zadzooks

New York Comic Con 2008 — Stan Lee

2008-04-21T19:57:15Z

The 85-year old creator of Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four and X-Men (to name a few), Stan Lee, displayed superhero like stamina and enthusiasm as he appeared in panels at the show. I was also able to get a few industry stars to comment on the living legend.

More video coming tomorrow

The cast of "Battlestar Galactica" and "Hellboy 2."

— Video by Joseph Szadkowski/The Washington Times

New York Comic Con 2008 — Mike Mignola

2008-04-20T04:51:40Z

I was able to get a few words from creator Mike Mignola on his famous character Hellboy.

More video coming tomorrow

Stan Lee and maybe some of the cast of "Battlestar Galactica."

— Video by Joseph Szadkowski/The Washington Times

Extra credit: Fighting Figures Review

2008-04-04T20:29:03Z

Thanks to the proliferation of film, comic book and cartoon characters, consumers are being bombarded with an incredible selection of action figures. With tongue in cheek, let's take a peek at some of the specimens worthy of a place in

Zad's Toy Vault.

Fighting Figures: Batman vs. Catwoman (Mattel, $6.99 for each two-pack). At last year's Toy Fair, Mattel showcased a collectible miniatures game called Battleleague. It was based on DC Comics heroes and provided an alternative to Hasbro's successful Star Wars/Marvel-themed game Attacktix.

Unfortunately, the idea never came to fruition, but the company apparently was left with some great, 3.5-inch figure designs from Four Horsemen Studios. The remnants of the line now make up Fighting Figures, a selection of 28 permutations of great-looking characters ready to do battle, but with little motivation or direction and, more important, no rule book.

Owners get a two-pack of a hero and villain, and each figure gets a translucent blue base, has four points of articulation and one action feature.

Batman, for example, is spring-loaded and can flick away at his feline adversary. Catwoman is attached to the top of a pole on her base and can be flung like a projectile toward the Caped Crusader.

The detail to the figures is better than mass-market quality with dynamic poses and expressive facial features. Two-Face and his swinging upper torso and the Joker wielding a mouth-shaped gun that shoots a tongue missile look especially colorful and menacing.

Additionally, a comic-book-style backdrop is part of the packaging and is almost too pretty to cut open while trying to get to epic confrontations including Superman vs. Darkseid, Robin vs. Scarecrow and Batgirl vs. Harley Quinn.
— Joseph Szadkowski

Guitar Heroes talk- an interview with Kai and Charles Huang

2008-03-14T23:18:39Z

Red Octane's founders Kai Huang and Charles Huang stopped by The Washington Times to talk to Joseph Szadkowski about the success and future of their video gaming sensation Guitar Hero.

-- video by Joseph Szadkowski/The Washington Times

Toy Fair 2008 - Hasbro showroom

2008-02-21T01:12:16Z

From Star Wars to Spider-Man, the Incredible Hulk and Indiana Jones, this joint was a dream for the action figure lover.

More video coming tomorrow

The pencil spinner and a magician (I hope).

-- video by Joseph Szadkowski/The Washington Times, photos by Jacquie Kubin/Special to The Washington Times

Toy Fair 2008 - Corgi International unleashes the H2Go

2008-02-19T04:55:03Z

The company responsible for my favorite die-cast Batmobile is now tapping into super technology and its hydrogen-powered car.

More video coming tomorrow

Iron Man, Star Wars, Indiana Jones and some dinosaurs.

-- video by Joseph Szadkowski

Toy Fair 2008 - Bill Nye works with Elmer's to produce science kits

2008-02-19T04:54:06Z

The super science hero talks to Zadzooks at the Elmer's booth.

More video coming tomorrow

Iron Man, Star Wars, Indiana Jones and some dinosaurs.

-- video by Joseph Szadkowski

Toy Fair 2008 - Cool meets silly in New York City

2008-02-19T02:51:19Z

I think this video needs no long-winded, over-the-top, exhaustive nor painfully detailed explanation.

More video coming tomorrow

Bill Nye, a hydrogen fueled car and the Incredible Hulk does the Hokey Pokey.

-- video by Joseph Szadkowski

Toy Fair 2008 -- Diamond Select Toys meets Star Trek

2008-02-18T01:54:57Z

The boys from Timonium, Md., have plenty of stuff for the Trekkie in the family..

More video coming tomorrow

A Tyco's RC daredevil, Batman and some fat guy eating Ray's Pizza.

-- video by Joseph Szadkowski

Toy Fair 2008 -- Colleen Sherfey from Bandai America

2008-02-18T01:53:19Z

Colleen sat down and offered some insight into the current state of the Dragon Ball Z action figure license.

More video coming tomorrow

Spinning pencils, dinosaurs and a spastic Hannah -- oh my.

-- video by Joseph Szadkowski

Toy Fair 2008 - DC Direct showroom

2008-02-17T22:23:54Z

Jim Fletcher, Design Director for DC Direct had a few words on Hal Jordan.

I also stopped by Hasbro for a special collectors showcase and learned

Famed comic book writer Larry Hama will provide nine more stories for G.I. Joe Comic Packs
Fin Fang Foom will be a buildable figure with pieces needing to be collected over two waves of Hulk Marvel Legends series
Darth Vader does not look as tall in person.

More video coming this evening

Dragon Ball Z toys return to Bandai and to boldly go where Mego has gone before.

-- video by Joseph Szadkowski

Toy Fair 2008 - a tradition at Toys "R" Us

2008-02-17T02:49:10Z

I have been attending Toy Fair in New York City for the last decade and my first night in the Big Apple is always spent with a visit to Toys "R" Us in Times Square and devouring a minimum of three slices of chess pizza from Rays. Here's some video of the grand toy mecca (no pizza eating included).

Tomorrow's video moments:

A guy who spins pencils, a four-headed Green Lantern and to boldly go where Mego has gone before.

-- video by Joseph Szadkowski

Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games

2008-02-09T00:14:46Z

Superheroes and cartoon characters have become integral parts of the electronic entertainment industry. Around the world, youngsters and guys who can't get dates spend countless hours in front of their computers and video-game systems.

With this in mind, I salute the meld of pop-culture character and Silicon Valley with a look at some

Comics plugged in

Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games (Sega for DS, rated Everyone, $34.99).

Led by Nintendo's famed plumbing powerhouse and the speediest of blue hedgehogs, teams comprising some of the video industry's most-recognized characters compete to offer younger players a taste of the 2008 Beijing Summer Games.

About as important as "Battle of the Network Stars," the challenge incorporates 16 controllable characters, such as Yoshi, Peach, Knuckles and Dr. Eggman, in 16 finger-cramping events to win the gold.

Players can choose from either team's stable of stars, which are grouped by their strengths (speed, power, skill and stamina).

The obvious charm of the action is using the DS' touch screen and stylus pen in many of the events. For example, drawing a circular motion ever more quickly leads to a better hammer throw. In swimming, moving the stylus back and forth mimics how appendages move.

Modes available for competition in the game range from a single or series of events to one that requires matching a predetermined parameter (i.e., beating a certain character). A Gallery area also is tossed in to learn about the Olympics by winning a series of casual gaming contests.

However, the most fun will be found through the wireless multiplayer mode as up to four friends can beat their DS into submission without burning a calorie. (Each has a card or single-card downloads.)

Read all about it? Sonic the Hedgehog has been part of Archie Comic Publications since 1993 with his own monthly comic-book series ($3.99 each).
— Joseph Szadkowski

Extra credit: Thunderbirds: 40th Anniversary Megaset

2008-01-10T22:24:00Z

The comic book permeates all levels of popular culture. This sporadic feature reviews some recent examples from the world of digital video discs and also includes a recommended sequential-art reading list to extend the multimedia adventures.

Thunderbirds: 40th Anniversary Megaset (A&E Home Video, NOT RATED, $129.95). British TV Producers Sylvia and Gerry Anderson's 1960s puppet-fueled television series arrives in its entirety in a 12-disc DVD set to introduce a new generation of fans to the wonders of the slightly bizarre world of Supermarionation.

Set in the 21st century, the live-action sci-fi adventure presented the story of the affluent ex-astronaut Jeff Tracy and his creation of the secretive International Rescue Squad. With help from his five sons, Tracy directs them to use an incredible variety of vehicles and gadgets to assist in any crisis around the world.

The antics of the marionettes are just a hoot. Sure you could see the wires and the dolls couldn't really walk, but the Andersons' meticulous staff made them sweat, smoke, dance and even answer the telephone (with help from human hands) during the 50-minute-long shows.

Without a doubt, the highlight of every episode was the pyrotechnics and fantastic vehicles that came to life from a dedicated effects and technical staff.

Easily one of the best examples of the intense work done on the series can be seen in the episode "Trapped in the Sky." A climactic ending featuring the landing of a sabotaged superjet on the backs of elevator cars is just mind-boggling to watch. I can't imagine how difficult this was to pull off with the use of miniatures back in the 1965.

Owners of the set get the entire 32-episode run of the show, which looks and sounds smashing.

Best extra: The previously released fact-filled episode "Pit of Peril" sheds some humorous light on the series. Also, a 40-minute interview with Gerry Anderson touches on his career, the various Supermarionated shows he developed and his meeting with astronaut Jim Lovell.

However, the best of the bunch is the hour-long pseudodocumentary "The Brains Behind Thunderbirds," hosted by the character Brains, the tech egghead of the International Rescue Squad. Viewers get an overview of the Tracy adventures with breakdowns on the individual Thunderbirds' vehicles.

Read all about it: Those in the mood for a scavenger hunt can scour online stores and specialty shops for a copy of "Thunderbirds Classic Comics" ($27.50) to read comic-strip-style adventures about the Tracy clan, mainly illustrated by the legendary Frank Bellamy.

— Joseph Szadkowski

Extra credit: Beowulf

2007-12-13T23:23:28Z

Pop bytes

A brief review of game titles that didn't have time to get fully plugged in.

Beowulf (Ubisoft for PlayStation 3, rated M for mature, $59.99)

The famed Norse warrior becomes part of a mediocre but violent third-person adventure game as a single player works through 30 years of the hero's classic story.

Mixing hack-and-slash combat with squad-command elements and plenty of blood, the game has Beowulf fight familiar monsters such as Grendel and lead a small team of Thanes around ruins and rocky terrain loaded with barbarians and environmental puzzles.

Unfortunately, the big problem here is too many button sequences to mimic, too much talk and not enough battle action. If the Conan game is God of War Jr., Beowulf is the suck-up sibling who can't figure out how to please.

For example, I really did not want to spend time on a boat trying to get my rowing brethren to maneuver around rocks by leading them in song (delivered via a rhythm minigame). This extra work would be reasonable in a SpongeBob SquarePants game, but not in an action-combat experience.

Also, amid all of the grunts, groans, manly man talk and inspiring song, I started to feel as if I were stuck in a production of "Spamalot."

Even with designs based on the current stylized animated movie, the overall presentation still looks rushed and uninspired, with wooden character models and repetitive movements neither dynamic nor eye-popping which is inexcusable for next-generation console games.

Beowulf had enormous potential, but its tedious pacing, dumb story adaptation and brain-numbing exploration hardly make for an epic experience.
— Joseph Szadkowski