Hour 1 of Prime Time Geek Episode 19 is brought to you by Free Comic Book Day. First carried out and coordinated by Diamond Comics Distributors back in 2002, FCBD has become THE day to get out to your local comic book store and geek out by grabbing free books from the publishers you love as well as ones to whom you may not have ever given a second thought. It’s the day you bring your camera to the store with you, because there’s bound to be a superhero making an appearance at some point during the day. But most of all, it’s a day for the comics industry to say ‘thank you’ to the fans who continue to buy books and get others hooked on comic books, and a day for fans to say to the world, “Hell yeah, we read comics, and you should, too!”

Cap, Boba Fett, and Snowtrooper over at Bad Apple Comics

Brian from Just Push Play with Superman at Coliseum of Comics

Aaron Haaland along with Deadpool, Black Costume Spidey, and The Flash wave to passersby over at A Comic Shop

These are just a few of the pictures we took while touring all of Orlando’s many comic book stores that Saturday–go check out the rest on our Flickr Photostream.

In Hour 1 we were graced with a surprise phone call from none other than ELROSS, the producer of SomaCow, during which he simply gushed over the fun he and his family had hitting stores and grabbing up free books. He managed to grab a few that we actually missed during our travels that he was very excited about, so check out that part of the podcast for Ross’s comic book recommendations. Turns out that Mickey from SomaCow was also out and about on FCBD–he was over at Sci-Fi City meeting Atomic Robo writer Brian Clevinger (who incidentally makes his home right here in Orlando and we hope to interview him on the air very soon!) and getting a signed copy of the FCBD edition of Atomic Robo from Red 5 Comics for me to review, so check back with us for that in the coming week. Other highlights of Hour 1 include a review of Marvel Comics’ Dark Avengers #4 and last week’s horror-show-of-a-new-Smallville episode, “Beast”, which quite honestly could have doubled as a ‘Felix is Fuming’ segment. Tell you this though: I’m not alone in my opinion of this episode and the ‘Chloe-go-stupidness’ that occurs. I felt quite validated earlier today when I came across THIS review of the episode over at Newsarama.

“What, no ‘X-Men Origins: Wolverine’ review,” you ask? Check back tomorrow for Hour 2 of Episode 19 for that review and a whole lot more about Free Comic Book Day, right here at Prime Time Geek.

This is the first in a series of posts this week covering the happenings at MegaCon 2009 this year. It was a exhausting but truly enjoyable three days, and posting these pics is just one way I can show the pleasure and appreciation I felt while meeting some terrific people and spending a little time talking to them on camera. In particular, I want to thank (and this is in no particular order) Jim from Barbarian Battles, Todd from the Greater Orlando Lego Users Group, Brad and Doug from the R2 Builders group; Terry Cronin, J. Chris Campbell, and Kimberly O’Keefe from Students of the Unusual, the ever-awesome Margie and Ned from Heroes Alliance (Starfire and Flash in the photos); Ana Aesthetic, this year’s Fanbabe of the Year on MySpace; Kitty, Eve, and Nova from Team Fanbabe; and (unfortunately not pictured) Moshi, Buddhaful, and the ‘Alien Interloper’ from the Wolfpack Elite; and Luis and Shawn from Bad Apple Comics!

Thumbnails for the pictures are located in the Flickr Photostream in the far-right sidebar on this page – just click on any thumbnail and it will take you to the album. Enjoy! And come back later today for:

-COMPLETE audio from the DC Universe panel at MegaCon this past Saturday;
-Hour 1 of last night’s Prime Time Geek live broadcast, featuring recorded interviews with MegaCon Guest of Honor George Perez and longtime DC Comics writer and artist Dan Jurgens!

Episode 9 of Prime Time Geek kicks off with a clip from Bryan Singer’s first X-Men [Blu-ray] movie – the clip seemed appropos considering I was expecting to have a guest from the Wolfpack Elite costuming group to call into the show during this hour to promote the Wolfpack Elite MegaCon Afterparty. That call didn’t happen, but the clip is still cool, so it stayed in the final edit.

The highlight of the hour is, of course, my interview with independent filmmaker Katharine Leis. Katharine’s short comedy film Foobie Jesus (click HERE to see it on YouTube) has been a hit at film festivals over the past year, and she has two submissions to this year’s MegaCon Indie Film Expo, Averageman (starring our friends Night of the Night Wolf) and The Foot which are sure to entertain this year’s attendees. We talked about Foobie Jesus, her submissions to MegaCon and working with the Night of the Night Wolf gang, and a bit about the business of making movies locally. A reminder: the MegaCon Indie Film Expo begins at 6:30PM at the Orange County Convention Center on Friday, Saturday 27th. See www.megaconvention.com for more details.

In comics I talked at length about what DC Comics has coming up in terms of major events, as it will be VERY busy spring and summer for Dan Didio and his boys, particularly Geoff Johns. In particular, The Flash: Rebirth and its major players dominated the comics segment, but a little Battle for the Cowl popped in there as well.

Finally, brought the hour to a close (a mite early, it seems), with a little walk down Training Montage Lane–John Cafferty’s “Hearts on Fire” is perhaps best known as the background music for the training montage in Rocky IV (the one where he fights Drago), but if you really want some absurdity, check out how the music was used in this YouTube video: Turkish Star Wars! (never get tired of this!)

Just a heads-up to folks planning on coming to the live chat this week – Prime Time Geek will air at a special time on Saturday, from 3-5PM! Don’t miss this week, as Hour 1 will feature TWO special guests: honored filmmaker and MegaCon Indie Film Expo favorite Katharine Leis will join us to talk about her two submissions to this year’s Expo, “Averageman” and “The Foot”, along with her other current projects; and Christine Arriaga, a.k.a. KheTara from the Wolfpack Elite costuming group will call in to talk about the MegaCon Afterparty her group is sponsoring at the Embassy Suites Orlando on Saturday, February 28th, along with the Wolfpack’s other charitable efforts and costuming in general. So again, this week, LIVE show will air from 3-5PM.

NEXT week, the week of MegaCon, a special MegaCon wrap-up edition of Prime Time Geek will actually air on SUNDAY, March 1st, from 6-8PM, as I’ll be spending most of Friday and Saturday covering the convention. That Sunday I’ll be bringing you recorded highlights from the show as well as my own take on all the festivities, so if you’re not in Orlando or you can’t make it to MegaCon this year, definitely don’t miss THAT show!

Long story short (too late):

This week – PTG airs on Saturday from 3-5PM EST

Next week – PTG airs on SUNDAY from 6-8PM EST (Special MegaCon wrap-up edition)

And of course, podcast recordings of shows will be available during the week after each live broadcast.

[CORRECTION: The Wolfpack Elite's MegaCon Afterparty only requires $5 at the door, not $10, as I said on the show. Sorry for the confusion!]

In THIS “Hour 1″ of PTG Episode 7, Mad Mario, Highlord of Home Theater, returns to the show to share his thoughts on Starship Troopers (+ BD Live) [Blu-ray], his revulsion at the cinematic mess that was The Number 23 (Unrated Infinifilm Edition), starring Jim Carrey, and his wholehearted endorsement of the Scottish cult werewolf pic Dog Soldiers, arriving on blu-ray May 5th. Also, Hour 1 touches on the whole Christian Bale rant saga that dominated entertainment headlines this past week, including his apology, and the hour winds up with a rare Prime Time Geek video game review covering Lord of the Rings: Conquest, the new button-masher from Pandemic, the developers of Star Wars Battlefront II. All this and more right here at http://primetimegeek.com!

[In case you're wondering, the asterisk in the title is to indicate that this Hour 1 was, in fact, recorded Sunday night to replace what shall henceforth be called "The Lost PTG Episode", the original Hour 1, which was gone the moment it passed due to, well, some serious dumbassery on my part. It was a damn good hour, too. But c'est la vie.]

If you live in the Waterford Lakes/UCF area and you’re ANY kind of geek, whether it be comic book lover, gamer geek, or uber-techie, then you may already know about Paladin Tech and Game, over in Avalon Park. But if by chance you don’t, then trust me, you should GET to know them!

As you may have heard on this past week’s episode of PTG, I had the opportunity to check out Paladin Tech and Game this past Saturday for their grand opening festivities. I have to thank Brian, a.k.a. Tits McGee from Just Push Play for inviting me out to take part in the remote their show was putting on to promote the store. Founded in 2006 as Paladin Enterprises by owner/entrepreneur/fantasy novelist Kingsley Montgomery as a provider of printing supplies to Central Florida school districts, the company expanded into the gaming and comics retail sector, changed its name to Paladin Tech and Game, LLC., and opened this, its first retail location, in 2008. As you can see from the pics below, the place has a niche for every gamers’ delight:

Comics, Tech Supplies, and Board Games, oh my!

Trade Paperbacks, Role-Playing Games, and the “Champion’s Hall”, a dedicated gaming space

Me personally, I was thrilled to see the selection they carried. Aside from the comics, trade paperbacks, and video games, both used and new, they carry a wide assortment of role-playing games, miniatures games, painting supplies, board games, and card games. Some specific items that brought a smile to my face: Classic Battletech handbooks and supplements, Palladium’s Robotech Role-Playing Game, reprinted in new editions with supplements covering “The Macross Saga” and “The Shadow Chronicles”, the whole assortment of “Chez” and “Munchkins” games from Steve Jackson Games, including “Chez Geek”, “Chez Geek 2″, and “Chez Guevarra”, a “Battlestar Galactica” Board Game and Role-Playing Game, board games like “Apples to Apples”, “Arkham Horror”, “Settlers of Cataan”, and variants of “Axis and Allies” that I’d never seen before, and lots of “Dungeons & Dragons” books and supplements. Long story short (too late): the place is stocked!

The address for Paladin Tech and Game is 12001 Avalon Lake Dr., Suite D, Orlando, FL 32828. Again, if you’re just about ANY kind of geek, you will find something you love at Paladin Tech and Game. If you go, ask for Kim and tell her you heard about it through Prime Time Geek. Now, you probably won’t get to meet any superheroes while you’re over there, as I did, but you never know …

Wonder Man, Mr. Fantastic, and Ms. Marvel (a.k.a. Brian, Bill, and Buddhaful from the Wolfpack Elite costuming group, at the store to greet guests and raise money for charity)

There’s only one place you want to party once you’re done mingling at MegaCon this year: the Wolfpack Elite’s 3rd Annual MegaCon Attendees Party! Check out one of the premiere costuming groups in Central Florida as they seek to dazzle you with costumes, dancers, celebrity guests, and more. $5 (and a valid ID) gets you in the door and a chance at over $1,000 in cash and prizes, and all proceeds benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation! For more details, check out www.wolfpackelite.com. So get out there once the ‘Con is done for the day, party it up, do your part for a great cause, and don’t forget to tell them you heard about it through Prime Time Geek!