Calling The Shots Of UFC 181: Hendricks vs. Lawler II

UFC 181 features two championship bouts to close out the promotion’s pay-per-view calendar for the year. With an unprecedented 45 events scheduled for 2015, this card will go a long way in bringing clarity at the top of the welterweight and lightweight divisions. From top to bottom, this looks to be the most intriguing and action-packed card of the year.

– Tony Ferguson vs. Abel Trujillo

This is a fight of technique versus raw aggression. Ferguson is very skilled, and Abel Trujillo made some serious noise with his win over Jamie Varner, which turned into a violent slugfest. Ferguson cannot win a firefight and has to dictate the pace with takedowns. I believe that Trujillo will land big shots, thus forcing Ferguson out of his wheelhouse.

The Pick: Abel Trujillo Continue reading “Calling The Shots Of UFC 181: Hendricks vs. Lawler II” →

WWE Superstars #10 Review

The second installment of “Legends” rolls on as this twisted, nightmarish, game show of combat seems to know no bounds. The Undertaker enters the fray and finds himself in a battle royal against virtually every giant that has ever competed in a WWE ring. Continue reading “WWE Superstars #10 Review” →

X-O Manowar #30 Review

In 1996, I was introduced to X-O Manowar via his crossover video game with Iron Man titled Heavy Metal. Years later, Valiant has done a marvelous job of fleshing out the character in this vast comic universe that has been created. Continue reading “X-O Manowar #30 Review” →

My Childhood Super Powers

I love 80’s toys because they contain my first real memory of using my imagination to adventure in a galaxy far, far away. When I was four years old, my family and I lived in a tiny one-room apartment known around town as the “roach motel.”

Thanks to my mother, who didn’t want her son to comprehend the gravity of our impoverished situation, I was introduced to a strange visitor from another planet who could make tall leaps in a single bound. His name was Superman, courtesy of Kenner’s Super Powers. Continue reading “My Childhood Super Powers” →

Werdum Denies Hunt The Glass Slipper

As an MMA fan, sometimes we pay for stories instead of fights. Last Saturday night, I didn’t plop down $54.95 to watch the first heavyweight title fight in thirteen months. I paid to see Mark Hunt shock the world and topple Fabricio Werdum on three weeks’ notice to become the interim champion as the UFC made their maiden voyage into the hardened fight mecca of Mexico. Unfortunately, Hunt would be denied his glass slipper.

Continue reading →

Silver Surfer #7 Review

The childhood me would have hated everything about this book because of the cosmic friendship Dan Slott has developed between Silver Surfer and Dawn, along with random craziness such as lady bug space creatures.

However, now that I’m in my mid-thirties, married with three cats, a dog, and some amazing nieces and nephews, I find myself saying the word “cute” more than is probably socially acceptable among my comrades, but that’s the first word that comes to mind when reading this book. Continue reading “Silver Surfer #7 Review” →

Calling The Shots: Tito Ortiz vs. Stephan Bonnar

Under the leadership of Scott Coker, Bellator MMA will hold its biggest event to date on Saturday night when Tito Ortiz and Stephan Bonnar clash at the Valley View Casino Center in San Diego, CA. This fight should have happened in the UFC. However, the stars never aligned for a plethora of reasons.

Both fighters have been vocal about their disdain for one another, which has garnered a lot of attention to the bout. Bonnar is coming out of a two-year retirement, while Ortiz is fresh off a win over Bellator middleweight champion Alexander Shlemenko. Continue reading “Calling The Shots: Tito Ortiz vs. Stephan Bonnar” →

The Force Awakens My Excitement

The official title of the new Star Wars movie that is set to hit theaters on December 18, 2015 is The Force Awakens. I like the title, but without context, I can’t say that I love it, yet. It does feel right when saying it along with the names of the other titles such as A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back, and Return of the Jedi.

I did notice that “Episode VII” is absent from the title image. TheForce.net has confirmed with Lucasfilm that it will be not appear in the title or promotional material for the film, but it will be in the opening crawl. Continue reading “The Force Awakens My Excitement” →

Superman Unchained #9 Review

With several publishing delays, drastic character changes (Lex Luthor being a member of the Justice League), and the Superman ongoing series getting a new superstar creative team in the form of Geoff Johns and John Romita Jr, it was obvious that Superman Unchained wasn’t long for this world, even though it has been the quintessential telling of the Man of Steel’s exploits in the New 52. Continue reading “Superman Unchained #9 Review” →

The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers at Rhode Island Comic Con

From the moment the pilot episode aired on Fox, The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers immediately captured my imagination. What was crummy for me is that the show became massively popular while I was in middle school. This meant I could never talk about the show with my friends because we all took a vow of silence, pretending we didn’t watch the show because we were too old to enjoy a kids’ television program.

I remember wanting to get the action figures, but I didn’t due to fear of ridicule if my friends came over to my house and saw a Dragon Zord sitting on my bureau. Now that I’m an adult, concerns over what people think about my geeky hobbies aren’t even a blip on the radar.

The Green Ranger, played by Jason David Frank, is my all-time favorite Ranger. I’ve always felt that the White Ranger, also played by Frank, gets a bad rap. There is nothing wrong with the portrayal or character; it’s just hard to get someone to jump on board when a concept that was a 10 is replaced with the idea that is a 9.

I attended Rhode Island Comic-Con this past weekend to cover the festivities for Forces of Geek and had the pleasure of meeting comic book creators and the original Flash, John Wesley Shipp. The highlight of the convention was the Power Rangers Q & A panel featuring the original Red Ranger, Austin St. John. There were many fans in attendance, and their passion and dedication to the franchise was an inspiring sight to behold. One person told me that he found the inspiration to lose weight because of the leadership that St. John exhibited on-screen.

I wrote an article reviewing the Power Ranger’s Q & A Panel at RICC, and you can check it out at Forces of Geek.com