Sega Genesis Hardware Revisions

A user by the name of Ace over on the Sega-16 forums has an interesting thread detailing the various hardware revisions of the North American Sega Genesis and how to tell them apart. Go here to check it out.

asciiPad SNES Controller

The asciiPad Turbo Controller for the Super Nintendo is probably one of the best controllers ever designed. While normally you should avoid third party controllers, in this case you need to make an exception. The asciiPad is a licensed controller and appears to have been made in the same factory as the original first party controllers with some of the same parts. This controller is solidly built and feels great in your hands. The cord is a generous eight feet in length. The buttons are smooth and responsive. They also feel solid under your fingers and can really take a beating. The cross pad seems to be exactly the same as the original controllers which is a real plus. The controller also sports turbo and auto turbo buttons on the A, B, X, Y,  L and R buttons. This really comes in handy on some games. This is especially true when trying to bomb jump up a vertical shaft while playing Super Metroid. It's doable without a turbo controller but trying to get the timing is really tricky if you don't have one. It also has a turbo switch on the start button which can give you a slow motion effect on many games. All in all, the high build quality along with the long cord and turbo options make this controller a winner.

What were advertisers thinking when they dreamed up the above ad? In spite of this horrible advertisement, I bought one for my Super Nintendo back in the early nineties when they first came out and have been using in steady for the past two decades. It's still going strong.

Talk about truth in advertising. The asciiPad is such a great controller that none of the other controllers can come close.

AMAZON LINK

Super Nintendo Turbo Controller (AsciiPad)


Disclaimer:  We get a small percentage of the sale price if you buy through this Amazon.com link. If you would like to support this blog, then please purchase through this link, but don't feel like you have to. If you can find it cheaper someplace else than purchase it there, especially if it's your locally owned mom and pop video game store.

Encounter

Here's a fun little vintage stop motion short from 1982 produced by Joel Fletcher. It's called Encounter and it tells the story of two knights in the middle ages who have a bit of a run-in with some aliens. He also has an article about the making of the film on his website. Enjoy!

The Rocketeer 20th Anniversary Fan Film Trailer

The Rocketeer 20th anniversary from John Banana on Vimeo.

Here's a fun little fan made film produced by French animator John Banana to celebrate The Rocketeer's 20th anniversary. Now if only Disney would hire him to produce this as an actual series.

Usagi Yojimbo: The Special Edition

Usagi Yojimbo is a black and white comic created by Stan Sakai. He's been producing the comic for almost a quarter of a century. It's about a wandering samurai rabbit set in a fictional 17th century Japan filled with  anthropomorphic animals. The artwork is gorgeous. The stories are well written and have a good mixture of action and humor. The first seven volumes of Usagi Yojimbo are available from Fantagraphics Books in an amazing two book hardcover slipcase set (shown above) called Usagi Yojimbo: The Special Edition. I had never read the series before but had heard good things about it. One day I decided to take a chance and, since it was on sale, bought the slipcase set. I'm glad I did. I started reading it and finished it within two days. I just couldn't put it down. There are rumors that once this slipcase sells out, it isn't going to be reprinted so if you have any interest in getting this, you had better act quickly. It's well worth the price.

Disclaimer:  We get a small percentage of the sale price if you buy through these Amazon.com links. If you would like to support this blog, then please purchase through this links, but don't feel like you have to. If you can find it cheaper someplace else than purchase it there, especially if it's your locally owned mom and pop book store.

AMAZON LINKS
Usagi Yojimbo: The Special Edition

Merry Marvel Marching Society

Back in the 1960's Marvel Comics had an official fan club called The Merry Marvel Marching Society. Part of the initial membership kit was a plastic 33 1/3 RPM record with a recording of Stan Lee and the rest of the Marvel Bullpen called The Voices of Marvel. The video above is the audio from the record put to pictures of each of the participants.

Doug Pratt (aka DOuG pRATt or Dog Rat) has an MP3 of this record along with the other records available through The Merry Marvel Marching Society available for download on his web page.

Golden Axe Warrior

One of the best games available for the Sega Master System is Golden Axe Warrior. It's a fun game that's similar to the original Legend of Zelda. I managed to pick up a copy online with both the box and the manual for only $10 plus shipping. It usually goes for a lot more than that so I'm happy. The video above is a video review of the game that someone posted on YouTube.

As the game came out right at the end of the Sega Master Systems life-cycle, it was largely overlooked here in the U.S. That's a real shame as the game is really fun and in many ways is actually better than Zelda. The ability to buy extra dungeon keys in item shops as well as finding them in the dungeons help prevent players from getting stuck like they sometimes can in Zelda. The difficulty level and player strength both seem to ramp up in a consistent manner and I never felt like it ever got too far out of whack.

Sega Master System

Sega Genesis with Power Base Converter

Sega Game Gear with Master Gear Converter

The original game cartridge is playable on the Sega Master System, on the Sega Genesis (with the Power Base Converter) or on the Sega Game Gear (with a Master Gear Convertor).

The game is also an unlockable title on the X-Box 360 and PS3 versions of Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection.This is probably the cheapest way to get the game, assuming that is if you already have an X-box 360 or PS3.

Disclaimer:  We get a small percentage of the sale price if you buy through these Amazon.com links. If you would like to support this blog, then please purchase through these links, but don't feel like you have to. If you can find them cheaper someplace else than purchase them there, especially if it's your locally owned mom and pop video game store.
 
AMAZON LINKS

Golden Axe Warrior 
Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection - X-Box 360
Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection - PS3

"Out of Sight" animated short

Here's a really neat animated short produced by by Yu Ya-ting, Yeh Ya-hsuan and Chung Ling as a student project. It bears many similarities to the works of Miyazaki. Enjoy!

Muppets Theatre Reel

Here's a neat little film the Sesame Street Muppets did for Loews Theatres explaining what you can and can't do during your film watching experience. I can't believe I'm not allowed to munch on the theatre seats...

King Aroo

 

I love comic strips and feel that they don't usually get the love they deserve. Fortunately, IDW has started to reprint the long forgotten strip King Aroo in nice hardcover volumes similar to the Complete Peanuts books put out by Fantagraphics. King Aroo was a comic strip that ran from 1950 until 1965 and was written and drawn by Jack Kent. I had never even heard of this strip before IDW began reprinting it, so I was in for a pleasant shock when I, on a whim, purchased the first volume and began reading. Not only was it good, it was REALLY good. The whimsical and pun-filled nature of this strip along with the jam packed imagery in each panel make me understand why people say this strip is reminiscent of Pogo. I REALLY hope these volumes sell well enough for them to reprint the entire series. If you love comic strips, please run out a pick up a copy today or, at the very least, convince your local library to pick up a copy. It really is that good. 

Disclaimer:  We get a small percentage of the sale price if you buy through these Amazon.com links. If you would like to support this blog, then please purchase through these links, but don't feel like you have to. If you can find them cheaper someplace else than purchase them there, especially if it's your locally owned comic shop or bookstore.
 
AMAZON LINKS

King Aroo Volume One
King Aroo Volume Two

Comic Book Lettering

(Image by Todd Klein)

Todd Klein, who I've previously mentioned here, has a really neat article about his experiences hand lettering comic book. He also discusses the current trend in computer lettering and the pros and cons in doing so. Go here to check out the article. 

Give Me Space

Here's a neat little animated film called "Give Me Space" produced by Brian Carter with an original score by Hillary Thomas.

Chrono Trigger Now Available on the Virtual Console

Chrono Trigger, one of the best role playing games of all time, has finally been released on the Nintendo Wii Virtual Console in North America! Click here to read the press release.  For only eight bucks, you can download this classic Super Nintendo game to your Wii and enjoy a great story., awesome music, multiple endings and much more. Considering how much this game goes for on the used market, you're probably not going to be able to get this game much cheaper.

The Smurfs and the Howlibird

I received a package from Amazon earlier in the week and this was one of the many gems contain inside. This is the sixth book Papercutz has released of the fabulous Smurfs comic stories. I've mentioned these comics before but every time I get a new volume in the mail I just have to post and let you know. They've been out of print in the U.S for so long that it's a relief to see them finally being reprinted so a new generation of readers can enjoy them.  

Disclaimer:  We get a small percentage of the sale price if you buy through these links. If you would like to support this blog, them please purchase through these links, but don't feel like you have to. If you can find them cheaper someplace else than purchase them there, especially if it's your locally owned comic shop or bookstore.
AMAZON LINKS

The Smurfs #6: The Smurfs and the Howlibird
The Smurfs #5: The Smurfs and the Egg
The Smurfs #4: The Smurfette
The Smurfs #3: The Smurf King
The Smurfs #2: The Smurfs and the Magic Flute
The Smurfs #1: The Purple Smurfs

Coloring Comics

 (Image by Todd Klein)

Before the advent of computer coloring, comic books had to be colored by hand. Todd Klein has a neat article explaining the process. Go here to read all about it.

The Adventures of Big Boy Comic Books

When I was a kid, our family used to go to the local Big Boy restaurant to eat. One of the neat things about Big Boy is they give out free comics to kids starring their mascot turned comic character, Big Boy. The comics would vary in quality over the years as different people would write and illustrate them, but we read them anyway. Being FREE, the price was certainly right. Go here to read an interview with Craig Yoe from 2007 after his company took over production duties on The Adventures of Big Boy.  Also, if you go here you can  find out more about the beginnings of Big Boy and read the entire first issue from 1956 produced for Big Boy restaurants by Timely Comics (aka Marvel Comics) and written by some guy you may have heard of who goes by the name of Stan "The Man" Lee. Enjoy!

Backwards Mario

Here's a fun little hack. By swapping the horizontal deflection wires on the yoke of a CRT television and swapping the left and right buttons on a NES controller, someone called JJ was able to play Super Mario Brothers backwards. Check out the video below as well as go here to find out more.

WARNING: Televisions contain enough voltage to KILL you. Only mess with them if you know what you are doing and take suitable precautions.

Thor by Walter Simonson Omnibus

This mighty tome arrived on my doorstep two days ago. The Thor by Walter Simonson Omnibus collects the entire run of The Mighty Thor produced by Walt Simonson back in the eighties.  This includes Thor #337-355, #357-369, #371-382; Balder the Brave #1-4.  At almost 1200 pages, you would need to be worthy of Thor to be able to pick this baby up. It's not a small book. The production quality of this book is outstanding. With a quality sewn binding it opens easily and it doesn't feel like it's going to fall apart at any minute like some books do. The artwork and coloring are probably the best this material has ever been presented in. The stories contained within are often considered the best Thor stories ever produced. After only two days, I'm already halfway through it. I just can't put it down.  If you like Thor then you NEED to pick this up. It's that good!

AMAZON LINK
Thor by Walter Simonson Omnibus



Disclaimer:  We get a small percentage of the sale price if you buy through these links. If you would like to support this blog, them please purchase through these links, but don't feel like you have to. If you can find it cheaper someplace else than purchase it there, especially if it's your locally owned comic shop or bookstore.

RIP Elisabeth Sladen

According to the BBC, Elisabeth Sladen passed away yesterday morning after a long bout with cancer. She was 63. As an actress, her most well known role was when she played Sarah Jane Smith in the British television program Doctor Who back in the seventies. She also also starred in two different Doctor Who spin-offs, K-9 and Company and The Sarah Jane Adventures. Out of all the actors and actresses who appeared on Doctor Who playing one of the Doctor's companions, she was probably the most well liked. Whenever I would see her in an interview she always came across as being very professional. She also seemed to really care about people. She will be greatly missed.

EDIT: Tom Baker has a really nice tribute to Elisabeth here.

Early Muppet Commercial - La Choy Dragon

Here's a classic commercial created by Jim Hensen and Frank Oz for La Choy Chow Mein. Frank Oz is in the dragon suit, while Jim Hensen does the voice of the dragon.

Missile Mouse in The Guardian Prophecy

I've talked about Missile Mouse before here and here. If you've bought both volume one and volume two of the Missile Mouse graphics novels, you might think you have read all the available Missile Mouse stories. You would be wrong. Missile Mouse first appeared in a twenty page short story called "Missile Mouse in the Guardian Prophecy" printed in the anthology graphic novel Flight Explorer volume one. This story has NOT been collected in either of the two Missile Mouse volumes currently available. It's a good story and it's worth picking up Flight Explorer volume one for it alone, but there are several other pretty good stories in the anthology so don't feel like you're getting ripped off if you buy it. It's well worth the money.

Here are links to the respective volumes on Amazon.
Disclaimer:  We get a small percentage of the sale price if you buy through these links. If you would like to support this blog, them please purchase through these links, but don't feel like you have to. If you can find it cheaper someplace else than purchase it there, especially if it's your locally owned comic shop or bookstore.

Amazon Links

Flight Explorer Volume One
Missile Mouse Volume One: The Star Crusher
Missile Mouse Volume Two: Rescue on Tankium3

The Dick Van Dyke Show

Today Amazon's Gold Box deal is all 5 seasons of the Dick Van Dyke Show for only $66.99. It MSRP is $249.98 so if you were ever thinking of picking this up, now would be a good time. Click here for a direct link to the Amazon page.

How Potato Chips and Cheese Puffs Are Made

Here's a cool little video about how potato chips and cheese puffs are made in a factory.

Julie Andrews and Gene Kelly

Here's a fun clip of Julie Andrews and Gene Kelly. With both of them being highly talented, it's a joy to watch them work so well together.

Power Pack Classic Volume 3

"Power Pack Classic Volume Three" is out. Hop on over to Amazon or drive to your local comic shop and pick it up today! The latest trade paperback collects Power Pack (1984) #18-26, Thor (1968) #363. When I was a kid I used to go down to my local drugstore and pick up a comic or two. "Power Pack" was at the top of my list. I loved it! Then Marvel went and did something silly. Starting with issue #26 they decided to only sell "Power Pack" to the direct market (i.e. comic shops only). What prompted this I don't know, but what it meant to me is I could no longer get "Power Pack" since the town I lived in didn't have a comic shop. I had tried subscribing to "Power Pack", but Marvel's cheap shipping methods made me decide to never do that again. All they would do is take a brown paper sleeve with the address on it and wrap it around the issue to be mailed leaving the ends exposed to the elements. Not to mention the issue would almost always get ripped, torn, mutilated, bent in half, destroyed, etc. Also, to add insult to injury, when Marvel made the switch to the direct market, they also stiffed me out of the last two issues of my subscription.  So I was supposed to receive issues #26 and #27 in the mail, but never did. Thanks Marvel, I really appreciated that.

The Smurfs and the Egg

"The Smurfs and the Egg" is the latest volume of the original smurf comics to be released by Papercutz.  It was originally scheduled to be released March 23rd, but  it's been bumped up to the 15th instead. If you haven't already ordered it, then head on over to Amazon or drop by your local bookstore and grab yourself a copy today!

Free Game - Professor Neely And The Death Ray Of Doom

"Professor Neely And The Death Ray Of Doom" is a fun adventure game about a professor who discovers one of his former pupils is  attempting to create a death ray for nefarious reasons.  The game is FREE! Go here to download it.

Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis

Did you know that the Wii version of "Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings" has a secret unlockable game hidden inside it? Well it does and it's none other than the fabulous "Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis!" While "Staff of Kings" is a fun, but short, action game, Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis is an amazing example of classic point and click adventure game goodness!

To unlock the game go to the main menu and while holding down Z press: A,U,U,B,D,D,L,R,L,B. If you own a Wii you NEED to pick this game up, it's that good! Remember it's ONLY available in the Wii version, none of the other versions of "Staff of Kings" has "Fate of Atlantis" as an unlockable so run on down to your local Gamestop or pick it up cheap on Amazon.com.

Greatest Car Chase Ever

Probably the greatest car chase ever filmed comes from the 1968 Steve McQueen thriller "Bullitt".  While the rest of the movie is only so-so, the car chase scene is AMAZING! Enjoy the entire car chase courtesy of YouTube. If you would like to own this on DVD it's currently going pretty cheap on Amazon.

Marvel Masterworks

For several years now Marvel Comics has been releasing color compilations of their older comics in hardcover called Marvel Masterworks. The high cost of these hardcovers ($50 each) makes them quite expensive to collect if all you want to do is read the stories. Fortunately, they've finally  wised up and are also releasing the Marvel Masterworks line in trade paperback form at a much more reasonable price point. Out of the 153 hardcover volumes they've released so far, 25 are available in paperback, with a new one being released every month. The titles are links to the respective amazon.com page for each volume.

Vol		Amazing Spider-Man 01 !TITLE	ISSUES						Release Date

1		Amazing Spider-Man 01 !The Amazing Spider-Man: Vol. 1	Amazing Fantasy #15, The Amazing Spider-Man #1-10						2009-02-04
2		Fantastic Four 01 !The Fantastic Four: Vol. 1	The Fantastic Four #1-10						2009-02-25
3		X-Men 01 !The X-Men: Vol. 1	The X-Men #1-10						2009-04-22
4		Avengers 01 !The Avengers: Vol. 1	The Avengers #1-10						2009-05-27
5		Amazing Spider-Man 02 !The Amazing Spider-Man: Vol. 2	The Amazing Spider-Man #11-19, Annual #1						2009-06-24
6		Fantastic Four 02 !The Fantastic Four: Vol. 2	The Fantastic Four #11-20, Annual #1						2009-07-22
7		X-Men 02 !The X-Men: Vol. 2	The X-Men #11-21						2009-08-26
8		Incredible Hulk 01 !The Incredible Hulk: Vol. 1	The Incredible Hulk #1-6						2009-09-23
9		Avengers 02 !The Avengers: Vol. 2	The Avengers #11-20						2009-10-28
10		Amazing Spider-Man 03 !The Amazing Spider-Man: Vol. 3	The Amazing Spider-Man #20-30, Annual #2						2009-11-25
11		Uncanny X-Men 01 !The Uncanny X-Men: Vol. 1	Giant-Size X-Men #1, The X-Men #94-100						2009-12-23
12		Uncanny X-Men 02 !The Uncanny X-Men: Vol. 2	The X-Men #101-110						2010-01-20
13		Fantastic Four 03 !The Fantastic Four: Vol. 3	The Fantastic Four #21-30						2010-02-24
14		Captain America: Vol. 1	Tales of Suspense #59-81						2010-03-24
15		Silver Surfer 01 !The Silver Surfer: Vol. 1	The Silver Surfer #1-6, The Fantastic Four Annual #5						2010-05-26
16		Amazing Spider-Man 04 !The Amazing Spider-Man: Vol. 4	The Amazing Spider-Man #31-40, Annual #3						2010-06-23
17		Daredevil: Vol. 1	Daredevil #1-11						2010-07-28
18		Mighty Thor 01 !The Mighty Thor: Vol. 1	Journey Into Mystery #83-100						2010-08-25
19		Silver Surfer 02 !The Silver Surfer: Vol. 2	The Silver Surfer #7-18						2010-09-22
20		Invincible Iron Man 01 !The Invincible Iron Man: Vol. 1	Tales of Suspense #39-50						2010-04-21
21		Fantastic Four 04 !The Fantastic Four: Vol. 4	The Fantastic Four #31-40, Annual #2						2010-10
22		Amazing Spider-Man 05 !The Amazing Spider-Man: Vol. 5	The Amazing Spider-Man #41-50, Annual #3						2010-11
23		Doctor Strange: Vol. 1	Strange Tales #110-111, 114-141						2010-12
24		Uncanny X-Men 03 !The Uncanny X-Men: Vol. 3	The X-Men #111-121 (First printing omitted issue 121.)						2011-01
25		Fantastic Four 05 !The Fantastic Four: Vol. 5	The Fantastic Four #41-50, Annual #3						2011-02
26		Mighty Thor 02 !The Mighty Thor: Vol. 2	Journey Into Mystery #101-110						2011-03-09
27		Avengers 03 !The Avengers: Vol. 3	The Avengers #21-30						2011-04-06
28		Fantastic Four 06 !The Fantastic Four: Vol. 6	The Fantastic Four #51-60, Annual #4						2011-05
29		Daredevil: Vol. 2	Daredevil #12-21						2011-06
30		Mighty Thor 03 !The Mighty Thor: Vol. 3	Journey Into Mystery #111-120, Annual #1						2011-07
31		X-Men 03 !The X-Men: Vol. 3	The X-Men #22-31						2011-08