Geek Syndicate Magazine - Issue 8 by Geek Syndicate

REVIEWS: THOR - THE DARK WORLD FIVE GHOSTS #6 DAY OF THE DOCTOR BATTLE OF THE ATOM

What Superman Means to me www.geeksyndicate.co.uk

Elysia Faces The Nuge

Just what IS Film Noir?

Marvel vs. The Bechdel Test December 2013

Cover Art: Pencils: Grant Perkins Inks: Peter Mason Colours: Darren Brown Designer: Antony McGarry-Thickitt Editors: Barry Nugent Antony McGarry-Thickitt Proof Reader: James Sims Contribuors: Antony McGarry-Thickitt Barry Nugent Casey Douglass Cat Collins CotA - Bernice & Shane Cy Dethan Darkphoenix1701 Dean Simons Ian J. Simpson Jess Hawke Laura-Jane Clements Leo Johnson Luke Halsall Margaret Bates Matt Farr Nic Wilkinson Ronald Singh Sara Westrop

Typesetting: GS Banner - Copperplate Bold Cover Text - Century Gothic Main Text - Nobile (Open Font Licence)

EDITORIAL Issue 8 of GS folks…that’s right we are still here keeping the ninjas at bay while we bring you the very best that geekdom has to offer. As it is the end of the year (but hopefully not the world), Dean takes a special look back over some of the highs and lows of geekdom (Page 24) before casting his net of expectations into next year (Page 72) . Fashion geek Jess reveals her secrets to performing cosplay miracles on a tight budget (Page 26) while Superman super fan Luke (page 77) waits in the wings to lead us on a very personal exploration of what big blue means to him. Meanwhile somewhere downtown propping up the bar in a cheap dive called “Page 17” is a down on his luck geek gumshoe risking his life and sanity as he tried to unravel the complex world of film noir. Special guest writer Cat Collins from Geeky Girls Love Scifi hijacks the entire Marvel phase one film series (Pg 56) and runs it through the Bechdel Test. No peeking Stark! There’s also a Bluffers guide

to board games, a look around a geeked out Cribb in “Geek Cribbs”, a history of Frankenstein, the GS team reveal some of their non geek loves and much more! As well as all that we have reviews, interviews, previews and features aplenty so what are you waiting for? Issue 9 will be released in March, 2014 so we look forward to seeing you then! From all of us at Geek Syndicate, thank you for supporting the magazine, web site and podcasts. Wishing you all a very

Happy Christmas! May 2014 be a treat filled barrel of geeky delight!

Barry Nugent

GS Issue 008 - Credits

Geek Syndicate Contents

Features PREVIOUSLY ON THE GEEK SYNDICATE NETWORK ... ................................................................... 4 ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: Grant Perkins ................................................................................................... 5 GEEK SYNDICATE ... Beyond the Comfort Zone .............................................................................. 7 FILM NOIR ... The Non-Genre ............................................................................................................ 17 A Look Back at 2013 ........................................................................................................................... 24 COSPLAY ON A BUDGET ... Atomic Wonder Woman .................................................................... 26 DOCTOR WHO’S BEST STORIES: Incarnations One and Two ..................................................... 40 THE BLUFFERS GUIDE TO ... Board Games .................................................................................... 51 Putting Marvel Movies To The Bechdel Test ................................................................................. 56 Achievement Unlocked... ................................................................................................................... 61 GEEK CRIBBS ... WedgeDoc .............................................................................................................. 64 The Geek Fourteen of 2014 ................................................................................................................ 72 What Superman Means To Me .......................................................................................................... 77 A History of THE Monster ... .............................................................................................................. 81 Kickstarter Project Elysia Faces the Nuge.................................................................................... 85 A Town Called Vulcan ......................................................................................................................... 95

Interviews Butterfly Gate Writer, Benjamin Reed ........................................................................................... 35 Elysia: Meet the World Builder – Serena Obhrai ........................................................................... 88

Reviews X-MEN: Battle of the Atom .............................................................................................................. 99 Tyrannosaurus Azteca (aka Aztec Rex) ........................................................................................ 104 Blood Bowl Team Management Card Game ................................................................................. 107 DOCTOR WHO: Day of the Doctor .................................................................................................. 109 THOUGHT BUBBLE ANTHOLOGY, 2013 .......................................................................................... 113 THOR: The Dark World ...................................................................................................................... 114 FIVE GHOSTS - Issue #006 .............................................................................................................. 116

Previews ELEVATOR PITCH - Butterfly Gate ................................................................................................. 117 ELEVATOR PITCH - The Magpye: Circus ........................................................................................ 124 ELEVATOR PITCH - Pirates of the Lost World .............................................................................. 132

Geek Syndicate PREVIOUSLY ON THE GEEK SYNDICATE NETWORK ... Over on our flagship website, our podcasts have been pumping out some top quality content over the last few months. To whet your appetite, here’s the show notes and links to the latest episodes (at time of publication) of the various audio offerings we make available on a regular basis... Children of the Atom (Episode 014) This month we review X-Men issue 21 ‘From Whence Comes…Dominus? (June, 1966). Following on from the previous issue, the X-Men go in search of Professor X’s old adversary Lucifer who is in the middle of his evil plan to unleash Dominus on the population of Earth. Professor X still has a fishbowl on his head, Beast addresses Jean as simply ‘female’ in a move that has feminists the world over grinding their teeth, and Cyclops puts Angel in his place with an optic blast. Drama!

Dissecting Worlds (Halloween Special: Zombies!) This month Dissecting Worlds turns it’s baleful gaze on the phenomenon of the Zombie. Joined by Phil Ambler of the Scrolls Podcast, we look at the scourge of the Walking Dead across Books, Film, TV and Video Games.

Geek Syndicate (Episode 214) Join Barry and Dave as they once more guide you through the murky underbelly of Geekdom. In our main this episode, We are joined by Stacey Whittle of the Small Press Big Mouth Podcast to talk about our shared love of Babylon 5 on its 20th anniversary.

Scrolls (V.2, Chapter 2: Off-Kilter) Hello there, thanks for joining us again on our jaunt through the joyous worlds of fantasy, science fiction and horror. Who knows what we may find? (Well I do, I suppose.)

Small Press Big Mouth (Special – How Not to Make Comics) “Things We Wish We’d Known Earlier (or: How Not To Make Comics)”. As every aspiring comic creator eventually realises, the road to sequential art success is full of pitfalls for the unwary. However, this panel discussion (recorded live at Canny Comic Con, December 8th 2012) is here to help guide you past such difficulties – by getting established comic creators to talk through their own mistakes! Stacey chairs the discussion, talking with Nigel Auchterlounie, Al Ewing, Daniel Clifford, Nigel Dobbyn, Jack Fallows and Gordon Rennie about lessons learned the hard way. Their enlightening – and sometimes hilarious – anecdotes and advice provide essential guidance for anyone with any interest in how to make comics.

The Next Level (Episode 057) Welcome to another episode of The Next Level. On the eve of the release of both the Next Gen consoles, Amaechi does a u-turn on his PS4 desires and jumps on the Xbox One and Kinect 2.0 train (Dear God please let Uncharted 4 come out on the PS3). Ant takes a day off on the Xbox One release day so he doesn’t miss the postman and Barry turns vigilante in GTA V Online. Oh yeah…. and Britain Next Top Model winner Lauren Lambert tells Amaechi her Xbox Gamertag and he stupidly forgets it.

Geek Syndicate ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: Grant Perkins

This issue’s cover was pencilled by the phenomenal Grant Perkins who uses a great stylised line in his art. Here’s a bit more information about this talented bloke, together with some more examples of his work. Here’s what Grant has to say about himself: I’m a comic book artist and writer; I work and live in South East England. My publishing credits include 2000AD, Image comics, Digital Webbing Presents, Cereal Geek, Hero Happy Hour and more. I have a degree in Fine Art and have been freelancing in the comic book field for over ten years. I have written and published the novels “Dwayne Hickenbottom and the War Boots of Doxxville”, and it’s sequel “Dwayne Hickenbottom and the Journey to the Centre of the Birth”. I am only responsible for the pencils and oil paint in the included examples of art. Any inks and colours are either credited or unknown and are only included as examples of how my work may appear once ready for print. For more examples, check out Grant’s website!

Geek Syndicate

Geek Syndicate GEEK SYNDICATE ... Beyond the Comfort Zone When you have a website and a podcast which both contain the word ‘Geek’ in the title people then begin to paint a picture in their head about the people behind that label. They believe they know exactly what the kind of stuff these “geeks” like to read and watch. Some people will even go so far as to make the assumption that if it not fantasy or science fiction or any of their offshoots, then your typical geek won’t give it the time of day. Well we here at GS (really wanted to say GS towers then), like most geeks, are a diverse bunch and there many things beyond the expected that we get a kick out of. I decided that it might be an idea to tackle those misconceptions head on while giving you lovely readers a little peek into the inner workings of the GS team and the kind of stuff we get up to when we’re not immersed in geekdom. The brief that I gave to the team was to pick TV shows, films or books that would be considered outside of the traditional comfort zone that has been drawn up by society for Geeks. This is their response...

TV - Grand Designs Overview: This is a documentary program presented by Kevin McCloud following people who are embarking on self-building projects. It follows them through the highs and lows of the construction of their dream designer homes.

Image © Mann Williams, 2008

James

Why I love it: I just love the thought of being able to build my own house. For geek heaven the thought of a dedicated gaming room fully kitted out and a bespoke cinema room would be great - even though this is highly unlikely to ever become a reality (come on lottery win). TV - Live Sport Overview: If there is ever live sport on television, I will almost always happily watch it (much to my wife’s displeasure). This mainly comes in my support of Arsenal FC, but I’ll happily sit in front of the TV watching any sport, whether it be rugby, motor sport, tennis, golf, snooker, cycling etc. I’ve even been caught watching curling (well it was the Winter Olympics).

One of over one hundred Grand Designs seen on TV

Why I love it: Anything can happen at any moment

Geek Syndicate Matt TV -Justified

Why I Love It: I’m constantly amazed Justified doesn’t get more attention in the age where everyone is on the lookout for quality modern crime drama. Based on a character created by Elmore Leonard, Justified must be the coolest show on TV, its cast always ready with the right move and the right quip at the right moment. The script unfailingly sparkles, and the ensemble surrounding Olyphant’s just-on-the-rightside-of-the-law lawman frequently upstages him (no mean feat). Add to this a series of storylines with thematic depth and emotional resonance; this is one of the highlights of my viewing year.

Image © FX, 2010

Overview: Federal Marshal Raylan Givens (Timothy Olyphant) is posted back to his home state of Kentucky after gaining a reputation as a hotheaded gunslinger with a nose for trouble. Once home however, he is unable to escape being drawn into the old feuds and rivalries of the county he grew up in.

Marshal Raylan Givens is Justified!

Casey

Image © Bulbul Films, 2005

Film - Factotum

Bukowski: Writer, Drinker, Gambler.

Overview: A film based on the writings of Charles Bukowski, starring Matt Dillon as Bukowski’s alter-ego Henry Chinaski. He is a “man of many jobs” but whose heart lies in his writing, drinking and gambling, whilst being averse to having others dictate his life. Why I love it: On the surface, it looks like a film about a waster self-destructing on alcohol, sex and wasting his talents. On a deeper level, I think it shows a strong willed character living the life that he wants to live while only giving serious effort to his writing. I am definitely not a drinker and have zero interest in gambling but something about Henry Chinaski resonates with me even though our lives are very different. Maybe I envy his single-minded drive towards his writing and his desire to experience life on his own terms, yet still being open to and embracing the unpleasant side of it all.

Geek Syndicate Image © Harper Collins, 1999

Book -The Dice Man (Luke Rhinehart) Overview: The Dice Man by Luke Rhinehart is the story of a psychiatrist who decides to see if letting his life choices be dictated by a dice roll helps him lead a freer life. It sends him down a very dark path that reveals the baser side of his nature and destroys his life as he once knew it.

Image © Harper Collins, 1999

Why I love it: I think I love it because it is incredibly interesting how we limit ourselves by our own view of the world. The dice are used to push the envelope, and while they send Luke to the depths of depravity, they can only, after all, choose from the options given to them. Maybe I like it because I can’t help wondering if in another pair of hands, they would give better results. It is also darkly thrilling to think that they turned a relatively conventional man into the raping deviant he ends up becoming. Or was he that all along?

Rik Mayall and Adrian Edmundson in Bottom

Can one live by throws of the dice?

TV -Bottom Overview: Bottom is a BBC TV series starring Rik Mayall and Adrian Edmondson as Richard Richard and Eddie “Elizabeth” Hitler, two shirt wearing thugs idly trying to make their way through life with the least effort possible, and the maximum amount of booze, birds and fun. Why I love it: It makes me laugh like nothing else I’ve seen. The comic timing between Richard and Eddie and the writing is just brilliant and I feel like laughing at them even when they are silent. Their crappy flat looks rancid and the food they eat, scrapes they get into and crimes they commit are just mad. At least once an episode they will fall out and end up beating each other up in a cartoon violence kind of way; I guess they are the live action version of an Itchy and Scratchy cartoon from The Simpsons. I also find myself quoting them at any opportunity which always brightens my day a little, even if lost on the person I might be talking to. Thank you for reading, and might I say, that’s a smashing blouse you are wearing! 9

Geek Syndicate Image © Bulbul Films, 2005

Barry TV -The Good Wife (Channel 4) Overview: This is a legal drama which stars Julianna Margulies as Alicia Florrick, the wife of a disgraced politician who after playing the dutiful wife and mother for thirteen years decides to return to practice law. In the first season she starts at the bottom of the ladder and subsequent seasons chart her progress up the ladder. Why I love it: I love Margulies portrayal of Alicia Florrick in this show. She’s both strong and vulnerable at the same time. She also has a bit of a dark side to her as well which we see more of the higher she climbs the business ladder.

Image © Penguin Books, 1988

The problem with many other shows I what is that they invest so much into the central character it is to the detriment of the supporting cast. Not so with the Good Wife which has a solid cast of regulars and a great rotating cast of minor characters like the fiendishly brilliant Michael J Fox as a duplicitous lawyer who is not above using his disability to win a case or two.

Lose yourself to the draw of the bow

From wife and mother to legal professional

Book -Zen and the Art of Archery Overview: This book is the result of the author’s six year quest to learn archery in the hands of Japanese Zen masters. It is an honest account of one man’s journey to complete abandonment of ‘the self’ and the Western principles that we use to define ourselves. Professor Herrigel imparts knowledge from his experiences and guides the reader through physical and spiritual lessons in a clear and insightful way. Yes I nicked that blurb from Amazon. Why I love it: I read this back when I was many, many years younger and on first reading thought it was just a kind of martial arts training book. I had no idea that I was being exposed to the idea of Zen. Although a lot of it went over my head on that first reading there

Geek Syndicate Image © BBC Worldwide, 2013

was something about it that I loved. It was also one of the first non-fiction books I read outside of my studies. It opened my eyes to different ways of thinking and each time I reread it I find something new to ponder over. It also led me to read ‘The Art of War’ a few years later. TV - The Great British Bake Off (BBC One) Overview: A team of home bakers from various parts of the UK get stuck in a large marquee. Once there they must bake various dishes week after week until someone is crowed the winner. Think Gladiator with baked goods.

Image © ABC, 2012

Why I love it: This has only been a very recent addition to my TV but it’s now a firm favourite. I usually shy a away from reality based TV but GBBO is a great antidote to some inane stuff that goes in shows. Also a lot of the TV I watch, whilst solid entertainment, can be incredibly bleak at times (yes Game of Thrones and Criminal Minds I mean you) so it’s nice to have something which is inoffensive, light and in which people seem to go out of their way to be nice to each other. There’s no gunfire or explosions but there’s a serious level of tension in the air when a judge is about to deliver a verdict on someone’s signature dish.

Another hopeful faces the Sharks in their Tank

Bake Off. Make sure you avoid a Soggy Bottom

Leo TV- Shark Tank (ABC) Overview: People pitch a product or business idea to a group of “sharks”, multi-millionaire investors and entrepreneurs featuring the likes of FUBU creator Daymond John and Dallas Maverick owner Mark Cuban. If any of the sharks bite (sorry for that joke), a deal can be made where they shark can invest in the contestants business for a share of the company or profits. If no one is interested, the contestant leaves empty handed. Why I love it: That’s honestly pretty hard to say. I’m not much for reality television, but there’s something about people pitching what amounts to their life works to a group of millionaires in hopes that just one might give them money that really makes it an interesting show. Beyond the sheer fascination with the premise, there have been some incredibly cool products featured on the show, including

Geek Syndicate Image © BBC Worldwide, 2013

this company that makes furniture specifically for geeks! Book - The Tao of Pooh Overview: Benjamin Hoff uses Winnie the Pooh and his friends to explain Taoism in a simple way to those who may not know much about it. Hoff uses Pooh as an analogy, as he seems to exemplify the ideas and principles of wei wu wei, the Taoist concept of “effortless doing,” and pu, the concept of being open to but unburdened by experience. Hoff uses both excerpts from Milne’s Winnie the Pooh books and Taoist texts to reinforce his ideas and analogies.

Image © Picador, 2001

Why I love it: I’m not religious, but books on various religions fascinate, and the weirder the better. Using childhood book characters to explain an Eastern belief system largely unknown to me? Perfect. It’s simple, informative, and everyone loves Winnie the Pooh. The companion book Te of Piglet further explains Taoist principles using Pooh’s lovable little friend Piglet.

Winnie the Pooh - Philosophy made simple

Jess Book- Bridget Jones Diary (Helen Fielding) Overview: The life of a single thirty-something single woman living in London. Bridget’s diary shows her life over the course of a year or so, looking at her work life, love life and the frequent trips she makes to various relative’s houses for parties, dressed in wonderful twopiece suits her mother wore in the sixties that resemble a pair of curtains. Why I love it: Bridget Jones is hilarious and one of the few books I can read over and over again without getting bored of it! I read it on a loop during my first year at university.

Have you met Miss Jones?

Image © Penguin, 2007

Geek Syndicate Book - The Pleasure of Finding Things Out (Richard Feynman). Overview: The best short works of Nobel Prize winning physicist, Richard Feynman. It includes lectures on all different branches of physics and the role he played in the Manhattan Project, as well as talks and interviews with other scientists and journalists. Why I love it: That book was definitely more of a challenge than Bridget Jones, but I love that kind of stuff! Science is awesome and Feynman was known for his ability to communicate science effectively to the general public. Check out his lectures on Youtube.

Image © Channel 4, 2012

Collected interviews, papers and speeches

TV Show - Come Dine With Me (Channel 4) Overview: A group of four or five strangers dine at each other’s houses over the course of a week and rate each other on their nights. The winner earns a £1,000 prize! Why I love it: Dave Lamb’s commentary is hilarious. Film – Heartbreaker Overview: A French film with Andrew Lincoln from The Walking Dead. It’s about a guy who breaks up couples for a living if one of the couple isn’t happy. Sounds odd, but it works.

Strangers meet to eat... and win £1,000 Cash

Why I love it: The film’s a little predictable, but really funny and I highly recommend it! French cinema has some great little gems and this is one of them!

Geek Syndicate Image © BBC Books, 2013

Antony TV- Rick Stein’s India Overview: Chef Rick Stein (most famous for his seafood dishes) takes a tour around the regions of India to learn more about the culinary history of each region, eating and cooking as he goes. In essence, he’s looking to find out what “curry” is to the Indian nation and find the perfect curry

Image © Arrow, 2004

Why I love it: Despite appearances -I’m six foot tall and ten stone giving me the appearance of a skin-laden skeleton - I am a big fan of well cooked food. I watch many cookery shows and have picked Rick Stein’s latest series here because it was his programs that got me into enjoying food and enjoying cooking. Rick has a passion about all food and a manner that I find really approachable. He’s a food geek and one I would love to meet. I’m not a curry eater, but this series excited me about Indian food in a way I always doubted I could be.

Romance in Regency Times

A culinary tour finding far more than just Curry

Sara Book- Regency Buck by Georgette Heyer Overview: It’s Regency London and siblings Judith and Perry Taverner have been left in the care of their new guardian, The Earl of Worth. Instead of the expected doddery old geezer they find that the earl is a handsome and grumpy young aristocrat. Judith obviously hates him, so clearly they fall in love after some hijinks and misunderstandings. Why I love it: I love Georgette Heyer, specifically her Regency Romance novels. The plots are pretty by the numbers, (girl meets man she can’t stand, then falls in love) but she writes really strong well rounded female characters. The best of these is Judith Tavener. She drives her own horses around London and causes a stir in nineteenth century London doing it. Judith is sharp, witty and headstrong without becoming the typical simpering twit we get in so many period novels. I unashamedly love

Geek Syndicate Image © Sky, 2012

the romance and the humour of these books. They’re also so familiar, like a warm old blanket I wrap round myself when I’m feeling a bit under the weather. TV-Hunderby Overview: a stonking send up of BBC Period dramas by ‘Nighty Night’s’ Julia Davis. The story follows the mysterious Helene, who washes up on the shores of the tiny town of Hunderby in the eighteen thirties. Why I love it: This programme is hilarious, it is the most brilliant piss take of all those soppy Period Dramas the BBC love to recycle (and I say this with love). Rufus Jones is the stand out comic in this. He plays the repressed Dr. Foggarty, who has fallen in love with the mysterious Helene, though he cares for his plain disabled wife. His catchphrase of ‘Hush-Ho’ has become a staple in my house. It’s full of slapstick and stupid jokes. When Helene is being shown round her new home she hears groaning through a locked door. She asks what the noise is and the housekeeper replies ‘it must be Owls ma’am. They do defecate through their mouths’. ‘Nuff said!

Strangers meet to eat... and win £1,000 Cash

Well done you have survived the journey beyond the Comfort Zone. If you have read and enjoyed this little slice of the Geek Syndicate mindset then play along and send us your picks for Beyond the Comfort Zone to thegeeks@geeksyndicate.co.uk. Our fave ones we will run on the GS website.

Barry Nugent

Geek Syndicate

FILM NOIR ... The Non-Genre Introduction In Ridley Scott’s 1982 classic Blade Runner, the themes of film noir run deep: the story of a put-upon detective (Harrison Ford’s eager-to-retire Deckard) who is lost in a world of forces he can barely understand, never mind control. He is a man under the spell of a classic femme fatale (Sean Young). In this version of the future designed by Scott and concept artist Syd Mead and influenced by Philip K Dick, comic artist Moebius and William S Burroughs, a series of coincidences and almost predestined decisions lead Deck-

ard down various unsteady paths to an unforgettable climax. Ford plays the downbeat character as if his life depended on it, and Young’s Rachel is simultaneously cold and enchanting. It’s a film about redemption, moral dilemmas and fatalism. It’s about a noirish rain soaked capitalist future city. And yet Blade Runner is known primarily as science fiction. Of course this is all well known. Blade Runner is held, and quite rightly so, in the highest of esteems amongst critics and fans alike. Most science fiction fans know that it has noir-

like qualities, although some might attribute that to Ford’s voice over on the original cinematic release. But what is film noir? Is it a genre within its own boundaries, or a wider cinematic experience that can be applied to other genres? What, indeed, is genre?

Defining Film Noir “All you need for a movie is a gun and a girl” - attributed to a journal entry by Jean-Luc Godard in 1991.

Geek Syndicate Good start, but surely there’s more to it? Of course there is. One thing that is certain, however, is that no singly accepted definition exists for film noir. Some might argue it is not a genre at all, rather it is a motif or a style. After all, there are noirs that are comic book films (Batman 1989, Dir: Tim Burton), westerns (Man of the West 1958, Dir: Anthony Mann), even musicals (Carmen Jones 1954, Dir: Otto Preminger) and others. For some it is about style and atmosphere. For others, it is a certain characterisation and content. But what is it that makes film noir, noir?

Your classic film noir, then, should contain many of the following tropes. Moods, themes and characters: someone down on their luck; an almost B-movie sensibility; existential crises, fleeting moments of success, often cruelly taken away; shades of grey and moral ambiguity within each main character; ambiguous endings; clever subtexts; an uncomfortably peculiar American-ness; night scenes full of smoke and shadows and rain; a nagging sense of claustrophobia; street locations,

Image © RKO Radio Pictures, 1947

I think one of the classic tropes of noir is in fact its inherent intangibility. It might be easy to spot a noir film while watching it, but it’s not so easy to describe why. It’s about atmosphere, emotion, mood and tone. Coincidence

and paranoia. An overwhelming sense that things are out of control, yet might be happening for a reason. Sometimes they might be about the little man being controlled by larger unseen forces that are not understood. Sometimes they are about the throw of a dice.

“and then she walked in ...” The Detective and the Dame (Out of the Past)

usually fogbound; neorealist dialogue and use of the street slang of the time; flashbacks; voiceovers; drinking, especially shorts; rumpled suits; a crime, often of or for passion; and of course, the beautiful femme-fatale. What is interesting about almost all previous works about film noir (including this piece) is that they all begin with asking a question. They ask “just what is film noir?” They debate and they explain. They never tell. Film noir films have a particular oddness about them and that’s why they are what they are.

A Brief History Lesson The origins of film noir can probably be traced back to the pulp novels of the nineteenthirties that featured hardboiled detectives and prohibition-style gangsters. However, you also need to consider the influence of German expressionist cinema and the films of Fritz Lang (especially M, 1931 starring Peter Lorre) and French experimental and realist cinema of the time, as typified by Jean Renoir. However, there are several key writers that really form the foundations, or the springboards (to mix metaphors) of noir. Three in particular stand out. These are James Cain, Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler. Hammett, who wrote one of the classics of film noir – The Maltese Falcon (1941 Dir: John Huston) –

Geek Syndicate

was amongst the first to take crime fiction away from cheap detective-based fiction. He was particularly known for his realistic dialogue and tough characters. The flims were also in the first person, narrated by the main character, who was usually the one in trouble. This meant that the reader could really feel the danger, passion or other emotion directly. Meanwhile, Chandler was all about character and mood. Steamy Los Angeles and the misogynistic, wise-cracking, almost emotionless private investigator could be said to be his inventions. Cain, on the other hand, put the criminals at the forefront, rather than the good guys, while still almost always being the victims themselves. Not victims of crime but victims of circumstance.

The first film that could be called film noir will always be questioned. Is it the first version of The Maltese Falcon (1931, Dir: Roy Del Ruth) or the aforementioned M? These films do have some of the elements of noir, but they don’t really bind the whole. Some say it is not until 1940’s Stranger on the Third Floor (Dir: Boris Ingster) that noir was recognised. In this film (which this correspondent has not seen) a journalist is haunted by uncertainty following a murder trial and his world spirals out of control. It features a surreal dream sequence, murder and a style similar to German expressionism. What-ever came first; the next few decades became littered with cinematic classics under the banner of noir. There are dozens of great films that have sprung from these inauspicious loins.

The Archetype • Detour, 1945 Starring: Tom Neal and Ann Savage, Dir: Edgar G. Ulmer 67 mins. The movie starts off with an unshaven man in a crumpled suit walking down the highway. He soon finds himself upsetting everyone in a coffee shop when a particular tune comes on the jukebox: the one that reminds him. That tune. Always that tune. So he remembers and shadows draw in around him and light hits his eyes and we’re back to the beginning, all voice-over and foreboding. We’re back when he was a pianist in a club and as he says “I was an ordinary healthy guy and she was an ordinary healthy girl and when you put those together you get an ordinary healthy romance”. 19

Geek Syndicate Of course, this being noir, things don’t stay ordinary or healthy for very long. After an idea from out of the blue and a subsequent hitchhiking trip and then... there is the coincidence... and then as some conversation from the film explains... “Not much luck?” “Sure, all bad!’ Then there was a woman, a scheme and a murder. All the tropes are present: Fog drenched street lights and murky shadows; night-time driving (probably shot at daytime with a filter); razor-sharp dialogue and slang; feisty femme-fatale; plenty of smoking and the drinking of shorts; cash; ambitious plots; cops; rain; greed; and of course, murder. The acting can’t be

described as top notch and the directing will never win awards, but you don’t notice. You’re hooked to the poor schmuck’s story. Detour is not a long film but it does contain all the essential elements for a film-noir. Small but perfectly formed.

The (Other) Ten Greatest Film Noirs • The Maltese Falcon, 1941 Starring: Tom Humphrey Bogart and Mary Astor, Dir: John Huston 100 mins. Sam Spade, private eye, is hired to protect a woman but after his partner is shot, everything gets dicey. Everyone is after the little black bird and seductive conversations are everywhere. Is Spade in love? This film features incredible dialogue, an almost pointless plot, moral am-

biguity, loneliness and an untrustworthy dame. • Double Indemnity, 1944 starring: Fred MacMurray, Barbara Stanwyck and Edward G. Robinson, Dir: Billy Wilder 107 mins. An ordinary insurance man meets a seductive blonde, falls in love and plots to kill her husband. But does his boss suspect him? Has he been taken for a ride? Is there no way out of this fix? This features a man whose life is spiraling out of control, a doomed romance, murder, loose morals and an untrustworthy dame. • The Killers, 1946 Starring: Burt Lancaster and Ava Gardner, Dir: Robert Siodmak 103 mins. Two mysterious killers turn up in a run of the mill town.

Geek Syndicate Their victim accepts his fate. An insurance investigator has his doubts and a love is betrayed. This film features flashbacks, dubious dealings, curiosity, coincidence, double crossing, murder and a beautiful and untrustworthy dame. • The Big Sleep, 1946 starring: Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall, Dir: Howard Hawks 114 mins.

• Night and the City, 1950 starring: Richard Widmark and Gene Tierney, Dir: Jules Dassin 101 mins. An American crook dreams of the big leagues in London. He needs to break the Mob’s monopoly. He betrays everyone to make his dream come true. This film features nihilism, a fatalistic loser, shady morals and dark shadows, and absolutely no dame, trustworthy or otherwise. • Kiss Me Deadly, 1955 starring: Ralph Meeker and Albert Dekker, Dir: Robert Aldrich 106 mins. A private eye – Mike Hammer – helps a female hitchhiker, but she ends up murdered. Oddly affected by her, he tracks down her killers and realises that everyone is after a mysterious box. This features misogyny and just plain meanness, murder, coincidences, shadows, wise-guys, (very briefly) a helpless dame, an untrustworthy dame and an absolutely killer climax.

A wealthy old man has a wild and sleazy daughter. Blackmailers threaten to ruin him by exposing her. The man hires Marlowe, who falls in love while trying to uncover the truth. This features a violent private eye being lead by his heart, a pointless plot, mobsters and gambling and a beautiful and possibly trustworthy dame.

and gangsters, sleaze and a framed dame. • The Long Goodbye, 1973 starring: Elliott Gould and Nina van Pallandt, Dir: Robert Altman 112 mins. Marlowe’s best friend is framed for murder. A highclass lady hires him to find her missing husband. The husband commits suicide, or does he? And what has this to do with his best friend? This film features sleaze, a dishevelled private eye who appears to be manipulated by a shadowy underworld, murder and a totally untrustworthy dame.

• Touch of Evil, 1958 Staring: Charlton Heston, Orson Welles and Janet Leigh, Dir: Orson Welles 95 mins. A district attorney comes to a US/Mexico border town to investigate murder and corruption. Featuring one of the best and longest opening shots in cinema history, heat so oppressive you can taste it, murder

• Chinatown, 1974 starring: Jack Nicholson and Faye Dunaway, Dir: Roman Polanski 130 mins.

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A private eye is hired by a beautiful woman to dig up the dirt on a husband, except the job is a fake and the husband is dead. The detective falls in love with the widow but gets dragged into the political underworld. This features manipulation and double crossing, murder, household utilities, rain, a doomed romance, one of the most famous reveals in movie history and a particularly untrustworthy dame. • LA Confidential, 1997 starring: Kevin Spacey, Russell Crowe and Guy Pearce, Dir: Curtis Hanson 138 mins. Three contrasting cops (the straight, the corrupt and the brutal) investigate a series of murders connected to women who look like Hollywood actresses. Featuring corruption and murder, morally ambiguous law-enforcement, several doomed romances, a series of coincidences and an untrustworthy dame. It is interesting to note that there is nothing from the nineteen-sixties or the nineteeneighties. Perhaps the psychedelic sixties and neon eighties just weren’t noir enough.

So Are Film-Noir Misogynistic?

Films

Probably. A femme fatale is usually a woman who can be described as mysterious and seductive. She is usually beautiful, although sometimes not ‘classically’ so. She charms her lovers and leads them to do her bidding. Almost all of the older film noir and many of the more recent ones feature women who have less standing than the male leads. They might get as much screen time or the best lines and the actresses may have equal billing but they are almost always the cause of the man’s downfall. That in itself is not a problem. What is a problem is that they do it by using the physical appearance along with a perceived deceptive and untrustworthy nature. None of the films above pass the Bechdel Test (it has to have at least two [named] women in it; who talk to each other; about something besides a man), although Chinatown fulfils two of the three criteria. One of the only films that could be described as film noir and which has a strong female lead ahead of all the males is The Last Seduction (1994 Starring: Linda Fiorentino, Peter

Berg, and Bill Pullman, Dir: John Dahl). Fiorentino’s character, Bridget, uses sex to get what she wants for its own ends as well. So even in this, her sexuality and physicality play a huge part in the plot. It is often vital to the narrative of film noir that a man is seduced by a woman, either emotionally or physically. Most of the males are morally deficient and these women show the men to be weak or easily manipulated. It would be nice, however, for a filmnoir to exist with a female lead where she is neither a sexual predator nor a manipulator. But then, would it be filmnoir?

Geek Syndicate What’s Box?

The

So why is noir so worthy of attention? It is almost counter-intuitive to like it. Plots are either hackneyed or non-existent. They portray men as violent, weak and/or easily manipulated and the women are scheming liars who use their feminine wiles to get what they want. There’s something about the tropes of noir that when added to a normal film, take it to a new level of enjoyment. It’s like taking a good margherita pizza and putting the finest chillies and freshest herbs and cured Italian ham on top. Take Kiss Me Deadly as a prime example. Without the stylings of noir, it would be a run of the mill crime drama or even conspiracy thriller at best. However, when you look at the ingredients, even if some aren’t particularly palpable on their own, they combine into a fabulous whole. It opens at night.

A barefoot woman runs down a road trying to hitch a ride. She’s almost run over by the surly Mike Hammer. Then the credits role. He’s a violent misogynist. She’s heading to LA. Yet he helps her. He’s run off the road and then she’s tortured and murdered. She’s connected to something big. The bad guys are mysterious. The leader of the gang is only shown from the knees down until the final scene. Hammer happily kills a bad guy but quickly helps an old man. He can’t help himself do the right thing. The dialogue itself explains what is so great about noir. A character talks about a thread which leads to a string which leads to a rope, and another describes it as a riddle without an answer. There are scenes of tension, violence and plenty of shadows. There is a sparkling naturalistic dialogue and interesting insight, giving the film more depth than you’d want to believe. There is the dishevelled and drunken private eye. There is even the untrustworthy dame, although not a classically beautiful femme fatale. Then, when Hammer eventually finds what the key is for, the film becomes something else, something improbable. And the moral, for there always is one in noir, of this story? Never open the box. Oh, go on then...

Ian J Simpson

Geek Syndicate A Look Back at 2013

The big events of Marvel and DC were one example of geek frustration. Age of Ultron, which had been teased for some time in the Marvel Comics Avengers’ books fell flat. Brian Michael Bendis has a knack for handling character driven stories and a mixed record when it comes to event comics - for every Siege success, there was a Secret Invasion flop. It therefore came as no surprise that Age of Ultron didn’t quite hit the mark. On the bright side, the fallout had a rather far reaching effect that is currently rocking the Ultimate Comics universe with Hunger and Cataclysm. On the DC Com-

Image © Marvel Comics, 2013

This last year had its share of hits, misses and surprises on the geek front. As I pore back over the list that I compiled for the Geek Syndicate Magazine in late 2012 (Issue 005 – ed.), I note how it was filled with some stabs in the dark and some hopeful successes. Some of which made good. The controversial Superior Spider-Man comic series took off, Marvel Cinematic Universe Phase 2 launched well with Iron Man 3 and Thor: The Dark World, the Young Avengers returned with a hipster groove, the Doctor Who 50th anniversary year came up trumps with news and treats, and GTA V landed to critical and commercial success. Unfortunately 2013 also had a fair few things that didn’t quite cut the mustard. ics front, the big event ‘Trinity War’ was a winding build up to a rather different, somewhat unexpected, event – Forever Evil, where the bad guys take over the DC Universe courtesy of the warped versions of the Justice League of Earth 3. The latter event will carry into 2014 but it was rather annoying to see a debut event of the DC New 52 be a mere six-part prologue to another event. DC Comics’ Threshold was a large disappointment. On paper it should have worked - Keith Giffen, a writer (and artist) of talent was to produce a new intergalactic series that would

take advantage of the treasure trove of DC cosmic characters. It had the potential to match his successful Annihilation event which reinvigorated the space adventures of the Marvel Comics universe…and indirectly led to the return of the Guardians of the Galaxy (who are getting their own movie in 2014). What could go wrong?

A lot of things apparently. DC Comics’ fortunes took a bad turn as disenfranchisement by fans, some creators, and growing bad press continued to bleed readers from many titles. The quality of many of the fiftytwo series printed by DC was proving sub-par, as Threshold proved a woeful example of. What should have been an exciting series was in fact a meandering time waster where somehow a life and death struggle was boring to read and had not a single interesting character in sight. The cancelation of the series came as no surprise to many. Xbox One and PS4 were finally announced at May’s E3 2013, bringing an end to the decadelong previous generation. The

Geek Syndicate

There were some other major surprises. Nintendo pulled

a fast one with the announcement of their 2DS, a 3D-less version of their 3DS handheld console in August. Understandably many on the interweb thought it was a late April Fool’s joke. It is to Nintendo’s credit that the console’s October launch coincided with the release of kid friendly Pokemon X and Y, navigated round the previous concerns of the use of 3D on young, underdeveloped eyes, and came at a rock solid entry price point that it added to the year long Nintendo 3DS victory lap as audiences flocked to play games like Fire Emblem and Animal Crossing. It also played and felt pretty darn good in the hands too. On the film front a surprise came in October-November as Alfonso Cuarón’s Gravity, starring Sandra Bullock and George Clooney. This film brought an accessible science fiction story that was a solid

Image © Geeky Gadgets 2013

big surprise in the announcements was how big a leap Sony managed to make with its new console. Last generation, the PS3 was a faltering underdog that only managed to find its feet sometime after the initiative of Microsoft’s Xbox 360 had dominated the market. Coming at a solid price point, with an appealing focus on gaming and games development, rather than multimedia gambits, and a nice nod to indie developers (and the preowned games scene), PS4 solidly scored with the preorder crowd. Xbox One, on the other hand, faltered. Being more expensive, an excessive focus on multimedia entertainment than gaming, and some significant mixed messaging and bad press, Microsoft spent the latter part of 2013 playing catch up – mainly through plentiful U-turns. 2014 could become the decider for this rivalry as they duke it out postlaunch.

and tense drama in its own right. Meanwhile on the comic front, while Age of Ultron may have disappointed, Jonathan Hickman built up a complex space epic with Infinity in the latter half of 2013. Combining elements from his Avengers and New Avengers books, Hickman pulled off a rock-solid plot driven story of galactic proportions that could lead to some interesting themes in his continuing tenure on the Avengers in 2014. 2013 may have been a mixed bag at times but there was certainly something good and unexpected to discover.

Dean Simons

Geek Syndicate

Image © DC Comics, 2013

COSPLAY ON A BUDGET ... Atomic Wonder Woman

The Costume: Atomic Wonder Woman From DC’s Infinite Crisis

I’ve only been cosplaying for a year or so now, but I love it. I started off with a partially complete Wonder Woman costume that I made myself and developed it further for each convention I went to. Finally, it got to the point where I didn’t want to add more to it. So what next? Back when DC Infinite Crisis was announced, I fell in love with Atomic Wonder Woman. Unconventional with her ‘STOP’ sign armour, tie skirt and badass makeshift chainsaw, she still showed the strength and power of the original Wonder Woman but in a completely new way. I decided that Atomic Wonder Woman would be my next stage in developing my Wonder Woman cosplay!

My previous costumes hadn’t cost me too much - I bought cheapish fabrics or had a rummage through my fabric boxes to find what I needed and made the tiara and bracelets from cardboard. Very basic stuff that turned out quite well! I think I spent around £20 in total on the finished costume (minus my Wonder Woman Converse, which were £45. But I don’t really count them as part of my costume as I wear them nearly everyday). Atomic Wonder Woman was going to be a very different story. She has so many different components to her costume, a lot of which aren’t made from fabric. I wanted to try and make the entire thing myself. I prefer homemade costumes to shop bought ones any day! I think it shows that you really care about the character you’re portraying and also, it’s wonderful when people compliment you on your work. I’d been watching a lot of Just Cos on Nerdist and liked the idea of making my costume on a budget. After all, I am a student, which dramatically cuts my funding for cosplay. Being a fashion student, there’s no excuse for me to not make my own costume.

Geek Syndicate Image © DC Comics, 2013

What You Have and What You Need Firstly I made a list of all the things I already had that I could use for the costume. This would mean I wouldn’t be wasting my student loan on items I already have. After this inventory I found I had: • blue cycle shorts (I believe costumes should be accurate, but there is no way to get me parading around a convention floor in undies and a tie skirt!); • a red spotty hair band; • boots; • a suspender belt. Not a lot, but these would act as a base that I could build on. Next up, props. I looked into how other cosplayers made their gear and most of them use latex moulds and other fun stuff. I didn’t (and still don’t) know much about this, but I do know how to do a good papier maché. Ok, so I had to hope it wouldn’t rain over

This collectible statue shows the full detail of the costume

MCM weekend (PHA. We’ll get to that later). But, I can papier maché for free. Props I needed for the costume included: • 1x badass chainsaw; • 2x spiky knee pads; • 2x licence plate arm things; • 1x moulded ‘STOP’ sign arm thing, made of 4 pieces; • 1x bra that resembled an American football cut into two halves. (I was not going to use a real football. I’m cosplaying Wonder Woman. Not a pointy boobed Madonna.)

Atomic Armour Getting the materials for these was pretty easy. I had a load of cardboard boxes I’d used for moving all my stuff to university so I just cut them up. Or you can go to your local supermarket and ask for boxes. They’ll be happy to give them to you! I’d be using these for the armour and part of the chainsaw. The idea was to papier maché the boxes to create texture, and then paint over them.

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WW1 arm plates in progress

Finished WW1 arm plates

I got all my newspapers from the tube at the end of the day when everyone was done with them. Again, all free. But after a couple of trials, the papier maché wasn’t drying as quickly as I’d hoped it would, and the cardboard inside was still soaking. Plan B. I went to my local art shop with the intention of buying some sort of plaster I could mould. I came across Modroc, which I’ve used before. It’s a plaster of Paris bandage that is used to make casts, holds up pretty well and dries fairly quickly. It cost me around £1.75 per roll (300cmx8cm), which seems pretty good value, although I did get through quite a few rolls…

Finished STOP sign (minus the ‘stop’) shoulder armour

THAT chainsaw… So that’s the shell of the armour all done. Next up: the chainsaw. The only way I can describe it is an iron railing that Wonder Woman has pulled from the ground (along with a slab of concrete), with a chainsaw taped and tied to the top. I had no idea where to get an iron railing. But there are loads of long cardboard rolls that used to have fabric on back home where I work. I could spray paint it to look like a signpost. Done. I made the main block of the chainsaw where the motor would sit from a cardboard shell with a toilet roll handle and slit at the top for the blade. Base structure for chainsaw

Geek Syndicate Next up was the concrete base. I did end up using papier maché for this, as I started making it earlier so it had more time to dry. I asked around friends and family for any unwanted polystyrene that had been used for packaging. MCM is over and there is still polystyrene in my room waiting to be binned. That’s how much I was given!

First stages of papier maché concrete block

Making a mess of the house

I broke the polystyrene into chunks and bound it together with papier maché. Once it was dry, I coated the thing in Modroc to give it a crisper finish and make it easier to paint. For the chainsaw blade, I was hoping to use foam. I found a good thick piece that I could carve into and sand down in the recycling at work, but when I went to get it at the end of my shift, it was hidden under piles of other rubbish. Very annoyed, I ended up buying a couple of sheets of 4mm thick foam. After a couple of attempts at sandwiching foam teeth in between the two pieces, I finally had a decent looking blade, even if it did take a day to dry. Badass chainsaw

Geek Syndicate The Top The top of Atomic Wonder Woman’s outfit is the same red as her original costume but in a kind of stretch jersey, which has no support at all, along with an American football bra, leather straps and buckles. I bought a £4 bra from Primark and sewed some fake leather my flatmate had around the back and made two crossover straps. Then I did a bad thing. I got ill. When I get ill, I do silly things. I needed buckles for the back straps; either three or four and two of them needed to be fancy ‘D’ shaped ones. This is the one thing I messed up on for my cosplay on a BUDGET. I went to central London, full of cold and went to one of the most expensive haberdasheries EVER, where they charge VAT separately. I spent around £25 on brass buckles. TWENTY-FIVE POUNDS. That’s about three weeks of food. I’m never going shopping ill again. Here’s a cheaper way of doing it: Ebay. They have vintage bashed up looking brassy ones too, which look more aged. You can also buy new ones for a couple of quid each or buy job lots for around £10. If I’d left more time for postage and had not had a fuzzy head then this is the approach I’d have taken. I do think, however, that if I were a serious cosplayer with more money to invest in my costumes I would have bought the pricier buckles anyway. They are a great detail and a wonderful addition to the costume. Avoiding my shiny buckles, I plastered the cups of the bra in Modroc and left to set over a day. The water from the plaster soaks into the bra, meaning that although the Modroc itself may be dry, inside the bra isn’t, so you have to let it dry fully to keep the shape.

American Football top

Geek Syndicate Kneepads That Make the Point & Mismatched Armbands Spiked knee pads: I bought a pair of regular knee pads for about £3, put some paper cones and Modroc on them, then spray painted them. It’s that easy. Atomic Wonder Woman has a different armband for each arm: one leather and one a sports sock. The sports sock I bought as a pair for £2, cut the foot off one, left it in a flower bed to get rained on over a couple of days then left it to dry. For the other armband, I took a strip of fake leather from the piece my flatmate gave me, doubled it over and sewed it into a tube shape.

A Wonderful Tie Skirt The tie skirt was more expensive than I was expecting it to be. I knew I was going to raid the charity shops, as that was the cheapest way. But it turns out that charity shops in London are way more expensive than back home in the South West of England. The best deal I got was three ties for £5. It still meant I had to spend around £20 on the skirt, which was more than I would have liked to!

Deadly knee pads

Essential Extras for an Amazonian Warrior Separate stand-alone items I bought were: • yellow scarf for the front of the top from Beyond Retro, £2; • brown belt from a charity shop back home, £2.50; • blue tights, £4; • red gloves, £4; • red top from H&M, £3; • 1m of thick chain I wrapped around my arm, about £6.50. My left arm was dead by the end of the day. I also spent a bit on arty stuff like spray paint, regular paint and tape, but I personally don’t see these as a huge waste of money. I’m an art student so I can use these things for future projects. I bought:

Battling with tie skirt

Geek Syndicate • 3x cans of spray paint, £7 each; • 2x large rolls of coloured/striped tape, about £4 each; • 1x tube of brown acrylic paint from Cass Art, about £2; • Yellow rope, about £4. I also went to Cass Art on a specific day and they gave me a box of free stuff, including red spray paint and blue acrylic paint, which I used on the armour.

Emergency Cosplay (On an Even Bigger Budget)! Being a fashion student, I don’t finish projects until the night before they’re due and I had a chainsaw malfunction on the Friday evening before MCM. This called for emergency cosplay. Enter: Shaun of The Dead costume. I found a black skirt, white shirt, long grey socks and brogues. I got a picture of Shaun’s ‘sales adviser’ badge and changed it to my name, printed it off and found the £8 cricket bat I’d bought for Halloween and covered it and myself in the fake blood I’d bought from Claire’s Accessories for £3.

My Shaun of the Dead and Pea’s Mime Artist emergency cosplay

Shaun/Jess of the dead with Capt. Jack emergency cosplay

Geek Syndicate BOOM. £11 cosplay! Saturday at MCM, I had no wardrobe malfunctions. Yay! Except they’ve gotten very strict on costume weapons since last year and I got my bat confiscated. Boo.

Atomic Wonder Woman Makes Her Debut A weather warning of storms had been issued for Saturday night and Sunday evening around London. When I woke up Sunday morning, it was wonderful and sunny! I got into my Atomic Wonder Woman gear and headed off to MCM. I had to run for the first bus and managed to get the six foot seven inch chainsaw on the bus with no problems whatsoever. However, getting off the bus, the biggest gust of wind EVER broke the blade off my chainsaw. I want into panic mode and ran to buy superglue and tape, knowing they wouldn’t be much help. We managed to get the blade reattached, but it was still pretty unstable. Not great for trying to move through a big crowd on the convention floor! It held up for half the day but I couldn’t keep an eye on it for any longer. People still seemed to like the costume and it got a great response, despite the casualty! To see the finished costume, check out the photograph on the following page, where Atomic Wonder Woman makes a debut appearance with Classic Wonder Woman at MCM Expo.

To Sum Up In total, I think I spent about £80 on materials for Atomic Wonder Woman (over a quarter of which was on those buckles!), £11 for Shaun of The Dead and around £30 on what I call ‘arty stuff’ which I’ll use again for future projects. A total spend of £121. Considering the amount of detail and work I put into this piece of cosplay (and the fact I had to create a second costume on the fly), I don’t think that’s too bad. But it’s not the best budget cosplay… The main culprits in the stupidly expensive department were the buckles, but I know where to go next time if I need to use more in my next costume! There are still a few tweaks I’d like to make to this costume, so I think I’ll be developing it again for next MCM! Maybe I can find a better way to get that chainsaw to stay put…

Jess Hawke Photography:

Jess Hawke Patricia Gomes

Geek Syndicate

INTERVIEW

Butterfly Gate Writer, Benjamin Reed 35

Geek Syndicate Founded in 2009, Improper Books is a UK based comic imprint that focuses on stories that have their foundations in fairy-tale, gothic or a hint of the macabre. For a taste of their work, check out the review of Porcelein: A Gothic Fairy Tale either on the Geek Syndicate website, or in Issue 5 of this very magazine. Butterfly Gate is another of the company’s output and one that has a fairly unique style. It has no dialogue, the story conveyed through the art alone. The synopsis for the project is as follows: Butterfly Gate follows the story of two siblings who, after throwing themselves headlong into another world, must face the brutal reality that lies beyond and find their place amidst an empire built after a revolution against the Gods. If you’re interested in learning more about Butterfly Gate, we have an elevator pitch preview later this issue, but before that, here’s an interview with the book’s writer, Benjamin Reed. GS: So was it always the plan to do Butterfly Gate without dialogue? BR: Oh god, absolutely. It sprang into being as a small, 36

silent, nasty, little tale that finished where (what is now) the first episode finishes. It then gnawed away at me, and eventually sprang back up again as the fully-formed somewhat more epic tale of what happened next, still told only through the pictures. There’s never been any voice or dialogue attached to it in my head. (Apart from the voice that goes, “You must be crazy trying to do this. CRAZY”, but I try not to listen to that one). GS: Did you find the scripting process easier or harder without having to write dialogue?

ter voice. Going without that, and still selling the story and the personalities, really makes you think about the page, the structure, the panels, and all the little details, in a way that is sometimes ghosted over when you can just say the complex thought aloud to sell the scene. It’s telling that the scripts for Butterfly Gate are getting on for a third longer than my usual work. GS: I got a real C.S Lewis vibe from the opening pages. Were those books something that influenced you when developing the script? BR: Yes indeed, although by ‘those books’, I’d take that to mean the portal fantasy as a whole (e.g. protagonists cross a threshold and enter a place that is other), particularly the versions of those I grew up on - Lewis, Cooper, Garner, etc. I confess that the ‘crossing of the wall in to

BR: Harder. Not horrendously harder but it’s more of a struggle. If I were trying to tell a tale that had started out with dialogue in my head, then I think it would be impossible but this has never had that. It’s tricky though but, I’m sure, remarkably good for my writing muscles, as counterintuitive as that may sound. I’m a wordy writer, and I do love me some dialogue and I am, without flattering myself, reasonably good at charac-

the otherness’ is very much one of my themes, but I’m always interested in the alternative uses of the trope. I think one of the concepts was what would actually happen in a harsh, foreign empire to two Victorian children - it certainly wouldn’t be the romanticised version we normally see - no one would declare them royalty or, even, be kind to them. As we see in the second half of the book…

Geek Syndicate GS: The story opens in a very all ages way then descends into a much darker fare. Who would you say this book will appeal to most? BR: The all-ages opening is strictly intended as a counterpoint for the vicious sucker punch of the rest of the very adult, very nasty, story. It’s absolutely riddled with adult themes, and a series of very bad things are going to happen. It’s adult sci-fi/fantasy (depending on whether you interpret the odd stuff as science or magic) and not meant for children. GS: How many chapters are you hoping to do with Butterfly Gate? BR: Lots. It shows ten years in their lives in pre-determined intervals. See next answer for details in fact ;) GS: The story does have a slight time jump (I won’t spoil it by saying how much) which was a great way to move the plot along. Can we expect another time jump between chapters one and two? BR: No need to worry about spoilers; it’s one of the prime structural parts of the series. Each episode is six months (or so) after the last. We advance forward without explanation or any catch-up and we will find our two enfants terrible in very different circumstances every time. GS: I think readers will want to read the book two or three times to fully immerse in the story. Was that something you intended when working on the story?

BR: Hoped for more than intended, I think. Curiously, comics without dialogue actually read slower than those with (well, unless they’re just boring fight scenes anyway). We’ve certainly strived to layer some fairly complex information about the world into the panels, whilst still keeping it eminently readable (I hope). GS: Will we ever see the adult adventures of the brother and sister? BR: As mentioned before, they’re ageing in real (comics) time, so you’ll watch them grow up as we go. That’s fun for Chris to play with too. (He hates me) GS: How far along are the plans for chapter two? BR: Written and in the queue. It’s a great big long-form and complex piece, and I don’t get to fix any balls-ups with expository dialogue later, so I’m having to plan very carefully as I go. The whole piece is plotted, and there’s a chunk of it in script already. GS: You also wrote Porcelain: A Gothic Fairy Tale. The opening scenes feels like both stories are set in the same world is this true or false? 37

Geek Syndicate GS: Would you ever consider doing a special dialogue edition? BR: Absolutely not. If it needed words, I’d have written them in the first place. For more information about Butterfly Gate, check out the company’s web site

Barry Nugent

BR: That would be telling. It could just be my Victorian children’s book obsession showing through, or it might be a cunning multiversal master-plan. I’ll go as far as to say that there’s something in the story that crops up in both books, and in some other places too… GS: Even though we do not know the names of characters or locations do you have some parchment locked away with all the names and places written down? Will the readers ever get to see it? BR: Yes and no. Which is somewhat devilish of me, so I’ll explain a little further. I’m determined that the piece should stand as is, without explanations or director’s commentary. The odd name will come out here and there, as we have episode titles that will be used at some point, but that’s it. One of my most disappointing narrative experiences ever

was reading the screenplay to Donnie Darko, ages after I’d watched the excellent film. No detriment intended to the writer, but having it explained took all the magic from it (and it wasn’t half as cool as what I’d cooked up in my head). I don’t want to do that to anyone and I’m fascinated to see what people come up with without me or Chris telling them anything. GS: Can you give us some hints as to what we expect from the boy and girl next? BR: Selfless love, ruthless betrayal. Entanglements with gods and monsters. Just the usual. We’ll see much more of the world they’ve fallen into and start to meet some of the other main players we’ve caught a glimpse of in the girl’s visions. A series of unfortunate events is then likely to ensue.

Geek Syndicate

BEST STORIES: Incarnations

One and Two

NOTE: Unless stated otherwise, all images in this article are © BBC Worldwide. As a follow up from last issue’s Doctor Who ranking article, Luke and Antony thought it would be a good idea to put together some recommendations of stories which serve as “the best” for each Doctor. Naturally, opinions differed and so it was decided to continue in the same vein. Over the next few issues of Geek Syndicate magazine, Luke and Antony will each recommend a story from each Doctor’s era of the show. The aim is to offer a couple of “ins” to Doctor Who while being somewhat more analytical than perhaps would be the norm. This issue, we look at the period from 1963 to 1975. This period contains stories for the first three incarnations of the Doctor as we know him.

A Note on Nineteen Sixties Doctor Who and Our Story Choices In many ways, Doctor Who in the sixties was the pinnacle of the show. It was the time when we saw so many of the various elements of the show that we have become accustomed to appeared. The Black and White presentation helped increase the creepiness of the show when required. The crew behind the series had to utilise the money that the show had to the best it could. Of course this was true throughout the classic series’ lifetime, the show was made and budgeted as a drama series which means it was allocated the same budget as, say Z Cars – a Police Procedural show that involved no aliens or historical locations. The directors had to be clever in creating the most horrific images. Sometimes successfully – others less so, but the creativity involved was immense given the techniques available at the time. Unfortunately because many of the show’s episodes had their masters wiped so that the tapes could be re-used (amongst other reasons...there’s an article in that, I think!), there are many classic stories that no longer exist in their entirety, some only survive as soundtracks and photo stills. For this reason, we will be picking stories that exist in their entirety and are available on DVD. This does include stories for which some episodes have been re-constructed in animated form (such as The Invasion, The Ice Warriors and The Tenth Planet). 40

Geek Syndicate The First Doctor (William Hartnell 1963-1966) Luke’s Choice:

Synopsis (from TARDIS.wikia.com): The TARDIS has brought the travellers to the planet Skaro where they meet two indigenous races - The Daleks, malicious mutant creatures encased in armoured travel machines, and the Thals, beautiful humanoids with pacifist principles. They convince the Thals of the need to fight for their own survival.

The Daleks appeared in the second ever serial of Doctor Who – the story that introduced them began with the fifth episode. In the first story, An Unearthly Child, the TARDIS had travelled back to Earth’s prehistoric period. The Doctor in this story was not the Doctor we would come to know with. In fact, he’s more of an anti-hero than anything else. At one stage, our “hero” picked up a rock with the (heavily implied) intention of killing a caveman in order to escape. The Doctor does not have a change of heart in this matter, but is stopped by Ian Chesterton, one of his companions. The Daleks itself was almost not made, but was one of only three sets of scripts that were ready for production. Thirteen episodes (three stories) were originally commissioned and this story was one of them. Doctor Who creator Sidney Newman had expressly forbidden the appearance of “bug-eyed monsters” in the show and producer Verity Lambert defended them as being mutated people and not monsters. With the production and broadcast of Terry Nation’s story, we got television gold that would cement the show, and especially The Daleks, in British culture.

Joining forces with them and braving Skaro’s many dangers, they launch a two-pronged attack on the Dalek city. The Daleks are all killed when, during the course of the fighting, their power supply is cut off. It is a well-known conceit amongst Doctor Who fans and the mainstream press that until a Doctor has faced off against The Daleks he is not “The Doctor”. This was as true with William Hartnell’s first incarnation as it was with the ten (eleven by the time we finish this series!) incarnations that have followed him.

What could possibly live in this metallic city?

Geek Syndicate The Daleks opens in a way that is more reminiscent of what we have come to expect from Doctor Who. The Doctor and his companions arrive on a planet they know little about, the planet Skaro. The rest of his companions including the Doctor’s granddaughter, Susan, want to leave the planet but the Doctor is more intrigued and is desperate to see what is going on in the metallic city that they had seen in the distance. As the TARDIS team clamber through the radioactive jungle of Skaro, we too want to see what is in that city. I obviously can’t tell you what it felt like watching this in 1963 but with hindsight and the giveaway story title on the DVD cover, modern audiences will also have a level of anticipation. The Doctor deliberately sabotages the TARDIS so that our heroes cannot leave Skaro without mercury. The only place that they are likely to find what they are looking for is in the metallic city. What Terry Nation (the script writer) and directors Christopher Barry and Richard Martin did so well was build this sense of dread. Skaro’s city is claustrophobic, the short, arched doorways and narrow corridors seem to be closing in on you. Furthermore, the brilliant score adds to this sense of dread and panic. The TARDIS team get separated leaving Barbara on her own. She comes to a dead end at the end of the first episode which is in my opinion one of the best cliff-hangers ever: the music hits a chilling twang similar to the score for The Joker in The Dark Knight. We never see what Barbara is scared of but we can tell that it is horrific: her facial expressions tell the audience everything that we need to know. She clambers onto the wall, desperately, almost scratching to get through it. Before long we see the dreaded sink-plunger (nothing more) as it moves closer and closer towards Barbara in a Dalek point of view shot…and then the title music hits. It is no wonder that people in 1963 desperately wanted to know what happened next and that everyone was talking about it. The next episode started wonderfully, taking a while to show the audience what was attacking Bar42

bara. It is only when the Doctor, Ian and Susan are surrounded that we suddenly see The Daleks in all their glory. Once again, the direction is perfect. The camera is positioned low to make the squat, robotic looking Daleks seem imposing figures that would send a shiver down anyone’s spine. As the story unfolds we discover that The Daleks are hell bent at destroying their planet’s neighbours, the Thals, for no reason other than the fact that they fear what is not like themselves. From the very beginning The Daleks were the ultimate racist: Nazis in metal tanks and this is such a frightening thought. Once again, the main protagonist is not the Doctor: it is Ian who convinces the Thals to fight for their planet and their very lives. The TARDIS team join them, returning to the metallic city to retrieve the needed mercury. This serial continues to delight all the way through with some excellent cliff-hangers and the creation of the Doctor’s greatest enemy. Like every great opponent, whether in comic, film or television serial, it seemed like the Doctor had seen the last of The Daleks in this story. Obviously this was not the case. As stated in Asylum of The Daleks, The Daleks become stronger every time they face the Doctor. A good hero is only as strong as his best villain, and from this point on, Doctor Who had an intriguing, mysterious lead with a menace that has been passed down through generation after generation. A menace that echoed the Second World War and continues to echo everything civilised people should oppose.

Menaced in a POV shot - a great cliffhanger!

Geek Syndicate Antony’s Choice:

The Daleks and their world were a design triumph

Huge credit must go to Raymond Cusick who created the design of the Dalek machine. This design is fifty years old and yet they have hardly changed from his original work. It was all there from the get go: the pepper pot shape, the sink plunger, the extermination ray, the voice, everything. In my opinion it is the package that makes them so terrifying. It’s ingenious that these monsters are not and do not appear to be humans in suits. It is the truly alien look of their revolving eye stalk and that horrific shrieking voice that makes them not just a classic Doctor Who villain but one of the best villains in any genre. So witness the development of the Doctor as the layers of the man you now know start to be added. Hide behind the sofa as The Daleks have not changed. This is one of the most frightening serials I have watched. I saw it for the first time when I was twenty-four and it had me hiding behind the sofa!

Synopsis (from TARDIS.wikia.com): The Doctor, Vicki, and new companion Steven Taylor arrive in Saxon Northumbria on the eve of the Viking and Norman invasions. It is 1066, a pivotal moment in British history. The hand of a mysterious Monk is at work in the nearby monastery, intending that history takes a different course. It can’t be denied that Doctor Who may not have continued beyond its initial thirteen week run if it hadn’t been for Terry Nation’s creations. As well as introducing an iconic threat to the series, The Daleks was a triumph of design – the Dalek city is wonderful to behold in both shots of the model exterior and the sets themselves. However, I would argue that there are many stories from this initial three year era of the show that surpass this one. My choice comes from the end of Hartnell’s second series. I may well be slightly biased towards this story as it is the first Hartnell Doctor Who that I ever saw. I had read many adventures from this period, thanks to the excellent novelizations that were published by WH Allen and Target, but I

Geek Syndicate had never seen the first Doctor in action. That is until 1992 when the BBC aired an adventure from each Doctor running up to the thirtieth anniversary of the programme in 1993. The story I saw was The Time Meddler, written by Dennis Spooner and it is that story that I think really shows off this era of the programme. By this point, William Hartnell has clearly settled into the role of the Doctor and the writers have also learned to roll with the format of the show. Hartnell’s Doctor is more playful by this point, countering his (very much still present) irascibility. On top of this much more grandfatherly Doctor, we are presented with Vicki (who was introduced a few stories previous to replace Susan), played by Maureen O’Brian. Vicki is young and intelligent without being as…well, irritating as Susan was. The crew of the TARDIS is rounded out with new comer Steven Taylor, played by Peter Purves, who takes on the role of the heroic lead.

The story itself is the first of what would become the norm for Doctor Who historical stories. While exploring Earth’s past, the travellers discover that an alien or another time traveller is influencing events. Previously, historical adventures were just that – the TARDIS arrived in history and its crew became caught up in events.

The Doctor meets The Monk - a fellow Time Lord

The Time Meddler introduces a character I wish had made more appearances. Peter Butterworth (later to become famous for his roles in the Carry On films), stars as the eponymous meddler. Butterworth plays another time traveller – one with a TARDIS of his own. Back in 1965, there were no “Time Lords” and there was no “Gallifrey”. All we know of the meddler is that he is from the Doctor’s home but is “fifty years after” the Doctor. His TARDIS is newer than our hero’s – as evidenced by the central console being raised on a pedestal! Space Pilot Steven Taylor takes his first steps to the past

It’s important to realise something about the series at this point: the Doctor wasn’t the hero of the show. The old man was simply the catalyst for adventure. He would try and get his companions home, failing each time. Stories were resolved, usually, by the entire crew (and their allies) working together, each bringing something different to the mix. This is what made a recurring cast of three or four people really work, whereas later on, this amount people made the TARDIS feel crowded. 44

The meddler has come to Earth to change history so that Harold’s Saxons can defeat William’s invasion force at Hastings. It is a matter of history that one of the factors behind Harold’s loss in 1066 was that his army had literally just come from fighting another battle against a Norwegian horde and then marched for six days from near York to Hastings to fight William. If the Danish fleet was sunk before it arrived...our meddler, disguised as a Monk seeks to do just that. Essentially, for his own amusement and to be able to meet for a post-match chat.

Geek Syndicate There are many fun elements brought to bear because of the Monk’s nature. He has a gramophone belting out the sounds of chanting monks. He has a list of things to do in Earth’s history. He brings his captive breakfast which includes a bone china teacup and pot. One tiny detail that I think is an oversight is that there’s a modern lock in the door to the monastery! I don’t care if it was an oversight. It fits nicely. The medieval setting is one that the BBC could do well. Add in the anachronistic bits of technology and mischievous villain and frankly, you’re onto a winner. What I really like about this story is that the villain is not evil as such. Rather, he is an amoral time traveller who sees time and space as his own personal toy box. In some ways, the meddler is what the Doctor could have been. I like to think that the Doctor remembered the Meddling Monk when he regenerated. Troughton’s appearance is certainly reminiscent of Peter Butterworth and his Doctor is far more mischievous. I wonder if the Doctor decided it was time to enjoy life, remembered this fellow wanderer and somehow became imprinted on him…

The Monk’s TARDIS - Smaller on the Inside?

Geek Syndicate The Second Doctor (Patrick Troughton 1966-1969) Luke’s Choice:

The War Games is an incredibly important, epic and special story in the history of Doctor Who. It is important because the second Doctor regenerates but it is not as simple as that. We see The Time Lords for the first time and witness them put the Doctor on trial for meddling in the affairs of the universe – which is against their laws. This story is epic in both the size of the problem that the Doctor must overcome as well as behind the scenes for the creative team. Can you imagine spreading a story across ten episodes of twenty five minutes long, continuing to build the anticipation and the anguish and succeed? Well that is exactly what the crew of The War Games did. It would have been difficult to this in today’s Who and yet they managed this task in 1969, creating what is to this day one of the best Who stories containing some of the most heart wrenching moments you will see.

Synopsis (from TARDIS.wikia.com): The Doctor, Jamie and Zoe arrive on an unnamed planet. At first believing themselves in the midst of World War I, they realise it to be one of many War Zones overseen by the War Lords, who have kidnapped large numbers of human soldiers in order to create an army to conquer the galaxy. Infiltrating the control base, the Doctor discovers that the War Chief is also a Time Lord. The creeping realisation sets in that the Doctor cannot solve this problem alone, and that his days of wandering may be at an end... This was a very difficult choice for me because in many respects Patrick Troughton is the definitive Doctor. There are so many classic stories in his run and even more that tragically do not exist or have episodes missing from them. Tomb of the Cybermen and The Mindrobber were both high up there for me, but in my opinion The War Games just edges in as the best story here. 46

The Doctor, Jamie and Zoe arrive on what seems to be Earth in World War One. They have landed right in the middle of the trenches and

Doctor and Friends in the trenches of WWI ...

Geek Syndicate it is a race against time for the TARDIS team to get to safety. Yet they seem to hurtle from one problem to the next as the Doctor and his companions come to face the War Chief, the War Lord and even The Time Lords in this ten part tour de force. Everything comes together so well in this story, with the writers (Malcolm Hulke and Terrence Dicks) especially being on top form. Often it is difficult to convince audiences that a character is in peril mid-way through a story because we (as DVD viewers) know there are still more episodes to view. This is even more impressive in a regeneration story. Yet Dicks and Hulke manage to pull off the impossible here. The audience is led to truly believe that every member of the TARDIS team could die at any moment. Yet credit must also go to Troughton, Frazer Hines and Wendy Padbury who create this feeling of dread and worry.

The Villainous War Lord and the War Chief...

The supporting cast is incredibly strong, with the likes of Lt Carstairs and Lady Jennifer feeling very much at home on the show to the extent that I could have happily seen them as new companions.

Our first look at Time Lords on their Homeworld

The sets look stunning and will impress even those who argue that Classic Who suffered from “wobbly sets” and cheap effects. From the crazy psychedelic backdrops to the awesome World War One settings to the fabulously sixties enemy costumes to The Time Lords, this really is a beautiful looking story. People who have only watched Doctor Who since it relaunched in 2005 might consider Donna Noble or maybe Amy Pond as the Doctor’s best friend. But if you watch any of the Second Doctor’s serials (well, any after The Highlanders at any rate) and you will soon find out that there is one companion who the Doctor truly sees as his Best Friend Forever: Jamie McCrimmon. The connection between the Doctor and Jamie is one that just sparkles on the screen. Troughton and Hines have an unbelievable chemistry together, almost to the level of a sixth sense. They are aware of what each other is going to do before they do it. To witness their friendship being torn away is worse than watching Rose get stuck in the alternative reality or Amy being zapped back to nineteenthirties Manhattan never to return. It is a shame that so much of Troughton’s run as the Doctor does not exist but even the small amount that does will make you instantly fall in love with him in the role. In my opinion, The

Geek Syndicate War Games is where he is at his best. There is a real emotion and passion in his performance that few actors could pull off. His cunning ways are executed well when he battles this war mongering community. Even better is when Troughton faces off against The Time Lords, a moment that like an inspiration to Richard Donner for Superman: The Movie. Watching the Doctor being forced to choose his new face is an emotional scene and ironically has an image that looks weirdly like The Tenth Doctor. Of course - and this is just in my head - but I like to see this as the way The Tenth Doctor and Second Doctor would feel about each other (you were nearly forced on me! / you rejected me!) which could lead to constant bickering. The final scene of the Second Doctor is haunting, adding to one of the most disturbing regenerations that there has been in all of the series’ run. The beautiful juxtaposition with the Doctor’s innocent words of ‘You’re making me giddy’, is so horrifying when compliments with the eerie music and the visuals that show the Doctor falling into what looks like an abyss.

A haunting change - we don’t even see who’s next

All in all this story is a must see. Of all ten regeneration stories we have seen so far, only The Caves of Androzani tops this one in my mind. It features one of the absolute best Doctors, the best companion with two of the absolute best Doctor Who writers coming together out of nothing but panic to produce something that is really quite special even to this day. 48

Antony’s Choice:

Synopsis (from TARDIS.wikia.com): Investigating the disappearance of an eminent scientist, the Doctor and his companions follow his trail to the London headquarters of International Electromatics, a global supplier of electronic equipment run by the formidable Tobias Vaughn. Teaming up with the newly-formed United Nations Intelligence Taskforce - UNIT - under the control of Brigadier LethbridgeStewart, it soon becomes apparent that Vaughn is working to his own sinister agenda. As Cybermen invade in cities all over the world, can the Doctor convince Vaughn to help him defeat their plan for global domination? If the first three years of Doctor Who can be defined by The Daleks, then the next three must surely be the age of silver. The Cybermen had been introduced during William Hartnell’s final story - one which would set the template for many of Troughton’s, being a “base under siege” affair. From 1966 to 1969, these once human giants would return to trouble the Doctor on no less than four further occasions. The Cybermen are my favourite enemy in Doctor Who and no list of choice episodes would be complete without them making an appearance.

Geek Syndicate Why The Invasion and not the oft-lauded Tomb of the Cybermen? For one thing, Invasion manages to keep a momentum for eight episodes. For another, it has what to my mind is the best team of regulars ever to man the TARDIS. It also introduces an element to the series that would become the very premise of the show for the first few years of the 1970s – UNIT. I think its greatest success is this: It manages to maintain an intriguing mystery for four episodes before the Cybermen are revealed. This almost splits the story into two parts: the first is a missing person investigation that grows into something larger, the second an alien invasion story!

The story is one of the earliest to really make reference to previous adventures. We reminded of the Doctor and Jamie’s previous Cyber-encounters – which include an unseen adventure as the Cyber-Planner recognises the two from “Planet 14”. Realising what time era they have landed in leads our heroes to seek out allies from The Web of Fear and to stumble across a military group spawned from that adventure. These little nods to the past are an unexpected early start to building a coherent continuity to a television serial that was designed to be watched and forgotten. At this time there were no commercially available video recorders and so no chance to re-watch a story. It’s nice to think that early viewers were rewarded with these nods. Even though Jon Pertwee would spend a few years working for UNIT, I think The Invasion actually manages to show that the organisation is a global operation better than many later offerings. Here, UNIT is based from a mobile headquarters in the form of a C-130 plane. An idea later re-visited by Joss Whedon’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D – albeit they have a heavily converted version! Additionally, the Russians are integral to the earth’s defence. This televised co-operation came at the height of the cold war but offered hope for the future.

UNIT on patrol

I mentioned the TARDIS team. To my mind, the combination of Patrick Troughton and Frazer Hines (as eighteenth century piper, Jamie McCrimmon) is perfect. The chemistry between the characters and the actors themselves shines through the screen. Add to this Wendy Padbury’s Zoe Herriot, who (in my opinion) was the first “non-standard” female companion and something special is born. Zoe was both a young woman out for adventure, but also a genius level mathematician. The Invasion shows both of these elements of her character beautifully. In fact, if it were not for Zoe’s presence in the story, things might not have gone so well for Earth!

The Cybermen invade London’s lanfmarks!

Geek Syndicate What of the villains though? Not only are we treated to a marvellously militaristic looking new Cyberman but there are human collaborators too. The Cybermen in this story are all the more chilling because they do not speak. At all. Instead, they are given voice through the Cyber-Planner which is an advanced computer (possibly with organic components) that has been given to collaborator Tobias Vaughn, played superbly by Kevin Stoney.

Vaughn searches for a Cyber weakness to exploit

Vaughan is the head of an international electronics corporation. He has been installing Cyber-technology in his new radios. This technology will render the population of the world unconscious and allow the Cyber-army to easily take over. Of course, Vaughan (who has chillingly been partially converted into a Cyberman) plans to take the world for himself and is developing a weapon against his allies! That’s some proper thriller double-crossing going on. This story is impressive on many levels. The cast is superb. The direction: superb. The story that keeps the viewer interested over eight episodes? Well, that too is superb. There are many elements that make up a true classic Doctor Who story and The Invasion is filled with them. Despite having a global threat, the story manages to also feel very confined. Almost like a 50

typical “base under siege” story, yet it’s also so much more. Douglas Camfield is renowned for directing some of the great stories from early Doctor Who and this is no exception. The battle scenes manage to convey an epic feeling without losing any of the small character moments. This is also (obviously) down to the expert writing from Derrick Sherwin and the fact that there is plenty of space for the story to breathe.

Zoe is integral to the story’s resolution - rare for 60s Who

Go get the DVD now. It has two missing episodes in animated form but don’t let this discourage you. It’s a marvellous story and the animation manages to capture the mood entirely.

Next Issue: Incarnations Three and Four! Well, we hope that little jaunt through the first decade and a bit of Doctor Who has intrigued you enough to pick up some classic stories or to look at them with fresh eyes. Next time, Luke and Antony will be picking stories from the Third and Fourth Doctors, taking us from 1970 to 1981.

Luke Halsall Antony McGarry-Thickitt

Geek Syndicate THE BLUFFERS GUIDE TO ... Board Games Ever wondered what all those geeks in the corner were talking about? Sick of missing out of the sly references and obscure injokes? Never Fear!

Hang on. Board Games? Like... Cluedo?

The Bluffers Guide is here to help!

About that, probably.

Cluedo? How long has been since you played a board game? Decades?

OK, so the Board Game scene has changed immeasurably since then and there is now a boom in the sort of board gaming that we all missed out on as kids, because all we had was wet afternoons playing bloody Monopoly. Forever. I never liked Monopoly.

So, what are we going to do tonight? Same thing we do every night! Try to...Take Over The World!

Good. There is some hope for you then. The current boom in board gaming is often attributed to the Germans, and many popular choices are often described as “German” or

“Euro” games. They tend to be characterised by simple rules that interact in a complex way, so they’re quick to learn but reward multiple play throughs so you can understand them better. They’re also not big on direct competition, so whilst they’re clearly competitive, they’re not so often about tearing chunks off your opponents. So, like….? A good example is probably Settlers of Catan, often held up as one of the greatest Board Games ever made. Settlers is played on a board made up differently each time out of coloured hexagons, representing resource-generating fields, and the aim of the game is to build roads and towns along the field boundries.

Image © Marcin Niebudek, 2012

Sorry…? You don’t get that? No. Too obscure for me. Never mind then. We’ll try something else: “Would You Like to Play A Game?” Thats another one, isn’t it? Yes. Sorry. Although, the questions stands; would you like to play a game? I’ve got a stack of them and we can get a couple of people over have some beer and…

A game of Settlers of Catan in progress

Geek Syndicate

Sounds...different. OK, so how about Ticket to Ride, another Euro game that has a lot of editions. This is a game where you build Railways across North America (or Europe, of many individual countries, depending on which version) by drawing cards and “buying” the routes strategically. Turns are very quick, the whole game takes about ninety minutes, and you can pick up the rules in about five minutes. These are both very buildy. Yeah I guess so. But they’re archetypal examples of these sorts of games - Carcassonne is about building walled cities in France, Alhambra is about building markets in Spain; they’re all about you, as the player, building up your little empire in competition, rather than opposition to the others. It makes them a more social, less directly competitive experience.

Several. One common mechanic is asymmetric gameplay, where one or more players is essentially playing a different game. Some of the best versions of this are “traitor” games, such as Shadows over Camelot or Battlestar Galactica. Here, you play co-operatively against the board, representing the enemy, or forces of dark fate, and if you complete the right tasks everyone wins. Here’s the catch - one of the players, sometimes two, is on the side of the board but you don’t know who. Paranoia rules and everything gets a little harder and more tense. I like the sound of that! But you mean everyone can win? Sure, there are a lot of straightforward co-operative games too, like Pandemic, where you work together to overcome

a global disease outbreak, or recent breakout card game Hanabi, a card game where everyone can see your cards but you, and you have to work together to make sure you play the right card at the right time. OK, OK. So there is a lot of diversity, I get that. It all sounds very civilised. It is. I don’t want to imply that this gaming renaissance is purely a European thing, as there are a lot of great games in the more mechanic-heavy American tradition. The poster-child for this is probably the mighty (and long) Arkham Horror, based on the works of H P Lovecraft. He gets everywhere! Being out of copyright prob-

Image © Thomas Haver, 2012

The first player to ten points (gained from these roads and towns), wins. Player interaction is mostly trading for resources, and the most aggressive thing you can do is build where someone else wants to.

But maybe I want to tear down my enemies! Grind them beneath my Sandalled feet? How very bloodthirsty of you. Fighting or Treachery? Oh, is there Treachery?

Gamers enjoying Alhambra at a gaming group

Geek Syndicate

And the board can win, after all the running around? Sure. That’s part of the fun. Cooperative games tend to split between true “all against the board” games and games that can only have one winner, but also a chance of everyone losing, which can add a tension to that critical choice about when to make a big move. This does seem very involved though, I thought you said the watchword was “accessibilty”? Well, sort of. Even with something like Arkham Horror you’ll pick it up pretty quick, but it is at the more involved end of the spectrum. Right at the other end there are a whole bunch of stuff you can pick up for ten quid and play in half-an-hour. Ah that sounds more like it! A lot are card games, too, so you don’t even need a lot of space. A game like Love Letter only has sixteen cards in its deck and you can play a

Image © Toshiyuki Hashitani, 2013

ably helps. Arkham Horror is another co-operative game. Each player takes the role of a character with abilities and stats, more like a light version of a role-playing game. You have to charge around Arkham, closing gateways to other dimensions and fighting terrible monsters. More often than not all the characters will go insane long before the world is saved. It’s definitely a game for when you have a free afternoon. Maybe the evening too.

Arkham Horror is an example of a complex board game

round in about five minutes. The Great Dalmuti has a large deck but allows for easy dropin-drop-out play, making it an ideal party game. As card games, they fit in your pocket.

Well to inflict regular expensive board games on them, perhaps.

So you mentioned a tenner for a small game….

But seriously the point I keep coming back to is that these games are accessible and easy to pick up. Well, apart from Arkham Horror. But certainly a lot of them. The reason that there are generations scarred by bitter rows over Ghost Castle or Cluedo is that these games could be played by the whole family on a wet winter’s afternoon and be back in the box in a couple of hours. But often, they’re simply not good games; dominated by luck over skill, and without a huge amount of replayability because of it. I mean, did anyone ever finish a game of Monopoly? Or did everyone just eventually give up in disgust?

Yeah, some of these aren’t cheap. Arkham Horror will set you back £60 for the base game, and there is a steady stream of expansions as well. On average you can expect to pay between £20 and £30 for a boxed game, although the production quality does tend to be pretty high. If you can play them a few times, with friends, you’re getting a lot of entertainment bang for your buck. But I then I need regular friends? Is that a problem?

Get better friends! Thanks

Geek Syndicate You really don’t like Monopoly, do you? No, it’s dreadful. I did like Cluedo though, and Mouse Trap, even though we could never build the trap in a way that actually worked. Bet your wet afternoons were fun then.

Wait, permanent? Yes, like writing in names for places, or borders, or cities. You also destroy some cards from the decks, enact some special rules but not others and generally do all sorts of things you’re not supposed to with games. After ten games you’ve got a completely customised and unique game board that you and your friends have created and can continue to play your version of the game on. That just sounds...crazy. I know, right? But this the point I’m trying to get to - as a form of social entertainment,

Board Gaming is more exciting as it’s ever been. It appeals to a wider group of people, with a wider range of cost and time needed to play, from the small to the sprawling. There has never been a better time to get some mates over, open the snacks and beer, and get playing. Right, I’m in. Where do we start? Well, first, we need to make more friends…

Matt Farr Editors Note: Images of board games being played taken from boardgamegeek. com and used in meeting with the licence applied there to these images.

Image © Barnes & Noble, MTV 2012

I’d rather have had access to the games we have now. Actually if you did have a regular group, there are games that reward regular partners. Some are like Pathfinder Adventure Card Game, where you have a character and play scenarios, gaining experience that you carry on to the next game. It’s very much a hybrid of old-school Fantasy Roleplaying and modern board gaming mechanics. There is also

Risk: Legacy, where gameplay makes permanent changes to the game board…

There’s a vast number of board games out there to try. Don’t let Monopoly stop you from having fun with friends!

Geek Syndicate

Geek Syndicate Putting Marvel Movies To The Bechdel Test So there’s this thing everyone’s been talking about lately. Feminism. You’ve probably heard of it. It’s possible that you even care a bit. Sadly, Hollywood still has a way to go before it ticks all the gender equality boxes that, as far as I’m concerned, simply shouldn’t be a thing in this day and age. Before you roll your eyes, I’m not getting my Wonder Woman knickers in a twist in an epic rant over the treatment of women in comic books and movies. Instead, I want to apply a bit of theory to the issue of gender bias in film.

The Test For those who haven’t heard of it, the Bechdel Test was first introduced in Alison Bechdel’s comic strip Dykes to Watch Out For in 1985 and asks whether a film can satisfy the following three requirements:

1. It has to have at least two named women in it… 2. Who talk to each other… 3. About something besides a man. Simple enough, you might think, loads of movies meet that criteria. But you’d be wrong. Most, in fact, don’t. In 2009, Entertainment Weekly’s Mark Harris stated that if passing the test were mandatory, it would have jeopardised half of that year’s Best Picture nominees at the Oscars and would cut the length of San Diego Comic-Con from five days to forty-five minutes. Shocking, isn’t it? Of course, the test isn’t perfect. A film can tick all the boxes and remain sexist, while others fail simply because the premise doesn’t allow for the parameters. And that’s fine. But you’d be surprised at how many movies ought to pass but don’t. Unfortunately, superhero movies are among

the worst culprits. Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight Trilogy, for example, fails. Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man trilogy fails. With the exception of Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel, every Superman movie ever fails. I’m not saying these films are sexist. Far from it. And while I could go off on a tangent about how we need to see a super heroine in the lead on the big screen, it would be beside my point. (We do, though). Every one of these movies has a strong, feisty, even kick-ass leading lady. But in each one of them, that leading lady’s purpose is all about the man. And fellas, as much as we love you, we really do have other things to be getting on with. It would be impossible to trawl through every superhero movie ever made looking for examples to prove my point, so for the purposes of this piece I’m turning to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Marvel Studios may produce box office smash after smash, but do they pass the Bechdel Test? 56

Geek Syndicate The Iron Man Series Since the release of Iron Man in 2008, Marvel Studios has dominated the box office, bringing many of our favourite superhero stories to life in spectacular fashion. While I love Tony Stark as much as the next geek, I’m not so keen on his position on gender equality. There are two named women in the first Iron Man film and they talk to each other. But their entire conversation is some kind of clichéd pissing contest over which of them has a claim of ownership over Mr Stark. Right on, sisters.

Image © Marvel Studios, 2010

Thankfully, Iron Man 2 and Iron Man 3 both get a pass – just.

Pepper Potts and Natasha Romanov talk about more than just Tony Stark in Iron Man 2

Geek Syndicate Those Other Marvel Heroes … Both Thor and Thor: The Dark World can wear their Bechdel badges with pride, meeting all three criteria of the test. 2008’s The Incredible Hulk fails miserably (in more ways than one, but I’m not going there), as does Captain America: The First Avenger. One might argue that the latter is simply channelling the spirit of the time in which it was set, but it’s an argument that I’d politely suggest is utter boohockey. This is a film that makes a point of its strong, accomplished heroine. Agent Peggy Carter’s appeal is both in her brains and metaphorical balls. Yes she’s a woman in a man’s world but there are others there too... granted, they don’t have names, but they exist. For instance, there’s that blonde one what snogs Steve (Private Lorraine, according to IMDB), prompting a bit of burgeoning jealousy in Ms Carter.

Image © Marvel Studios, 2011

Would an entirely justifiable stern word from senior officer to subordinate have been so difficult to squeeze into the script? I admit, it would’ve been a man-centric conversation, but at least it would’ve been something. And it would have made sense.

Agent Peggy Carter. Not enough to save The First Avenger, especially without interraction with Pvt. Lorraine!

Geek Syndicate Avengers Assemble! For me, the biggest disappointment comes from Joss Whedon’s Avengers Assemble. Whether Whedon enjoys being hailed as geekdom’s greatest feminist I have no idea, but it is a burden of his own creation, so frankly I don’t care. This movie features three named females - one lead in Scarlett Johansson’s Natasha Romanov and two secondary characters; Agent Maria Hill and the ubiquitous Pepper Potts. Not once do any of these women speak to each other. At points, Hill and Romanov are in the same room and they don’t even look at one another.

Image © Marvel Studios, 2012

Seriously, there’s time for Stark and Coulson to chat about a cellist but S.H.I.E.L.D colleagues Hill and Romanov don’t so much as acknowledge each other? It’s ridiculous. I’m not after a deep and meaningful conversation about extra-terrestrial terrorism or anything but how hard would it have been to pop in a water cooler moment for the sake of equality? Or, you know, a brief natter about strategy – is that really too much to expect?

Maybe Romanov and Hill don’t see eye to eye ... but is an exchange of words to much to ask for?

Geek Syndicate Image © Marvel Studios, 2012

Like I said, this test isn’t perfect. Gender bias is just one issue on a long list of complaints about Hollywood’s output. But this is 2013. We’re way beyond suffrage and it’d be nice to come out of the cinema with gripes about direction and dialogue instead of bitching about the blatant misrepresentation of my gender. As Marvel heads into Phase 2, with four films mostly directed and penned by men, I’m hoping each of them has the rules above written on a Post-It somewhere to serve as a reminder - little girls need heroes to look up to, too.

PASS: 4 Black Widow ... Surely she deserves some girl time?

Image © Marvel Studios, 2013

FAIL: 4

Cat Collins Cat Collins is co-founder and editor of Geeky Girls Love SciFi. You should follow them on Twitter, they’re awesome @GirlsLoveSciFi

Science girls, Foster and Lewis meet the Bechdel Test.

Geek Syndicate Achievement Unlocked...

Getting praise is nice. If you’ve just done something that was really tricky, complicated or long-winded, it can be a great feeling to have someone recognise this and give you a pat on the shoulder. What happens though, when you get praised for every little thing you do? Or for things that don’t really mean anything? You might end up walking around thinking that you are the bee’s knees, or that you deserve kudos for doing things that just needed doing, like taking out the rubbish or renewing your car insurance. Achievements in games can land in either category, sometimes boosting your gaming enjoyment, sometimes causing the merest shrug. Achievements (or other “reward” systems) have been a feature of video games since 2007 when Microsoft introduced its Gamerscore system and added achievements to Halo 2.

Complete the first level in Halo 2 for 30 Gamer Points: Possibly the first achievement ever earned

This system became an integral part of user-profiles in the Xbox 360. It didn’t take very long for other platforms and games to adopt the concept. Valve soon added achievements to its Steam platform and Sony re-wrapped the concept in the guise of PSN Trophies. From there they have continued to spread. I can still remember logging in to World Of Warcraft one day and seeing that achievements had infiltrated the realm of the MMO. I remember thinking “That’s it! They will be on watches next!” I may have been wrong on that front (as far as I am aware), but they have migrated to non-gaming systems such as phone or tablet app controlled diet and exercise programmes. So what are achievements? Whatever game or app you are using, an achievement (I’ll use this term to cover all of these systems) is something that unlocks when you have accomplished a set task. Perhaps, in a Zombie Survival game you may have managed to kill one-hundred zombies, or you may have progressed to a pivotal point of the game. A small message will probably pop-up saying what the achievement you unlocked was and what, if any amount, it adds to your Gamerscore/

tally. You might even have a sound-effect accompany it, anything from a little “pop” to something more grandiose like a fanfare. From that moment on, anyone who browses your gaming profile on that particular service will be able to see that on such-and-such day, at such-and-such time, you achieved the masterful feat of completing the tutorial level!

If your sarcasm detector just went critical, you will guess that I don’t find that particularly impressive. Not all achievements are created equal. Some, such as a progress related achievement, are just saying “Hey, go you! You did what you had to do!” Some games do have harder achievements, such as beating a level in a blistering time, or completing a stealth game without being detected. This second type of achievement doesn’t strike me as being too bad. Achievements should be hard in my opinion, in life as well as games. If not, why is the fanfare warranted? Achievements that are just awarded

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I would also argue that achievements should be rare rather than handed out like candy. I can remember the annoyance of people with Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter on the Xbox 360. One of the achievements was to reach the top of the worldwide rankings in multi-player. Certainly a tough task, and one that not many people will ever achieve. I am not saying that all achievements should be this tough, but you can now see the two ends of the scale. Compare that seemingly insurmountable achievement with Soul Calibur 4’s “You have inserted the disc and loaded the game” achievement. Which do you think was more noteworthy? There should be something of a middle ground of course. Don’t give us achievements for mundane activities (such as rotating the camera to see up a skirt (I’m looking at you Lollipop Chainsaw!) and don’t make them so hard as to be unattainable. Make them relevant and tough. If everyone can get every achievement without too much effort, then where is the value in that? 62

Achievements were implemented into games to help people generate more playtime and fun in the game, giving players ideas for alternative ways to play or for new things to do. You can probably thank achievements for making so many games come stuffed to the gills with hidden collectibles in the guise of statues, diaries or whatever else the developer can think of. Litter the world with a hundred such items and set up an achievement to find them all. I know that they don’t force you to do this and if you really truly love the game, you might fancy doing this just to prolong your time in the particular game world you enjoy. To me, collecting achievements feel like pointless busy work the majority of the time and do not really add to my game experience. In fact, it can detract from it in many cases. I remember a time (nostalgia flashback incoming) when people used to play games

on their Sega Megadrive or Super Nintendo. If they enjoyed them, friends would find new ways and challenges to amuse themselves. It didn’t have to be planned out and orchestrated by the game developer. We even came up with nongaming obstacles, like playing Street Fighter whilst someone kept yelling down your ear. We didn’t have a little thing pop up and say:

But we had a good deal of fun, even if we did end up annoying our parents and possibly the neighbours. Sure, there was the social pressure to get things done and the inevitable mocking when you failed, but we were defining our own fun, and if someone gave you a very nasty goal, you would get your own back when it was your turn to concoct something for them to do.

Image © Games Radar, 2012

for playing the game are next to worthless in terms of kudos. Okay, completing a game is probably something worth rewarding. There are usually various statistics floating around saying that only x percent of people completed y game; so in a way, you are ahead of the curve if you do actually finish it.

10 Points for trying to look up a schoolgirl’s skirt ... Achievement?

Image © Antony McGarry-Thickitt, 2013

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Some wear their achievements with pride - like Mr. Editor here ...

The number of people who rush for achievements and churn through games just to make a little number get bigger are going to find much in life disappointing or depressing, possibly missing out on the other enjoyable aspects of what they are doing in the process. Ironically, this will

probably push them further into the cycle. I am not saying that it isn’t possible for someone to have a healthy relationship with achievements, but do it on your own terms, for your own reasons, and more importantly, for your own

Casey Douglass Editors Note: Many thanks to DeviantArtist Emillister for making available theachievement template used as a basis for the one I’ve used in this article.

Image © Antony McGarry-Thickitt, 2013

I can’t help feeling that achievements are some anonymous third party’s measure of a player’s success at something. If you created an achievement yourself and reached it, fair play to you. If you are striving for another person’s definition of fun or novelty, that’s not so good. According to so much of the self-help literature that does the rounds, gauging and comparing your own life to others is a major cause of low mood, depression and inadequacy. The world of gaming achievements may pale in comparison to other measures of success in the wider world, but I have seen the issue cause more than its fair share of “nerd rage” in my time, whether via friends, forums or in game chat.

enjoyment. Maybe in future generations, achievement systems will evolve into something that can be user defined and shared among friends. Until that time, for myself at least, they are simply a shallow attempt to recapture the challenges of a previous generation of gamers.

In Guild Wars 2, Achievements generate in-game rewards. Thumbs Up!

Geek Syndicate GEEK CRIBBS ... WedgeDoc

... WedgeDoc Welcome to Geek Syndicate’s Geek Cribbs – where we take readers on a whistle stop tour of our geek hideaways, whether this be a shelf, display stand, room or house. In this instalment, Geek Syndicate Magazine editor, Antony McGarry-Thickitt (aka WedgeDoc), shares the ins and outs of his Nottinghamshire home… In many ways, I’m a very lucky bloke. You see, I’m a geek of the hoarding variety. In my shed, there are several boxes of Doctor Who action figures in their packaging that attest to this. That’s not the worst though. I’m a hoarder who likes to have his stuff visible. Who doesn’t spend money on cigarettes or alcohol or cinema or any such “disposable” activity very often. I buy things. Books, DVDs, action figures … My lovely wife is also a geek (lucky me). Not only that, but she is extremely accepting of my hoarder-displayer personality. In this instalment of Geek Cribbs, I’ll be taking you on a journey through our home and talking about the why’s and wherefore’s of various collections that I (we) have on display.

Welcome to our Humble Abode … The first item people see when entering our lair is this framed carbon cut out bat logo. This is a custom item (as far as I know the only one of its kind) that we were given as a wedding present by my wife’s uncle. Oddly, a door-to-door charity worker refused to believe that I was married simply because that picture was hung so prominently. Apparently only men can be Bat-fans…

Geek Syndicate Of course, anyone who has met my good wife is probably aware that her geek-icon is Barbara Gordon, Batgirl. Moving into our main downstairs room, visitors come face to face with a good portion (but not all) of the Batgirl collection that my wife has collected. I mentioned my own hoarder-displayer tendencies? Well I’m not alone…

Our original idea was to completely fill this alcove with shelves to store our DVDs on. Due to what can only be described as inherent laziness, I decided to alter this plan. Now we have two tall book cases inserted. Of course this does mean that we have a little space to store items such as guitar hero instruments either side of the DVDs! Currently, these shelves are approaching capacity and we are considering moving the Doctor Who discs to a new location. We’re just not sure where yet. Maybe the TARDIS in the Kitchen can help?

Geek Syndicate Deeper into the Lair … Moving upstairs, the first stop should probably be Storage Cupboard Two. This cupboard stores items that I (we) don’t use on a regular enough basis to keep out all the time. Along with a box of photograph albums, computer hardware and assorted installation discs are our LEGO storage boxes, loose but un-displayed action figures and NERF guns. This cupboard is also the home to our growing tabletop board game collection.

Next, we move into the study. This is really my wife’s domain where she spends time marking course work, writing lesson plans or generally kicking the living poop out of mobs in Guild Wars 2. Here we see more of my wife’s geek memorabilia (some batgirl comic covers and her DC and Star Wars LEGO sets). What you can’t see is the stack of comic boxes she also keeps here. Oh and that Jessie Doll? It scares the living bejeezus out of me. I mean look at it… the manic grin, the staring eyes. *shudder* 66

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Not even our (currently sparse) guest room escapes the geek touch. Guests currently have to face a corner of geek books – mainly my Star Wars collection, some Doctor Who and Fantasy novels and my gamebook collection. Oh yeah – and another TARDIS. That TARDIS has a lot of sentimental value to me and I’d like to let you know why…

Geek Syndicate Two days before my wife and I were married, her grandparents flew over from their home in Bulgaria. Amy’s grandfather was going to be giving her away, offering a speech and frankly had enough on as it was. The next day, they turned up at our house with that cardboard TARDIS. It’s a card box that guests could use to deposit wedding cards. He’d made it that morning, having spent some time researching TARDISes. A subject that meant nothing to him, but which obviously is important to me. Although I knew Amy’s family had accepted me, this is what really drove it home. Having crossed a continent, he took time to not only construct a card box in the shape of a Police Box – but he took the time to Research TARDIS exteriors. See? Lucky.

The Heart of the Matter … Behind this door lies the main event. The Geek Room. I have tried getting it re-named “the console room” for more of a Doctor Who / gaming vibe to no avail. This room is my man cave. I spend most of my time here, either watching shows on my tablet PC, gaming on one of the consoles or editing this venerable publication in my PC corner. Of course, being one half of a geek couple, I can’t claim sole ownership of the Geek Room. Except I do. IT’S MINE!!!!!!! It’s in here that I rotate what items I have on display – either in the main display stand or on top of the book cases. Yes, most of those are comic collections… Usually, I have Doctor Who and DC superheroes on display, along with some of my LEGO sets. Mostly, these are my adapted Star Wars LEGO sets (very few of those ships are un-modified from the sets they came in) but also I have my Robin Hood LEGO (thanks, Amy!) and my LEGO Daleks on display.

Geek Syndicate

My absolute favourite geek item that I have isn’t in the Geek Room though. In fact, there are times when it’s not even in the house. That’s the problem with wives. They have a tendency to move around.

Antony McGarry-Thickitt Photos: Amy McGarry-Thickitt 70

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Geek Syndicate The Geek Fourteen of 2014 This year was excellent for geeks of all description. In the gaming world, we saw some fantastic titles as well as the release of next-generation consoles. Another round of great films hit the cinema, including the (seemingly Marmite) re-imagining of Superman. On top of this, there were some great conventions, comics and book releases – not to mention the fiftieth anniversary of a certain British television show. After all that, can 2014 begin to compare? Here is a compilation of some of the things coming up that prove it isn’t over yet! Captain America: The Winter Soldier [Films] – April 2014 August’s Guardians of the Galaxy may be the other Marvel Studios movie to come out in 2014 but the latest Captain America film will be on everyone’s “To Watch” list. Chris Evans returns in the title role, set two years after the events portrayed in 2012’s Avengers Assemble. For many the most interesting aspect about the Captain America character in the comics was him being a man out of time - familiar to the relatively naïve world of the 1940s and suddenly thrown into the twenty-first century. A clash of values, being thrown into a world far murkier than the one he knew, with conspiracy theories and shock revelations, will be on the cards as Cap questions his role in the world and whether he should trust S.H.I.E.L.D. All while he confronts a major global threat that involves someone called ‘The Winter Soldier’. Directed by Anthony and Joe Russo and co-starring Scarlett Johansson (Black Widow), Samuel L. Jackson (Nick Fury), Robert Redford (senior S.H.I.E.L.D. leader Alexander Pierce), and Anthony Mackie as the big screen version of The Falcon. X-Men: Days of Future Past [Films] – May 2014 Two X-Men franchises collide as original series director Bryan Singer brings a double sequel to the big screen. With an IMMENSE cast, acting simultaneously as a follow up to X-Men: The Last Stand (2006) and X-Men: First Class (2011) - and 2013’s The Wolverine - the X-Men of the future and the past fight to prevent a future that has gone disastrously wrong for mutant-kind. Based on the fan favourite classic story of the same name by Chris Claremont and John Byrne, there was a mixture of scepticism and mild interest in this film when it was announced but the first trailer has managed to silence many of the naysayers. Take a seat. This could be very interesting. 72

Geek Syndicate How To Train Your Dragon 2 [Films] – June 2014 The first film was a treat for the whole family. Great story, great script, great animation and a beautiful soundtrack to boot. The original film followed the young, nerdy, social outcast Viking called Hiccup as he met and bonded with Toothless the dragon – a creature hated and feared by his clan. In the film he managed to make a new friend, defy (and alter) the belief system of his clan and got a girlfriend in the process. If you haven’t seen the first film, watch it. Once you’ve watched it you’ll be super stoked to see the sequel that will pop up on the big screen in summer 2014. Interstellar [Films] – November 2014 Christopher Nolan’s first film in the director chair following the critically acclaimed blockbuster hit Dark Knight Trilogy of Batman films. Interstellar is also an original movie – just like previous critical success Inception (2010). Interstellar is co-written by Christopher and his brother Jonathan, with a score by Hans Zimmer and stars Matthew McConaughey and Anne Hathaway. The plot is largely under wraps but what we do know is it involves the discovery of a wormhole and a space exploration mission, composed of a team of explorers and scientists, inside it. Superior Spider-Man: Goblin Nation [Marvel Comics, comics] – February 2014 The controversial Spider-Man series heats up as Dan Slott and Giuseppe Camuncoli bring a major fivepart Spider-Man story in the opening months of 2014, starting with February’s Superior Spider-Man 27.NOW. Entitled ‘Goblin Nation’, the story has been described by Slott, in interview with CBR, as “…not just the Green Goblin...It’s a Green Goblin who’s had twenty-six issues to plan and scheme; a Green Goblin who’s secretly the Kingpin of Crime in all of New York thanks to the Superior Spider-Man. THIS IS IT!”

Geek Syndicate Injustice: Year 2 [DC Comics, comics] – January 2014 A tie-in comic based on a videogame being good enough to deserve a second series? An emphatic ‘YES’ in the case for Injustice. Written by Tom Taylor and a rotating group of artists, a story set in a world where Superman goes to the dark side has never been more gripping. The twists and turns of the first series kept readers coming back for more. With the shocks backed up by robust storytelling, this is not to be missed. Serenity: Leaves on the Wind [Dark Horse Comics, comics] – January 2014 Time to dust off your Browncoats as the cult favourite series Firefly returns in the form of a new six issue miniseries that finally gives fans the answer to the question: whatever happened after the events of the sensational Serenity film? Written by Zack Whedon with art by Buffy artist Georges Jeanty. Garth Ennis’ return to the Punisher [Marvel Comics, comics] – sometime in 2014 A legendary run by Mr Ennis truly defined the character of Frank Castle and his violent vendetta on organised crime in the 2000s. The scribe returns with a new miniseries that delves into the early origins of the character during his time in military service. A Certain British Invasion at Marvel: Miracleman returns and Revolutionary War [Marvel Comics] [Comics] – January 2014 Previously held in legal limbo, Miracleman has been gone for so long that the series’ existence has almost become legendary. Now Marvel has the rights, the original series gets the reprint treatment in January. To accompany that, the spirit of Marvel UK returns with an all-new eight-issue publishing event called ‘Revolutionary War’ that brings back the British characters that rose to fame in the 1990s. Featuring the writing and art talents of Brits Andy Lanning, Kieron Gillen, Rich Elson, Simon Coleby, Mark Brooks, and more.

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Avengers World [Marvel Comics, comics] – January 2014 Co-written by Jonathan Hickman and Nick Spencer, after the epic event of Infinity and adding onto a truly astounding run on the Avengers franchise a new book emerges. The phrase “This is an Avengers World” was bandied about a lot in the lead Avengers book since it relaunched and after the space epic the expansion of the Avengers truly scales up. Telltale Games’ Walking Dead: Season 2 [Multiplatform]- [videogames] [2014] Stock up on tissues, clear a space behind the sofa, and free up some time for the second season of Telltale Game’s Walking Dead series. Following a group of characters completely separate from Rick Grimes’ tribe and with no source material to give us much of an inkling of the fates of the cast, players in this interactive tale will be hooked by the tension, the drama, and the horror of this truly quality adventure title. The first installment of this new series is scheduled for release at the very end of 2013 but the series itself will run into 2014 - few will want to miss it. New Series of Doctor Who, New Doctor [TV] – August 2014 Current Doctor Who Actor, Matt Smith departs the title role with the Christmas special in December 2013 and makes way for the next incarnation of the Time Lord – played by Peter Capaldi. Every new Doctor means a new jumping on point and a new flavour for the now half-century old serial. The series return, starring the new Doctor, is to hit the small screen sometime in summer 2014.

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Watch Dogs (Multiplatform) [videogames] – Summer 2014 Assassin’s Creed developer Ubisoft Montreal’s newest game screams next generation. First demonstrated at E3 2012, Watch Dogs will be an action-adventure, open world role-playing game based around modern technology. You are vigilante hacker Aiden Pearce and in order to complete objectives and right wrongs, you will need your wits, your fists, some weapons and, most importantly, your personal hacking tool. The Flash runs onto TV screens [TV] – [early 2014] Arrow’s televised adaptation of DC’s Green Arrow character was an unexpected success with its first season, a perfect balance of strong characters, action, adventure, and an intriguing narrative made it a fun show to watch. Now it seems we will be getting another cult favourite DC Comics hero on the small screen in the shape of The Flash, via a rather unconventional route. Within Arrow’s second season, expect to see a series of appearances of a young man called Barry Allen, played by Glee alumni actor Grant Gustin. Something will happen to Mr Allen and this sequence of events will culminate in an episode that shall act as backdoor pilot for the scarlet speedster in 2014. We can hopefully expect Barry Allan to race into his own successful series by the end of the year. The list is by no means comprehensive, but I think you’ll agree that there is plenty to look forward to next year.

Dean Simons

What Superman Means To Me

Geek Syndicate

What

Superman Means To Me

By Luke Halsall 77

Geek Syndicate For many people, the big blue Boy Scout known as Superman has lost his appeal and relevance in the modern age. He is a character that they could no longer relate to. He was too good, too nice and too powerful. I had a wee wobble in my teenage years but overall I have loved reading and seeing the Man of Steel and find it sad that a character that is meant to be the paragon of virtue and goodness has lost favour in the public eye.

Unfortunately I never saw it all because it was Christmas or something like that and it was time to go somewhere. But those fleeting moments of Krypton dying have always stayed with me until I finally

Image ÂŠ Warner Bros., ABC, 1993

This year saw the theatrical release of the latest film adaptation, The Man of Steel. The film is due to be released on DVD and Blu-Ray this month and I think Superman is as relevant as ever. I believe that the film manages to show how much we still need that big old S.

When I was growing up I had a Superman costume. I bet many people did. There was nothing better for me than to run around in that costume pretending I was him. I remember my first experience of the 1978 film, Superman: The Movie. It was a school holiday and it was on the BBC, sometime around noon. As soon as it started I was mesmerised by the huge structures that I would come to know as Krypton.

TVâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Lois & Clark. A more homely but still optimistic take on Superman

saw t h e amazing Donner film in its entirety. Even those few short scenes on Krypton gave me so much hope. Jor-El would do anything to save his child. He believed in him. Superman showed me how much you can rely on the others around you in your time of need. The rest of my childhood I spent watching the series Lois and Clark (or The New Adventures Of Superman as it was branded in the UK). I loved this program and it shaped my view of Superman for a long time. At this stage though I was beginning to develop a love for Marvel and it was not until I became older, and started to see how amazing the DC characters were, with their strong moral core, that I would return to them. In fact I would now happily state I am a DC boy through and through.

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Superman’s alter ego, Clark Kent, had a good job that the people could relate to. He wasn’t a rich billionaire like Bruce Wayne. Like the majority of the population, Clark had to work for a living. As Superman, he showed the world what they could do with their full potential, embodying the

could be. In this post 9/11 world, we seem to constantly be on the brink of terror. We are suffering through recession after recession and could be about to face Nuclear War. Is it not fitting that The Man of Steel returns once more to give us that hope that everything will be all right: that we need to start trying to help, rather than blame each other? The Man of Steel makes me believe again, it makes me feel like we can do everything that we need to do. The Man of Steel, directed by Zack Snyder and produced by Christopher Nolan, seems to have hit the nail on the head.

When Superman made his first major appearance on the big screen in Richard Donner’s seminal work, the world was again in a mess. Once again the worldwide economy was suffering and Britain was struggling through The Winter of Discontent. We needed that spark of hope that everything could be ok. Yes, Superman The Movie was just a film but at the forefront it had a character who never judged or blamed his fellow man. He believed in working hard and fighting for what he believed in, making sure that he was Symbolising America - Wartime Superman the best person he

Image © DC Comics, 1942

I think for me the special thing about Superman is that he is always there for us, not just in fiction but in reality too. When Superman was first created in the 1930s, the populace was going through a worldwide depression. The world was on the brink of World War and economic meltdown. Two Jewish New Yorkers, Joe Shuster and Jerry Siegel created The Man of Steel, a man that was for the every American. Superman always fought for the people and showed us what we could do.

“American Dream”. Superman was a character that personified hope. As Batman struggled through the gritty Gotham city, embodying everything bad about the world after the Wall Street crash, with The Dark Knight being the only shining light in the city, Superman was different. Metropolis and The Man of Steel showed what we could do if we all worked together and fought to be the best we could, understanding that yes we were going through a difficult time but things could be better. He symbolised hope.

Superman has a strong moral stance that he believes in, that he will fight for, that he would die for. He is here to give the people of earth something to strive towards. One day we could all be Supermen. For me Christopher Reeve will always be Superman. To be honest I think if you watch his films he is so good in the role you sometimes wonder whether he has actually fallen out of the sky and has these incredible gifts. The man was born to play Superman but just as importantly he was born to play Clark Kent. He is the only actor to date that really makes me feel they are two different people. Reeve embodies everything about the character – confident Superman and bumbling Clark Kent. I think this is something we all can relate to. There is always a time in our lives when we don’t feel comfortable in our skin. Superman has to keep this pretence up for the whole of his life. Superman is the hero I can believe in. He is an analogue of Jesus and is like a myth or a fable: the great man that will come down from the heavens and be that salvation. It might sound corny but I still like to believe. I still like to cling to hope. The S symbol does exactly that. Man of Steel is released on Blu-Ray and DVD in the UK on 2nd December, 2013.

Luke Halsall

Image © Warner Bros.., 2013

Geek Syndicate

Geek Syndicate A History of THE Monster ... or

Frankenstein’s Monster to be precise. The Monster is infinitely more famous than the man who gave him life, Baron von Frankenstein, or the woman who created the story, Mary Shelley. With I, Frankenstein due out January 24th, we thought we’d do a potted history of Frankenstein’s Monster on film: from the legendary Karloff, to Star Wars’ Dave Prowse, Clancy Brown, Bobby de Niro and soon, a turn by Aaron Eckhardt. We’ll focus purely on the movies here, but there will be a passing nod to the Monster in comics, such as his appearance in the Creature Commandos.

Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein Let’s go back to first principles though. If your most memorable recollection of the Monster is Boris Karloff’s iconic turn as the lumbering boltneck assembloid, it’s worth pointing out how wide of the mark that portrayal was in relation to the source material. In Shelley’s magnum opus, the Monster (referred to also as the Wretch, the Creature and the Beast), was much, much more.

Image © Penguin Books

…

The Source Material

After he was created, the Monster unsurprisingly went into hiding following the revelation that every time he saw a human they were usually followed by a pack of others brandishing burning torches and pitchforks. As his self awareness kicked in, he learned English and even read the classics of the day. Finally, the Monster hatched a very calculated plan of vengeance against the Baron, who had abandoned the Monster in his hour of need to his ghastly existence. Embarking on a European tour, the Monster set about killing the Baron’s little brother, framing his best friend for that murder and killing his new wife. Not quite the slow dumb giant we are used to.

Geek Syndicate That said Karloff’s turn is still the most memorable and his look was so iconic that it has been copied repeatedly. Karloff often referred to Frankenstein’s Monster as “the dear old boy”. His first turn in the role was in the 1931 film, Frankenstein. It’s worth noting that both John Carradine and Bela Lugosi turned the role down beforehand.

Our Monstrous Picks Currently, there are over 200 Frankenstein related movie titles. From that mega-list we picked these memorable versions of the Monster: Robert de Niro plays a Monster that is closer to the book opposite Kenneth Branagh’s Baron in the 1994 film Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. This film was also directed by Branagh and was much more of a theatrical affair, with a very erudite Monster scripted with plenty of dialogue – probably the truest representation of the literary work to date. In truth, this is probably why it bombed at the cinema.

Image © Universal Pictures, 1931

Of all the mythology surrounding Karloff in the role, my favourite is this: during the film the Monster encounters a young girl throwing flowers into a pond. The monster joins her in the activity but soon runs out of flowers. At a loss for something to throw into the water, he grabs the girl and hurls her into the lake, departing in confusion when she fails to float as the flowers had done. In all American prints of the movie, this scene was deleted because the censors objected to the violent end of the little girl. This scene is restored in the DVD re-issue. You can also check it out on YouTube.

Karloff’s fate was sealed – all the roles he performed after that, including as the Mummy or Fu Manchu was overshadowed – he was the Monster forever. Of his 205 cinematic roles, Karloff went on to make only two Frankenstein sequels as the Monster (Bride of Franksenstein and Son of Frankenstein).

Maria, the little girl who befriends a monster. For a little while ...

• Peter Boyle plays the Monster to Gene Wilder’s Baron and Marty Feldman’s bugeyed Igor in Mel Brooks’ 1974 comedy Young Frankenstein, which in my mind is still probably the funniest thing Brooks has done outside of Blazing Saddles.

Image © Gruskoff/Venture Films, 1974

Karloff’s Definitive Creation

Peter Boyle in Young Frankenstein

• Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man (1943): Bela Lugosi finally played the role he turned down in 1931, only to be completely outshone by Lon Chaney Jnr.’s Wolfman in one of the better Universal Studios team-ups. The film was bulk produced during the B-movie Golden Age of the Second World War. • My personal favourite Frankenstein’s Monster film is Budd Abbott Lou Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948). This film saw Bud and Lou up against The Monster (this time personified by Glenn Strange), Lugosi’s Dracula and Chaney’s

Geek Syndicate Image © Universal Pictures, 1935

Wolfman. Still hilariously funny today, watch it all the way to the end to see (or not) Vincent Price’s Invisible Man! • Peter Cushing played the Baron (or Professor) Frankenstein several times. Hammer’s 1973 effort, Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell was one of the better efforts. It also starred a pre-Vader David Prowse as the Monster. • Another Hammer film, 1957’s The Curse of Frankenstein, saw Peter Cushing return as Frankenstein, opposite Christopher Lee as the Monster. Clearly Lee was filling a gap between playing the Fanged Wonder in multiple films! • Probably the best television movie interpretation, House of Frankenstein (1997), saw the Monster, Wolfman and Dracula come together in modern day California. An unknown Peter Crombie played the Monster, but star turns from Adrian Pasdar (Near Dark, Heroes) and CCH Pounder (Warehouse 13) make this a compelling tale with a great ending that left you wanting more. • The Bride of Frankenstein (1935) was Karloff’s second turn as the Monster. In it, he is completely outshone by Elsa Lanchester who actually plays a character called Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, who becomes the Mate for the Monster.

The definitive Frankenstein’s Monster meets his definitive Bride in 1935

Like Karloff, Lanchester’s look for the role became instantly iconic. Her Black hair with streaks of white was much copied over the decades. The Bride of Frankenstein was more of an attempt to stay closer to the book than the original Frankenstein. In Shelley’s story the Baron builds the Bride and then destroys her in fear of the two creating a superhuman race, which only makes the Monster angrier. That said, having the Bride fall in love with the Baron instead of the Monster made for an interesting love triangle. • The Bride (1985): Forget those brooding shots of Sting and the completely ridiculous situation of producing a ravishing Bride in the form of Flashdance’s Jennifer Beales. What made

this film for me was Clancy Brown’s (Highlander) portrayal of the Monster (actually called Viktor) and his growing friendship with the dwarf Rinaldo (amiably played by the Time Bandits’ David Rappaport). A pair of society’s rejects thrown together out of desperation, it’s wonderful to watch Viktor’s realization that he can have a friend too - someone to teach and prepare him for the real world. Also Rinaldo’s delight that he too is no longer just a lone victim - he has this loyal giant to protect him. In truth, the scenes with Beales and Sting in only get in the way of enjoying the journey that Viktor and Rinaldo undertake in discovering their friendship and mutual reliance on one another. This film is not generally regarded well, but it is worth 83

Geek Syndicate watching for Brown and Rappaport together.

I, Frankenstein and Beyond In 2014 and 2015, we’ll be treated to further Monster films. Next year sees the release of I, Frankenstein. Aaron Eckhardt is cast in the titular role in Stuart Beattie’s adaptation of the comic of the same name. The film also stars Bill Nighie and Chuck’s Yvonne Strahovski. In this version, the Monster finds himself between two warring factions of immortals. Not Vampires and Lycans. This time it’s Gargoyles and Demons! It will be interesting to see Eckhardt’s portrayal as he’s already played a psychological monster in the form of The Dark Knight’s Two Face. Currently in pre-production, Max Landis’s vision, Frankenstein is slated to hit theatres in 2015. Daniel Radcliffe (Harry

Potter), Jessica Brown Findlay (Downton Abbey) and James McAvoy (X-Men First Class) star in this film. In it, McAvoy plays Viktor Von Frankenstein – a man with plans to create a human body. Radcliffe’s character Igor saves Findlay’s Lorelei – a trapeze artist who has a tragic accident. According to Radcliffe, the film is “about two young, brilliant guys pushing each other. Eventually one loses his morality and the other has to bring him back”. Also currently in the early stages of development is The Sick and Twisted Tale of Frankenstein. This film is a modern retelling of the tale, with newcomer, Michael Raabe playing “The Creature” and fellow newcomer, Louis Crespo Jr. as Frankenstein. Little plot information is available, but Shelley Boozer has been cast as Detective Mary Shelley in this re-imagining.

A Monster and His Friends Before I go, I’d like to offer one final shout out: if you like you Monsters in comic format, then I heartily recommend The Creature Commandos. This is a DC Comics team of military superhumans originally set in World War II that was introduced to the masses Weird War Tales #93 (November 1980). The original (and better) team was composed of a vampire, werewolf and a Frankenstein style Monster, with occasional appearances by a gorgon and a robotic soldier (who may or may not have a ‘ghost in the machine’). The team was lead by a human officer, who often turned out to be the biggest monster of them all in some of the more morality based tales. If you get a chance – check them out!

Gargoyles, Demons and The Monster await in the 2014 adaptation of I, Frankenstein

Ronald Singh

Geek Syndicate

Kickstarter Project Elysia Faces The Nuge

Geek Syndicate Thoughts On The Elysia Preview “Elysia’s wings begin to grow morphing her into an angel. Her journey to accept her new physical self is tough, but she must learn to not only fight, but accept her new identity in order to come to terms with her new powers and ward off the Fallen Angel attack on the planet. At the same time, she’s making friends in angel school, learning how to be a fighter and embarking on a self-discovery about her new form. Unfortunately, the Demon Angel Overlord kidnaps her famous scientist father in order to lure her to her death, so he is able to take her soul and defeat the Higher Order of angels. Elysia must come to terms with the powers she was born with to rescue her father and save the planet before it’s too late.” – Taken from the Elysia website

I have lost count of the amount of emails get sent for Kickstarter projects (For a Bluffer’s guide to Kick Starter, check out Issue 6 of GS Magazine – Ed). Now first up I want to make it clear that I do not mind Kickstarter, like all things it is open to misuse but that it not the fault of the tool but rather the hand that wields it. However to date, since Kickstarter began, I have backed very few Kickstarter projects (though I have promoted many via the

website and podcast). One of the projects that managed to relieve me of my cash was the Sci-Fi/Fantasy graphic novel series Elysia. I had met Serena Obhrai, Elysia’s creator several times but had no idea she was working on the project until an email dropped into my inbox. Intrigued I checked out the Kickstarter page. The first thing that hit me was the stunning artwork by Jennie Gyllad. However what really got me to put my hand in pocket was the introduction video by Serena and Jennie. The way Serena causally mentions that “there are currently about fifty characters in the story that we’ve sketched out” and the level of world building that’s clearly happened drew me in. I loved the idea behind the project as well as the passion that Serena and Jennie have for it which was clearly visible on the screen. Character sketches and full colour pages faded it and out to the ladies narration, showing the amount of work and commitment that already had been pumped into the project. There was a sense behind the video that even they did hit their target that somehow they would find a way to bring the world of Elysia to life. I clicked the backing button before the video had ended. Given how much I loved the

idea the least I could do was support the project in my own small way. It seemed that over two hundred people felt the same way and Elysia’s target goal was met in April this year.

Verdict on the Elysia Preview Fast forward several months and I was lucky enough to be sent an advance copy of the preview before it was released on the Elysia website. I hovered over the open button, hesitant to open the pdf. It is one thing to imagine a great concept but it is an entirely different matter to realize that concept successfully. Had Serena and Jennie aimed too high? Would they, like Icarus, plummet back to reality their wings of imagination, melted by the harshness of reality? It took me all of three pages to realize that their dream was intact and a brilliant new world had been born. The opening pages drew you into the world, revealing its society, its rules, its heroes and even offering a brief look at the villains. This is all in the first five pages. There is a lot of set up in this preview, which of course there needs to be but Serena’s writing manages to deftly sidestep the exposition heavy potholes that can damage even the most well written of tales. Serena weaves in world building elements that are both simple

Geek Syndicate and elegant, using both dialogue and Jennie’s art. While we are talking about the art, I will say that I have been a big fan of Jennie’s career and this is the best work she

has done to date. Given how fantastic her work on Clockwork Watch has been it is no small feat to surpass her efforts on those graphic novels. Elysia, the heroine of the story is great character who even

in this short preview you cannot help rooting for. The same goes for Frog, Elysia’s best friend and the comic relief.

Barry Nugent

Geek Syndicate

INTERVIEW

Elysia: Meet the World Builder – Serena Obhrai It’s clear from the outset that Elysia is very much a team effort between Serena and Jennie. But as Serena is the architect of this world inhabited by Angels and us humans and being the one who gives voice to Elysia and her friends I decided to pick her brains on the project. GS: What would your elevator pitch be for Elysia?

World Builder, Serena Obhra

SO: A young girl, Elysia, turns into an angel as she hits puberty and is forced to accept her new form. With this, comes the learning of her new powers in angel school with her new angel friends, finding out about the source of her angel powers; her dead mother. On top of all of this, Elysia has to accept that she is the only person that can stop the great war that’s about to take place between the angels and fallen angels and do what she can to

Geek Syndicate

Jennie Gyllad - Painter of a magical world

SO: Very well. Most of last year was time for finishing off the script and also working with Jen on the characters’ looks. This year, after our Kickstarter was successfully funded, we’ve been powering through the pages.

SO: I’d say there were two; growing up and friendship. There’s something quite special when a story unfolds and there are children in the driving seat of narrative and character development because, obviously, they’re still learning the way of the world themselves. When I was younger, I really connected with stories and plots that were focused around young people and the friendships they forge, so I guess I wanted to mimic that.

GS: What would you say was the central theme running through Elysia?

GS: Were there any stories that influenced you while you developing the idea?

prevent the mass destruction of two entire species - the angels and the humans. GS: How is work progressing on the project?

SO: Well, I was probably 17 when I came up with the idea (yep, that long ago!) and I’ve been mulling it over ever since. I started writing it in 2005 and have been working at it on and off until 2012 when I worked on it full time. Influences were always superhero stories that I always read from early teens to mid-twenties – X-Men, Batman, Superman, etc. But, I was always adamant that I didn’t want to go down that path with Elysia. Yes, she has amazing powers and, yes, she has to learn to accept them, BUT she is entirely fallible and her life goes through many interesting journeys, so she’s not exactly a superhero. An author that ties in with this and influenced me heavily whilst growing up in my twenties was Craig Thompson. He was actually the reason I wanted to write Elysia’s story all in one, the full 300 pages together. After I started writing it, though, it was clear it was better as separate chapters to depict the differing parts of her journey. GS: You’ve written poetry, short stories, plays and short films. Why did you decide upon comics as the tool for telling Elysia’s story? SO: The simple reason is because I grew up with comics before anything else and it was the only medium I hadn’t had a stab at yet. Comics and graphic novels mean a lot to me personally, always having them around the house as children because of my older brother, so the nostalgia creates the meaning for itself. 89

Geek Syndicate GS: What has been the most challenging aspect of that decision? SO: Oh gosh, the hardest part has been not having any experience writing comics! When I wanted to start writing comics when I was younger, none of the free writing programs had a comics/graphic novel option, so learning took a lot longer than it should have by default. Immersing myself into the comic book realm, going to conventions and meeting all the wonderful people that are part of the project today and all of those who continue to inspire and guide me has been an invaluable experience. I’m not afraid to ask for help if I need it - keen learner - and I’ve been blessed to meet such wonderful, helpful people who have answered all my silly, inane questions. GS: There’s already a great relationship between Elysia and Frog in the preview. Did you draw on any of your own friendships for this? SO: If I did, it was purely subconsciously. I’ve not deliberately drawn on any personal experiences for any of the characters, but you can’t avoid referring to any of your own life as a writer – even by accident. Although I’m not able to place the exact friendship between Elysia and Frog, it’s not to say I didn’t grow up having a best friend at some point who was always there for me and took care of me whilst growing up (I say this like I’ve grown up, I promise I haven’t). 90

Frog and Elysia are very different people and they also work very well together, which is fascinating because you already know they will be friends for life after just reading the teaser. Their friendship is portrayed the way it is to pay homage to all the best friends out there. It’s universally accepted that best friends are awesome, so that’s what I wanted to come across.

GS: Who has been your most difficult character to write and why? SO: Elysia, by a long mile! Sounds like a cop-out of an answer, but seriously, she’s hardcore in personality and change. She goes through so many different aspects of growing up that trying to portray a spoilt little brat, who actually has a big heart and now has to undergo the biggest changes of her physical

Geek Syndicate

Geek Syndicate life was a tough one to crack. In future chapters, she grows even older and still has many story and character arcs – she never seems to catch a break! GS: How important was it to you that Elysia is an all-ages title? SO: Very. It’s hard for me to imagine this as anything less. Without sounding like a snob, I’m a little fed up of comics and graphic novels being aimed at adults OR children only. It just seems like an easy way out. I’d much rather write compelling characters that don’t swear, get naked or have sex to drive interest to my story. In the same breath, it’s much harder to get adults to care about something that seems like it’s aimed at children (since it stars young children), so the battle for me there was to add in topics like death, being lonely and loss without losing or scaring the younger audience. I felt as though being sarcastic and witty was a good way to get all ages interested regardless. GS: Even though a lot of the aspects feel very unique the central core of Guardian angels is not a new concept. What is it about Elysia that you think will help it to stand out? SO: People had the option of buying into the graphic novel with Kickstarter rewards – I doubt this has ever been done before. The Kickstarter backers have our hearts, so we wanted to give back as best we could. I think the story is also unique 92

because of the world we’ve created. Guardian angels and humans live side-by-side and interact every day. Correct me if I’m wrong, but I have yet to see this be explored in the English-speaking language within the comic book realm. Also, comic books and graphic novels tend to have quite simplistic artwork and we’ve smashed that by offering great story and great artwork all in one. GS: What has the response been so far to the preview pages? SO: Overwhelmingly positive – by adults, teens and tweens. I’m actually pretty shocked at the response, to be quite honest. It’s very humbling to receive feedback from those who’ve been in the industry for many years to offer feedback that’s 80% amazing and the final 20% is their professional opinion on what words they think I could change, or panels I can move around, to make the story stand out more. I’ve had this story locked inside my skull for over a decade and to release it now and have people say nice things about it can reduce me to tears (this may also be because I’m quite massively sleep-deprived, hah!). To know all this hard work is paying off after so long is honestly one of the nicest feelings ever. GS: How did Jennie become involved with the project? SO: I met Jen through a mutual friend who also makes comics, at a convention in

Bristol in early 2012. We talked it through and after telling her all about the story; she was excited to be involved. Since then, we’ve had two more get involved too, simply because they love the project – Jessica Wormley is our lovely apprentice who would like to learn all things comics to make her own some day and the super awesome Craig Hodge who does all the design work and pieces the graphic novel together (as well as other design work). GS: The pages are phenomenal. How long did it take Jennie to do the art? SO: A long time – it’s still ongoing. She does everything from pencils, inks to watercolour painting, so pages take longer to produce than your average comic. She was doing everything from the covers to the lettering also, but pages were just taking longer to create. I did some searching and talked to a few people and eventually the beautiful Richard Starkings (of Elephantmen and Comicraft fame) wanted to help with the lettering and we now have the gorgeous Nei Ruffino (of Supergirl, Green Lantern [DC] and Grimm Fairy Tales fame) illustrating our covers. I’m actually really psyched to see the final product! GS: Has there been a lot of back and forth between yourself and Jennie in terms of the script? SO: Not really. We stick to what we both know best – she

Geek Syndicate illustrates and I write. There was definitely a larger discussion when designing the way characters looked – she’d receive two to four lines as a description (age, height, motivations, character traits, any features that stand out etc) and then she has had full reign to be as creative as she liked. Some of the minor characters that appear once or have no lines she has pretty much had the freedom to illustrate as she wished. GS: Do you think having a Psychology degree has helped you in any way in terms of your writing?

much to learn about the anxos that you’ll never actually learn it all even in the graphic novels themselves. It’s a bit like the Star Wars world – there’s so much that’s not even mentioned or spoken about that people create their own meaning. That’s how I’d like this world to come across. It’s funny, actually. People talk to me at conventions about the story to learn more about the world that’s not in the story and they hurriedly shut me up in case I’m giving away spoilers. I assure them I’m not and they want to find out for themselves. I love that.

SO: Absolutely. I am constantly psycho-analysing characters in films and comics, not to mention my friends and their motives to do certain things. That can get annoying, but my mind is always working to find meaning. I’ve worked very hard to make sure nothing happens in Elysia without any rhyme or reason. Everything has some consequence, whether it’s a major plot point, to the design of her t-shirts.

GS: Elysia was funded by Kickstarter. Can you tell us why you opted for that particular platform?

GS: The art is being used quite heavily in terms of world-building such as the state of the wings to signify social status. Were most of these ideas already fully formed or did you find that Jennie’s art sent you off into new directions with the story?

GS: How much planning did you do in terms of your strategy for running the Kickstarter?

SO: I’m a bit of a stickler for meaning and consequence, so I had created all of this prior to even meeting Jen. The world is enormous and there’s so

SO: Kickstarter was the obvious choice because they don’t give you the funds unless you hit your goal. That was motivation enough to keep working to raise the funds until we finally did. We raised £22,000 on the site and a further £3,000 off the site, so we didn’t do too badly for an independent graphic novel.

SO: There was almost two months of prior planning, setup and working for nothing that occurred when putting the Kickstarter together. Everybody involved was counting on us to hit the target, so it’s pretty lucky that we did! The video took three weeks alone to perfect (and we can 93

Geek Syndicate still do more to improve). The rewards and pledge amounts took two weeks of working through packages and creating rewards that people would actually want. We had to have something unique – people could buy themselves into the graphic novel and be written into the narrative! Pretty certain we’re the first to ever do so. GS: What was the one thing do you think you learnt about your Kickstarter for the project? SO: It’s more hard work than you’ll actually know before you hit that ‘GO’ button. 18hour days, constantly selling your project and then actually delivering what you promised to in the time frame you said will be all you know after you hit your goal. GS: As your project was a success what tips would you give a fellow creator looking to follow in your footsteps with their own Kickstarter? SO: Aim high. Forget about sleep. Keep the dream alive.

I’d be happy to give specific pointers to anyone looking to create one – so, do get in touch if this is something you want to do. You can find our Kickstarter here for reference: http://bit.ly/ElysiaKS GS: Do you have any plans for Elysia beyond the comic? SO: Yes, definitely. It’s not just about the comics/graphic novels - I’d like to see Elysia be a household name as an animated television series, video game and trilogy of films. A bit ambitious but that never hurt anybody, did it? GS: If you had to use three words to sum up Elysia what would they be? SO: Heartwarming. wrenching. Alive.

Heart-

GS: Where can people find out more information about the comic? SO: Fans can pre-order the graphic novels on the website: http://elysia.me and we’re always running competitions and posting weekly updates

to our Facebook page (http:// facebook.com/elysiacomic) and Twitter account (http:// Twitter.com/elysiacomic). GS: Thanks Serena! In case the above was not clear enough, I enjoyed the preview immensely and I cannot wait to get my mitts on the finished first chapter. I’ve seen a lot of angels on TV but very few in comic form (at least of the comics I’ve read) and not really anywhere they live side by side with humans. Elysia feels different and modern. An image on the Elysia website springs to mind. The image is of an Angel, fully winged up (is that a phrase?) with a pair of headphones wrapped round his neck. That one image gives an insight into the way Serena is approaching the story. Yes it is a coming of age story but a modern one, with contemporary characters. I would strongly urge people to keep an eye on this project and its creator as they are only just getting started.

Barry Nugent

Geek Syndicate

Image © Laura-Jane Clements, 2013

A Town Called Vulcan

Me On Vulcan. In Vulcan. Vulcan, Canada...

with the same name as our beloved Spock’s home planet? It was an adventure just waiting to happen… After a comfortable flight and catching up with some sleep in Calgary, we set off on

Image © Laura-Jane Clements, 2013

For those of you who may not know, I’ve dedicated a whole year to crossing off as many items of geekery off my Geek Adventure list as possible. Items on the list have ranged from creating my own superhero, going Nessie hunting, spending the night in a haunted house and even meeting Joss Whedon (my personal favourite). A few weeks ago I was lucky enough to get on a plane and head to a country I’ve never been to before in order to cross another item off the list.

Number 24 – Visit the town of Vulcan in Canada Why was it on the list? Well, what self-respecting Trekkie wouldn’t want to visit a place

Welcome To Vulcan

the hour and a half’s drive to Vulcan. Surrounded by vast plains, the town seems to pop up out of nowhere, and with only 2,000 residents, it really is a small place. The town was named Vulcan after the god of fire in 1910 by a surveyor with a love of Roman mythology. Obviously, this was well before we had ever heard of Starfleet, the USS Enterprise or the (actually never uttered in an episode phrase) “Beam me up, Scotty”. The town’s history is steeped in agriculture but over the years the residents decided to embrace the very thing that caused people to stop and take their pictures next to the town’s sign. Nothing says “Welcome to Vulcan” more than a replica Federation ship that they have on entry into the town. It was unveiled in 1995 and has plaques around the base written in English, Vulcan and Klingon. Talk about geeky photo opportunities! Once you have sufficiently exhausted your Star Trek poses, the next stop would be the Trek Station. Situated behind the starship, it’s the perfect place to stock up on your Trek merchandise. If you are up for a giggle, you should definitely take advantage of their photo area. You can choose uniforms from all different Trek eras and pose with some cardboard cut-outs of your favourite characters. Or if you 95

are wanting to take a unique souvenir, you can have your picture taken and then superimposed on to the bridge of any of the Starship Enterprises. You can also find out more about Spock Days, the annual Trek convention the town holds. Previous guests have included Robert Picardo (The Doctor, Star Trek Voyager), Marina Sirtis (Counsellor Deanna Troy, Star Trek The Next Generation) and Walter Koenig (Pavel Chekov, Star Trek The Original Series).

town (the Trek doctors outside the town surgery was my favourite) and takes you past the bust of Leonard Nimoy (Star Trek’s original Vulcan – Mr. Spock). When Nimoy visited the town in 2010, the population trebled overnight! He also left his handprint which is cast in bronze underneath his bust. It’s a fitting tribute to the man that embodies the spirit of Star Trek and has supported the town’s efforts to be the official “Star Trek Capital of Canada”.

Outside the Trek Station is a special plaque, honouring Gene Roddenberry and the impact he had on popular culture by creating such a seminal television show. Unveiled by his son Rod in 2008, it is fitting that the town not only celebrates its favourite Trek characters but the man who created them for us all to love.

Your last stop in the town should definitely be the newly opened Trekectera museum.

After this, I would recommend you download the Vulcan App. This gives you a walking tour of the town, narrated by Garrett Wang (Ensign Harry Kim, Star Trek Voyager). It points out interesting murals around

Image © Laura-Jane Clements, 2013

Situated just around the corner from the Nimoy bust, this is a perfect addition to the town. Opened just a few months ago, the museum is the next step in making the town a Mecca for science fiction fans. If you ever get the chance to go and visit, I would highly recommend that you ask for Michael. Michael is a resident of the town who has been pushing for Vulcan to embrace its sci-fi destiny and he is quite the tour guide. A raconteur with a great passion for films and television, you can tell he is a super-fan. I could honestly have listened to him tell stories all day. Not

Image © Laura-Jane Clements, 2013

Geek Syndicate

Geek Syndicate Image © Laura-Jane Clements, 2013

just about Star Trek but also the many films that have been shot in and around Alberta. The museum itself is small but perfectly formed. Featuring costumes and props from all five Star Trek series’ and the recent blockbusters, you will find something of interest whether you are an old school fan or new recruit. From costumes from the J.J Abrams reboot to props from the television shows, it’s a perfect place to geek out.

Image © Laura-Jane Clements, 2013

The town of Vulcan may be a small but it has big aspirations as a must-visit on any sci-fi fans holiday. I had an absolute blast and would recommend it to any Trekkie visiting the state of Alberta. It’s worth coming out of the big cities on an ‘away mission’ to check out what this unique town has to offer. You can find out more about a trip to Canada by visiting Travel Alberta

Image © Laura-Jane Clements, 2013

Laura-Jane Clements

Live Long and Prosper. Leonard Nimoy’s hand print.

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Geek Syndicate X-MEN: Battle of the Atom Image © Marvel Comics, 2013

COMIC REVIEW

Writers: Various Art: Various Publisher: Marvel Comics

WARNING: This article contains SPOILERS for the Battle of the Atom Event throughout. Marvel recently published an X-Men event across several of their titles. Running from September 2013 to October 2013, Battle of the Atom is a time-travel event with future X-Men arriving in the present to persuade the All New X-Men to return to their proper place in history. Failure to do so would have disastrous consequences for the time line … Now that the dust has settled, Bernice and Shane, hosts of the Children of the Atom podcast look back over the course of the event. Shane: So Bernice, Battle of the Atom chapter ten, the final chapter, came out this week and just five minutes ago you

finished reading it, as did I approximately twelve hours ago. So, it’s all over. What did you think? What are your immediate thoughts?

quickly recap the key points? B: Yeah.

B: AvX. I was amused to discover recently that A+X is still going. It’s like, let it go. I don’t know, I wonder how many people are still buying that title?

S: So, Battle of the Atom is basically a direct continuation of the story that Brian Michael Bendis has been writing in All New X-Men and Uncanny X-Men. Each of those titles since AvX has focussed on either Scott Summers’ team of rebels or Wolverine’s team back at the Jean Grey School. So, to understand Battle of the Atom, you need to have caught up on those two titles. The other current X-Men titles aren’t as relevant, maybe little things here and there from X-Men and Wolverine and the X-Men.

Anyway, my other thought with regards to Battle of the Atom is that it was really, really complicated. I didn’t have too much trouble keeping up but, man, so many X-Men!

B: In a nutshell, Battle of the Atom is where a team of XMen from the future arrive and say, “You’ve got to send the original X-Men back because you’re ruining the future!”

S: So, for the benefit of people who don’t know, shall we

S: We should clarify that a key plot point from All New X-Men is that Hank McCoy from the present brought the original

Bernice: I have two immediate thoughts. The first one is that, like so many events, it started off really strong and then slightly overstayed its welcome for me. S: What other events would you say that happened to?

The event took place during September and October 2013, in these comics: Part 1: X-Men Battle of the Atom #1

Part 6: All-New X-Men #17

Part 2: All-New X-Men #16

Part 7: X-Men vol. 4 #6

Part 3: X-Men vol. 4 #5

Part 8: Uncanny X-Men vol. 3 #13

Part 4: Uncanny X-Men vol. 3 #12

Part 9: Wolverine and the X-Men #37

Part 5: Wolverine and the X-Men #36

Part 10: X-Men: Battle of the Atom #2

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five X-Men into the present in an attempt to show Scott Summers the error of his ways.

ew who looks exactly like Professor X, which seemed weird to me.

B: I don’t know if you agree but I think it’s fair to say that was more or less a failure.

S: An older Hank McCoy sporting horns, which was pretty cool.

S: Yeah. So Battle of the Atom starts when future X-Men come back in time to the present to say you’ve got to send back the original X-Men so that they don’t screw up the timeline. So it starts with three sets of X-Men from various time periods. Time travel stories are so hard to talk about!

B: We’ve got Deadpool.

B: It gets even more complicated when there’s a plot twist a little later on. Who are these future X-Men who come back? It’s Jean Grey, although we don’t find that out straight away because she’s dressed like Xorn, Professor X’s neph100

S: Yep, still wisecracking. B: And some kind of child of Wolverine and Mystique who is originally disguised as an older Kitty Pryde. S: Also, what we are led to believe is, a future Iceman. Of course this Jean Grey is the grown-up version of the original Jean Grey who was brought into the present. B: Basically, the premise of the future X-Men’s argument is that by bringing the original

X-Men forward in time the presentday X-Men have destroyed the future. S: Yup, and their mission is to send back the original five. Oh wait! And there’s Molly Hayes from Runaways there too.

B: At first it all seems very…heroic. Because for future Jean Grey/Xorn, by sending her younger self back to live her life as it was originally supposed to be lived, she’s effectively sacrificing herself. But we find out some more information, don’t we? S: Yes… What do we find out? B: Well, Magik takes original Bobby and Hank forward in time because she wants to see what this terrible future is that these future X-Men are talking about. And what does she discover? S: Plot twist! B: Plot twist! S: The X-Men from the future are not who they claim to be. They’re not the X-Men. They’re actually The Brotherhood. B: I notice they only call it ‘The Brotherhood’. I guess even the writers have concluded that ‘The Brotherhood of Evil Mu-

Geek Syndicate S: So Magik brings into the present the actual future XMen including Quentin Quire as Phoenix. B: We’ve got Shogo, all grownup, in some kind of Iron Man suit. We don’t know what his powers are. S: We’ve some kind of new Doctor Strange. B: We’ve got Iceman and we discover that the Ice Hulkthing with The Brotherhood is actually one of his duplicates that has attained some level of sentience and has gone off on its own. S: There’s also future Colossus with a metal goatee, which I quite liked. B: Yup, and he’s got Magik’s sword. He and Magik have quite a nice reunion. S: Anyway, it ends up in a big disaster between all four teams and what is the eventual outcome? B: Well, The Brotherhood capture the young X-Men and try to send them back home but for some reason, which is never explained in the story, they’re literally unable to send them back to their own time. It won’t work. S: Why don’t they get Magik to do it? B: Because Magik isn’t on their side, I guess. When they

can’t send the original X-Men back, The Brotherhood decide instead to engineer a situation where they’ll get all the XMen in one place, in this case the military base where the XMen first confronted Magneto in X-Men #1 (1963). Everyone turns up at this base, including S.H.I.E.L.D who rock up led by Maria Hill with Dazzler in tow. S: Dazzler who’s done nothing. B: Poor old Dazzler. She’s not having a good time of it as the…what is it? Mutant Liaison? Then Jean Grey/Xorn takes control of the S.H.I.E.L.D helicarriers and has them fire all their weapons at the X-Men with the aim of sparking an incident between humans and mutants. S: It’s future Hank McCoy and Jean Grey, primarily, trying to engineer a mutant vs. human war because, in their view, the two can never get along. Humans just want to persecute mutants. B: Which, in fairness, was Magneto’s original motivation when he was leading The Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. So that’s consistent. At least they’re not just using the name. What happens next is that, in unwillingly firing everything they have at the mutants, it is revealed that S.H.I.E.L.D has its own Sentinels. So that’s something that will no doubt drive future stories.

Brotherhood are defeated. Grown-up Jean, despite her powers, is defeated. B: She’s not really defeated, she basically self-destructs and I guess that’s something we’ll find out more about at some later point. We’ve heard mentions of this the whole way through this story with other characters referencing some reason why she has to wear the Xorn mask all the time and what happens if she gets too wound up. S: But she’s not dead. B: Isn’t she? S: No, they make a point of pointing it out in the last issue. That they’re not sure she’s dead. B: Really? I read that differently. Maybe I misread that… S: Yeah, I’m taking it to mean they’re not sure The Brotherhood is dead.

tants’ is a ridiculous name.

S: In the end though The 101

Geek Syndicate B: I think it could be read either way but it does definitely leave the door open for some or all of them to show up again in future issues. S: And the original X-Men are still in the present. B: There are three epilogues where we see various things wrapped up but I liked the last one best. S: Is that the one where Kitty Pryde quits the team? B: She changes sides. S: She switched sides from Wolverine’s side to Cyclops’ side. B: And she takes the original X-Men with her. S: What’s her reasoning there? B: I think that her reasoning is that when The Brotherhood first arrived and everyone thought they were X-Men, they wanted to force the young XMen to go back against their will and everyone at the Jean Grey School just went with it (except Rachel Grey). No one listened to Kitty’s objections. The only people prepared to help were Cyclops and his team. It turned out she was right, something was wrong. S: So now Scott has got one over on Wolverine. He’s growing his recruits. B: He is. I feel like this is a trend we’re going to see more of because something that I 102

noticed in this story is that Wolverine is such a sanctimonious bastard these days! It feels like the balance of sympathy is switching from Wolverine to Scott. S: It’s like he and Scott have switched places. Wolverine is now the sanctimonious one and Scott’s the pragmatist. B: I used to think it was the other way around but now it feels like Wolverine is getting increasingly smarmy and is always dishing out ultimatums and really taking the moral high ground about everything. So now Kitty and Cyclops and those guys are re-united. Oh and she broke up with Bobby. S: Which he didn’t seem to care much about. He was like, ‘Fine then.’ B: Well he just makes a snarky comment back. I think Kitty and the original X-Men switching sides is the most interesting thing that came out of this story. I guess these characters will henceforth be appearing in Uncanny X-Men. Will All New X-Men still even be a title? S: All New X-Men, I believe, is still going. Everything still seems to be going and next week Amazing X-Men #1 is out, written by Jason Aaron. The first issue has Nightcrawler on the cover too. B: Right, so that’s Battle of the Atom and where it leaves us now.

S: I was kind of disappointed with the conclusion to this because it feels like, apart from the Kitty stuff, we’re actually in exactly the same position as we were at the start. The original X-Men are still here and they’re not sure, really, what to do. We still don’t know what affect that’s going to have on the timeline. B: The future X-Men have returned to the future but we’re uncertain where The Brotherhood is now. Is that a possible set-up for bad guys, going forward? S: I guess so but I wouldn’t have really thought that they’re even villains. B: You can interpret them as villains if they’re dead set on sparking hostilities between humanity and mutants. S: True. Anyway, in that sense I’m disappointed because there’s really no resolution. We just have to go forward with an additional layer of characters. Which I guess from Marvel’s point of view means they can publish more comics, which they’re doing. I don’t think there’s anything significant that happened in Battle of the Atom that will be looked back on in future issues as being anything major. B: It wasn’t a game-changer, was it? S: No. It was just a ten-issue crossover for all of the X-Men titles. If you like general X-Men mayhem then it was probably

Geek Syndicate for you but in terms of character development there wasn’t much happening. B: Like you, I felt that given the changes that came out of it, it didn’t warrant ten issues. As I said earlier, I felt that it overstayed its welcome somewhat. All of the major plot points could have been covered in five issues or even just in the regular monthly titles. S: I definitely thought it was the lesser of the recent crossovers. I didn’t think it was as good as AvX. I know AvX had its faults but I enjoyed Battle of the Atom less than that. I also enjoyed it less than X-Men Schism. Both of those crossovers had quite significant effects on X-Men. Schism split the team and in AvX Professor X died and caused Cyclops to go rogue whereas here Kitty switches teams and that’s it. B: As far as I can tell, Kitty switched teams and we, potentially, have some new bad guys. That’s it. Otherwise it was all just…amusing chaos. S: Okay, how about what you

did like about it? B: Well one thing that I really liked about these stories (All New X-Men and Battle of the Atom) is that they’re mostly about Jean Grey and she’s one of my favourite characters. I’m always going to enjoy a story that’s Jean Grey-centric and that’s certainly true of these. I also think the writing is pretty snappy throughout; I enjoyed all the dialogue in these issues. They used quite a few different artists, not all of the art was to my taste but a lot of it I really liked. S: There were a few things I liked. I really liked the first couple of issues up to the point where it was revealed that Xorn was Jean Grey. I thought that twist was really cool because I honestly wasn’t expecting it. B: Neither was I. S: So I thought that was really fun. I liked future Shogo and the scenes between him and Jubilee. That was cool given what’s been happening in XMen where he’s a baby. I also

liked Quentin Quire as the future Phoenix. B: I felt like not a lot of his personality came through, like they couldn’t quite reconcile the awesomeness of being Phoenix with the smart-arseness of being Quentin Quire. S: I think those were really the highlights for me and I liked the resolution where Cyclops gets one up on Wolverine. B: Yeah I’m more and more on Cyclops’ side now since Wolverine seems always to be moralising and lecturing. S: So, what’s your rating? B: For a short run event I’d actually give this an eight out of ten. I did really enjoy this. It did feel a bit meaningless in the end but it started off really strong and it was relevant and, although it could probably have been a few issues shorter, it was good fun. S: I’m going to have to go lower with a six just because it felt unsatisfying, but I will continue to buy X-Men. B: Well then, until next time!

Shane & Bernice (CotA) You can here more of Shane and Bernice by downloading episodes of the Children of the Atom podcast from the Geek Syndicate web site. They’re also on twitter @CotAPodcast

103

FILM REVIEW

Writer: Richard Manning Director: Brian Trenchard-Smith Starring: Ian Ziering, Dichen Lachman & Marc Antonio

Two years before his famous encounter with Montezuma, Cortes is sent on a scouting mission to shores south of Mexico where he and his band of Conquistadores discover a small tribe of Aztecs who sacrifice their own people to satisfy the hunger of the “Thunder Lizard” living in the jungle. For those of you unfamiliar with The Asylum, they’re the company who makes madefor-tv movies for SyFy. They also have made direct-to-dvd or direct-to-download fare that people lovingly refer to as “mockbusters”. You might have seen them on Netflix or if you still have a blockbuster store, their movies have made an appearance there too.

104

Instead of saying Transformers on the box, it’ll be Transmorphers. I like to think of it as a way to trick the elderly into renting movies, almost like the actual ones in the theatre. They’ve expanded into a market that’s a mix of cash-ins on movies currently in theatres and delightfully, shamefully D-grade monster flicks. They’re who brought you such genius works like Megashark Versus Giant Octopus and this summer’s social media darling, Sharknado. I’ve loved their films for years and years, even before the trailer for the aforementioned Megashark went viral. They’re funny, cheesy, and bad Bmovies – often in all the right ways. Not every one of their films is as funny as Sharknado but quite a few will give you a satisfying fix of former TV star nostalgia, CGI-exploitation (or CGIsploitation) and bad monster chills and thrills. This review is for an oldie. It’s a film from back in 2007 called Tyrannosaurus Azteca that stars Dollhouse’s Dichen Lachman and Sharknado’s Ian Ziering. Shall we begin? WARNING: SUMMARY CONTAINS HEAVY SPOILERS

Summary It’s basically Pocahontas meets Jurassic Park but you substitute in Aztec natives for

Native Americans of Virginia. I’m not even kidding. Essentially, Hernan Cortes (Ian Ziering) is leading a troop of six whole men through the Mexican valleys when they come across a small, secluded tribe that’s being plagued by a rampaging Tyrannosaurus and her mate. The local shaman has been trying to keep the sacred “thunder lizards” appeased with increasingly frequent human sacrifices, complete with ripped out hearts, but they’re still being attacked. Hernan has a right hand lieutenant named Ernesto Rios (Marco Sanchez) who comes across the chief’s daughter (Dichen Lachman) in the jungle as she’s about to be raped by the high priest (who’s also the man she’s betrothed to marry but doesn’t actually love). Rios saves her not just from the shaman but also from the attack of the male Tyrannosaurus by helping the injured native princess to a hiding spot. After they are safe, Rios and the daughter go back to the village where they are shocked to find Cortes and his men have been captured for trying (and failing) to subdue the natives. Ernesto, split off from the rest on a scouting mission, comes in time to show the chief that he saved the princess and that no one needs to be killed. They swear to kill the male Tyrannosaurus for the good of the village and because the sha-

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It’s enough of a show of good faith that the chief is happy to let them leave the next day to meet their ship. He’s even feeling enough gratitude to let the conquistadors take Father Gria (Jack McGee)—a stranded priest from a previous expedition—with them. The one condition they must follow is to leave without any gold and jade (yes jade) and tell no one of the riches they’ve found in Mexico. Cortes is a rat of the first order so he instead orders his men to wake up early, steal all golden idols and goblets at the sacrificial altar, and leave Rios and Father Gria stranded in the village. Rios awakens to find he’s been betrayed and that, worse, the female Tyrannosaurus is out killing again. The shaman, jealous at the growing affection between Rios and the chief’s daughter (I said this was Pocahontas, right?) still insists the rampage of the final T-rex is due to the disruption of the altar and that Rios must come with him to stop the beast or be sacrificed. Rios, concerned for his beloved’s safety and a man of honour, agrees to help. They go off to get the T-rex but

not before the shaman drugs his cactus wine. Rios is weakened on the hunt and left to die at the hands of the T-rex. However, Father Gria and the daughter come to his rescue. They’re chased by the beast who has been summoned by the shaman by blowing on a horn made from her mate’s teeth (no really). The T-Rex rushes to them from eating all of Cortes’s men. The trio are trapped for a time in a mangrove root (no really). There, Father Gria marries the princess and Rios and they consummate. Eventually the T-rex gives up. Things deteriorate as the chief confronts the shaman over his treachery and drugging of Rios. They fight and the chief is mortally wounded but not before blessing Rios and his daughter’s marriage and declaring Rios a worthy successor to defend his people. Rios, Father Gria, and the daughter set a trap with the last of the explosive powder and muskets at the altar and are able to first defeat the priest and use his heart as a lure for the T-Rex. She comes and is killed by an explosion to her face that leaves her burned and flayed. That’s actually pretty awesome. Finally, Rios meets Cortes down at the beach as the ship is about to arrive. In exchange for letting him live, Rios asks Cortes never to come back to this secret valley, no matter what else Spain does to Mexico. Cortes agrees and takes

man insists their arrival has angered the beasts enough that either they must be sacrificed or kill the threat. Cortes’s men set out to do just that as Cortes himself is held for collateral. Rios is able to lure the make Tyrannosaurus into a pit of sharpened sticks thus killing him. However, their cannon gets damaged and several of their party injured.

The Shaman gets what’s due

Father Gria with him back to Spain. Via the Father’s voiceover, we’re told that Rios and the daughter begat a huge and successful secret tribe, that (duh) Cortes conquered the Aztecs, and that he gave up his alcoholic ways (except for wine for that doesn’t count) and was even blessed by having a drink named after him: Sangria. END OF SPOILERS

The Good • The CGI is hysterical — some people really hate the Asylum films because their million dollar or less budgets mean the CGI monsters look like they were made in Microsoft Paint. That’s one of the things I love the most about them! It’s not really the point. These movies were never going to scare anyone, but give 105

Geek Syndicate me a badly done T-Rex that looks like a reject from Jumanji’s rendering footage. These Tyrannosaurs do not disappoint and provide countless giggles for all.

• Ian Ziering’s casting as Cortes — Usually, I like to point out race fail in casting. Think of how there was so much white-washing in The Last Air Bender film. However, there’s nothing more amazing than Ian Ziering’s truly terrible “Spanish accent” and his wig. The other conquistadors were all of Hispanic descent or, at the least, brunets. Ziering isn’t and his terrible cheap hair is fabulous:

• I actually care about the characters — I know that

This is seriously glorious!

seems like film making 101. However, many Asylum films have no likable characters to root for. One that comes to mind from its sheer boringness is American Warship. Here, I really enjoy both Rios and Father Gria. Rios is an honorable, kind man and his love for the princess sweet and undemanding. It’s nice to see a person in a monster movie that I actually hope won’t get eaten. Also, Fa106

ther Gria’s running drunk joke amuses me. I really enjoy him and his cactus juice affection. • The Ending— we now know where sangria comes from! This is win-win for all.

The Bad • It suffers from the usual Asylum budget—the thing that annoys me is that most Asylum/SyFy movies really show their limited budget when it comes to the use of extras in scenes. There are only seven conquistadors in the whole film. The rest are off in the boat with the intention of returning to pick them up. Similarly, there are about five people in the village in addition to the shaman, the priest and the princess. In theory, most have fled toward the desert to avoid the T-Rex attacks. In reality, I’m sure it’s just cheaper having no more than a dozen people in the whole film. It’s just hard to get any thrill or excitement from T-Rex carnage when it’s one person at a time with teeth marks. • Most of the characters still are terrible—while Rios and Father Gria can be fun and even the princess has her moments (I quite liked Lachman on Dollhouse), the rest are terrible. I’d say the shaman was a bad stereotype and also need to point out again how lazy “rape as trauma and dramatic plot point” is as well as damaging. However, Cortes is nothing to write home about either. Zier-

ing’s fun to watch for his ineptness but the character is a rat and a bit of a waste of my time as he ends up basically running around in the secondary plot. • The dialogue—Oh lord, save me now! Some of the SyFy/ Asylum movies can at least get traction by being set in modern day and having a few snarky pop culture zingers. This is not one of them. Since it’s essentially the bargain basement version of a period piece, the dialogue is stilted and awful. It’s dull and not even funny in the “so bad, it’s good vein.” As a result, getting through the first twenty-five minutes until “thunder lizard” carnage hits full force is a chore.

The Verdict While it has its issues with some bland supporting characters as well as rough pacing in the first third of the movie, Tyrannosaurus Azteca is a fun ride. The way they get rid of both dinosaurs are clever and gory enough, the cheese is piled ridiculously high and the good guys engaging enough to fully root for. If you come across it, it’s definitely worth a look, even if it’s just for Mystery Science Theater 3000 night with friends! For more information, feel free to visit the film’s IMDB page.

Margaret Bates Rating

GGGGG

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Publisher: Fantasy Flight Games Players: 2-4 Suggested Ages: 14+ Play Time: 90 mins

Blood Bowl, Games Workshop’s fantasy-themed sports parody, has been a feature of our gaming life for decades. We own every single edition and expansion, from the primitive original box set to the flawed-but-playable PC adaptation. Cy adamantly insists that it’s the single product of genuine, lasting value ever produced by Games Workshop … because shut up, that’s why. Blood Bowl Team Manager, from Fantasy Flight Games, represents the first attempt to do something revolutionary with the format of the game, taking a much broader, topdown view of the fantasy sport and somehow turning it into something faster, leaner and more open in scope. Dispensing with over-priced miniatures and twenty-seven-year-

old rule sets, BBTM takes the form of a card and dice game for two to four players. Each player has the task of shepherding a team of traditional Warhammer World psychopaths through a series of tournaments toward the fabled Blood Bowl championship. Primary gameplay involves the allocation of team member cards to specific match “highlights”. These represent key moments in a given match in an attempt to collect the appropriate payouts from each matchup or tournament. These payouts include increasing your team’s fan base, drafting new players or purchasing various types of upgrades. At the end of the game, once the winner of the climactic tournament is determined, the player with the greatest number of fans is declared the winner. It’s all pretty simple in practice and the strategic card play system is satisfyingly meaty. As always seems to be the case, FFG has done an excellent job with the game components. The card art is perfectly suited to both the practical needs and theme of the game and the supplied tokens are more than rugged enough to

TABLETOP GAME REVIEW

cope with the kind of abuse they’ll inevitably suffer in the hands of an average Blood Bowl coach. Players don’t require a familiarity with the core concepts of Blood Bowl to play BBTM (although it’s probably assumed) and the flavour text written into the cards and rulebook does a good job of setting the tone. With two players, gameplay is smooth, fast and fun. Scaling up to four leads to a longer game with more rounds of play, but retains the basic structure and doesn’t clutter it up too much. Basically, it’s a fun little game with a lot going for it. Here comes the “however” section… Players of any edition of Blood Bowl have learned this but it may still take newcomers by surprise. Blood Bowl Team Manager is extremely random for a modern card game. With the exception of drafting a few new players in-game, there’s no deck building component 107

Geek Syndicate to play and dice are used whenever a team member attempts to tackle an opponent or to activate certain special abilities. Many team members are required to take one or more randomised Cheating Tokens every time they are allocated to a matchup, the value of which will alter their effectiveness in that confrontation or (distressingly often) result in them being sent off altogether. There’s no way to control the odds of this happening and players will frequently find themselves being crippled for a round after carefully constructing an otherwise bulletproof play. While this aspect of BBTM is far from overwhelming in real terms, the level of randomness is high for a strategy-based card game. If that upsets you, move along swiftly.

As an example, certain types of Star Player can be “drafted” into your team, replacing one of your existing cards instead of simply adding to the stack as a normal Star Player would be. The benefits of opting to do this, while eventually becoming clear in-game, are not spelled out up-front and might be counter-intuitive to new players. In one case, a pretty major rebalancing exercise – involving the actual removal of key components from the main game and the creation of a whole new play variant to slot them back in – was passed off as a simple “errata” in the official FAQ document. That’s the level of opacity we’re talking about here: “Sorry, guys. We didn’t test these cards at all and it turns out they break something fundamental in Image © Fantasy Flight Games

The rulebook, unfortunately, represents a back slide toward the old days of FFG’s output. It’s not as bad as first-edition Descent or Arkham Horror, where they pretty much just loaded the system into a giant Rules Cannon and dumped it

randomly onto the page, but in comparison to games like XWing and Android: Netrunner, it’s disorganised and clumsy. Terminology is used loosely (and occasionally never even explained) and the underlying structure of the system is sometimes opaque.

the game, but we’re not going to explain how or why so you needn’t bother your pretty little heads over it.” Most FFG games (in fact, most games in general) take some measure of flack for balance issues, but BBTM seems to be reasonably well gauged across all the team types. There isn’t really any optimal team build – and even if there were it’d be hard to manufacture in play due to the random selection of new team members and upgrades. In the final analysis, you’re basically trying to wrestle a wilful, half-wild game in your direction, rather than plotting and executing some perfect, crystalline master plan. It’s chaotic and rewarding, but not one for control freaks or Bond villains. The thing is, nothing in the (admittedly extensive) “however” section above can counterbalance the fact that BBTM is just plain fun to play. It can be frustrating to get a randomly selected player sent off from your randomly selected team because of a randomly selected compulsory Cheating Token, but the navigation of chaotic systems has always been what Blood Bowl’s about. Besides, it’ll all be over in half an hour and you can play again – which you’ll almost certainly want to do.

Cy Dethan Nic Wilkinson Rating

G G G GG 108

TV REVIEW

Writer: Steven Moffat Director: Nick Hurran Starring: Matt Smith, David Tennant & John Hurt

The Doctors embark on their greatest adventure in this 50th anniversary special. In 2013, something terrible is awakening in London’s National Gallery; in 1562, a murderous plot is afoot in Elizabethan England; and somewhere in space an ancient battle reaches its devastating conclusion. All of reality is at stake as the Doctor’s own dangerous past comes back to haunt him. Twenty-third of November, 1963. It’s just after five fifteen in the afternoon and audiences around the United Kingdom hear one of the most iconic television theme tunes for the first time, accompanying a strange wibbly-wobbly, visual sequence that was unprecedented on British television.

Fifty years, three hours and thirty-nine minutes later and that very same theme music plays once more. “Day of the Doctor” arrived to ninety-four countries simultaneously. Beware there are spoilers within! Before I get into it, I just want to remind you that I have been a Doctor Who fan for as long as I can remember. My first proper television memory comes from The Five Doctors thirty years ago and I’ve never looked back. I’m also one of those fans who has a tendency to find out teeny tiny details about the show’s past – on and off-screen. So we can end on a high, I’m going to get everything that didn’t work for me out of the way. ... Now that that’s over, let’s get on with things! Actually, I do have a niggle, but it’s a bit spoilery so I’ll save it for near the end and carefully mark it as such. It’s also one that can be forgiven in the context of an anniversary and in no way hindered my enjoyment of the programme. Firstly, as a long time Doctor Who fan, I have to admire Steven Moffat’s writing. The scribe managed to get so many links to the classic series into the script in a way that

in no way detracted from the story to those who have only really seen the re-launched episodes. I was also really worried that too many elements were going to be thrown onto the screen – I’d seen pictures of Daleks, Zygons, Matt Smith, David Tennant, John Hurt, Billy Piper, Jenna Coleman, Jemma Redgrave and UNIT, Queen Elizabeth I (played by Joanna Page). Aaaand breathe. Even with an extra twenty-five minutes to play with, this seemed like a tall ask. I needn’t have worried. The real beauty of the episode was the balance of elements. At no point did the story seem rushed – hell, parts of the first twenty minutes were snailpaced which perfectly balanced some pretty epic scenes that were intercut with them. Steven Moffat set himself a massive task here. Not only to celebrate fifty years of the programme but to do so with an excellent drama that not only perfectly bridged the “classic series” with “new Who” (I hate those expressions, but there we go), but also allowed the overall story of the show to continue AND to make that seem fresh. A personal bonus was that the script addressed many of the elements of the re-launched series that have always (in a very small way) grated on me. Catchphrases, silly speak, holding the Sonic Screwdriver

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UNIT return ... but with less guns and more science

Of course, even the best script can be unravelled by poor performances, so let’s look at the people who let the side down. …

Moffat also manages to bring these incarnations of the Time Lord together in a perfectly reasonable manner while they are all going about their separate adventures. Each story strand comes together perfectly well and each Doctor is given time to breathe in their own story before coming together. Heck, it’s nearly twenty minutes before we even see David Tennant in person.

like a magic wand rather than a tool, the continuous snogging… John Hurt’s incarnation of the Doctor stands as the bridge. He seems like one of the “old” Doctors and questions the two young men he is faced with. He calls them out at every step but he also offers the reason.

It’s a while before even two Doctors meet

Oddly, it was about twenty minutes in that my wife stopped her preparations for an evening out and focussed on the television fully. The script is clever. It’s funny and, on top of everything, it succeeds at everything it attempts to do while giving each character a chance to participate in the resolution. A brilliant accomplishment.

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OK, no-one. I was bowled over by one person in particular – John Hurt’s ninth Doctor. John Hurt lit up the screen in this show, bringing a gravitas and grim, gravel-voiced humour that seemed perfectly fitting for

a Doctor who had reached his breaking point. No More. The Time War WILL end and he will end it. Matt Smith and David Tennant were on their usual form. Smith being wild-armed, gangly brilliance. Tennant slipping easily into his comfy sand shoes and seeming as if he’d never been away. There was an excellent chemistry

between the two and the script cleverly allowed them to both get on and disagree during the course of the story. Once our third incarnation of the Time Lord turns up, the differences between the two really begin to show through as they react to the Doctor they tried to forget. Jenna Coleman also really impressed me this episode. I really grew to love Clara over the course of the story. In past adventures, I’ve found the character to be a bit too perfect (companion-wise) and I thought her story was a bit rushed, compressed as it was into seven episodes. Here, I really believed in the character. Clearly she’s had more off-screen time with the Doctor and has also managed to balance this with a career as a teacher (presumably taking time to train). In many ways, it is Clara who saves the day and her performance at the critical moments, her ability to mock all three of the Doctors when required…Excellent stuff.

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And then there were three. The story brings the Time Lords’ together in an in-universe plausible fashion

I’ll be honest when I say I didn’t want to see Rose in this special. Nothing against Billie Piper or the character but her story was done. The way in which the character is brought in, however, really worked for me and made sense. Billie provided a haunting performance that also brought in some of her character’s cheekiness. The music in the story was pitched perfectly. I’ve often thought that it’s over used in the re-launched show, underlining every moment and often at too loud a volume. This episode harkened back to the Classic series in so much as the music was much more incidental. It kicked in when required to underscore the key moments without distracting from the action on-screen. Special kudos to the use of the Doctor’s theme, I Am the Doctor, which was performed at an amped up level and seemed elevated from the norm. Superb.

I’m going to get to my niggle now. So… SPOILER The cameo that occurs after the action has finished and before the final scene. I thought that was a step too far. To be honest, I thought it was a disservice to the other surviving “classic” Doctors. The concept of the Doctor re-visiting old faces didn’t bother me (quite easy to nip to Karn and ask for that one thanks to Night of the Doctor). It just seemed… unnecessary to the story and was the only real unnecessary piece of fan service in the episode. Of course it does mean I can pretend those BBC audio series with Tom Baker’s Doctor living in a house with a maid and having adventures with Captain Yates actually feature this new incarnation! END SPOILER To conclude, Day of the Doctor is an excellent story that uses

the show’s disparate elements to great effect. It’s a Historical / Present Day / Future story that manages to wrap up so many elements of the programme and push them to new bounds in a perfectly satisfying way. It’s a perfect celebration of the programme that manages to provide a bridge between the old and the new. It’s respectful of both aspects of this phenomenon that’s lasted half a century. Thank you to all involved with the making of this programme over the years. Every single one of you have my undying gratitude and affection. Thank you to those who kept the spark alive in the wilderness years. Wonderful people. All of you.

Antony McGarry-Thickitt Rating

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COMIC REVIEW

Writers: Gabriel Ba, Brandon Graham & Richard Starkings Art: Rafael Albuquerque, Boo Cook, Ming Doyle & Brandon Graham Publisher: Image Comics

Featuring a variety of original tales by incredible industry talent from around the world, plus some shining new start of the UK comics community, our anthologies are curated with the ultimate aim of showcasing the very best sequential art has to offer. This collection will also print the winners of 2012’s Thought Bubble Art Competition, and all profits from the sales of this comic will go to the charity Barnado’s. Contributors for 2013’s anthology include Cameron Stuart, Brandon Graham, Ming Doyle, Fabio Moon, Gabriel Ba, Ramon Perez, Jeffrey brown and Many More!

Well, those clever folks have done it again and produced a gorgeous anthology full with some of the best and brightest names in the comic industry. Just check out the names in that blurb. That’s an impressive list of talent right? This is the third anthology from Thought Bubble, tying in with the annual comics festival that takes place in November. Each year it gets better. The anthology contains twenty-four stories to mull and coo over and it starts off with an inspired Elephantmen and Judge Dredd crossover, “Judge Flask”. In this story, Judge Dredd, high as a kite on candy, is chasing down a Judged up Flask. Another stand out story is “Rain Falling like Hammers” from Lee Barnett and artist Oliver Redding which is beautiful and haunting. “I Am Meckie” from Ramok K Perez was a hilarious sci-fi short, which managed to fit a hell of a lot of staples into one page (robot, guns, warships and a weird, all knowing lizard).

There are other great stories featuring demanding cats, menacing thought bubbles, a carnivorous kebab and a caveman dentist. The thing that’s great about this anthology is that it is so varied, there is something everyone will like and the artwork is so diverse and rich. With so many different styles, it’s a really compelling read. There’s a great mix of different stories, lots of humour and also some sniffle inducing tales. There really isn’t one weak link in this book of tiny tales. We highly recommend you run out and buy this now. You can buy the anthology in all good comic shops or over on Comixology and it’s only £2.49, which is a bargain! Also all the proceeds go to Barnardo’s, so you’ll get the added bonus of a warm fuzzy feeling from helping kiddies while reading an excellent book.

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There was another great crossover tale with a Chloe Noonan and Ellerbisms story. I won’t give away any more but one line in particular had me howling! I love the sardonic sense of humour that ran through this page.

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Geek Syndicate THOR: The Dark World

Writer: Christopher Yost, Christopher Markus & Stephen McFeely Director: Alan Taylor Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman & Tom Hiddleston

Faced with an enemy that even Odin and Asgard cannot withstand, Thor must embark on his most perilous and personal journey yet, one that will reunite him with Jane Foster and force him to sacrifice everything to save us all. Marvel’s “Thor: The Dark World,” continues the big screen adventures of Thor, the Mighty Avenger, as he battles to save Earth and all the Nine Realms from a shadowy enemy that predates the universe itself. In the aftermath of Marvel’s Thor and Marvel’s Avengers Assemble, Thor fights to restore order across the cosmos…but an ancient race led by the vengeful Malekith returns to plunge the 114

universe back into darkness. Faced with an enemy that even Odin and Asgard cannot withstand, Thor must embark on his most perilous and personal journey yet, one that will reunite him with Jane Foster and force him to sacrifice everything to save us all. Set a couple of years after the first Thor film and some undisclosed time after The Avengers, the new film shows Thor, The Warriors Three and The Lady Sif battling to bring back peace to the Nine Kingdoms after the destruction of the Bifrost. With peace restored and Loki imprisoned for the rest of his life it seems all is good in Asgard. Back on Earth, Jane Foster is trying to move on with her life after seemingly being abandoned by Thor. She is a bit more successful in this than Dr Erik Selvig who is showing the after effects of having a god in his head!

All is well until Jane accidentally stumbles across an ancient weapon, which wakes up the baddies of the film – The Dark Elves. These Elves were defeated by Asgard many thousands of years ago, and were put into hibernation by their leader Malekith. However, their long nap has not crushed their desire for vengeance at all and with Malekith determined to destroy Asgard, Thor must team up with Loki to save not just Asgard but all of the Nine Worlds too. This film is mixed in tone. It is a lot darker than the previous Thor movie, with a couple of emotional scenes. In order to compensate for this, the film makers have put in much more humour as a result. Quite a bit of this comes from the sparring between Thor and Loki who come off quite believable as squabbling siblings. Both Hemsworth and Hiddleston Image © Marvel Comics, 2013

FILM REVIEW

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The Dark Elves are an interesting and foreboding enemy and Christopher Eccleston dives into the role of playing Malekith, really making the character his own. The scenes set on Asgard were beautiful and brilliantly imagined and it was wonderful to have a film with scenes shot in London and Greenwich, even if some of it was blown up – those naughty Elves!

I do have some niggles with the film: Natalie Portman just seemed to be playing the damsel in distress for a lot of the film and only became useful right near the end which was frustrating. I also felt that Hiddleston’s Loki was sorely underused, as was Skarsgard’s Dr Selvig. Both are brilliant characters who I felt could have been utilised more, especially Selvig who started off a strong character but turned into a big joke in this movie.

seem very at ease in their respective roles.

That aside I really did enjoy this movie but maybe not quite as much as I thought I would have. I think a lot of this is due to the legacy of The Avengers, which was such a brilliant film that anything after it doesn’t seem to be able to compete (Iron Man 3 for example was good, but I think Stark was better in The Avengers). I do wonder if I would have loved Thor: The Dark World more had it not been for The Avengers. Also a couple of parts which should have had me blubbering didn’t, not even a little bit and I’m seven months pregnant! However all in all another good addition to the Marvel universe and one that you should definitely go and see on the big screen – kids and adults alike……Oh and make sure you stay past the credits too.

Darkphoenix1701 Rating

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COMIC REVIEW

Writers: Frank J. Barbiere Art: Garry Brown Publisher: Image Comics

Fabian travels to Japan to aid an old ally in the search for a mythical weapon: the legendary sword known as MASAMUNE! A special stand-alone tale featuring artist GARRY BROWN (The Massive, Mass Effect) Five Ghosts tells the story of Fabian Gray, infamous thief and treasure hunter. As part of an incident with an item known as the “Dreamstone”, Fabian is now “haunted” by five literary ghosts: The Archer, The Detective, The Vampire, The Wizard and The Samurai. Borrowing their powers, he steals the unstealable but he still can’t get back the thing he wants most. For issue six of the (now ongoing) series, creator and writer Frank Barbiere teams up with artist Garry Brown. The issue takes Fabian on a one-shot 116

adventure to Japan in search of a famed sword. Fabian Gray journeys to Japan after receiving a letter from childhood friend and love interest, Hisano. Upon arriving, Fabian learns that the legendary blade Masamune may be more than legend and that it’s resting on land that Hisano’s family owns – land that is being stolen by an unnatural rival clan. When Fabian finally gets to the bottom of things, it’s apparent that all is not as it seems and that there are many more Dreamstones than the one that he has possession of. Frank Barbiere writes a perfect one-shot. The story is self-contained and requires no previous knowledge of the book – it delivered an entire story in its own pages. It’s nice to see more of Fabian’s past revealed, and it’s also interesting to see Barbiere expand upon the in-world mythos and further build the world of Five Ghosts. It seems like this issue was written with Garry Brown in mind, rather than being a typical “fillin artist” issue. Even while putting his own mark on Fabian Gray and his world, Brown manages to keep the same general aesthetic as regular se-

ries artist Chris Mooneyham. The colours, provided by Lauren Affe, really help to take the quality of the art and the entire book to the next level. This is how one-shots should be. Five Ghosts Issue Six is a self-contained story that is well executed. It has fantastic writing, art and colours. For those that haven’t read any previous issues, this is a great way to jump into Five Ghosts, and for those that are already fans, this is an issue you don’t want to miss.

Leo Johnson Rating

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Geek Syndicate ELEVATOR PITCHES What’s an Elevator Pitch? Imagine you have a production that you’ve put a lot of work, life and soul into. You love it.You know others would to. You get into an elevator, maybe in a hotel at a convention. At the same time, in walks a well-known editor. The doors close and you are alone. This is your chance - but you only have a short time to get your work noticed ... That’s the concept of Elevator Pitches. Provide us with a single sentence summarising your production and another explaining why we should pick it up. Follow this up with a preview and the pitch is done - let the work sell itself. If you would like to submit a production for this section, email: thegeeks@geeksyndicate.co.uk.

Butterfly Gate Writer: Benjamin Read Artist: Chris Wildgoose Publisher: Improper Books Buy It From: Limited UK indie release available from Page 45 (Nottingham), Travelling Man (Leeds, Manchester, Newcastle and York), Gosh! (London), Orbital Comics (London), Chaos City Comics (St. Albans),Destination Venus (Harrogate), Paradox Comics (Poole), and OK Comics (Leeds).

What is Butterfly Gate? “A dark SF odyssey, following two siblings who, after throwing themselves headlong into another world, must face the brutal reality that lies beyond and find their place amidst an empire built after a revolution against the Gods. Butterfly Gate is also a silent comic, conveying the story purely through its imagery.”

Why should we pick this up? “Because lots of very talented people said lots of very nice things indeed about the creative team’s last book, Porcelain: A Gothic Fairy Tale. Also you could get to the read Butterfly Gate ahead of the rest of the world by buying the limited UK release. ”

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The Magpye: Circus Writer: Chris Lynch Cover Artist: Stuart Tipples

Publisher: Self Published Buy It From: Amazon.co.uk. The first two chapters of the book can be read after this page. For a thirty page downloadable preview of the book, please check out this site.

What is The Magpye: Circus? “It’s… Batman meets The Punisher meets Harry Potter meets the Sixth Sense. A comic book that became a novel, it’s got ghosts, guns, magicians, dirty cops, witches, the undead, cannibalism, crime lords, a freak-show circus, and a blimp.”

Why should we pick this up? “A genre-spanning novel, The Magpye is for fans of pulp action adventure, superheroes, horror, and crime thrillers. It contains things like this…”F*** me,” White murmured, “He killed a f****** building.” Chris Lynch has previous written for a number of UK comics publishers, including Markosia, and been featured in the Judge Dredd Megazine. Before he started writing comics, Chris was published in a large number of horror and science fiction magazines”

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Geek Syndicate 0 This is the story of a bird. Once, a long time ago, this bird sat on the left shoulder of death and, other than for the reaper’s steed, was Death’s only companion. Together, the rider the bird and the horse went out into the world and hunted for souls to take to the afterlife. The reaper and his steed knew only this duty, but the bird was prideful and greedy. It begged Death to give it souls of its own to hold dominion over. Death refused, but the bird persisted, cawing in the reaper’s ear incessantly. Eventually, even Death’s patience was exhausted and, in a rage, Death cast the bird down into the shadowy space between the world of mortal men and the afterlife. It gave the bird dominion only over those incomplete souls could not move on to the next world and who were trapped in limbo as ghosts, spectres, and phantoms. The bird, for its part, was also enraged. It grew capricious, cruel, and spiteful and hatched a plan to swell the ranks of its own kingdom at the expense of death. It became a spectral thing itself and, haunting the minds of wronged men, the bird taught mankind how to seek vengeance. It remade itself from an avatar of death into an avatar of bloody murder and revenge and vowed to one day become master of all of the dead. That bird became the Magpye, and this is its story.

THE LIVING ARE THE INTERLOPERS Everything in the circus was dead except for Marv, Marissa, and maybe Magpye. Nobody was sure about Magpye. Part of the problem was that Magpye wasn’t always completely Magpye. Sometimes he was Able Quirk, and he certainly looked a lot like him. A dead him, but still him. Other times Magpye was someone else entirely, the ghost of some other person, or persons, speaking through Able. But always, underneath it all, he was Magpye. Whatever the hell that meant. Above ground, everything had been burnt long ago. The caravans were nothing more than rusting skeletons, their blackened skins blistered from the heat of the fire, ruptured, and now rusting in the merciless elements. Their black frames looked the skeletons of elephants, great beasts come together in their graveyard, far from the herd. Tattered tarps, colourful shrouds for the dead circus, clung to the ruined frames of the tents and awnings, and the ground was little more than a black, scorched skin. Above it all towered the black bones of the big top, casting its grim shadow across the place like a cage. When the

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Geek Syndicate wind was right, you could still smell burning. If you listened carefully, you could sometimes hear screams too. Murder hung in the air like a fog and clung to everything, a sticky miasma that made the flesh crawl and the heart pound. Something bad had happened here. The kind of bad that stained a place. Even when the circus had been open, before everything had burnt, there had been rumours. The place was an old, forgotten cemetery, some said, and the ghosts of those interred here haunted the circus and plagued its visitors. Well, there were ghosts here, that much was certain. Magpye could hear them. He could hear them all the time. Below ground, in their tiny sanctuary underneath the vast corpse of the circus, Marv and Marissa were cooking. Pans steamed, lids rattled. Ever the showman, ever the magician, Marv made even a simple stew cooked over a camping stove look like a conjuring trick. Behind him, Marissa laid the table. Impossibly, some china had survived the fire-storm that had consumed the circus, and she placed it carefully on the table. The sanctuary was a small mausoleum: an expensive tribute, Marv had suggested, to a family long past. Despite all the ghosts that Magpye could sense, he had no inkling of who the original denizens of this place might have been. Unlike the ghosts of the circus, their spirits had found peace, he suspected. Marissa had done her best to decorate the place, papering the vaulted stone ceilings with old posters from the circus, scrounging up what furniture she could. With the original tenants gone, they had turned the place into a shrine to their own lost loved ones. Salvage from the burnt out caravans was piled everywhere, a ramshackle museum built up from the everyday detritus of people’s lives mixed with what was left of the paraphernalia of the circus. They had used some of the larger boxes to block up doors, limiting themselves to just a few small rooms. Marv wanted to explore the place, but Magpye’s keen sense of the dead and their demands had bade him leave the rest of the crypt alone. The living were the interlopers here. Perched on the edge of an old steam trunk, Magpye watched Marissa laying the table. The plates were fragile, just like the girl, he thought. Survivors, but chipped and crazed and changed by the whole thing. He was changed too, of course, more than any of them. “Sit down to the table, son, you’re making us all nervous,” Marv said. “Or make yourself useful and help Marissa.” Magpye cocked his head to one side, an affectation that let Marv and Marissa know that he was no longer listening to them, but to one of the many voices that only he could hear. Dead voices, never quiet. “Sorry,” he mumbled, hopping down from his perch. “That’s OK,” said Marissa, unsure whether the apology had been for her or not. “Everything’s ready. Why don’t you sit down and we can get started?” Magpye shot Marv a look. “I can’t...” “Try,” said Marv, pouring steaming stew from the pan into the waiting bowls. “Just... try.” 127

Geek Syndicate And so the three of them sat and stared at their plates of stew. Marv, the once great circus conjurer, and Marissa his daughter and former assistant. Magpye knew them both, but couldn’t be sure if the memories were his or if they belonged to one of his ghosts, to the one of the voices in his head. He felt Marissa’s hand on his. It was warm, far warmer than his own cold and cadaverous flesh. “You used to love this stew,” she said earnestly. “You’ve got to eat something, keep your strength up.” Magpye pushed the bowl away angrily, spilling some of the steaming stew onto the old wooden table. “I can’t,” he said flatly, his temper immediately subsiding. “I can’t eat this.” He stalked away from the table, damning the voices in his head for their sudden silence as Marissa began to sob behind him. *** Sitting in his lair, Magpye listened to the girl’s sobs fade away, and to the muffled sounds of Marv’s calm, deep voice. He was a hypnotist, amongst his other conjuring skills, and Magpye wondered if Marv had ever considered reaching into Marissa’s mind and turning off the things that plagued her. The voices said no, but Magpye still wondered. The “lair”, as Magpye had come to term it, was the smallest of their rooms. Marv’s old trick cabinet stood against one wall, co-opted by Magpye for his own storage. A bed of sorts, cobbled together from part of one of the old caravans, lay awkwardly to one side. A jagged shard of warped glass was propped up in one corner, a poor substitute for a decent mirror. Magpye liked to look at himself, he said, to see if he could see any trace of them, the voices in his head, behind his eyes or on his face. Marv said that Magpye had once stared into the mirror for almost two days. All he ever saw was his own warped reflection, of course. The dead were far too cunning to be caught in mirrors. A soft tap on the door and the creak of hinges announced Marv’s arrival. “I’m sorry,” said Magpye instantly, “I shouldn’t have...” “It’s fine,” Marv interrupted, dragging an old crate away from the wall to make an impromptu seat for himself. “But you can’t hide what you are from her forever you know.” Magpye looked down at the floor. “And what is that, exactly?” “You’re a young man with some incredible gifts, Quirk.” “Don’t call me that!” snapped Magpye. The bed creaked under his weight as he shifted 128

Geek Syndicate himself back and forwards. Marv knew the movement and understood the inner torment that it signified. He couldn’t imagine what it was to have so many voices in your head, especially when they were screaming. Marv sighed and rubbed at his face. “You can’t afford to forget who you really are, son.” “Who I really am is why all of my friends and all of my family are dead, Marv. Who I really am is why we live in a tomb underneath what used to be our home, why we have to scavenge in the wreckage of our lives, of their lives, for the things we need. Being Able Quirk is why all of this happened.” Magpye stood up and stalked across to the trick cabinet. Yanking the doors open, he revealed the contents - a small arsenal of throwing knives, a long handled axe, a belt hung with loops of trapeze wire, and his great coat. Stitched with a series secret pouches and pockets, even Marv didn’t know the full extent of the coat’s contents. Hanging from the top of the cabinet, was the mask. In a cabinet full of weaponry, it was the mask that frightened Marv most of all. “You’re going out?” he asked, warily. Magpye pulled on the great coat. Inside, Marv could see holsters swinging. “And you’ve got yourself some guns, I see.” “Malcolm put me on to them. He kept them in a secret compartment in the floor of his caravan.” “Malcolm...” said Marv wistfully. Malcolm had been the circus’ sharpshooter. British by birth, he dressed as a cowboy and affected a Texan drawl as part of his act. He’d been great, in his day, but he’d never told anyone the secret of where he’d learnt to shoot. Marv had always suspected that he was more than just a sharpshooter or a trick shot. For one thing, he’d never come across a trick shot who knew how to shoot a man in the gut so that it took him a whole day to bleed out. Magpye unhooked the long handled axe and slung it over his back on a leather strap. “I’m not going to try and stop you,” said Marv. “I know.” “But you can’t do this forever. Eventually, you’re going to have to stop hiding and remember who you are, underneath all of this.” “Doing this,” said Magpye, unhooking the mask, “Is the only thing that makes any of this make sense.” Marv stood, placing his arms on Magpye’s shoulders. He could feel hard plates stitched

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Geek Syndicate underneath the cloth. “I used to feel that way, you know I did. They were my family too.” “You left.” “And I came back.” “When they were dead. When it was too late to help anybody.” Marv found he couldn’t see Magpye’s eyes any more. The pale, milky orbs were almost devoid of colour, another of the mysterious changes that had come over the boy Marv had once known as Able Quirk, but it was more than that. He didn’t see the dead, or hear them like Magpye did, but that didn’t mean that he didn’t remember them. The circus had been his home too, once. Marv, the great magician, the master escape artist. He’d pulled his greatest ever escape without even knowing it, leaving the circus just a few weeks before it was burnt to the ground, the entire crew murdered. “I helped you, didn’t I?” he asked weakly. “Yes, Marv, you did,” replied Magpye. “And you’re still helping me now. Let’s face it, if I stop, what else are we going to do?” “Live?” suggested Marv, his tone glib. “As ghosts, maybe. Hiding down here in a tomb? We may as well be dead.” “But we’re not. We’ve got a chance. I’ve got friends in LA, a few friends in Vegas... we could start over.” Marv gripped Magpye by the shoulders, tightening his grip, “Everyone who goes up against the Kings ends up dead, kid. Everyone knows that. What happened here, what happened to us? They’ve done things a hundred times worse. They own this city, and nobody is taking it from them.” “I am.” “Bah!” scoffed Marv. “Well, at least use that secret passage of yours,” he said, heading out of the room. “I don’t want Marissa any more upset than she is already. And don’t think you can come back and haunt me if you get yourself killed out there.” But Magpye didn’t answer. As he closed the door, Marv heard the unmistakeable sound of Able Quirk zipping up his mask, and he knew that any vestige of the boy was gone in an instant. Inside the mask, there was only Magpye, and Magpye only wanted one thing. Magpye was going to kill the King.

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Geek Syndicate Pirates of the Lost World Writer: Richmond Clements Artist: Conor Boyle Publisher: Markosia Buy It From: Available from Amazon, Markosia and all good comic shops.

What is Pirates of the Lost World? “Captain Gideon Lester has hunted the ruthless pirate – Captain Fletcher – across the Atlantic. When he sinks the pirate’s ship, he finds himself in an impossible situation. Trapped in the Amazon, surrounded by savages and deadly dinosaurs, he has to join forces with Fletcher’s crew to have any hope of getting out of this Lost World alive…”

Why should we pick this up? MOMBSITE: Review of Dark Judgement. “Art duties are performed by Conor Boyle, whose work is really rich, with bold, illustrative skill that makes individual panels look amazing and visceral.” ECBT2000AD: (On Dark Judgement). “Conor Boyle has done a superlative job on the art duties.” FP Blog: (On Turning Tiger). “Richmond Clements (co-founder of the Hi-Ex comic con in Inverness) shows his strength in creating characters that, although fictitious, have the ability to engender a connection to the reader.” SciFi Movie Hype: (On Turning Tiger). “Turning Tiger sees the arrival of two promising new talents in the comic field. Here’s hoping we get to see more of their work soon.”

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