Tag Archives: zombies

How to Wrongly Profit Off the Wonderland Fandom: Cassie-la Hulk Smashes “Alice in Zombieland” by Gena Showalter

25 Mar

Alice in Zombieland - Gena ShowalterAlice in Zombieland by Gena Showalter
Genre: Fiction, young adult, zombies, horror, romance, remind me again what this has to do with Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland?
Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

Summary: Alice Bell’s father is terrified of monsters hurting his family. As a result, Alice isn’t allowed out at night, and she’s certainly not allowed to walk near any cemeteries. But when her entire family dies in a horrific accident, she learns the hard way that her father may not be as crazy as she thought he was. Starring: a love interest with a hard muscular chest, a best friend with dialogue straight out of a Diablo Cody script, a cast of peripheral characters with terrible names and Alice, who is so attractive that everyone wants to have sex with her. Not starring: anything to do with Alice in Wonderland except a rabbit shaped cloud.

Once again I have gotten overly excited about an adaptation of Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland and yet again I have thrown my money at something that merely seeks to profit off the renewed popularity of the books rather than pay homage to the little girl in a strange new world. It happened with the Tim Burton movie, the YA novel Splintered and it’s happened yet again with Alice in Zombieland. (Not to be confused with the awesome Threadless shirt or the book of the same name by Nickolas Cook of which I couldn’t make it through more than a page of.)

Despite obviously being marketed to fans of Wonderland (see the gorgeous cover if you need a reason why I jumped to this conclusion) there isn’t much of anything to connect the novel to Lewis Carroll’s world except the book title and the chapter names, which aren’t even that good on their own: Down the Zombie Hole, The Pool of Blood and Tears, Eerily Curiouser and Curiouser…, Advice from a Dying Caterpillar, and A Fiendishly Mad Tea Party.

Oh, and let’s not forget that the main character is named Alice and she keeps seeing a cloud in the shape of a white rabbit. Seriously, I would have rather been pandered to than abused for my love of all things Alice.

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Around the Interwebs: Volume XIX

9 Mar

Gary Busey Explains How Hobbits Are Real and Why They’re Horny. Through Song. (via StarCrush)

For some reason (that reason most likely being brain damage) actor Gary Busey is under the impression that Hobbits are real. So much so that on his YouTube series “The Busey Zone” he shows off his severed Hobbit foot and sings a song about how they’re really horny. Jump to 3:28 for that nonsense. Because in Gary Busey land, “Horny starts with an H. The letter H. Hobbits start with the letter H. Horny Hobbits are thriving in Middle-earth. They don’t know what a reindeer is, but they’re horny like you can’t believe it.” This guy’s brain is like a bag full of cats.

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Taking The Phrase Dead Sexy to a Whole New Level: Cassie-la Races Through Both Versions Of “Warm Bodies”

9 Feb

Warm Bodies Poster 2Book: Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion
Movie: Warm Bodies
Genre: Fiction, zombies, horror, post-apocalyptic, this ain’t no zombie Twilight
Rating: 4.68 out of 5 stars (book and movie)

Summary: R is not your average zombie. He has coherent thoughts, can speak (sort of), is an avid collector of human memorabilia, and most importantly, has the ability to fall in love. Everything in R’s life is altered one day when he rashly decides to bring a human girl back to live in his 747. Her name is Julie, and she and R have the power to change the post-apocalyptic world forever. The weapon they have is [zombie] love.

Warm Bodies is the modern Romeo and Juliet. And I don’t say that because they have a modern romantic love story, or that as a zombie and a human they are star-crossed, I say that because the novel Warm Bodies is literally inspired by Romeo and Juliet. Main character R is obviously Romeo and love interest Julie is his Juliet. R’s hilarious best friend M stands in for Mercutio and Juliet’s friend Nora (with her aspirations to be a nurse) represents Juliet’s nurse, merely called the Nurse. See? I wasn’t just pumping up the love story aspect.

The novel and the film, while telling the same story, are two completely different beasts. The book is barely a young adult novel, despite the filming marketing the story to the Twilight fandom (shakes fist in anger) and is instead a much more in-depth look at a crumbling post-apocalyptic world and how we as a society while alive are still more dead inside than the zombie scourge. This is all viewed through the lens of R and Julie’s love story. The movie explores how technology makes society into zombies in a much more light-hearted way, but still through the romance of R and Julie. To sum it up, the novel is more zom-rom (zombie romance) with touches of humor and the film is more zom-rom-com (zombie romantic comedy) plus Rob Corddry.

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New Comic Book Day Roundup: December 12, 2012

13 Dec

In this post, from Dark Horse Comics: Orchid #11 and The Strain #9, Image Comics: The Walking Dead #105 and from Marvel Comics: Avengers Arena #1. OH MY GOD, AVENGERS ARENA IS FINALLY HERE!

Dark Horse Comics

Orchid 11 - Tom MorelloOrchid #11 by Tom Morello, illustrated by Scott Hepburn, cover by Massimo Carnevale
Genre: Fiction, dystopia, action, post-apocalypse
Rating: 4 out of 5

We’re onto the penultimate issue in this limited twelve issue series and things are starting to get real. Realer. We last left our prostitutes turned heroes trapped in a cave about to be eaten by mechanical robot dogs with seemingly no possible means of escape. But this is fiction, so everyone dying just wouldn’t work, especially in the first few pages. This isn’t Anna Karenina, the action doesn’t continue after the titular character dies. Spoilers. Not. Anna K was published in 1878, the statue of limitation on spoilers has long passed. Simon spends the majority of the issue pulling a Giles and everyone else gets in on the action/adventure aspect while he’s unconscious.

Illustrator Scott Hepburn’s work really shines in this issue, with the artist illustrating intricate battle scenes and bloody evisceration and beheading plots. So much blood, so much glorious blood. The man knows how to illustrate someone nonchalantly shooting a gun without a sideways glance. Not to mention the continued existence of fantastical monsters and even more robotics. Add in some musical swelling scenes with themes like “the meek shall inherit” and a bromance and you have a pretty powerful second to last issue. Complete with giant cliffhanger of course. Of course. No Peter Jackson shenanigans here, issue #12 is sure to be a doozy.

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Around the Interwebs: Volume XI

9 Dec

Warm Bodies Gets Another New Trailer, Still Looks Adorable (via I Watch Stuff)

On the surface, Warm Bodies (a remake of the book by the same name) looks like Twilight with zombies because it happens to have an attractive British actor playing the pale faced love interest who falls in love with a human and has a propensity for staring creepily at her. It doesn’t help that Stephenie Meyer has the promotional quote on the book cover. Thankfully, that’s where the differences end. Warm Bodies looks funny and full of heart, plus it’s being directed by 50/50‘s Jonathan Levine so it’s definitely no Twilight.

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Around the Interwebs: Volume IX

24 Nov

We hope you all had an amazing Thanksgiving stuffing your faces, arguing with relatives and getting too drunk to function. We know we did! <3

Robert Pattinson Hates Twilight, Oh And Also His Life (via Jezebel)

Robert Pattinson Hates His Life might be the best Tumblr of all time. The premise is simple, collect all the most amazing .gifs and quotes of Robert Pattinson hating on Twilight (and occasionally himself) and share them with the world. Gems include, “Surely there’s another way to get the creepy baby out of her stomach,” “Why are they still going to high school? They’re a hundred years old!” “I like the idea of him turning into a mermaid,” and “It’s terrible!” Robert Pattinson has no shame, and we love it.

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New Comic Book Day Roundup: November 14, 2012

14 Nov

In this post, from IDW Publishing: Locke & Key: Omega #1 and from Image Comics: Hack/Slash #20, Saga #7, and The Walking Dead #104. That’s it, just two publishers. Deal with it bitches!

IDW Publishing

Locke & Key: Omega #1 by Joe Hill, illustrated by Gabriel Rodriguez, cover by Gabriel Rodriguez
Genre: Fiction, horror, action, humor
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

It’s the last and final arc in the Locke & Key series and I am so close to crying tears of sadness over this fact that I might not even get through this review. Oh God, only six issues left and then it’s over forever. ::sobs uncontrollably:: When we last left the series, Dodge had possessed the body of Bode (not to be confused with the Face of Bo) and was on a quest to let demons into the world with the Black Key. And he’s doing a pretty good job of it. Meanwhile, at school, Scot Kavanaugh is filming seniors and asking them what they would tell their younger selves if they could go back in time.

The theme of this issue is all about regrets, specifically Tyler Locke’s guilt at wishing his own father would stay out of his life before he died, Kinsey for judging others faults rather than accepting her own, and Scot letting bygones be bygones and getting some ink to remind him of the importance of friends. It’s a wonderful beginning to the end, with problems being solved in the most heartfelt ways possible and Dodge mucking it all up and being deliciously evil. Why can’t this series go on forever? BONUS: Keep your eyes peeled for the appearance of author Joe Hill sometime in the narrative. If you know what he looks like, you won’t miss him.

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Bibliomantic Book Club: “Dearly, Beloved” by Lia Habel

11 Nov

Dearly, Beloved by Lia Habel (Galley)
Release Date: September 25, 2012
Genre: Young adult, zombies, romance (ZOM ROM), dystopia, steampunk

Summary: Picking up where Dearly, Departed left off, this sequel deals with growing anti-zombie sentiments and the after effects of the attack on the Elysian Fields. Nora is having problems dealing with her newly resurrected father, her enemy Vespertine Mink is busy making alliances and Nora’s zombie boyfriend Bram is spending his time heading a zombie task force and being the most attractive member of the undead possible. Subterfuge, opposing factions and intermingling plots abound in this steampunk zombie romantic comedy. Who doesn’t love a good zom-rom-com?

The second book in the jokingly titled Gone With the Respiration series finds our heroes Bram and Nora in a world full of zombie haters and lovers alike. They are forced to deal with both groups, from the Changed, zombies who are into zombie philanthropy to an upper-class zombie murdering group called the Murder. With fun new characters, a complicated new plot and a fabulous combination of the old and modern this is the end all be all young adult zombie series. We just can’t get enough of it!

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Around the Interwebs: Volume VII

10 Nov

Hey everybody, we missed you all during our no-power related Hurricane Sandy outages. Thankfully we were all restored in time to enjoy and watch the election coverage in elation and okay, maybe some fear. Good thing all those worries came to naught! FOUR MORE BEERS! FOUR MORE BEERS!

Help Save the Best Lil’ Childrens/YA Bookstore: Books of Wonder (via Indiegogo)

Our favorite NYC children’s and young adult themed independent bookstore Books of Wonder needs a little community help to revitalize their shop. With amazing author events, old and rare books and signed copies on every shelf, we have spent hours wandering their selections and fighting off the desire to buy all the books. ALL THE BOOKS! A small $10 donation will get you a specialized postcard (our favorite of which was drawn by Gregory Maguire and features a doodle of Elphaba) and all the joy of doing a good deed.

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Around the Interwebs: Volume VI

27 Oct

A happy early Halloween everybody! We hope all you fellow east-coasters don’t let Hurricane Sandy ruin your tricks and or treats. Or your All Hallow’s Read plans. But if by chance you do get rained in, we highly recommend curling up with a good scary novel and some candy.

Andy Serkis to Direct Animal Farm and Possibly Play Talking Faux-Russian Pig (via The Mary Sue)

Motion-captor actor and everyone’s favorite tortured Hobbit turned crispy meatsicle Andy Serkis has the directing bug after his work as second-unit director on The Hobbit and has signed on to direct an adaptation of George Orwell’s Animal Farm. You know, the one with the talking animals that are an allegory for Soviet Russia? Serkis wants to make things as fresh as possible, with a focus on the more emotional end of the story which is still in the planning phase. Will horses being turned into glue trump allegorical satire.

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