Agent Palmer

“In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit.” These were the lines I was waiting for as I sat in the theater to see The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. They weren’t the first lines of the movie as I had hoped but Peter Jackson and his writing crew had more to accomplish than just telling the story of The Hobbit.

He had to weave us back through the Lord of the Rings, where he started our cinematic voyage through Middle Earth, back to the story that set it all into motion.

I recently infiltrated the Great Allentown Comic Con in the city’s Merchants Square Mall. The attendance was not what it had been in the past and there weren’t quite the number of dealers that usually show up, but that can be attributed to the beating this and surrounding areas had taken due to Superstorm Sandy and the Nor’Easter that dumped winter weather in New Jersey.

Attendance aside, the atmosphere was upbeat – how could it not be with a room full of comics!

Recently, I attended the Philly Non-Sports Card Show. I didn’t quite know what to expect. I had been to “CCG” shows, but they’re universally labelled as such. So I headed out, having very little idea of what might be in store for me.

When I arrived there was a line of about 100 people waiting to get in. It wasn’t quite a comic con crowd, but there were some characters, an equal mix of genders and a very wide range of ages.

Now before I explain what I saw at the show, let me explain all I know about Non-Sports Cards.

Not too long ago, I went to the theater and watched Ted. I’d seen the trailers and it looked ok. I had very few preconceived notions about the picture. I’m aware that in the case of most comedies, the trailer shows the funniest parts, but Ted held something back.

The plot is a little more thick than I would have expected.

In my first review of Marvel’s the Avengers, I ended with a diatribe about my geekdom getting watered down in the process of making it consumable for the masses. I recently saw the movie a second time and again I thoroughly enjoyed it. There is one thing that I need to discuss, or point out, as an addendum to my first review.

One thing to consider, about my first post, is that everything I said was criticism and it was not meant as a condemnation.