5 Fandom Friday: Characters I Want to Dress Up as for Halloween

Happy Friday, everyone!

I love this weeks topic, mainly because the second it's September, I start thinking about who to be for Halloween. I refuse to buy costumes after working at a party store for five and a half years and coming to find just how cheap and poor the costume quality usually is. Plus, I find it way fun putting a costume together myself. Last year I was Elliot and ET (I even made a bike basket/handlebar contraption I wore around my neck the whole night), this year sadly I'm not doing anything, but here are 5 characters I would definitely consider being:

1. Daria: My doppleganger. I have to admit, I actually was Daria a few years ago but I wouldn't pass up the opportunity to be her again. I also found out not very many people knew who I was supposed to be, coincidentally I also found out who didn't have good taste in pop culture. Kidding. Sort of.

2. Wednesday Addams: This one would be super easy to pull off because my entire wardrobe pretty much looks like if Wednesday Addams were a librarian. No really, that fact has been brought to my attention on more than one occasion, and I may or may not have just bought a dress that looks exactly like that one in the picture.

3. Sailor Mars: My favorite Sailor Scout. I grew up wishing I was Rei and I would love to run around and pretend to do her burning mandala attack on everyone all night.

4. Han Solo in Carbonite: I actually attempted this two years ago, but I couldn't find a box that worked well enough on me to pull it off. I had this idea where I was going to start off the night as Han Solo, then half way through I'd go into carbonite, then for the end of the night come out as Han Solo again-- kinda like makin' my way through the original trilogy, but instead I just settled for regular ol' Han Solo. One of these years when I'm not super lazy, I'll tackle this one.

5. Jack and Wendy Torrance: I always think of really great couple costumes, yet I'm never in a relationship! I've always wanted to do this with someone because The Shining is one of the only movies that completely freaks me out, and what's Halloween without a little creepy-ness?

Who would you guys pick? Lemme know!

Top 5: Movies You Should Watch This Time of Year

Hey everyone!

I figured since I did an updated Top 5 of zombie apocalypse team members, it was only right to do an updated movie list for Halloween (original post here).  It was super hard to narrow it down to just 5 because I love so many creepy/campy/Halloween-y movies, but without further ado, here's what I came up with for your next spooky night in:

1. C.H.U.D.: I have to admit, I only watched this movie because of the name. How can you resist something when the name means Cannibalistic Humanoid Underground Dwellers?! Turns out, it was pretty good. It's about the homeless who start to go missing in New York City and you find out they're being preyed upon by these monsters who used to be human but were mutated by this radioactive toxic waste, and it's up to a photographer, a reverend and a cop (I know, it sounds like the start of a terrible joke) to help save the day.

2. Killer Klowns from Outer Space: I love this movie. It's definitely one of my favorite horror movies, not because it's scary but because it's so campy. I mean, come on, you've got a comet that brings a circus tent with murdering clowns in it to Earth. And if that's not enough, they put their victims in cotton candy cocoons, AND they have popcorn guns which turn the popcorn into monsters. It's brilliant! I will admit though, I've never been a fan of clowns and this movie does help solidify that fear, but it's mainly just really funny and the title song is so catchy.

3. The Lost Boys: Ah, the Coreys--Feldman and Haim, what a perfect duo you were. I used to watch this movie constantly, in fact, I still have a movie poster of it hanging on my wall. It also has no shortage on the camp factor, remember the part where one of the vampires gets pushed into a bathtub filled with holy water and garlic and basically disintegrates? Buffy should've totally stolen that one.

4. The Rocky Horror Picture Show: I still remember the first time I ever saw this movie. My uncle was watching me and my brother, and his friend was having a Halloween party and this was on the TV. I remember I was instantly in awe of it and my uncle told me not to let my mom know I watched it. Fast forward to high school and me spending most of my October weekend nights watching two of my very good friends play Frank N. Furter and Brad in the midnight showings at a local playhouse. I've always wanted to go to the showings in the city where you get to use the props and the call outs and everything, it seems like it'd be so much fun. Everyone should watch this movie simply because it has Tim Curry in fishnets and pearls, and he works. it. out.

5. Elvira: Mistress of the Dark: Here's a little fun fact for you-- I've always wanted to be Elvira. I grew up idolizing her because she was sassy and a horror hostess, and I wanted my own show where I'd play B-movies while lounging on a red velvet couch (though I'd wear a bit more clothes). I've been talking about campy-ness a lot in this list and this is the Mother of them all. This is a good one to watch if you just want something funny but still in the Halloween spirit.

What're some of your picks? Or what's one movie you always watch around Halloween? Lemme know!

NYC Comic Con!

I've done it, guys. I finally made it to my first NYC Comic Con. I've been to other conventions before, but I've never been to the NYC one. I've tried to go for years, but I've always been too late to buy tickets. This year I was beyond prepared--I set up notifications on my phone, I had the website set up and ready to go for like an hour before they even went on sale, and then four and a half hours later, I got my tickets.

I only bought tickets for the Friday date, and despite it pouring rain and the fact that every joint in my body has been swollen and in pain for weeks now (yay developing possible arthritis at 26 years old!--__--) I had such a great time. My brother and I took a 6:13 am train into the city because we both wanted to hit the very first panel of the day and we're both very paranoid about being late to places. After meeting up with two of his friends, we set out to find the shuttle that takes you straight to the Javits Center, which is where the convention is, and when we had no luck on that front, decided to walk the 15 or so minutes instead.

By the time we got there, it was about 8:30 and they ushered us all into the downstairs of the building where they have rows upon rows lined up for you to wait in, kinda like herding cattle, and they have it split into those who just wanted to go straight into the showroom floor or those who wanted to get wrist bands for panels. We went onto the lines for the panels, and thus our waiting began. I found throughout the entire day, it's very much a whole "Hurry up to wait" type of thing. We rushed to get there first thing in the morning, only to then sit on hard concrete floors until a panel which didn't start until 11 am, and you could totally tell who had done this before because some people came with their own chairs and everything, I was super jealous.

Once it was finally time, we went rushing into the main room for the Dark Knight 30th Anniversary panel. The whole panel was based around, you guessed it, the anniversary of the Dark Knight comic. The speakers were mainly artists from DC who either worked on the original, or are working on the upcoming installment of the comic. Oh, and when I say artists who worked on the original, I mean none other than Frank Miller. Let me just say that one more time, Frank. Miller. The man is an absolute legend and had such a dry sense of humor when he was talking and answering questions, it was hilarious.

The legend himself.

The entire panel: Jim Lee, Klaus Janson, Andy Kubert,
Brian Azzarello and Frank Miller

They showed us some of the pages from the original comic, as well as some of the rough drafts for the newest installment, and it was so cool. They spoke about how aside from the actual comic itself, they're incorporating mini comics into each issue which are sort of stand alone stories with different characters, but they still have elements that tie everything together. It was so great hearing from people who've worked on one of my favorite characters talk about how much Batman means to them as well, and hearing their ideas on where they're taking the story was just so exciting and such an awesome start to the day.

After the panel, we went upstairs to walk around the actual place and see all the booths and whatnot. I have to admit, I didn't take many pictures of the exhibits or anything like that, mainly because I was so in awe of everything. It was more than a bit chaotic, there's so many people jammed everywhere you turn which makes it super hard as well. It took me almost a half hour just to find two of my friends who were there, and we weren't even that far apart! There were so many really great cosplays as well too. In my head I was counting all the Jokers and Harley Quinns that I saw, but actually the ones I saw the most were of Barf and Lone Star from Spaceballs and I was so pumped on it.

These guys nailed it. They even had the hat and cane
on the alien from when it popped out of the guys
chest in the diner scene.

The Maitlands! 

They had a Doctor Who section with a huge TARDIS that had UNIT soldiers standing guard, there was a Star Wars prop section and even a Jelly Belly booth which had artwork that was made completely out of jelly beans.

The Imperial Guards have some of my favorite uniforms.

All jelly beans!

 Next we hit up the artist alley, and there were so many amazing prints that I wanted to get but sadly I have no room for them. My brother wanted to find the booth for Cyanide and Happiness, which are those comic strips which are slightly dark and funny, because he really wanted to get a piece commissioned. Once we found it, we saw that if you bought a certain amount of merch, they would draw you whatever you wanted. So he had them draw him beating up one of his friends from work (who is also a huge fan) in sort of a Mortal Kombat style, which he plans to hang up in the middle of their desks, and it looked awesome.

To end the day, we went to the Once Upon a Time panel which was titled An Evening with the Dark Swan. Basically, they showed this coming Sunday's episode and then the last 10 minutes or so the creators Edward Kitsis, Adam Horowitz and Emma Swan herself, Jennifer Morrison, came out to answer any fan questions.

Also, let's all applaud the fact that for once, I didn't spend an incredible amount of money on things. I think that was the biggest surprise of the day, the fact that there really wasn't much that made me go, "OH MY GOD, I NEED IT." I knew that an artist I liked was going to be there selling prints, so I only really went in wanting to buy that (which is the BTTF print below by Scott C.) and the other two things I just couldn't pass up (Doctor Who and MST3K mashup? Yes, please!). Needless to say, my wallet was very happy!

All in all, it was such a fun awesome experience and I would love to go again. Even though it was a very long tiring day and I was in so much pain by the time I finally got home, it was worth every minute of it.

Have you guys ever been?

5 Fandom Friday: Who I'd Like on My Side for the Apocalypse

Hello all!

So, if you've been reading this blog for a while, you'll know that I did a list like this last year as well (here), but I figured I'd do an updated one. Let's cut to the chase!

1. River Tam (Firefly): Who else can take on an entire legion of Reavers single-handedly and come out with barely a scratch on them? This girl can, which makes this one a no-brainer.

2. Casey Jones (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles): Oh, the crush I had on you Mr. Jones. Not only can he hold his own in a fight, while wearing a sweet hockey mask, he quips with the best of them and you need someone to keep the mood light while in an apocalypse. Also, maybe he could call in the turtles and that would be little Heathers dream come true.

3. Jack Burton (Big Trouble in Little China): He's taken on Lo Pan and showed that he's not one to shy away from strange forces, so he's got a bit of experience in that department. Plus, we could get around in the Pork-Chop Express cause you know that baby hits 6.9 on the Richter scale.

4. The Monster Squad (The Monster Squad): These kids saved their entire town from all the classic monsters, I'm pretty sure they can handle themselves in an apocalypse too.

5. FitzSimmons (Agents of Shield): I'm counting them as one because, I mean, how could you not? You can't have Fitz without Simmons (side note: I neeeeeeeeed them to be reunited, like right now. It's killing me). I figured if there's an apocalypse, you can have fighters coming out the wazoo, but if you don't have someone who can patch you up when you're hurt or engineer things when you have nothing, you've already lost. These two are the best of the best and a total asset to any team.

Honorable Mention:

I said it in last years list and I'll say it again. Ash Williams. Always Ash Williams.

What are some of your picks? Lemme know!