressions are divine. His talent lies in his use of a few pen strokes to convey a vast array of emotions. Javier Pulido’s artwork is also strong, although I am more keen to Aja’s work, Pulido’s style holds its own next to Aja’s.

Pulido maintains the less is more approach. His fight scenes in this are nothing short of brilliant. If you still have doubts about this hawkeye, just take a look at the cover.  Pretty bad ass. You can’t judge a book by its cover, but in this case, you can. let me know what my fellow readers think. give me a holla! xo, pearly  

This post was written by:

pearlypearle

Read the full story

Friday Night Clix - Batman Vs.

Hello peoples!! This Friday at 730 pm we will be busting our weekly Heroclix pop-up event at my LCS Comics Conspiracy : Batman Vs.  Along with The Dark Knight theme being in full effect, we will have some craft, dark beers on hand for the 21 +up to try.

For those of you not well scripted on the dark beer tip, Beer Advocate has one of the best lists and is a regular resource for when I wanna drank outside of my go to brews (IPA of course).

Here are some of the finer deets to our dope-ass clix thang:  Come equipped with a 600 pt team that is only constructed of the new Batman set and another team that is put together with just about anything you damn want (but can only run 150 pts from BM).

Prior to the start of every game, you will roll-off to select what you run (Batman or not) and what your opponent plays, including who receives map choice.  No guantlet, no dupes, no BFCs/feats.

Winner and fellowship pull from available prize support and please pre-reg at the Wizkids Event System and of course you can join in on all the shit-talking at our FB event page.


If you don't know what Heroclix is or have never played tabletop, turn-based strategy games, no worries!!  We gotta great mix of new and longtime clix regulars that can get you started and of course playing with a beer in hand always helps.  Tell a friend, come through and as always BYOB! Look forward to seeing you out to get your clix on !  

This post was written by:
big O

Read the full story

Premium Rush: A Seriously Fun Ride!

If you know me then you know my knees go weak for Joseph Gordon Levitt (who I affectionately call "JGL." Yeah, we are that tight).  Anyhow, when I first saw the preview for Premium Rush in the theaters, I was needless to say, totally giddy.  Bikers. NYC. Beardos. JGL. Who could ask for more?

Upon glance, I thought this movie was going to be a total rip off of Quicksilver.  If you need to google that movie, then you are not as nerdy as I.  Quicksilver was a movie that came out during the mid 1980s and stars a very young Kevin Bacon.  Bacon plays a big time stock market finance wizard.  After he makes a wrong choice and loses all his money (boohoo), he decides to leave the yuppie world and be a bike courier.  Totally realistic right? I know. Just bear with me.  Quicksilver is the bible for a lot of bikers.  One cannot help but drool over Bacon's white fixed gear bike that he proudly hangs in his loft.  Watch the preview for Quicksilver here.  I love this movie Quicksilver and although my heart pitter patters for JGL, I couldn't help but think, hey this is some sacred ground here for Premium Rush to mess with.  Much to my surprise, I really enjoyed Premium Rush.  It isn't Quicksilver, nor should it be, but it does glorify being a courier in one of the coolest cities around.

JGL plays Wiley, a bike messenger, who works with his ex GF, who is also a bike messenger (ah, young love).  Wiley picks up a package that contains something that a dirty cop, played by Michael Shannon tries to retrieve from Wiley.  The movie combines a weak love story with high bike action scenes.  The camera work was great.  I recommend seeing this film on the big screen so you can experience the high octane bike scenes weaving in and out of traffic.  At least these couriers all wear helmets. Safety first, kiddies.  The map and alternate route sequences were neat and I liked it.  The acting by Michael Shannon as the dirty NYC cop was rad.  He made the film. Oh and yes, JGL looked adorable in the movie. Sigh.

This post was written by:
pearlypearle

Read the full story

Amateur Cosplay Diary: Cosplay Reflection & SDCC 2012

With SDCC 2012 in just a few days, my twitter feed is chock-full of friends and internet friends sharing all the ways they are preparing for this yearly nerd mecca. Many of the people I follow are fantastic cosplayers. I myself have been prepping for SDCC and wanted to share a "diary" of sorts about my own involvement in cosplay.

I have always been a huge fan of costumes in general. Halloween was always my favorite holiday. I always had a costume prepared for Halloween and I refused to ever outgrow my love of wearing costumes.

And then I discovered cosplay. Before I went to my first con, I knew about cosplay thanks to the glory of the internet, which I was lucky enough to have access to since the age of 12. Well, having the internet that early was unlucky in some ways as I was too afraid to admit to anyone that I even had an email address as it was considered weird sixteen years ago, but that's neither here nor there. Please do me a favor and don't do the math to figure out my age, ahem.


Anyhow, I remember being amazed at seeing my favorite characters come to life. Playing endless hours of Street Fighter II and then seeing a real-life person dressed up as Chun-Li was astounding to me. It was like she walked right out of the screen. I grew up on Archie comics, but was introduced to a larger world of comics while I was in high school. Seeing more real-life people dressed up as characters from those comics:  Wolverine, Storm, Spider-Man, Batman and so on, blew my mind.


Finally, I attended my first con. It was San Diego Comic-Con 1999. I had a blast. Guess what my favorite part was? Seeing other fans dressed up as their favorite characters. 

Photos from SDCC 1999 with my little brother. 
I uh, was awkward in high school, okay?

It was incredibly exciting to me seeing everyone in cosplay and I decided that I wanted to be a part of it. There were two problems though. 1. money and 2. I didn't know how to sew. Also I had some self-esteem issues and thought that there was no way I would look as cool as others. 


In 2002 I gathered up some courage and decided to jump into to the cosplay world. I thought to myself "I dress up every single year for Halloween, why should I be shy about dressing up for Comic-Con?! Just do it, Crystal!"


After pondering my favorite characters, I decided to go with Elektra. Kind of ambitious considering I had no idea how to sew (I still don't really). But I went to a fabric store, picked a red fabric that I thought would be fitting for the costume, got a few yards of it and went to work. I measured my bust, waist, and hips then just guessed that I had to double that then sew it into one piece to make it fit. Through all the stumbling and fumbling, somehow I managed to put that cosplay together. The boots were the one part I thought I should buy because I wasn't willing to guess how to begin making boot covers. They should be flat boots but alas, I went with heels because it's all I could find in shiny red at the time. I even got a real pair of sais (and snuck them in past security). I wasn't incredibly proud of the costume overall, but I had fun making it. In the end I decided that  it was my love for the character that counted so I should rock it anyway.

That's me as Elektra! SDCC 2002.
Instead of staying in character I kept smiling during photos
because I was excited that anyone actually recognized me.

I remember thinking to myself that some people might recognize me as Elektra (I thought only some because I thought the costume wasn't that great). I thought maybe a fan or two would give me a high-five because we both love the character. But I figured that overall, that would be about it. I planned on walking around the con as I usually did like everyone else.


Little did I know that doing cosplay was such a big deal once you yourself are in a costume. Yes I got excited when I saw others in cosplay and I would always ask for photos. Seeing them would put a huge smile on my face. But I didn't think that would happen to me in such a ho-hum cosplay. I was shocked at the reactions I got. All the compliments, the cheers and the camaraderie that came with cosplay was truly overwhelming. It felt amazing to share in this love for a fictional character with strangers. And really, while I was in costume and speaking with other fans, we were no longer strangers. We were friends. I will never forget that experience. 

I only cosplayed once after that. I loved American McGee's Alice and decided to alter a regular Alice costume to be more fitting for McGee's Alice. In retrospect I wish I put more blood on that costume, but again it was fun talking to other fans about our love for the character and the game.

Always forgetting to stay in character.

My adventure in cosplay was put on pause after that, my love for it endured. I adored the cosplay greats from afar and always marveled at the work that fans put in to bring characters to life. I think part of the reason I stopped was because others were so amazing at it and I, well, I tried. But I figured why bother if others do it so much better? I didn't want nor expect to be the best, but I figured that my cosplay is likely to be considered laughable so I should probably stop doing it. That I should just enjoy others work.

I was always insecure about what others thought of me -- did I mention that? I always figured someone would make fun of me for embracing things that I enjoy. Or make fun of me because I'm not that great at it. Even after my two positive experiences I grew afraid and I stopped.

It was silly. But last Halloween I decided to return to cosplay. I stopped being afraid. Even if I am not that great at costume-making, even if someone does decide to make fun of me, who cares? I enjoyed making those costumes. I enjoy cosplay. I love these characters. That's really what it's all about, right? Also, I was older. Insecurity has a way of starting to wane as you get older.

I decided to cosplay as two characters over Halloween 2011. The first was an easy one since it was store purchased and based on the movie, and thus I only loosely consider cosplay: Silk Spectre II

With Kick-Ass and two of the guys from C&D 

The second cosplay I put a lot of work into: Poison Ivy

I glued every single one of those damned plastic leaves to that bodice. I even glued them on to my shoes! I even did a version of her when she has green skin, sans the legs. I was headed out and about and didn't want to leave remnants of green paint on her furniture when I sat down.

It's a cosplay I will be rocking again for this years SDCC. Only this time, I'm going full body green! Head to toe. No tights. I even got some green contacts that I will hopefully be able to wear comfortably. I've never worn contacts before so I'm a little nervous but I think it will really bring an extra something to the cosplay.

My second cosplay for SDCC 2012 will be Wonder Woman! I wanted to not try something too difficult as I'll be putting a lot of work into upgrading my Ivy cosplay. So I found a good base to start with: a Wonder Woman dress that I found for super cheap! It needed a lot of work though:

It was a dress and it was way too short to even wear as a dress. The belt looks OK in the photo but it wasn't sewn down to the bodice and so it was flying around and flapping everywhere. The tiara was super tight on my head to the point where I think I'd pass out if I wore it as is. I have super tiny rwists and the gauntlets were super baggy on me.

The past week or so I've completely chopped it up and reworked it as you see here:

Now the bottoms are shorts, the belt is completely reinforced onto the bodice and the gauntlets fit! Not pictured is the tiara which I can now just pin into my hair. Also not pictured are the boots I purchased. My last step before SDCC is buying some rope and spray painting it gold. I really wish I had time to order blue contacts to really make the costume pop, but alas, that may have to wait until next time.

Overall, I am definitely not as professional with my cosplay as others, but cosplay is something that makes me happy. I enjoyed cosplaying because I love these character.  I meet others that love the characters too and them enjoying my cosplay really makes it ever better. Through cosplay I get to meet  others that cosplay as other characters I love! We chat and we bond. It reminds me why it's so much fun and why we cosplayers do what we do. I can't wait to be among others in cosplay at this years SDCC! 


What will you be cosplaying as? :)



This post was written by:
Crystal

Read the full story

'Game of Thrones' Season 2 Summarized in a 8-bit RPG

We here at Comics & Dakine absolutely love Game of Thrones. Many of us also love gaming, so of course we can't help but share this gem. College Humor really outdid themselves with the first season 8-bit RPG recap and their back again with the recap of season 2.

It makes us wonder why there isn't a real 8-bit RPG game for Game of Thrones. 

SPOILER ALERT: definitely don't watch the video if you have not finished watching Season 2!

Check it out below:



There are so many lol-worthy moments that should have animated gifs, but in order to avoid spoilers, here's just one from the video:

Perfect, no?


This post was written by:
Crystal

Read the full story

Review - The Walking Dead: The Game - Episode 1

With the explosive popularity of the television series, it's no surprise that the The Walking Dead property would venture on to other forms of entertainment: a video game. As a fan of video games, survival horror, zombies in general and both The Walking Dead comic books and the television show, it's no surprise that I have been looking forward to playing the game (albeit with some hesitation, which I'll cover towards the end of this review).

The Walking Dead: The Game is within the realm of the graphic novel canon and follows a new group of survivors -- and even some familiar faces pop up along the way. Players take on the role of Lee Everett, who also happens to be convicted of a crime. As Episode 1 of the game begins, a zombie apocalypse is in bloom, resulting in a dark but opportune second chance for Lee. As Lee tries to figure out what is going on around him, he meets Clementine: a smart but scared little girl that was left alone after her babysitter became a walker.

Watch the trailer:

As you progress further into the story, Lee continues to meet more characters and more about what is happening around Lee unfolds. Conversation options and choices are presented to you, all of which impact how other characters perceive you and the course of the storyline. The control over what type of impression Lee gives to others through dialogue choices gives great a great sense of customization.

At times fighting zombies require some fast reflexes which provides a satisfying challenge for most. The one nitpick I do have about that is that the story is so engaging that at times I forgot to be on my toes and I reacted to slowly and thus, I died. Luckily you can jump right back in without having to go too far back into the story.

It is obvious that a large amount of work and thought that went into each new character and this new entry in The Walking Dead universe. The pacing of the story is spot-on and constantly engages the player with either the suspense of flesh-hungry zombies or the unfolding of Lee's and other characters stories.

So why my initial hesitation about the game? When I first heard about the video game, I read that the main character would be an African-American who is convicted a crime. For the most part, minorities in games are largely underrepresented. So to hear that the main character is both African-American convicted of a crime made me raise an eyebrow as it's an unfortunate but common stereotype. Telltale Games really excelled at not only making Lee a relatable character but one who breaks assumptions about the stereotype.

The game truly surpassed my expectations.The Walking Dead: The Game Episode 1 stays with me even after I completed it. I find myself thinking about every single character. I wonder if I made the right decisions and if I said the right things. There is no "right" or "wrong" as it all depends on how you want to play the game of course, but the conversations and characters all felt very real. I was also genuinely nervous as I played through some portions of the game as many of zombie attacks are intense. I want to know even more about Lee than I learned through Episode 1. I want to see where the story takes him and those around him.

If you're a fan of the comic books, the television show, zombies, survival horror, or any solid game with an engaging story, The Walking Dead: The Game is right up your alley.

5 out of 5

This post was written by:
Crystal

Read the full story

'The Avengers' Smash in Half-a-Bil!

Just about a week has passed since Joss Whedon and the rest of Marvel Studios/Disney has delivered on hefty expectations of bringing the biggest, baddest Superhero film ever.  And they did it in ways that I think nobody really expected.  First off raking in over half a billion of skrill worldwide ($640 mil to be exact and of that over $220 mil in the US).  Secondly, breaking every damn opening weekend record for any film, be it of the comics-genre or any other for that matter.

When I say that heads were surprised about this-- of course I meant the masses.  Marvel knew that they had put in work to pull off this massive feat.  The last record holder was the Harry Potter franchise-- and that took a decade and 8 films to build the near-cult following, interest and fanbase that made posing with a wand and a scarf...dare I say..cool. 

The Avengers was a fanboys wet dream on the big screen as it brought the monthly serialized comicbook experience to real-life by pulling off the never before continued (well kinda, right?) plotlines through a series of distinct films over the course of 10 years- Hulk 2, Iron Man, Thor, Iron Man 2 and now The Avengers-- with for the most part all of the major talent intact (minus Edward Norton and Terence Howard).  And these films were faithful to the source material-- be it JMS and Coipels new look Thor fitted to the T on Chris Hemsworth or Tony Stark's love for women and flying high (yeah, was smart how they didn't make him a drunk though).

Alright, for those of you that have not yet seen the flick...stop reading now unless you want SPOILERS.

Art by Joey Spiotto featured in Los Angeles Gallery

So now that we are all tuned in what made this film better than the top grossing Marvel Studios film (Iron Man) before it?   The answer is the grand scale that the brand alone that The Avengers brings.

For the same reason The Avengers books are a bigger draw than Iron Man (or any single hero book not named Batman) in the shops.  Where individual titles dissect a single character the team books are where you get the massive, larger than life stories that bring together our fave heroes to take on the crazy badass villians- Loki, Red Skull, Skrull Empire, Ultron, or Thanos (click on the pic --> to take you where I hope The Avengers 3 should take us).

What I loved from the film was a continuance of themes I loved from past films-- Tony Stark in all of his zing! moments, Thor as the ever-loving older bro to poor adopted Loki, Scarlet Johansson jumping around in butt-tight skimpies and Agent Coulsen going out like a champ.  To keep it real, Evans wasn't the best cast teamlead though he improved as a supporting piece in the film vs holding it down as the main guy.  Johansson was fantastic in a scene where she pulls the rug under Loki, but otherwise she needed less dramatic camera time.  Clark Gregg stole most of the show with his lil-bigman approach to things.  There wasn't one moment when I really took myself out of the 2 hour + viewing experience thinking the film wasn't believable, hella cheesy YES.  But totally believable.

The Avengers will not win any Oscars at The Academy Awards or other film awards for that matter but it has proved that this comicbook thang is a serious cashcow in the theatres, licensing and etc cause we all know that the paper doesn't come from the funnybooks.  For those of you that missed Joss Whedon's other bombass masterpiece- Astonising X-Men.  Go read it and you will appreciate this flick so much more for his craftsmanship in balancing out the epic action sequences and ROTFL-copter comedy.

Oh one more thing, bring on the Skrulls vs. Kree then give us more of muthaeffing THANOS.



This post was written by:
big O

Read the full story