"Did I step on your moment?" Hot Toys Black Widow figure review

When I was younger I used to have a few 12-inch Star Wars figures. I had Han Solo, Luke Skywalker, Chewbacca and Darth Vader.  I would recreate scenes from the movies with them, but there was always something missing.  Every now and then my sisters would use the male figures as a boyfriend for their Barbie dolls, but there was never a Princess Leia doll that could go on an adventure with my figures.

Nowadays, there are a lot of great female action hero dolls that could go on these adventures with my Star Wars figures and one that I think will help a lot would be the Black Widow figure from Captain America: The Winter Soldier made by Hot Toys.

The Fandads Holiday Gift Guide.

It's that time of year again! Where we run into crowded malls, battle hordes of angry shoppers and try to find the perfect gift for the Fandad or Fanmom in our lives.  If you do not want to go through that hassle of guessing what they want and want to get them something that will "wow" them, then read our holiday gift guide.

If you see something you like, click on the picture to be sent to our affiliates website where you can purchase your gift.  While we can not guarantee that they will love the gift at least it won't be a gift card that says, "I tried to find something, but the crowds were too much for me."

Star Wars: The Force Awakens character names released...get ready for the hate. Spoiler Alert

Today Entertainment Weekly got the scoop by getting the coolest item that we have seen thus far relating to the new Star Wars movie: the names of the characters in the trailer on vintage looking trading cards.  I actually had these cards when I was little, so seeing them brings back a lot of memories, especially of eating the gum.

The motivation I need! #PumpingIron giveaway #Sponsored

Earlier this year I did the Spartan Race for the first time.  The only real training I had before the run was my cardio.  I would run as much I could during the days and just the week before the race I ran a 5K with my wife, but that was not enough.

Remembering the Hobbit. #giveaway

Q

I was first introduced to The Hobbit when I was in the 6th grade.  We went to see it for a class field trip at, I think it was the Drury Lane theater.  I remember sitting in the darkness of the theater and wondering what was I going to see.  I have never heard of the books, but I remember seeing parts of a cartoon version of The Hobbit on the television and thinking to myself, "This is pretty cool, weird, but cool." 

The Fandads learn to #CommandTheForce #sponsored

The Fandads were supplied with samples of the Star Wars Command line and were not paid for their review.  All thoughts and opinions are our own.  

When I was younger I had a huge Star Wars collection.  I had a good amount of the figures and I would always get together with my friends to replay scenes from the movie or just stage some epic battles.  The one problem that I would have with taking my figures to my friends' houses was that I would always end up losing a weapon or two.

Imagine staging a huge battle between your figures and your stormtroopers have to share their blasters to protect themselves.  That's not a fun battle, not fun at all. Recently the Fandads teamed up with Life of Dad and Hasbro to try out the new Star Wars Command line.  Check out how we tried to #CommandTheForce.

Questions about the new Star Wars teaser trailer.

Today we all got our first official look at J.J. Abrams Star Wars VII and it did what a teaser should do, get us excited about what is to come.  As with anything that is released nowadays, there will be plenty of discussion and dissection as to what is happening in the trailer. Let's look at a few images from the trailer and give our two-bits about what we think is going on.

Star Wars The Force Awakens Teaser Trailer

We have been waiting for this all week and it's finally here, the teaser trailer for Star Wars VII. Check it out and share with us your thoughts below.






Star Wars: The Force Awakens open December 2015.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens, directed by J.J. Abrams from a screenplay by Lawrence Kasdan & Abrams, features a cast including actors John Boyega, Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, Oscar Isaac, Andy Serkis, Academy Award winner Lupita Nyong’o, Gwendoline Christie, Crystal Clarke, Pip Andersen, Domhnall Gleeson, and Max von Sydow. They will join the original stars of the saga, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew, and Kenny Baker.

The film is being produced by Kathleen Kennedy, J.J. Abrams, and Bryan Burk, and John Williams returns as the composer.

The Chicago Toy & Game Fair Recap #ChiTag

I wish these DigiBirds could sing to you "Welcome to our post!" 

As the winter holidays approach this is the time where families start preparing for their own holiday traditions.  In this Fandads' household the Chicago Toy and Game Fair has become a tradition that every year we all look forward to attending.  This year's ChiTag came and went and we had a great time and played with a lot of cool stuff.

Giving thanks. Do it for them, not for me!

This year's Warrior Dash

When I sit down and reflect about what I am thankful for I realize that I have gone through a lot this past year.  From taking my little girl to her first day of kindergarten to not being renewed for my teaching position, I think that I have been resilient through all of this.  Whereas some people might just shut down with this type of hardship, I saw it as a way to focus on the positive of what is going on in my life.

Jurassic World Official Trailer

Here is the official trailer for Jurassic World.

The slow piano playing the original theme gives me chills. What are your thoughts and what are you excited to see?

T-Shirt Thursday!

Today's shirt come to us from our friends over at LootCrate.  This shirt was part of their October Crate entitled "Fear".  At first glance you see a scary looking skull, but on closer inspection you see sweet and cuddly kittens.  One thing I like about this shirt is the fabric of it.  It is very soft and feels great, kind of like being hugged by kittens.

Remember you can get cool shirts like this if you sign up for LootCrate.

It's time to play again at The Chicago Toy & Game Fair! #giveaways

The Chicago Toy & Game Fair is coming up and the Fandads will be there again this year playing with all the exciting toys that will be on display.  As with every year, we are giving away family passes and $2 off coupons to our readers, but this year ChiTag is giving away a VIP weekend package to one lucky winner.  

How can you win that one?  Look for the VIP Weekend Giveaway picture on our Facebook page, like it and share it with your friends.  So not only will you attend ChiTag, but you will attend the PlayChic fashion show and the TAGIE awards ceremony too.  It will be a weekend your family will not forget.

It's cold season are you prepared? #Sponsored #PediaCare #giveaways

Is your cold making it hard to sleep?

It's that time of year again where the weather starts playing with you especially here in Chicago. One day you are walking the dog in just a sweater and the next day you are all bundled up wearing a heavy coat with gloves and a scarf.

With this change in weather also comes cold and flu season and if you have a little one at home you already know that they will eventually get a cold.  The ironic thing about this post is that while I was writing it a cold struck this Fandad's homebase.  Fortunately it helps to have a nurse in the house, but it also helped that we have the medicine we needed to take care of our colds.

Big Hero 6 mini-review

We here at the Fandads like to keep our mini-reviews straight and to the point, so here is our thoughts on Big Hero 6.  We will not reveal any spoilers.  We will just tell you what we thought of the movie.

Big Hero 6 is a great movie that deals with the issues of loss, family, friendships and revenge.  We learn at the beginning of the movie that the main character Hiro is some what of a genius, but is not using his smarts to its full potential.  

Hiro's brother Tadashi, on the other hand, is attending "nerd school" as Hiro calls it, but tries to show Hiro what he can do if he puts his mind to good use instead of fighting robots for money.  

The movie quickly shows us the relationship between the two brothers and their aunt Cass, and as with all Disney movies there is a tragic event that sets our main character on a different path than the beginning of the film.

We have all seen the trailer and know that Hiro meets Baymax and sets off to fight an unknown man in a Kabuki mask.  Who is this man? What are his intentions? Why does Hiro decide to find out the identity of this man?  All these questions can be answered here, but I would rather you see the movie and find out yourself.

Hiro teams up with a group of friends that he meets at the "nerd school" and uses their smarts to create superhero suits to join up and find out the identity of "Kabuki man" (not official name, just what I called him).

Big Hero 6 is a lot of fun for the family.  I would say that it is appropriate for children 5 and up.  There is just animated violence and the only serious issue in the film that is touched upon is the loss of a family member.  

The one little spoiler that I will mention is the hidden cameo in one of the pictures. It's pretty funny to see and you will know what I am talking about when it is shown.  Also, make sure to stay after the credits.  

Make a plan to go see this with your family and friends and buy your tickets today.  

Flywheel Blogger Preview Event or "me trying to be sporty part ?"

Last Tuesday, October 28th, this Fandad was lucky enough to get into the Blogger Preview event that Flywheel Old Town was having to promote their recent opening.  After doing the Spartan Race, I realized, more like my body told me, that I need to be in better shape if I want to do that again. So this invite could not have come at a better time because I am looking for new ways to start working out.

"I was afraid to go to my room" Scary movie memories and giveaway. #Lionsgate

                                                     

I remember when I first saw The Blair Witch Project.  It was at a midnight showing at the old Lincoln Village theater.  The way this movie was promoted I did not know if it was real or not.  I do remember that there was a lot of hype for this movie.  The experience of watching this movie at an old theater is one that I miss nowadays, but watching it there really scared the crap out of me.

T-Shirt Thursday "I'm hooked on a feeling..."

With the big announcement about the Guardians of the Galaxy soundtrack being released on cassette later this year, I felt that this shirt is appropriate for today.

This shirt came in through our friends at NerdBlock.  I can picture this as a commercial that comes on in the middle of the night trying to get us to buy this soundtrack.  Maybe in the commercial there are two guys at a party talking about all the great songs in an overly animated voice.

Better than seeing these two guys peddle the cassette on late night television Marvel has released a trailer announcing the upcoming release of the soundtrack on cassette.  I hoping I'll be able to find one in store when they are released, but first I have to find my old Sony Sport Walkman that I used to have.

Check out the trailer below.


            

Avengers: Age of Ultron Teaser Trailer

Courtesy of Marvel

Yesterday you could not look anywhere without someone posting the new teaser trailer for Marvel's Avengers: Age of Ultron.  While in some cases the trailers were low in quality (hazy, low sound, etc.) Marvel decided to post the official teaser trailer to quench the thirst for those who could not wait for what might have played at the end of next week's Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. episode.

Although the website for "Agents" states they will premiere the official "trailer" for Age of Ultron, will we see something different than what came out yesterday?  I mean, this one just states "teaser" trailer, so is the full trailer going to air next Tuesday night?  Was this just Hydra...I mean, Marvel's plan to build buzz for what might be shown after "Agents"?  Until then, we will have to wait and see and go over frame by frame of this teaser.

 
              
   
What do you think? Will we see a full trailer next week or just the same teaser trailer that everyone is drooling over?

Jumping around with the Fandads at Sky Zone in Elmhurst

Last Friday, the Fandads were invited to check out Sky Zone Indoor Trampoline Park in Elmhurst. While we have seen videos of these types of facilities before, we never had have the chance to check one out and could not wait to go and jump around with the family.

“The Greatest Halloween Costume Contest Ever” Returns! #sponsored

Hey friends, do you like to get free comics and dress up for Halloween? Do you like winning something for your Halloween costume?  Well, starting this Saturday you can enter to win some great prizes from the folks over at Halloween Comicfest.  Check out the information below and good luck to all.

"The Book of Life" and "Fury" Mini-reviews

Are you looking for a few good movies to see this weekend with the family or maybe on a date night or guys night out?  If your answer is "yes" let us tell you about two movies coming out today: "The Book of Life" and "Fury".

Fury trailer and giveaway. #sponsored

Other than the Star Wars movies, my father and I would always watch army movies together.  One of the first movies I remember watching with him was The Deer Hunter.  While some of you might think that is not an appropriate movie to watch with your kid, it was a good way of bonding with my dad.  We would just sit there together, watch these movies and enjoy the action in front of us.

Great pictures with GoPro Cameras #GoProatBestBuy @BestBuy #Sponsored

If you are a regular reader of our blog, you know that I am trying to be a healthy role model for my children and I do a lot of runs and obstacle course races.  The picture above is from my last run, but I only was able to take a before and after picture.  Imagine the kind of pictures I would be able to take if I had a GoPro camera attached to me while running.  I think those pictures would be pretty awesome.

Hanging out with Iron Man and Captain America from Hot Toys.

I have been collecting action figures since I was about five years old.  It started when my parents bought me my first Star Wars figures and it grew from there.  As I got older and starting buying my own figures, I noticed an evolution in my collecting. I went from buying Star Wars figures to comic book characters to prop replicas to statues.  Which leads me to today and these incredible Hot Toys figures.

Busy Weekend or Look at me trying to be Sporty part 6

Just like The Roots, you're probably thinking "What happened to parts 1-5?"  Well, let's just say that I have been doing a lot of runs and obstacle course races.  I have been doing so many that I have not been able to keep up with writing them on the site, but I had to share this experience with you.

T-Shirt Thursday! "I ain't afraid of no...."

It crazy to think that the 30th anniversary of Ghostbusters has come upon us.  I can remember going to the movies with my dad to see this and just being freaked out by the librarian ghost.

With all the nostalgia going around and the constant promise of a third movie, Ghostbuster merchandise and the sale of the movies is going to be everywhere you look.

Today's shirt came to me from the good people at Nerdblock a few months ago and that tag line bought back a lot of memories.  I mean, there are so many good lines in that movie that you can not help yourself but quote them every now and then.

As odd as it seems, my favorite line is "What about the Twinkie?"  Do you have a favorite line or moment from the film? If the answer is yes, share it with us in the comments below.

Thanks for reading.

This month's subscription boxes.

Out of the few "Geek" subscription boxes that are out there, we here at Fandads have subscribed to LootCrate and NerdBlock.  In today's post we will share with you the latest boxes that came in. Take a peek, enjoy and maybe sign up for one or both of them.

(This is not a paid post.  The Fandads have paid subscriptions and we just want to share some awesomeness with our friends.)

Toy Time with the Fandads! #Hasbro

The Fandads Homebase has been lucky enough to receive some toys from our friends at Hasbro, but we have been a little behind in letting our friends know about these great toys.

A lot of these toys are movie tie-ins and the boxes they come in are pretty awesome.  It's great to see the look in the eyes of my little girl when these boxes arrive and see all the cool things inside. Let me share a little with you.

So, which shirt was your favorite? #30DaysofStarWarsShirts Recap

The final shirt has come and gone and now it is up to you to decide which one was your favorite.  I have complied the shirts below and would like for you vote.  Just for voting a few lucky readers will get a little something from the Fandads.

The many faces of my little girl.

My little girl is a character.  She makes me laugh, cry and feel incredibly happy all within a matter of minutes.  One thing that she likes doing, sometimes, is taking pictures.

Wizard World Chicago Recap #WizardWorldChicagoCC

Wizard World Chicago came and went with a bevy of celebrities, panels and a lot of cool stuff to buy. I have been attending this con since the old Ramada Inn days and I still try to attend when it comes through the city.

"The Force will be with you, always" #30DaysofStarWarsShirts Day 30

So here we are at the final shirt and I decided to end it at the beginning of the prequel trilogy.  As you can tell from the shirt, I bought this at the first Star Wars Celebration in Denver.  This was a great time with one of my best friends, but it also a very somber one.

"Together we will rule the world!" #30DaysofStarWarsShirts Day 29

This was the first shirt I received through NerdBlock and I was floored by the design.  I remember thinking that Darth Vader with a scythe would be pretty cool to see on the big screen, but then I though about how easy a lightsaber would cut through it and then threw that idea out the window.

Tomodachi Life #BestBuy #Sponsored

As a fan of The Sims and a long time TSO (The Sims Online) player, I was looking forward to checking this game out. Of course, life gets in the way, but thanks to Best Buy I was given a chance to finally play Tomodachi Life.

"Freeze you rebel scum!" #30DaysofStarWarsShirts Day 28

Leave it to a Stormtrooper to misfire and miss out on a day.  Well, that's what happened...uh, yeah, that's it.  Since Stormtroopers are clones, who knows how well their memory is by now.  

Talking "The Driving Dead" with Michael Rooker.

Standing in the darkness of the empty movie theater I saw the SUV pull up and then he walked out. Dressed in jeans, a black shirt, a leather vest, sunglasses and baseball cap, he let out a big laugh as he exited the truck and greeted colleagues.

Walking into the theater he paused for a second and told the group that this theater (The Music Box) "was the first to premiere Henry when it was released."  There was an aura about him as he walked by and I could tell that this was going to be an interesting morning.

"He's no good to me dead" #30DaysofStarWarsShirts Day 27

If you are a fan of Game of Thrones, than this phrase looks somewhat familiar, but if you are a fan of Star Wars, you know that this phrase could only mean trouble for you.

"There is another" #30DaysofStarWarsShirts Day 25

The weather in Chicago this weekend is going to be pretty sunny, so this Jedi master is prepared for the sunny days ahead, twofold.

"...the evil call of Boba! Bobaaa! Boba! BoBaaa!" #30DaysofStarWarsShirts Day 24

How many of you were singing the title of the post as you read it?

I told you he would show up again and this time Boba Fett has joined the forces of Cobra.  Cobraaaa! Maybe it's the other way around and Cobra joined up with him.

"The Force is strong with this one" #30DaysofStarWarsShirts Day 23

With a lot of focus going to the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, today's shirt focuses on one cause that is near to my heart: Stand Up 2 Cancer.

"Never tell me the odds!" #30DaysofStarWarsShirts Day 22

Today's shirt is for all my math nerds out there.  It doesn't matter what mathematical operation you use to try to solve the formula, the answer will always be the same: Star Wars!

The Fandads and Wizard World Chicago.

Will you be at Wizard World Chicago this year?  Who are you excited to see this year?

The Fandads will be there and we can not wait to see what the con has in store for us this year.

While there are many actors and actresses that we want to see and maybe ask a question or two, the Fandads will be on the show floor walking around and hopefully meeting some of our readers.

Just a heads up, we will have some goodies to giveaway to our readers, if you know the "code" word of the day.  The words will be hidden in upcoming posts and when you see me on the floor, say "Hello Fandad, today's word is ______."  Pretty easy huh?

Remember to get your tickets for Wizard World. If you haven't bought them yet click on the banner at the top of the page to order your tickets.

See you at Wizard World and thanks for reading.

"What if he doesn't survive?" #30DaysofStarWarsShirts Day 21

Although he was just featured a few days ago this is one bounty hunter that you can not say no to.  Boba Fett is showcased front and center in this shirt and looks menacing as he aims his blaster rifle at you.

"A long time ago....." #30DaysofStarWarsShirts Day 20

When I first saw those words on the screen many moons ago I remember thinking that I wanted to live in that universe.  Those words changed how I saw movies and changed my life too.

You know...for the kids!!

Last month I celebrated my 39th birthday....let me ponder on that for a moment....ok, let's go.  I celebrated my birthday on the weekend of my sister's wedding (wedding was the 18th, my birthday was the 19th) and it was kind of like an afterthought.  As we were getting ready to leave the wedding reception later on that night, my older sister looks at me and goes "V! It's your birthday today!" and I was like "Yeah."

"Impressive" #30DaysofStarWarsShirts Day 19

Today's shirt was featured last month on T-Shirt Thursday.  This shirt was given to me as a Father's Day gift and it's become one of my favorite shirts.

I don't know what else I can say about this shirt, except that I love the design of Darth Vader and the just looking at the Empire symbol for his eyes makes this shirt a little creepy.  Maybe it's just me, but I'm glad that I don't have to stare at that face in a dark alley.

What are your thoughts about the challenge so far?  Do you have a favorite shirt yet? Have you been keeping tabs on the mash-ups or who's made numerous appearances?

"The first transport is away!" #30DaysofStarWarsShirts Day 18

From a far you're thinking to yourself, "That's a pretty cool looking shirt depicting the Battle of Hoth." Only when you get closer you realize that it is not an AT-AT in the center of the shirt, it's an Xbox One.

This shirt called "Console Wars II" combines what you already know is my favorite movie "Star Wars" with one of my favorite pastimes: video games.

"He's worth a lot to me!" Day 17 #30DaysofStarWarsShirts

Do we really need to say much about this shirt?  I mean it's Boba Fett! What more is there to say about this guy?  He's already made a few appearances on the challenge and I don't think this will be his last one.

I bought this shirt for about four dollars on the clearance rack at Old Navy and I would say it was a good find.  Even Kubrick Boba agrees.

"Let the Wookiee win!" #30DaysofStarWarsShirts Day 16

What type of music does a Wookiee listen to? Whatever it is, it's obviously better than yours.  Just like the old saying "Let the Wookiee win" you better let the wookiee listen to what he wants.

For those people that know me, they know that I used to DJ and when I saw this shirt at Wizard World I had to get it.  I just thought it was an awesome shirt and Chewbacca telling people that "Your music is wookity wack" was just the icing on the cake.

As fantastic as this picture is it does make me wonder, how does wookiee music sound like?  Are there any big wookiee artist from Kashyyyk that we may have heard of?  Who knows.

The Underused Disney Princess

My daughter just turned four last week and she received a birthday card with a bunch of the Disney Princesses. It was one of those where you punch them out and play dress up with them.

As I was helping her cut them out I came across her, but I couldn't remember her name, honestly I'm not sure I ever knew it. Some of you may know her from The Princess and the Frog.

"These aren't the droids we're looking for." #30DaysofStarWarsShirts Day 15

Oh, to be a student at Dark Side High.  I wonder what classes are offered there and what is the graduation rate?

Today's shirt is from a UK company called CHUNK that I purchased through the Star Wars store many years ago.  Hey, if Lucas can say "A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away" I can say "many years ago".

Do the troopers wear these under their armor when fighting the rebels? Who knows.

The shirt reads: Dark Side High: Soldiers are made - not born.

I think some of the graduates need to go back and retake their shooting class and maybe work on their accuracy.

"Size matters not, look at me" #30DaysofStarWarsShirts Day 14

For a little green alien that has a funny way of speaking Yoda has a lot of power.

I mean, this shirt looks like it's a mistake because the color is all faded, but the image of Yoda is actually printed on the inside of the shirt.

What happened to the shirts?

Hey friends,

Sorry for taking a break on the #30DaysofStarWarsShirts, but with everything going on in my city (Chicago) right now, I thought I'd put it on the back burner for a while.

It seems like every weekend there is an insane amount of people that are shot or killed and it's really troubling.  I have been sitting up at night wanting to address this situation, but I don't know if this is the right outlet for it.

I realized that we all need to escape our reality from time to time and maybe the #30DaysofStarWarsShirts was a way for some of you to escape the bad news from the day or just look at the day's shirt and think to yourself, "I can't believe this guy has that many Star Wars shirts!"

Well, the shirts will return tomorrow.  I will continue with the challenge and continue showing you all the shirts that I have compiled and give you all an opportunity to vote on your favorite one.

If you follow us on Instagram, you have probably seen the awesome boxes of toys Hasbro has sent us and we will be reviewing them soon.  Along with those toys, we will review a few statues and Hot Toys figures that the Fandads have gotten their geeky hands on.

We know how much you all love giveaways, so we will be doing one sometime soon.

Thanks for being a fan.

Thanks for understanding.

Until next time, thanks for reading.

Victor

The Fandads "Guardians of the Galaxy" Review. #Marvel Updated with toys!

By now you may have already read the reviews about Marvel's latest movie Guardians of the Galaxy. You may have seen that the movie is getting a lot of good reviews and you may be asking yourself, "Are these reviews correct?"  Well, this Fandad has seen the movie and I will tell you something, they are!