Who Says They’re Going Nowhere…

I’ve recently stumbled across an amazing web series called Going Nowhere. The show is centered around Chris and Larry, two best friends and the epic world in which they live. Whether the boys are flying, fighting over a girl or sneaking wishes from a genie, their story is a tale of pop culture dreams. Recently, I shared the glory of Going Nowhere with Jon Venture. Much to my delight he was wearing my goofy smile as he watched along. It’s not often I can get Jon to come around to my way of thinking but I guess a show that has DeLoreans and Ninja Turtles can win him over.

I dare you to watch Episode 9 (Shell Shock) and not fall in love with these guys.

A great thing about the crew of the Going Nowhere show is that they’re local guys. I was able to catch up with co-creator Larry White and ask him a few questions about the series:

I’m a huge fan of the GNS. I’ve watched every episode and I can’t help wonder what made you guys want to start your own web series?

I can only speak for myself but I had seen the webseries “We Need Girlfriends” a while back and had the idea of doing one for a while. I had started one webseries before going nowhere but it failed before it began. Going nowhere started as a sideproject to entertain our friends while we worked on bigger things, and as season 1 progressed we took it more seriously.

There is a hilarious love/hate bromance between the two main characters and it leaves me curious, how much of yourselves are in the Chris & Larry of each episode?

Ah, there’s definitely alot of me in the episodes, but just the entertaining parts. Sometimes I have that silly humor, sometimes I find humor in being a dick as a joke. I write most of the episodes so I kinda write Chris’s character as how I imagine he would best work with me. Compared to his on screen character, I’d probably say hes a nicer guy in person.
Your pop culture references are ridiculously on point. I feel like anyone between the ages of 18-35 would like this series. Is there a target audience for GNS?

I try to make the series for everyone to enjoy. Lets face it, swearing doesnt stop kids from wanting to see something, I loved southpark as a kid. The older references are for older people and for younger people that were introduced to it by their parents. I like to think of the show as a live action cartoon.
What are your favorite episodes? I can’t decide if “Back to Nowhere” is my favorite episode or The Disney/Scott Pilgrim themed episode “Valerie”.

When I watched Scott Pilgrim, it instantly became my favorite movie. So it would be episode 6, our scott pilgrim episode. I put alot of myself in that one.
It’s rare to see such a well produces web series with only a handful of people involved. I can’t imagine how much work goes into making these episodes come to life. What was the hardest obstacle you’ve come across while making seasons 1 and 2 of GNS.

For season 1, it was probably getting episode 6 finished by our release date. really slaved on that one. As for season 2, every prop was a pain in the ass, like the proton pack, Delorean, and ninja turtle costume. But the turtle costume was deffinately the toughest one to not only make, but film with.
Outside of the GNS you’ve put together a handful of shorts based on recent video game releases. Of the endless titles that are released, how do you choose which to use? Do you have any more planned?

Well we think what hasn’t been over done, what property we’re capable of bringing to real life. If there’s an audience to spread it and if its worth the hassle of doing it. We should have our “The Hunger Gamers” out by December. That should top everything we’ve done as far as epicness goes.
 

 

The best GNS episodes for me are richly laced with references to my childhood. Do you have any other pop culture episodes on the horizon you could tease us with?

Well I’m still debating on what the finale theme should be but our next episode will be themed on a show I feel is similar to ours, Regular Show. They often refference the 80’s, and its two buddies were an episode starts normal and quickly escalates to something completely ridiculous.
Given infinite resources. What would be a dream video that you would produce?

I once had a dream to make a big budget DragonballZ, but FOX ran that dream to the ground. I’d love to make a real Spider-man, or Ninja Turtles film, or even direct a CG animated Sonic the Hedgehog movie.
Outtakes are my favorite thing about getting to watch a movie on DVD. The fact that you keep yours in the credits makes me watch until the very last second. Is there anything in the outtakes you wish you hadn’t put in? Something terribly embarrassing?

Nope, never had a problem embarrassing myself, lol. I do find it unfortunate when my gut is showing in certain outakes, my weight fluxuates throughout the show, as does my spikey hair/scruffyness. My hair was so bad in episode 9, I had to finally give my character a hat.

If you’re interested in more of Season 2 check out the Going Nowhere channel.

Season 1 is available here.

Their gamer videos from the Machinima channel are here.

5 Tips to Avoid the Plague

PAX is over for 2012 and you’re all in your homes mourning the thought. If you’re like me, you’re sitting in bed with a tissue in hand and boxes of cold meds all around you. Yes, that’s right. You’re curled up in a painful little ball, hating the world because somehow you contracted the PAX Plague. Through trial and error and many germs later, I’m slowly begun crafting the art of NOT getting the plague after a long convention weekend. Here are some tips to help you along:

Don’t share drinks
This one is a little too late for me this year. When it comes to alcohol, I tend to think “Oh, the booze will kill any germs.” and take a swig of whatever comes my way. Sharing a bottle of booze in your hotel room with your best buddies sounds like a nice cheap way to pre-game before the parties with $10 drinks. Unfortunately, this money saving tactic will land you in bed before the weekend finishes.

Hydrate yourself
Sure, I sound like every boring adult saying that drinking water will keep you healthy. They’ll tell you that water will kick your metabolism into gear and get your body’s nutrients moving to where they need to go. All that’s true but I’m thinking more on a 4 day drinking binge stance. You wanna feel hung over for 4 days straight? Dehydrate yourself. You wanna drink like a champ and keep up with the likes of Shorty? Drink water like your life depends on it. Hydrating like Blastoise is in your pocket will keep your body is tip top Drunken Master shape.

Eat…eat…eat
I have in fact spent an entire PAX living on coffee and booze. It didn’t end well. Instead of showing you the pro’s to eating… I’m gonna show you what happens if you don’t eat:

**Warning this ain’t pretty**

 Avoid those questionably aged girls with the Free Hugs signs
I know how difficult this can be. You see these adorable girls with tails and ears just begging for you to wrap them in your arms. You want to share the love that is flowing within you and show your fellow gamer how much you CARE for the community. Big mistake. Think of PAX like the movie Outbreak, these girls are the ground zero monkey Marcel.

High fives lead to facepalms
Dudes know it’s creepy to have a “Free Hugs” sign so they take it to a less skeevy place. They ask for high fives. I know it sounds dickish but I usually shut them down. You’re probably thinking, what’s wrong with a high five? See, high five dude just walked over and hugged 16 of those questionably aged girls with the signs and now they’re forwarding that superbug directly into your hand.

I know you guys are reading this and wondering how I can dish out this advice with a tissue in hand. Well, I broke my own rules. I gave a handful of high fives, way too many hugs to friends and I shared a bottle of Kraken with more people than I care to admit. Next year, I hope to heed my own advice…

If you have any more suggestions, please share with us idiots!

A Supernatural Reaction

It’s Saturday morning and I’m standing in my hotel lobby waiting to order coffee. I hear a familiar voice and look over to see Supernatural’s Prophet Chuck (Rob Benedict) sipping a cup of Starubucks. I share a weak smile with him and notice his companion is Supernatural’s Trickster (Richard Speight). At that point my hands start shaking and I try my best to act like I’m not twitching with excitement. As casually as possible, I order Shorty’s impossible sugar free cold fancy drink.

I know what you’re going to say. They’re people just like you and me. I get that idea but in my head these guys are epic beyond belief. These actors were the focal point for some of my favorite episodes “Changing Channels” and “The Real Ghostbusters.” They’re what makes Supernatural so incredible and they’re sitting just a few feet from me.

Rob Benedict (left) & Richard Speight (right)

I’m one of those people that goes to a convention to meet my favorite geeky TV star. In my head, I have this grand idea of the amazing conversations we’ll have and inside jokes we’ll make. When I stand in front of that actor, I clam up. I end up standing awkwardly on the sidelines, staring at them like animals in a cage at the zoo. I figure anything I say, they’ve probably heard before. I end up leaving disappointed in myself.

That was not to be the case this day. I chugged a shot of liquid Starbucks courage and walked up to them. I hesitated for just a second, standing in pajamas with my hair in a messy ponytail and relatively no makeup on. I push through the anxiety and say “I just have to tell you guys that you are awesome. I’m a huge fan of Supernatural and you guys are what make the show so amazing.” They were very courteous and thanked me for my comment. I started to walk away and built my courage back up. I asked them if they were in Seattle for PAX and apparently they were. They were roaming the halls with us commoners doing interviews for Gamespot. I ended the conversation by saying “I’m still in a little bit of shock, I never thought I’d see you two in my lobby this morning. I hope to catch ya’ll at the convention.” and walked away feeling like a winner.

I kept my composure in the elevator, though my hands were shaking. The minute I got to our hotel room my eyes welled up with tears and the flood gates were released. Shorty laughed at me and asked if I was crying. I said I was just so shocked and overwhelmed that I couldn’t help it. She simply replied “Oh, like the first time I saw Pandas.”

I spent the rest of the afternoon scouting PAX for the two actors in hopes of catching a photo with them. That was not in the cards this time around. I can’t say I wasn’t disappointed but I can say that I was impressed with myself for manning up and professing my undying love for their work. For just a moment, I was cool…you know, until I cried like a baby.

Yup, just like that…

PAX: You’re Doing it Wrong

While conquering my fear of takeoff, I realized something very disturbing… I was happy to be leaving PAX. That thought broke my heart. This year didn’t fill me with the same wonder that I had with PAX of years past. It took a five and a half hour flight home to put my finger on the problem.

The convention itself was the same. There were wide eyed gamers racing to favorite game, cosplayers decked out in amazing attire, the booths had amazing tournaments and epic swag. So what was it that left me empty inside? I think it was the parties.

I understand that there were many people who put blood sweat and tears into the parties of PAX Prime 2012. I appreciate all they did to try to bring the gamers, media and developers face to face. They took time out of their busy lives to bring a bit of community to our evenings and for that I’m eternally grateful.

Most parties were open to the general public and you could RSVP prior to the event, while a few were exclusive. I noticed that anyone related to “the industry” was scoffing at the idea of attending a party open to the general public. People were greeting each other and asking “What parties were you invited to?”  gauging each other’s status level. The general public IS the reason for PAX. They’re the reason these games are so popular and why media sites, internet personalities, and developers even exist. Since when are they something to scoff at?

I was lucky enough to be invited to one of  these exclusive parties. I felt honored to walk among the folks in attendance. Eager to hear what the inside of the industry sounds like, I was eavesdropping on conversations. I was upset by some of what I heard. Instead of the camaraderie I expected, I heard an unusual amount of negativity. Someone asked what I was up to as of late and I explained NotFNcute and the FNPodcast. Their reply was to ask me what I expected to get out of it. I drew a blank on that answer. Looking back on the conversation, I guess I should have said how I felt. I never expected to GET anything out of our podcast. I do it because I love it. I love getting together with my friends and bringing our outrageous views to the handful of folks on the internet that find them funny. That’s all I ever expected.

The developers that were there to share their games were amazing. The people there to enjoy the games were inspiring. I can’t believe that anyone would be at PAX for any other reason.  When you’re at PAX you are there as a fan. You’re there because you LOVE everything about games that comes along with picking up a controller, booting up your computer or sitting down to a tabletop.

Dear people who are at PAX for any other reason… you are doing it wrong.

These guys are doing it right!

Rescue Pets Don’t Count?

*Heads up: This post is completely personal by nature and has nothing to do with gaming/geek news*

After an unpleasant encounter with my sketchy neighbor, I’m posting another pet-centric blog post. I have lived in this triplex for about 9 months. My ex was nice enough to house my rescue dog for the first few months until I got settled to make her move as smooth as possible. Unit #2 is home to my podcast co-host Shorty. She has a Corgi that enjoys the back yard of her unit. Shorty is an incredibly responsible pet owner and takes good care of her companion. Unit #3 not so much. She has 2 poodles that are constantly off leash and being yelled at. In entirety of my stay in this triplex, I have seen those dogs on leash exactly ONCE. Knowing that my rescue mutt is easily spooked, she does not leave out home without a leash on her. Last night, my roommate walked my mutt and ran into the unleashed dogs of Unit #3. She spooked and pulled outta her leash. Luckily, he was able to coax her home with promises of treats after those two marauders were gone.

I confronted Unit #3 and she attempted apologize for a situation that has been in the works for 9mths. I stated she needs to keep her animals on leash and that it’s the law. I tried to explain how heartbroken I’d be if I’d lost my kid. She got this look on her face and said that her dogs she raised as puppies meant more to her than some dog I brought in off the streets. I think that angered me more than anything she could have said to me.

I’ve had many pets in my life. My mom was all about the animal rescue. I can’t even count the number furry souls I’ve encountered in the past 31 years. I have owned animals since the day they were born and I’ve had strays. As I’ve said before, I don’t think of my pets as animals but more as family.

It’s hard to explain to someone the emotional attachment my rescue dog and I have with each other. Those of you who know my neurotic childhood could say that I see myself in her. Shorty herself has suggested that I placate my dog more than I should. (She’s probably right.) Pies spent the first 5ish years of her life being tossed from rescue shelter to foster home without a minute of love. She has a fear of lights and water. Ridiculous as it is, I’ve realized it and I try my best to keep her stress level to a minimum.

My last pet-centric blog ended on me being elated that she shared her belly with me. In the last 2 years we’ve become inseparable. Pies follows me room to room and showers me with kisses on a daily basis. She’s constantly grateful for the life I give her. I’ve had pets that have never seen a day of abuse but this dog loves me so unconditionally that I can honestly say I’ve never bee more attached to a dog. To have some irresponsible pet owner to throw it in my face that her dogs have somehow more of an attachment because she had them since they were store bought was insulting.

Thank you for letting me rant. I feel much better! xoxo

My Geeky Weekend

So the geeks of the world are excited that being themselves is cool. Comic book/video game conventions are selling out all over the world and we’re all apart of something awesome… right? I wanna join in the festivities and joke about the normies with the rest of you but when I attend geek gatherings I can’t help but wonder. How cool is it really? This past weekend has me questioning everything.

Friday night was spent with Shorty and Jon Venture. We decide to bump our FNPodcast  so that FN Headquarters could be painted on Saturday. We drank, talked games, talked comic books, bantered with the chat and were finished with our partying to have my sleepy butt in bed by midnight. Yup, I’m a total winner.



Saturday night my new beau took me to Fort Lauderdale’s “Can’t Stop the Serenity” event, a Serenity screening that benefits some of Joss Whedon’s favorite charities. I was surprised by a Dr. Horrible’s Sing-along-blog viewing and teared up at being in a room surrounded by people that knew these songs as well as I did. Then it was time for some Firefly/Serenity trivia. Being shy around new people, I skipped signing up to participate and quietly shared the correct answers with my date. (I missed one.) I remember feeling elated to be out and geeking with the best of them but a bit of shame at the same time. I forget just how socially awkward some of my fellow geeks can be. I begin to share in their social anxiety and suddenly I’m transported back to high school. I begin to feel incredibly insecure.

Sunday night, I’m with the boys of the Just a Couple of G’s podcast recording Issue 75. We laugh and rage about the Dark Knight Rises and mourn some heavy losses as we discuss the last 100 issues of The Walking Dead. Since one of our cohosts is an employee at Tates Comics, we are able to record in the most epic comic book store in South Florida. No kidding. While setting up, I was able to run up to The Bear and Bird Gallery loft and check out the Sew Nerdy show. I was able to geek out on some hand crafted gifts to the geek gods, like an epic Dr. Doom Hoodie and a Snarf stuffie.



Monday, my geekend seemed to bleed into my week when I was able to experience the Star Trek: The Next Generation 25th Anniversary Event. In honor of Star Trek TNG’s season one being released on Blu-ray, CBS paired up with Fathom Events to bring 2 episodes of TNG to the big screen. The crowd was much smaller for this larger venue and the geeks were way less social-able. I didn’t get that feeling of community until later in the evening when they showed some TNG outtakes and original casting calls. While watching “Where No One Has Gone Before” and “Datalore,” we chuckled at the crew telling Wesley Crusher to “Shut up” and scoffed a bit when he ended saving the day in BOTH episodes. I walked out of there feeling a little depressed at being a geek. These outing are few and far between. Most of the geeks involved had their shields raised and didn’t even make eye contact.



No matter how cool we think it is to be a geek, the general public isn’t in agreement. We can boast at how we’re ruling the world but these geek events are still done in secrecy. I guess popular video games and well known comic book characters are cool enough to enjoy but tell that to a Trekkie. They’re still in hiding and they’ve been doing it much longer than most of us. I’m not quiet sure if being a geek is cool or if it’s cool to like socially acceptable geek things…

The Walking Dead: Carl Shot First

Sunday night, social media was all a twitter over of The Walking Dead’s 12th episode “Better Angels”. Fans of the show were shouting from the rooftops AMC’s praises. Rick stabs his best friend and cries “Damn you for making me do this, Shane!” vibrated as a heart wrenching moment. Then, Carl sees a dead Shane and raises his weapon to his father just to shoot past him at a newly zombified Shane, had viewer’s jaws on the floor. Although, I was indeed touched by this moment, it was rage that filled my heart. Those of you watching the series and not reading the books are missing out on some pivotal information…

CARL SHOT FIRST.

In the 6th issue, Shane decides to go hunting with Rick and pulls a gun on him. Much like in the series, that useless brat Carl decides to follow them. Unlike in the series, when Carl stumbles upon Shane with a gun to his father’s head, he shoots Shane in the throat. The issue ends with Carl saying “It’s not the same as killing the dead ones, daddy”, and Rick replies, “It never should be, son, It never should be.” Now, THAT is a poignant moment.

Now, how is it that AMC took the better part of two seasons to pull off what Image did in a about 140 pages? I get that the TV series isn’t going to follow the books word for word. I appreciate that they’re going to do stuff that Kirkman never got to accomplish with the books. I don’t want it to be EXACTLY like the source material but I think the most important moments from the books should be brought to me in my living room. I’m about 96 issues deep and a devoted reader. Don’t slap me in the face with something as half assed as Carl shooting a Zombie-Shane 18 episodes in.

Pryde’s Guide to Urbnpop at FSC!

This weekend, I attended a local comic book convention called Florida Supercon at the Miami Airport Convention Center. When Aaron from Mindtrickdmedia asked me to tag along for his press coverage, I jumped at the chance to work on my interviewing skills. I was a tad nervous but I decided to grab the mic and free-ball it. I know I must have done something right because I had Urbnpop‘s ever talented artist Chris laughing when I critique his Nintendo artwork. Check it out!

MORE VIDEOS TO FOLLOW…STAY TUNED!

Just a couple of Gs

Last Sunday, I did something exhilarating. I snuck into TATE’S Comics, the coolest comic book stores in South Florida after it closed. I know this sound completely shady but I was actually allowed to be there. The lights were dim and it was dead silent. I felt a tad creeped out with all those toys sitting in their boxes, watching me with their dead toy eyes. After hearing rustling that came from nobody, I started questioning what I was doing there after hours. What WAS I doing there? I was recording Just a Couple of G’s, a comic book podcast with a few really awesome geek guys!

This will be a weekly podcast. We plan on talking about what’s new in the geek ‘verse. I have a feeling we’ll rant about comic movies, story arcs, and television series. If it’s caped and cowled, we’re on it. This looks to be the start of something really amazing, plus I FINALLY get to geek out on comics with actual people in real life!

Episode 1 “Olive Garden Shorts” gives you all a peek into what made us geeks and what brought us together. The guys decided that we should title our episodes with something completely ridiculous that nobody will get. I’ll let you all in on Episode 1’s little secret: Nate was wearing some tore up shorts and I said “Wow, you got all dressed up for us.” He replied, “These are some fancy shorts.” I laughed and said “Yea, those are total Olive Garden shorts.”

FYI: Growing up dirt poor, we always thought Olive Garden was the fanciest place around.

http://justacoupleofgs.podbean.com/2011/06/15/olive-garden-shorts/

Will DC Comics Book Heroes Kill the Little Man?

I’m going to do a dirty deed and cross my comic book genres for a quick second. As soon as I heard about the DC Comics reboot, my mind flew to the first Spiderman movie. All I hear is Norman Osbourne screeching at Dr. Stromm “Back to formula!? You want to take it back to formula?!” Anyone else remember how well this boded for the poor doctor? Stromm’s mistake cost him his life can DC really take that chance? We’re about to find out…

As you all know I’m a Marvel girl, well more importantly, an X-Men girl. I never got into Superman but I have always had a healthy respect for Batman and the characters in his universe. That being said, I think DC might be making a grave mistake. Come September, DC Comics wants to reboot 52 collections to start at issue #1. They’re rebooting characters you love and giving new life to characters you’ve barely even heard of. They plan on releasing all these first issues on the same week both online and in comic book stores.

I get what they are trying to do. I am guilty of not wanting to start a new comic collection because I feel completely overwhelmed at falling in on issue #52. At some point the numbers become too daunting and you feel like it would take forever to catch up. On the other hand, I do enjoy buying the volumes and getting my geek-on in one incredibly unhealthy dose. Waiting week to week for issues can be a pain in the rump. (By the way, is it June 22nd yet!? I’ve been waiting FOREVER for The Walking Dead: Volume 14.)

I’m worried that DC is trying to appeal to a whole new group of possible comic book collectors, the internet savvy kind. What if their attention whoring pans out and the iPad users suddenly show interest in a new 20-something year old Superman. Will it kill our local comic shops? Are they gearing to go solely online? I fear that the paper, ink, and sweat that artists have put into their craft will soon be lost on this generation. Why have a hoarders dream of long-boxes in your spare room when you can carry all you need in a snazzy new tablet?

I guess I will have to wait until September to find out how this will all play out… can someone please hold my hand?