Grant Morrison & Gay Batman

(Batman Art by Alex Ross.  All rights reserved by Alex Ross)

There has been recent buzz around a Playboy article with Grant Morrison, comic writer, about Batman & his sexuality.  Here's the quote that started the buzz:

"Gayness is built into Batman. I'm not using gay in the pejorative sense, but Batman is very, very gay. There's just no denying it. Obviously as a fictional character he's intended to be heterosexual, but the basis of the whole concept is utterly gay. I think that's why people like it. All these women fancy him and they all wear fetish clothes and jump around rooftops to get to him. He doesn't care -- he's more interested in hanging out with the old guy and the kid."

As a reader of Batman for more than 30 years, I understand what Grant is saying, but don't entirely agree. Batman is very complicated.

Many people are calling for Batman to be outed or for DC Comics to just admit it already.

Here are my thoughts.

It isn't like they [DC COMICS] are purposefully ignoring that Batman is gay as much as the character himself is ignoring it. Part of the reason Batman has so many issues is because he witnessed his parents death AND he's gay & in denial. Part of his anger is from that denial.

IF you were ever to out Batman or have Bruce Wayne come to terns with his denial, then you would lose much of the character. Batman is so popular because so many in society today hide from what is really causing their anger & woes & try to pin it instead on other people, politicians, etc. Politicians that are so deep in the closet are the homosexuals worst enemy. They do things to hurt their own because they hate themselves.

Batman chooses NOT to look at himself, just like most Americans do. He has overtaken Superman in popularity because Batman teaches us that if we are violent or cruel, yet we can blame it on some past trauma, rather than our inability to to do the hard work to free ourselves from our own personal demons, then it's okay. It's socially acceptable to beat the holy hell out of someone because WE have been so abused.

Batman had his parent's taken from him, so he gets to do this. We're okay with it. He suffered, so he gets to deal out punishment. Of course the writer's of Batman are always constantly addressing whether or not this is right. Whether or not this doesn't just make him a glorified rich thug.

They always leave it up to us to decide.

I love Batman because of the complexity of the character.The grays. The inner struggle within Bruce Wayne.

Is he gay? Probably. His gayness does indeed have a huge affect on who he is, but it is something that MUST stay closeted or you destroy the complexity of the character forever. He must struggle with it or you have to end the comic. He cannot ever be an out character & survive.

That doesn't mean that he can't teach us the harms of staying closeted. That gay issues can't be addressed within Batman. They just can't be main text. They must remain eloquently subtextual as they have for years now. That way kids like me can identify with this character & see what the denial does. Batman is always hiding. Hiding from himself & hiding from others. If Batman taught me anything, it was that hiding who you are has terrible consequences.

In the future, when homosexuality is no longer an issue, Batman can survive.  He can subtextually struggle with anything.  Anything that we, ourselves, as a society are struggling with.  That's really what we, the readers, love about Batman.  He is us.  Individually but also as a whole.  Good and bad, right and wrong, but ultimately in the end, simply human.

My Flickr

Hey, if you want to see a whole bunch of old sketches I scanned this weekend out of my old sketch books, head over to my Flickr page & check them out.  There's things like Princess Leia, the Beast from Beauty & the Beast the TV series, The Crow & all kinds of weird stuff I used to come up with.

My flicker page can be located by scrolling down & finding the badge on this blog.  It'll be on the right.  You can also click the highlighted text above.

Thanks!

New Art by Dan May

Here is a painting for sale by an Artist named Dan May.  Check out his site here: Dan May

He has a FaceBook page here: Dan's FB

and Twitter here: Dan's Twitter

Mahna Mahna

Oh, these are cute!

The Mahna, Mahna guy and...

do,do, do, do...the Snowth!

You can find theses all over the place for around $9.99.

Thor, God of Heavy Metal Thunder

Epic Awesome here.  

$19.99 - $24.99

Aliens

Hello & Happy Monday kids!  I've got an assortment of Alien type collectibles for you today!  Not just Alien aliens either.  First up, a saucer man.  These aliens are both freaky scary & laughable at the same time.  At first, you're all like Ha, ha...then, the more you look at them, you get creeped out.  Or is that just me?  Well, if you enjoy staring at the Saucer Men, you're in luck!  Executive Replicas has created a Saucer Men bust just for you!  3:5 scale or 16 inches tall and extremely limited at only 200 pieces which are hand numbered.  Where can you find this fabulously creepy collectible?  Well, Entertainment Earth has a few for pre-order right now for   $249.99.  

Next up, we have an alien that everyone loves.  Some love him so much, especially this version, that they refuse to accept that he regenerated.  It's a 10th Doctor Vinyl Maquette Statue from Dynamix. This Doctor figure is a cartoonish interpretation of the 10th Doctor as portrayed by David Tennet standing at 9 inches & limited to 3,000 pieces.  If you are one of the Tennet lovers, grab this one & that way you really can hold on to him forever.  I'll wait for the Matt Smith version myself.  You can pre-order from Entertainment Earth or pay import prices & get it here at Big Chief.

Lastly, a plushy little Alien.  So cute & cuddly it's hard to resist.  That's right, it's a plush chest burster from the Alien movie.  Available for $19.99 & in stock now at Entertainment Earth.

Lucy Lawless Court Update

Lucy Lawless & the other Greenpeace New Zealand protesters who were arrested after protesting aboard a Shell Oil ship back in March appeared in a New Plymouth District Court on April 5 to face their charges of Burglary, but the court pushed it back again until April 18.  This is the third time their court date has been moved.  

I'll let you know what happens.  In related news, Shell Oil filed for a restraining order against Greenpeace & pretty much every other environmental organization on earth with the United States court system.  They were awarded the restraining order.  I'm not sure how that works when the US government has no authority in International waters or in other countries.

If you want to add your name to the list of peeps who want Big Oil to have a real plan in place in case of a system failure, blow-out, or spill, or you just think Polar Bears are cute & don't think their habitat should be destroyed just so you can cruise around in your automobile all day, head on over to the Greenpeace page & sign up: 

http://www.greenpeace.org/new-zealand/en/take-action/Take-action-online/Save-the-Arctic/ 

Creature Feature

This post is for you Creature From the Black Lagoon fans!  I'm one myself.  Julie Adams, who played the damsel in the original Creature movie has written a book.  There's an entire chapter dedicated to the making of that movie & all that went on behind the scenes.  You can get an autographed copy here: http://www.julieadams.biz/store/store.html  You can also head over to Amazon & pick up an non-autographed copy.

That's not all!  There's also a very cool 8 inch tall Creature bank coming out in September!

That's a great sculpt, isn't it!?  The arms are movable.  

You can head over to Entertainment Earth & put that in your cart.  

It's listed at $19.99.

There's also a new model kit from Moebius Models.  The sculpt on this one looks pretty bad though.  Even for a plastic model kit.  Pretty sure I'll be skipping this one.

However, if you aren't as picky as me, you can find it over at Entertainment Earth as well.  It'll set you back about $25.00.

Suckerpunch German Soldier Zombie

Remember the cool German soldiers from Suckerpunch? Gentle Giant does & has sculpted a new statue that stands 17" tall & is sculpted in high detail!



This sculpt catches all the eeriness of the undead German soldiers, from the sewn on gas masks, to the bayonettes. The release date for these will be in the third quarter of this year. So probably September. Entertainment Earth has a release date of October. The price is listed at $269.99 from Entertainment Earth & $300.00 on the Gentle Giant site. Both are taking pre-orders right now. This is limited edition, so if you really want it, get in on it now!



Even if you aren't a Suckerpunch fan, this would go great with any Steampunk collection.

New Ravenclaw Shirt

Ravenclaw. I never read all the Harry Potter books, but I have made up fabulous stories in my head about Ravenclaw.

Ravenclaw has always been the house that I would hope that hat would sort me into.

Why? Well, as I said, I have made up my own little stories about Ravenclaw. Ravenclaw, in my mind, is the place all the artists hang out. If you have any artistic skill, that hat is going to put you into Ravenclaw.

Ravenclaw is the house that you sneak out of at night & go around behind the "dorms" and smoke. Someone in Ravenclaw has a hookah pipe in their room. Some Ravenclaws ride motorcycles. All the misfits, most mudbloods, and the weird kids would get sorted into Ravenclaw.

Of course, that's all in my head. None of that was ever in the stories. However, I myself, do own a Ravenclaw shirt. Now Thinkgeek has another one! $19.99 & the shirt that appears in this post is all yours. Well, plus the shipping & stuff. Head over to Thinkgeek & snag one!

Epic Awesome Album Cover

I'm working on an album cover for a Kiwi that I think rocks. I hope I can get it done by the deadline of April 17th. It's going to look epic. Magical. Fantastical.

A Little Robot I'm Working On.

Sketched with a blue papermate pen, scanned & using GIMP to color it in.

The Sami Sisters

I love good, fun, pop music. The world has gotten way to serious for my tastes. I blame the 90's. And Hipsters. And the religious reicht.

So, when I find something that seems to capture the essence of just good music & fun rhythms, I like to share. Seems like I really like what is coming out of New Zealand. You've heard me mention Ladyhawke before, and these gals, of Irish & Indian descent, were born & raised as kiwis as well.

They write songs & play their own instruments. That's enough to blow a religious reicht republicans head right off! Women who can play instruments & write songs!? Luckily they are in New Zealand where women are still free to do that sort of thing.

Here they are live:



and in a Red Bull thing here:

They have a webpage here: Sami Sisters Home

They have a Facebook here: Sami Sisters

Youtube here: Sami Sisters Youtube

No Twitter yet though.

Go check them out. Some fun cool tunes to relax & enjoy!

If you haven't, you should...

Twenty Years ago, which was eight years after I walked out of the theater after having watched Return of the Jedi on the big screen, a series of books started hitting book shelves all over the country. The first book was called "Heir to the Empire" by Timothy Zahn.

There had been other Star Wars books. I had read them. They were...meh. I was hesitant to pick this new one up. I flipped through it & was hooked.

There was never a Star Wars book like this. Quite honestly, there hasn't been one to match it since. Other than the other two books in the trilogy.

If you love Star Wars, like Star Wars or are even slightly curious about what happened after Return of the Jedi, to Luke, Leia, Han, Chewie, R2, C-3PO & the gang, you should read this. It is so good.

I think part of my disappointment with the prequels is directly related to how absolutely fantastic the storytelling was in this trilogy. Timothy Zahn captures the essence & feel of the characters & the galaxy perfectly.

So, if you haven't ever delved into this one, you should. Here's a link to the 20th Anniversary Edition on Amazon.

Notice, it's also on Kindle.

Go See John Carter of Mars

Above is a ten minute clip of the film. According to ticket sales this weekend, the industry is looking at this film as a flop. It cost $250 million to make this film & opening weekend only saw a return of $30.6 million. If you include overseas ticket sales it broke $100 million.

Here's a short clip with the adorable martian dog:



This film shouldn't be a flop. There hasn't been a movie like this in a long time. With all the bitching & whining & moaning I hear about Hollywood remakes, why the hell has everyone skipped this film? It's an original. Sure, it's based on Edgar Rice Burroughs stories, but no one has ever made John Carter come alive on the big screen before.

The film is beautiful & fun & exciting & full of adventure with some laughs & some tears. It is a wonderful adaptation of the original source material.

Do you like Firefly & Serenity? Do you like Star Wars? How about Flash Gordon or Buck Rogers? Then go see John Carter.

Many people have complained that they have no idea what it is about from the trailers. Is THIS the reason YOU haven't gone to see it? Okay then, here's a plot synopsis. John Carter is from Virginia, USA in the late 1800's. He stumbles across something that inadvertently transports him (well, a copy of him) to Mars. On Mars he stumbles into a war between Helium (a city on Mars) and it's rival city. He has to make choices & fun things happen & adventure & wow! & go see the movie! I don't want to spoil it for you!



I can't believe you haven't gone to see this film! If you don't, I really feel like you are missing out. I, also, will be missing out. Missing out on studios taking more chances like this. More studios making bold, beautiful, epic films! Why should they? Despite all the whining, remakes pull in far more money than original films.

Don't make the studios right. Go see John Carter.

Green Lantern Fleece Bath Robe

Hey there Lantern fans! Look at this! A sweet bath robe to show off your love for all things green & lanterny! It's 44-inch long & will fit most adults, except for the Hutt Family. They have to special order from the slug & tall stores.

Now, as cool as it looks, do be aware that it's not really going to be so awesome if you really intend to use it as a bath robe. It's 100% polyester & polyester does NOT soak up wet like terry cloth does. In fact, polyester on a wet body feels pretty icky. How do I know this? I lived in the 70's. 5 years of it. I know polyester.

So, keep that in mind before you shell out the $39.99 they want to have one of your very own.

Entertainment Earth has them available for pre-order with the delivery to be sometime this month.

New Doctor Who For You

Doctor Who TARDIS Playset from BifBangPow!

This TARDIS Playset has interior features from the Tom Baker Era. Comes with one of my favorite Doctor companions of all time! K-9! Constructed of thick cardboard like old dollhouses of the 1970s.

It is 11-inches tall x 5 1/2-inches wide x 5 1/2-inches long when closed. The door opens & the transparent time rotor moves up & down. The detailed Master Control Console features authentic controls shown in the series and readout displays that any true Whovian will recognize.

Right now, you can Pre-order from Entertainment Earth for an October release & a price of $49.99.

SHINTARO OHATA

Beautiful. Shintaro Ohata. Google the name & be amazed & inspired.

Magic, Novelty & Jesus Bandages

When I was a kid, my Dad decided he wanted to be a Magician. He studied Blackstone & eventually the rise of David Copperfield. Magic specials were on television it seemed every weekend. Dad was very passionate in his pursuit of the great illusion.

Because of this quest to become a Magician, my Brother & I got to travel all over the place & go to some of the coolest places you never knew existed. I don't know how Dad managed to find out about these places. There was no Google search back then. There was no internet, period.

The places we ended up were amazing places to be as a kid. If you have ever watched the movie "Pee-Wee's Big Adventure" & remember the novelty shop he walked into, you'll get an idea of what I'm talking about. The places we found were so much bigger or smaller, darker, and in weird parts of wherever we went. From warehouses to small little holes in the wall in the back of an alley. Most of them were typical Novelty shops. They had trick gum, fake poo, fake puke, exploding cigars, hand buzzers, Groucho glasses, rubber chickens & all sorts of bizarre items. They generally also had magic kits. I freaking loved these places.



Some of the places though, were weirder & a little spooky. They were magic shops. Some of them were run by, what I deemed to be, REAL wizards or oracles or something. These places...I can't even begin to describe them. They smelled of incense, and were decorated in old tapestries, were often dark, & had new age type music playing before anyone even knew what the hell new age was. There were trinkets everywhere. Skulls, pentacles, pentagrams, horns, taxidermy animals, shrunken heads (which back then might have been real), pickled animals. Almost anything you can imagine. Some of them even offered fortune telling. They housed the secret magic tricks. The illusions only shared from Magician to Magician. You had to know someone that was a REAL Magician to get your hands on these. Sometimes there were even contracts to sign, swearing that you would not share the secrets given to you.

I often wonder if places like this still exist. I hope so because they really were magic & lit my young imagination. However, the art of illusion seems to have faded into simpler times. People have outgrown illusions. You can Google anything & learn how it's done, thus destroying the "magic" of it all.

Accoutrements is a company that has held on to the long standing tradition of being a Novelty Shop. All the things I marveled at as a kid, still in place, right down to the rubber chicken. they produce new Novelties every year, & have quite a line of Bacon related items.

Here is one I stumbled across that make me LOL:



Classic.

Babydoll Premium Format Figure

Suckerpunch might be a failure as far as Hollywood executives are concerned, but to those of us who know better, it will be a long lasting cult favorite that people will still be talking about 50 years from now.

Zack Snyder gave this fangirl everything she'd ever wanted in one film & made it incredibly beautiful as well. I can't wait to see what he does with Superman. If they let him. I hope the producers don't force changes that make it NOT feel like a Zack Snyder film because they get too scared, have no spine & tiny little...balls. Let the guy do what he does. He's a genius.

Now Sideshow Collectibles is offering another Suckerpunch item that is really exceptional. It's Babydoll from their Premium Format Figure line. The Figure stands 19" high, weighs in at around 7 Lbs. and has a real fabric costume. The sculpt on this figure is dead on. Perfect.

The price to own this fabulous piece of cult classic idolatry? $349.99. Ouch. Wait though! Don't give up just yet. Sideshow recently took the economy into consideration & has created new payment plans that are even more affordable than before. You can pay $35 up front & then $43.75 a month until she is paid off. She doesn't actually get released until November, so that gives you plenty of time!

If you love Suckerpunch, this Babydoll is a must have!

Firefly Malcolm's Gun

Malcolm Reynold's Pistol Replica available at QMx

This company produces some top of the line seriously limited stuff, so if you want in on this you better get it now. It's a 1:1 scale replica. $79.95.

Lucy Lawless Arrested, Bailed Out, Has Hearing

Lucy Lawless, who scaled an oil tanker bound for the Arctic with Greenpeace New Zealand activists, was arrested Sunday after spending 77 hours on board. She & the team are being charged with burglary rather than unlawful trespass. How they think she committed burglary is yet to be determined since no one took anything & nothing was damaged. The team & Lawless have a hearing on Thursday in front of a judge.



Personally, it is quite obvious that Lucy is being charged with burglary as a warning to others. The ramifications of a burglary charge could be fairly devastating to her acting career. It is possible that she would not be able to travel to certain countries with burglary on her record. This could limit any roles she might have otherwise been able to accept. It could also limit her appearances at fan conventions.

It's clear to me that she is very passionate about this cause. Lucy is not some unaware airhead. She's a smart woman who isn't afraid to take risks. I, for one, am very proud of her actions & her commitment. She not only talks the talk, but has shown that she ain't afraid to walk the walk. Good on ya, Lucy.

Her actions generated over 500 articles on Greenpeace New Zealand & what Shell has planned for the arctic as well as over 133,000 signatures asking Shell not to drill in the Arctic. Good was done. Awareness was raised. Mission accomplished. #savethearctic

Blu-Ray Deleted Scenes Star Wars Figures

I haven't gotten there yet, but there are deleted scenes added back into Star Wars Return of the Jedi on Blu-Ray. The figures above are from those deleted scenes. Cool.

You can get them here: Brian's Toys

or here: Entertainment Earth

Lucy Lawless is a Bad Ass

Lucy Lawless has scaled a Shell Oil Tanker with other members of GreenPeace New Zealand in an attempt to stop a Shell Oil Drilling ship from heading out to the Artic to drill. She & the other members have brought food & supplies for several days & appear to be starting a sit-in atop the derrick.

Articles here, here, here, here, and here. With Pictures here.

Video Here.

Follow her on Twitter under @RealLucyLawless

Write your Representatives & Senators & let them know that you also think drilling in the arctic is unnecessary & bad for our planet.

#savetheartic

Art Post: Chris Harding

I "Stumbled Upon" a great art page today. The artist's name is Chris Harding. He does comic strips. He also plays in the world of animation. His Robot comic strip series is by far my favorite! Smart, funny & true.

Go check him out. Chris Harding Website

He also has a FaceBook page here: Chris Harding

Hot Topic & Sailor Moon

I love me some Sailor Moon! When Xena went off the air, I quickly searched around for something, anything to take my mind off the painful ending of my hero. I had already become a huge Anime fan through shows like Gatchaman, Robotech, Starblazers, Project A-Ko and more. I can't remember what channel it was that started showing Sailor Moon, maybe Cartoon Network, but I was hooked.

Of course I'm a big original language subtitle kinda girl. No dubs for me. So once I decided I loved it, I was off in search of uncut, undubbed versions. I learned early on what America does to Anime & I knew Sailor Moon was better than what I was getting to see on American TV. I wasn't wrong. Especially when it came to Haruka & Michiru. T & I were on the edge of our seats & soaked in tears at one point. I'm not even kidding. Sailor Moon Super had us. 100%.



It's been a while since Sailor Moon has come & gone. I miss it. T & I started watching the series again a couple weeks ago. I realized I was missing the movies that come between each series. BAH! How did I do that?!? Then I remembered...I had them once. On VHS. Crap in a hat.



So I started looking around. That's when I discovered an exciting line of Sailor Moon apparel at Hot Topic. Yep, clothes, bags & belts all with the Pretty Sailor Soldier herself! Awesome sauce!



So, I am passing on the info to you. Sailor Moon at the Hot Topic. Get it quick because Hot Topic merch changes fast.

Vintage Carded Wave from Phantom Menace

Available at: Entertainment Earth

Brian's Toys

If you missed Qui-gon in other waves or little Anakin, here's your chance! I love the retro looking cards.

Riusuke Fukahori, Technique, & Supplies

Holy wow! I love finding painters or crafts people that you can watch & be amazed by. Amazed at their patience. Amazed at their practice & dedication. Amazed at their technique. This fellow in the video below is amazing. He paints goldfish. Nothing really amazing about that, right. Wrong. He paints them in layers between resin. This makes them look real & 3D. The amount of time & practice it took him to be able to perfect this is impressive.

"Goldfish Salvation" Riusuke Fukahori from ICN gallery on Vimeo.

So many people don't understand time when it comes to art. Artists use time differently than almost anyone. Processes are repeated again & again to hone & perfect technique. It takes years to be able to lay paint down in brush stroke after brush stroke properly...or improperly, whatever your going for. The planning stages, the sketches, the reworks, the priming of the surfaces. Even in Mr. Fukahori's work, the resin must be mixed properly, the wooden boxes built & sanded smooth. An artist must have a composition in his/her mind. Everyone is different. When you see a work of art & the price tag confuses you, remember this. You aren't just paying for paint on a canvas or paint between layers of resin. You are paying for the work. All of the work that the artist has gone through to finish this one piece.

That and all the materials. Paint isn't cheap. Neither are brushes. If you haven't ever bothered to look, go to your local craft store & check out tubes of oil paint & acrylic. Not the cheap-o boxed sets either, but the single tubes of color. Then look at brushes. Not cheap brushes that look like they are made of straw & will flake off in the painting, but REAL brushes. Then check out gallery quality canvas. It gets pricey.

I guess my point here is, "WOW! Look at this guy painting Goldfish!" and don't be a cheapskate when it comes to shelling out money for good art. Look at it like you would look at supporting your local farmer's market or local restaurant. You are getting something of quality & in return are helping someone create more of that & possible helping them afford new carpet in their house, not bonuses for some jack-hole that could give a crap about the struggles of middle or lower America or the world.

Deep Breaths & Baby Steps

Okay, well, this has been a bit of a surreal & insane year already. Xena Con 2012 & the moment this Xenite fangirl has waited her whole life for, followed very quickly by the untimely & rather sudden death of one of my family. Not blood related family, but family family. You know, those people that love you because they want to, not because they have to. For me, this person was one of my rocks.

T & I have learned we don't do real well with this type of thing when we are both connected to the person we've lost. It's always been one of us being strong for the other. This time...damn, I tell you what, my eyes feel bruised from all the crying, & I still don't know which way is up & I'm not sure if I have helped her at all.

So, Saturday we are going to celebrate our friend, laugh & cry some more & try to figure out how to find up.

I feel like I haven't been able to get my footing at all this year.

T has her final project to get her Master's due & is so stressed out she's started having panic attacks.

This really isn't the way I expected things to be going.

We've got quite the fight on our hands.

That's just the way it goes sometimes though, right? I remember why I tell myself never to make plans. Something always happens. I don't care though. I am already making new ones.

Looking to the future. Which right now seems rather ominous & frightening & less fun. I'm sure once we break through this dark cloud, the sunshine & rainbows will still be there.

The first plan I have made is to go to this: Spectrum Fantastic Art Live



They have a Social Media Site page as well, if you wanna click on over & check that out.

Two artists that really inspire me are going to be there. Brom & Mike Mignola.

As well as Android Jones.

There will be talks & portfolio reviews & hob-knobbing & such. I have nothing this year, but I can go this year & look, observe & understand. Research what & how & get fully prepared for next year. I can ask questions in order to help set myself up for success. For real.

I have already set myself a goal of three new works completed & posted to my website BEFORE the Convention.

THIS is the year. No matter what I get thrown at me. Things change this year. I change this year. I become who I was meant to be.

What day is it?

Hello.

Xena Con 2012 was awesome.

I wasn't able to keep up with the blog like I had hoped due to the lack of free wi-fi. I refuse to pay $14.00 a day. Especially when I'm already paying for everything else.

The final highlights of the Con were:

Lucy & Renee on stage. Lucy & Renee reading Katherine Fugate's little script she wrote that Renee & Claudia Black had read the day before.

Gabrielle asking Xena to marry her right there in front of my eyes. :o Holy Hera!



The Video above was our vantage point. In fact, if you look, & are familiar with the backs of our heads (*snicker*) then you will see they make an appearance.

For me, this was absolutely amazing. It was almost like the last two episodes were fixed immediately. It is still making me smile.

Right after that moment T & I were scrambling madly through the crowd to get to the Lucy photo op line.

That too, was awesome. She was warm & friendly & I still can't believe it all happened. Best 15th Year Anniversary present EVER!



We loved Southern California. The weather was so nice & everyone seemed very friendly & smiley. We even saw a guy see his car get bumped in the parking lot. Hey ran over to check it out & once he decided it was no big deal, he came strolling back to the Starbucks with a smile on his face.

THAT guy taught me a bunch. He witnessed, he reacted, he investigated, he let it go. I have a very hard time with the "letting it go" part. I don't want to anymore. So that is what I am practicing since I got back. Letting it go. I do not want to hang on to emotion that should have passed anymore. I want to feel in the moment & move on. So far, so good.

So, we've been back for a week now & I still have not adjusted. In fact, I'm not sure I ever will. I feel different.

Xena Con Day 3 - Saturday!

Saturday finds us up early & nervous. Renee O'Connor's photo op is bright & early at 8:45am. We are hoping she has on the outfit we want, otherwise we will have to wait until Sunday. She's wearing two different outfits on two different days. Will it be the BGSB or the Red Outfit or the Little House on the Praire Outfit or what!?

I am totally expecting T to freak. LOL.

We get in line. Finally word comes down the line that she is indeed in the classic Gabby attire of the BGSB (Big Green Sports Bra).
Once we get in to the room where we can see her...T starts to feel weird. To be honest, I was taken aback a little seeing Renee for the very first time in her classic Gabby outfit. It was a bit surreal. I mean, holy Hera! There was Gabrielle! It was like someone plucked her out of ancient Greece & plopped her in Burbank just to take pictures. LOL.

She seemed pretty sleepy still. It was cute. She's so shy. I am amazed she does this for her fans. It must be incredibly hard for her.

T cried. It was so cute. She waited until we got back to the room, and she will absolutely hate me for telling you this, but she cried. She met the Bard of Bards! Her idol! The person that plays the character that helped her realize she wanted to be a writer & helped bring us together. It was adorable.

It really is neat being surrounded & immersed in the Xenaverse & being part of the experience we have always heard about.

Being there though, you could feel...it's a little too late for a Xena movie. This broke T & I's heart...just a little. we expected it was a possibility, but we had hoped that with the interest & fervor of the X201MC & other things we had read & watched, that maybe there was a resurgance. Nope. The Con room has yet to be a little more than half full. This is THE Xena con. If they can't fill that up...well, the market for the film looks pretty damn slim to me. Still, It'd be awesome if it ever happened.

So there were a few tears. T worked so hard on that script. However, at the same time, we are having so much fun. Even if it is the tail end of the grand experience, I wouldn't have missed it for the world.

We got to see Claire Stansfield, Tim Omundson, Brittany Powell, Michael Hurst, Jennifer Ward-Lealand, & Jacqueline Kim. Whew! That was a whole lot of awesome in a short amount of time. We also got autographs from all of them as well as Renee's autograph.

Later that night at around 10:30pm we headed on over to the cocktail party. Dancing, music, & drinks. Hudson showed up. She was on the dance floor with all of us. There were several dance offs. She is HI-larious guys. Brittany was there as well. I got hugs. Good, strong, happy hugs. Such wonderful hugs. *sigh*

Many of the stars asked us about the Con. They asked us if we were having a good time. They asked why we decided to come. Was it because it was the LAST con? It was neat, because we got to tell our story to most everyone. The people that helped bring us together. Some of them genuinely thought it was freaking cool. Everyone was very sweet. It was amazing. Brittany even told other people. Can I just say, I liked Brittany's character on the show, but man, I LOVE the real Brittany. She is crazy fun. Also cool & drop dead gorgeous.

Jacqueline Kim was also fantastic & so warm & lovely to meet. Gods, we had such great experiences. The stars were all so incredibly warm & friendly & funny. I have never been to a fan convention where all the stars are so relaxed & friendly & giving & warm. A big thank you to all of them.

After the party, we crashed.

Sunday is next. Lucy Freakin' Lawless day.

Xena Con Day 2 - Friday

Wow. What an amazing first day! We slept in until around 10:30am because we opted not to pay $120.00 to do Yoga with Hudson Leick. It was nice. We needed it. We stumbled over to the Starbuck's, grabbed some coffee & relaxed a bit before rejoining the swing of the Con.

Steven L. Sears talked first. He was a writer for the series. One of the main writers. T got up & asked a question. I filmed part of it. I was proud.

Then Adrienne Wilkinson, the woman who portrayed Xena's daughter, Eve/Livia, was up next. She was very fun.

David Franklin was up next. He was everyone's favorite Brutus in the Rome episodes of Xena. The man is like a combination of David Tennet and Hugh Jackman. Hey, BBC, I think I found your next Doctor. This guy would be awesome!

Rob Field followed David. He was an editor on Xena. He was very Hollywood. It was pretty cool seeing such a stereotypical Hollywood type.

All of this lasted for hours. Finally, at 4pm, Ted Raimi is introduced. Ted played Joxer the Mighty & is Sam Raimi's brother. It was cool seeing Ted. He was funny & pretty much what I expected from a Raimi. Those guys are awesome, sarcastic & funny as hell!

After Ted came the Con legend Hudson Leick. Hudson scares me. She always has. She has this presence about her. It's like she could suck out your soul before you knew what was happening. LOL. Turns out though, that she's really pretty cool. Although I still think she might suck out my soul. After her talk was her photo op.

I was pretty terrified to stand next to her. Seriously, she scares me. So, we get up there, and she looks at T & says, "Hi!" in a high pitched friendly voice. Then she looks at me & says in a lower sulty voice, "Why Hello." Panic. She.Is.Going.To.Eat.Me.
I bravely returned her greeting with my own low confident, "Hello." & she raised her eyebrows & replied to my hello with an even sexier "Hello."

Um,...gulp. Hawt & Scary.

After the picture was snapped it was dinner time & then off to get some of our many autographs. After autographs we attended the special cabaret with Michael Hurst & Jennifer Ward-Lealand. Fun, fun, fun! We were signed up for Karaoke afterwards, but man, we were exhausted. So we went back to the room & crashed.

We had a great first day & did manage to meet some cool people.

We came to grips with the fact that the X201MC people were snubbing us. Very strange after having been on their FB & talking for so long. I thought I had built some pretty cool friendships there, but man was I wrong. Apparently the X2011MC operates like a small junior high school. Of course, being the weird kid & having people treat me like I'm the weird kid is the story of my life. So, feel free to go UNLIKE that page.

Next up, Saturday & Renee!!!

Xena Con Day 1 - Thursday

Awkward.

That's the word for Thursday.

We got up around 5am to start the journey from Oktaha (My Brother's place) to the Tulsa airport. Our flight was on time & despite my mini panic attack & tears upon the first take off, I managed pretty well. There was quite a bit of turbulence on both the flight to Denver & the flight from Denver to Burbank. I sort of like turbulence though. For the first time ever, I did not throw up after the second fight. THAT was awesome.

Once in sunny Burbank, we walked out of the airport, took a deep breath & T started crying. (To be fair, I cried when the plane landed) Neither of us could believe we finally not only managed to get a vacation, but that we managed to afford one. It didn't even matter what we where doing, or that there was a con at all. We were free. Free from all that mundane routine crap. Just me & T.

We looked around & decided to walk rather than to take the complimentary shuttle bus to the hotel. That's how we roll. We wanted to feel every bit of California sunshine.

As we entered the Hotel, the noise grew loud, and there were obvious Xenites filling the lobby already. Many of them very large robust type Xenites. We checked in, smiled shyly & ran up to our room.

We weren't quite sure what to do. I'm completely lousy at being social & T hasn't done it in years. So we stayed up in our room for a little while. Finally, we decided to go down & explore. Find where & when everything was supposed to be. Once we returned to the lobby, we were overwhelmed by the fact that the Xenite number had doubled & people were screaming joyously & hugging & so excited. No one seemed to notice us. It felt like it would be interrupting to walk up & say hello. So we headed toward the convention part of the hotel.

Soon I saw members of the X2011MC. T tried to make conversation, but was brushed off rather quickly, or so it felt. I smiled with recognition at a couple of them that I have been FBing with for 6 months & they looked right through me. No hello, no nothing.

Awkward.

I had no idea what to do. So we sat in the lobby for a couple hours watching people come & go, hugging, screaming, being excited. Then Hudson Leick walked by. T was whispering to me, "Hudson, Hudson, Hudson! Hudson Leick!" I was all, "What? Oh, Callisto. Yep, that's Hudson. Damn. She looks hot."

So we explored a little more, went back up to our room, came back down, attempted a few more times to initiate conversation & went to get in line for Pre-Registration.

No one seemed interested at all in hanging out with us or including us. As we walked to pre-registration, I looked over & saw Bill Shatner sitting next to the pool with a cameraman & boom mike guy. Ha! Cool.

As we stood in line, Bill's TV crew came down the line & the girls behind us started doing the Xena war cry. The camera stopped & there we were. Us the the girls behind us on camera for Bill Shatner's show Fanatics. LOL. If we end up in the final edit, I'll be pretty stoked about that. 'Cause if anything fits me well, title of fanatic is pretty close. I mean, you guys know this.

We did manage to talk to the people in front & behind us & finally feel like we were no longer invisible. So that was good.

We Pre-registered, got our 8 x 10's t be autographed, a new coffee mug, and a couple of scripts & headed back to the room. We were so exhausted. For the first time in my life I was asleep before 11pm.

Now, it's Friday. We're at Starbucks. Free w-fi. The hotel charges $13.00 a day for internet that works. We've got about a half an hour before the festivities start. So glad we passed on the 8 am Yoga with Hudson. LOL.

And so it begins....

Friday, Saturday & Sunday of this week are going to be a little different here at the blog. I will be blogging from what is being called the FINAL Xena Convention. Of course, it won't be the final one, but it might be the final US Creation sponsored one.

Anyhoo, this space will be filled with all sorts of exclamations of joy and pictures as me & my Amazon Bard trek to Burbank to hook up with the tribe & stand in the presence of our idols. Plus, we get to have our pictures made with them!!!

O.M.G. I have been practicing my "Not Stupid Face" for a month.

We begin travel on Thursday. So far the tribe is undecided on when to meet up. Imagine that?! A bunch of Amazons having trouble deciding where to meet & when. LOL. The Australian & European Amazons are ready to party, as are some of the newbies, but this Warrior is feeling a little too old to go tear up LA the night before the big festival starts. LOL. However, the call to Starbuck's in the wee hours of the morning Friday is looking like a go & I am sure the party gals will need some coffee after their crazy night.



Friday will be the start of the festival with Joxer (Ted Raimi), Callisto (Hudson Leick), La Mao (Jacqueline Kim), Brunnhilda (Brittany Powell), and Xena's daughter herself, Eve (Adrienne Wilkinson. Saturday will be the arrival of the Amazon Queen & Battling Bard of Potedia, Gabrielle, Renee O'Connor & the evil of all evils Alti (Claire Stansfield). Eli (Tim Omundson) will also show up on Saturday, as well as Hercules' best bud Iolus (Michael Hurst). There are so many people showing up on Sat.! The costume contest, which I sadly will not be participating in due to lack of boobs to fill my borrowed breastplate, will also be Staurday.

Then...TheGreat Creation Celebrity Cocktail Party. For GOLD members ONLY. Which we are. I can't believe we are, but um, yeah, we totally went for it & we got golden tickets!!!

Then it's Sunday. Sunday. Sunday!!!!



Sunday is the day the Warrior Princess herself shows up. Callisto (Hudson Leick) runs the charity auction breakfast that morning.



Now, in between all the scheduled stuff & after the scheduled stuff & before the scheduled stuff, we are doing other stuff. We are going to Graumann's Chinese Theatre. We might even catch a show there. We could possibly be going to drunk Karaoke with other Xenites. We are hoping to get to play in the charity softball game which pits Xena's hometown Amphipolis against team Potedia, Gabrielle's hometown. There's pool time with some of the other Amazons & more. Oh, and T pitching her script. Look for the Xena film to be out sometime in late 2012, early 2013. ;)

We are so ready for this.

New Ladyhawke album

Don't Blink

I don't know why, but I want these.


They are electronic googly eyes. They blink. How cool is that?

I simply adore googly eyes. ThinkGeek has them for $29.99 on sale.

Happy 2012

Hey there! Glad to see you back here. I'm going to reflect a little here. 2011 rocked. I mean, it was awesome. So many cool things happened in my life. I also set up so many cool things to happen in 2012.

When I started this blog, action figures were an obsession of mine. I couldn't wait to see what was next to be molded into plastic! Now, I've found other things. I've gravitated back toward my art more. Also, back toward really understanding what I love.

The blog will still have lots of action figure news, but be prepared for more posts on artwork I am working on, things I'm doing, places I'm traveling, and Xena. Well, Xena for a while. I'm sure a few months after the Con, the Xena stuff will wind down. It's just the thing I'm most obsessed about right now.

This year I've been able to write quite a bit. I discovered I really love writing. I'm not nearly as good at it as T or some of my other friends, but I enjoy it. So, if I can stick to my guns, you will have a chance to read something I've written other than a blog post sometime this year.

I also have decided to stop taking the world so seriously. It's ridiculous. No more news. No more NPR. No more headlines. No more papers. I'll do my part when I should & I will make informed decisions, but I am done being upset & angry. I'm not a protester, a marcher, a person that is in any way shape or form made to go out in crowds & change things. Neither is T. We change things in other ways. We create. She writes, I write. I paint and she paints. We write music. We just haven't ever gotten it OUT there before. THAT is what we are going to change. We are putting it out there. All of it. That is how we change things. Through our creations. If anything we create touches one person, then we have met with success. We don't even have to know it has.

There needs to be more beauty & positivity in the world. Like just then, positivity showed up in my spell checker. That's a little crazy, isn't it? It underlines positivity in red because it doesn't think it's a word. However, type negativity & it has no problem recognizing it. That says something about our world right there.

Life is too short. Way too short. Being a person who doesn't necessarily believe in an afterlife where we all retain our conscious selves makes THIS life the only one I've got & way too precious to be worrying over the state of the world. If the world is bad or on the verge of collapse then it makes what I need to do all the more urgent.

I'm blessed with love & laughter & comfort & friends. It's time I make my focus my art. My dreams. In turn, making those things my reality. Hopefully, changing someone else's for the better.

I really feel like 2011 was the first step of a new journey. 2012 is going to be even more fantastic. The path is in front of me. I am taking it. The recent past might have beaten me up, chewed me up, pummeled me & kicked me while I was down, but I am standing back up. I'm brushing myself off. I'm geared up, sword in hand, or paintbrush, and ready to go.

Invictus

Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the Pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds, and shall find, me unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll.
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.


William Ernest Henley

New Years Party Fun!!!

Sometimes, on New Year's, to get things rolling, it's fun to start off with a party game. This year, you could try this: Star Wars Mad Libs. Mad Libs have always cracked me up. Mad Libs had been the cause of some of the hardest laughing I have ever been a part of. Who doesn't want to end one year & start the new one with laughter. ThinkGeek has them in stock now & for only $3.99!

Swiftwind

Okay Masters of the Universe & She-Ra collectors, listen up! You absolutely have to have this one! It's She-Ra's faithful steed Swiftwind from the Master's of the Universe Classics line!

You can order it from the Big Bad Toystore for $47.99 plus S&H, Brian's Toys has it for $79.99, Amazon has them from $42 - $60, Ebay has them listing from $17.00 on up. Some of the Ebayers have Swiftwind combined with the MOTU Classic She-Ra.

I would also like to point out a cool shirt you might want to snag if you are a big She-Ra fan. ThinkGeek has it & I think it is exclusive through them. It's a two-sided She-Ra Costume Babydoll. It ranges from $20 to $21 depending on what size you need.



If you play your cards right, you could be a Princess of Power this holiday season!

Sick

Hello viewers! Welcome back. Here at Art, Love & Action Figures we have been experiencing the bacterial infection from hell for nearly a month. It has been traded back & forth, subsided & then returned like a screaming Valkyrie from Vahalla. While I feel better than I did last Thursday, Friday & Saturday, I have learned that the nasty little bugger might just be laying another clever trap for me, or it knows it doesn't have to work as hard to destroy me, since the old people faculty do a great job of that themselves here at my j.o.b., and that it will make another victorious return & try to conquer me once & for all. It's been quite the battle. I'm exhausted.

To make matter worse, my sweet puppy is also sick.



She went to the vet today. I am anxiously awaiting results.

So, if you've noticed a lack of Action Figure related posts lately, now you have an explanation. As soon as I can kick this things ass, my puppy is all fixed up, and my house is in order, I promise I'll be right back to posting as much as I can.