Stan Lee to Make His Final NYCC Appearance

New York Comic Con announced yesterday that this year would be Stan Lee’s final appearance at NYCC. No reasons were given, and this news coming so quickly on the heels of Darwyn Cooke’s death immediately had me fearing the worst. But hopefully Stan is doing well and at 93 years of age just wants to kick back, relax and escape the grind of constantly touring for conventions.

stan lee

How does this affect your personal NYCC? Are you going to make it a priority to get Stan Lee’s autograph this year? I’ve met Stan twice and have his autograph on three comics, so getting his signature again isn’t a priority for me. That said, I know I will definitely be signing up for a photo with Stan if it’s offered. And yes, I will be wearing my Spider-Man costume from The RPC Studio.  Hmm, I better start doing some situps. That spandex outfit DOES NOT hide a belly.

All the best and excelsior, Stan! We hope you’re in good health!

Tuesday Night Comics Podcast Episode 8

Dave and Billy are back once again for the Tuesday Night Comics podcast. They each give their picks for which comic books you should be on the look out for in the comic book store this Wednesday, and highlight some of their favorite recent comics. The guys also discuss the upcoming Spider-Man and X-Men movies, the Fantastic Four’s new costumes, and Billy shares a story about a weirdo at NYCC who wanted to beat up Stan Lee.

ff 1 young variant

And as promised in the podcast, here is every Stan Lee appearance in a Marvel movie!

You can stream the the Tuesday Night Movies podcast below or subscribe to it on iTunes!

Agents of SHIELD S1E13 – T.R.A.C.K.S. – Recap

agents of shield tracks deathlok

Agents of SHIELD Episode 13, T.R.A.C.K.S., has Coulson’s entire team going undercover on a train travelling through the Italian countryside in order to intercept a package on its way to Ian Quinn.

This episode  uses a fun storytelling device. The episode goes along linearly until a certain point, then it divides into four non-linear stories before becoming linear at the end. The four stories are set around the four teams of SHIELD agents on the train: 1. Coulson & Simmons, 2. May, 3.  Fitz & Skye, and 4. Ward. Each story starts at the same place, just as the train is passing through a scenic mountain range, which coincides with the moment when Coulson’s plan goes to crap.

ELIZABETH HENSTRIDGE, CLARK GREGG

Stan Lee makes a great cameo. He’s flanked by two hot women and calls Coulson out for being a terrible “father” after hearing his “daughter” Simmons go on a long and detailed rant as part of her getting into her undercover character. Like many of Stan’s scenes in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, this scene provides the episode with a bit of lighthearted fun.

agents of shield tracks stan lee

Coulson’s team gets made, forcing Coulson and Ward to exit the train promptly while it’s still in motion. An enemy agent hurls a grenade that lets out a blue gas that seems to do nothing to Coulson and Ward, but the train immediately disappears at the same time. As we find out in May’s scene, the grenade paralyzed Coulson and Ward, and they weren’t even aware that any time had passed when they came to. This time-lapse grenade is what necessitated the non-linear story-telling in the episode, as it kept the nature of the blue smoke a mystery from not only the characters, but  the viewers too.

agents of shield tracks

The McGuffin that Coulson and company are after turns out to be a machine that when attached to Michael Peterson’s leg-stump transforms into a  fully functional robotic leg. Ladies and gentlemen…say hello to Deathlok.

For those of you unfamiliar with the character, Deathlok is a cybernetic soldier that is half man-half machine. The original Deathlok came from a dystopian future, but in the 1990s, Marvel introduced a present day Deathlok. This Deathlok was a man that had his brain put into the body of prototype Deathlok soldier, which was half-machine, half-reanimated corpse. Think Cyborg from Teen Titans: Go meet Warm Bodies.  The machine and human parts of Deathlok’s brain often came into conflict with each other, the machine lacking the soul and emotion of the human part.  Deathlok was recently reintroduced to Marvel Comics in Rick Remender’s excellent Uncanny X-Force.

The original Deathlok.

The original Deathlok.

This episode does not go well for Skye. She is the only member of Coulson’s team who manages to infiltrate Quinn’s mansion. She’s rewarded with a bullet to the gut for her effort. By the time the rest of the team finds her, she’s bled out a lot. The team places her in a stasis chamber to keep her alive, so Skye is basically in a coma right now. This is the most danger a member of Coulson’s team has faced since Simmons almost died in F.Z.Z.T. I wasn’t a fan of Skye during the first couple of episodes, but she has definitely grown on me. I don’t expect her to die, and it would be a real bummer if she did.

agents of shield tracks skye shot

At the very end of the episode, we get Ward’s reaction to Skye’s near-death experience. Ward is pissed, and not at himself. He blames someone else. He doesn’t say who, but he doesn’t have to. It’s fairly clear that Coulson is the target of his rage. Expect things to come to a head between Ward and Coulson soon.

NYCC 2013 Exclusives

Once again, Hasbro has decided to snub NYCC (Hey Hasbro, maybe if your exclusives weren’t so lame in 2011, people would have bought them). There will be no NYCC exclusive Minimates. Those two pieces of news would be bigger downers if there weren’t so many awesome exclusives at New York Comic Con this year. We combed through the very large list of NYCC exclusives to bring you this list of what we think are the coolest ones.


Agent Coulson SHIELD Badge and ID and Personalized ID Card – eFX Collectibles – Booth #1869
You got in on the pre-sale for this, right? If not, hit this booth up early. I think this will be the most popular souvenir of NYCC 2013.

Marvel Toon Tumblers – Marvel – Booth #1354
Price: $15.99, Limited to 200 for each design
A few years ago, when Toon Tumblers was first starting out, they partnered with Marvel to release an exclusive Ghost Rider Toon Tumbler at NYCC. This year, Marvel and Toon Tumblers have partnered again for an astounding eight different Toon Tumblers. They are: Angela by Sara Pichelli, Deadpool by Skottie Young, Hawkeye by David Aja, Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD cast photo, Scarlet Witch by Adi Granov, Superior Spider-Man by Ryan Stegman, Spider-Man by Skottie Young, and Thor and Jane Foster from Thor: The Dark World.
I’m very, very, very tempted to come home with the Skottie Young Deadpool and Spider-Man pint glasses. Maybe that Agents of SHIELD one too. I need something to drink out of when I’m writing my Agents of SHIELD episode reviews.

Rocket Raccoon Plush & Lithograph – Marvel – Booth #1354
Price: $34.99, Limited to 1000
Rocket Racoon isn’t exactly a household name. He’s a character in the upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy movie. If you’re not familiar with Rocket Raccon, don’t fear buying this. He’s definitely not the Jar Jar Binks of Guardians of the Galaxy.

Zombie Magneto Bust – Marvel – Booth #1354
Price: $99.99, Limited to 300
Designed by Gentle Giant, this Zombie Magneto bust is exquisitely designed…in an entirely gut wrenching way. Check with your significant other before putting this on your shelf.

Phase 1 Marvel Cinematic Universe Blu-Ray Collector’s Set – Marvel – Booth #1354
Price: $150
I’m recommending this one with a caveat. If it doesn’t come with a Tesseract, skip it and buy this version from Amazon.

Thor: The Dark World Cast and Crew Tee Loki Fan Variant – Marvel – Booth #1354
Price: $34.99, Limited to 399 across various men’s and women’s sizes.
This shirt looks so cool. The only thing making me second guess getting it is the the $35 price tag.

Agents of SHIELD Coulson Lives T-Shirt – Marvel – Booth #1354.
Price: 19.99, Limited to 550 across various men’s and women’s sizes
Show your support to the agents of Marvel’s new hit TV show with this shirt. Coulson lives! But exactly happened in Tahiti?

Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD “Bus” Blueprint – Marvel – Booth #1354
Price: $12.99, Limited to 300
This is the same blueprint hanging behind Coulson’s desk on “The Bus” aka SHIELD-616, the Agents of SHIELD team’s mobile headquarters.

Captain America Hooded Scarf – Marvel – Booth #1354
Price: $24.99, Limited to 100
Super cute or silly? You decide!

 


Chew Smorgasbord Edition – Limited Red Slipcased Variant – Image Comics – Booth # 1444
Price: $100, Limited to 150
According to the NYCC website, this will only be on sale during John Layman and Rob Guillory’s signings at the Image booth and at their Artist’s Alley table. It collects the first 20 issues of Chew. There is also a non-slipcased, non-limited, black cover version of this book as well.

East of West Volume 1 Limited Edition Hardover – Image Comics – Booth #1444
Price: $40, Limited to ??
This hardcover was designed by series creator Jonathan Hickman, so it’s bound to be gorgeous.

Lazarus Volume 1 Paperback with Limited Edition Bookplate – Image Comics – Booth #1444
Price: $9.99, Limited to 200
A similar paperback with book plate was released for Saga last year at NYCC and it was sold out less than an hour into the day on Thursday. This one may not sell out as fast, but I’d be surprised if this was still available two hours into Thursday.

Star Wars R2-Q5 ARTFX+ Statue – Kotobukiya – Booth #1654
Price: $29.95, Limited to 1000
R2-Q5 has become the unofficial droid of NYCC. It was an exclusive Star Wars Christmas ornament last year, and is an exclusive ARTFX+ statue this year. I might be wrong, but I think the only thing that separates this limited edition from a similar unlimited edition is that it includes a metallic coin.

Mind MGMT Custom Dust Cover – Matt Kindt – Artist Alley H5
Price: $??, Limited to 5
Custom drawn, brown paper bag dust cover for your copy of Mind MGMT. This is one of the coolest exclusive ideas I’ve ever come across.

Takara Transformers Asian Exclusive MP-08 Masterpiece Grimlock – Lunar Toy Store – Booth #1581
Price: $??, Limited to ??
The Masterpiece Grimlock Transformer is very hard to find and when one does find it, it usually has a high price tag attached to it. From what I understand, Lunar Toy Store will have a limited supply of these on hand at a reasonable price. If you’re in the market for this figure, hit the Lunar Toy Store Booth early.

Cheetara 14″ and Snarf 5″ Deluxe 2-Pack – Mezco Toys – Booth #1855
Price: ??
Thundercats, ho! At 5″ tall, is this the biggest Snarf action figure ever?

Batman Arkham Origins Flip Up Knit Hat – Midtown Comics – Booth #1736
Price: ??
The perfect thing to wear next time you’re standing on a long line outside Midtown Comics on a cold day during a Scott Snyder signing.

NYCC 2013 Brooklyn Defender T-Shirt – NYCC Official Store – Booth #1132
Price: ??
With art by Cliff Chiang, this is easily the coolest of the NYCC 2013 t-shirts being sold directly by NYCC.


Polarity Hardcover – Boom! Studios – Booth #1344
Price: $??, Limited to 40
Boom! is selling 20 at each of the two signings they are hosting for it.

Disco Nightwing Mini-Print – Christopher Jones – Artist Alley D9
Price: FREE
All you have to do is show Christopher Jones that you follow him on Twitter or are a fan of him on Facebook and he’ll give you one of these signed Disco Nightwing mini-prints free of charge. Sweet deal!

Metallic Batman Beyond Funko Pop Vinyl Figure – Fugitive Toys – Booth #410
Metallic Nightwing Funko Pop Vinyl Figure – Fugitive Toys – Booth #410
Metallic Harley Quinn Funko Pop Vinyl Figure – Conquest Comics – Booth #3004
Black and White Harley Quinn Funko Pop Vinyl Figure – Harrison’s – Booth #2254
Glow in the Dark Deadpool Funko Pop Vinyl Figure – Harrison’s – Booth #2254
Glow in the Dark Ghost Rider Funko Pop Vinyl Figure – Harrison’s – Booth #2254
The Walking Dead Bloody Rick Funko Pop Vinyl Figure – Harrison’s – Booth #2254
The Walking Dead Bloody Daryl Funko Pop Vinyl Figure – Harrison’s – Booth #2254
The Walking Dead Bloody Michonne Funko Pop Vinyl Figure – Harrison’s – Booth #2254
White and Gold Phoenix Funko Pop Vinyl Figure – Conquest Comics – Booth #3004
White and Black Deadpool Funko Pop Vinyl Figure – Matt’s Cavalcade – Booth #3027
Stan Lee NYCC Funko Pop Vinyl Figure – Conventionexclusive.com – Booth #1274 or Crazy Cat Collectibles – Booth # 1555
Unmasked Wolverine Funko Pop Vinyl Figure – Toytastik.com – Booth #2544
Glow in the Dark Unmasked Wolverine  Funko Pop Vinyl Figure – Toytastik.com – Booth #2544
Price: $??, Stan Lee is limited to 1000, White and Black Deadpool limited to 1500, Unmasked Wolvering limited to 1500, Glow in the Dark Unmasked Wolverine limited to 500.
If you collect Funko Pop figures, you are going to love NYCC 2013. You’ll have to travel to a few booths to catch them all. Personally, I think the Stan Lee one is the coolest.

FUNKO Batmobile – Toy Tokyo – Booth #101
Adam West-style Batman Pop Vinyl driving a 1970s tin-style Batmobile. This is all kinds of yes.

Power Rangers Tokyo Vinyl Metallic Red Ranger – Bandai – Booth #1628
Price: $??
The metallic paint job sets this figure apart from the regular version.

Hal Jordan and Saint Walker 3 3/4″ Action Figure 2-Pack – DC Comics/Graphitti Designs – Booth #755
Price: $29.95, Limited to 3000
Hal comes with a big green fist. It kind of looks like Green Lantern is wearing Hulk Hands.

Super Best Friends Forever Poison Ivy PVC Figure – DC Comics/Graphitti Designs – Booth #755
Price: $24.95, Limited to 2500
A nice companion to SDCC’s Super Best Friends Forever 3-pack.

Man of Steel Christmas Ornament – Hallmark – Booth #1554
Price: $??, Limited to 150 per day
Superman in his black costume from when he saw Zod’s nightmarish vision of the future.

Star Trek: USS Kelvin Battle Scarred Variant Christmas Ornament – Hallmark – Booth #1554
Price:??, Limited to 175 per day
From the 2009 JJ Abrams Star Trek movie. This ornament features light and sound.

Star Wars: Wrath of the Rancor Christmas Ornament – Hallmark – Booth #1554
Price: ??, Limited to 200 per day
Ever since I saw this would be a SDCC/NYCC exclusive this summer, I knew that I would be buying it at NYCC this fall.

The Ewoking Dead by Peter Goral – Tenacious Toys – Booth #208
Price: $80, Limited to 50
More than any other exclusive this year, this one made me say “WTF?!” Peter Goral has designed a Zombie Ewok action figure out of resin. The figure comes carded on a card that evokes the old Star Wars Kenner cards if they crossed with the art of The Walking Dead. The $80 price tag makes me balk, but I really want to see this in person.

Doctor Who Titans: 10th Doctor Tuxedo Variant – Titan Entertainment – Booth #2142
Price: $15, Limited to 500, Limit of 2 per customer
The Titan booth is a must stop at booth for Doctor Who fans. This variant features the 10th Doctor in his tuxedo from the 2007 Christmas special, The Voyage of the Damned. Interestingly, Titan is charging $5 for me this figure than they did at SDCC.

Doctor Who Titans: 10th Doctor Parting of the Ways Variant – Titan Entertainment – Booth #2142
Price: $15, Limited to 1000, Limit of 2 per customer
This variant has the 10th Doctor in the 9th Doctors signature outfit, right after his regeneration in The Parting of the Ways.

Doctor Who Titans: Glow in the Dark 8″ Statue of Liberty Weeping Angel – Titan Entertainment – Booth #2142
Price: $30, Limited to 700, Limit of 2 per customer
What a perfect exclusive for New York Comic Con. It’s NYC’s iconic Statue of Liberty, revealed to be a Weeping Angel, from the 2012 episode The Angels Take Manhattan. And it glows in the dark!

Breaking Bad Walter While in Green Hazmat Suit Action Figure – Mezco – Booth #1885
Price: ???
If you’re looking for a toy to flip on eBay, this might be the one. NYCC isn’t even here yet, and it’s already going
for over $90 in active auctions.

Variant Covers:
I’m not a a big fan of con-exclusive variant covers. They’re for the most part exactly the same as the standard cover, but with the con’s logo added to it. Why pay extra for that? But there are some NYCC exclusive variant covers this year that I’m digging…and one that I’m shaking my head at.

Adventure Time #20 Get a Sketch Variant – Boom! Studios – Booth #1344
$??
I’m a sucker for blank variants. I have far more than I’ll probably ever sketches on, but I can’t stop buying them.

Afterlife With Archie #1 NYCC Variant – Archie Comics – Booth #1936 
$10, Limited to 350
Limit of 2 copies per person per day

Lady Death: Dragon Wars #1 Metal Edition
Price: $??, Limited to 69
Really? Limited to 69 copies? Really? Excuse me while I facepalm. SMH.

Superman/Wonder Woman #1 NYCC Variant – DC Entertainment/Graphitti Designs – Booth #755
Price: $10
The Official 2013 NYCC poster is also the cover of this variant. Is it me or does Superman look a lot like artist Paolo Rivera here?

Lazarus #1 Splash Page Comic Art Variant – Splash Page Comic Art – Booth #2405
Price: $??
This variant features a sweet wraparound cover from series artist Michael Lark.

Mars Attacks Sketch Cover – Topps – Booth #1561
Price: $??
If the listing on the NYCC website is correct, Topps artists will be on hand to draw you a sketch when you buy this variant. If that’s true, this might be a great way to get your convention sketch collection started.

Archer and Armstrong # 14 NYCC Variant – Valiant Comics – Booth #2028
Price: $??
Unlike most NYCC variants, which are just recolored covers emblazoned with the NYCC logo, this variant cover has Archer and Armstrong at NYCC. Or maybe it’s cosplayers dressed as them.

Mighty Avengers #2 Cosplay Variant – Marvel – Booth #1354
Price: $10, Limited to 2,000
Okay, this variant is definitely cosplayers, Avengers cosplayers. Avengers cosplaying other Avengers. This wins the award for Most Fun Variant Cover at NYCC 2013.

Written by David Henehan.