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  • Podthingy! Episodes 14-16 at SDCC!

    podthingy SDCC

    Podthingy is a side project that I’ve been working on with John Mulhall, author of Geddy’s Moon; Blayne Alexander, lead singer of Idiot Stare; and Hayden Lawrence, NerdBFF and Geek Outlaw. Basically, we sit around and drink and talk about awesome nerdy stuff. Here are episodes 14-16 in which we podcasted LIVE! from San Diego Comic-Con. Click the title to listen and be sure to “like” us on facebook and please rate us on iTunes!

    (Listen to Episodes 1-5 HERE)

    (Listen to Episodes 6-13 HERE)

    Episode 14: “Nerdgasm All Over Your Face!”

    In part one of our San Diego Comic Con 2014 coverage, we talk about our personal experiences at the big convention, Thor becoming a woman in Marvel’s comics, Game of Thrones, Outlander, Vikings, Batman v. Superman footage, the first image of Wonder Woman, Gotham, Ant-Man, The Leftovers, the disgusting marketing campaign behind The Strain, the Avengers: Age of Ultron panel, casting rumors, and the dread that is con funk

    Episode 15: “Nerdi Gras”

    In part two of our San Diego Comic Con 2014 coverage, we bitch about the lines and the crowds and discuss things like up close encounters with Norman Reedus and Greg Nicotero, the possibility of a new Evil Dead television series, the Godzilla sequel and King Kong prequel announcements, the rumor of Peter Jackson directing Doctor Who, the idea of more Fight Club on the horizon, the forthcoming Star Wars comics from Marvel, Star Wars Episode VII rumors, Agents of SHIELD Season 2 news, the latest on the DC television universe, and the pros and cons of Aquaman! Plus, we talk about cult classics on DVD – Final Warning, Motel Hell, Phantom of the Paradise, and the 60’s Batman television series – and the names of Tracy’s various body parts.

    Episode 16: “Aside From Boobs…”

    In the final part of our San Diego Comic Con 2014 coverage, we talk about Tracy winning a Captain Hammer costume contest, our favorite cosplayers, and our votes for coolest displays on convention floor including the Walking Dead Terminus building, Lego versions of Rocket Raccoon and Groot, the life-size Hot Wheels Darth Vader car, the zip-line over Gotham city, and the 75th Anniversary Batman display. We also discuss the new look of Batman from the upcoming Batman v. Superman film, the new Terminator movie and television series, Walking Dead season five, Weird Al, Shazam, Tremors, True Detective, Falling Skies, and the joys and terrors of seeing ourselves on video.

    Like our intro and outro music? Want to hear more? Blayne’s band Idiot Stare is participating in a “pay what you want” promo. Download the album for free or for what you feel you should pay here: http://idiotstare.bandcamp.com/ (FYI, the song used on Podthingy is “Future Popped”)

    Looking for a new book to read? Enjoy horror? Check out John’s book Geddy’s Moon (I’ve read it and it’s amazing).

  • Gratuitous Nerdity – “Gotham”

    What’s that you say? It’s been months since a “Hot Nerd Girl Podcast” and almost a year since a “Gratuitous Nerdity” post and you just can’t live without the glowing banter that is Tracy and Darcy? Well wait no longer! Tonight we had the opportunity to Instant Message about last nights Gotham premier. Premie? Premiere.

    Thanks for letting me write the intro, Trace. You most likely won’t regret it! – Darcy

     

    Darcy: Ugh… Gotham… pilot…. so bad… 80’s B-movie bad….

    Tracy: Really?? I liked it!

    Darcy: Ah, Tracy…. the eternal optimist… I’m going to keep watching, buuuutttt….

    Tracy: It’s gonna be great, I have faith 

    Darcy: You should do a blog post about new shows called “Keep the Faith”

    Tracy: Hahaha! I watch so few new shows though. Only got to watch Gotham because I had to make buttons for Long Beach Comic Con this weekend.

    Darcy: It’s a fast show too.

    Tracy: Yeah it is. seems like a lot of the focus will be on Cobblepot which is interesting. I wish that we had seen more of Selena.

    Darcy: They intro’d a loooot of main villains in an hour. Too many, in my book. And honestly, I don’t think they had to kick off the series with the Wayne’s deaths. That could have been a midseason thing. or like, episode 3. I don’t know, I’m just not seeing a ton of creativity with it yet.

    Tracy: Is Fish Mooney a new character? I’m a Marvel girl but I used to read some Batman and I don’t remember her from the comics. I thought they were introduced pretty organically though. We barely saw Riddler, for example.

    Darcy: Yeah, barely. And Ivy, barely. And Selena too. I just think they were rushed. And wanted to get enough hooks in because, I suppose, Gordon isn’t enough of a hook?

    Tracy: Well, I feel like it’s a cop show that just happens to be set in Gotham. The Boy Scout cop and the “is he or isn’t he crooked” cop partner. They don’t like each other but they start to grow on each other by the end. All cop shows start off with the case, this case just happens to be the Wayne’s murder.

    Darcy: Yeah, that’s what it’s supposed to be. I just think starting with the Wayne’s is too easy, I guess.

    Tracy: I think they did that because we all know what happens, why not get it out of the way?

    Darcy: To me, that’s midseason or finale time. After your attached to Bruce and can feel his loss.

    Tracy: Is it a requirement that we HAVE to see Martha’s pearls bouncing around?

    Darcy: Yeah, but that’s my point. That’s a short hand assumption. That we all know what happens to the Wayne’s. That’s not good story telling. It’s why Man of Steel sucked.

    Tracy: Who doesn’t though?? Cave dwellers?? Man of Steel is a whole other bag of worms lol. We never get to know the Wayne’s though, either in the movies or the comics, they need to maintain that air of mystery, that we’ll never know exactly what Bruce lost. We experience his relationship with them through his pain and his vengence. He basically becomes a psychopath, if we get to know his parents then we’ll have opinions of them and that’s counterproductive to the story.

    Darcy: Isn’t that a fresher take though? Otherwise, why are we bothering? Gordon is getting changed because we have, through this show and other comics, his past. When he first showed up, he’s the Commissioner. Why bother going back? ‘Cause it’s unexplored territory. And if they’re going to keep retreading the same ground again and again, they have to find new stories to explore. Batman Begins did. At least somewhat.

    Tracy: They are mixing it up though. We’ve never seen Bruce as a kid except in flashbacks and the brief murder scene. They are taking inspiration from the comics, but for the most part, everything is different.

    Darcy: That’s not enough of a reason NOT to show his parents though. They probably will flashback; I just disagree with how they’re handling it right now.

    Tracy: The Wayne’s aren’t the focus of the show though, the aftermath of their murder is – why drag that out?

    Darcy: Depends on how much time they’re going to spend with Bruce. I don’t think you have to spend a TON of time, but I think assuming we give a crap about Bruce because we all already know the backstory is lazy writing. This is long, but if you ever get a chance, you should check it out: http://badassdigest.com/2013/07/03/film-crit-hulk-man-of-steel/

    Tracy: See, I disagree. I think there were areas that were lazy writing (why does the mob ALWAYS have a meat locker, for example) but I don’t think starting the show off by killing the Wayne’s is lazy, I think it thrusts us right into the heart of the story and the whole reason why we’re there/watching it in the first place. I don’t need to see Martha be the perfect Mom and Thomas playing catch with his perfect son. I want to see the nitty gritty world of Gotham and see Alfred have to step up and be Bruce’s rock and Bruce have to grow up too quickly.

    Darcy: It’s all just choices. I’d like to see some slightly shady stuff on the Wayne’s part, perhaps, that he wasn’t the cleanest nicest guy in the world. Or at the very least, dialogue that doesn’t sound like it was written by a 10 year old in the 80’s.

    Tracy: Ok, well THAT sounds interesting to me. Like Bruce sees his parents as perfect, but there’s a reason why Thomas is the richest guy in town. The seedy side that we never know about and Bruce never knows about. The dialogue sounds very 1940’s gangster movie to me.

    Darcy: Yeah, it was pretty rough.

    Tracy: I think it was miles ahead of a CW show though. But this is FOX, so instead of 10 seasons of superhero origin story, it’ll probably get canceled halfway thru the first season.

    Darcy: Really? I like Arrow.

    Tracy: I like that not everyone is perfectly pretty. That differs from the CW.

    Darcy: Well, I didn’t like Arrow to start, but it’s gotten better.

    Tracy: I’ve been told I need to give Arrow another shot. I gave up after 2 episodes. I will say that DC is doing way better on TV than in the cinema ‘verse.

    Darcy: Yeah, I’m almost all the way through Arrow. I watch it while I run. Flash I’ve seen the pilot, which also moves at a break neck pace. I’m just a firm believer that most of the time you need two hours. Imagine if Star Trek: The Next Generation had a one hour pilot as opposed to a two hour pilot.

    Tracy: To establish the characters and the universe.

    Darcy: Yeah.

    Tracy: Well, the 2 hour pilot of Star Trek: The Next Generation was God awful sooooo…. lol

    Darcy: Yeah, it might improve it actually.

    Tracy: You should watch Flash while you run, might motivate you to run faster 

    Darcy: Ha. Ha. Ha.

    Tracy: So do you have hope for Gotham or do you think that it’s all downhill from here?

    Darcy: I have hope. Arrow has improved. If Parks and Recreation can overcome what I thought was a fairly flawed, shit copy of The Office from the first 1.5 seasons, then any show can do it.

    Tracy: I know that I’m the eternal optimist (most of the time) but I have hope too. I think compared to many pilots, it’s a pretty strong start and now they can get into the meat of the story. And hopefully FOX gives it a good shot before they up and cancel it if it doesn’t immediately get great ratings, but I think it’ll be ok in that regard, at least in the beginning. As always, thanks for nerding harder with me 

    Darcy: Always 

    –

  • C4: Central Coast Comic Con 2014

    C4: Central Coast Comic Con in Ventura is still in it’s infancy but it’s growing fast. This past weekend was only it’s 2nd year but it’s already twice as big as last year. Unfortunately, that made for several organizational issues and a lot of confusion in regards to panels, most of which were delayed, cancelled, or moved to another location with no warning, announcement, or signage.

    While frustrating at times, I’m eager to see C4 become the Con I know it can be. I love little local Cons, they are usually the best place to talk to all of the local comic vendors in one place. Which is why I was kind of bummed that I really didn’t see any comic book stands. If there were any, they were tucked away where I missed them. It didn’t seem like a particularly good Con for most of the vendors, with the exception of the guy making balloon characters for tips (more on that talented gentleman later).

    The highlight for me was definitely hanging out with my “ConFam” aka the artists and cosplayers and SoCal Con regulars that I see at every convention and love catching up with. So this wrap up will mostly be pictures of the cosplay and a few of the artists. I was planning to attend the Authors Panel but, alas, it was delayed, then moved, then cancelled altogether.

    But I like to focus on the positive so….PICTURES! 

    Since it’s a Comic Con, let’s start off with Comic Book Cosplay, shall we?

    Last year Lonstermash cosplayed as Rocky Balboa, complete with bloody boxing wounds and an American flag. This year he went with his classic movie Wolverine while representing at the Agents of COSPLAY table. He has several creative variations of the Wolverine costume and is probably the most famous Logan cosplayer out there.

    This female Deadpool really broke the fourth wall.

    Mini Silver Surfer!

    Cap, with and without background creeper.

    Author John Mulhall got in on the photobombing. Cyclops’ handler was not amused.

    You look like you could use some DC, how about we switch over to the other major comic universe.

    This is Smile-X Villain Co. They did the world’s best Batman/Rogue’s Gallery photo shoot ever a few months back. A photo shoot that I will post about at some point but the pictures keep slowly filtering in and I want to make sure I get them all before I post about it. Smile-X has several versions of their costumes, including Classic, PJ’s, and Punk Rock (pictured here).

    Most of the members of Smile-X Villain Co. met at C4 last year so this past weekend marked their one year anniversary as a cosplay troupe. Happy Anniversary, Smile-X!

    Dylan, the ringleader of Smile-X Villain Co. and a delightfully creepy Joker.

    My favorite Riddler is Ian aka Pieced Together Cosplay. I couldn’t choose between all of the awesome pictures I took of him this weekend, so here they all are:

    Spikes!

    Classic!

    With MEEEEEE!

    The Bat (The Bat Cosplay) debuting his new blue accessories and The Cat (Gotham Sirens Cosplay) in her classic Burton garb.

    Speaking of enemies….this Clark Kent seemed really surprised that I wanted to take his picture. You’re disguise doesn’t fool me, Superman!

    WONDAAAAH WOOOOMAAAAN!!! And a pirate thrown in just for kicks.

    I complemented this Two-Face on his makeup job and he pointed at his mother and proudly proclaimed that she’d done it. Well done, Mom, well done.

    The family that cosplays together, stays together. We’ll transition from Comics to Sci-Fi with this lovely Loki/Firefly loving family.

    Multi-pass!

    I am the law!

    I didn’t notice that the trooper on the right was a mannequin until after I got home and started going through my pictures. I thought he seemed a little tall for a Stormtrooper.

    This guy makes custom action figures, wears awesome t-shirts, and has some badass figure tats.

    The Star Trek Enterprise D Bridge Restoration project was there and took tons of pictures of various cosplayers (including these classic Treksters) in the Transporter Room. Check them out on their facebook page!

    These guys from the Umbrella Corporation couldn’t figure out how to get it to work.

    I found this Dalek wandering around and tricked it into getting on the Transporter pad so that I could beam it to another dimension and thus EXTERMINATE it!

    But it caught up with me just as I was exiting the TARDIS (btw, this picture was taken by Bulk of the Mighty Morphine Power Rangers while we were perusing the floor, more on that later).

    Luckily the War Doctor was there to help me out.

    After which we headed back to the TARDIS (Hello, Sexy!)

    And hung out with K-9 for awhile.

    I can’t decide what my next car should be. Put your vote in the comments!

    How about this one? It comes complete with Heroes in a half shell!

    Or, if you’d prefer, half-clothed.

    I asked this mini-Popeye if he was eating all of his spinach. His reaction? *shrug*

    This little lady was totes adorbs.

    These guys are so critical of EVERYTHING.

    What a nightmare these two were.

    Speaking of nightmares…I practically jumped behind John Mulhall’s Geddy’s Moon backdrop when this chick turned to stare at me.

    Luckily there was a Goblin King nearby.

    Did someone say Goblins?

    Don’t know. Don’t care. They’re perty.

    Alpha 6 and Zordon from Mighty Morphine Power Rangers.

    Speaking of Power Rangers, there were a TON of them there. I even ended up hanging out with a bunch of them at a bar one night. Turns out that my friend and Podthingy cohost, John Mulhall, is a friend of Jason Narvy who played “Skull” on the show. So I got to hang out with Bulk (Paul Schrier) and Skull for the weekend. I even helped Bulk pick out a souvenir for his girlfriend, hence why he took my picture in front of the TARDIS – which was hilarious because I could see people recognize him but they didn’t want to interrupt him while he was taking my picture. When they did finally get a chance to approach him, he was very gracious and welcoming. Both Jason and Paul are pretty much the complete opposite of their characters on the show. Nice guys through and through.

    Speaking of John Mulhall, he had a Geddy’s Moon booth there. If you haven’t read his book yet, you really should. It’s a fantastic supernatural thriller.

    Jason Beckwith’s graphic novel Taking Eden is a recent new fave of mine and I desperately need to write a review of it and his other books so that you’ll all realize just how awesome they are and buy them from him.

    B. Alex Thompson, writer of Hass. Love him!

    I mentioned before that the balloon guy probably had the best Con experience of all of the Vendors. Geek Outlaw and I first met Donald Tran and his girlfriend when they were walking thorugh the halls of San Diego Comic Con with these amazing balloon creations on their heads. We had to stop and check them out. Turns out that SDCC was his first Con and C4 was only his second! He got such a great response to his head gear that he decided to have a booth. He worked for tips and was crazy busy the entire weekend popping out all manner of comic book, fantasy, and sci-fi creations for kids and adults alike. Naturally, I had to get a Mjolnir, which I later gave to my 5-year-old neighbor 

    Seriously, I’m a big fan of Donald Tran. Here’s a video of him finishing up my Mjolnir.

    –

    The most unexpected and wonderful person I met this past weekend, was legendary MAD Magazine (amongst other things) cartoonist Sergio Aragones. And it was his birthday! He’s 77 years young and the sweetest man you could ever hope to meet. I adore him.

    That wraps up my coverage of C4! Thanks for checking it out! Here’s hoping that 2015 C4 is bigger and better and a bit more organized  I truly appreciate the tremendous effort of everyone who tried to make the event as smooth as possible, it was obviously a labor of love for them.

  • 2014 Geekie Awards

    Author John Mulhall + Rock Star Blayne Alexander + Hot Nerd Girl + Geek Outlaw = Podthingy

    Author John Mulhall + Rock Star Blayne Alexander + Hot Nerd Girl + Geek Outlaw = Podthingy!

    I just had the pleasure of attending the 2nd annual Geekie Awards, an awards show for geeks by geeks founded by Kristen Nedopak and hosted by Khail Anonymous. The purpose of The Geekie Awards is to honor the nerdier parts of pop culture that are often ignored by other larger and more mainstream award shows. The categories include: Lifetime Achievement, Geek of the Year, Geek Cred, Indie Video Game, Art & Craft, Comics & Graphic Novels, Cosplay, Podcasts & Vlogs, Short Films, Websites & Blogs, Trailers & Videos, Fashion & Armor, Tabletop Games, Personality, and the big award of the night, Web Series.

    Aside from an uncomfortably hot two hours on the black carpet (seriously, despite drinking water I started seeing stars at one point and had to sit down for a few minutes before I passed out in Manu Bennett’s arms – which, in hind sight, I probably should have just rolled with) and a few technical issues with the mics, the entire experience was a joyous voyage to my happy place. I love nothing more than to talk nerd with fellow geeks and it was an entire evening of doing just that. Nerdvana indeed. I also spotted and chatted with many of the same people I see at all of the local Cons so it was a blast seeing them in a different venue. Many of them were cosplayers there to bring out the statues during the show so they were in full costume making it easy for me to identify them. They, on the other hand, often took a second before they recognized me thanks to the fact that I was decked out in a dress and high heels. VERY different from my usual attire of jeans, t-shirt, and Chucks.

    Let’s start with the aforementioned black carpet, shall we? For this I teamed up with my NerdBFF, Geek Outlaw, to tackle and talk to the various celebrities, presenters, and nominees. To watch all of the black carpet interviews and shenanigans (gods, I love that word), check out the video here:

    –

    Some photo highlights from the black carpet!

    Eric Won (Writer, Director, Producer) and Trip Hope (Executive Producer) of The Division, nominated for Best Web Series.

    Kaj-Erik Eriksen (See No Evil 2; The 4400) Presenter, Best Art or Craft

    Vic Mignogna (Executive Producer and star) of Star Trek Continues, nominated for Best Web Series. I had a BLAST geeking out about Star Trek with him!

    Vic Holtreman (Owner) of Screen Rant, nominated for Best Website or Blog. We had a more in-depth conversation with him at the after party about how he started the site.

    Jason Ritter (Parenthood; Gravity Falls) Presenter to LeVar Burton

    Robert Carradine (Revenge of the Nerds; King of the Nerds) Presenter, Best Website or Blog

    Randy Couture (The Expendables 2 & 3) and Mindy Robinson (King of the Nerds) Presenters, Best Trailer or Video

    Greg Grunberg (Alias, Heroes, Masters of Sex, SocialTronLive) Presenter, Best Tabletop Game

    Amy Dallen (Host) and Jenni Powell (Producer) of Talkin’ Comics Weekly, nominated for Best Podcast or Vlog

    Lauren Bregman of Castle Corsetry, nominated for Best Fashion or Armor

    Jenny Lorenzo (Host) Aggressive Comix Presents: Geekgasm, nominated for Best Personality

    Tony Swatton (Star, Master Blacksmith) for Man at Arms, nominated for Best Web Series

    Curtis Armstrong (Revenge of the Nerds; King of the Nerds) Presenter, Best Website or Blog

    Manu Bennett (Arrow, The Hobbit trilogy, Spartacus) Presenter, Best Personality

    Bonnie Gordon and Lina Carollo (The Quest)

    Brian Bielawski, Co-Founder and Chairman of Gam3rCon

    Doug Jones (Pan’s Labyrinth, Hellboy trilogy, Falling Skies) Presenter, Best Cosplay

    LeVar Burton (Star Trek: The Next Generation, Reading Rainbow) Geek of the Year Honoree. His super cute daughter and I bonded over our mutual love of Thor and my Mjolnir earrings while her Dad was being interviewed further down the line.

    And, of course, the real star of the black carpet: The Batmobile

    Once the black carpet portion was over we were whisked inside to the press area in the mezzanine. Luckily, John and Blayne had already secured seats for us so we were right up next to the railing with a great view of the stage.

    Lifetime Achievement

    Presenter: Stan Lee

    Recipient: Gale Anne Hurd

    First up was a pre-recorded video of Stan Lee (his health seems to be a bit precarious lately but he looked great in the clip!) presenting the Lifetime Achievement Award (last year he was the first recipient) to Gale Anne Hurd (The Walking Dead, Terminator).

    Gale gave a rather lengthy but charming acceptance speak that included walking us through the definition and the history of the word “geek” and describing her childhood as a nerd before being a nerd was cool.

    Geek of the Year

    Presenter: Jason Ritter

    Recipient: LeVar Burton

    Next was the Geek of the Year presented by Jason Ritter to LeVar Burton. As a bonus, Greg Grunberg and someone from Gibson guitars, came out to present Burton with a guitar of his very own. A major highlight? When he busted out the theme song to Reading Rainbow.

    Geek Cred

    Presenter: Malik Forte

    Recipient: Oculus VR (accepted via a pre-taped video message)

    In between the categories and during what was technically the commercial breaks of the show, we were treated to some trailers and funny filmed comedy bits. One of the most entertaining of which was Barry Dragonman. A dragon who found early success on The Munsters, then got sucked into the world of partying, alcohol, and drugs, eventually going broke. He later found success again appearing in “Lizardnado” and Game of Thrones. It was a feel good story. Turns out the guy who played Barry was sitting right next to us.

    Best Video Game

    Presenters: Alison Haislip & Maude Garrett

    Nominees:
    Axle
    Outlast
    Octodad: The Dadliest Catch
    Don’t Starve
    The Banner Saga

    Winner: The Banner Saga

    Best Art or Craft

    Presenter: Kaj-Erik Eriksen & Anthony C. Ferrante

    Nominees:
    House of Darkly
    Sienna Morris
    Art of Kudaman
    Kindra Nikole Photography
    The Work of J.W. Kinsey’s Artifice

    Winner: The Work of J.W. Kinsey’s Artifice

    Best Comic or Graphic Novel

    Presenters: Jason Charles Miller & Wendy Pini

    Nominees:
    Oh, Hell
    Boston Metaphysical Society 
    The Man of Many Shades
    Wicker
    Ruin

    Winner: Oh, Hell

    Best Cosplay

    Presenter: Doug Jones

    Nominees:
    Trolloc Fist (The Wheel of Time)
    Big Daddy Bouncer(Bioshock)
    Totoro Ball Gown 
    Steampunk Rowena Ravenclaw  (Harry Potter) 
    Brienne of Tarth (Game of Thrones)

    Winner: Big Daddy Bouncer (Bioshock)

    This is the part where a baby T-Rex came out and Doug Jones had to awkwardly inform him that he’d already gotten the part in Jurassic World. Check out the clip and hilarious baby T-Rex impression HERE:

    –

    Some stills:

    Best Podcast or Vlog

    Presenter: Lucky Yates & Rob Paulsen

    Nominees:
    Gecken
    Talkin’ Comics Weekly
    We’re Alive – A Story of Survival
    AMC Movie Talk
    Sword and Laser

    Winner: Talkin’ Comics Weekly

    Best Short Film

    Presenters: Mark Ordesky & Jane Fleming

    Nominees:
    The Hitchhiker
    Future Hero
    Splinter Cell Extraction
    Kepler X-47
    The Field of Vision

    Winner: The Hitchhiker

    At this point the Founder of The Geekie Awards, Kristen Nedopak, came out to give her spiel.

    Best Website or Blog

    Presenters: Curtis Armstrong & Robert “Bobby” Carradine

    Nominees:
    The Escapist
    International Geek Girl Pen Pal Club
    Set to Stunning
    Screen Rant
    Geek Girl Authority

    Winner: Screen Rant

    To watch Curtis and Bobby talk about being the oldest nerds there and other funniness, check out a snippet of their interaction (including a hilarious in-character laugh from Bobby) HERE:

    –

    Best Trailer or Video

    Presenter: Randy Couture & Mindy Robinson

    Nominees:
    Nothing to Prove – Geek Girls & The Doubleclicks
    Wonder Woman
    Brielle and the Horror: The Graphic Novel Trailer
    The Doctor Games (Parody Trailer)
    Legends of the Knight

    Winner: Legends of the Knight

    For some reason this segued into a rather awkward bit in which the host brought Catwoman onto the stage and asked for a volunteer from the audience who would like to be whipped. I have a feeling that this looked a lot better on paper. But, hey, we’re geeks and we’re awkward, so I guess it was kind of perfect in a way.

    Best Fashion or Armor

    Presenter: Jessica Merizan & HipHop Stormtrooper

    Nominees:
    Kayla Stojek / Zombie Peepshow
    Lauren Bregman / Castle Corsetry
    John McGovern / Sharp Mountain Weather
    Catherine Kim / IAMKNIGHT
    Donna Ricci / Clockwork Couture

    Winner: Lauren Bregman / Castle Corsetry

    Best Tabletop Game

    Presenters: Greg Grunberg & Brea Grant

    Nominees:
    Little Wizards
    Forbidden Desert
    Dread Curse
    Council of Verona
    Belfort

    Winner: Belfort
    (They were a no-show so the award was accepted by Greg Grunberg, who also helpfully reminded us that this year marks the 40th anniversary of Dungeons & Dragons)

    Best Personality

    Presenters: Manu Bennett (who took it upon himself to moon us…not that I’m complaining) & Olga Kay

    Nominees:
    Kim Horcher
    Anthony Padilla and Ian Hecox
    Jenny Lorenzo
    Jenna Busch
    Danni Danger

    Winner: Jenny Lorenzo

    Best Web Series

    Presenters: Mychal Thompson & Meghan Camarena

    Nominees:
    Caper
    Star Trek Continues
    The Record Keeper
    The Division
    AWEme “Man at Arms”

    Winner: Star Trek Continues

    We were then treated to a performance by Songhammer before spending a few minutes hanging out at the after party where we chatted some more with Doug Jones and a few of the winners.

    All in all, a delightful experience that I very much hope to repeat next year!

    For more information about The Geekie Awards go HERE!

  • San Diego Comic-Con 2014 (Part 3) – Joss Whedon Nerd HQ and Outlander Premier

    Hot Nerd Girl Outlander

    Welcome to Part 3 of my San Diego Comic-Con wrap-up! This section is all about the Joss Whedon Nerd HQ panel-turned-last-minute-Mystery-Guest-panel and the Outlander premier.

    If you missed Part 1 go HERE. If you missed Part 2 go HERE.

    NERD HQ

    Hayden (Geek Outlaw), Podthingy cohost John Mulhall, HNG Podcast cohost Darcy Villere, and I were all really excited to nab tickets to the Joss Whedon Nerd HQ panel. Nerd HQ panels are quickly becoming the hottest ticket in town during SDCC and the tickets sell out, literally, in the blink of an eye. I’m not joking. I blinked and the tickets for The Walking Dead and Nathan Fillion panels were GONE. Joss had been our first choice though so we were happy just to walk away with tickets to his “Conversation for a Cause” benefiting Operation Smile. Then, the day before the panel, a rumor started circulating that Joss had been laid up with a sudden knee surgery and wouldn’t be able to make it. We had no idea if they would cancel the panel or Skype Joss in or try to make it up to us by bringing in someone else. It turned into the ultimate Mystery Panel (though my bet was always on Nathan Fillion). We had no idea right up until the moment we took our seats and the show started.

    It turned out that I was right and out walked Nathan Fillion, quickly followed by Liam McIntyre (Spartacus), Chloe Bennet (Agents of SHIELD), Seth Green, and Alan Tudyk.

    During the very first audience question my phone buzzed with a text message from Darcy who was sitting on the other side of the theater with John. Turns out Hayden and I were on camera the entire time the girl was asking her question and Darcy snapped a picture of it.

    One of the audience members got more than she bargained for when she tried to ask a question. First Liam showed that he was paying rapt attention.

    Then everyone else decided to join him. With the exception of Seth who decided it was more important to take pictures for posterity.

    Then, about halfway through – tada!- Joss Whedon turned up via Skype from his bed in London where they were just finishing up filming Avengers: Age of Ultron.

    And proved that he is, indeed, the Puppet Master.

    Watch the entire Nerd HQ Conversation with Joss Whedon and Mystery Panel here (keep an eye out for me and Geek Outlaw at 10:52):

    –

    STARZ OUTLANDER PREMIER

    Yes, I’m dressed like Captain Malcolm Reynolds. We came straight from Comic-Con, mmmkay?

    I’ve been a voracious reader for as long as I can remember and, as a result, I quickly got tired of books meant for my age group and was always on the lookout for books that would challenge me. This is why, when I was around the age of 14 or so, my Dad handed me a book that my Stepmom had recommended to him and said “here, read this, I think you’ll like it.” That book was Outlander by Diana Gabaldon and I was smitten. It took several more years but I eventually convinced Mama Jedi to give it a try and she quickly became as enraptured by the story of Jamie and Claire as I was. Outlander is one of those books that I’ve recommended to more people than I can count. Whenever someone asked me what book I would want to make into a movie, I never hesitated to say Outlander. So it was quite fitting that two Star Trek alums (I’m a Trekkie in case you’re new here), Ronald D. Moore and Ira Steven Behr, made it happen in a way that honors the spirit and vision of the world Gabaldon created.

    First we waited in a rather lengthy line and completely skipped Hall H in order to check out the SDCC panel. Panelists: Ronald D. Moore (Producer), Diana Gabaldon (Writer), Caitriona Balfe (Claire Randall), Sam Heughan (Jamie Fraser), Tobias Menzies (Frank Randall/Black Jack Randall), Graham McTavish (Dougal MacKenzie), Lotte Verbeek (Geillis Duncan)

    Turns out, in Scotland, Gaelic is pronounced “Gall-ick” not “Gay-lick.” I learn something new every day. We also learned that they thought it would be most difficult to cast the part of Jamie but it turns out they found Heughan pretty quickly and ended up having the hardest time casting Claire. Like me, Gabaldon was not initially impressed with Heughan’s look and couldn’t picture him as Jamie (I believe she initially called him “hideous” – ha!), but then she saw him in the part and he grew on her (me too). Moore has included Gabaldon pretty much every step of the way, resulting in a TV series that Gabaldon is both excited about and proud of. Gabaldon and George RR Martin are good friends and will often commiserate with and try to one-up each other. For example, it seems that Martin is quite jealous that Outlander has 16 episodes instead of just ten. We even got a highly amusing kilt twirl from Ron Moore.

    Mama Jedi and I also visited the Outlander booth in the Exhibitor Hall a few times. Which had everything to do with checking out the period props and nothing at all to do with the handsome men in kilts *ahem*

    Thanks to a little help from Geek Outlaw, we managed to nab a couple of passes to the Starz World Premier at the Spreckels Theatre just a few blocks down from the Convention Center.

    The crowd was impressive, as was the plaid carpet.

    Once inside, we were forced, forced I tell you, to walk through the lobby between two rows of even more handsome men in kilts standing on logs and boulders looking all tall and manly. Mama Jedi was a bit twitterpated, methinks. I almost tripped and fell flat on my face at one point because I was too busy looking at all of the studliness surrounding me and not even remotely paying attention to where I was going. I have no idea if anyone saw that. I’m really hoping that nobody saw that.

    Luckily our seats were on the aisle…

    … so we had a great view of the theatre and the screen with its bevy of Scottish Highlander historical FAQ.

    The women behind and to the right of us seemed to be in a group together and they were pretty much obsessed with getting pictures of the actors. Every time I looked over my shoulder all I saw was a sea of glowing smart phone screens.

    When the actors finally did walk in, every woman (and some of the men) jumped to their feet and surged forward. I was slightly concerned for the actor’s safety, but the fans ended up behaving themselves. Can you tell how amused I was by all of this by the fact that I took pictures of the people as opposed to pictures of the actors?

    The one exception I made was Tobias Menzies who walked by right next to me and was so close that this was the picture I got and my camera wasn’t even zoomed in.

    The show started with some intro music by three lovely and talented female bagpipe players.

    The first episode did not disappoint. It is available to watch HERE for those who are interested (trust me, be interested).

    We were then treated to a Q&A with the same folks we saw on the Comic-Con panel…

    … and an almost flash from Graham McTavish.

    –

    After which we got a proverbial cherry topper to our Outlander ice cream in the form of a musical performance from none other than composer Bear McCreary himself.

    –

    –

    All in all, a fabulous experience well worth skipping dinner for.

    And that wraps up my 2014 San Diego Comic-Con wrap-up! Thanks for tuning in and I’ll see you at the next Con!

    Here’s Part 1 and Part 2 in case you missed them.

  • HNG Interviewed – The Christian Villere Show

    Christian, Tracy, and Darcy creeping in at the bottom

    Christian, Tracy, and Darcy creeping in at the bottom

    Just before San Diego Comic-Con I was interviewed by Christian Villere for his podcast “The Christian Villere Show” in which he highlights millennials making a difference in the world, as well as issues millennials are dealing with in an increasingly complicated environment.

    Christian is a great interviewer and my HNG Podcast cohost, Darcy, and I had a blast discussing the origin of “Hot Nerd Girl” as well and some personal details about yours truly and my favorite charity, Operation Gratitude. He even links to the music video I recently appeared in for Lydia’s Libido.

    The full story and interview: http://www.thechristianvillereshow.com/hotnerdgirl/

    iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-christian-villere-show/id890337323?mt=2

    Stitcher: http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/epic-rant-radio/the-christian-villere-show/episode/34849086?autoplay=true

    Thanks, Christian!

    I have no idea what I’m doing half the time

  • Podthingy! Episodes 6-13

    Podthingy Hot Nerd GirlPodthingy is a side project that I’ve been working on with John Mulhall, author of Geddy’s Moon; Blayne Alexander, lead singer of Idiot Stare; and Hayden Lawrence, NerdBFF and Geek Outlaw. Basically, we sit around and drink and talk about awesome nerdy stuff. Here are episodes 6-13. Click the title to listen and be sure to “like” us on facebook and please rate us on iTunes!

    (Listen to Episodes 1-5 HERE)

    Episode 6: “Good Time to Be a Geek” Podthingy is where the geeks meet over drinks to discuss the latest in nerd culture. This week’s episode features our (belated) summer movie preview. We discuss Edge of Tomorrow, Transformers 4, Guardians of the Galaxy, Jupiter Ascending, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, Interstellar, TMNT, Lucy, Sin City 2, Snowpiercer, and others. Plus Gotham, The Flash, Sherlock, and punching Hayden in the face.

    Episode 7: “Episode VII” Podthingy is where the geeks meet over drinks to discuss the latest in nerd culture. In this episode: the failure of The Muppets Most Wanted, the Flash Gordon reboot, Clash of the Titans, our thoughts on Star Wars: Episode VII, the importance of fandom, the awesomeness of Drew Struzan, the dickishness of Harrison Ford, and the weirdness of Jeff Goldblum. Join us for a “very special episode” of Podthingy.

    Episode 8: “I Like Dinosaurs” Podthingy is where the geeks meet over drinks to discuss the latest in nerd culture. In this episode, we talk about listener response to Episode 7, news on the Star Wars standalone films, Jurassic World, the Marvel universe on television, Netflix, Bryan Singer’s legal woes, an update on Ant-Man, rumors about the DC cinematic universe, the failure of Edge of Tomorrow at the box-office, and Hayden’s love of Dinosaurs. #fuckharrisonford

    Episode 9: “Speaking of Cocks” Podthingy is where the geeks meet over drinks to discuss the latest in nerd culture. In this episode, we talk about the difference between nerds and geeks and dorks, Daredevil casting news, Mission:Impossible 5 rumors, Jupiter Ascending’s new release date, old Star Trek versus new Star Trek, the possibility of a new Star Trek television series, Icheb the Borg boy, Spider-Man’s erection, and Tracy’s Purple Hooters.

    Episode 10: “Gratuitous Nerdity” Podthingy is where the geeks meet over drinks to discuss the latest in nerd culture. In this episode we celebrate the 30th anniversary of Ghostbusters, including the merits of Ghostbusters II, The Real Ghostbusters, the status of Ghostbusters III, the graciousness of William Atherton, the magic of Bill Murray, and Ecto Cooler. Plus, we also discuss remakes and reboots, Zombieland, the 75th Anniversary Batman exhibit, Dave Coulier, and Blayne’s diapers.

    Episode 11: “Super H8” Podthingy is where the geeks meet over drinks to discuss the latest in nerd culture. In this episode, we discuss Super 8, Peter Capaldi as Doctor Who, the alphabetical Star Wars edit, the difference between obsession and art, The Golden Girls, D-Box seats, and TARDIS underwear. along with our favorite movies featuring kid protagonists, including Goonies, Stand by Me, Flight of the Navigator, Bedknobs and Broomsticks, E.T., and the “L” Movies.

    Episode 12: “Way, Way Off the Rails” Podthingy is where the geeks meet over drinks to discuss the latest in nerd culture. In this episode, we review the latest immersive cinema technology 4DX and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (with no spoilers), plus we talk about Chris Columbus possibly directing the Gremlins and Goonies sequels, the new Harry Potter story on Pottermore, the Fantastical Beasts movie series, the danger of Hollywood hype meeting audience expectations, J.J. Abrams not directing Star Wars Episodes VIII and IX, why we’re not watching The Leftovers, why Lady Gaga needs to disappear for a while, and our not-so-secret love of Gremlins 2: The New Batch.

    Episode 13: “This is a F***ing Family Show!”

    Podthingy is where the geeks meet over drinks to discuss the latest in nerd culture. In this episode, we welcome special guest Ivan Van Norman from ’King of the Nerds‘ and talk to him about his experience on the show and his new RPG, Outbreak Undead. We also discuss the Podthingy gang’s experiences with role-playing games such as Dungeons and Dragons, the future of the Amazing Spider-Man franchise, Brandon Routh being cast as the Atom, Supernatural, Hemlock Grove, American Gods, Netflix, Better Call Saul, How to Train Your Dragon 2, Kung Fu Panda, the power of editing, our favorite geek collectibles (including KISS condoms), and the startling secret reality behind the Animaniacs.

    Special guest Ivan Van Norman from ’King of the Nerds‘

    ***

    Just a heads up that the entire Podthingy crew will be down for San Diego Comic Con this week and we’ll be podcasting on Saturday night!

    Darcy, my fabulous HNG Podcast cohost will also be hanging out with me at SDCC!

    Like our intro and outro music? Want to hear more? Blayne’s band Idiot Stare is participating in a “pay what you want” promo. Download the album for free or for what you feel you should pay here: http://idiotstare.bandcamp.com/ (FYI, the song used on Podthingy is “Future Popped”)

    Looking for a new book to read? Enjoy horror? Check out John’s book Geddy’s Moon (I’ve read it and it’s amazing).

  • “Ask a Nerd Girl” – 3rd Edition

    Ask a Nerd Girl

    It’s been a year and a half since the last “Ask a Nerd Girl” – yikes! I tried to answer all of the questions, I apologize if I missed any. Thank you so much to everyone who participated. Y’all asked some great questions and it’s been a lot of fun answering them. You rock my socks.

    Stuart E: What do you consider to be the difference between a nerd and a geek? 

    HNG: I wrote an entire blog about this AND we discussed it during our most recent episode of Podthingy. I recommend checking them both out!

    Samuel S:  is there a point where you feel that you are extremely angry at everyone for no reason and is it healthy for the mind? 

    HNG: At everyone? Not really. I certainly get frustrated about certain events going on in the world. To be honest, I don’t get mad very easily, I don’t really see the point in holding on to anger. Like Yoda said, “Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering.” 

    Joe D: A train leaves LA at 10a.m. traveling north carrying toxic chemicals while another leaves SF at the same time traveling south carrying high powered explosives. They are going to crash somewhere in between. Which super hero arrives first to save the day and why? 

    HNG: The only superhero I can think of who could foresee the crash happening is Dr. Manhattan. That might be a big enough deal that he would care enough to stop it. Superman and The Flash could reverse time and prevent it from happening.

    Margaret K: I’m sure you’ve been in situations where you’ve been the only nerd girl around, hot or otherwise. In those cases, how did you deal with it and what did you do during the times you just wanted to be girly? 

    HNG: I’m a tomboy so it’s very rare that I want to be girly. For most of my life I either didn’t have many friends (I was a Navy brat) or I had a group of guy friends that I hung out with and one or two girlfriends. That changed when I went to college and even more so after college. I have more girlfriends now than I’ve ever had in my life and I adore them to pieces. I don’t really know how to be anything other than myself, take it or leave it. For a long time I was one of the few girls at the conventions I went to and, being awkward around other awkward people it was, well, awkward. I’ve witnessed the surge of the nerd girl and the cosplay revolution and it’s been a fascinating and delightful journey.

    Jeremiah F: Who is your favorite character in the Star Wars expanded universe that does not appear in the first 6 episodes? 

    HNG: I haven’t spent much time in the SWEU but I do like Mara Jade and I like the idea that the Skywalker/Solo kids are flawed characters.

    David D: What are you allergic too? 

    HNG: Blueberries. Horribly allergic.

    Sean K: What’s your degree in?Did you like the cookies? Have you studied swordplay?

    HNG: Theatre. (yeah, THAT really came in handy) YES! Only insofar as I did for theatre/stunt/staging fighting classes. I would like to study it for real, if for no other reason than to be prepared for the inevitable zombie apocalypse.

    Ben R: Are you a football fan? If so, who’s your team? If not, whynatte? 

    HNG: Yes! My favorite team is the Chargers (it’s a hard team to be a fan of) but I also root for the Niners and the Packers due to family tradition.

    Byron W: This may seem like an obvious one, but why “Hot Nerd Girl?” 

    HNG: To be honest, I’m not a fan of the moniker. And if you ask anyone who knows me personally, they’ll tell you it’s an odd title for me. Not because it isn’t true, but because it’s not how I act and/or see myself. I’m quite a prude and I’m very laid back so the “hot” part doesn’t really fit my personality. The “nerd girl” part does though. The moniker is entirely my HNG Podcast and college friend Darcy’s fault. He came up with it and talked me into it. I didn’t think anyone would ever read my blog or care about anything I had to say so I agreed. Joke’s on me 

    Ivan O: Do you play any instruments? 

    HNG: I wish! Only my voice. I did years of musical theatre.

    Robbie E: How many yoyos is too many? #tacklingthebigquestions 

    HNG: One can never have too many yoyos. I own two, an old Rusty Surfboards neon yellow one and a Yoda one.

    Steve N: Is it that you don’t like to cook or you don’t know how? I’m happy to offer lessons.  

    HNG: Both. It’s not something that interests me. A few people have tried to teach me but I’m pretty hopeless. I am good at making alcoholic beverages though  

    Mike S: i have two questions … one … how would you suggest i go about robbing a bank without leaving forensic evedence so i can afford to plan my wedding and the second .. .can i get an autographed 8×10 ? 

    HNG: Congratulations on your upcoming wedding! The first question really isn’t my area of expertise, as much as I would love to be badass enough to know how to do something like that. I could probably help you out with the second question though. Is there a particular picture you want from one of the photo shoots? Email me at princesstrek@hotmail.com

    Ron M: What are your favorite comic book characters? Does that work? 

    HNG: That works  My favorites are Thor and X-Men. I discovered comics after a particularly painful military-related move in the middle of my 5th grade school year. I had no friends but my brother and I discovered a comic book store down the street. I had been watching the X-Men cartoon so I got really into the X-Men comics. I grew up listening to my Norwegian relatives talking about Norse mythology and I was always really fascinated by it. The day I discovered there was a comic book character version of Thor I was hooked and he became my favorite.

    Chris S: I see that you do a lot of volunteer work to support the Armed Forces. If you had to pick a favorite branch of service, which would it be and why? And as a follow on (though not meant to influence), have you ever personally witnessed a Marine Corps Ball? Thank you for entertaining through your Facebook page! 

    HNG: I grew up a Navy Brat so it would be hard for me to choose another branch; however, my brother is an active duty Marine which certainly complicates my loyalties! I have great love and respect for all branches. I have never been to a Ball for any of the branches. My brother almost took me one year when my SIL couldn’t go but he opted to go solo. 

    For anyone who is interested in how I volunteer, I work with an AMAZING organization called Operation Gratitude. 

    Glad you enjoy the facebook page!

    Chris S: What is your favorite / funniest story from attending a convention like ComicCon or WonderCon (or any others)? 

    HNG: I met Brent Spiner at San Diego Comic Con in 2012 and he was the sweetest guy. He waved me over and we chatted for a few minutes and he helped me take a picture on the sly with him (which he wasn’t supposed to do it because he was technically “sold out” of pictures with the fans). I was ecstatic but also really bummed because I have a TNG book that I’ve been collected signatures in but I didn’t have it with me and he was only there that day. So I brought the book with me to SDCC in 2013 just on the off chance that he’d be there. He was. Once again he waved me over and when I started telling him that he probably wouldn’t remember me he stopped me and said that he absolutely remembered me and that I was a hard person to forget. Now, this was hugely meaningful to me, not just as a Trekkie, but as someone who has always done my best to blend into the background and not be noticed which resulted in a lot of people from my past not remembering who I was later on, the fact that he remembered me was a really big deal. He signed my book and I was a happy camper. I forgot to tell him that we share the same birthday though (Groundhog Day) so I’ll have to see if he’s there again this year. And hopefully he doesn’t think that I’m stalking him – ha! 

    John P: What is the airspeed velocity of an unladen sparrow?

    Rick S: What is the airspeed velocity of an unladen swallow?

    Andrew D: African or European ?

    Bruan A: AAAUGH!

    Brandom E: Must be on metric system!

    HNG: Airspeed can be predicted using a published formula. By inverting this midpoint Strouhal ratio of 0.3 (fA/U ≈ 0.3), Graham K. Taylor et al. show that as a rule of thumb, the speed of a flying animal is roughly 3 times frequency times amplitude (U ≈ 3fA).5

    We now need only plug in the numbers:

    U ≈ 3fA
    f ≈ 15 (beats per second)
    A ≈ 0.22 (meters per beat)
    U ≈ 3*15*0.22 ≈ 9.9

    … to estimate that the airspeed velocity of an unladen Swallow is 10 meters per second.

    You have to know these things when you’re a nerd, you know.

    Tom M: I cannot beat the unladen swallow question.

     HNG: Sure you can.

    David H: Why in Toy Story does Buzz stop talking when adults come in the room, when he thinks he’s an Astronaut not a Toy ? 

    HNG: Uhhhhh…..because they are so much bigger than human children and he’s not quite sure how to react to them? Instinct? Storytelling convenience? 

    Andrew D: If it was you who’s mind was read and spawned a creature ala ghostbusters what would appear? 

    HNG: Ugh. Something to do with zombies and the Violator. A zombie Violator. That’s my worst nightmare. Stay Puft I can handle, no problem. 

    Dane P: What’s the meaning of life, the universe, and everything?

    Shawn D: What does the answer to life the universe and everything mean?

    HNG: 42.

    Mike C: How did my daughter become a clone of you? Not a bad thing, but really spooky thing…  

    HNG: Obviously I don’t know your daughter (she sounds awesome!) but if I had to give a generic answer, I think it has to do with it becoming more socially acceptable to be a nerd. The lines are so much more blurred than they were when I was a kid.

    Scott M: Why is Star Wars considered SciFi when it is really a mythological hero tale set in space?

    HNG: We’ve discussed this on Podthingy a couple of times and I don’t consider Star Wars sci-fi, I consider it fantasy. Since it takes place in space and has weapons like lightsabers and blasters, it’s easier for the masses to consider it sci-fi. Despite the very first words you see “A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away…” I think that most laymen think of it as taking place in the future. Drives me nuts too 

     Charlotte J: Will you marry me!!?? Mmmmmmmwahahahaha!!!! Xxx

    Phillip M: Single?

    Martin N: Dinner?

    Scott N: Can I get your number?

    Jeanne W: Clearly people on this page are reaching for the stars by requesting marriage. How about a date? Or more appropriately what would someone have to do to get a date? 

    Eric C: Will you marry me?

    Adam E: if i could ask you anything, it would be… inappropriate.

    Scott G: “Wanna?”

    Zack H: Ummmm yeah Imma shut up

    Pete M: Wanna hang out? 

    Daniel D: On a date.

    Pope T: Without getting smacked?

    Jon T: Will you marry me?

    Chris L: Want to go grab a beer or glass of wine

    Sid W: Would you like to get coffee if you ever are in seattle-bellevue, WA?

    Jorge A: When r u coming to Chicago to visit me

     HNG: Y’all are so sweet and I’m very flattered but I’m spoken for.

     Michael W: Will you be my date to Dragoncon this year

    HNG: Not sure I can afford to get out to Atlanta. Mama Jedi and I looked into going to the most recent one and it just didn’t work out money-wise. It’s in my Top 5 list of Cons that I want to go to though!

    David B: Seeing as you’ll get at least a dozen proposals . . . Do you want to go on an adventure? Do you want to do weird things with strange people? 

    HNG: I always love adventure! I wish I could go on more of them. It depends on what the weird thing is 

    Dire F: do U want to go on an interdimensional treasure hunt? 

    HNG: Sure. You set it up and I’ll happily join in.

    Charlotte J: Would you ever consider going on a one way mission into space? X

    HNG: Yes. Most people I know have a hard time with this. They would like to go to space but aren’t willing to make that sacrifice. I would do it. I wouldn’t even have to think about it.

    Blair C: Do you like to travel, and if so where’s your favourite place you’ve ever visited? (Technically two questions, but I only used one question mark so I think that’s fair!) 

    HNG: I haven’t been to many places outside of the Continental US. I’ve been all around the US, Hawaii, Cancun, and Aruba. I would say favorite so far was Cancun because I got to see a lot of pyramids and archaeological sites and I really wanted to be an archaeologist when I was a kid. I would love to go to Europe.

    Bub V: Where’s my sandwich? 

    HNG: Wherever you put it after you made it for yourself.

    Jonathan T: What *does* the fox say? 

    HNG: Oh, you like that show? CANCELLED!  

    Matthew G: Why do hot dogs come in packs of 8 and the buns in packs of 6? 

    HNG: So that you’ll have to spend more money. Bastards.

    Ryan H: Hao murican bohltz //?? L O L WILD 

    HNG: *smiles and nods*

    Rickyroo R: You think michelle fairley is bluffing about the omission of lady stoneheart? 

    HNG: Part of me hopes so and part of me hopes not. I was surprised Lady Stoneheart wasn’t in the finale but it wasn’t my favorite storyline so it wouldn’t bother me greatly if it wasn’t included. After Arya and the Hound’s final run-in with them, the show has pretty much dropped the entire Brothers Without Banners storyline anyways. 

    Bradley S: Do you ever rub your feet together when you’re tired? If you have not tried it, you should!  

    HNG: Can’t say that I have, at least not intentionally. But I’ll try it.

    Matteo A: Why is america more accepting to comic/nerd culture than we british are? 

    HNG: Having never been to Great Britain, I’m not sure I can answer this properly. That being said, Doctor Who has been a cultural staple over there for 50 years now. That’s pretty darn nerdy.

    Matthew R: If I could ask you anything, I would merely ask for a photo with you!  

    HNG: I go to pretty much all of the SoCal conventions and I’m starting to branch out a bit. Where are you located? I’ll happily go to any Convention that invites me as a guest. It’s the plane tickets/hotel rooms that add up and make it so that I can’t go unless I’m invited.

    Arnab L: Do you play football(soccer)?  

    HNG: It’s one of the few sports I never played (outside of PE). I dabbled in a lot of sports, basketball, baseball, street hockey, gymnastics. But I primarily focused on track and dance.

    Becky S: Wheres the beef?

    Adam R: can you pass the pepper??

    HNG: Believe it or not, I don’t eat either of those foods so no, I can’t lol

    Kevin M: Have you ever danced with the devil in the pale moonlight?

    HNG: Do you ask that of all your prey?

    Michael G: Do you even lift

    HNG: Weights? Only when I go to the gym which is rare with my schedule.

    Gavin S: Where am I? 

    HNG: Ellensburg, Washington

    Angela B: I can’t resist this one, and my husband suggested it- Do you want to build a snowman? 

    HNG: YES!

    Jim M: What is your favorite fandom? If you were put on the spot and had to name one, what would it be? 

    HNG: Star Trek.

    Daniel B: How much wood could a woodchuck chuck of a woodchuck could chuck wood?

    Ryan N: How much wood could a woodchuck chuck, IF a woodchuck could chuck wood? 

    Bryan A: He would chuck, he would, as much as he could,
    And chuck as much as a woodchuck would
    If a woodchuck could chuck wood.

    HNG: What Bryan said.

    Christopher B: If I had a TARDIS, I’d ask what Eleven asked Amy at the beginning: “All of Time and Space. Everything that happened or ever will. Where do you want to start?” 

    HNG: The future, anytime in the future. I just really want to know what’s going to happen and I hate spoilers.

    Yaseen Z: why on earth would you ask that?

    Daniel K: Why do you ask?

    Evelyn L: W H Y ?

    HNG: Why not?

    Brandon E: If the world was ending, would you rather do a Video Gaming marathon or a TV/Movie Marathon? More specifically? 

    HNG: TV/Movie Marathon. I have a very bad right wrist and ridiculously small hands so it’s quite painful for me to use a gaming controller for more than a few minutes at a time (bummer, I know). Star Trek.

    Michael S: If you could go on holiday for a month to a science fiction / fantasy universe, which one would you choose? 

    HNG: The Federation. Or Middle Earth.

    Benjamin F: Who would you like to have as your enemy? The Empire or Klingon? 

    HNG: The Klingons. The Empire’s reach is far too vast. Klingons are more contained.

    Joshua K: Ever hear of the Iron Druid Chronicles? 

    HNG: Yes, but I have not read them.

    Epochil I: Star Wars or Star Trek?

    Jose G: Star Wars or Star Trek? 

    HNG: Star Trek. But I love both.

    Paul F: At what age did you consider yourself “hot”, besides being a nerd? 

    HNG: I still don’t consider myself “hot.” In fact, growing up I didn’t think about my looks much at all until people commented on it every once in a while in High School. Except on HNG, my looks really don’t come up very often and if it does, it’s usually in passing or as a joke. And even on HNG, I think people realize pretty quickly that that’s not my focus.

    Cal O: What was the name of that one guy? You know, the one that owned that car… 

    HNG: Doc Brown? Batman? Michael Knight? James Bond?? Dean Winchester?? The Ghostbusters???

    Ben J: What makes you happy? 

    HNG: Being by myself. I’m an introvert all the way. I’m happy spending time with the people I love but then I have to go back to being by myself for a while. Socializing drains me even if I’m having the time of my life.

    Tony A: Are these the droids I’m looking for? 

    HNG: These aren’t the droids you’re looking for. Move along.

    Steve H: Wow what a loaded question, but I will play it safe: If you had to chose to have known only one of these Franchises which one would it be: Star Wars, Star Trek, Firefly

    Rick S: Pretty sure we already know the answer to this one. Lol 

    HNG: I’m sure Rick is thinking about Star Trek and he’d be right. It’s my first love. I truly do love all three of the choices though. 

    Otis: What is your opinion of rabbits? Follow-up question: Do you share a common distrust of turtles as I do? 

    HNG: “Bunnies aren’t just cute like everybody supposes. They got them hoppy legs and twitchy little noses, and what’s with all the carrots? What do they need such good eyesight for anyway?” 

    Depends, are the turtles teenage mutant ninjas or koopa troopas?

    Jason F: Are you happy with the sound of your own voice on Podthingy? 

    HNG: It’s the happiest I’ve been with my voice on anything recorded so far. I do think I sound weird whenever I hear my own voice and sometimes I laugh weird and it makes me cringe. But we use really good mics on Podthingy so my voice doesn’t come across too bad.

    Ian S: Why can’t I find anyone local as cool as you? 

    HNG: I’ve met soooo many cool people. Male and female. Rarely do I meet someone I don’t like or who rubs me the wrong way. They are out there!

    Benjamin W: Will you come to Awesome Con DC next May?! 

    HNG: If I get invited as a guest I would love to 

    Stephan V: How do you take your coffee?

    HNG: I don’t drink coffee. I drink tea. Earl Grey. Hot.

    Visakha S: how geek is your bedroom? 

    HNG: I’m not allowed to put much geeky stuff in my bedroom; however, I do have one bookcase packed full of nerdy books. My office is where all of my posters, collectibles, etc. are. I love my office.

    Robert L: Would you like soup or salad with that? 

    HNG: I usually go for the salad. Gotta get veggies in there somehow. 

    Anthony G: If you could write a graphic novel using any character you wished, what would it be? 

    HNG: Delilah, the superhero character I created. Or Maggie from my short story “Montaku”. 

    Mike M: How do you feel? 

    HNG: Exhausted. All the time. I don’t sleep much. 

    Michael B: Are you going to the Star Trek convention in SF in December? Are you going to the Evolution Expo this weekend in Oakland? 

    HNG: No to Evolution Expo, I’ve got my two BFF’s in town this weekend. I used to attend that Star Trek Con when I lived in San Fran and I’d love to go back some day. Probably won’t make it this year though  

    Emily H: What do you consider to be the most annoying and/or horrible thing about geek culture right now? 

    HNG: Hmmmm…..I’ll tell you what USED to annoy me was the fact that movie studios thought they could make shitty superhero movies and that nerds would just take it and spend all their hard earned money on crap. Now they’ve realized that the movies have to be good and they are making them accordingly, even if they do veer from the comics, as least the spirit of the story/characters is intact most of the time. 

    Ron S: What is six times seven? 

    HNG: The answer to life, the universe, and everything. 

    Heather H: Out of all the series/fictional universes you like, if you had to live in one (as a protagonist, meaning a powerful being not like a random peasant in Star Wars), which would it be and why? 

    HNG: I would love to serve in Starfleet. Be the Captain (or, perhaps even better in terms of getting to go on away missions, First Officer) of a Starship. And I would REALLY like to have magic or a superpower so what does that say about my love of Star Trek? Ha! 

    Michael B: My favorite trek is DS9. What’s yours and why?

    Deepak R: Voyager, DS9, TOS, TNG? 

    HNG: That’s a tough one for me, I like all of the series (yes, all of them) for very different reasons. Gah. Probably TNG. 

    Zechariah B: Favorite graphic novel? 

    HNG: Right now I’m digging Taking Eden and I’m really enjoying Devil Inside. 

    Dustin B: Of everything you like, what do you like the most? 

    HNG: I know I sound like a broken record, but Star Trek. 

    Clifton R: How does awesome feel? 

    HNG: I don’t know, you tell me! 

    Joseph B: If you could have dinner with one fictional character, who would it be? Why? 

    HNG: Galadriel. I want to hear her talk about everything she’s seen. The War of the Silmarils, migrating from Valinor to Middle Earth, the rise and fall of Morgoth and when she realized that Sauron was a threat. Etc. 

    Craig N: In honor of his recent 50th bday, what’s your favorite Joss Whedon story (single episode/comic arc or issue/film/sing-along blog) and why? 

    HNG: Oh man, it would be hard to choose one just for each series, let alone lumping them all together. I’m going to maybe surprise everyone and say his Astonishing X-Men Omnibus. My friend let me borrow his and I fell in love with it and two years later I still haven’t given it back to him. I feel kind of guilty about that but I just keep going back to it. One of these days I’ll get my own copy.

    I’m going to cheat and pick a second one. The episode of Firefly in which Malcolm is slowly suffocating to death and it flashes back to when he met each of the characters. That was a brilliant hour of television.

    Eric S: Who would you rather bang , Han Solo or Luke Skywalker ? 

    HNG: Han Solo.

    Ben B: Considering myself a very imaginative and creative person, I always like to ask this of other people like that…. What inspires you? 

    HNG: Rain inspires me. I love rain. I miss the Pacific Northwest.

    Jason D: How did u become so awesome? 

    HNG: I’m not so sure that I am. I don’t really know how to be anything other than myself and I’m actually pretty dorky.

    Shawn D: Favorite author and favorite book (not necessarily the same)

    HNG: oooOOOooo…tough one. My favorite poet is easy. Robert Service = brilliant. Favorite author….. probably JRR Tolkien. Favorite book…… ugh. I don’t think I can do it, I can’t choose.

    Michael C: Captain Kirk and Captain Picard…. Unarmed mortal combat. Who wins? Go!

    HNG: Kirk. He’s been in more brawls. He’s got street cred. 

    Jason M: What is your favorite color

    HNG: Green.

    Thomas S: How old are you?

    HNG: Old enough that I can do anything I want.

    David R: How much money do you make? Not being snarky, I’m genuinely curious about internet celebrity and how lucrative it is. Or isn’t, as the case may be.

    HNG: I don’t really make any money from HNG. I don’t have any ads on the blog or anything. I do sell some calendars each year but any profit on that (which isn’t much) gets wiped out by Comic Con tickets. I get asked every once in a while if this is my job and I wish it was but it isn’t. I work full-time and do this on the side which is why my blog posts aren’t always consistent.

    Jessica D: How do you afford your amazing trips

    HNG: I don’t take amazing trips but I wish I did! I’m actually pretty broke in real life. 99% of the Cons that I attend are local to where I live in SoCal. I went to Las Vegas Comic Con once. Anywhere else I go it’s usually for a reason like a wedding or a family reunion.

    Kevin L: If their was a new Star Trek tv show how could you see it being done ( in the future past deap space 9 or before enterprise ) not necessarily one of these 2 just your thoughts thanks

    HNG: I’m enjoying the reboots and I liked Enterprise, but I‘d like to see something in the “current” ‘verse. I’m excited to see Tim Russ’ Star Trek: Renegades.

    Greg B: What was the first song you ever danced too?

    HNG: At a dance recital? I vaguely remember a dance about ladybugs and a dance about getting ready in the morning. My brother and I had a cassette tape of the TMNT movie soundtrack that we listened to constantly. Our poor parents. We were obsessed.

    Sean E: What kind of music do you like? Name some of your favorite bands.

    HNG: Favorite band of all time is Queen. Freddy Mercury was the ultimate. I’m mostly a rock chick but my tastes are pretty eclectic. I tend to like individual songs more than artists. I listen to a lot of musicals. The only thing I don’t really get into is hardcore country or hardcore rap.

    Carl A: If you were writing a sci-fi book, how would you go about coming up with new, unheard of, and cool sounding names for the alien beings?

    HNG: When I write fantasy I like the names of my characters to mean something so I keep my old baby name book nearby and I have a couple of etymology apps on my phone. When I write sci-fi I’ll sometimes go there but usually it’s whatever name pops into my head. If it’s something I made up I’ll usually google it really quick just to make sure it’s not a company name or a product or bad word in another language or something. 

    Chris L: How many licks does it take to get to the center of a tootsie roll pop? 

    HNG: It took me 127 licks once when I was a kid. No joke, I counted. 

    Chuck A: Ok here’s your question. If you had one bottle of polyjuice potion to use. Who would you spend an hour being? 

    HNG: Neil deGrasse Tyson 

    Jared S: Three questions in one. All superheroes…you can marry one, one night stand one, and kill off only one? GO! 

    HNG: Thor, Gambit, Razorback 

    Michael P: “The ships hung in the sky in much the same way that bricks don’t,”……………………………….can you explain this to me! and why while reading that sentence for the first time 20 odd years ago I pebbledashed the kitchen wall with sugarpuffs! 

    HNG: It’s Douglas Adams so I’m not sure that it’s supposed to make sense so much as it’s supposed to mindfuck us lol. However, I kind of always interpreted it as ‘sometimes stuff doesn’t make sense but that’s kind of awesome.’ Ships float, bricks sink…but WHY? You have to look beyond the surface and dig deeper to find out and if you put in the effort to do that, you’ll discover more than you ever dreamed you would. 

    Nicholas P: If you could be a dinosaur what kind of dinosaur would you be? 

    HNG: One of my many nicknames is “T-Rex” so I’ll stick with that. Also, I Like Dinosaurs.  

    Larry R: What do you do for a living?

    Deryck D: What’s your day job? 

    HNG: Administration. 

    Nick C: Can you sing the Superman, Star Wars & Raiders of the Lost Arc theme songs with out getting them mixed up? 

    HNG: Of course! What self-respected nerd can’t?! 

    James C: If you could be in a Star Wars fan film, would you be and if you could choose, what role would you like to play? 

    HNG: Sure, why not! I think it would be pretty awesome to play Mara Jade. 

    Eric J: Do you have any calendars left? I keep meaning to get one. 

    HNG: I do! I had to order a few for Long Beach Comic Expo and I have a few left. Once these are gone I don’t think I’ll be ordering any more though. You can order it here: https://www.shoplocket.com/products/GZgn7-2014-hng-calendar 

    Clinton J: What do you think of Michael Bay’s TMNT? 

    HNG: I’m very weary of it. I prefer to reserve judgment until I see the final product but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t concerned. 

    Scott S: 1) What is your NAME? 2) What is your QUEST? 

    HNG: 1) Tracy 2) To nerd harder. 

    Jerry B: well aside from the non stop barrage of questions that have no meaning and I do not need insight to be a nerd girl… Marriage proposals are a dime a dozen… Have you ever considered doing a charity auction to benefit make a wish or something auctioning a date? Yes there are plenty of nerds on here that would pay you just to talk to them! 

    HNG: I do have a significant other so probably not a date; however, I would be totally down to do some kind of hang out, go to a Con, go to a movie, hang at a party type of thing. I think that would be a lot of fun and if the profits went to something like Operation Gratitude than I would be thrilled to do something like that. 

    William S: What is the correct spelling of Iago Montoya? 

    HNG: You mean Inigo Montoya? From The Princess Bride?

    Jonathan Q: Favorite Babylon 5 character!!!

    Jamie R: Your take on Babylon 5 over all vs Deep Space Nine. GO! 

    HNG: I never really got into Babylon 5 so I don’t have a favorite character and I would choose DS9 over it any day. Sorry, B5 fans. However, I was in a stage version of the episode “Intersections in Real Time” and it was pretty awesome, torture and all. 

    Matt S: What do you think of the direction that DC is going with their “cinematic universe”?

    HNG: Gah. I don’t know. It makes me really nervous that they are sort of putting this in Zack Snyder’s hands. I really like the look of Snyder’s movies but there’s always something fundamental missing. My Podthingy cohost John Mulhall says it’s that his movies lack soul. DC needs someone like Kevin Feige to keep everything consistent and en pointe. 

    John J: Who’s the better Captain Kirk, Pine or Shatner? Do you think Firefly would be ruined if it was brought back? 

    HNG: That’s tough because they play the character so differently. I guess I’ll go with Shatner just because he is the original and the archetype, even though he was an ass to me in real life. 

    I’ve answered this question about Firefly before and no, I don’t think it would be ruined. I think some of its magic lies in the fact that it died far too soon and I really dig the EU in the comics. If you haven’t read the comic about Shepherd Book’s past, READ IT. But I selfishly always want more. 

    PJ M: Favorite moba position?

    Philip H: Blizzard username, to play WoW?

    Jason R: Horde or Alliance? 

    HNG: Sorry, I don’t play WoW or other online games. I just don’t have time  

    Josh B: If you could choose any secret from any story and the author of said story could explain it to you…what secret would you choose to know? Ex: who is jon snows mother? 

    HNG: Jon Snow’s mother is a good one! I’ll steal it from you. 

    Alexander N: What is your favorite trilogy? And along the same lines, what is your favorite “Universe”?

    HNG: It’s a close tie between Wrath of Khan/Search For Spock/Voyage Home and A New Hope/Empire Strikes Back/Return of the Jedi. Favorite universe id Star Trek.

    Mark Y: Do you like anime? 

    HNG: Not particularly. I do like a few things, like Princess Mononoke and Fist of the North Star but anime was more my brother’s thing. 

    Otis: If you could marry, have kids, and live a life with one superhero, who would it be? and why? 

    HNG: Thor because I’m a good little Norwegian girl. 

    Chad S: I posted earlier on your wall the pilots …. Han Solo, Sulu, and Wash. So tell us who is the best pilot of the three and assuming they might actually exist in same space time to be able to have a practical and demanding test of skills against one another. Go! LOL 

    HNG: There is no way I could answer this! All three have proven their mettle. Random fun fact: in real life I have sat in both Sulu and Wash’s pilot chairs. The actual chairs that their butts have been in. In fact, my butt was in Wash’s seat on the set of Serenity before Alan Tudyk’s was. Take THAT, Tudyk! 

    Mike S: Who’s your fav Firefly character ? 

    HNG: Zoe. 

    Daniel P: What book/series would you most like seen made into a movie/series/mini-series, which of those, and why? 

    HNG: I used to tell everyone that, if I worked in Hollywood, I would bring Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander series to TV but now a bunch of the Star Trek: DS9 guys are doing that on STARZ so I had to scratch that one off my list. Now I would say Naomi Novik’s Temeraire series. 

    Sean K: If you could own one set of armour what would it be? One Melee weapon? 

    HNG: I can haz Mjolnir? Ok, there’s a chance I wouldn’t be worthy. Can it be superhero armor like Colossus? I always kind of liked the old Samurai armor and katanas. 

    Sara C: Are you in favor of marijuana legalization, at least medical if not full recreational? 

    HNG: I have no issues with marijuana, period. I personally don’t use it but I have seen medical marijuana in action and I would like to have that option should I ever need it. 

    Bill M: Star Wars or Star Wars Special Edition? 

    HNG: I like some of the improved graphics (explosions in space) but I dislike or am indifferent to most of the add-ins so I’ll stick with the original. 

    Scott S: What was the biggest influence on your nerdom growing up? I’m raising a little girl and would not mind it at all if I could get her out of the princess phase and into the Star Wars phase. 

    HNG: You’ve touched on my biggest fear about parenthood. What if I get a kid who’s into princesses? I don’t know what I’ll do or how I’ll cope. Girly things are so beyond me. I’m sure I’ll rise to the occasion but I’d rather not have to  I grew up with Star Trek. My parents watched it when I was a baby and TNG came on when I was really young so I have no memory of a time in my life without Star Trek. Also, The Goonies, The Neverending Story, Flight of the Navigator, E.T., The Princess Bride, Legend, Ladyhawk, The Last Unicorn, The Secret of NIMH, The Last Starfighter, etc. – these were all staples in our house. I was a tomboy so sci-fi and comics were a natural fit. My parents were really good about reading to me and teaching me to read at a very young age so I’ve been a voracious reader all my life. I think a huge chunk of it was just my personality but my parents were really great about letting my brother and I follow our bliss. I think they also felt guilty for moving us around so much. 

    Daniel N: Who’s your Captain? 

    HNG: ME!  

    Michael B: I’m thinking of a number between 1 and 10; what is it?

    HNG: Nine. And if it’s not Nine then it should be because it’s my favorite number. 

    Chessa H: Who’s your Doctor? 

    HNG: 1) Ten 2) Four 3) Eleven 4) Nine 5) Five 

    Craig S: I figure this question should be helpful for lots of people, not just me. I had plenty of friends in a few different cliques in college, and in the years after when I stayed in town. Now, in the real world, in a new town, friends are hard to come by. My co-workers are alright, but not nearly nerdy enough, and we’re not that close. I’ve never been to a convention before, but would like to start. How do I start? It seems like conventions are not something to show up to alone. Meetup.com or something? I don’t just need new acquaintances. I need new true friendships. 

    HNG: I’ve mentioned before that I’m painfully shy and I don’t like going anywhere alone. I tend to keep a few trusted people around me, usually Mama Jedi, my friend Hayden (Geek Outlaw), and occasionally my sister-in-law or my friend/HNG Podcast cohost Darcy. I used to be so shy that they would literally act as my protective wall against the world, a place that I’m often terrified to venture out in. I’ve gotten much better about this in the past few years which Mama Jedi and Hayden will gratefully attest to. Part of the reason for that is that I slowly started making friends with some of the artists and exhibitors that I would see consistently at all of the local Cons. If I started to get overwhelmed or panicky, I would make a beeline for one of their booths and hang out for a few minutes. In one case in particular, this resulted in teaming up with and becoming friends with Podthingy cohosts John Mulhall and Blayne Alexander. Oddly enough, if I sense that someone is even more shy and awkward than I am, I tend to rise to the occasion to make them feel more comfortable. As a result, I fare much, much better if people approach me and not the other way around. In fact, it is almost unheard of for me to do the approaching. That seriously way too long explanation was me saying that I don’t go to Cons alone so I don’t blame you for not wanting to; however, I have met people who do and, if you’re ok with that, then there’s no reason why you can’t go alone. Sitting in panels and wandering around the Floor isn’t very conducive to chatting anyways. Panels are hush hush and the Floor can be really loud. The artists like talking to people one on one, so you should be fine.

    I’ve also made friends waiting in line for panels. The people in line with you are obviously interested in the same thing you are so talk to them! Usually Hayden starts the talking and I join in after a few minutes once I’ve pumped myself up.

    I know a few cosplayers who have made some of their best friends just by showing up at Cons in costume, finding people dressed as characters in the same universe, and they started meeting up at Cons and then hanging out outside of the Cons.

    I’ve never done a meetup but I have a friend who does and he loves it! You could also put out a notice on Craiglist. 

    Jared F: What are you PC’s specs? 

    HNG: Well, now, that’s getting a little personal, dontcha think? 

    Scott L: What is your favorite meal you mom made for you growing up? 

    HNG: Plain pasta with melted cheese on top or bratwurst and sauerkraut. 

    Dan H: I’d ask how to win your heart but I’d want the answer privately, and I’m not sure I’d like the fact it involved changing the quantum frequency of the universe. So instead I’ll ask whether you have a favourite fan-fiction/show/writer. 

    HNG: I’m not really in to fan fiction. I enjoy Steven Moffatt’s TV show writing even though I want to punch him in the face sometimes. 

    Omar A: Do you have any minions on the west side of Los Angeles? Would you like one my queen? 

    HNG: I’m not really into minions haha! But thanks for the offer  

    David D: Lemonade or Limeade? 

    HNG: Pop. 

    David B: “Are you my mommy?” 

    HNG: “Go to your room. I mean it. I’m very, very angry with you. I’m very, very cross. Go to your room! I’m really glad that worked. Those would have been terrible last words.” 

    Ken H: Who Shot First? 

    HNG: Han!

    Joshua A: Crunchy or smooth peanut butter and what brand?? 

    HNG: Any kind that is smooth. Not into chunky. 

    Mark G: So you think the human race is doomed? If so how will we go out? Who could save us? 

    HNG: I hope not. I hope we have the collective smarts to prevent that from happening. But yeah, probably doomed. I would imagine we’d exploit the planet’s resources until it’s no longer a viable ecosystem to support life and we end up in a situation like The Road or WWIII like in Star Trek. Maybe the Vulcans will spot us and introduce us to the rest of the galaxy. 

    Marlon B: best way to encourage a girl to explore her love of Sci-Fi/Fantasy or Science & Math without seeming heavy handed or sexist. 

    HNG: Introduce her (or him, if applicable) to one thing at a time. Get them to watch Star Wars. Not their thing? Try Firefly or Harry Potter or Jurassic Park or Cosmos or Avengers. Try different things until one of them sticks and then go from there. 

    Julian G: Biggest fear? if not already on here. Mine is that magneto was right… 

    HNG: 1) Zombies 2) The Violator 3) Creepy dolls

    Honorable Mention: Fire Marshall Bill 

    Nolan S: Who would win: Han solo or Malcolm Reynolds? 

    HNG: I don’t know but I would REALLY like to see that. Shirtless. 

    Larry N: Coke or Pepsi. Tpol or 7 of 9? Wars or trek? Is there life out there? Favorite Enterprise? Does Sam seem like a big baby to you? 3.5 or 4th? Obvious answer is Pathfinder. Should I go to Gencon? 

    HNG: Either, as long as it’s brown, caffeinated, and not diet. Seven of Nine. Yes. NCC-1701-D (I mean, come on, the saucer separates! How handy is that?!) Sam Winchester? 3.5. Alrighty. Yes. 

    Jeremy D: What’s your (1) super hero power of choice? 

    HNG: Ability to fly. 

    Dennis Q: What makes color-forms stick? 

    HNG: Adhesion. 

    Richard G: Have you read Dan Simmons Hyperion? 

    HNG: Nope, but I’ll add it to my list! 

    Ola A: If you wrote the next big sci-fi TV series, what would it be about and what would be the name of the show? 

    HNG: I’d base it on my short story “Montaku”

    Ange C: What is your reason for being?

    HNG: To nerd harder. 

    Thanks again for the great questions, everyone!

  • HNG’s Music Video Debut – Lydia’s Libido “Like You”

    hot nerd girl lydias libido
    One of my male parental figures, Dean Minnerly aka Popi, is in a band called Lydia’s Libido based out of Ft. Worth, Texas and about a month ago they came to California for their “Kiss the Frog” tour. While they were in Los Angeles they decided to film a couple of music videos for the album and asked me if I was interested in being in one of them. Of course I said yes. Of course I had absolutely zero knowledge what the music video was going to be about.

    –

    Then two days before I’m set to drive up to LA with Mama Jedi I get a call from Dean.
    –
    Dean: “Do you own any vampire fangs?”
    Me: “Uhhh…no…”
    Dean: “Ok, I’ll pick you up a pair. See you soon!”
    *click*
    –
    I probably should have thought that was a strange exchange. But we’re a strange family so I didn’t think much about it. The next day I get an email from guitarist Gary McGrath with the address of the shoot. I emailed him back asking what I should wear/pack.
    –
    Gary: “Dress like a vampire.”
    –
    Uh oh.
    –
    I packed most of the black/gothic-esque clothing I own which tends to lean more towards Badass Superhero than it does Horror and figured I’d let them decide what I was going to wear.
    –
    The next night Mama Jedi and I drove up to a tiny little LA apartment filled with music memorabilia and band gear. I’m introduced to the residents, band promoter and host of LA Rocks, Red Beard and his wife, Epiphany.
    –
    At this point I still know nothing about the story line of this music video, just that it involves vampires.
    –
    Me: “So, what’s this music video about?”
    Gary: “You and Epiphany are going to seduce (lead singer) Olivia in this bed on these satin sheets.”
    Me: (awkward pause)  “……….Dean did inform you that I’m a tomboy and I’m really, really awful at being sexy….right?”
    Gary: (laughs) “You’ll do fine!”
    –
    He then proceeded to point to the skin-tight pleather leggings and the black corset in my suitcase and said “wear those.”
    –
    We spent the next half hour trying to figure out how to get the vampire fangs to mold to our teeth so that we could pop them on and off. I never really did figure it out and if you look closely, the left one is cocked off to the side a bit. Because I’m a huge dork.
    –
    This is about the time that I’m told Epiphany is a porn star and a contortionist. I’m officially fascinated. I have never met a porn star before. She turns out to be a little kooky but very, very sweet. And shocker of all shockers, she’s about 100 million billion times better at being sexy than I am and completely fearless. I am NOT completely fearless. I decided to suck it up (hee hee hee) and went for it, being as sexy as I possibly could (which really isn’t saying much). Being the extremely awkward person that I am, I was cracking jokes and making everyone laugh in between takes. Hopefully that was a good thing.
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    Aaaaaaand here’s the end result. Pretty much everyone who knows me personally has laughed out loud for real the first time I show up on screen. Because I’m a huge dork.
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    Full disclosure: if you work in an uptight office, this is mildly NSFW. Very mildly. Enjoy!
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    So there you go, my music video debut! I must say, the music video turned out ah-mazing. I never would have guessed it would be the end product based on how it was filmed. I’ve never been on a music video set before so the fact that everyone was talking and not being mindful of noise was mind-blowing to me (I was a theatre major and silence during shows or on a film set is paramount). However, I hovered behind the cinematographer while he was filming at times and the shots he was getting were incredible.
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    If you want to see something completely different and really, really fun (seriously, I LOVE this one), here’s another one of their recent music videos:
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    To check out more of Lydia’s Libido…they just took the tour to Las Vegas…go here:
    Interwebs: http://www.lydiaslibido.com/
    Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lydiaslibidoband
    Twitter: https://twitter.com/Lydias_Libido
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    Thanks to Dean, Gary, Olivia, Andy, and Shawn for letting me dork it up in their music video and to Mama Jedi and everyone else who helped and who made me feel just slightly more comfortable because the gods know I was REALLY uncomfortable. Hopefully I faked it pretty well 

  • Podthingy! Episodes 1-5

    Me and the Boys always play nice

    Me and the Boys always play nice

    I haven’t had much free time lately and part of the reason why is a new project I’ve been working on called Podthingy with John Mulhall, author of Geddy’s Moon; Blayne Alexander, lead singer of Idiot Stare; and Hayden Lawrence, NerdBFF and Geek Outlaw. Basically, we sit around and drink and talk about awesome nerdy stuff. Here are episodes 1-5. Click the title to listen and be sure to “like” us on facebook!

    Episode 1: “That’s What She Said”

    Podthingy is where the geeks meet over drinks to discuss the latest in pop culture. This week’s episode features: WonderCon, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Bryan Singer and the future of X-Men, Jager Bombs, and more!

    Episode 2: “Do Not Fact Check This Podcast”

    Podthingy is where the geeks meet over drinks to discuss the latest in pop culture. This week’s episode features: Batman vs Superman, Zack Snyder, Transcendence, Sippy Bras, and more!

    Episode 3: “Not His Exact Words”

    Podthingy is where the geeks meet over drinks to discuss the latest in pop culture. This week’s episode features: Fantastic Four, Gravity, Bird Man, unnecessary sequels (Goonies 2, Ghostbusters 3, etc), remakes vs reboots, and baby sharks.

    Episode 4: “Licking the Tip”

    Podthingy is where the geek meet over drinks to discuss the latest in nerd culture. This week’s episode features: things nerds hate about nerds, The Hobbit movies, Game of Thrones, The Walking Dead, Breaking Bad, books vs movies, and casual geeks.

    Episode 5: “Same Sad Batman Time…”

    Podthingy is where the geeks meet over drinks to discuss the latest in nerd culture. This week’s episode features: a group review of X-Men-Days of Future Past, Godzilla 2014, the title of the newest Superman movie, Edgar Wright leaving Ant-Man, The Amazing Spider-Man 2, sequels that ignore previous movies, and picklebacks

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    Just a heads up that Geek Outlaw and I will have a booth at Long Beach Comic Expo this weekend so come visit us at Booth 4000!

    Like our intro and outro music? Want to hear more? Blayne’s band Idiot Stare is participating in a “pay what you want” promo. Download the album for free or for what you feel you should pay here: http://idiotstare.bandcamp.com/ (FYI, the song used on Podthingy is “Future Popped”)

    Looking for a new book to read? Enjoy horror? Check out John’s book Geddy’s Moon (I’ve read it and it’s amazing)