Recently I discovered that I could watch the entirety of Dario Argento’s Inferno, the second of his Three Mothers trilogy, on Youtube. I was about 1/4 of the way through the film when I was suddenly struck with the overwhelming urge to share what I was witnessing with others, if only to save my own sanity from the poor acting, convoluted plot, and oddly selective ways in which characters were…
I shared a very brief version of this story on Twitter recently and I figured I should give the full account here. My family is not known for their culinary expertise. We don’t have secret family recipes (unless you count ketchup soup) and I don’t have any quaint stories about being a child, learning how to cook for the first time sitting at my mothers knee in the kitchen with the scent of pot…
I thought you all might enjoy seeing a little of the process I go through with my art. So earlier this month I was walking down the road and an image came to me of a woman holding her face with her arms crossed and a necklace of antlers. When I got home, I immediately sat down to draw it out. Originally I wanted the antlers to circle her wrists, keeping her hands pinned to her face, but as I worked I realized I liked it better with her arms free. There was something powerful in the eyes of the woman I was drawing and I didn’t want to cage her up like that.
The first sketch didn’t come out exactly the way I wanted it to, so I copied over the lines I liked and re-drew the rest; adding some wrought iron bracers for fun. Afterwards I inked the piece and was pretty pleased with it. I scanned it into my computer as a safety measure before coloring it and boy am I glad I did.
The markers I used did not give me the look I was going for.
The colors didn’t blend right and I was pretty mad at the time, but thankfully there was always the digital sketch. I ended up coloring in Photoshop for what seemed like forever… Aching hands, tired eyes, and a computer whining about disk space later and I have a complete piece that I’m pretty proud of.
She was a labor of love and perhaps a little madness (when you consider that lace detail) and I’m glad I took the time to finish her. I’ve put her up on Redbubble if you’d like to pick up a copy. Hope you all like!
New Art I thought you all might enjoy seeing a little of the process I go through with my art.
With all of the violence going on in schools lately, I am proud that our nations students are organizing the National School Walkout on March 14, the March for Our Lives on March 24, and local protests across the country. In advance of those events, the advocacy groups Comic Book Legal Defense Fund and National Coalition Against Censorship have released a new comic book to help protect students’…
I got an announcement today that Nerd Block, a mystery box subscription company, is coming back. I joined their subscription service a couple years ago and was underwhelmed by the products I received so I cancelled. It led me to think about the other geek-themed subscription services I’ve tired. They’ve all had varying success and so far Loot Crate is the only one that held my interest for more…
Wisdom for the day When we are open to the world, we can learn a lot from each other. Even when the lessons are tough, we must submit to them to grow. -Knowledge I learned from Karate and reminded by on Twitter everyday.
The new year is here and it causes me to sit back and reflect on how far I have come in the past few years. If you asked me back in 2014, how I felt about life, I probably would have responded with a shrug, while on the inside I would be screaming. I was super depressed and having panic attacks almost daily about how I felt like I was going nowhere in life. As a kid, I had big dreams about who…
Anyone who visits my home will notice a few things:
Jed Henry is the talented artists behind Ukiyo-e Heroes, a site that offers fine Japanese woodblock prints featuring video games and other geeky fun.
Yep, Jed’s art is all over my place. I absolutely fell in love with his style when I first met Jed at the Sakura Matsuri (Cherry Blossom Festival) that the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens hold each year. His prints were striking and unique to anything I had seen before. At the time I ended up buying a set of three (shown below), but over the years I have accumulated a bit of a collection.
‘The Hero Rests’
‘Infestation’
‘Times Burned Bright’.
I really love seeing how Jed transforms some of our favorite characters into such beautiful works. He manages to capture everything from mind blowing moment of Sabin’s train suplex from Final Fantasy VI to the light fun of One Punch Man’s Saitama shopping for a deal.
Jed offers a lot of ways to buy his art including woodblock prints, giclée Prints, wall scrolls (I have 1. They’re really nice!), his coveted original sketches, and subscription boxes. His current subscription box is Legendary Loot! in which you get a set of 12 woodblock prints featuring famous video game tropes for only $25 per month. A pretty good deal considering a regular print is usually $40 on its own.
Jed has also come full circle with his love of video games by making his own. It brings Jed’s illustrations to life in a fighting game called Edo Superstar, where a small-town monkey is looking to become a famous fighter. You can download it here for Android and iOS.
I can go on and on about Jed’s work, but if you are interested in discovering more about it on your own check out his video series on Youtube where you can watch him work and learn a lot about traditional Japanese printing. You can also read a piece I did on him for Geek & Sundry and visit his website Ukiyoeheroes.com.
I’ll be featuring more great artists in the future, but until then let me know: Who are your favorite artists? Who should I be checking out? Comment below and I’ll be sure to visit them!
Image Credits: Jed Henry, Edo Superstar
Artist Spotlight: Jed Henry Anyone who visits my home will notice a few things: I have an irresponsible amount of games…
I love a lot of stuff: Gaming, Cosplay, Baking, Karate, Animals, Geek Culture, etc… While I write for Gameosity and Geek & Sundry, often times there are things I want to talk about that don’t have a place on those sites. So I am resurrecting Nerdy Kitten Pants as my blog to expound upon the things I think are worth talking about. You can expect to see articles on my favorite places to shop,…
So I haven’t posted in a while, because I have been really busy with Gameosity and Geek & Sundry. One of the big time-eaters is video production. On the Gameosity Reviews channel I have been the producer/editor/occasional actor for the videos. On top of that I also started my own Let’s Play channel. It’s still kinda rough as I get my wheels under me, but if you guys have any helpful advice let me…
Hey guys! I know it has been a while since I posted here.I have been super busy writing for my other sites, but I couldn’t let this news pass by. Dr. Puppet is a fantastic Youtube series that uses handmade puppets and stop motion to tell new stories about Dr. Who. Last month, on Geek & Sundry, I interviewed Alisa Stern, the creator of the series, about the upcoming and final episode. I can’t say…
Grab your wallets as Mega Bots has gone to Kickstarter to fund their dream of a giant robot duel with Japan! The Megabots Team is looking to raise $500,000 to upgrade their Mk.II robot with heavy duty armor plating, new firepower, better hydraulics, and generally make Mk.II a bigger, faster, more deadly fighting machine. They have people like Grant Imahara (Mythbusters and Industrial Light &…
As we near the birthday of the famed writer H. P. Lovecraft, who wrote such lines as “In his house at R’lyeh dead Cthulhu waits dreaming”, it seems only appropriate that divers off the coast of a small town in Turkey found a mysterious blob. Its giant size and strange gelatinous texture had the divers scratching their heads as to what it might be. According to Deep Sea News: “Dr. Michael…
I’m so excited! Amazon and Nerf have teamed up to offer you a Build Your Own Blaster. The N-Strike Modulus is their new customizable blaster that has rail attachments for scopes, barrels, stocks, clips, and more!
The basic N-Strike Modulus blaster
I can totally see Nerf Modders having a blast (sorry for the pun) with this. You can add things like a Red Dot Sight with a Folding Bi-pod Upgrade and targeting scope to make an ultimate sniper blaster. My only complaint is that I wish there were more base blaster options. I’m betting that if this one goes over well, Nerf will release more models. For now, I’m going to spend my time trying to build guns from Fallout and turn them into cosplay props. You can try building your own here.
By the way, some people make crazy amazing Fallout Nerf mods by hand. Check out the galley below.
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Image: Darksamu.deviantart.com
Image: Hoellenhamster.deviantart.com
Image: Nerfenstein
Image: raccon85.deviantart.com
Image: girlygamer.com.au
Official Custom Nerf Guns! @NerfNation I'm so excited! Amazon and Nerf have teamed up to offer you a Build Your Own Blaster.
Ok so for the week after August 11th I can just write “BUSY” on my calendar. I like that the trailer shows both the female and male Inquisitor. I love DA for their efforts to make realistic and believable characters including strong females, differing sexualities, and a great sense of humor. If you haven’t tried out the games I…
Oh to be a free spirited Charmander scampering over hills and dales with the wind in your brilliant orange scales. It is truly the life for a Pokémon. Now you can see that life in full detail with CryZENx’s “A Boy and His Kite” Unreal 4 demo. The video features the three starter’s: Bulbasaur, Squirtle, and Charmander, but mainly follows the adorable Chamander around as it happily runs to and fro…
And on the 10674th day, God said, “Yea, let there be Southern Biscuits and Gravy flavored potato chips.” And there was morning, and there was evening; the 10674th day.
NOTE: Do not trust the Greektown Gyro chips. They are basically Sour Cream and Onion with a hint of spice. It is an affront to the culinary masterpiece which is the gyro, and I will not stand for it.
Fun fact: the Greektown Gyro chips are pronounced “Juh-EYE-roh”.
There were totally not as good as they alluded to be.Gyro was meh and truffle fries were so-so. I have not experiences the biscuits and gravy, but considering how much I adore biscuits, I am afraid to try them.
Krull, directed by Peter Yates, was my childhood fantasy movie. While other kids though Disney movies were the top of cinematic entertainment, I was squirreled away watching a rag tag group of heroes fight futuristic aliens in order to save the world (and perhaps the galaxy). It had to be one of my favorite movies; up there with Big trouble in Little China and Flash Gordon.
The story begins with the planet Krull being invaded by the alien forces of the Beats and its’ army of laser wielding Slayers. What can Prince Colwyn do when the Slayers come to kidnap his bride-to-be Princess Lyssa? Chase them across the ends of the planet, collecting a group of dedicated warriors, riding flying horses, avoiding giant crystal spiders, to reach the Black Fortress and fight the malevolent beast. There is so much awesome in this movie!
Recently I found out some things I never knew about Krull and they just about blew my mind. Ok, who am I kidding? They totally blew my mind.
1. How Did I Not Know Liam Neeson Was In This Movie?
Neeson played Kegan (the uncouth fellow on the right), one of the bandits that join our heroes on their adventure. He’s got swagger, he’s got bravery, and he’s got about seven or eight wives. I never knew this movie had any actors anyone had ever heard of. I fully expect Key and Peele would do a jig over this…
Yep, I was right.
2. The Soundtrack Was Created By James Horner.
Horner is the musical genius behind The Karate Kid, The Legend of Zorro, Avatar, and a ton of other famous movies. The music he crafted was so epically cheesey and yet I can still hum it to this day. Take a listen:
3. Marvel Did A Two Part Comic Tie-In.
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Written by David Michelinie (The Amazing Spider-Man and Iron Man) and pencilled by Bret Blevins (New Mutants, The Dark Crystal, and The Last Starfighter), the comics covered the events of the movie, but sadly did not continue the adventure even though it could have easily have been a series. Hint, hint, nudge, nudge. Anyone at Marvel want to bring this back? …No? …Okay.
Back in 2000 there was a video adaption of the comic where the images from the comic were synched up to the sound from the film. You can still find it on Youtube.
4. There Was A Krull Video Game.
I am dying here! How did I never play this as a kid? The Krull video game came out in 1983 for the Atari 2600. In the game you play though some of the major events of the movie like Colwyn’s wedding, riding the fire mare, jumping across the Widow’s web, and fighting the beast at the Black fortress. There was also supposed to be a pinball version, but it sadly never got made.
5. You Can Watch Krull With RiffTrax!
The amazing people at Rifftrax have created a soundtrack to aid you while watching the film. I almost don’t heave the heart to listen to it as I love the film so much, but I am hitting the buy button anyway… If you want to listen along you can purchase a copy here: http://www.rifftrax.com/iriff/krull-a-vox-o-rox-quest
Last, but the most shocking to my geek heart…
6. THERE WERE KRULL BOARD GAMES!
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I lost my goddamn mind when I saw this. I run a board game website and I had no clue there was one game no less three! I was able to find pictures from the original Krull board game and the card game. Apparently it is impossible to find anything from Krull Quest. Look at those custom Krull dice!!!
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This was an amazing look back at one of my favorite movies, but I can’t take anymore! I must go watch the movie and calm my beans.
Are you a fan of Krull? Is anyone but me? Let me know in the comments below!
Thing I Never Knew About Krull @LiamNeeson_ @cracksh0t @RiffTrax Krull, directed by Peter Yates, was my childhood fantasy movie. While other kids though Disney movies were the top of cinematic entertainment, I was squirreled away watching a rag tag group of heroes fight futuristic aliens in order to save the world (and perhaps the galaxy).
