Here’s some shots (wish I could have gotten everyone but that would be impossible, not to mention take up 30 blogs) of the amazing cosplay seen at this year’s Chicago Comics & Entertainment Expo 2015! Continue reading
Insidious Chapter 3: Enter the Further!
Upon entering the immense exhibitor hall of C2E2 (Chicago Comics & Entertainment Expo) we made a beeline for our pre-scheduled Insidious: Into the Further 4D Experience. Despite the size of this event and its countless attractions, our destination wasn’t hard to find. Located at the far end of the convention, our destination was two large truck cargo holds adorned with an Insidious: Chapter 3 poster and converted into a thrill ride. The previous Insidious films were both somewhat rides in their own right and, in my opinion, highly satisfying. Their original stories (a novelty in the horror world these days) were chock full of frightening imagery and effective atmosphere making it a personal favorite. When I saw this amazing opportunity to experience these films in a whole knew way, and that it was coming to C2E2, I knew I had to get on board. This was also a great way to gear up for the new film opening in theaters this Friday. The experience being in 4D meant you could experience the films almost as participant, rather than a mere viewer and what horror fan would ever pass up on that?
Chicago Comics & Entertainment Expo (C2E2) 2015!
I’ve attended the Chicago Comic & Entertainment Expo (C2E2) for the last four years and each time it rolls around I get more and more excited about it. The success of the Marvel films reignited my love of comic books and inspired me to dig out that old collection of mine; thirteen long boxes featuring the ‘70s and ‘80s exploits of Spider-Man, The Uncanny X-Men, The Mighty Avengers, and so on. This year I attended the event with my friend, Elizabeth Ocon, along with my thirteen year old daughter, Jade. I think it was Jade’s excitement that caused me to anticipate this event as I did back when I was in my teens and attending Chicago’s Comic Con (as that event was called back in the day).
THE BEST 80’s MONSTER MOVIES by Brandon Engel
The Daves would like to once again welcome guest blogger Brandon Engel to this site, expressing his opinions on the best monster movies of the 1980’s!
An argument can be made the 1980s was the true golden age of the monster movie — a time when no theme was deemed too ridiculous and just about any inanimate object could become consumed by evil. Here are some of the “best” monster movies from the decade that gave us Pac-Man and Madonna:
“Digging up the Marrow” & Unearthing the Fun!
On Saturday April 4th, we arrived back in Chicago (after doing TWO zoos; Louisville and Indianapolis) and ate lasagna at my place before relaxing on this final night of our vacation. We hunkered down for the night and watched two movies together; the old sci-fi classic, It Came from Outer Space, and a new movie David had gotten on Blu-ray called Digging up the Marrow. Though we’d watched several movies during our trip on DVD, including Wolfcop (which was okay), Love in the Time of Monsters (which was also okay), What we do in the Shadows (which was really funny), Animal (which we liked), Dark Haul (which was bad) and Muck (which was even WORSE) we inadvertently saved the best for last!
This Is No Joke! Janine Caufield Takes Her Business Very Seriously (And Has Fun Doing It!)
One of the things that amazes me is how certain stores continue to thrive whereas others selling the very same thing fail. A magic/novelty store is very specialized and if you don’t have the clientele, this type of business is doomed to go out of business. Thankfully, these stores that have succeeded have found that capitalizing on things like holidays helps keep the business going year round. Though they may have started out selling only magic and novelties, things like Halloween masks and costumes are now what helps make the business thrive.
This was very evident at Caufield’s Novelties. One room contained both the magic tricks and novelties (as well as lighting equipment). Three rooms were devoted to Halloween costumes, masks and props. Being a fan of Halloween this is not a bad thing at all. With stores like SPIRIT dominating the Halloween business in October, it is nice to see a mom and pop store like Caufield’s carrying so much more, and of better quality, than anything that SPIRIT ever carries.
Terror from Beyond the Dave 