Category: News

Cover Art: M. D. Jackson

PULPWORK PRESS has released a sneak peak at the M. D. Jackson drawn cover of their 2012 Christmas Special. The Pulpwork Press Christmas Special features stories by New Pulp authors Joel Jenkins, Russ Anderson, Joshua Reynolds, and Derrick Ferguson.

The Pulpwork Press Christmas special will be available for purchase in December at the Pulpwork Press website.

So if anybody missed it, last weekend I went to Disney World and Universal Islands of Adventure. I hadn’t been to a theme park in a long time, and holy surprise parties, Batman, it was a magical thing. Seriously, I had so much fun riding all the rides and looking at all the theme park details and also, shopping for alllll the things. In fact, ever since I was a little kid I’ve loved going through the gift shops (at theme parks, national parks, whatever) almost as much as the rest of it, and this time was no exception.

The Marvel shops were also no exception, particularly the ones that featured a life sized Iron Man and life-sized Thor, which my friends and I all declared we needed for our living rooms. The one little disappointment I had was, unsurprisingly, that the Marvel stores again had disparate amounts of items available for men and women. For instance, I would have bought this awesome Deadpool “Wanted” poster shirt they had in an instant if they’d had it for women, but nary a good women’s shirt was in sight (just those ones that say, like, “my boyfriend’s a super-hero.” Siiiiigh.) But I’ve focused before on things Marvel needs to improve about its marketing, so I’m not going to rehash that here (except to note this shirt, which was sold in the shops and in which one Avenger is noticeably missing. Why, Marvel??)

Instead, since this weekend I’ve been doing some geeky crafty things, today I want to celebrate all the awesome comics crafts that people are doing, sometimes because they want items that can’t be found in the stores and sometimes because it’s just fun to craft. There are so many of them out there that I’m just going to highlight a few favorites here. Some of them are even available for purchase (oooh) so if you need something for the comics fiend in your life during the upcoming holidays, maybe this will give you some leads.

The first category of comic craft I love is the sort of decoupage style where people take old comics they don’t want and glue them onto items to make cool new things. While I cringe at the idea of destroying comics, these really look cool. My favorites, and something I so need to own myself, are the various comics high heels. A friend of mine has made a couple of pairs which are just awesome, and shares her crafting technique through<a href=”

a video she found that helped her figure things out, and a helpful site with Mod Podge tutorials, Mod Podge being a main material used to put the shoes together. (And speaking of shoes, these are not decoupage style, but check out these Wonder Woman shoes for another awesome way to superhero up your shoes! So pretty!). Other fun comics image things my friend has made include this Captain Marvel purse; and other neat uses of the technique include these G.I. Joe flasks and comic book bracelet cuffs. If this sort of thing strikes your fancy, this Etsy store right here also looks like it has some things that might be up your alley, or, for a bit of variation, there’s this comics paper bead jewelry as well.

If seeing cut-up comics makes you cry, here’s another area of crafting that might more suit your fancy: crocheting! There are a lot of fun things geeks do with crocheting, from superhero wrist warmers like these Iron Man cuffs to my favorite thing ever, Dollpool (the Deadpool doll crocheted for me by my friend Amy!). Amy’s amazing at crocheting, and came up with the Dollpool pattern herself (along with Dolliana Jones, Bat-doll, and a Captain Dollmerica in progress). There are also some adorable sewing projects out there, like wee felted Poison Ivy or Batmole, which is geeky times two since it was made for Mole Day (anyone who took Chemistry in high school, I bet you remember doing Mole Day projects too. Wish I’d gotten to make something like this!). The creator of that one linked the mole pattern, if anyone out there wants to try it themselves. And, lest we forget there are a vast number of ways to use needles and thread or yarn, I also wanted to share this amazing glow-in-the-dark Spidey embroidery and this knitted Wonder Woman sweater (with tutorial).

Of course, one of the reasons I love Dollpool is that he’s an adorable doll, and there are plenty of those floating around that aren’t cloth, too. Shockingly, I’ll first link another Deadpool favorite (and admit that I actually own a version of this, because how could I resist??) It is: My Little Ponypool! (One of several custom ponies she’s made.) Or, if you like Japanese-style kokeshi dolls, these adorable Marvel ones caught my eye, and he’s got a bunch of other Marvel and DC dolls as well. And then, of course, there’s Diana the Wonder Kitty D’awwww.

If dolls and figures aren’t really your thing, how about some crazy Avengers papercraft? I think this might be one of the most adorable uses of paper I’ve ever seen, particularly since hedgehogs are my favorite animal ever. I love that these were made by a librarian (the open book-looking style makes a lot of sense!) who hastened to reassure everyone that these were made from falling-apart comics that have been replaced in the library’s collection. Ah, librarians. Speaking of books that are falling apart, here’s a really cool way to re-bind a book in true superheroine style that I kind of want to try even if my books aren’t falling apart. Or, if you are more into a simple do-it-yourself popular style of papercraft, there are these papercraft Avengers here. These look simple enough for even kids to do, so it might be a fun project for young comics fans, with more designs at the link if you’re getting tired of the Avengers and want to try something else.

Finally, there are a ton of clever geek jewelry designs out there (heck, I’ve even made some myself), but of the ones I’ve seen lately, this little Tank Girl necklace is definitely a favorite.

Well! If you’re a crafter, hopefully these links provide some interest and inspiration (they did for me!) or, if not, maybe some gift ideas for the holidays. Or at the very least, I hope you liked looking at all the fantastically geeky creations as much as I did.

Until next time, Servo Lectio!

TUESDAY AFTERNOON: Michael Davis

WEDNESDAY MORNING: Mike Gold

The prequel and trailer for the Doctor Who Christmas Special has just been posted via the BBC, hot off its appearance on the Children In Need annual appeal.

As reported earlier in the week, the BBC continues its tradition of presenting an exclusive clip for the charity’s annual telethon.  The clips have varied from trailers, exclusive scenes, and special greetings from the cast.

This year’s trailer offers a few tidbits both new and confirmed, including the name of the new Companion (Clara, as was rumored), a look at this year’s holiday-themed monster (snowmen, tho not apparently the Abominable variety so many of us were hoping for) and a peek at returning aliens Strax the Sontaran nurse (Dan Starkey) and sword-wielding reptilian lesbian Vastra (Neve McIntosh), and the presumptive baddie, played by Richard E. Grant (Hudson Hawk, How to Get Ahead In Advertising).

Because producer Steven Moffat is evil and feeds on our tears, the intro also pays lip service to the swirling cloud of theories about Clara somehow being connected to Oswin Oswald, played by Jenna-Louise Coleman in the season opener, Asylum of the Daleks. Moffat has already said in an interview that “That’s exactly the question I want you asking”, so he’s clearly doing what he can to get that happening.

Donations to Children in Need can be made at their website.