Photos of the Day: Snapshots from Comic Con Revolution...

Earlier today, I went to the Ontario Convention Center in San Bernardino County, CA, to attend Comic Con Revolution. As shown above, the highlight of this visit was meeting Mercedes Varnado...who played Koska Reeves on The Mandalorian and wrestled as Sasha Banks for World Wrestling Entertainment!

While the main goal of my trip to the city of Ontario was to get a photo op with Ms. Varnado, that didn't stop me from taking pictures of all the cosplayers who attended Comic Con Revolution. Lots of fans showed up as Mandalorians—not just Din Djarin and Boba Fett, but also as their own customized Star Wars commandos.

And of course, there were other comic book geeks who dressed as Deadpool, Batman, Nightwing, Robin as well as other Marvel and DC superheroes. And replicas of the Chevy Camaro used in the 2007 Transformers movie and the DeLorean that was immortalized in the Back to the Future trilogy also made appearances at the expo.

From Long Beach Comic Con in 2015 to Comic Con Revolution, it's amusing that I've been to comic cons other than San Diego Comic-Con itself! Well, that's not entirely true— I went to San Diego back in 2014 to check out most of the activities that took place outside of Comic-Con, but I never went into the convention center itself.

That trip from almost 9 years ago was still fun, nonetheless. Have a nice weekend!

On This Day in 1997: I Earned the Right to Cruise the Road!

It was 25 years ago today that I passed my driving test at the Pomona DMV (Department of Motor Vehicles, for y'all non-Yanks reading this entry)! Obviously, I was totally excited considering the fact that this was my third attempt since my first exam in August of 1996.

Had I passed my driving test in the summer of Independence Day, I would've watched that sci-fi mega blockbuster at least two or three more times at the theater!

(Thinking more about it, I think August of 1996 was when I had my second driving test. Whatever. Either way, I would've watched ID4 at the multiplex as many times as I did the new Star Wars movies and Batman flicks like The Dark Knight if I had my license...and was able to borrow the family car.)

But I passed my driving test in the fall of 1997...during the first semester of my senior year in high school. That was definitely a memorable time for me.

Today also marks 20 years since I shot my student film version of The Broken Table! Click here for more details.

Photos of the Day: Batman in Burbank...

Just thought I'd share these photos that I took yesterday showing the Batman statue standing tall near the AMC 16 theater at downtown Burbank in California.

This statue has been on display at this San Fernando Valley location for about two years, I think...but it was only this weekend that I finally drove down to Burbank to see this cool sculpture in person.

I wanted to pose with this Caped Crusader statue without my face mask on—which I would've been loathe to do at the start of the pandemic back in 2020, even though I was outdoors. Better late than never!

Happy Halloween, Everyone!

Creed Bratton from NBC's The Office (I miss that show) cracks me up!





And the Joker clip in all its (low-res) glory:

Batman Rises as GOTHAM Comes to an End...

Farewell, Gotham. The series finale for the DC comic book show—which lasted for 5 years on FOX TV—aired tonight. In the span of an hour, we saw the definitive rise of Penguin (Robin Lord Taylor), the Riddler (Cory Michael Smith), Catwoman (played by Camren Bicondova during the show's 5-year run; portrayed by Lili Simmons in today's episode) and the Joker (or J, played by Cameron Monaghan)...as well as the Caped Crusader himself (David Mazouz donned the Batcowl even though a taller actor wore the Batsuit in that memorable last shot of the finale).

I enjoyed how this final season of Gotham was inspired by Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight trilogy...with the Bane subplot paying homage to The Dark Knight Rises, and the opening scene of tonight's finale borrowing from Hans Zimmer's memorable music score for The Dark Knight films. And of course, Cameron Monaghan's take on Jerome Valeska in the previous seasons was an awesome echo of Heath Ledger's Oscar-winning performance as the Clown Prince of Crime in The Dark Knight. I also watched the series finale of the Superman TV series Smallville in 2011, and Gotham blew it out of the water with a much more satisfying introduction of an iconic DC superhero.

The only other comic book show that I watch on TV is Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. We'll see how that series ends. With Avengers: Endgame opening in theaters tomorrow (I'm watching it at a 10 AM matinee), the producers of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. should get a clearer picture on what direction this series should take as it heads toward its inevitable finale. Anyways, to get back to topic: I'll miss you, Gotham! Glad to see Batman begin again—on the small screen, at least. That is all.

Image of the Day: Batman Will Soon Begin...on TV

In honor of the 80th anniversary since Batman made his debut in DC's Detective Comics #27 (in May of 1939), the folks behind the FOX TV show Gotham released this cool promo pic of the Dark Knight staring down at the city that he's the silent guardian and watchful protector of (to quote Gary Oldman's Commissioner Gordon in 2008's The Dark Knight). As mentioned in this image, the final two episodes for Gotham will air next month—starting on April 18.

David Mazouz, who played Bruce Wayne on Gotham since it premiered on FOX in September of 2014, will be featured in close-ups of the Caped Crusader—and will even provide the growling voice of the masked vigilante himself. However, a taller actor will play Batman in wider shots of the character...as his long-awaited emergence takes place in a flash forward 10 years after the current events depicted on Gotham. Awesome.

The Final Post of 2018: Reliving 2008 (and then some)...

Just thought I'd end this year by pointing out how 2018 reminded me of 2008...a year that I look back on favorably for personal reasons. 2008 was memorable because a spacecraft carrying a DVD that bears my name (NASA's Phoenix lander) successfully touched down on Mars, I attended my 10-year high school reunion in Pasadena, CA, I went to Florida and took part in a cruise (to the Bahamas) for the first time, and I did so many viewings of The Dark Knight in movie theaters because it was such an awesome film.


SpaceX

In regards to 2018, my name landed on Mars for the third time (via two small microchips aboard the InSight spacecraft over a month ago; my name is also on the Curiosity rover as it safely arrived at the Red Planet in 2012), I attended a dinner cruise in Newport Beach, CA, to mark my 20-year high school reunion two months ago, I went to Florida and took part in a second cruise (to the Panama Canal and other locales in Central America) last March, and I watched The Dark Knight in Universal City (twice during the summer) after the movie was theatrically re-released for its 10-year anniversary.


JAXA

Along with the highlights listed above, this entry also includes some non-personal events as well as cool, exciting activities that I did this year [namely, going skydiving in San Diego County for my 39th birthday (as shown in the pic at the very top of this entry)...and finally meeting 5-time NBA champ Kobe Bryant (as shown in the image at the bottom of this post)]. Check out the photos throughout this entry...and have a safe and happy New Year!

---

MARS LANDINGS

NASA / JPL - Caltech

NASA's Phoenix lander arrival (at Mars' north polar region): May 25, 2008

NASA's InSight lander arrival (at Elysium Planitia): November 26, 2018


NASA / JPL - Caltech

---

THE DARK KNIGHT


1st Theatrical Viewing: July 18, 2008

1st Theatrical Viewing (for 10-year anniversary release): August 26, 2018

---

OLYMPICS


2008 Summer Games (in Beijing, China): August 8 - 24, 2008

2018 Winter Games (in Pyeongchang, South Korea): February 9 - 25, 2018


Chang W. Lee / The New York Times

---

CARIBBEAN CRUISES


Bahamas cruise (from Fort Lauderdale, Florida): August 13 - 18, 2008

Panama Canal cruise (from Miami, Florida): March 11 - 23, 2018

---

CLASS OF 1998 REUNIONS


10-year high school reunion (in Pasadena, CA): October 25, 2008

20-year high school reunion (in Newport Beach, CA): October 6, 2018

---

And lastly, it only took 11 years to meet the Mamba...on October 23, 2018!

Photos of the Day: Another Visit to CityWalk...

One week ago today, I drove back to Universal CityWalk in North Hollywood to watch The Dark Knight again on IMAX. I never get tired of viewing this film! The last day that Universal Cinema (the theater at CityWalk) showed the 2008 blockbuster hit was last Wednesday, September 5 (I believe). I wanted to see Heather Ledger's Joker terrorize Gotham one last time on the ulta-big screen (till 2028, the 20th anniversary of the movie's release, that is)...despite the fact I paid $29 for a movie ticket and $25 for parking (it was only $10 when I visited CityWalk about one week earlier) due to the Labor Day weekend. Fortunately, I got a $20 rebate after I showed my parking receipt to the guest services folks at Universal Cinema! That was cool.

Photos of the Day: Snapshots from CityWalk...

A week ago today, I drove down to Universal CityWalk in North Hollywood to watch a 9:00 PM screening of The Dark Knight on IMAX. The AMC Theatre at Citywalk (which was renamed Universal Cinema) was one of few multiplexes around the nation showing the Christopher Nolan-directed crime epic on the big screen to commemorate 10 years since its theatrical release. In regards to Universal Cinema, The Dark Knight began showing on the ultra-big screen on August 24...and will continue to do so through September 5 (last I checked). Needless to say, I never get tired of watching this awesome comic book movie at the multiplex! As stated in this entry, I look forward to viewing 2012's The Dark Knight Rises on IMAX if Warner Bros. ever decides to celebrate this film's 10-year anniversary four years from now. Happy Labor Day weekend!

The Trumpire Rises...

Getty Images

So a new period of uncertainty has officially begun now that Donald Trump has been sworn in as the 45th president of the United States. All I can say is, it appears that Trump borrowed elements of his inaugural speech from Bane in The Dark Knight Rises... How dare The Donald gives the leader of the League of Shadows a bad name!

The fire rises.

RIP, Prince (1958-2016)...

More than three months after the world lost David Bowie, another legendary music icon passed away today. The first Prince song that I ever heard, I believe, was "Batdance" from Tim Burton's first Batman film. There were other songs by Prince that were on the movie's soundtrack (I bought it on cassette— Yes, I'm old), but Batdance was the one that played on radio stations everyday back in the summer of 1989. I definitely can't recall how many times I listened to this awesome tune on the radio and tape. It wasn't one of his classics, but Batdance was just one example of the kind of stylistic and catchy music that Prince came up with over the last 40 years. Rest In Peace, Purple Rain... You will be missed.

Long Beach Comic Con...

So yesterday afternoon, I drove down to the Long Beach Convention Center to get my geek on at the LBC's very own Comic Con. I didn't go because I wanted to be in a room full of cosplayers dressed as Deadpool, Boba Fett, Stanley Ipkiss (Jim Carrey's character in 1994's The Mask) or Batman (yes, the Ben Affleck version from next year's Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice), but I attended the show to meet two lovely actresses from a pair of my current favorite TV shows. The first one I met was Lindsey McKeon, who played Tessa (a 'Reaper') on the long-lived CW Network TV series, Supernatural. The second actress I took a pic with was Chloe Bennet...who plays Skye (whose real name is Daisy Johnson and is now known as Quake, a so-called Inhuman) on the hit ABC TV show, Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Ms. Bennet was originally supposed to appear at 1:00 PM but instead arrived at 5:30 PM for a photo op event at Comic Con. Thank God for the change though; Chloe showing up at the earlier time probably would've prevented me from meeting Lindsey (can't call her Ms. McKeon now since she got married two years ago—to a dude named Brant Hively) first. A long line formed about an hour before Bennet's photo op was supposed to begin. Everything worked out!



Unlike the Star Wars Celebration in April and Disney's D23 Expo last month (I was thinking about attending this one but changed my mind), there were no new news at Comic Con pertaining to Star Wars: The Force Awakens...which opens in theaters 95 days from now (94 if you live in the UK; bastards). The only sign at the Long Beach Convention Center that Episode VII will soon be upon us were the two First Order Stormtroopers (shown towards the bottom of this entry) milling about inside the main showroom, and a booth that sold some Force Awakens merchandise. It's all good. I'm just wondering when J.J. Abrams will reveal the next trailer for the 7th live-action Star Wars installment, and in front of which film? Yea, I'm too lazy to go to Google and see which movies (other than the next Paranormal Activity film, Steven Spielberg's Bridge of Spies and the very last Hunger Games flick) are coming out this October and November. Carry on.