TV – Retrenders

Black Lightning: CW’s newest DC show!

May 18, 2017 by Edward Ballar Leave a Comment

CW has released the first trailer to their latest DC Superhero show, Black Lightning! He will be the latest DC Superhero to join DC’s Arrow-verse along side Green Arrow, The Flash, Legends of Tomorrow, and Supergirl. From the looks of it, we might even be getting more than just Black Lightning in this show, as he will be joined by his two super powered daughters, Thunder and Lightning. Black Lightning will be joining the rest of his DC Superheroes on CW in Fall of 2017.

Check out the trailer here:

Filed Under: Comics, Entertainment, Geeky, TV Tagged With: Arrow, Arrowverse, Black Lightning, CW, DC Comics, Flash, superhero, The Flash

Top 3 Star Wars Celebration Reveals!

April 17, 2017 by Edward Ballar Leave a Comment

Star Wars Celebration happened just over the past weekend and after having a few days to absorb all of the amazing announcements they made, here are our top 3! [Read more…]

Filed Under: Entertainment, Games, Geeky, Movies, TV, Videos Tagged With: Battlefront II, Lucas Arts, Star Wars, Star Wars Celebration, Star Wars Rebels, The Last Jedi

Mondo’s Marvel Netflix Vinyl Soundtracks

December 21, 2016 by Stephen Jang Leave a Comment

Call me an old fart, but I love my compact discs and vinyl records! I miss going to the various Tower Records in SF and exploring the import section at the Virgin Megastore on Market Street. Specialty retailer Mondo known for their movie tribute posters and vinyl OSTs will sell vinyl LP soundtracks from the popular Marvel Netflix shows Daredevil, Jessica Jones and Luke Cage. The Mondo releases feature awesome artwork and packaging.

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Filed Under: Collectibles, Entertainment, Geeky, Music, TV Tagged With: Daredevil, Jessica Jones, LPs, Luke Cage, marvel, Mondo, Mondotees, Netflix, OST, soundtracks, vinyl, vinyl records

Batman: A Celebration of the Classic TV Series

December 15, 2016 by Stephen Jang Leave a Comment

I remember watching the 1960s Batman TV show with my grandfather in our living room. We would have a blast watching these reruns. Now to celebrate this iconic TV program, Titan Books has released Batman – A Celebration of the Classic TV Series.

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Filed Under: Books, Entertainment, Geeky, Reviews, Series, TV Tagged With: 1966, Adam West, Batman, Batman Classic, Batman TV series, Caped Crusader, DC Comics, Robin, WB

Star Trek: 50 Artists 50 Years

December 9, 2016 by Stephen Jang Leave a Comment

I remember watching this “old” Star Trek TV series as a kid. “Trek” didn’t really resonate with me until Star Trek: The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine and Voyager TV series. Over time I went back to watch this original Star Trek series and films with the original cast. This year mark the 50th anniversary of the original Star Trek TV series and this poster size hardbound title Star Trek 50 Artists 50 Years celebrates the iconic sci-fi TV program.

Feeding Hannibal: A Connoisseur’s Cookbook by Janice Poon

November 17, 2016 by Stephen Jang Leave a Comment

I’ve stated many times before when I watch K-Dramas, I get Korean cuisine cravings. Watching a cute petite actress eat Jjangmyun (black bean sauce noodles), Mandu (meat dumplings), Bulgogi (BBQ beef) or Dukbokki (spicy rice cakes) just makes me hungry to munch on something. Now back to the topic at hand, the NBC psycho-drama Hannibal. Question, have you seen the past 3 seasons of Hannibal? If not, go stream it somewhere! Besides the incredible acting and visual images, it was also about the deadly appetizing food on the show.

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Filed Under: Books, Entertainment, Featured, Food, Reviews, Series, TV Tagged With: cook book, cooking, eating, food stylist, Hannibal, Janice Poon, Mads Mikkelsen, NBC

The Art and Making of The Flash

November 17, 2016 by Stephen Jang Leave a Comment

With season 3 of The Flash under way on the CW Network, fans will enjoy the companion guide, The Art and Making of The Flash by Abbie Bernstein. Critics and fans alike may nick pick here and there, but for me it’s an enjoyable escapism. I’m a huge fan of the CW DC superhero universe and make it an appointment television to watch. One of my favorite shows is of course The Flash and The Art and Making of The Flash takes fans behind-the-scenes.

Stranger Things Eleven Action Figure

October 12, 2016 by Stephen Jang 2 Comments

If you have not watch Netflix’s Stranger Things, I suggest you do. Get a Netflix account and then binge watch Stranger Things! I was hoping Super 7 or something would do a ReAction line, but for now – Special Ed Toys and toy artist George Gaspar aka couchgrouch produced this cool Eleven action figure. The action figure also comes with that 1980s-style toy packaging.

Arrow: Oliver Queen’s Dossier

October 3, 2016 by Stephen Jang Leave a Comment

Just in time for Arrow Season 5 on the CW Network. This companion book is Oliver Queen’s Dossier, it is Oliver’s notes and clippings on his battle to fight crime in Starling City.

Oliver gathers up newspaper clippings, government documents, images, blueprints and maps while writing down his notes and opinions on post-its. The dossier profiles allies, friends and enemies. The book also provides information on weapons and vehicles used on the show.

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Filed Under: Books, Entertainment, Featured, Reviews, Series, TV Tagged With: Arrow, CW, DC Comics, dossier, Green Arrow, nick aires, Oliver Queen

Music: Stranger Things Soundtrack Vol 1 & 2

August 15, 2016 by Stephen Jang Leave a Comment

Have you watched Stranger Things yet? Well, get a Netflix subscription! A few weeks ago, our Retrenders colleague Johnny Moreno binge watched Stranger Things and wrote a review on it (Stranger Things review). He then called me in the middle of the night to tell me to watch it! So I did and it was well worth it. Like many 80s kids, I had fond memories of movies and music from that era. And one of the many important factors in the success of Stranger Things is the music made by Kyle Dixon and Michael Stein. They have just released 2 new tracks to preview for the upcoming Vol 1 and Vol 2 releases digitally and CD format.

The Walking Dead Cover Art Puzzles

July 27, 2016 by Stephen Jang Leave a Comment

If you dig jigsaw solving like USAopoly Ghostbusters Art Series Puzzles, then this new set of comic book art puzzles for The Walking Dead will make your day. The two puzzle pieces features comic book cover art work from The Walking Dead issue 50 and 92. Each puzzle is 550-pieces and form a 18×24 picture.

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Filed Under: Collectibles, Comics, Entertainment, Games, Geeky, TV Tagged With: AMC, art puzzle, comic book cover, jigsaw, puzzles, The Walking Dead, USAopoly, zombies

STRANGER THINGS – A Throwback to the Best Movies of the ’80s!

July 16, 2016 by Johnny Moreno 2 Comments

If you haven’t seen this Netflix Series, you should! Because I went into a sleepless night binge watching this!

Stranger Things takes place in the ’80s and with plenty of ’80s music. It brought back so many memories of past films, this took me back to being a 5 year-old kid, because it had a little bit of The Goonies, a team of kids on bicycles. I also couldn’t help recognize the use of same dramatic theme track too. Then there’s E.T., because of the weird girl; The Explorers, kids exploring; Stand By Me, the train track trail to find their friend; and it even had an X-Files Sci-Fi conspiracy twist that will lure you to want to watch the series until the end. Also, it’s worth mentioning, if you love Dungeons and Dragons, you’ll appreciate this series!

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Filed Under: Entertainment, Movies, TV Tagged With: 1980s, kids, Netflix, Stranger Things, The Goonies, tv series

Fear of the Walking Dead – Ofelia Salazar

April 29, 2016 by Stephen Jang Leave a Comment

Actress Mercedes Mason who plays Ofelia Salazar in AMC’s hit show Fear of the Walking Dead appears on Sway in the Morning. She’s talks about zombie strategy and her Swedish background.

Firefly: The Gorramn Shiniest Dictionary and Phrasebook in the ‘Verse

April 19, 2016 by Stephen Jang Leave a Comment

When you see a book with the words ‘Dicitionary Book.’ You might think to yourself, this is going to be a boring reference book or just a plain Merriam-Webster Dictionary. But this ain’t know ordinary dictionary, friends! It’s the Firefly: The Gorramn Shiniest Dictionary and Phrasebook in the ‘Verse.

Firefly: The Official Companion, Volume One

April 19, 2016 by Stephen Jang Leave a Comment

During the 2002 Fall TV Season, FOX aired Joss Whedon’s sci-fi western ‘Firefly’ and then it was cancelled before it could gather a TV following. Over the years, “Firefly” has been a cult hit with fans with the help of DVD sales and Firefly panels at various comic-cons. If you’re re-watching the ‘Firefly’ series on DVD at home, this Titan Books’ Firefly: The Official Companion Volume One is a great guide to “Browncoat” fans.

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Filed Under: Books, Entertainment, Geeky, Reviews, Series, TV Tagged With: browncoats, Firefly, FOX, Joss Whedon, Malcolm Reynolds, sci-fi, serenity, TV show

The Blacklist: Elizabeth Keen’s Dossier

March 29, 2016 by Stephen Jang Leave a Comment

If you’re done binge watching Daredevil Sesaon 2 on Netflix, then it’s time to pick another cool action-thriller, that is NBC’s critically acclaimed The Blacklist starring James Spader (Raymond “Red” Reddington) and Megan Boone (Elizabeth Keen), which is currently on it’s 3rd TV season. The first two seasons of The Blacklist are on Netflix and I have to say I’m hooked on the characters and the story. Hardcore fans of The Blacklist may want to take a look at this new Titan Books release, Elizabeth Keen’s Dossier by Tara Bennett and Paul Terry.

Arrow: Vengeance

March 24, 2016 by Stephen Jang Leave a Comment

I admit, I’m a huge Arrow fan, since it’s CW TV network debut 4 seasons ago. I’ve watched every episode so far with pure enjoyment and also gone back to buy classic Green Arrow comics and toys, so yeah, I’m a Green Arrow fanboy. Fans of the show will know when watching Arrow on TV, there are lots of characters and world building and sometimes certain characters don’t get enough back story, so Titan Books recently released a brand-new paperback novel “Arrow: Vengeance” which focuses on the villains point of view.

The Blu-ray/DVD Gift Guide 2015

December 3, 2015 by Stephen Jang Leave a Comment

We are in the “future” of streaming all of our video content, supposedly, but if you’re “old school” like me, that like to have a physical copy of that Blu-ray/DVD movie in your hands, then check out this 2015 Blu-ray/DVD Gift Guide for your nerdy friends or for your own video library.

Once you’ve tasted 1080 HD viewing experience, it’s really hard to go back to standard DVD viewing, so we’ll kick-off the 2015 Blu-ray/DVD Gift Guide with a Blu-ray list first!

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For the first time in North America, we get the “The Collected Works of Hayao Miyazaki,” which is a Blu-ray Amazon Exclusive. The Blu-ray collection features 11 iconic Hayao Miyazaki films: Lupin the Third: The Castle of Cagliostro, Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, Castle in the Sky, My Neighbor Totoro, Kiki’s Delivery Service, Porco Rosso, Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away, Howl’s Moving Castle, Ponyo, and The Wind Rises. There is also a bonus disc and an exclusive art book.

Actor Peter Shinkoda @ Comikaze Expo 2015

November 30, 2015 by Stephen Jang Leave a Comment

The Ramen team interviews actor Peter Shinkoda at Comikaze Expo 2015. Peter talks about his time working on the Netflix/Marvel production Daredevil and TNT’s Falling Skies.

Sleepy Hollow: Creating Heroes, Demons & Monsters

November 12, 2015 by Stephen Jang Leave a Comment

With an explosive and fun second season, the FOX tv series Sleepy Hollow has just launched its 3rd season this past October 2015. If you don’t know, Sleepy Hollow is a supernatural mystery TV drama takes a “DC Elseworld’s version” of Washington Irving’s short story “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” with new twists and turns. Ichabod Crane died defeating the Horseman in 1781, but then finds himself resurrected and trying to adjust to 21st century. He collaborates with police office Abbie Mills and dig deeper into the supernatural and demonic forces attacking the town. Now go behind-the-scenes with Sleepy Hollow: Creating Heroes, Demons & Monsters by Tara Bennett and Paul Terry.

Heroes: Vengeance

October 7, 2015 by Stephen Jang Leave a Comment

NBC TV recently premiered their new super hero/sci-fi series Heroes Reborn and with the introduction of many new characters and typical large cast for a show like this, Titan Comics offers a new monthly Heroes comic book series where it will profile and highlight a character with a 5-part story arc. Heroes: Vengeance #1 finds Oscar Gutierrez as a ordinary mechanic by day and the vigilante El Vengador.

A Guide To Being A Vampire Slayer

October 1, 2015 by Stephen Jang Leave a Comment

Even after lasting 7 season’s and 144 episodes on air, Joss Whedon’s cult hit TV show Buffy, The Vampire Slayer remains popular with fans today. Do you also want to be like Buffy? Do you want to be a Vampire Slayer? Well, now’s your chance, as Buffy’s mentor Rupert Giles offers up his book: Demons of the Hellmouth – A Guide for Slayers, basically a Who’s Who’s list and character guides of the many vampires, demons, and other players they’ve meet along the way in the TV show.

LEGO IDEAS The Big Bang Theory 21302

September 23, 2015 by Stephen Jang Leave a Comment

Fans of the geeky CBS sitcom The Big Bang Theory will enjoy this LEGO-style playset from LEGO Ideas. The Big Bang Theory 21302 set features the iconic Leonard and Sheldon’s living room with 7 minigures: Leonard, Sheldon, Penny, Howard, Raj, Amy and Bernadette.

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Filed Under: Collectibles, Entertainment, Geeky, Toys, TV Tagged With: Amy, Big Bang Theory, bricks, CBS, Ellen Kooijman, Glen Bricker, Lego, LEGO Ideas, living room, Raj, Sheldon, sitcom, Sweden

CW Seed: Who is VIXEN?

August 25, 2015 by kellyannbrooke Leave a Comment

As the DC TV Universe expands with the likes of Arrow, The Flash and DC’s Legends of Tomorrow shows, another tie-in to this universe will be on the CW Seed channel in animation form. The animated show will highlight superhero VIXEN. Here’s a look at her backstory.

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Filed Under: Comics, Entertainment, Geeky, TV, Videos Tagged With: animation, Aquaman, Arrow, CW, CW Seed, DC, DC animated, DC Universe, The Flash, Vixen

Firefly Fans Play Yahtzee

June 22, 2015 by kellyannbrooke Leave a Comment

Like many of my Retrenders crew, we are big fans of Joss Whedon’s Firefly. I fell in love with characters, the universe and the world building. I have the special edition DVD’s, the Dark Horse Comics editions and the Funko/Super7 action figures. And now from USAopoly based on the Yahtzee game, comes the Firefly version.