This is No Cave. It's an Exogorth.

So, you want to talk about Monsters? Let’s talk about exogorths, a.k.a. space slugs. Do you remember that old flick, The Empire Strikes Back? Do you remember when Han Solo and Princess Leia flew the Millennium Falcon into that long, narrow cave in the middle of an asteroid only to find out it wasn't a cave, and they had literally parked inside the throat of a giant slug with teeth? That was an exogorth. If you ask me, exogorths are one of the most incredible and interesting creatures in the Star Wars Universe.

Exogorths are as tough as the rocks—mostly asteroids—they live on. Part of a handful of creatures known as vacuumbreathers that can survive in the vacuum of space, these cosmic dust-eating space slugs can grow up to 900 meters.

sourced from lucasfilm

I’ll be honest here. I chose the exogorth because I wanted to write about the biggest, baddest, most vicious monster I could think of for the Geekdom's nightmare before Christmas/monster appreciation week. But after doing a little research, I've realized there's a lot more to these beasts than meets the eye. Behind their reputation as voracious, bloodthirsty monstrosities are highly intelligent, sensitive, thoughtful, and patient, “dare I say” gentle beasts.

Ok, gentle beasts might be stretching it a tad, but some exogorths are known to have a soft side. I know the one near Hoth tried to eat Han and Leia, as well as Chewbacca, 3-CPO, and R2D2 but they did fly directly into its throat and land on its tongue, and Han also shot it. Can you really blame it?

I was listening to a radio show the other day, and Tom Mustill, the author of How to Speak Whale: A Voyage into the Future of Animal Communication, talked about how some whale species live up to 200 years. He said that whales are highly complex creatures that can experience the world in ways we can’t imagine and think about things we can't conceptualize. Well, Exogorths can live for billions of years! An Exogorth that is one billion years old is considered young. So Imagine what kind of unfathomable things are going on inside the mind of an exogorth after floating around on asteroids in the vacuum of space for a billion years. I mean, hopefully, something's going on in there.

Sourced from wookiepedia

Exogorths are opportunistic; they burrow themselves in asteroids and patiently wait with their mouths open, giving the appearance of a cave or a crater. They feed on floating debris, mineral deposits, stellar energy, and other silicon-based lifeforms. They don't, however, spend their entire life on just one asteroid. Though a rare occurrence, the giant slugs can push off of the surface of an asteroid and float through space, and they can even ride the solar winds in pursuit of more suitable asteroids. The giant slugs also host entire ecosystems inside their bodies, and many species peacefully co-exist within them.

Now, you wouldn't want to get on the wrong side of an exogorth, as its rear end is pretty much a thermonuclear reactor that excretes radioactive waste. But instead of seeing them as the evil monster they are commonly portrayed as, maybe it couldn’t hurt to take another look. You should never judge a book by its cover.

Personally, I can’t help but think about exogorths differently now. I see them as giant, misunderstood vacuum breathing, radioactive teddy bears, and I wonder what sort of things go on inside their murky innards.

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My name is Gregory, and I love all things Star Wars. I have a growing collection of Star Wars figurines and even a Star Wars lunchbox—my niece has the same one. I once almost bought a vintage Attack of the Clones lunch box on Etsy until I noticed it was second-hand. Gross!! I recently attended Star Wars Celebration Europe 2023, in London, England, where I became a Star Wars super fan, and I’m already making plans to attend Star Wars Celebration Japan 2025 with my fiancé Alexandra (also a Star Wars super fan). I’m not a Star Wars expert, nor do I believe such a thing exists. Like music or art, Star Wars is subjective. I try not to take it too seriously. Enter the geekdom, and may the force be with you!

God in your pocket?!

Monster of the Week: Pokémon

POKÉball

It’s time for my favourite monster of the week! For this post, mine involves a worldwide series known for capturing monsters and storing them inside your pocket. And that is the famous children series Pokémon!

If you don’t know what a Pokémon is? Don’t you worry I’ll break it down…

POKÉMON Type Chart

Origin:

“Pokémon” translates to “Pocket Monsters” in Japanese. In the world of Pokémon, they’re over 1000 monsters in counting. With nine fascinating regions, you can capture a monster and store them inside of a ball. Hence why it is called Pocket Monsters (You store them inside your pocket). Once captured, they have become your pet in which you can participate in the competitive scene by training them in battles, or just catching them all. Pokémon was originally a trading card game, then it has evolved into a video game which is now a famous Intellectual Property. What makes Pokémon interesting is that you can build a team which falls in the rock paper and scissors mechanics (I.e Rock beats Scissors, Paper beats Rock, Scissors beats Paper, viceversa). They’re currently 18 types of Pokémon vairing its special traits, making it unique and diverse so that you can make your ideal team with countering measures. And they are:

Normal, Bug, Dark, Dragon, Electric, Fairy, Fighting, Fire, Flying, Ghost, Grass, Ground, Ice, Poison, Psychic, Rock, Steel, and Water

Pokémon Type Chart

Advantage/Disadvantage to —>

My Chosen Monster: Pokémon #0493 Arceus (God of all)

“It is described in mythology as the Pokémon that shaped the universe with its 1,000 arms.”

Arceus full 360

Pokédex: Ar-ce-us

Type: Multitype (See Forms)

Age: The first Pokémon born before the universe even existed.

Height: 10’06 / 3.2 m

Weight: 705.5 lbs / 320 kg

Description:

Arceus appears to be a white four legged Pokémon that has a golden ring around its belly. The ring is shaped like an angelic X shaped cross that has four green gems on it. What makes this Pokémon unique is that it identifies in the Legendary category, where it is labeled as not an ordinary Pokémon, but having monstrous stats that can overpower regular ones. Its special trait is that it is the only Pokémon that has a tequila called “Multiform” Where it can change its type while also changing its appearance (See in Forms).

Forms:

All of Arceus forms

Arceus with the GUARDIANS

Lore:

This Pokémon is in the Sinnoh region (Generation IV), where it is said that region is the oldest out of all of them. The Sinnoh region holds ten cities, five towns, and three islands, with an ancient ruin that has the oldest text in history. This ruin is called the “Hall of Origin '' where it is located in the mountains and it’s the highest peak of the region. From there it is the home of the three guardians, where they protect, store, and balance the world under their father (Arceus). Those three guardians are: Giratina God of Hell (Grey, left), Palkia God of Space (Purple, middle), and Dialga God of Time (Blue, right). All those powers together are their father Arceus God of All.

Map of the sinnoh region

Nintendo ds video games

In the Video Game (Diamond/Pearl/Platinum):

You play as a ten year old who travels around the region to collect seven badges and face the region's champion. What makes it fun is that there is a group called Team Galactic, and they follow their boss Cyrus, who calls forth the guardians to help with his ideals, restarting the world. You must stop him before it gets too late! In order to summon Arceus you must play an accent tone by a flue to call them. After that, you will face the three guardians in order to meet them.

Shiny arceus

Why this Pokémon?

The reason why I have chosen this Pokémon in particular is because not only it is the God of all Pokémon, but literally God itself! There is no way that you can defeat God themself then just capturing it inside a ball?! I just find it absurd that you can tame God, they will be your “pet” Truly an extraordinary world for Pokémon :)

Fun Fact!

Pokémon has an altered appearance in the video game, if you see another duplicate of that same Pokémon but in a different colour, it is called a “Shiny” They have a summon rate of 3% which like a extremely rare appearance to have!

And that's all folks!

Thank you for reading my Monster of the Week post! Be sure to check out my previous blog here. Have a great day!

Stay Cultured :)

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レｲナーンマル・デウ・ロサリーオ

@the_Rey_Gun 

∧,,_∧

(´－o－)  =3 

( つ旦O

と＿)__) 

Be Better By Keeping It Real

Greetings Cultured one, My name is Reynanmar Del Rosario and I am an Anime Connoisseur. I have been watching Anime ever since I was a child, and I’ve always strived to be better by the amazing stories in the East. That being said, they’re many life lessons and enjoyment from the characters that made me who I am today. If you wanna know about: Anime, Japanese Culture, Cosplays, and Manga! You have come to the right place >:)

L I N K T R E E D O W N B E L O W

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“Accept everything the way it is.”

— Musashi Miyamoto

Mahoraga: Mouthful + Monster

SOURCE: mappa studios, Jujutsu kaisen

Eight-Handled Sword Divergent Sila Divine General Mahoraga. This name may be a mouthful, but Mahoraga definitely lives up to this grandiose title. The only thing it can’t adapt to is the massive SPOILER WARNING that is in effect. Mahoraga is the last and most powerful shikigami in the Ten Shadow’s Technique, currently used by Megumi in Jujutsu Kaisen. Manga readers were pleased to a beautiful visual showcase of the prowess that they were excited for. Shortly before this first appearance in the anime, Mahoraga was present each week in the manga, where he joined Sukuna in a battle against Gojo that lasted nearly a dozen chapters.

Mahoraga’s power has been on full display in the Anime community these last few months. It lives up to its near mythical status of having never been tamed in the entire history of the technique. In the anime episode, it is explained that thousands of years ago, the heads of the Gojo and Zenin clan battled to their mutual death over a dispute. It is specifically mentioned that the head of the Gojo clan had the same technique as current day Saturu Gojo, and the head of the Zenin clan sported the same cursed technique as Megumi. This tidbit, along with many other teasers in the story, set the stage for Megumi’s last stand technique to be a very strong one. One that is on par with the strongest sorcerer, Saturu Gojo. Manga readers were given their answer.

Source: gege akutami, Jujutsu kaisen

Mahoraga, like the other shikigami in the Ten Shadows Technique, must be summoned by the user and defeated in a combat ritual before the technique user can summon it as an ally. As previously mentioned, never in history has Mahoraga been defeated. This was before Sukuna took over Megumi’s body and adopted his cursed technique.

Mahoraga is close to twelve feet in height, has four wings coming from its eye sockets, a long tail that comes from the back of its head, and an eight segmented wheel that floats above its head. It has a blade sitting on its wrist that can exorcise cursed spirits with one slash. It is not only physically strong, but has the ability to adapt to any and all phenomena using the wheel. During combat, the wheel will turn one peg at a time, signalling its adaptation defensively to survive attacks or offensively to pierce an enemy’s defenses.

Source: gege akutami, jujutsu kaisen

During the first fight we witnessed against Sukuna, Mahoraga was toyed around with and tested. Despite this, it was able to withstand Sukuna’s Domain Expansion, and countless combos of Dismantle and Cleave. Fighting alongside Sukuna later on against Saturu Gojo, we were treated to a viewing party of Mahoraga’s full powers on display.

Saturu, who seemed untouchable the entire series, was battered by Sukuna and Mahoraga. Mahoraga adapted to Saturu’s Domain Expansion, his Hollow Purple technique, and finally, it adapted to Limitless. This allowed both Sukuna and Mahoraga to apply physical damage to Saturu even while he was outside of a Domain. This was a feat we had never seen performed up until this point in the story.

While I may never be able to remember it’s entire name, even after reading the manga several times, what can be remembered about mahoraga is that it instilled fear into the cast of Jujutsu Kaisen from the beginning. It is the single reason that Sukuna took interest in Megumi from the start of the story, and even the threat of Megumi’s death ritual suicidal last stand was enough to scare off special grade curses. Even scarier, under the control of Sukuna, Mahoraga becomes a horrifiying sidekick to the main villain.

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Heya! I’m Owen. I’m the rugby playing, manga reading, drag race watching, poetry writing, cosplaying, fandom hopping hot mess that your parents warned you about. For as long as I can remember I have been comparing, contrasting, and speculating about all of my favourite geeky hobbies. Hiding in the library in middle school and devouring three volumes of Hunter X Hunter every day most definitely had its perks. I represent the Queer/Athlete/Geek/Writer/ subgenre to the best of my abilities and I’m able to geek out about many things, so you’ll be sure to get your fill while you check out my blog.

Not So Venomous

Image Credit: Pinterest

It’s Enter The Geekdom’s Monster Appreciation Week! Continue reading to learn about my favourite alien Venom!

Image Credit: IMDb

Venom is a symbiote—an alien species from the planet Klyntar that forges a bond with a host for survival. With two stand-alone films, Venom (2018) and Venom: Let There Be Carnage (2021), and appearances in Spider-Man 3 (2007) and Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021), Venom is a popular villain with Marvel fans.

The symbiote’s personality can be described as aggressive, vengeful, and possessive, often influencing his host to act in violent and dark ways. However, as the character developed throughout Venom (2018), his personality became influenced by his host, Eddie Brock—a failed reporter and sweaty loser. Venom’s strong bond with Eddie eventually changed its personality. Although still feisty at times, Venom showed a sense of humour, cockiness, and—dare I say—compassion. His relationship with Eddie is similar to an old married couple, as they bicker about the most random things on a daily basis. And if Venom went to a nightclub after their first fight and called it “out of the Eddie closet,” well then that’s just between us.

Image Credit: Looper

Other than enjoying human meat (especially heads), the symbiote likes tater tots and chocolate—an interesting combination. And although he is a predator, he will not eat his pet chickens, Sonny and Cher, because they are best friends. Isn’t that cute?

Apart from nagging Eddie any chance he gets, Venom has many abilities that make him fearful (and loveable): 

Image Credit: CNN

• His mouth isn’t just tongue and teeth but also acidic saliva that breaks down substances on contact.

• He can regrow and heal limbs, whether it's himself or his host.

• Telepathic communication with his host.

• Venom can reproduce asexually by leaving spores of his body mass behind. The spores then grow into symbiotes themselves.

But like every creature, Venom also has weaknesses. Sound at 4,000 to 6,000 hertz and fire is lethal to the symbiote. 

If you would like to see a full list of powers and weaknesses that includes comic-version Venom, click here!

Image Credit: Polygon

Now, speaking of comic-version Venom, the symbiote is presented as the main villain in certain Spider-Man universe comics. But in the two stand-alone films, Venom is more of an anti-hero. With the influence of Eddie Brock (no doubt), Venom is neither good nor bad. I mean he’s just as much of a loser as Eddie is. Of course, no offence to them, but Venom was kicked off his planet by his own race because he was considered insane after the other symbiotes discovered that he wanted to commit to his host rather than use it up. You could say Venom is the runt of his kind. Calling him a villain is not entirely correct. His intentions to kill are only aimed at the bad guys. His son, Carnage, even tried to kill him. His own offspring doesn’t even like him! Poor Venom. At least he has his chickens to keep him company.

One last thing: Unless your name is Eddie Brock, don’t call Venom a parasite. You’ll be dead before you can say “tater tot.”

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Hi, I’m Ailsa! I love diving deep into cinematic worlds, falling in love with fictional characters, and writing stories I hope to publish someday. And if you’re Marvel-obsessed like me, stay for the blogs (I can talk about this all day)! I’m also big into sci-fi and fantasy genres, whether it’s for novels or films.

Remember, “If you’re nothing without [the] suit then you shouldn’t have it.” So, here’s to finding your inner hero!

If you would like to read more of my writing, you can find me on Instagram!

Godzilla: The King of Monsters

My favourite monster is Godzilla. They do not call him the King of Monsters for nothing.

Property of Warner Brothers

I first found out about Godzilla by watching Minecraft mod videos on YouTube. I had stumbled across the Godzilla mod, and I immediately thought it was the coolest thing in the world. At the time, I was not good at installing mods for Minecraft, so I was not able to play the Godzilla mod until many years later, but my love for Godzilla was continuously growing. On my trip to New York City, I went to FAO Schwarz for the first time, and I bought a massive Godzilla figure. I loved that figure, and I have it displayed in my room. I also remember the first time I ever watched the old Godzilla movies. My childhood self was left wanting more.

Over the years, Godzilla has gone through many changes since his debut in the 1954 movie Godzilla. Some were good, and some were bad. My favourite design for Godzilla is the current one that was first introduced in the 2014 movie. I love that design since it is a mix of a giant lizard and a Tyrannosaurus rex. It looks awesome. His powers are also showcased to their best with this design because his spikes and most of his back glow blue when he shoots his awesome blue blast out of his mouth.

Property oF DC COMICS

Godzilla is also massive in pop culture; he is one of the most popular characters in Japanese culture. His presence is felt worldwide, with cameos in many shows, movies, and video games. Most recently, a Justice League vs Godzilla and King Kong comic crossover was released and is awesome. The Justice League vs Godzilla and King Kong is something I didn’t know I needed, but why wouldn’t I enjoy two of my favourite franchises colliding? It is awesome. Godzilla is so popular that he has his very own hotel in Tokyo, Japan. That hotel is one of the many reasons that I want to visit Japan.

The lore of Godzilla and all of the other monsters is another reason why I love this universe so much. Just like superheroes, the hero is not complete without their rogues gallery, and Godzilla has a very cool cast of monsters to bash heads with. Some examples would be King Ghidora, King Kong, Mecha Godzilla, Mothra, Rodan, and many more.

Godzilla is and always will be my favourite monster, and I cannot wait to see what else this franchise has in store. I don’t have to wait too long since the new Godzilla and Kong movie is set to release early next year.

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Hello. I’m Luca. I love all things geek. I enjoy superheroes, Star Wars, cartoons, movies, TV shows, comics, and video games. Ever since I was a kid, I have always enjoyed geek culture. Spider-Man was my first introduction to superheroes. Spider-Man has continued to mean so much to me, just like all the other characters across all the many genres I enjoy. Batman has been my favourite character for over 12 years now, bumping Spider-Man down to number two. I also enjoy collecting geek memorabilia, like action figures, Lego, books, video games, movies, and more. I hope you enjoy my blog.

Introducing the Tarrasque (5e)

Image credits: https://www.gmbinder.com/share/-M9usahTVHiYqci1OHYA

On this week's blog for Enter the Geekdom, we will be diving into what we like to call Monster Appreciation Week, and today’s monster will be the Tarrasque (5e)

You thought I was going to say the Beholder didn’t you, or maybe a dragon? Or Vecna, for my Stranger Things fans currently reading. However not today, today’s monster of the week is a monster that we as DMs, are too scared to use. When it’s mentioned during a campaign, your players will pack their stuff, throw away their dice and call it a day—leaving you the DM alone at the table with no more players.

Image credit: https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/wiki/Tarrasque

Now you’re left with an empty room; the only company you have are the crickets climbing the wall in the corner. *DM: Great*

The Tarrasque is a 70 feet long and 50 feet wide monster, that lives under the earth's surface and is summoned by any kind of cosmic occasion. They eat kingdoms whole and will have no issue eating you in one bite like a McDonald's chicken nugget. Leaving you wondering “what the heck just happened”.

So if you have bards, sorcerers, warlocks, or wizards in the party and any of them have wild magic, keep them in a box and don’t let them out unless you really gotta use them. (Unless you don’t have a Tarrasque lying somewhere.)

Tarrasques have damage immunities to fire, poison; bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from nonmagical attacks. So if your party has little hand swords and a wooden bow and arrows, running the other direction might be the best option for you. (Unless you as the DM need a TPK (Total party kill) then you’re gonna love this one.)

But don’t let that discourage you from needing to pay for your whole party’s therapy session after playing a session with a Tarrasque. As the DM you’ll need to make sure that your party has reached the proper level, and that you make sure nothing happens that’ll summon it until your party is ready. The Tarrasque is challenge 30 (155,000 XP) and anyone above level 15 shouldn’t have an issue fighting one.

Image credit: https://warriorsofmyth.fandom.com/wiki/Tarasque

*However be aware that fighting a Tarrasque might take some time, especially if you’re going into it right away. Some players might start to get bored while playing. But if you can find ways to extend it by adding side quests at the same time and sacrificing a couple of kingdoms and NPCs you can always turn it around and make it entertaining.*

I’d suggest that if you’re going to sacrifice a player to the Tarrasque, make it the player that summoned the thing in the first place. My party did that, and it made everyone’s life much easier... (Don’t do what they did, we had to play 2 extra sessions so that they could save up enough gold to bring him back to life :) )

Fun fact about the Tarrasque, it’s based on the French mythology creature ‘Tarasque’. The Tarasque is a beast that had a lion-like head, its body was protected by a turtle-like carapace. six feet, with bear-like claws, and a serpent’s tail. And could expel a poisonous breath. (Yikes)

So there you have it! Honestly, when it comes to D&D, the creative ability to use any kind of monster from the Monster Manuel is there for you to indulge yourself in. You can be original and stick with using dragons or add a Kraken while you’re party is travelling through the ocean on their sailboat that they managed to steal after 2 hours of trying to convince the guard that they owned it.

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Quick Notes from the author

Hi everyone! If you haven’t read my previous blogs, where we talked about joining the world of Tabletop RPG and where to start. Along with my second blog, where I introduce to you the world of Dungeons and Dragons, what are you doing? Go check those out! I also want to thank everyone for joining Enter the Geekdom, and I hope you had a blast reading everyones blogs!

- Blogs -

Blog 1: (So you want to get into Table Top RPG?) https://spineonline.squarespace.com/eek/2023/9/22/valerie-ngh3e

Blog 2: (Welcome to Dungeons and Dragons) https://spineonline.squarespace.com/eek/2023/9/22/valerie-mn2lh

- Useful Links -

DnD Beyond Tarrasque page: https://www.dndbeyond.com/monsters/17034-tarrasque

Monster Manuel (5e): https://orkerhulen.dk/onewebmedia/Monster%20Manual.pdf

Image Credits: https://dnd.wizards.com/resources/fan-site-kit

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Hey, I’m Valerie Robert! I’m a Dungeons and Dragons DM. I’d get your D20s ready, because I’ll be taking you on an adventure into the world of Table top RPG games and why they’re taking over the world by a storm. For the past couple of years I’ve been intrigued with writing fiction, and decided to join the amazing world of Table Top RPG to take my skills to the next level, and have fun with my friends. I love being able to express my love for creating worlds and characters along with anything involving RPG games.

So before we begin our adventure, I’d love for everyone to please roll initiative.

Killer Croc: Monster or Victim

Killer Croc is one of Batman’s toughest and most powerful villains born with a rare disease that caused him to have crocodile skin. Waylon Jones was bullied as a child and was always an outcast eventually pushing him to live in the sewer in solidarity. This would all turn him into the villain and monster he is today. His abilities are super strength, fast swimming, powerful teeth, strong durability, and night vision 

From: batman arkham asylum

The first time I saw Killer Croc was actually in the video game Lego Batman on the Nintendo DS this was around the year 2008-2010 and at that time I was a child. I remember at the time being scared of him because I thought he looked scary. Later I would find him again in Batman: the animated series which used to play on teletoon retro. In the show I thought he looked cool but when I really started to appreciate him as a villain was in 2013-2015 when I got the video game Batman: Arkham Asylum. In the game Killer Croc has a section that is kind of like a horror game where you have to move slowly or he will hear your footsteps and not only that sometimes he pops up so you have to throw a batarang at him fast enough.

The genius behind Killer Croc as a monster is that he is not dumb like a lot of monsters in media are portrayed. He can talk and can think like any other person. That fact is what makes him much more dangerous than people give him credit for. He is a stone-cold killing machine that usually has a plan of his own and plays by his own rules.

From: red hood and the outlaws #3

He’s also however shown to have some compassion proving that he’s mostly a monster on the outside but a little bit less on the inside like. One example while not showing a whole lot of compassion does show a lot about him in terms of his less bloodthirsty side was when one of DC’s characters Roy Harper, who happens to be one of Red Hood's friends was trying to commit suicide by fighting Croc. What happened however was Croc realized that Roy was trying to kill himself and told him “Sure you got beat up earlier but is this really how you want to go out, also if you want to kill yourself leave me out of it”. While not entirely compassionate it shows a hint of his more human side.

In conclusion, while Killer Croc is one of DC’s most feared monster villains he is more than that. He is a person who was mistreated by society and cast away creating him into the beast he is. Killer Croc is a victim of the system in the end with the only people who know about his true nature being people he trusts which are very few people and Batman plus his allies. This is why he will go down in the history books as not only a monster but a tragic monster.

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Hello, my name is Andrew Stone. I have many years of gaming under my belt and I am an avid comic book enjoyer. If I were to say what my favorite superhero was it would be Batman as I believe his unwavering sense of justice and belief in doing the right thing is compelling in modern-day society.  I look forward to writing blogs about the subjects I enjoy the most.

Parasyte's Parasites

Hey geeks, today we’ll be kicking off Enter The Geekdom’s Monster Appreciation Week, where we take some time to highlight some of our all-time favourite fictional monstrosities. In this entry, let’s look at Parasyte: the Maxim’s titular antagonists, the parasites (and no, the ‘y’ in Parasyte is not a typo!) They’re truly compelling creatures that serve the Parasyte series well, being equally cool, unnerving, and outright horrifying to drive a potently suspenseful viewing experience.

So let’s take a closer look at them, and why they’re such effective monsters!

A Parasyte larvae emerging from its egg

Origin and story

On one starry night like any other, strange spore-like cocoons rained down from the sky and landed on Earth, undetected. From these glowing eggs emerged peculiar worm-like creatures—parasites, which immediately sought out the nearest living host they could find, ate and replaced their brains, and took over their bodies for nutrients. Humans are the ultimate goal, but as parasites can’t survive outside their cocoons for more than a few minutes without a host’s blood to sustain them, they can settle for animals (like dogs or cats) in a pinch.

A parasite entering Shinichi’s Right hand after failing to infiltrate his head

Sometimes, in order to survive, a parasite may be forced to eschew their target host’s brain in favor of another body part or organ if their attempt to breach the host’s head fails—and this is exactly what happens in the case of the series’ protagonist, Shinichi, who, after falling asleep with headphones on, manages to catch a parasite that tries to reach his brain through his nose after failing to enter through his ears. After a struggle, Shinichi eventually forces the parasitic worm ‘Migi’ to take root in his right hand, which leads to a relationship similar to the one between Marvel’s Eddie Brock and Venom.

Parasite Behaviour (what makes them terrifying and unnerving!)

‘Migi’ studying information about Earth while connected to Shinichi

As mentioned above, Parasites invade a host’s body and seek to replace their brain. In so doing, they take full control of the host’s body and gain an imprecise amount of their knowledge and memories—at the very least, when taking over a human, a parasite will instantly learn their native language and a foundational understanding of human society. This allows them to blend in with the population while continually feeding. Like humans, parasites themselves have a wide range of personalities—but most of them are highly intelligent and share a similarly pragmatic (unemotional, by human standards,) survival instinct. Using their intellect, they’re able to adapt to human society very quickly and seamlessly reach a point of being almost indistinguishable from regular people—though their ‘blank stare’ and underlying detachment from human emotion can still give them away to those who were very familiar with the parasite’s host before they were taken over. Given enough time, however, many parasites can evolve even beyond that point…

And some even grow to evince greater humanity than humans themselves.

A parasite casting aside its disguise to eat an unsuspecting person

It should also be noted that parasites are cannibals by instinct—in other words, a parasite that takes over a human will seek to eat other humans, and a parasite that takes over a dog will subsist on canines. Truth be told, though, parasites can survive off just about anything and are able to gain nutrients from a diet as diverse as a human’s. Throughout the show, some parasites manage to overcome their cannibalistic urges, either by choice or necessity (like Migi, who, bound to Shinichi’s arm, could not force him to attack and eat other people).

Abilities and Powers (what makes them cool and thrilling!)

an image of a parasite in its assault mode, ready to slash prey to bits

What makes parasites just downright cool are their physical attributes and abilities. At every stage after their nascence, parasites possess extraordinary shapeshifting abilities—they can morph into nearly any shape or size, divide themselves into numerous impermanent clones, harden their flesh into a material even tougher than steel, or soften and stretch like rubber. They can control their host’s body just as competently as their own, and it is in using these incredible abilities that they can easily hunt humans or other animals as Earth’s new apex predators without getting caught.

One moment, a parasite appears as a regular person, and the next, their entire body morphs into a mass of toothed tentacles and steel blades that can hack and slash a fully grown human to bits and devour them in seconds! Like I said—cool AND terrifying.

So, I hope after reading this, you’ve been able to grasp an appreciation for these little monsters who so effortlessly break humanity down into its composite elements, and turn a mirror upon us through their mimicry, violence, and evolution. Maybe you even feel compelled to check out the anime now? I’d highly recommend it! (It would make a fine addition to your ‘nightmare before Christmas’ watch list!)

See you next time, cultured ones, and stay tuned throughout the week for more awesome monster showcases delivered by the rest of the Geekdom’s crew!

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Yo, fellow geeks! My name’s Garrett Johnson; I’ve been a geek for pretty much my whole life, playing video games, reading comics, watching anime—and I’ve developed a bit of a passion for critically analyzing it all! So you can trust that my opinions are both informed and reliable.

A bit more about me: I love to write, and my dream is to one day be a best-selling author, writing fantasy comics or books. I also like to sing karaoke, do fun voice impressions (to varying degrees of success), and occasionally come up with some “philosophical” one-liners (example below).

“To make no enemies is to make an enemy of yourself.”

Why Hunter X Hunter (2011) Just Isn't That Great.

HunterxHunter: the 2011 remake. It’s a series beloved by millions of fans, whose popularity and renown are second only to those of the ‘Big Three’ shonen. It’s got a 9/10 rating on both IMDB and MyAnimeList based on hundreds of thousands of reviews—and so when I finally got around to watching it a couple years ago, I was expecting an indisputable masterpiece… 

Hunter x Hunter’s main character, Gon, crying

But that’s not what I got. Don’t get me wrong; HunterxHunter (or HxH) has many great elements working for it. It features a colorful cast of compelling characters with fascinating relationships (i.e Meruem and Komugi), an exciting world, solid animation, and a unique take on the tried-and-true “chakra/life force” based superpower system with ‘Nen’. I think HunterxHunter is good, just not that good, due to some clear weaknesses: 

*Please note that these critiques are, of course, my own opinion, based solely on the 2011 anime. It may be that information in the manga or the original 1999 series invalidates or addresses my grievances, but my experience with the series lies exclusively with the 2011 anime adaptation.*  

My critiques lie with the fact that I found many arcs’ conclusions unsatisfying, the system of Nen and its governing mechanics became far too convoluted and ill-defined, and the narrator was a constant distraction and flagrant breaker of the golden rule, ‘show don’t tell.’

Let’s delve into things.

Throughout HxH’s exciting storylines, I would say the only arcs whose conclusions actually felt satisfying were Greed Island’s and Yorknew’s. In the former, our protagonists, Gon and Killua, after some intense training and hard work, manage to prevail over “The Bomber,” collect every card, and emerge victorious from the deep-dive virtual survival game. No stone was left unturned, no enemy unconquered, and our main characters evolved significantly—great. Yorknew was much the same way: the Phantom Troupe is a colourful cast of antagonists that gave Gon and Killua a poignant wake-up call, whose friend Kurapika was able to take a pretty big first step towards exacting his revenge on the ‘Spiders,’ giving them their just desserts, and reclaiming his kins’ scarlet eyes. Wonderful.  Now, let’s look at some of the other arcs.  

An image of ‘Heaven’s Arena’

In the Heaven’s Arena arc, Gon and Killua train by way of battling their way up the plot’s titular colosseum. At first, it’s a cake-walk—the boys are much more powerful than everyone, and they wipe the floor with every opponent they get matched against... until at long last, they reach the upper echelons of the tower, floor 200—and enter a whole new league of competition, in which the boys find themselves entirely outclassed—most of all by the renowned ‘Floor Masters.’ They meet Wing,  and after learning about Nen while training under him for a few days, they reach a point where they can finally at least be competitive in the arena: so, they (barely) win a few fights, Gon battles Hisoka and loses, and then they just…leave? ‘We got what we came for,’ that’s that, and they spend ~ over a week playing around on the Island Gon grew up on before heading to Yorknew…  

Killua and Gon awakening Nen With Wing’s Help

What about the floor bosses? We didn’t even get to catch a glimpse of them. And what about all the other techniques they could’ve learned from Wing? They’d grown so much stronger in just a couple weeks under his tutelage—it was obvious they’d barely started to scratch the surface! Maybe I’ve just been primed by the protagonists of so many other shonens over the years—like Goku or Naruto, for instance—for whom gaining strength is the prime, omnipresent motivation, that seeing Gon and Killua satisfied with their growth despite having a clear picture of just how far they had left to go was jarring and unsatisfying to me. All I know is if I were in the world of HxH, I wouldn’t be taking a week off to play around after learning to tap into an intrinsic power that allows me to perform superhuman feats.  

And then there’s the Chimera Ant arc. First, I have to say that I was really put off by the constant narratorial interjections, which exacerbates the pace already made tedious by the insane amount of flashbacks, rewinds, and freeze frames that drag literal seconds of in-universe time into taking up entire twenty-minute episodes. Truth be told, I wasn’t a huge fan of HxH’s narrator from the beginning: he seemed to have a flagrant disregard for the golden rule of ‘show don’t tell,’ which visual media like anime ought to capitalize on as much as possible—and particularly in this arc, I found his constant narration of what I can clearly see happening on screen distracted from the tension more than it accentuated the tension. But, I digress. 

Gon and Killua, honing the fundamentals of Nen

Another reason why the Chimera Ant arc is so unsatisfying is due to how convoluted the mechanics of Nen became. I know that earlier in this blog, I praised HxH’s take on the ‘life energy’ system, and that’s because, up until this arc, I was very impressed by it. The three ways by which Nen could be channeled (Ten, Ren, Zetsu), which served as the foundation for many more advanced techniques and combinations, alongside the six classes of Nen users, and additional rules in place (like the ability for Nen to persist after its user's death, or that explaining how one’s ability works to an opponent would make it more powerful), felt like a very competent and thoughtful system, complex enough in its own right. It seemed to have clear parameters, rules, and limitations, that could be played with and pushed in clever, interesting ways. 

Hisoka Wielding his ‘Bungee Gum’ in a unique way

But then we delved into ‘Hatsu’--the personal, unique expression of one’s Nen—and all the mechanics of Nen effectively went out the window. From the viewer’s perspective, fights went from tactical bouts between enemies taking advantage of their strengths, minimizing their weaknesses, and utilizing their at-first-glance simple and unimpressive abilities to their fullest potential in order to outsmart and catch opponents off guard, to unsolvable puzzles that can’t be understood by the viewer until the narrator butts in to explain the indecipherable mechanics at play. From the beginning of the show, watching Hisoka use his ‘Bungee Gum’ in tandem with ‘Texture Surprise’, for example, is always rewarding to watch—by understanding the mechanics of Nen, it’s possible to grasp, on some level, how they’re being applied with these abilities, and the viewer can appreciate Hisoka’s creativity without needing the narrator to interject with an explanation. WIth ‘Hatsu,’ however, anything is possible with Nen: the sky’s the limit, and downright bizarre powers start showing up that seem more a joke or play on the characters’ personalities—like Cheetu’s “Tag,” or Knuckle’s, a stereotypical thug/delinquent-type character, debt-collecting “Hakoware: bankruptcy, chapter seven”--than a thoughtful adherence to any of the previously established mechanics, and in fact breaks them. And that’s frustrating, because a system I’d felt I’d understood was now largely incomprehensible and unpredictable (in a bad way) with poorly defined, or dare I say, nonexistent limitations that you’re forced to wait for the narrator to come along and ‘explain’ for every individual character’s unique ability.

An image of Knuckle’s strange ‘Hakoware’ Ability

Seriously, if you need a refresher, I dare you to look up Knuckle’s “Hakoware,” read its mechanics, and tell me it isn’t just the most convoluted, random ability ever conceived: as a further challenge, try and explain in what precise ways Nen is being applied to bring about the ability’s manifestation and effects, aside from that it falls under the category of ‘conjuration.’ Not even the official wiki explaining the ability can! Even with careful, retrospective analysis, it’s unclear how many of the Nen abilities featured in the Chimera Ant arc (and onwards, I presume) actually function, or what their potential limits are. This, coupled with the fact that Gon and Killua took backseat positions to many other characters, and a villain as layered as Meruem was done in lamely by poison, made this a generally disappointing arc. And don’t even get me started on Gon’s anticlimactic reunion with Gin that took place shortly after.

So, those are the reasons why I think Hunter x Hunter, the 2011 anime, is decent, but a far cry from the masterpiece it often gets credited for being. What are your thoughts? Do you agree? Disagree? Am I an idiot who just got lost in the show’s sophistication? Feel free to let me know, and until next time, cultured ones! 

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Yo, fellow geeks! My name’s Garrett Johnson; I’ve been a geek for pretty much my whole life, playing video games, reading comics, watching anime—and I’ve developed a bit of a passion for critically analyzing it all! So you can trust that my opinions are both informed and reliable.

A bit more about me: I love to write, and my dream is to one day be a best-selling author, writing fantasy comics or books. I also like to sing karaoke, do fun voice impressions (to varying degrees of success), and occasionally come up with some “philosophical” one-liners (example below).

“To make no enemies is to make an enemy of yourself.”

A look into Batman in the DCAU

Spoilers for multiple tv shows ahead

Credit: DC

Batman has been an influential figure in my life and in many others. Thus different opinions can be formed about him. One thing that some people get wrong about Batman however is that he isn’t a heartless vigilante who likes beating people up. People usually get that misconception due to how the media portrays him nowadays. The DCAU is a prime example of who Batman is meant to be portrayed as. He has a brutal side but he also has a compassionate side. In an episode of Batman: the animated series, Batman has to take down a dangerous criminal called Babydoll who is revealed to be someone with a disease called hypoplasia which causes her to have a permanent childlike state.

Credit: dc

It is shown that because of said disease, she is not taken seriously and that she just wants to be like everybody else. The episode ends with a confrontation between her and Batman in which they enter a funhouse where in the mirror room with a bunch of distorting mirrors she sees herself as an adult and is interrupted by Batman after which she breaks down and Batman comforts her as she cries before she turns herself in peacefully.

Another example can be found in the final episode of Justice League Unlimited. In the episode a little girl named Ace is causing chaos in the city because her powers developed and her powers allow her to cause hallucinations and alter reality after a hard-fought battle batman is tasked with a device that can kill Ace now you might be wondering isn’t that messed up well the circumstance is that ace Is dying of a brain aneurism and if she dies she will pretty much nuke the city because of the whiplash of her ability so when batman gets to her ace reads his mind and its revealed that while batman had volunteered to do it he had no intentions of using the device to kill her. Instead, he chooses to talk to her as he has a connection to her as they are both orphans and he asks her if she can revert the changes, she made willingly so that her dying would not destroy everything. she accepts and asks Batman if he would sit with her as she dies. Batman is then seen walking with Ace dead in his arms.

credit: dc

My last example is from the final episode of the original Justice League tv show from 2004. In this episode, the league is in a fight with the Thanagarian’s and to stop them they would have to collide the Justice League watchtower into the Thanagarian's planet at first batman and his teammates go to the escape pods to help evacuate the watchtower. Batman then locks his teammates in the escape pods and reveals that someone needs to stay on the watchtower to guide it to its destination. Batman then proceeds to take the controls and pilot it to the planet's surface and he is seen struggling to stay awake from the entry speed and fire around him but he is saved by Superman before the tower collides

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Hello, my name is Andrew Stone. I have many years of gaming under my belt and I am an avid comic book enjoyer. If I were to say what my favorite superhero was it would be Batman as I believe his unwavering sense of justice and belief in doing the right thing is compelling in modern-day society.  I look forward to writing blogs about the subjects I enjoy the most.

My top 10 favorite Ben 10 aliens

Ben 10 has always been one of my favourite TV shows. From the moment I first saw the teaser trailer on TV when I was only 2 years old, I was captivated. I watched all of Ben 10 from the OG to Omniverse and even some of the reboot. The coolest part of Ben 10 is the aliens. Ben has a device called the Omnitrix that allows him to transform into different aliens. There have been more than 70+ on-screen aliens that Ben has turned into, so I decided to go over my top 10 favourite aliens from Ben 10. Hopefully, this list will make you all Ben 10 fans as well.

Photo from cartoon Network, ben 10

10. Upgrade

This was arguably the hardest spot to fill on my list since there are so many aliens to choose from. I did not want to keep anyone off the list. In the end, I went with Upgrade. Upgrade is from the alien species Galvanic Mechamorphs, who can merge with and possess any piece of technology by encasing his liquified body over it. When he merges, his black and green circuitry pattern spreads across the technology's surface to fit its proportions; he can also perfectly replicate the object’s original colours. He can also telekinetically move and control anything he possesses. He can also shoot a single laser beam out of his eye. What is not to like?

9. Humungousaur

Photo from cartoon Network, ben 10

Humungousaur is part of the Vaxasaurian species and is a massive dinosaur. I always found dinosaurs to be incredibly cool, and seeing an alien dinosaur fight bad guys on TV was awesome. Humungousaur possess incredible strength, being able to effortlessly lift and throw heavy objects up to a high altitude, even into near-earth orbit. He can grow even bigger and gain spikes on his back that go down his spine all the way to his tail. Humungousaur can also go ultimate, which is just an even stronger version of the original alien. He is pretty much a super cool alien dinosaur.

8. Chromastone

Photo from cartoon Network, ben 10

Chromastone is a one-eyed, walking alien crystal. He can shoot energy out of his eye and absorb energy through the crystals on his body. He is super strong and very durable. I love his colour scheme and his overall design. I just wish that he was used a little bit more, but as of now, he is comfortable staying at number 8.

7. XLR8

Photo from cartoon Network, ben 10

XLR8 is the fastest Ben 10 alien. He has super speed and can run across the earth in seconds. He can also go so fast that time stops. He runs across the water and up walls like nothing and has super strength. He is blue and black, which is one of, if not my favourite, colour combinations. He is just so cool.

6. Ghostfreak

Photo from cartoon Network, ben 10

Ghostfreak is an alien ghost, which is awesome. He has super strength, invisibility, and can go through anything. He can also possess' people and creatures, but he can get forced out if the person he possesses has enough willpower to resist him. Ghostfreak is very creepy, and without going into spoiler territory, it even scared Ben. Ghostfreak is my favourite ghost. Move out of the way, Casper; there's a new ghost in town.

5. Diamond Head

Photo from cartoon Network, ben 10

Diamond Head is one of Ben’s strongest aliens and is also one of the coolest. He is an alien made from green crystals stronger than diamonds. He can shoot crystals out of his hands, create crystal pillars from the ground, turn his hands into swords, has super strength, and is pretty much indestructible. With a very cool design, there was no way I wouldn’t love this alien.

4. Fourarms

Photo from cartoon Network, ben 10

Before Humungousaur and other super-strength aliens, Fourarms was Ben’s go-to strongman. Fourarms is an alien with, you guessed it, four arms. He has super strength, can jump incredibly high, has enhanced speed, and is durable. He has a very simple design but is just so cool; his voice in the show is the cherry on top. Fouramrs is also red, which is my second favourite colour.

3. Alien X

Photo from cartoon Network, ben 10

The top three—this was the easiest part of the list since I knew exactly where these three fit on my list. Alien X came in at number three, and there was no surprise there. Alien X is Ben’s most powerful alien, with him literally not being able to die. Alien X looks like outer space with a body; that is awesome. I can go on about everything Alien X can do, but I will leave you with one example and let you check the rest out for yourself. Alien X can create the universe, not just a planet or a galaxy. No Alien X can create a universe; pretty much he can do whatever he wants.

2. Swampfire

Photo from cartoon Network, ben 10

Swampfire immediately became one of my favourite aliens, right from the moment he debuted in the first episode of Ben 10: Alien Force. His very cool, predominantly green and black colour scheme looked so cool the first time I saw him, and that has not changed. Swampfire can extend his limbs, has super strength, shoots fire out of his hands, can detach and regrow body parts at will, and can go ultimate. Swampfire barely missed out on first place, but there was one alien that I knew had to be number one.

1. Heatblast

Photo from cartoon Network, ben 10

Heatblast is the first alien Ben 10 ever transformed into, making him the first alien the viewers ever saw. It was incredible. Heatblast is a bunch of meteorite rocks that are constantly on fire. He can fly, shoot fire, and put fire out. He is a master of fire. I remember playing with my Heatblast action figure when I was little. I took that thing everywhere I went because it was special to me. Heatblast is my favourite Ben 10 alien; I do not think that will ever change.

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Hello. I’m Luca. I love all things geek. I enjoy superheroes, Star Wars, cartoons, movies, TV shows, comics, and video games. Ever since I was a kid, I always enjoyed geek culture. Spider-Man was my first introduction to superheroes. Spider-Man has continued to mean so much to me, just like all the other characters across all the many genres I enjoy. Batman has been my favorite character for over 12 years now, bumping Spider-Man down to number two. I also enjoy collecting geek memorabilia, like action figures, Lego, books, video games, movies, and more. I hope you enjoy my blog.

Power Scaling Characters in the Shibuya Arc

With the Shibuya arc coming to its close. It is time to reflect on the characters that made it out alive, and also the ones that saw their ending during this monstrosity of an event. To keep things simple, it must be stated that an enormous SPOILER WARNING is in effect. This spoiler warning is also relevant for folks that have been watching this arc unfold each week via the anime. As the Shibuya arc is incomplete as of the time this blog is being written, information only available from the manga will be presented. This portion of Jujutsu Kaisen has the largest character cast and the most fights.

Source: Mappa Studios, Jujutsu Kaisen

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For the sake of organization, characters will be divided into 6 categories. There are over thirty characters both new and long beloved that are present in Shibuya, so it is best to divide them by their level of strength. Using inspiration the traditional ranking used within the Jujutsu Kaisen universe, characters will be ranked in the following categories.

1. (SPECIAL) Special Grade

2. Special Grade

3. Grade 1

4. Semi Grade 1

5. Grade 2

6. Grade 3 + Unknown
   

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(SPECIAL) Special Grade:

1. Gojo

2. Sukuna

3. Toji

4. Kenjaku

5. Yuki

6. Yuta

7. Mahoraga

Source: gege Akutami, Jujutsu Kaisen

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Special Grade:

1. Mahito

2. Jogo

3. Dagon

4. Mechamaru (Temporary Special Grade)

5. Hanami

Source: Mappa Studios, Jujutsu Kaisen

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Grade 1:

1. Uraume

2. Naobito

3. Naoya

4. Todo

5. Mei Mei

6. Nanami

7. Choso

8. Smallpox Deity

9. Kusakabe

Source: gege Akutami, Jujutsu Kaisen

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Semi Grade 1:

1. Kamo

2. Maki

3. Megami

4. Yuji

5. Grasshopper Curse

6. Inumaki

7. Nishimiya

Source: Mappa Studios, Jujutsu Kaisen

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Grade 2:

1. Haruta

2. Ino

3. Ui Ui

4. Panda

5. Nobara

Source: gege Akutami, Jujutsu Kaisen

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Grade 3 + Unknown

1. Ebina

2. Mai

3. *Mimiko

4. *Nanako

5. *Ogami/Grandson

Source: gege Akutami, Jujutsu Kaisen

*These characters don’t have enough feats in order to be assessed accurately (besides getting bodied by Toji…).

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While there isn’t a large importance on the congruity of agreeance within the Jujutsu Kaisen fandom on which character would win in a fight against another, fans can take an educated guess based on feats, claims, and fights on where a certain character falls on the power scale. While this power scaling is quite accurate, it’s generally all for good fun, and should be taken lightly. HOWEVER—feel free to quote this blog in an argument with your friends on which characters are the stronger than another.

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Heya! I’m Owen. I’m the rugby playing, manga reading, drag race watching, poetry writing, cosplaying, fandom hopping hot mess that your parents warned you about. For as long as I can remember I have been comparing, contrasting, and speculating about all of my favourite geeky hobbies. Hiding in the library in middle school and devouring three volumes of Hunter X Hunter every day most definitely had its perks. Eight years later and I’m still going strong. I’m able to geek out about many things, so you’ll be sure to get your fill while you check out my blog.

Welcome To Dungeons & Dragons

Let’s Begin

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Image Credits: MT BLACK GAMES https://www.mtblackgames.com/blog/top-20-free-dnd-adventures

So you read my first blog, and decided that Dungeons & Dragons peaked your interest. Amazing! I’m happy to announce that you’ve come to the right place. In this blog we’ll go through everything you’ll need to know as a beginner in D&D, what to expect, and how gameplay usually runs and tips and tricks to help you in your journey.

Learning D&D always comes in 3 parts:

1. Seeking interest and wanting to learn to play.

2. Learning to play, getting overwhelmed, and quitting cause no game should be this complicated to learn.

3. Coming across this blog, and realizing that I’m here to help you make things easy.

When learning, you might feel overwhelmed. Everyones tells you that you should be learning all types of different information and to read all the books, but that’s not the case. Of course if you were to do that you’d be overwhelmed, you’re forcing yourself to learn so much that isn’t necessary at the moment. D&D, though, is a game where it’s good to learn before you play. It’s a “learn as you go” experience.

IMage Credits: DiceGEEKs https://www.dicegeeks.com/dnd-5e-character-sheet/

Now don’t go reading the Players Handbook from front to back, you’ll quit after 10 pages. Youtube is your friend, it’s what I used for months before I got the books. Youtuber’s like ‘Pointy Hat’, ‘Ginny D’, and ‘The DM Layer’ helped me so much in my journey. If you want a visual feel on how a session is run, I suggest watching Critical Role or Dimension 20.

(Because books are expensive, I’ve got your back. I’ll leave a link to a PDF of the player handbook at the end of the blog)

Now you’ve got an idea about how things are run during a game, you’re ready to move on to the next step. Character creation! A character sheet in D&D might be your most prized possession when playing. It’s more valuable than the magical item you found in session three and completely forgot about.

Character creation can be intimidating at first, especially if you have no idea what anything means. Luckily there is an amazing website called D&D beyond which will help you create your character with step by step instructions and proper description for everything to help. The main focus when creating your characters is choosing your race and class.

List of all races: https://www.dndbeyond.com/races

List of Classes: https://www.dndbeyond.com/classes

Note that some races are harder to play than others, if you’re not creating your characters with your group contact your DM and ask what would suit the campaign better, and if there is any information needed when creating your character.

Something you should keep in mind is your ability scores, the vertical column on the left side of your sheet

Here’s a little idea on what each ability score is used for:

Dexterity: How you can walk under/around/over something

Strength: How much you can throw, carry, pull, push, etc.

Constitution: Now the character’s physique, toughness, health and resistance to diseases and poisons.

Intelligence: Refers to “reasoning and memory” or “logic, education, memory, or deductive reasoning”.

Wisdom: character’s practical intelligence, cleverness, perceptiveness, and how in tune they are with the world around them.

Charisma: Charisma measures a character's force of personality, force of will, persuasiveness, personal magnetism, ability to lead and physical attractiveness.

Image Credit: red erpg https://www.rederpg.com.br/2019/03/03/dd-5a-edicao- ghosts-of-saltmarsh-proximo-lancamento-de-dd/

Finding a group can be hard if you don’t have a group of friends willing to play or you don’t know someone who already plays. That’s okay, with how popular it’s gotten there are so many online communities you can join.

Something a lot of players forget and I always need to remind my own players is that your DM is there for you! Your DM will always be there to answer any questions you have rather than when you’re trying to learn, or even questions that come to gameplay.

“What am I going to expect when I start playing?”

Image credit: Nerdarchy https://nerdarchy.com/start-your-5e-dd-campaign-with-a-single-encounter/

D&d is a collaborative game where you work together as a team to explore worlds created by your DM. It's a great game to build team building and strategy skills especially when you’ve accidentally walked into a race belonging to an owlbear and you need to find a way out.

It’s a game meant to have fun with your friends, messing around trying to convince the guard that you didn’t break the door down when he clearly saw you do it. It’s every theatre kid's dream when role playing gets involved, coming to the sessions dressed up as Dobby from Harry Potter and attempting to do Voldemort's voice when playing your character.

So I’m leaving you with that, I hope you’re journey in learning D&D is fun and you experience some of the best adventures.

Player Handbook PDF: https://orkerhulen.dk/onewebmedia/DnD%205e%20Players%20Handbook%20%28BnW%20OCR%29.pdf

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Hey, I’m Valerie Robert! I’m a Dungeons and Dragons DM. I’d get your D20s ready because I’ll be taking you on an adventure into the world of Table top RPG games and why they’re taking over the world by a storm. For the past couple of years I’ve been intrigued with writing fiction, and decided to join the amazing world of Table Top RPG to take my skills to the next level, and have fun with my friends. I love being able to express my love for creating worlds and characters along with anything involving RPG games.

So before we begin our adventure, I’d love for everyone to please roll initiative.

The Spider-Man Debate

Mirror, mirror, on the wall—who’s the better Spider-Man of them all?

Image Credit: Marvel

The Spider-Man debate has been a massive discussion for years within the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) fandom. Arguments about who makes a better Spider-Man turns into a rapid speed-fire of “Tobey is the superior Spider-Man!” and “No, Andrew is better!” or even, “Tom portrays Peter Parker and Spider-Man like Stan Lee would have wanted!”

Blah, blah, blah. It never ends in agreement.

However, before I go into too much detail, let’s break down what makes each Spider-Man unique.

Tobey Maguire

Image Credit: People

• Lives in Queens, New York

• Needs a chiropractor (he’s an 80’s kid)

• His best friend (who died in his arms) tried to kill him

• Naturally shoots webs from his wrists

• Had an emo phase

• Fought an alien

• Iconic dance-moves

• Has a complicated love life

Movies

• Spider-Man (2002)

• Spider-Man 2 (2004)

• Spider-Man 3 (2007)

• Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)

Andrew Garfield

Image Credit: NPR

• A 90’s kid

• Creates his own webs in a lab

• His weakness is small knives

• Fought a Russian guy in a rhinoceros machine

• Wasn’t able to save his girlfriend

• Thinks he’s cool by riding a skateboard

• Your stereotypical nerd

• Hates the “Itsy Bitsy Spider” song

• Certified chiropractor for his fellow Spider-Mans

Movies

• The Amazing Spider-Man (2012)

• The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014)

• Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)

Tom Holland

Image Credit: PopSugar

• Builds LEGO sets with his best friend

• His homecoming date’s dad tried to kill him

• Went to space and fought space aliens

• Didn’t want to go to Germany because he had homework

• Rocks Hello Kitty pjs

• Fought beside the Avengers

• Doesn’t listen to orders very well

• Likes eating flat sandwiches

• Can speak Italian

Movies

• Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)

• Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019)

• Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)

Alright, now you’re probably wondering what the fuss is all about and the only way to find out is to ask around. So, I went onto Instagram and asked my followers who their favourite Spider-Man is. 20 accounts responded, and I found the results rather enjoyable. 45% said Andrew, 35% said Tobey, 10% said Tom, and another 10% couldn’t decide.

Image Credit: THe Guardian

Those who chose Andrew had similar responses as to why. One anonymous wrote, “Andrew Garfield has the drama and funkiness,” while another said, “I thought he was the funniest….” One account familiar with Marvel’s comics mentioned, “[Andrew’s] storyline is most like the comics,” which could be a bonus for those who follow those stories. However, one anon went into full detail, explaining how despite “the writing for the movies was subpar…, [Andrew] looked the part, was comic-accurate, and was charismatic. His Spider-Man actually felt like some kid who was just thrown into being a superhero. It felt like he really was trying to figure things out…and make it work for his life.” They also mention the emotional turmoil they felt during Gwen’s death scene.

Those who chose Tobey also had great reasons, one of them being “because of the dance scene in Spider-Man 3.” I have to agree; it is truly iconic. Another states that Tobey is their favourite because “he is so OG.” Understandable. Sometimes the original is all you need.

The two accounts who chose Tom are fighting for their lives right now. The only response—however, detailed—was, “I am extremely charmed by Tom Holland, so I feel kinda obligated to say him.” I gotta say I respect that statement! The anon then writes, “[Tom] does his best with the material. I think he plays a real relatable teen…but the writing [doesn’t make] him a working-class hero like in the comics (until the end of [No Way Home]).”

Image Credit: Stick.PNG

Now, the final decision of who’s the best can’t be determined just from the 20 accounts that defended their choice, of course. But we can obviously see which Spider-Man is a fan favourite with his comic accuracy and charisma. However, I don’t believe there is an actual correct answer to this debate because three is the magic number.

And yes, if you haven’t already guessed it: Andrew Garfield’s Spider-Man is my favourite. I will forever defend him with my life. It saddens me that it took seven years for people to realize that Garfield’s portrayal of Peter Parker and Spider-Man had so much potential. Part of me blames it on the writers, but another part believes fans dissed Garfield’s Spider-Man because they didn’t want to be put down by other fans, which is truly unfortunate. After all, “Anyone can wear the mask.”

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Hi, I’m Ailsa! I love diving deep into cinematic worlds, falling in love with fictional characters, and writing stories I hope to publish someday. And if you’re Marvel-obsessed like me, stay for the blogs (I can talk about this all day)! I’m also big into sci-fi and fantasy genres, whether it’s for novels or films.

Remember, “If you’re nothing without [the] suit then you shouldn’t have it.” So, here’s to finding your inner hero!

If you would like to read more of my writing, you can find me on Instagram!

Beginners guide to Manga! Five recommendations to get you started!

facebook.com

If you haven’t read my previous post: “Beginners guide to Anime! Five recommendations to get you started!” this is a simular take, but this time for those who love reading! Graphic novels is a unique way of reading. It involves a beautiful page filled with the amount of details that can bring a drawing to life. We on the western side call this a Comic. Japanese comics or what they call “Manga” are a good way to introduce an art piece that has inspired globally. You maybe thinking what is the difference? Well, Manga is a black and white graphic novel that can be read from right to left. That way sound bizarre, but that is what makes it unique as it tells a rich story with beautiful art that visually tells the narrative to another level. Not only it has the Anime look, (which is a Japanese type of art) but it has also reached a global phenomenon that enlightens other writers to their work.

Still don’t believe me, here are five Manga’s that can change your mind:

1. Dragon Ball - (As is)

dragonball.fandom

To start off with the list is a good all-rounder. What I mean by “all-rounder” is that it fits for anyone, whether that be an age group or a broad scope, this pick is a good entry for Manga. Not only it is a good starter, but it is also a book that was referenced to many stories! If you like goofy characters, martial arts, and adventure–then grab your radar!

This story is about a world where there is an ancient legend, that a dragon can grant you a wish! In order to summon the dragon, you would need to collect and find all seven mystical orbs called the Dragon Balls. Our protagonist, Son Goku, is a 14-year-old boy who is a martial artist. With his marital art teachings from his grandpa, he learns his fighting journey with unlikely allies. Together, they travel around the world to find the orbs. Only to find out that they’re not the only ones hunting them. Will they find the orbs before they do?

Author FYI:

• Mainstream (Global Phenomenon!)

• 42 Volumes and 519 Chapters!

• Side stories: Dragon Ball Super 22 Volumes and 99 Chapters!

Disadvantages:

• Toxic Fanbase

• The story drastically changes

• Many books out there, make sure your wallet is ready…

2. Berserk - (As is)

X.com

Not liking the first? That's fine, here is something that many cannot handle. If you like dark fantasy, gore, and despair–then get ready, this one hits hard!

This story is about a dreadful world where there are demons, bandits, and gods. Our protagonist, Guts, a cold hearted 21-year-old man who slays demons for vengeance after his tragic backstory. He is known across the land as a fierce swordsman and with unlikely travel companions. As we journey though Gut’s life, we understand why he is on the hunt for for revenge. Will he prevail? or Die trying?

Author FYI:

• Mainstream (Ongoing!)

• 42 Volumes and 373 Chapters!

• Very detailed art.

Disadvantages:

• Very heavy subject matter NOT FOR KIDS!

• The most violent recommend…

• Expensive anthology, make sure your wallet is ready…

3. False Love - Nisekoi

simonandschuster.ca

Okay, maybe too dark to your liking… Understandable, well this is more down to earth with the life of a Japanese high school student. If you like romance, a slice of life, and comedy–then get ready for the heart aches!

This story is about a 15-year-old boy named Raku Ichijō. He is the heir of a notorious gang family, but wants to become a regular high schooler. He often thinks about a promise he made to a girl from his childhood to marry them from a lock pendant. Only to find out that he doesn't remember what they look like. During his 1st high-school year, his father decided to settle their rival gang’s feud with under a settlement. In order to make peace with their rival, Raku must be in a fake relationship with the gang leader’s daughter Chitoge Kirisaki until they graduate. The only issue is that Raku he has a crush of a girl named Kosaki Onodera. He finds out during his fake relationship, both Chitoge and Kosaki have the key’s to his pendent?! Will Raku fulfil his fathers wish? Or will he fulfill his promise?

Author FYI

• Manga is finished!

• 25 Volumes and 229 Chapters!

• Romance lovers delight :)

Disadvantages:

• Old entry (Not well known).

• Your heart will flutter alot.

• Prepare to cry.

4. Goodnight Punpun - Oyasumi Punpun

amazon.ca

Not into romance? Okay, Scrap the romance and let's be thoughtful in the moment. If you like philosophical, coming of age, and art, then prepare for your mind, this one will hurt.

This story is about the life of a boy named Punpun. He sees himself as pigeon like doodle to contemplate his lifestyle. As you journey with Punpun’s elementary school’s life to his early twentites, he often thinks about God alot. In order to deal with his emotions, he spirals through them by artistic experimental art depictions. Will you relate to Punpun’s feelings? Or Will you think about how things can be different in your lifetime?

Author FYI:

• Manga is finished!

• 13 Volumes and 147 Chapters!

• Beautiful art.

Disadvantages:

• Mature subject matter.

• Tackles Depression…

• Very sad story…

5. One Piece - (As is)

kobo.com

Some of you might’ve read my last post. Incase you haven’t, I also recommended this for a beginners guide to anime. To save you the time I won’t go into full detail but, telling you a reason why it’s a good manga choice. If you like adventure, friendship, and pirates, then set sail for a long voyage.

This story is about a world with pirates and marines. One man named Luffy, is to find the legendary treasure the One Piece. Why’d I recommend this again? Well it is the fastest way to enjoy One Piece to it’s full glory. It has all the detailed information of the characters that the authors full intent was, and also seeing some cool additional art that the anime cannot do. What journeys will Luffy encounter? Will he achieve this legendary treasure?

Authors FYI:

• Mainstream (Ongoing!)

• 107 Volumes and 1082 Chapters in counting!

• #1 Best selling Manga in Japan!

Disadvantages:

• Very long read, but I promise you it is a breeze read through.

• Too much lore, take notes.

• The biggest anthology here, make sure your wallet is ready…

That's it!

Hopefully, I’ve convinced you with these five manga's and feel free to disagree. If not, and wish to praise me then no need to thank me. I have blessed you with the honour of something that can be a hobby <3

Stay Cultured :)

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レｲナーンマル・デウ・ロサリーオ

@the_Rey_Gun 

∧,,_∧

(´－o－)  =3 

( つ旦O

と＿)__) 

Be Better By Keeping It Real

Greetings Cultured one, My name is Reynanmar Del Rosario and I am an Anime Connoisseur. I have been watching Anime ever since I was a child, and I’ve always strived to be better by the amazing stories in the East. That being said, they’re many life lessons and enjoyment from the characters that made me who I am today. If you wanna know about: Anime, Japanese Culture, Cosplays, and Manga! You have come to the right place >:)

L I N K T R E E D O W N B E L O W

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“Accept everything the way it is.”

— Musashi Miyamoto

A STAR WARS BIRDWATCHING STORY

After two sweltering hours of lying on my stomach in the sands of Jakku on the outskirts of Niima Outpost near the Starship Graveyard, I heard the call of the beast that I had traveled so far to see. I was in the shade underneath a large sheet of wreckage propped up against a pile of half-buried space junk. I couldn’t tell from where the call had come, but I knew it was close. I readied my camera and peered through the lens, trying to remain completely still. Suddenly, there was a thud to my left, behind the metal sheet. Something was there. I could hardly contain myself as it emerged.

sourced from lucasfilm

The magnificent and majestic Jakku steelpecker was right before my eyes. It seemed to be looking directly at me when it croaked and scared me so badly that I almost soiled my shorts. I held it together and snapped picture after picture while also filming. Then I hit the goldmine as the beast started pecking at a hunk of scrap metal before snatching it up and devouring it right in front of the camera. After just a few chomps, it tilted its head back and swallowed the rusty piece of scrap of whole. That’s one tough bird!

In fact, Steelpeckers are one of only a few known species on Jakku that have evolved to eat various types of metal. It’s as if the planet has found a way to recycle the fallen starships scattered on its surface. However, it would take an entire flock of steelpeckers thousands of years to polish off an entire Imperial Star Destroyer. Unsurprisingly, the average steelpecker has a fairly short life span of only about seven years.

sourced from lucasfilm

I must’ve moved in all the excitement as the beast suddenly looked right at me and tilted its head to one side. As it moved closer, it fixated on my camera lens, and I realized that it hadn’t yet noticed me. I didn’t want to risk my camera, so I slowly moved my hand back to get up, and that's when it screeched. I jumped up so fast that I hit my head on the metal sheet, and the creature took flight. When I emerged from the shelter, I startled another steelpecker, which also took to the air. I snapped pictures of them as they majestically flew off towards the safety of fallen starships.

I know what you’re thinking. Star Wars and birdwatching!? What a fantastic combination! And thank you for thinking that. I agree!

If you think about it, with all the different types of planets and environments in the Star Wars universe, there must be someone out there who's interested in nature or—more specifically—birds. I want to be on the team that writes the first-ever Star Wars nature documentary. I can imagine the host/birder having a spacecraft specialized for birdwatching with all the latest birdwatching technology and databases, a birdwatching droid, and maybe even a Mandalorian suit built specifically for birdwatching with a telephoto sight, scanners, and various types of built-in feeders. What a great show it would be!

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My name is Gregory, and I love all things Star Wars. I have a growing collection of Star Wars figurines and even a Star Wars lunchbox—my niece has the same one. I once almost bought a vintage Attack of the Clones lunch box on Etsy until I noticed it was second-hand. Gross!! I recently attended Star Wars Celebration Europe 2023, in London, England, where I became a Star Wars super fan, and I’m already making plans to attend Star Wars Celebration Japan 2025 with my fiancé Alexandra (also a Star Wars super fan). I’m not a Star Wars expert, nor do I believe such a thing exists. Like music or art, Star Wars is subjective. I try not to take it too seriously. Enter the geekdom, and may the force be with you!

Tatsuki Fujimoto: Chainsaws, Cameras, and Climate Disaster

I’ll never forget where I was when I read the 79th chapter of Chainsaw Man.

On the nineteeth floor of my first-year residence building, my jaw laid open on the floor and my eyes were rubbed raw with tears. I’d finished the last page of this volume. It wasn’t even a full day before I devoured the rest of the series (at the time) and subsequently begun my status as a self proclaimed “super fan” of author: Tatsuki Fujimoto.

I have been enamoured with manga since I was 11 years old, but something about this series was so unbelievable to me that it was all I could talk about for months. I raved about Chainsaw Man until my friends couldn’t stand it, and when the anime was announced I nearly died from excitement. There was just something about it, I couldn’t exactly nail down what it was that made this series so fantastic for me. Obviously it excels in all of the typical portions of the Battle Shonen genre of manga. It demonstrates a masterclass in action, characters, storytelling, power system, and villains. But there was something much more dark and real about Chainsaw Man. I’m a big fan of the musician Mitski, but I didn’t know I was betting on losing dogs; Fujimoto never had the intention to give the audience anything close to a happy ending. However, I didn’t feel let down or discouraged, I needed more.

Source: Tatsuki fujimoto, chainsaw man

Chainsaw Man was the best piece of media I had ever consumed. It moved me in ways I had never felt before. Nothing could ever top this Masterpiece... (pause for dramatic effect) Or so I thought! After finishing the paragon that is Fire Punch, I took a look back at everything that my favourite mangaka had written. Moments that seemed too similar to be concidental kept popping into my head. Why has there been an impactful scene with a movie theatre as a setting in all of his recent work?

Source: Tatsuki Fujimoto, Chainsaw man

Source: Tatsuki Fujimoto, Fire Punch

Source: Tatsuki Fujimoto, goodbye, eri

I steamrolled through Goodbye, Eri, and Don’t look back. Coming off of the tail of two much darker stories filled with killing and heart-wrenching let-downs, these two more melancholic one-shots were refreshing. In their own ways they both seemed to be a love letter to film and manga respectively. The glimpses of these meaningful movie theatre moments peaked through on full display all of a sudden, and it clicked for me. Tatsuki Fujimoto doesn’t write “Battle Shonen” manga. Chainsaw Man and Fire Punch are character studies. They’re an expression of guilt, loss, and drive. Nothing good happens to the main characters in these manga. Yet, they aren’t typical in the way that characters overcome their problems and have a happy ending. That’s because there aren’t always happy endings in life.

If you’re looking for something that is a little dark, too melancholic for its own good, filled with tragedy and death, or you really enjoy chainsaws, cameras, and/or climate disasters, give the Tatsuki Fujimoto collection a try. It won’t let you down. It might break your heart, but it will probably be something you remember for a long time.

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Heya! I’m Owen. I’m the rugby playing, manga reading, drag race watching, poetry writing, cosplaying, fandom hopping hot mess that your parents warned you about. For as long as I can remember I have been comparing, contrasting, and speculating about all of my favourite geeky hobbies. Hiding in the library in middle school and devouring three volumes of Hunter X Hunter every day most definitely had its perks. I represent the Queer/Athlete/Geek/Writer/ subgenre to the best of my abilities and I’m able to geek out about many things, so you’ll be sure to get your fill while you check out my blog.

Don't Lecture Me, Obi-Wan!!

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The Star Wars Prequels often get mixed reviews, but these days they’re more popular than ever. When I was younger, I remember hearing they weren’t as good as the originals, and I probably agreed to some extent. Honestly, at that age, l likely just agreed with what everyone else said. When the first movie came out in 1999, I was fourteen, and I was twenty when the third movie came out in 2005. So the series spanned some good years for me. It was one of those comforting things that was always there. I remember how the movies always seemed to air on cable TV at Christmas time, and they would end up left on in the background. Oh, sweet nostalgia!

About 5 years ago, after not thinking about Star Wars in years, I randomly decided to rewatch the prequels. Little did I know, my mind was about to be blown. How did I forget about these movies? They’ve aged so well! I fell in love with the characters: Anakin, Padme, Obi-Wan, and Mace Windu! There was something brilliant about the way the movies were filmed. The wide and distant camera angles were refreshing, and they let your eyes feast on the beautiful colours, sets, and costumes. For the first time, I could see the vision that the films were trying to capture. The prequels were ahead of their time!

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I wasted no time in letting everybody know how much I now loved the prequels, but I quickly found myself on the defensive. A colleague of mine hates them with a passion, and we butted heads over it a few times. I tried to convince people they should give the movies another watch like I had, but nobody did. When even some of my closest family members were giving me guff about liking the prequels, I decided—and maybe a bit out of spite—to declare the prequels my favourite Star Wars movies, Hayden Christensen my favourite actor, and Mace Windu the coolest Jedi of all time. The thing is though, they really were becoming my favourite.

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It's great to see Hayden back in Star Wars these days. He deserves it! It bugged me that he almost quit acting because of all the hate he got from his role as Anakin. I think he’s an amazing actor, and he’s Canadian! I often get emotional about the matter. When I recently saw him back on screen in the Obi-Wan Kenobi series I definitely cried. The next day I saw a video of Hayden being interviewed, along with Ewan McGregor at the Star Wars Celebration Anaheim 2022. It must have been his first interview in twenty years, and he was clearly overwhelmed with emotion from the positive reception he was getting from the fans. I cried.

I had no idea at the time that I would get a chance to attend Star Wars Celebration Europe the following year in 2023. I love Star Wars so much, and attending a huge event like that was an amazing experience. There were so many great costumes, and the atmosphere was incredible. My wife Sandy—who is a huge Star Wars fan, and who's even warmed up to the prequels over the last few years—scored us passes to attend the Ahsoka panel where we got to see the unveiling of the first Ahsoka trailers! It was epic. Unfortunately, we couldn’t get into the Hayden Christensen panel, as the panels were done by lottery. However, on our last day there we heard some loud cheers coming from the public stage, and we ran over just as they announced Anakin himself! Hayden was getting so much love from the crowd, and once again he was overwhelmed by it. I sobbed my eyes out, and I cheered him on as loud as I could. What a blast! We couldn’t have asked for a better ending to our trip!

Sandy and I managed to spot ourselves in the official Star Wars Celebration video of Hayden’s interview on YouTube the next day. I also captured my own little video (below).

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My name is Gregory, and I love all things Star Wars. I have a growing collection of Star Wars figurines and even a Star Wars lunchbox—my niece has the same one. I once almost bought a vintage Attack of the Clones lunch box on Etsy, until I noticed it was second-hand. Gross!! I recently attended Star Wars Celebration Europe 2023, in London England where I became a Star Wars super fan, and I’m already making plans to attend Star Wars Celebration Japan 2025 with my fiancé Alexandra (also a Star Wars super fan). I’m not a Star Wars expert, nor do I believe such a thing exists. Like music or art, Star Wars is subjective. I try not to take it too seriously. Enter the geekdom and may the force be with you!

Batman: The Long Halloween

Na na na na na na na na na na na na na na na na na na Batman! Batman! October is here, and what better way to start the month and get in the Halloween spirit than by reading a blog about my favourite book of all time, Batman: The Long Halloween. I love Halloween, and I love Batman, so having a book that has both together is a win. Below, I will go over everything there is to know about the book without getting into any spoilers.

Cover art from the front of the original graphic novel, by Tim Sale

The Long Halloween was originally released as a 13-issue comic book limited series written by Jeph Loeb with art by Tim Sale. Published by DC Comics in 1996 and 1997, it was re-released many times throughout the years in the form of collected trade paperbacks. I remember first reading the book almost seven years ago, and I was left speechless. I wanted more, and luckily, they did release two sequels. To that point, I never felt that way about any other book that I read. It quickly became a tradition for me to order the book from the library and read it every October until I finally purchased the book two years ago. I continue to read the book every year, and of course, it does not leave the same thrilling impact as the first read, but I would be lying if I said that it wasn’t close. Why do I think the book is so good? Why is it so special? I love superheroes; I love action and adventure; and I love mysteries. Batman: The Long Halloween is all three of those combined. With very cool and unique art by the late great Tim Sale and an incredible story written by Jeph Loeb, what else is there to say?

Image from dc instagram

Now that you have heard some of my thoughts on the book, I will now dive into the book itself. It is set on Halloween night during Batman’s second year as a crime-fighting vigilante. He is still not recognized as Gotham’s saviour quite yet; most people still thought he was an urban legend. The main premises of the book are that starting on Halloween night, a murder took place involving a member of one of Gotham’s notorious crime families. Each chapter is divided by holidays, and on each holiday, a new murder will take place. The killer would be called Holiday, and it would be up to Batman and the GCPD to catch this killer. The book features a strong cast, with almost all of Batman’s main rogue’s gallery present and utilized in a great way throughout the story. Catwoman, Jim Gordon, Harvey Dent, Alfred, and even more iconic allies to Batman also have a strong presence. This is an incredibly packed, star-studded lineup of characters, and it is done in a way that allows the reader to get to know these iconic characters for the first time. The Batman movie directed by Matt Reeves in 2022 took huge inspiration from The Long Halloween, with DC releasing a special box set with three graphic novels that influenced The Batman.

There is a lot more that I could say, but that would lead into spoiler territory, which I do not plan on crossing. If you are a Batman fan or just a fan of reading a great book (especially one that fits the Halloween season). What are you waiting for? Go to your local bookstore or library and read Batman: The Long Halloween today.

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Hello. I’m Luca. I love all things geek. I enjoy superhero’s, Star Wars, cartoons, movies, tv shows, comics, and video games. Ever since I was a kid I always enjoyed geek culture, Spider-Man was my first introduction into superheroes. Spider-Man has continued to mean so much to me just like all the other characters across all the many genres I enjoy. Batman has been my favorite character for over 12 years now bumping Spider-Man down to number two. I also enjoy collecting geek memorabilia, like action figures, Lego, books, video games, movies, and more. I hope you enjoy my blog.

Scoob! is a movie about the power of friendship

Scoob is a theatrical movie based on the hit TV series Scooby-doo. The movie was released in 2020 originally only on digital but it was later released in theatres. I would like to take a moment to look at the movie, 3 years later, to see if it holds up as well as I remember. 

*Warning Spoilers!*

(Photo of the poster for the movie, owned by Warner brothers)

photo from warnerbroscanada.

This intro sequence is pretty good as it establishes something that Scooby doo fans have always wanted to see an origin story of how Scooby and Shaggy met it also sets up the theme of the movie quite well this theme is that of friendship and camaraderie this is very apparent throughout the film. The main conflict of this film other than the villain himself is the straining friendship between Scooby and Shaggy. Throughout the film, Shaggy starts feeling more and more depressed about himself and his inability to help Scooby. This as well leads to some jealousy on his part as he wants to feel important as well.

Photo from warnerbroscanada

This all comes to a head at the end of the film when Shaggy gives Scooby an ultimatum, stay with him or go with The Blue Falcon. Scooby ultimately chooses to do with The Blue Falcon but this would cause Shaggy to be kidnapped and forces Scooby to play right into the villain's hands. Shaggy makes a sacrifice to save Scooby and decides that he will stay in the underworld to keep the gate closed. This scene In particular is what describes the theme of this movie perfectly.

Shaggy in the end after all of his jealousy and feelings of uselessness decides that his purpose in the end is to be a friend to Scooby and chooses him over his own life. In the end, this causes another exit to open ultimately allowing Shaggy to escape the underworld but regardless the scene is still very heartwarming and impactful. I will say this, while this movie has its ups and downs the core message of this movie causes you to think about yourself and others that is what truly makes this movie special. 

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Hello my name is Andrew Stone. I have many years of gaming under my belt and I am an avid comic book enjoyer. If I were to say what my favorite superhero was it would be batman as I believe his unwavering sense of justice and belief in doing the right thing is compelling in modern day society.  I look forward to writing blogs about the subjects I enjoy the most.