Whedonopolis Halloween Charity Event

Today I attended the Whedonopolis Halloween Charity Event out in Hollywood. This is the 6th year they have done this and the last time I went was it's 2nd year. This event had grown over the years as the first year it was a special screening of Dr. Horrible's Sing Along Blog and the latest season of The Guild. This year they went all out and planned an all day event. Starting at 1pm with Serenity, then Cabin in the Woods, Husbands first part of Season 3, The Guild Season Six and finally Dr. Horrible's Sing Along Blog. And they had some special guest speakers in between the screenings.

Being out of work and poor I figured I would have to miss this year, though it sounded like a blast. But my buddy Steven from Canada sent me a paypal birthday gift and it was enough to cover the price of the full day ticket... woohoo.. thanks Steven.

There was a group of friends going as well to the all day event and some were coming just for the last half which was Husbands, The Guild and Dr. Horrible.

I got to the event around 12:15pm and my friends Jessica, Cait and Robert were already there so I jumped in line with them. This was the first time they were pulling off such a huge event so we knew things wouldn't go as planned but I have to say Marsia and her team did an incredible job. They started a half hour later then planned and there was a snag with the food trucks but overall it was a great experience.

They gave us our "line" place holder numbers. So instead of having to get in line each time we had numbers and I fortunately had 5 so I was very close to the front of the line each time. They gave us a "goodie" bag with lots of props for the Dr. Horrible's Sing Along Blog, which we would use later in the evening. 

The theater was about a third full when we started the viewing of Serenity. I love this movie and it's always great to see it on the big screen, and speaking of the screen it's not huge, it's about half the size of a regular movie screen but still a lot larger then my 60" TV. Watching Serenity again really made me miss Firefly and I think I'll be doing a rewatch very soon.

We then had a short break before starting Cabin in the Woods. Again the theater was pretty empty. This was only my second time watching this movie. I enjoyed it when I saw it when it was released but I'm not a huge horror fan so I never watched it again. But it was still very enjoyable and so Joss Whedon.

It was now our dinner break and as I mentioned earlier there was a mix up with the food trucks so they were not showing up. Instead the event planners purchased a ton of pizzas and we were able to buy some slices for dinner. It wasn't ideal for everyone but it worked and was better then having nothing but snack foods all day.

Before we started screening of Husbands S3 we had a special guest come to stage and talk for a bit. Georges Jeanty who is a Comic Book Artist, he worked on Buffy Season 8 & 9 and did some work for The Guild comic book. But he was here tonight to talk about the upcoming Serenity comic book. It was a very interesting behind the scenes creating a comic book. He had some great stories and some great info about the Serenity comic book that wasn't out there yet. I so can't wait for this mini series.

After George there was a real short break before we started viewing Husbands S3. Now the theater was started to fill up. I knew folks were coming more for The Guild and Dr. Horrible's Sing Along blog.

But first we had a screening of Husbands. I had seen Husbands Season 1 but not season 2 it didn't really matter. I thought we were seeing the entire season but we only watched the first half of the season and was told if we wanted to see the rest go to the CW website.

Next was The Guild season six but before we started watching Felicia Day and Vince Caso came on stage and talked for a bit. It was great seeing these guys again. I haven't seen them in a while. Felicia was dressed in a Steampunk Robin Hood outfit that was pretty awesome. After the two of them banter for a few minutes they started the Guild season six. I have to admit that season six, in my opinion wasn't one of my favorites but after seeing it all together as one piece I enjoyed it much more then when it first aired in pieces.

After the Guild there was another break and they started to set up chairs on the stage. They had several guests come up, Kim Evey, Greg Benson, Vince Caso, Brian Kameoka, Georges Jeanty, Juliet Landau and Camden Toy. They talked about independent movies and webseries, the entertainment industry, fandom and fans and various other interesting things. And the fact that four of the panel guests were my friends was pretty awesome.

We then took another break and during this time I was able to catch up with Vince, Kim, Greg and Brian for a few minutes, and I got them to sign my Guild yearbook.

It was finally time for what most of the people were here for.. Dr. Horrible's Sing Along Blog. We first watched a short video of how to use the props during the screening. We had a penny, curtains, bubbles, piece of shrubbery, a horse head and various other things. I have seen Dr. Horrible several times on the big screen but this was the first time I did the interactive version.

It was a blast, there is nothing better then sitting in a room full of excited people, singing along to the movie, blowing bubbles  and letting their geek flags fly. It was pretty EPIC!!!

After the screening it was time for the drawing. They have been selling tickets all day long $1 and $5 tickets for some cool prizes. I purchased 5 of the $1 tickets. They gave away about 50 or so items but alas I didn't win anything, but my friends did.. yay!!

It was an amazing event and I can't wait to do it again next year. Thanks to Robert, Cait, Jessica, Aaron T, Matt, Melissa, Aaron M, Sarah, Anne, Nicki and Doug for sharing this experience with me.

Painting and Podcasts

The painting continued today. Like yesterday I put in a long eight hours with only a few breaks in between. My goal was to finish the garage but alas I got 90% done before the sun started to set and I had to stop. I'm busy this weekend so I'm hoping to finish the garage on Monday and then start taping off the house trim and get the house painted next week.

I swear I'm getting painters elbow (kind of like tennis elbow). Towards the end of today's painting adventure I started to get sharp pain in my elbow area of my right arm. :(

While I was painting I managed to get a good amount of paint on my hand and the thought came to me; "I'll take a cool artsy kind of picture of my white paint splattered hand" and as I was thinking this 'The white hand of Saruman' popped into my head so of course I had to actually paint the palm of my hand and then slap it across my face like a Uruk Hai from Lord of the Rings movies. This is what happens after eight hours of painting.

During the evening I got started on editing the next MASH 4077 podcast. It's due on the 1st of November and I wanted to get a few hours under my belt before I called it night. By the time I went to bed I did manage to get my first pass done. Will have to come back to it at a later date and do my second and third pass before it will be ready to be uploaded.  I hope to get this podcast done by this weekend.

"Get Fit" Week 12

Well it's been three month and I'm not doing as well as I was hoping but I was super sick last week and I haven't fully recovered this week. I haven't started working out as I didn't want to put any wear and tear on my body and cause me to get sick again. It was bad enough with painting and I think I may have pushed myself to far then. But with all that said I was trying to eat a bit better so I wouldn't gain any weight since I'm not working out. Well I guess it worked as I weighted myself this morning and I came in at 200 lbs once again. So that's a lose of 0 but a gain of 0.

I'm hoping to get back into my routine and start losing weight again. I've only lost 10lbs in the last 3 months. That's only 3.3 lbs per month, I was really hoping for 5 lbs a month. I know I sound like a broke record but I'm still struggling with my eating, I just don't know how to get around that. Also I think the fact that I have been stuck at 200 lbs the past five weeks really has effected my motivation. I feel like even when I'm eating better and working out I'm not losing I'm just maintaining and it gets frustrating.

But I gotta check my chin up, I'm still down 10 lbs I just need that extra push to get me below that 200 mark. Maybe next week... fingers crossed.

Painting, Minions and Captain America

Today was all about painting the garage. I never would have guessed that it would take me so long to paint my house and garage. I have so much more respect for people who actually do this for a living. I paint for a few hours before my arm is killing me and I need to take a break. Even with painting for eight hours I only managed to do three sides of the garage. And that's just one pass, I'm sure everything is going to need a second coat. I'm hoping to get the garage done by tomorrow night.. but I'm not holding my breath.

In geeky news.. I came across this really cool video. I am a huge fan of the Minions from Despicable Me movies. So when I saw this I was surprised as I had never seen it before. So I investigated a bit more and found out that this is a "short" called "Puppy" and it's going to be on the soon to be released Despicable Me 2 DVD/Blu-ray (December 10th). This leaked out and has shown up on You Tube several times but keeps getting taken down. I managed to get a copy of it so if you want to check it out.. watch below.. it's extremely cute and I totally love it.

They also released a trailer for Captain America 2 - The Winter Soldier.  Captain is my favorite of the Avengers so I'm really looking forward to this movie. Loved the trailer, looks like this movie is going to go a bit darker then the previous ones. I can't wait to see it... well I'll have to wait until the Summer of 2014, but until then check out the trailer below.

Babylon 5 Viewing Continues

Today's blog is all about Babylon 5 as today is Wednesday and that means TV night with my bestie Robert. We are continuing our first time viewing of B5. Tonight we watched from Season 2, Episodes 17 - 20

First up was S2 Ep 17 "Knives" He see strange visions, dreams strange dreams. Gradually, John Sheridan understands he's become host to an alien lifeform. Meanwhile, a friend of Londo Mollari reveals he is being singled out for treason and is seeking help to defeat the accusation.

I enjoyed this episode, we got to see the softer side of Londo. I miss that Londo. It was horrible that he had to kill his best friend, but he did it knowing that his friend had to die (sacrifice himself) so his family could survive. The Sheridan story was okay, I figured out what was going on about half way through the episode. I think the Londo story was much better and had more of an impart on me then the Sheridan story.

Then we watched S2 Ep 18 "Confessions and Lamentations" The disease: drafa. The motality rate: 100%. While Franklin seeks a cure and Delenn and Lennier risk their well-beings among the race most threatened by the illness - the Markab - other staton residents make the race a scapegoat.

Wow.. this was a dark episode. It was well done and I was suprirsed by the ending. I mean I expected the Doctor to find a "cure" but did not expect it to be "too late" and have every Markab be dead on the station, home planet and colonies.. millions and millions dead. This episode completley wiped out an entire race of beings.

Also this episode had the most blatant "hints" that Sheridan and Delenn like each other. I'm really like Delenn and Lennier's characters. They are true humanitarians, even risking their own lives.

The third episode of the night was S2 Ep 19 "Divided Loyalties" Lyta Alexander returns to the station, convinced there is a traitor on board, Ivanova makes a startling revelation.

Yay... Lyta is back. I always wondered why she never made it from the pilot to series (but I've read the bts of that situation) so it's good to see her back. What a shocker of an episode. First with Ivanova's revelation that she is a latent telepath. I knew something was up with her from the beginning as she's always hated telepaths because of her mother and what they did, but I always felt there was something more.

At the beginning of this episode I really thought Ivanova and Talia were going to hook up and become lovers. But instead they wind up making Talia a sleeper agent. Of all the characters I'm glad it was her as we really haven't gotten to know her that well. She's only been the focus of a few episodes. I don't know if this is it for her character or if will see her in future episodes.. guess I'll have to wait and see. Overall it was a very enjoyable episode.

And the final episode of the night was S2 Ep 20 "The Long Twilight Struggle" A final bloody battle determines the outcome of the Centauri/Narn conflict — and signals an even greater threat to all civilization.

What a way to end our night... WOW!!! My heart broke for G'Kar and my hatred towards Londo grew. Even with Londo having his doubts he still went through with everything and was just horrible at the counsel meeting. It's crazy that I loved Londo and hated G'Kar at the beginning of this series and now I love G'Kar and hate Londo. This is where the Alliance is formed and the battle looks like it's about to begin.

Four fantastic episodes tonight.. I'm so excited that I'm finally taking the time and watching is amazing series. It's something that I've been wanting to do for a while now. And to make it even more special I'm watching it and sharing this experience with one of my best friends in the world. Can't get any better then that.

House Stuff & SHIELD Ep 5

Was up around 6:30am and ready to paint, unfortunately it was foggy outside so I couldn't get started right away. It cleared around 8am and I started painting the garage. About mid day I ran out of paint and had to head to Lowes for another 5 gallon bucket. I hope this will be enough to finish up everything.

Besides the painting which I did every other hour, had to take breaks every now and then I started to clean out my garage. I have so much crap and I mean crap, stuff that was left over from the previous owners of the house. I'm going to try and get rid of as much stuff as I can. When I move I know I'll be downsizing and I will defiantly not have room for all my stuff. Even with getting rid of stuff  I'm thinking I'm going to have to rent a storage unit for my overflow.

The crazy thing about selling the house is that I don't know how long it will take. I mean it could sell withing a month of putting it up or it could take a year or more to sell. All I know is once it's sold the average paperwork time takes about 30 days, some can take 60 days but I need to be ready to go and a moments notice.

I tend to keep everything, because you never know when you might need that thing but I can't have that mindset these days. I have to ask myself if I used said item with in the past year then I can keep it but if not it has to go, either trash or good will. 

Speaking of the whole house thing I checked out my property on Zillow. Zillow is an online real estate database. It's a pretty cool website but what I like about it is that it has what they call Zestimate which is an estimate of what your house is worth. It's debatable weather it's very accurate or not but I checked out my property and was pleasantly surprised that they have my house priced $100,000 over what we paid for it. That got me super excited to sell. I did go back to the day we purchased the house in 2009 to see what Zillow said it was worth, the zestimate was $40,000 more then what we paid for the house. So even if the house is $50,000 more then what we paid I'd be extremely happy. I have an appointment with my realtor in November and she'll do the more accurate research and come up with an appropriate price for the house. I really can't wait to sell this house and be done with this whole thing. I mean I'll miss the house but not the headache and worry about it.

And on a geeky note.. I watched the fifth episode of Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Here's a synopsis: Chan Ho Yin is a Hong Kong street magician who dreams of becoming something more. He reveals his secret pyrokinetic ability to Raina, the titular "girl in the flower dress", who kidnaps him and then promises him fame in exchange for running a few tests on his powers. S.H.I.E.L.D. team attempts to trace his whereabouts but finds that it was the Rising Tide who leaked the information that lead to his capture and the blame falls to Skye. They head to Austin, Texas where it is revealed that Skye has a relationship with said hacker Miles. They are both led back to the Bus in handcuffs while the team flies to Hong Kong to rescue Chan. Chan discovers his captors that are associated with Project Centipede are injecting him with Extremis which increases the strength of his flame powers and he becomes Scorch. However, Raina turns on Chan and orders his blood platelets to be harvested for further experimentation by Project Centipede. Scorch kills Agent Quan, attacks Coulson and May, and incinerates Dr. Debbie while Raina escapes. Skye is later harshly questioned by Coulson and she tearfully reveals that the reason she is with the team and worked for Rising Tide is to find her missing parents who were connected to S.H.I.E.L.D. in some way. Coulson pledges to help her. In the final scene, Raina visits a mysterious man in prison to discuss the outcome of the experiment and asks him to contact the "Clairvoyant".

Like with the first four episodes I loved this episode. I like that this is really a continuation of the first episode with Centipede. I like that we got more back info on Skye and what she's up to (at least we think she's telling the truth). Still loving Ming Na's character Melinda May, she is by far my favorite character followed by Coulson of course and then Fitz and Simmons. Still not a fan of Ward or Skye but not disliking them either. This was the first person "Scorch" who actually had natural super powers and wasn't manufactured, too bad he had to die. The special effects were pretty awesome for a TV series and were on par with previous episodes. It was great seeing "the doctor" from episode one and watching her get incinerated. I liked the new "bad" girl (Raina) I'm sure this won't be the last we see her.  Can't wait for Episode six, only downside is we have to wait two weeks for a new episode. Luckily for me I have all five episodes on my DVR and will likely do a mini marathon one day next week... woohoo.

Paint Prep & Birthday Wishes (Markus)

Today I spent almost the entire day taping up the trim of my garage, preparing it for painting which I was hoping to get started today but it took me so long to do the taping off of everything that I ran out of time and couldn't paint. At least the place is ready to go so tomorrow I should get a good amount of it done.

I want to wish my buddy Markus a very Happy Birthday today. He's one of those people that enters your life and you just know you were meant to be good friends, there's an instant bond. But unlike many of my other good friends Markus lives in England. I've never met him in person, we became friends because he was a listener of my Knights of the Guild podcast. He use to send me comments about the podcast and we soon struck up a online friendship. We've talked a few times on skype but we communicate mostly via Facebook chat texting. It's pretty amazing that you can have this instant rapport with someone you've only talked and text to online. Our friendship means the world to me and one of these days will actually meet in person and there is only one word to describe that day... EPIC!!! Happy Birthday Buddy, I hope you had a good one.

Superheroes: A Never-Ending Battle

I just watched one of my most comprehensive looks at superheros, comic books and the entire fandom and pop culture. I learned so many amazing facts and information about this entire industry. They had a star studded cast of interviewees including Stan Lee and Lynda Carter. This has to be one of the best documentary I have ever seen. It's three incredible hours of geeky goodness. It's available for downlond on itunes or on the PBS website on DVD and Bluray. I purchased it right away.. this is definitely something I want to have in my library. Seriously if you're a geek and love comic book and/or superheroes you must pick up this documentary.. you will not be disappointed.

Superheroes: A Never-Ending Battle. It's a 3 part documentary... here's a brief description: SUPERHEROES: A NEVER-ENDING BATTLE is the first documentary to examine the dawn of the comic book genre and its powerful legacy, as well as the evolution of the characters who leapt from the pages over the last 75 years and their ongoing worldwide cultural impact. It chronicles how these “disposable diversions” were subject to intense government scrutiny for their influence on American children and how they were created in large part by the children of immigrants whose fierce loyalty to a new homeland laid the foundation for a multi-billion-dollar industry that is an influential part of our national identity.

Part One “Truth, Justice, and the American Way” (1938 - 1958)

During the Depression, the popularity of dozens of superhero characters opens the door for a new generation of artists and writers. World War II creates a patriotic fervor for star-spangled adventurers to represent the American spirit at war and on the home front, but in the 1950s, superheroes are caught in the fire of government scrutiny and regulation. When the thrilling “Adventures of Superman” is broadcast on the new medium of television, America’s first and greatest superhero leads the entire comic book industry to renewed strength.

Part Two “Great Power, Great Responsibility” (1959 - 1977)

A new breed of superhero emerges in the 1960s, inspired by the age of atomic energy and space travel and, in turn, inspiring artists of the time. The pop art movement draws heavily on comic books, with superhero images appearing in the works of Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein. Civil rights in America and other social issues make their way onto the page as black superheroes emerge with powerhouses such as the Black Panther and Luke Cage. The pages of “Green Lantern/Green Arrow” address social issues in their relevant storylines, and comic books are forced to confront the reality of an increasingly complex world.

Part Three “A Hero Can Be Anyone” (1978 - Present)

This episode captures the enthusiasm for superheroes as they are embraced in all forms of media and by all demographics, beginning with the historic “Superman” movie featuring Christopher Reeve as the Man of Steel. In 1986, Batman is overhauled as The Dark Knight to reflect the nocturnal underside of his character, and Watchmen brings new sophistication to comic book narratives, illuminating a violent and politicized world. In the burgeoning new millennium, superheroes have taken over popular culture with feature films, television shows and video games complementing a new generation of web-based comics that bring superhero adventures to every corner of the world. 

Feeling Better, Need a Doctor?

Finally after five days of being pretty sick I'm actually feeling better today. Well enough to go outside and run a few errands, I have to go grocery shopping as I'm tired of eating out, well I'm not tired of eating out but I know it's not good for me. So I wanted to pick up some food that I can cook at home. I also needed to go to Lowes and pick up some paint supplies as I'm starting that venture again. I have to have my house painted and ready to go by the end of October as I made a promise to myself that I will have this house up on the market starting in November.

I did pretty good for the most part..  I wasn't feeling 100%, more like 75%, so I didn't want to push myself to hard but I had to get out of the house. I actually lasted 3 and a half hours before my body told me to get back inside and rest... which is exactly what I did.

In geek news.. they released the trailer for the Doctor Who 50th Anniversary Special. I have been looking forward to his for some time. The trailer gives me chills but they are really keeping this storyline a secret.. which is awesome. Can't wait for November. Check out the trailer below.

The TV Season So Far...

So the TV season is moving along nicely.. I'm still watching quite a bit of TV and since I'm currently unemployed I have the time to watch all this new stuff but once a job starts up I know I'm going to have to give up a few of them. Problem is I'm not sure which ones I'd give up.

Old network TV series that I'm still watching and will continue to be high on my list, Once Upon a Time, Simpsons, Family Guy, American Dad, How I Met Your Mother, Undercover Boss, The Big Bang Theory, New Girl and Amazing Race. I also watch alot of cable shows, like Faceoff, The Little Couple and House Hunters International. But this blog is about new TV shows and which ones I'd drop.

I'm still enjoying Mom, Dads, The Crazy Ones, Michael J. Fox Show, Brooklyn Nine Nine, Once Upon A Time in Wonderland, Agents of SHIELD & The Tomorrow People. I already gave up on We Are Men (which is good since it was cancelled already). But I'm not sure which show I would knock off next if I had to. From the ones listed above, Once Upon A Time in Wonderland, Agents of SHIELD, The Tomorrow People, Michael J. Fox Show and Brooklyn Nine Nine are my favorites and are safe from being dropped.  I'm enjoying Mom and Dads but I can see me dropping those and not really miss them. The Crazy Ones is a tougher choice because I love Robin Williams and Sarah Michele Gellar, but the show is a hit and miss for me. So I guess I answered my own question on which I would get rid of first :) .... Sorry Mom and Dads

Lots of the new shows that I enjoy are being picked up for a full season (which normally means 22 episodes). So far Mom, The Crazy Ones, Michael J. Fox Show, Brooklyn Nine Nine & Agents of SHIELD have been picked up for a full season. Still haven't heard if Once Upon a Time in Wonderland or The Tomorrow People have been picked up, but I'm pretty positive that The Tomorrow People will be picked up. The CW (network that it airs on) is pretty lenient with it comes to ratings. And Wonderland is a spin off series from Once Upon A Time which is a big hit for ABC so I'm thinking they'll give them at least a full season to try and find an audience... at least I hope so. So much awesome TV on now-a-days!!!

"Get Fit" Week 11

Not much "getting fit" for me this week.. unlike last week being on set all week and putting in long hours, this week I have been sick. I must have picked something up while on set last week. I haven't felt this bad in a long time. Needless to say I did not workout. I could barely stand for more then a few minutes without getting dizzy. That also prevented me from making food and since I live alone and had no one to help me I went out and picked up fast food to eat for most of my meals.

Unlike most people who are sick and don't feel like eating all I did was eat, I was starving all the time and because I felt like crap all the time all I wanted was comfort food.

Well with all that said I expected to get on the scale this morning and gain weight this week but to my surprise I did not. I didn't lose any weight either but maintained my weight from last week... 200lbs.

One of these days I will actually get below 200lbs.. hopefully next week.  Thursday was by far the worse day of this illness but I'm feeling a bit better today. I hope to be back up and running by this weekend.

Worse Day Ever!!!

Still not sleeping well, waking up every other hour with a coughing attack. I've coughed so hard that my chest is starting to hurt. Nothing seems to help sooth the pain. I've taking so many different meds but nothing seems to be working.

I didn't do much today, woke up or at least finally got out of bed around 9am, had some breakfast, watched some TV, had some lunch. Went to take a nap at 3pm and didn't wake up until 7:30pm. I barely got out of bed, made some dinner and went back to sleep around 9pm

That was my Thursday.. I hope this is the worse of it. I can't take another day like today.

TV Shows & Firefly Game

Still sick and it's getting worse.. besides the fever, sore throat, ear and body ache you can add hacking cough to my symptoms.

I spent today pretty much the same as yesterday.. sitting on the couch and watching TV. I caught up on a lot of recorded TV shows.. I started with How I Met Your Mother, this season is very different then the last. I wonder if the entire season is going to be what happens hours before Barney and Robin's wedding. I hope we see more of Ted's "future" wife. Still enjoying Mom, it's not my favorite of the new sitcoms but very funny. I'm liking Dads on Fox, again like with Mom it's funny but not a must see for me.. yet. Loving Brooklyn Nine-Nine, this is one of my new favorite comedies which is funny because it wasn't on my list to watch at the beginning of the TV season and I only started watching because I saw a little bit of it at the end of my Dads recording and it made me laugh. I dropped We Are Men, I recorded the second episode on my DVR but I had no desire to watch it.. not a good sign so I just deleted it and pulled it from my record schedule.

The one show I was really looking forward to seeing today was the 2nd episode of The Tomorrow People.... I loved the pilot episode. The second episode didn't wow me as much as the pilot but it was still very enjoyable. I like where the story is going.. it's going to be interesting to see how Stephen is going to continue to work for the bad guys when the "bad" guys are killing his kind. And I don't know why he won't tell his mom what's going on and who he is as well as his father. You know she's going to find out sooner or later. Also why doesn't he tell his best "girl" friend. You know she's going to get involved somehow. Can't wait to see how this all unfolds. 

I got an email from Thinkgeek about a new Firefly board game.. here's some details about it.

In Firefly: The Board Game, each player captains a Firefly class starship. And now that you're the Captain, you're gonna need a crew! You'll find them all over the 'Verse - same with gear and upgrades. Because what fun is captaining a ship if you can't customize it?!? Once you got your ship set (or as set as you can), look for work! The jobs you accept all depend on how questionable your morals are - will you just do delivery missions for the Alliance, or will you go all loose cannon and go for the illegal missions? And speaking of the Alliance, they're out there, too. As are the Reavers. So be careful, take risks, make mistakes, get messy, and enjoy Firefly as you never have before! Firefly: The Board Game - so much fun, we're going to stop writing now and get back to our game!

Sounds shiny right!!! You can purchase it HERE.

Will & Grace, S.H.I.E.L.D & Superman 75th

So I slept horribly last night, my throat was killing me all night and even though I took Nyquil it didn't help. So I was exhausted and still not feeling great. My plan was to just crash on the couch and do nothing all day. And that's pretty much what I did.

I found a Will and Grace marathon on the WE channel. I watched this series when it first aired, 15 years ago... and loved it, I mean really loved it. I belonged to fan clubs and fan groups. This was way before social media. I even saw a few live tapings of the show in person. The show ran from 1998 to 2005 (eight seasons) and I've seen and loved every episode.

A few years back it went into syndication but I never really watched it. I'd see it on as I was flipping channels but never stopped to watch an episode. Well that was until today. I watched Will and Grace today for six hours straight, that's 12 episodes in a row and boy does this series hold up. I was laughing out loud, I was loving it. It reminded me why I love this series to begin with and I'm bummed that I let it fall by the waste side since it's last episode so many years ago.  I have now added the full series DVD box set to my wish list on Amazon and set my DVR to record episodes. This is a timeless sitcom like Three's Company and Friends. It's a series I can watch over and over again.

I also watched the fourth episode of Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Here's a quick synopsis: There have been a series of thefts throughout the world that are almost impossibly premeditated. Coulson and his team investigates and he uncovers the identity of the thief: his former protégé, Akela Amadour.

I enjoyed this episode, it was a set up episode for a future storyline as we don't really find out who was behind this whole thing. I like that the team is coming together, I like that they are making references to previous episodes. Though I really like the "alien" and "superhero" type stories I think this series is going with more of the man made kind of techy stuff. Less flashy special effects and more character base stories... which I don't mind. That's what Whedon is all about.. Character development. Buffy, Angel, Firefly and Dollhouse were all this way. Though I have to say that next weeks episode with a guy who can create fireballs looks pretty awesome.

And to finish this blog off I want to share with you a really cool video that was released on You Tube to celebrate Superman's 75th Anniversary. Superman is my all time favorite superhero so I got a real kick out of this video. Here's the details from the video "From the creative minds of Zack Snyder (Man of Steel) and Bruce Timm (Superman: The Animated Series) and produced by Warner Bros. Animation, this short follows Superman through the years, from his first appearance on the cover of Action Comics #1 to Henry Cavill in this year's Man of Steel...all in two minutes!"

MASH 4077 Podcast Episode 64

Download from itunes tinyurl.com/MASH4077itunes , listen on Stitcher Radio ow.ly/iZJIz or Listen, get direct download from our main website MASH4077Podcast.com  

Show Notes

Kenny Mittleider from Knights of the Guild, Alien Nation: The Newcomers Podcast & Confessions of a Fanboy Podcast, Simon Meddings from Waffle On Podcast, Al Kessel from Tales from the Mouse House, Fast Forward & Just Because Podcast & special guest listener co-host Neil Morgan discuss one of the most successful and longest running television series in history.. M*A*S*H

Today we cover Season 3, Episode #16 - Bulletin Board
64th Episode Overall
Directed by Alan Alda
Written by Larry Gelbart & Simon Muntner
Production code B323
Original air date January 14, 1975

Set during the Korean War in the 1950’s

Plot Summary: Trapper writes a letter to his daughter, Shirley Temple dances, and the 4077th tries to take a mental break from GIs suffering from hypothermia and post-op bleeding by throwing a benefit picnic for the orphanage.

A Rough Monday

Today I woke up with a sore throat and as the day progressed my symptoms got worse. By the end of the day I not only had a sore throat but I now had an ear ache, body ache, fever and a massive head ache. I think I caught a cold while on the set of My Gimpy Life :(

Though I felt like crap I had a MASH 4077 Podcast to edit, because of Gimpy Life shoot I wasn't able to get it done the week prior like I normally do and since today is the 14th and the podcast is due to be released on the 15th I had to work on it today. Of course I know there are no real "hard" deadlines in podcasts as no one pays for anything, it's all free and I could just postpone the release by a week or so. But being a podcast listener myself and having a few favorite podcasts that I listen to every month it drive's me crazy when those podcasts don't come out on a regular bases. And with MASH I have released a podcast on time on the 1st and the 15th of every month since I created the podcast and I wasn't about to lapse.

So I spent the entire day editing this podcast, I can normally get it done in 6 or so hours but today I had to work in small shifts as I wasn't about to sit up for to long without getting dizzy. I was about 95% done with it when my computer decided to start acting weird, it eventually froze and I had to do a hard re-boot. Unfortunately it wouldn't restart.. all I kept getting was a black screen with a cursor prompt. This is when panic set in as I haven't had the best of luck with computers. I figured one of the internal hard drives was bad and that I just lost everything that I had worked on. I spent the next 2 hours trying to figure out what the problem was. I was finally able to rebuild the re-boot system and what ever glitch was in the system was fixed and my computer started back with no loss of material.

I quickly finished editing the podcast and uploaded it to podbean and got it ready for it's release at midnight.... my record still intact :)

I hate being sick and I hope it passes me by quickly.. I got so much work I have to do on the house before it goes up for sale at the end of the month.

D&D Continues...

After my awesome day of TV watching I headed out for my bi-weekly D&D campaign. We were down four or five of our regular players. Even with those missing we were still a group of eight. We were in the middle of a Orc battle when we finished last time so we pretty much picked right back up from that point.

I have to say it was much more enjoyable the the lesser amount of players. There were less conflicts between players and we got to play more often. One HUGE thing happened during this session. We lost our first player. And what makes it even worse is she was killed by one of our own. Robert's character Zander was swinging an battle axe and Robert rolled a 1, which for those who don't know is a Crit Fail (not a good thing). There were four players with in range of his axe and unfortunately Jen's Elf Velanne got hit in the chest and died. It was pretty horrific.

We finished killing off the orcs and made our way out of the caves. We came across a Dryad (Tree Nymph) and decided to help her out by killing some Orcs who were killing her tree. We succeed with helping her, we ran into some Lynx's and managed to kill them.. and then moved on to some old castle ruins where we were exploring when several of our group triggered a trap and are now in a basement filled with rats.

We are currently on Day Five of our 12 day quest.. can't wait to see where the story goes next.

S.H.I.E.L.D., Tomorrow People & Once Upon A Time

I was finally able to sleep in.. and boy did I need it. Of course when I say sleep in I mean to 8:30am. Today was D&D day.. well not until 3:30pm so I had some time to kill and after being on set of My Gimpy Life the past five days I have collected a large amount of TV shows on my DVR so this afternoon is all about relaxing and watching some TV.

But before I get into some new shows I watched I was super excited to hear that Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. got picked up for a full seasons (meaning 22 episodes). This is awesome news as I really love these series. I don't understand why folks are hating on it.. but you know what.. I don't care. I enjoy it and now I get a full 22 episodes this season... woohoo.

I watched the pilot episode of Once Upon A Time In Wonderland. This is from the creator of Once Upon A Time and set in the world of Alice in Wonderland (if you didn't get that from the title). Here's a quick synopsis: The series is based around the Lewis Carroll fairytale classic Alice's Adventures in Wonderland but with a different twist from the other adaptations and takes place in the same universe as Once Upon a Time in present-day Wonderland, with flashbacks to pre-Curse Wonderland. As such, it is expected to follow the same setting as the parent series, including the use of Disney and Lost related allusions. In addition, the series will have crossover episodes with Once Upon a Time that will also involve a connection with the characters that are trapped in Storybrooke, Maine
 
I liked that they tied the first scene into Once Upon A Time by having Grumpy at the beginning and Emma's yellow Bug and I have to say that I enjoyed this pilot but it didn't wow me like the pilot of Once Upon A Time.

I don't know how they are going to make this storyline stretch into a series. When this series was first announced it was to be a 13 episode mini series, which made sense with the storyline but now it's a full fledged series I just don't see how that will work. But then again I said that about the original Once Upon A Time and they have reinvented the show every season and it's amazing. So I have no doubt that if any series can pull it off it will be this one. I am looking forward to episode two next Thursday.

I also watched a series I have been really looking forward too all summer since I read about it... The Tomorrow People on the CW. Here's a quick synopsis: Based on the original British television series of the same name, the series follows a group of young people who possess powers as the result of human evolution.

I have never seen the original British version from the 70's but this type of series is right up my alley. It's kind of like a cross between X-Men and Heroes. Of course the main cast members are all pretty as it is on the CW and they are known for their young pretty actors.

I really enjoyed the pilot, I liked the main characters and the effects are pretty amazing. There was this one scene that made the hair on the back on my neck stand up.. I actually re-watched it a few times, between the music and the effects it was just amazing. And it just so happens that this was a clip that they released a few months back that got my attention in the first place.. check it out below.

This clip gives me chills every time I watch it. This is right up there with Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. on my must see list. I just hope it lasts a full season. And luckily for this series it's on the CW and they tend to be more forgiving when it comes to ratings.

I also watched the 3rd episode of Once Upon A Time, they introduced Tinkerbell (who I really enjoyed) and a whole new storyline about Regina and her true love, who happens to be Robin Hood. I can't wait to see where that goes. Another shocker was Mulan being in love with Aurora (Sleeping Beauty) and about to confess her love until Aurora tells Mulan that she is pregnant with Prince Phillips baby. Oh my gosh my heart just broke, as did Mulan's. I didn't see this coming but I guess it's been going around internets about this love affair. I always though that Mulan was in love with Prince Phillips, and then I thought she was going to fall for Robin Hood in this episode.

Here's the heartbreaking scene.

This was another fantastic episode. This series continues to entertain me, leaving me wanting more.. I can't wait for next Sunday.

So many awesome TV shows this TV Season.. gonna have to start making the tough choice of which ones I will do away with when my free time becomes less and less.. gonna be tough. 

Right now my top three shows on TV currently are (in no particular order) Once Upon A Time, The Tomorrow People and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

My Gimpy Life Shoot: Day 5 (Final Day)

Today is the final day of principal photography. They still have a few pick up shots but they are using a skeleton crew (which does not include me). So today is my last day on set of My Gimpy Life season two.

We shot in Hollywood once again. Today was alot of waiting in the holding area with a handful of extras, including friends Aaron T, Aaron M, Dallas, Heather, Diane and Jessica. I got a few crew member interviews and also some of the special new cast members. Also Marissa Cuevas  returns as Teal's friend and is awesome as always.

I was excited for today as several of "special" new cast members were well known celebrates. First up was Mindy Sterling, she has over 140 credits to her name, but she's best known for Frau in Austin Powers movies.. she was super sweet, and gave a very good interview.

The next one was Mitch Silpa who has over 40 credits to his title, including Bridesmaid & Desperate Housewives. He too was great, very nice and gave me a great interview.

But my favorite celeb today was Geri Jewell, who played Geri in The Facts of Life. I was super excited to meet her since I'm a HUGE Facts of Life fan. I have to say she's still as funny and charming as ever. I got a great interview out of her about disabled actors in Hollywood and if it's gotten any better over her 30+ career in the industry.

I'm sad that the shoot is over but I can't wait to see how they put this season together... lot's of good stuff is coming your way. It was great seeing Teal and the gang of My Gimpy Life. I got some great interviews both with crew and cast and I can't wait to put these podcasts together and get them out for all to listen.

A special thanks to Teal for allowing me to be part of your Gimpy Life family. 

My Gimpy Life Shoot: Day 4

Today is our fourth day on set of My Gimpy Life Season Two. I picked up buddy Russell on my way to set. Today we spent the entire day in the Hollywood area at Gabe's house (he's the writer). Main cast was there today, Teal, Daryl (Brian), Teale and Brent as well as some special cast members (which it looks like they are keeping those guys as a surprise at the moment). There were several extras, friends Anne and Nicki as well as a new guy Sean. And I was also an extra for today. I can't give you the details but it's going to be pretty awesome and I can't wait to see the final product.

I got to interview Teale, Daryl and Brent as well as some crew members. These companioncasts are going to be chuck full of awesome behind the scenes information.

Tomorrow is our final day of shooting (though they are doing pick up shoots with a skeleton crew on Monday).

"Get Fit" Week 10

I knew this was going to be a rough week since I would be on set of My Gimpy Life. I am up at 7am and not in bed until midnight. No workouts and lots of tasty craft service. I was sure I was going to gain this week but I'm a extremely happy and surprised to say that I maintained. Weight myself this morning and I came in at 200lbs. That's a gain/loss of 0lbs from last week. It sucks that I can't seem to get below 200 but I am extremely happy that I didn't gain any weight. Let's hope with my next weight in I'll finally be below 200lbs.

Gravity - My Review

So I left the My Gimpy Life shoot at 5pm and had to be Universal Citywalk by 6pm to meet up with some friends. I got to our meeting location around 6:15 and was joined by Doug and Jes. Robert and Cait were running late so the three of us decided on a place to eat. We headed over to Tony Roma's as they have great food (but expensive) but we don't eat it that often. By the time we sat down and got our drinks Robert and Cait joined us. It was a nice dinner and by the time we were done our friend Dallas joined us.

After dinner we headed over to the theater to watch Gravity in IMAX 3D. And this was a true IMAX theater as there are only a few in the Los Angeles area. One great thing about this IMAX theater is that you can purchase assigned seating so there is no waiting in line to get a decent seat. We arrived at the theater around 8pm, as our movie was to start at 8:15pm. We made our way to our seats, which was middle, middle of the theater. Robert, Cait, Dallas and Myself sat together then we had two strangers sitting next to us and then Jes and Doug (who purchased there tickets a few days later then I did).

If you've been living under a rock and have no idea what Gravity is.. here is a brief synopsis: Dr. Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock) is a brilliant medical engineer on her first shuttle mission, with veteran astronaut Matt Kowalsky (George Clooney) in command of his last flight before retiring. But on a seemingly routine spacewalk, disaster strikes. The shuttle is destroyed, leaving Stone and Kowalsky completely alone - tethered to nothing but each other and spiraling out into the blackness.

I've seen a few clips from this movie and heard some rave reviews but I really didn't know much about it, which I was very happy about.

My Review: The movie starts with this beautiful 16 minute continuous shot, it's pretty breath taking. About 10 minutes in the disaster strikes and all hell brakes loose. The story is a simple one.. survival. The acting is incredible, I mean I'm a huge Sandra Bullock fan and she really shined in this movie. But the real star of this film is the cinematography, which is truly amazing. This movie runs one hour and 31 minutes and there isn't a single moment to stop and take a breath.

Before I saw this movie I heard some folks say how can they do 90 minutes of someone floating in space but they pull it off.. not only do they pull it off but they go above and beyond. This movie feels like it just flies by.

I spent the first 20 minutes of this film with my hand over my mouth, I was just in awe. I didn't realized until the credits start to role how tense my body was. Soon as those credits started to roll I would feel this release of energy and I could breath again. This was one of the most intense and I mean constantly intense movies that I have ever seen.

This was truly a movie going experience and I'm so glad I got to see it in true IMAX 3D.  I give Gravity a solid A and I hope to see it win or at least be nominated for some Academy Awards.

My Gimpy Life Shoot: Day 3

Day three of the shoot was out in Pasadena at someone's house. It was on this beautiful tree lined street. The house was old but incredible looking. It was a good day for me as I got to interview alot of the crew for my "behind the scenes" crew edition podcast.

No extras today.. it was all about Teal and Brent... also Daryl Crittenden returns as Brian, who I loved in season one and Daryl is just a cool guy so it was nice getting to hang out with him as well. 

I only stayed until 5pm as I had dinner and movie plans later in the evening. 

But overall it was another successful shoot day. Lot's of fun things are happening.

Alien Nation: The Newcomers Podcast Ep 21

Download from itunes http://bit.ly/itunesAlienNation Listen on Stitcher Radio http://app.stitcher.com/browse/feed/32281/episodes or Listen/ Get Direct Download http://Aliennationpodcast.com  

Show Notes

Brothers Kenny and Michael Mittleider review and discuss a short lived but very socially aware TV series from the late 80's early 90's ALIEN NATION. Each podcast we will review a single episode in sequential order starting with the Pilot. Will give you our thoughts on the episode as well as some fun behind the scenes information.

Today we cover Season 1, Episode 21 - The Touch
Directed by Harry Longstreet
Written by Steven Long Mitchell & Craig Van Sickle
Original air date April 30th 1990

Plot Summary: Cathy is reunited with a young boy she knew on the ship, but something terrible has happened to him. Cathy convinces George and Matt to look into this matter and what they find is terrifying. George and Susan begin looking for daycare for Vessna

More Babylon 5

After the Gimpy Life shoot I headed over to my buddy Robert's place for our weekly TV night. We continue our first time viewing of Babylon 5. Tonight we watched Season 2, episodes 14, 15 & 16.

First up S2 Ep14 "There All The Honor Lies"Sheridan kills a Minbari warrior in self-defense, but a Minbari witness to the incident claims it was not justified.

This was an okay episode. I didn't like how Delenn turned so quickly on Sheridan. But the overall out came was well done. There was a bit of humor in this episode with the Babylon 5 merchandise and Ivanova dealing with it and Londo insisting that they stop selling dolls in his likeness.The viewers knew it was a set up from the beginning, but for some reason Sheridan didn't see it and it was frustrating but then Garibaldi steps in and says exactly what the viewers are thinking that this was a set up... now they just have to prove it. I really enjoyed Lennier steppping up in this episode.

Next was S2 Ep15 "And Now For A Word" ISN films a segment on Babylon 5, right in the midst of an deadly conflict between the Narn Regime and the Centauri Republic.

I wasn't sure if I was going to like this episode when it started as a news report but it turned out to be one of the better ones this season. It just goes to show you that the Centauri's are ruthless bullies. 

And our final episode of the evening was S2 Ep16 "In The Shadow of Z'Ha' Dum" Is John Sheridan above the law? His heart overrides his head when he illegally detains a visitor - Morden - who may know if Sheridan's wife, Anna, presumed dead on an ill-fated scientific exploration is still alive.

I had a hard time with Sheridan in this episode but WOW what an episode, they spilled a ton of information in this episode that I'm sure will be played out over the next few seasons.  We find out about the "first ones" and that Kosh and his race the Vorlons are the last of them. They are in for a huge battle. This episode definitely left me wanting more.. can't wait to continue this series.

It was a long but AWESOME day...

My Gimpy Life Shoot: Day 2

It's day two of My Gimpy Life season two shoot. Today we are in Hollywood at a local theater. I was super excited for today's shoot as I was going to see two of my favorite people from last season's shoot, Teale Sperling & Steven Dengler. 

I'm so happy that Teale is returning for another season. She's still as sweet and kind as she was in season one.. well the actor not the character :)

Steven returns as a co-executive producer this season and has a cameo role like he did last season. I always love my conversations with Steven. He is one of the most interesting people I know. 

I look forward to sharing both of their interviews with you guys.

To my surprise I got to meet, for the first time, Stephanie Thorpe. I've been a huge fan of hers for several years. I have been to several of her panels at cons and have always wanted to meet her in person and today was the day. She's as sweet and kind as I expected. I was fortunate enough to interview her as well for the companioncast and she has some awesome things on the horizon.

Like yesterday today was such a smooth shoot day. Everything went as planned and if it didn't we weren't aware of it. Line producer Allison is amazing and runs such a smooth ship. 

I got to see a few friends today who were extras, got to meet and interview a new cast member who was hilarious. 

The day just flew by and before I knew it, day two of My Gimpy Life season two shoot was over.

Random Geek Question: Cosplay

I posted another Random Geek Question on Facebook and Twitter... If you were to Cosplay, who would you cosplay as and why?

This wasn't a popular question as I only got a handful of responses. From Facebook my friend Olivia who is a huge cosplayer said that her dream cosplay would be Ariel from Little Mermaid but she would want to do a "real" tail, which means she wouldn't be able to walk.

On Twitter @TheMightyJerd tweeted -  Never cosplayed, but if I did, the only 2 I would attempt are: Daredevil (favorite superhero) or George Asakura from G-Force.

@thatonetechguy tweeted anything tron as I love the art style, also because I have to wear glasses I would say Gordon freeman from half-life.

My best bud @TheRobZone tweeted - Isaac Clarke, from Dead Space. Because his outfit in the first game is fantastic.

My friend @dougluberts answered with a non-answer - Too many possibilities! Too many wizards to cosplay! Not to mention Sith Lords, Disney characters, and other stuffs!

As for me well you all know I cosplay as a Hobbit (Frodo/Bilbo) but I'm working on a Samwise cosplay and a Dwarf (not sure which one yet). I have also cosplayed as a Hogwarts student and a member of Starfleet.

Thanks to those who answered this question.

What would you cosplay as?? Leave you comments below.

Episode 3 of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Got home from today's My Gimpy Life shoot and had a few hours to kill before bed time so I worked out on my elliptical while watching episode 3 of Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

This series continues to excited and impress me. I love the characters more and more each week. I think this is my most anticipated show on right now.. taking the place of Once Upon a Time, which I still love. Here's a quick synopsis of this weeks episode.

S.H.I.E.L.D. searches for one of its assets, Dr. Franklin Hall, who was kidnapped by his former research partner Ian Quinn. He wants to use Hall to take control over the planet's gravity. Skye attempts to infiltrate Quinn's mansion so that Coulson's S.H.I.E.L.D. team can rescue Hall.

This was a heavy Skye episode. She's not my favorite character but an interesting one. We still don't know where her allegiance lye. At the end of last weeks episode it looked like she is still working for Rising Tide and has successfully infiltrated S.H.I.E.L.D. But tonight's episode you were suppose to believe her loyalties were being questioned again but I knew all along she was going to side with S.H.I.E.L.D. She's seems to be a very conflicted character.

It was awesome seeing Coulson in the field. His issues with his gun (it was brought up twice) really get's you thinking that this isn't the "real" Coulson, something is just off about him. I'm glad agent May is getting back into the field as she can really kick some ass. I can't wait for them to reveal more of her character.

And just like last week.. I loved the last scene of tonight's episode. Did Agent Coulson inadvertently create the next super villain? Only time will tell. I can't wait for episode 4 next week.