Critical Hits Cocktails Takes Over Geek & Sundry Vlogs To Make Your Geek Drinking Dreams Come True...

Geek and Sundry Vlogs has a stable of great geek related videos over at their Youtube page. That is a given... but some are definitely more appealing to my particular geek sensibilities than others. Critical Hit Cocktails does just that, with host Mitch Hutts, takes nerd friendly characters and properties and comes up with awesome drink recipes to satisfy your geeky palate. They make both alcoholic and non alcoholic recipes, and the best part is that if you take some of their non alcoholic drinks and just add a spirit of your choice you can still get a buzz out of it! These are great, and Hutts minds the classics for his inspiration. TMNT, Harry Potter... hell, the newest video is a Star Lord inspired drink, which is fitting since Guardians of the Galaxy is killing it right now. The best part is the instructions are easy to follow and the ingredients are simple and easy to obtain. So in just a few minutes you can turn yourself into the Nerdiest Mixologist of all time! All of them are fun, so make sure you check em all out... I will be making some of these behind the bar this weekend, so I will let you know how they shake out!

Tommy Lombardozzi Does An Awesome Rocky... Um, I Mean ROCKET Raccoon Variant Cover For Me!!!!

 

With Guardians of the Galaxy doing gangbusters business in the cinemas right now, it is only to be expected that parent company Marvel Comics would make a push in print with all the characters involved. Rocket Raccoon, Star Lord, Guardians, Nova, and Thanos all have been playing major parts in the comic universe through individual titles... and characters from the "cosmic" side of the Marvel Universe have been popping up in every major title. So on a trip to one of our local mom & pop comic shops (Pinocchio Comics in Brooklyn) I looked over and I seen a stack of Skottie Young's new Rocket Raccoon #1 variants sitting there. They had all 3: The one with Rocket with a huge gun, the one with Stan Lee, and a white blank cover. Now I am not one of those comic collectors that will get caught up trying to track down variants and chase covers... its not my style. But I have been talking to Tommy (resident artist here at CCD) about doing something with one of these... having him create me a unique cover image (a 1 of 1) that is hand drawn. But I have been waiting for the right one to come along, and since Rocket is one of my favorite characters ever and I started collecting monthly comics again with the launch of this particular title I figured now was as good as a time as any. So I bought it, turned over to Tommy, and awaited the results. My man TL did NOT disappoint.... he did a bang up job on this awesome cover, and took the character way back to it's roots as being inspired by the Beetles song "Rocky Raccoon". Great, just great.... TL also happened to snap some incredible WIP shots of his initial sketches and the finished product. So great... thank you my friend. This has definitely "Rocketed" to the top of my collection as one of my favorite books (see what I did there). Check em all out after the jump...

The Faces Of A Thief, 2 Thugs, An Assassin and A Maniac... What Do You Get? Sean Hamilton's 'Guardians of the Galaxy' Face Mash-Up !!!

My buddy Sean Hamilton is back at it again, this time taking on the hit characters of the 'Guardians of the Galaxy'. In his latest 'face mash-up' piece he takes on the new Fab 5 and uses their distinct facial features to meld them into one cohesive facial pattern. You get the crown of Groot's tree head, the flowing purple ponytail against the green skin of Gamora, the red tattoos of Drax, the furry brow of Rocket, and the mask and 80's headphones of the man called Star Lord... all in one piece! Pretty great. Sean is a very talented dude and has been knocking out amazing art pieces over on his webpage but, he is also finding time to be in the podcasting game with the guys over at the League of Geekz. They have some interesting takes on everything from pop culture, and Sean gets to chat with his fellow podders about toys, movies, comics, TV and much more. Where does this guy find the time? Another great artistic endeavor done well by Create Ink Studios. Make sure you try and cop this puppy when Sean adds it to the online store. Check it out after the jump....

Rocket Raccoon: A Musical Parody by Animfantastic x Town In The City

When I was a kid, my dad would play the Beatles constantly.... In the car, at the house... always with The Beatles. I developed quite a love for the Fab 4, but there was one song in particular that always held a soft spot for me. 'Rocky Raccoon'. I don't know why, but the songs lyrics (although dealing with adult themes of relationships, adultery and gun play) are quite appealing to kids. Maybe it is the sing-songy melody of the tune, or the drawl that Paul is using when singing the lyrics. Whatever it is, the song just jumped out of their catalog to me as a favorite. So, years later when I encountered Rocket Raccoon in the pages of Marvel comics it was hard to ignore the influences of the 'Rocky Raccoon' song over the character and story arc. Rocket is dating Lylla (like Lylla in the song), they are searching out a sacred book called Gideon's Bible (a direct reference to the song), and his best friend is a walrus named Wal Rus (clearly a link to the walrus of 'The Magical Mystery Tour' album). No wonder I always was drawn to the character of Rocket in the comics. Bill Mantlo and Keith Giffen create a magical character and world that was clearly rooted in the Beatles music... which is amazing! So when I came across this great video finally acknowledging the links by mashing up the two... well, I was sold immediately. Animfantastic teams up with Town In The City to produce the video, and while it is silly... who cares? It is a song about a talking Raccoon after all, so isn't is supposed to be silly? Enjoy the mashup after the jump...

The CCD Podcast: Episode #15.5 - The Guardians of the Galaxy Review or I Plan For Awesome Mix Vol #1 To Be The Soundtrack Of My Life...

Wow... this may very well be the best Marvel movie released thus far... yup, I said it!!! Guardians of the Galaxy has come... and boy did it CONQUER!!! Over 160 mil worldwide, and as much critical acclaim as any comic book I have seen. So it is a perfect time for us to launch our '.5' episodes, which will be mini review episodes. Sometimes the movies will be new, sometimes old... but you get our perspective on it one way or another!!! So let's get on the journey with Groot, Rocket, Drax, Gamora, and Star Lord... come and get your love!!!! Check out the pod embedded after the jump... and please head over to ITunes where you can Subscribe, Download, Listen, Share... and then REPEAT!!!

Oh, And For The Record 'Cosmo the Russian Astronaut Dog' From Guardians of the Galaxy Is Pulled From The Comic Pages Too...

Cosmo the Russian Astronaut dog that is seen captured in the Collector's collection in Guardians of the Galaxy is not just a wink and a nod to animal manned space flights of the 1960s. Cosmo himself is a frequent guest in the Guardians of the Galaxy comic, and a few other of Marvel's galactic titles as well (think Nova, Nova Corps, the Inhumans, etc). He actually first appeared in Nova #8 (vol 4) when Richard Rider encounters him on Knowhere (the Celestial skull planet from the Guardians movie) and thinks he is a regular dog. Turns out, he is a powerful telekinetic pup that has played major parts in Annihilation, the Thanos Imperative, and many other storylines throughout the last few years of the Marvel Comics universe. He has even been a member of the Guardians of the Galaxy themselves (issues 15 through 19 of Guardians from 2009 as a matter of fact). A cool little Easter Egg thrown in to the film from James Gunn and the Marvel Cinemtaic crew that comes right off the pages of the comics. Check out some panels and pics of Cosmo after the jump...

Guardians of the Galaxy x Tommy Lombardozzi x Erle Tompkins = FUEGO !!!

So I saw Guardians of the Galaxy at the 7 pm Thursday night show... and it was magnificent. Absolutely perfect. On every level. It was just amazing, and words can't do it any justice. So I'm going to let two of my very talented artist friends do the talking with their talent. Tommy Lombardozzi is an amazing artist who is not afraid of any challenge when it comes to character creating. So when he began getting hype for the GOTG movie release, he decided to add his own vintage loving spin to the version of the team that appears in the movie. He has Groot, Rocket, Drax, Gamora, and Star Lord... but it is the retro versions of all the characters instead of the most current inclinations!!! Great idea and execution... can't know where you are headed unless you know where you are going!!! Up second we got our boy Erle Tompkins and his homage to the GOTG. He decided to bust out his own unique Peter Quill... The STAR LORD himself! It is the movie version of Star Lord, complete with the orb and all. Suns out, Guns out... two great pieces, by two great artists. Check out all their work by clicking their names above, and check out these pieces after the jump...

The CCD Podcast: Episode #15 - The Best Space Operas Ever or You Talkin' About Some Damn Sharks Mother Up In Space? I Will Whip A Glaive At Your Head...

The eve of the release of Guardians of the Galaxy is upon us, so you know the CCD Podcast gang had to tackle the unique genre the film fits in... Space Operas!!! Guardians is very unique in the sense that it is a space set, buddy team up, comedic ensemble film that exists in a very small group of films. So we decided to talk about the films that were similar to this from the past: Think 'Krull', 'The Last Starfighter', 'Flight of the Navigator', 'Galaxy Quest', and the like. It is a fun filled trip down space movie memory lane... so why not join us and celebrate this seldom used genre on the verge of its biggest movie release yet? Enjoy some art and the podcast itself after the jump....

Mike Vazquez Has Some Dope SD Comic Con 2014 Exclusives Ready For The Show!!!

We are on the cusp of this years San Diego Comic Con, and show exclusives from everyone involved are starting to crop up all in our Feedly feed. One of the coolest ones so far mashes up what will probably be 2 of the biggest comic book movies of 2014: Days of Future Past & Guardians of the Galaxy. Artist Mike Vasquez abandons his typical Adventure Time inspired creations to create a variant cover/poster that features everyone's favorite Raccoon in the role of Wolverine and the rest of the Guardians supporting cast on the posters behind him. He means business, and this is a great interpretation of the classic cover of issue X-Men #141. The piece was a combined effort creation between Vasquez and LogicFun (an artist from France who colored the piece). Vasquez also has some dope stickers featuring Groot, Star Lord Gamorra and Rocket (yeah, no Drax... weird), and a bunch of team Adventure Time inspired prints (Friday is Nintendo characters, Saturday is Guardians, and Sunday is Spidey & the Sinister 6) that are limited and only available at Vasquez's table. He also has a cool 35 page sketch book available for purchase. As someone who has followed Vasquez's art for a while, you will be blown away by both the look of the pieces as well as the quality of the prints. You can see more of Vasquez's work over at his Etsy & Deviant Art pages, and check out pics of everything from SDCC after the jump....

Just Who Is This 'Groot' Anyway???

A lot of hub bub is being made over the upcoming 'Guardians of the Galaxy' movie, and the trailers are very Star Lord & Rocket Raccoon heavy. While the two green members of the team (Gamorra & Drax) are both brooding and about action, the final character that rounds out the 5 may be the most mysterious. Groot is a giant walking tree, and he talks... well, he says "I AM GROOT" over and over. Kind of like Hodor from 'Game of Thrones', just with more foliage....but just who is this Groot and where did get his start? Take a look after the jump for a little background info on the Terrific Tree known as Groot.

Nova Prime, Rhomann Dey and Yondu Get Character Posters For Guardians of the Galaxy!!!

Any good movie has great starring characters, but it is the strength of the supporting cast that will really cement the property as across-the-board amazing. We have been going wild hearing about the five main characters that will make up the 'Guardians of the Galaxy' (Star Lord, Rocket Raccoon, Groot, Drax and Gamora), and we were also intrigued when Ronan the Accuser and The Collector were named as villains. But who else will be making appearances/cameos in this film to fill out the character components of this film and may provide Easter Eggs  for future Marvel Cinematic movie universe films? Well it seems that the Nova Corps will play a huge role in the movie, with characters Nova Prime (played by Glenn Close) and Rhomann Dey (played by John C Reilly) occupying key positions among the intergalactic police force. Will Richard Rider (the full time hero known as Nova in the comics) be one of those cops? Maybe. But theses two alone prove that the Corps will be intricately involved in story lines for future movies to come. Then we have Yondu. Yondu was an original member of the Guardians of the Galaxy back in 1969 when the comic premiered. But in this inclination he will not really occupy that role. It seems he will be the adoptive dad-type for Star Lord, and will start Peter Quill down the path of scoundrel and law breaker before he becomes a hero. After a heist they pull together , Quill vamooses with their goods and Yondu and his gang of outlaws called the Ravagers follow him and the rest of the Guardians across the universe trying to get it back. A dual role of father figure and, later, foil for Yondu, played by director James Gunn's favorite co-contributor Michael Rooker. Can't wait to see all these characters play out on the screen... two more weeks baby! Check out the three posters after the jump....

Just Another Reason I Wish I Was A Kid Now Instead Of The 80s: Guardians of the Galaxy Halloween Costumes....

I love the fact that I grew up in the 1980s... the experience was spectacular, and our generation was the first to start to benefit from technological advancements in our entertainment (articulation in toys, animation getting better, etc). But some things were still a bit behind the advancement curve. One glaring thing has to be Halloween costumes. Halloween costumes for popular characters always existed, they were just regulated to a shitty plastic mask that covered the front of your face and went around your head with a rubber band & a smock type outfit that usually featured logos of the character being portrayed. It was generic, but it was what we had to work with and we made the best of it hoping for a day when Now a days, costume companies are trying to correct that and give kids (and some adults like me!) the costumes they deserve. Now this is why I wish I was a kid now instead of the early 80s! Need proof? Check out the new Guardians of the Galaxy costumes available for this Halloween via websites like Costume Craze after the jump...

Guardians of a Galaxy Far, Far Away by The Bloody Samoan

Mash ups make the Internet go round. And one that seems to be getting the most spins right now is the Guardians of the Galaxy/Star Wars variety. We have seen posters, trailer mash ups, and pictures of these two properties mixed up. But this one from a Deviant Artist called The Bloody Samoan has to be one of my faves. He takes the 5 Guardians and pits them with their most obvious Star Wars counterparts. Star Lord & Darth Vader? Gamorra & Leia? CHEWBACCA & DRAX!!! Rocket & Wicket is the most obvious, and also one of the best. But I thought it was real creative to go Groot & R2-D2 considering the non verbalness of both characters and using R2s body as a flower pot. Very cool mash up... this guy has a ton of other cool pieces over on his page (click here to see). Enjoy it after the jump....

'Star Wars' Gets The 'Guardian of the Galaxy' Trailer Treatment... And It Is AMAZING!

Even though Star Wars came out way back in 1977, it is still the movie of choice of most self respecting Sci Fi geeks in the world. So it is no surprise when Star Wars pops up in mash ups with current properties. But the latest instance that I saw was just to great not to share. The Unusual Suspects took the most recent Guardians of the Galaxy trailer and mashed it up with footage from the old Star Wars films, and boy are the results a ton of fun to watch! This trailer mash up captures the fun and comical essence of the Star Wars films and also highlight the superb Sci Fi style that was present in the Star Wars franchise. This makes me want to watch the original trilogy over again. Watch both the Guardians and Star Wars mashed up trailer after the jump for comparisons...

The Guardians of the Galaxy Roster Get Their Very Own One Sheets...

So Guardians of the Galaxy is hurtling towards touch down (it opens on August 1st) and anticipation is building. But with all the news about directors leaving (Edgar Wright/Ant Man) and casting news (Vincent D'Nofrio as Kingpin in the Daredevil Netflix show) they can use some good news to take peoples mind of shit. So right on schedule we get a batch of one sheets featuring the whole team of GOTG... and of course Rocket & Groot are on the same one!!! We get Drax, Gamora, Star-Lord, and Groot/Rocket... and my lord do they look awesome! You can see all four of the posters as well as the team lobby poster after the jump...

Guardians Of The Galaxy Gets A Second Trailer... I Can't Possibly Be More Excited !!!

They are the Guardians... of the Galaxy!!! Wow. I have not really yearned to watch a film for a very long time. Marvel is taking a lot of gambles with this film... using a comic as the basis for a film that almost no one outside the hardcore comic reading world knows, having a living tree and a talking raccoon as two of the five team characters, and taking their whole cinematic universe off of Earth and beyond the stars. I don't know how it is all going to shake out or if the film will be a success, but judging from how good the footage has looked and Marvel's recent track record I am not betting against it. The second trailer has arrived, and in this one we see much more of Star Lord's helmet, and what he is capable of. We also get the famous 'I am Groot' line we have all been waiting for... and a little crotch adjustment from a 3 ft raccoon. Yup, this one will be pretty great. Check out the new trailer after the jump. The movie arrives August 1st!

Mike D's 5th Annual Top 10 Anticipated Summer Movies (Not Including Sequels, Prequels and Remakes!) - The 2014 Edition

So with arrival of Captain America 2 a few weeks back and The Amazing Spider-Man 2 today, it seems Hollywood has succeeded in pushing back the "Summer Movie Season" from June 1st to mid April. But after this weekend the movies really start pouring in. Now when I do my 'Top 10 Most Anticipated Summer Movie' list I have a few ground rules. #1) No Sequels or Prequels: I love myself some sequels, prequels... pretty much all -quels. But for this list I leave them off. Cap was high on my list. So is Spidey, X-Men, How To Train Your Dragon 2, Transformers 4 (which I really am looking forward too) and others. But I will stick with first timers for this list. #2) No Remakes: Make no mistake about it, Godzilla has me more intrigued then pretty much ANYTHING coming out in the next few months. But it is old hat, so it stays off the list. So will something like Jersey Boys, which although is a 1st time film its a remake of a play. #3) This is MY MOST ANTICIPATED LIST... not a best of list, or most successful list. Strictly what I WANT TO SEE, not anything more or less.

So now that we got the rules out of the way, lets get right into it:

Guardians of the Galaxy Gets A Trailer... OOOOOOHHHHH, I'M HOOOOKED ON A FEELINNNNNN !!!!

When the Guardians of the Galaxy trailer was scrubbed from the Super Bowl broadcast, I began to gte concerned. How could a 2 minute trailer not be ready for a movie due out this summer? Was Marvel lacking that much confidence in a film meant to carry on the epic run the Marvel Cinematic Universe has been on? What the Fuck! But then the actual trailer came out, and... well, I must say that I owe Marvel an apology. I owe them an apology because over the past ten years they have hit film after film out of the park. I owe them an apology because they have weaved together a cohesive universe over multiple films that is constantly moving forward. And most of all I owe them an apology because they have never given me a reason to doubt them, and I started too. But after 2 minutes and 31 seconds, I realized what an idiot I am! Awesome, awesome, awesome!!! The trailer was perfect. The tone of the film seems amazing, James Gunn's style is all over this trailer. All the alien tech and characters look amazing. Drax looks rugged. Gamora sexy and deadly. Starlord... Starlord is hysterical! The highlight of course is Groot & Rocket. Rocket looks and sounds pretty spot on. The spitting also drives home the characters rudeness. Groot looks epic, and him being Rocket's muscle is probably going to lead to some really fun action scenes. I also love the simpleness of the character... its pretty spot on. Can this be any better? I don't know how. You have probably seen it already, but if not have at it after the jump. Guardians of the Galaxy hits theaters on August 1st, 2014...

Great Comics Revisited: The Rocket Raccoon Mini Series (1985)

I am someone who can't read comics month to month anymore... I can't bear to wait four weeks to continue a story, and 22 pages of an issue just don't satisfy me. So I usually let storylines build up and then read collected editions to get caught back up. I also like to back and read the classics that laid the groundwork for some of the stories being told today. So recently I decided to revisit a mini series from the golden era of comics... well, the golden era to me anyway... 1985. It is the Rocket Raccoon mini series, published in 1985 and introducing the character of Rocket to a wide spread audience in his own book for the first time. The series was written by Bill Mantlo, and the art comes courtesy of a young Mike Mignola (pencils) and Al Gordon (inks). I must have read this as a kid as the story seemed familiar to me, but I honestly can't remember... and boy does that make me sad! This is such a great series, for a variety of reasons.

Check more after the jump...

Model Callie Cosplay Takes On Gamora... Sexily, Of Course!!!!

Guardians of the Galaxy will be here sooner rather than later... and while comic geeks are dying to see what they do with Rocket Raccoon & Groot, it is some of the other characters that people should really start to get familiar with. The one that stands out to me is Gamora, the sex appeal of the team as the only woman member. Yup, she is green-skinned and mean... but don't you dare mistake her for She Hulk!!! Gamora has been around since 1975 and has a seriously checkered past in the comics that are sure to play a part in Phase II and Phase III of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Gamora is Thanos's step-daughter, and the big cosmic baddie was teased at the end of Avengers. Given that Avengers II will be The Age of Ultron, it seems like Thanos is slated to be the big baddie in Guardians instead... which is AWESOME on so many levels. I am sure that Gamora will start off loyal to her pops and maybe see the light... and she is being brought to life on the screen by the lovely Zoe Saldana. That is sure to be a treat for the eyes at the very least. As we await to Ms. Colombiana in the green body paint, to hold you over here is an excellent gallery of model Callie Cosplay bringing the sexy alien to life. She really captures the essence of the character, and her costume is perfectly close to the original. Guardians of the Galaxy hits theaters in 2014... in the meantime, we will always have Callie as Gamora...