Creeping Up On Halloween With Cats

Cats do I have there ties to the season. Of course they aren't for the best of reasons.

"Fear me!"

With this time of year and it's ties to tales and legends of dark forces, the dead rising, and the midnight hour, witches has been regularly entwined with the holiday. It's one of the basic choices for costumes, decoration, and stories to tell.

"Don't mind me. I'm just calling a...friend."

And the cat was sadly ported along with the witch into our view of Halloween. Sad because it's ties to the witch come from those ancient fears of devil's familiars, shape changing fiends, and just creatures that do the bidding of Satan.

You know. This guy!

'I don't care for the candy, but I am loving this hat."

Creeping Up On Halloween With Alice Cooper and his Nightmare

Some suitable music is always necessary for setting the Halloween mood.

There are many good options, from soundtracks to symphonies to some rock. A lovely addition to any Halloween playlist is Alice Cooper.

Welcome to his nightmare.

Creeping Up On Halloween With Diversity In Costumes

While there are many issues in costumes at Halloween, we are seeing some improvements. We are seeing more range in the costumes available.

We've moved on from only having cheap plastic masks and cheap plastic smocks printed to match a character. Those still exists, but we have more possibilities to play with.

On of the more pleasant finds is with the Green Lantern costumes. There are a set of Hal Jordan costumes out there. But we can actually find a selection of John Stewart as well.

It's a bit of a surprise. After all, even on the cover they have Hal Jordan butting his head in, and in costumes it's all about the Jordan. But the GL people know best these days is John Stewart, from the Justice League cartoon series. So we better damn well have some John Stewart to dress as!

And we do.

Saves the universe, looks awesome.

Creeping Up On Halloween With Falling Leaves

Today is the start of Autumn, officially. So how do we celebrate it but with it's more endearing imagery,,,the leaves of the season? Sure.


Every year we see the turm, and even if the calendar say the season isn't here yet, we know. The leaves shift to those autumn colors, which are based off those leaves, and bit by bit they fall, blanketing the land in place of the flowers and crops of Spring and Summer.

Creeping Up On Halloween With Dr. Gangrene

As we get to almost a week to October, we need to more Horror Hosts.


SEND MORE HORROR HOSTS!


So, let's see what we have...

Ah, the enjoyable genius of Dr. Gangrere.

Creeping Up On Halloween With Tales From The Darkside

As October gets ever closer there are certain things that can so nicely get the hair on the back of the neck stand frightened. Among them is the delightfully terrible Tales from the Darkside.

Now I have touched on the 1990 movie based off this horror anthology series. But the series itself had something all it's own. That opening.

The notes of the sound build slowly and omninously. The voice over kicks in. And the world flips on us.

Creeping Up On Halloween With Pumpkin Spice Oreos

Halloween and it's treats. So sweet. Sure Christmas has it's treats. But all that giving...Halloween is about the taking. And taken sweets...

Sweets of the Halloween ilk are numerous these days, and it does seem Oreo is eager these days to experiment. Caramel Apple. Pumpkin Spice. Sigh. It sounds so good. But so much of Oreos is sugar and fat. That is just not suitable for my long term viability.

Still...I happened to see some pumpkin spice ones in a small...ish package. And I did buy it.

REMEMBER, THE PUMPKIN SPICE IS LIFE.

Creeping Up On Halloween With Pirates

It's Talk Like A Pirate Day...Speaking of Halloween, PIRATES!

Pirate Day is that time of the year where we all break into a West Country accent, and most people only 40 are baffled. But we do it! Why? PIRATES!

Creeping Up On Halloween With Racist Costumes

If we are going to talk about various costumes, we are going to have to talk about these costumes. The racist costumes.

In this day and age you'd think it wouldn't pop up, but people still turn to it. Whenever you're changing your face color to mimic another racial group, maybe you should give pause, and evaluate. When you are about to do a caricature of some group, ask why.

From Last Week Tonight

Z Nation Reviews Season 2 Episode 1 - The Murphy

At the end of last season tactical nukes were coming down on all of our characters. Ft Collins was screwed, as was the northern outpost Citizen Z was at. It did not look good.

Murphy had snapped and ran, starting the nuke rain. Dr. Kurian fled on foot. So how can anyone hope to escape incoming?

As the season opens everyone in Ft Collins in running. Warren gets their truck going and they try and outrun the missile heading at the facility. Dr. Kurian manages to find a fridge in the area and ducks in. (Someone saw Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.) Murphy seems to have run off early enough to not have to worry about being hit, at least.

In a disaster Kurian can't resist a snack.

Warren is trying to hightail it, but she knows the blast will be coming, so she tries to pull into a tunnel to avoid most of it. Their truck takes a hit and flips over.

"Excellent!"

Z Nation Season 1 Addendum *UPDATED*

"GOD, I HATE THE APOCALYPSE." Don't we all.

Before we get to the opening of Season 2, let's finish up with Season 1. Last time I covered the overarching aspects. But there are some other things worth knowing about the show.

Creeping Up On Halloween With Elvira

Today let's turn our hearts and minds to quintessential piece of Halloween and late night fun. Elvira, Mistress of the Dark. Always the official some or another of Halloween.

It's her birthday today, so let's celebrate her, Cassandra Peterson. How old is she this year? None Of Your Damn Business years old.

Creeping Up On Halloween With Scary Soda Pop

It can be a thirsty time, waiting for Halloween. And obviously our drinks need themes. How else can one live?

I am not talking about booze though, that is not my area. But if you are looking for some discussion of that, I'd try Maven of the Eventide's Pumpktoberfest from last year. All sorts of pumpkin flavored beer, friends, and costumes. Her main site is down right now, but she has the series on YouTube to enjoy.

So instead let's talk about the fizzy drinks. We don't get enough of the horrible variety this time of year, except for any horrible tasting soft drink that we normally get year round. Thanks to the Purple Stuff Podcast, I have heard that once long ago Pepsi did have Crystal Pepsi out in a novelty cover. Invisible Man bandages.

But it feels like we seldom see that type of fun from those companies these days. Mostly it's a matter of some slight changes to the box that holds a pack of pop.

Thankfully we do have at least one company who is producing terrible fun in wide release. Jones Soda. They apparently have odd flavors that have come out for different holiday times. Green Bean, Turkey, etc.

The one I have luck with is there Halloween variety. And the best of that is their Caramel Apple. Ghoulish can. Sweet and tart taste.

In the season of electoral discontent, the media isn't here to help. *UPDATED*

(UPDATE AT BOTTOM, as CNN continues to be CNN.)

Tonight we head into the second of the GOP presidential debates.

Anyone up for musical podiums?

Creeping Up On Halloween With Sad Pets

Holidays can be rough on pets. The home gets a makeover. Strangers come in. Loud Parties. Getting isolated while everyone else is busy. But is that worse?

NO!

It's terrible costumes. Bunny costumes. Elf costumes. Pilgrim costumes. It's horror story. Then comes Halloween with a range of looks from Batman to Yoda to Freddy Pooger.

Still, some good promotion can sell you on the idea. The happy pup (You never see a happy cat.) looking ready to wield the dark side of the Force.

And then you have the occasional costume packaging that manages to show you the look your dog will really give you.

FROM

Creeping Up On Halloween With LEGO Minifigs

Oh I do love LEGO. And these days they sell individual minifigures series. The current one that just came out is one with a horror/Halloween vibe. Mad scientist. Zombies. Ghosts. Etc.

Just in time for Halloween. I have begun the quest to acquire them all. Madness will follow.

Friday the 13th on Sunday the 13th - Episode 13 - The Baron's Bride

Back we go into the realms of cursed and curious goods. One can only escape from Friday's Curse, because the 13th always comes around again! ...Though one can sometimes hit snooze one or five times. eh.

We go into the 13th episode of the series, and for the auspicious episode, we get a bit of time travel and creative production work. Also a slightly odd title, "The Baron's Bride".

Creeping Up On Halloween With Sexy Halloween Costumes

What do we all need come Halloween? Costumes, of course! But what to wear?

For some the answer may come from the Girl's Costume Warehouse. As brought us by College Humor, it shows of the wide variety of costumes regularly provided by a costume industry deeply interested in dressing women up at Halloween to live their dreams.

Creeping up on Halloween with Donna Reed

It's time to start ramping up for Halloween. right?

So let's start with a touch of Donna Reed. Spooooky!

Donna Reed at Halloween.

Donna Reed. Generally you may, or may not (Those youngins.), think of her on her old TV series, The Donna Reed Show. The proper housewife dealing with the acceptable wackiness of the 50's and 60's suburbs. But I can't help thinking first of her appearance in Shadow of the Thin Man.

She may also have appeared in It's A Wonderful Life, but this isn't Christmas.

The Horror Of...Z Nation Season 1, In Short

(An addendum to this post has been posted.)

With the second season of Z Nation getting ready to rampage across our TV's and computers, let's take a look at the first season, and the series in general. A series that has tried to remember that it wants viewers to get some thrills and fun when they watch a show.

So let's pick at the oozing brain of Z Nation, and see what it is all about.