If you’re a comic book reader veteran, then you’re probably familiar with the usual once-a-year mega cross-over event like in the DC and Marvel Universe. Well, this summer 2015, Titan Comics will mix-it up with 4 Doctors and 3 companions meeting up in this 5-issue mini-series. Doctor Who: Four Doctors #1 (1-5) follows the Tenth, Eleventh and Twelfth Doctors and their companions on a mission against an unknown foe. The epic crossover-event is written by Paul Cornell (Wolverine) and illustrated by Neil Edwards
(Assassin’s Creed).
Doctor Who: Four Doctors Collide!
SF Anime Festival & Cosplay 2015
We’ve been a little behind editing many videos from various events we’ve attended this summer. Here’s a quick recap of the SF Anime Festival & Cosplay in Japantown that took place on July 18, 2015. The Ramen crew was there to see all the cosplay fun and meet-up with special cosplay guest Reika from Japan.
I Like To Eat Episode #2: Chicken on Fire
Vinyl Pulp #2: Art on Guard Exhibit
Transformers: The Movie, Original Motion Picture Score
In the age of digital downloads and streaming music, who goes to the record stores and buys the physical copy? Well, if you’re an old-school fanboy like me, this is one CD you should definitely buy, The Transformers: The Movie Original Motion Picture Score by Vince DiCola. Let’s not mistake these soundtrack CDs for the Michael Bay live-action crap, this is the 1986 animated Transformers flick. Yes, you should be aware The Transformers: The Movie CD which came out in 1986, but that CD featured all the pop songs like “The Touch” & “Dare” and only a couple of score tracks. This release features 25 tracks of music score from the movie.
Twin Galaxies Grand Opening 2015
The Art of Mad Max: Fury Road
Before I get down to reviewing Titan Book’s The Art of Mad Max: Fury Road, I’ve watched Mad Max: Fury Road twice already. I was a little cynical at first, when I heard the news that creator/director George Miller was going to re-make Mad Max, when his 1979 Mad Max film starring Mel Gibson was already a masterpiece. So, as I sat in the multiplex dreading it would not be a Kevin Costner “Waterworld”, the movie came on-screen and within a few minutes I was blown away by not just the action and acting, but Miller’s incredible cinematography, the colors and the amazing world-building. Now to the meat of this article, taking a look at Titan Book’s The Art of Mad Max: Fury Road by Abbie Bernstein with a Foreward by the man himself, the master George Miller.
Interview with Cosplayer Meg Turney @ Big Wow! Comicfest 2015
Interview with artist Nooligan @ Big Wow! Comicfest 2015
Interview with Artist Frank Cho @ Big Wow! Comicfest
Skullbunnies creator Ben Seto
Interview with Comic Book Artist Adam Hughes
The First Episode of Vinyl Pulp on Retrenders!
Free Comic Book Day @ Isotope Comics SF
Scarlett Couture Issue #1
The Art & Making of Penny Dreadful
I have to admit I only started watching this hit Showtime series only for Eva Green (Casino Royale, 300: Rise of an Empire), but I stayed for for the story and characters driving the “Penny Dreadful” program. We are already knee-deep into the second season and Titan Books has just released “The Art and Making of Penny Dreadful”, the official companion book to the program.
It’s that time again! Big Wow! Comicfest 2015
This is our 3rd year covering the Big Wow! Comicfest at the San Jose Convention Center. Our Ramen team of Eddie Ballar and Ramon Angel cover the 2-day comic book convention.
Hungry For Recipes: The Ultimate Aussie Burger
Wowhoo! Hungry for Recipes column or blog or whatever you call it is back. My fellow Retrenders blogger Stephen Jang blogged about the Aussie burger awhile back (click here to backtrack – Aussie burger), but Sebastian P over at TourRadar (a super travel/foodie blog) directed us to the Ultimate Aussie Burger with the Lot (aka Ozzie Burger).
Woot Bear: Toys Things & Art Exhibit
I bought a Mad Panda! Welcome to the Woot Bear showcase: Toys Things & Art Exhibit from Japan. Woot Bear collabs with some of Tokyo’s top toy vinyl artists like Dehara Yukinori, Hariken, Konatsu, Mai Nagamoto, Mographixx, Refreshment Toy and Studio Uamou for this exhibit running through May 10, 2015.
Big Wow! Comicfest 2015 this Weekend!
Made In Paradise S/S 2015 Women’s Lookbook
Made In Paradise may sound like a street brand from Hawaii or something, but it’s not! This lifestyle/swimwear brand is straight outta Hong Kong. Made In Paradise was founded in 2013 by childhood friends Maruice Maghnagi and Vishal Sani in HK. They look to make a splash with their “Junk in the Trunk” S/S 2015 collection.
Final Fantasy Type-0 HD Collector’s Edition Review
Final Fantasy Type-0 HD had me right from the get-go. Even thought the beginning was more cutscenes than it was gameplay, it was the cutscenes with the Chocobo that probably stayed with everybody in the beginning. Watching a Chocobo die was kind of strange. The only other time I remember seeing Chocobos dying was probably in Final Fantasy X, and even then they, and their riders, just disintegrated. In this game we had to sit through it and a human bleeding out… it was kinda dark. Well, what do you expect from an M-rated game. Yes that’s right, an M-rated Final Fantasy game.
When I started playing the game, it took a while for me to get used to the controls. I played on a PlayStation, so the square button was used to do the normal attacks, but it was also used to pick up something called ‘Phantoma’. Now that wasn’t that bad, but you had to wait a second of not attacking to pick it up, you couldn’t just kill the monster and pick it up right as it died. So watch out if you still have a Behemoth to kill and you’re trying to pick up the other dead Behemoth’s Phantoma. You might as well just let the Behemoth disappear and focus on grabbing the other Behemoth’s Phantoma. Another thing that annoyed me was the camera movement; it was too fast. In big open spaces like the overworld map it was fine, it moved at a decent pace; however, places like in a city you were fighting in, small spaces, the camera would move faster than it should sometimes. I’ll admit I got disoriented a few times, but nothing too major. It was just something that annoyed me, and there was nothing I could do about the speed.
Chappie: The Art of the Movie
The film Chappie, like previous Neill Blomkamp films’ District 9 and Elysium may have a science-fiction spin, but also speaks to the larger issues of society and “real world” problems. This Titan Books release, Chappie: The Art of the Movie delves into the background developing and creating the world of Chappie by Neill Blomkamp, concept artists and production team.
































