Month in Review: December 2012

After four years of co-blogging, and four months of blogging solo, the unspoken question was finally addressed: How long do you plan to continue blogging for Exfanding Your Horizons without your partner? Even without a definitive answer yet, it's clear that the last month especially has seen a trend away from "our blog, minus the one author for a while" and toward "Nathaniel's blog"--and that's not what this blog was ever meant to be.

That's not to say these posts aren't any good; rather, they're very distinctly me. (Which is not to say that they are any good, either.) At any rate, here's what I've got to show for December...and of particular note is the penultimate post on the list, because this might be the last Month in Review you see here for a long time.


- A reaction to the trailer for Star Trek Into the Darkness and tongue-in-cheek predictions about what the film will hold

- A reaction to the trailer for Street Fighter X Mega Man and thoughts on the state of the Mega Man franchise

- A connected list of the various things that've been keeping me physically and mentally busy lately, from Scribblenauts to "couple-building activities," whatever those are

- An announcement of my new Twitch TV channel, which I will probably never use

- An advertisement for the livestreaming 25th anniversary Mega Man marathon my friend and I undertook, and a retrospective on the big event (including a link to the video footage in case you missed it)

- A guest post chronicling the adventures of Biff and Baff through Dragon Warrior I & II for the Game Boy Color

- A massive comparative review of several varieties of eggnog and nog-like beverages

- Reflections on four months of blogging solo

- A recap of my contributions to obscure gaming website GameCola.net in December

Month in Review: November 2012

It is good to be back. Seriously taking stock of the situation here at the end of October was exactly what I needed to rekindle the enthusiasm. From my perspective, November was the strongest blogging month I've had since July or August, and it was also the most uniquely me this blog has seen in a while—more personal stories of one sort or another than usual, and no attempt to obfuscate the obvious fact that all I do in my spare time is watch movies, play video games, not record YouTube videos, and eat cheeseburgers.

See for yourself:

- A recap of my contributions to funny obscure gaming site GameCola.net in October and November

- A fast food burger showdown pitting Burger King against McDonald's in a war of white cheddar

- Sunday Spotlight on why my YouTube videos take so long, and my first trip to IKEA

- Ruminations on the unexpectedly welcome disruption of my regular routine in the wake of a hurricane, wedding, honeymoon, and other major events

- A review of Wreck-It Ralph, a Disney film long anticipated by gamers

- Something I needed to get out of my system regarding everyone on the Internet being angry

- An early New Year's resolution to possibly take even longer making YouTube videos

- Reasons to not write about Thanksgiving, followed by me writing about Thanksgiving

- A review of Double Dragon, the 1994 "adaptation" of the popular NES beat-'em-up

- Thoughts on having played 24 hours of Golden Sun: Dark Dawn

Month in Review: October 2012

October was a month of major events and milestones. Hurricane Sandy rocked the east coast of the United States, leaving widespread devastation in her wake. Alex finally published the children's book he'd been teasing some months back. I bought a sweater.

I also wrote about a few things of interest, some more milestoney than others:

- A proper Crystalis celebration for the 15th anniversary of The END DAY

- A recap of my contributions to GameCola.net in September

- Musings on October, and anticipation for what the month has in store

- The cathartic conclusion to my 10-month endeavor to complete The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind and its two expansion packs

- Thoughts about writing Star Wars trivia for kids, and a follow-up

- An honest, heartfelt assessment of the state of the blog, and an announcement of an official hiatus

Month in Review: September 2012

After two months of minimal e-mail contact with my blogging partner and one brief collaboration to reiterate that this is still our blog, I gave up on new content and just let other people write for Exfanding instead. Guest posting saved the day, as September was quite possibly my weakest blogging month in Exfanding's history: emotionally drained from the holding pattern I'm in until Alex returns, and focused more on other creative projects, I really didn't have much to share.

Still, I did have something to share, and there were the aforementioned guest posts:

- Sunday Spotlight on guest posting and The Backloggery

- A guest review of Batman: Arkham Asylum and its sequel Arkham City, discussing how the Dark Knight saved licensed games
 
-  Forty-six ways Star Trek changed my life, in honor of Star Trek's 46th anniversary

- A guest review of the film Enemy Mine, as told through the lens of a Star Trek fan

- An honest update of where things stand and where they're going with this blog

- Rumination on how my late nights have changed since college and high school

- A collection of humorously honest movie trailers

Month in Review: August 2012

With one blogger having all but completely disappeared, and the other one writing just enough to reassure our readers that the name of the blog hadn't changed to "Abandoning Your Horizons," there's not much to see from August, at least in terms of quantity. In terms of quality...well, that's always open to debate. Most of these posts fall into the "nice, but nonessential" category, but there's two in particular--a birthday celebration and a rare political discussion--that we feel should not be missed.

Here's what August 2012 looked like:

- Sunday Spotlight on geek musician Jonathan Coulton and a trio of Netflix recommendations

- A reassurance to our readers that we're still here

- The announcement of Exfanding's official YouTube channel, which is mostly just for video game music

- An open letter to the American public regarding the upcoming and contentious Presidential election

- A double dose of Dungeons & Dragons, with a dash of video games

- A celebration of Exfanding's fourth birthday, with a cameo by someone who we swear is actually Alex, Exfanding's MIA co-blogger, and not just Nathaniel pretending to be Alex

Month in Review: July 2012

With the largest redesign in the blog's history, the smallest number of posts since the first month we were blogging, and the longest amount of time we've ever gone without hearing from one of the two gentlemen responsible for this blog, July is undoubtedly one of the most notable months in Exfanding history--and that's even before we get to the actual content. With a reduced posting schedule giving us more time to write, and big things going on in our lives and the rest of the world, we had plenty to say...and we finally had all the time we needed to say it.

- My excuses for failing to post a Sunday Spotlight--and hopefully the last filler post for a very long time

- Exfanding's very first comic strip, featuring a little bit of social commentary

- A look at the financial hurdles of bringing an independently produced children's book to print

- The story of my second chance to see James Taylor in concert

- Thoughts about self-publishing and the shortcomings of the publishing industry following the near-completion of Alex's aforementioned indie book

- A recap of my contributions to videogame humor website GameCola.net in June and July

- Waiting for Wednesday, Volume 4, Issue 54, which serves as a preface to Alex's extended absence from the blog as he discusses where things stand and the risks he's about to take

- A report on Comic-Con International 2012 from someone who's not attending the convention

- Sunday Spotlight on toasters, the sci-fi video game Scurge: Hive, and the ridiculous, action-packed anime series Gurren Lagann

- The announcement of our major overhaul of the blog, complete with vintage Exfanding logo and our old layout preserved for posterity.

- A link to a new home for "Let's Play" videos

- A lengthy and, I hope, thought-provoking exploration of regressive progress and the crisis of communication

Month in Review: June 2012

For perhaps the first time in this blog's history, I am at a loss to categorize the posts we wrote last month. I'm inclined to say it was mostly filler...but that's not entirely true. Perhaps better stated, June was a month of personal journaling that was, on occasion, specifically intended for other people to read. June was also the month when we finally realized our policy of posting every day by 1 PM was no longer sustainable, introducing a new, loose, reduced posting model that will undoubtedly shape the content and feel of our posts in the months to come.

There'll be less to write about here for the indefinite future, so get your fill of a beefy, post-packed Month in Review while you still can:

- Shameless Saturday sharing of Santino's Foreign Exchange, a sketch comedy video series co-written by Alex

- Sunday Spotlight on being angry at everything, The Two Guys from Andromeda, Blogger bluffing, and our new posting model

- A sort of status update explaining why Alex is a bad blogger, and a follow-up explaining I'm a worse blogger, and a follow-up follow-up explaining things in more detail

- Waiting for Wednesday, Volume 4, Issues 23-26, covering Earth 2, Daredevil, being on a golf course, and a year of changes

- Looking for Jack (and finding he's preposterously expensive)

- A review of the classic crime show Hawaii Five-O

- An endorsement to go have some pie

- Musings on the joys of coffee

- A much-needed reminder of having fun with recording videos

- A screenshot gallery for Mega Man: Dr. Wily's Revenge

-  Hands-down, the worst filler post we have ever had

- Thoughts about gory movies, Part 1 and Part 2

- A video of Stan Lee as Spider-Man

- The joys of a productive evening

- A look at how someone beat Alex to his ultimate business dream

Month in Review: May 2012

Star Wars, the conclusion to the eight-part D&D story, movies, guest posts, PlayStation games, self-publishing, a holiday, a Colin Hay, and a bunch of excuses about why we couldn't write real posts. There, you've just read everything we posted in May.

Actually, that's a lie. Unless you did read everything, of course. If not--or if you want to read things again--here's everything we posted in May (save for the Month in Review, which we never bother to include for some reason). And, because most of the titles speak for themselves (or, more accurately, because I'm in a lousy mood and have other things I need to do), I won't bother with descriptions this time around:

- Waiting for Wednesday, Volume 4, Issue 18

- Recreational Thursday

- Gearing Up for the Final Confrontation

- Happy Free Comic Book Day 2012!

- Sunday Spotlight: PlayStation Portable

- *waves hand* This is not the post you were looking for...

- Yes. It's a Giant Sea Slug. Let's Move On.

- Waiting for Wednesday, Volume 4, Issue 19

- The Avengers Have Arrived!

- Friday Catch Up

- Review: Final Fantasy V Advance

- Sunday Spotlight: Colin Hay

- Amazing Adventures in Self Publishing! Part Five

- Lost in the Archives

- Waiting for Wednesday, Volume 4, Issue 20

- Exfanded Universe

- Amazing Adventures in Self Publishing! Part Six

- In Which Greedo May Possibly Be Allowed to Shoot First

- Sunday Spotlight: Part 7 of That D&D Story I'm Taking Forever to Tell

- The Amazing, Despicable Iron Star Age of Resident Steel Avengers Rises...2

- Recovering From the Zombie Plague

- Waiting for Wednesday, Volume 4, Issue 21

- An Introduction to Failure

- Friday Insanity

- Let Others Choose the Way

- Sunday Spotlight: R&R

- Memorial Day 2012

- State of the Onion Address

- Waiting for Wednesday ... Um ... Kind Of

- GameCola Recap: May 2012

Month in Review: April 2012

What a month. One day we're longwinded and thoughtful; the next day we've barely got enough time to see that our three-sentence post didn't go up on time as scheduled. With work and personal commitments occupying more of the month than usual, and with a number of technological changes throwing us for a loop, April was, to put it scientifically, all over the place. Yet despite a glut of quick blurbs and filler posts, we were able to write some nicely detailed reviews and not one but two ongoing stories of fandom. Hoo-hah.

- Sunday Spotlight on Airplane II: The Sequel, Cadbury Creme Eggs, Diamond Select's Star Trek II Phaser, free time, and "the customer is always right"

- A guest post highlighting a few April Fools' jokes on the Internet this year

- Waiting for Wednesday with a focus on Avengers vs. X-Men, online criticism, Courtney Crumrin, and going to the comics shop

- Drawing some attention to all the non-Mega Man videos featured on my YouTube channel

- Lamentations of comics withdrawal

- A filler post,

- A review of the underwhelming Avengers vs. X-Men, Issue 1

- The first and only time I have been truly angry on this blog

- A behind-the-scenes look at crafting a Dungeons & Dragons adventure, parts one, two, three, and four

- A behind-the-scenes look at self-publishing a children's book, parts one, two, three, and four

- A celebration of videogame humor website GameCola.net's ten-hour tenth anniversary podcast,

- A positive review of the highly accessible New 52 Batman comics

- Ruminations on the irony of writing for a living

- Snazzy Metroid-themed wallpaper I assembled myself

- Alex does something for YouTube for a change

- A recap of my contributions to GameCola in April

Month in Review: March 2012

It's probably a good sign that we're already three days into a new month before the Month in Review rolls around, and it's not because we forgot. Means we've got a lot to talk about, and for the first time in a while, I've got writing ideas more than a few hours in advance of the posting deadline.

However, that was now. This is then. We're looking back at what we've already written, in the glorious month of March. Feel free to replace "glorious" with "review-happy," "YouTube-crazy," or "horror-oriented." See for yourself:

- A recap of my contributions to videogame humor website GameCola.net in both February and March

- A review of Stephen King's post-modern vampire horror novel, 'Salem's Lot

- My new whatever-I-feel-like weekly feature, Sunday Spotlight, covering The Dick Tracy Show, Mario Party 2, Stop Making Sense, Clannad and Clannad After Story, and Airplane II: The Sequel

- Spoileriffic general thoughts on television's The Walking Dead, a specific review of Episode 2x12, and a follow-up blurb

- Crowd-driven anxiety about releasing more YouTube videos

- Alex's weekly comics news/ramblings feature, Waiting for Wednesday, Volume 4, Issues 10-13, covering Fairest, a candid interview with Alan Moore, The Goon, and New Deadwardians

- Reactions to YouTube's new layout, and my pleasantly successful protest

- A review of the well-crafted animated feature Justice League: Doom

- The conclusion of nearly two years of Mega Man 6 on YouTube

- An announcement that we'll be posting at 1 PM Eastern moving forward

- A calamity-ridden collaborative playthrough of Mega Man 2: The Power Fighters

- A discussion of how Stephen King doesn't take his own writing advice

- A shrug and a grimace for Avengers: The Children's Crusade

- The search for motivation to write a new Dungeons & Dragons quest

- Reflections on spring from a guy who's been hunkered down inside for quite a while, and the season's annual call to play baseball

- Preparations for Wrestlemania XXVIII

- A guest post recounting the accidental death of a nerd

- I have a sudden urge to go outside

- A Saturday satire that, as far as I'm concerned, is not so much a satire as a straightforward discussion about how so much is riding on Avengers vs. X-Men

Month in Review: February 2012

There've been months in the past where one of us was clearly the guy who carried the blog. We've had times where we've been heavy on fluff posts and light on real content. However, I don't think we've ever seen such a long span of time where both of us struggled so hard to write anything in the first place. Yet, considering the number of filler posts, unfocused ramblings, excuses, and missed posting deadlines, I'd like to think we did quite well keeping this blogging behemoth in motion, and the variety of posts--and strength of a few posts in particular--makes this a month we can remember for more than just how busy we were.

Behold, the month of February:

- Waiting for Wednesday, Alex's weekly whatever-he-feels-like-and-also-comics column, Volume 4, Issues 5-9, covering Before Watchmen, Conan the Barbarian, creator battles, late posting, and avoiding the word "so"

- A recap of my contributions to videogame humor website GameCola.net in January

- A teaser, and then full coverage of my Harry Potter marathon

- Some levelheaded thoughts on Before Watchmen

- A Super Bowl Sunday prediction that didn't pan out

- A filler post about juggling fatigue

- Levitating my way through The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind

- An amusing link post to the Top 10 Food-Based Movies

- The Walking Dead becomes a battlefield for creators vs. creators' rights

- Hype and review coverage of Kevin Smith's TV series Comic Book Men

- Tales of my professional wrestling self-education project

- The story of last year's April Fools' joke I pulled on YouTube (sorry, no Rickrolling)

- Escapism...IN SPAAAAAAAAACE!!!

- Talking about self-publishing a children's book

- A quick blurb and a full guest review of The Secret World of Arrietty, Hayao Miyazaki's (poorly marketed) anime film

- Fishing for ideas on a new column, and the resulting first installment of Sunday Spotlight

- An apology for not having a post

- Excuses for not having a post

- A pathetic announcement for not having a post

- A discussion of the art of the videogame tutorial

Month in Review: January 2012

With more free time for creative pursuits than I've had in nearly a year, and with Alex's time and focus going almost exclusively toward his new job, January was simultaneously one of the strongest and one of the most concise months we've ever had on this blog.

Let's take a look at how we kicked off the New Year:

- Our annual joint post discussing our New Year's resolutions

- Insights from Alex about his job transition, a quick follow-up after the first week, and a deeper reflection on the matter

- A list of fandom-centric aspirations for the year, which are totally different from resolutions

- Alex's weekly opinion column with a hint of comics, Waiting for Wednesday, Volume 4, Issues 1-4, covering The Goon, the Mayans, the Wikipedia blackout, and actual excitement

- An announcement of our contest winners from The Third Easiest Contest on the Internet

- Excuses as to why our Year in Review hadn't posted yet--also notable for being the first post in Exfanding history to go up without a title (which was quickly fixed)

- A discussion of my wonderful cycle of relaxation and anticipation, and all my creative input

- The story of my introduction to the wonders of Netflix

- Alex returns to the realm of comics with an additional resolution

- My wife's amusing alteration to my desktop wallpaper

- A request for suggestions of toys to put on display at work


- A guide to becoming a minor Internet celebrity

- Plotting for my next Dungeons & Dragons adventure

- A video playthrough of Mega Man vs Ghosts 'n Goblins

- A quick spotlight of an indie comics publisher's involvement in the SOPA protests

- A review of the anime series Fullmetal Alchemist

- Alex provides encouragement to join the Bark Side

- A realization that we haven't run out of ways to exfand your horizons

- A review of Richard Moore's mini-gargoyle comic series Chip

- A guest post looking back at the Nintendo GameCube

- A review of my recent gaming endeavors and a question about where to go next

- Alex gets to professionally interview his all-time favorite wrestler, Shawn Michaels

- The photography of a levitating woman

- A review of SCAM #1, an X-Men meets Ocean's 11 indie comic, and our first-ever review copy for this blog

Month in Review: December 2011

Well, that's officially one more year of blogging under our belts. Amazing, too--a new post every day at 11 AM, like clockwork, except when Alex forgot it was his turn to post. Or when I forgot it was my turn to post and begged him at 10:59 to fill in for me.

December was a month of comfort posting--familiar topics we could easily write about, long-running traditions we'd been planning for, and personal stories requiring relatively little effort to convey. Enjoy a look back at this past month:

- A recap of my contributions to videogame humor website GameCola.net in November and December 2011

- A link post regarding the worthwhile and occasionally humorous Fan/Pro Bill of Rights

- An explanation of how I went seven months without a weekend to myself

- Preparations and delays for our annual Gifts for Geeks feature, which covers surprise gifts, gift cards, nightmare shopping, gifts for geekettes, and assorted specific recommendations

- Thoughtful questioning about the relationship between creators and their politics

- Volume 3, Issues 49-52 of Alex's weekly sanity check-in with a comics news endcap, Waiting for Wednesday, covering Hellblazer Annual, holiday plans, change of employment (which is described in further detail in a follow-up post) and musings on over three years of blogging

- A reflection on the anniversary of the death of John Lennon

- An unexpected radio ad for a movie from the 1990s

- The Third Easiest Contest on the Internet

- Encouraging sales figures for the comics industry

- A celebration of the completion of my first bonus video for Mega Man 6

- A link post regarding Alex's ideal comics shop, and a story about what might just be Nathaniel's ideal everything shop

- A scattershot status update complete with geeky Christmas tree picture

- A butchering of Good King Wenceslas for the sake of roleplaying humor

- Thoughts on holiday traditions

- An introduction to Dragon Warrior, the sword-and-sorcery NES RPG series

- An epic announcement of this year's Great Comic Book Adventure

Month in Review: November 2011

Alex forgot that Halloween ended in October, and I spent the entire month talking about or being away for my wedding. That is pretty much the entirety of November here at Exfanding. It was great.

To drive that point home (and to give you a chance to catch up on our stories in their entirety), allow me to list off everything we wrote in November:

- A recap of my slightly obscure contribution to videogame humor website GameCola.net in October

- A tale of pity and woe about an unexpected, unwelcome snow day, and how it robbed Alex of Halloween (complete with one of our favorite sight gags to appear on the blog this year)

- Kind words and a perfectly chosen picture to celebrate my wedding day

- The best link post all year (hint: the word "Bat-Flat" might be applicable), and an honorable mention link post of famous authors' rejection letters

- Brief thoughts about Rob Zombie's Halloween reboot, plus a (possibly surprising) full-fledged review of the film

- Alex's weekly stream-of-consciousness, usually-about-new-comics feature, Waiting for Wednesday, Volume 3, Issues 45-48, covering a robbery, Snyder and Capullo's Batman, pre-Thanksgiving comics shopping, and Archie Meets KISS

- A guest post from a would-be Trekkie

- Apprehension about the number eleven

- Satellite radio's revival of the 90's, and Soundgarden/Audioslave lead singer Chris Cornell's new album

- Alex's discovery that he can blog from his phone

- My return to blogging, following a wedding and a week of being completely unplugged

- My wedding saga, in nauseatingly geeky detail: the invitations, the flowers, the favors, the icebreakers, the wedding, the reception, and the honeymoon

- Alex becomes an original art dealer, and writes about the sale

- A celebration of Thanksgiving, filled with the same great comics covers I'm pretty sure we post every year, along with a video that totally doesn't fit the theme

- A mid-season musing on The Walking Dead

Month in Review: October 2011

Amidst a sea of October fluff posts float some real contenders for our highly selective (and self-serving) Year in Review...and hey, we think we're getting pretty good at the fluff posts, too. Stories of conventions, Konami games, and Alex's favorite time of year dominated the discussions, but we managed to sneak in a few delightfully unexpected departures from the usual fare here and there. Overall, I think it's safe to say that we're both pleased about the passion and enthusiasm these posts convey--after all, sharing our interests with you is what this blog is all about.

Behold, the month of October:

- An exhortation to uphold the yearly tradition and go play Crystalis

- A flowchart guide to choosing a sci-fi/fantasy book that's right for you

- Sincere anticipation of the creepy, wonderful joys of the Halloween season

- A long-awaited ode to cream soda

- A thoughtful update on my ongoing comics self-education

- A tribute to Steve Jobs

- Excitement over the start of a new baseball season, complete with hilarious digressions

- A look at Amazon's eBook reader, the Kindle Fire, and the fallout between DC Comics and Barnes & Noble, plus a follow-up news piece about the matter

- An introduction to Axe Cop, a webcomic written by a 5-year-old and illustrated by a 29-year-old

- Anticipation, pictures, ruminations, delays, more delays, and a look back at conventions past, leading up to our grand joint recap of the 2011 New York Comic-Con / Anime Festival, Part One (the philosophical part) and Part Two (the geeky part)

- An admission that I am a cheater

- Alex's weekly candid thoughts column (which frequently focuses on new comics), Waiting for Wednesday, Volume 3, Issues 41-43, covering Orchid, con plague, and the fall of Marvel

- The continuation and conclusion (?) of my two-month Konami kick

- Praise for The Walking Dead, television's terrifying series about love triangles and getting older...and also zombies

- A celebration of 2,500 subscribers to my Mega Man-centric YouTube channel

- Perhaps the best filler post ever

- Why Alex is horrible at Halloween...again

- A blog that hysterically sets the record straight about what qualifies as "artisan"

- The coolest Halloween light show of the season

- HP Lovecraft (the HP stands for "Halloween Poem")

Month in Review: September 2011

What a great month for blogging September was. With new fandoms to explore, and new incarnations of old fandoms to investigate, there was no shortage of things to talk about...and that's just the beginning. We paid a week-long visit to the past, varied our posts from short and amusingly fluffy to long and philosophical, and recognized holidays and anniversaries both silly and solemn. Some long-awaited changes were made to the blog itself, including some tweaks to the sidebar, better sharing links at the bottom of each post, and a sweet updated banner.

Whether you enjoy continuity in the blog posts you read, or just think we're hip cats and want to get to know us better, you will not be disappointed by what we wrote in September. If you are, however, please don't tell us; our egos are quite fragile and we really like what we wrote:

- A recap of my contributions to videogame humor website GameCola.net in August and September of 2011

- The story of Gradius II and how it helped fuel my sudden Konami craze

- A look at Steve Geppi, Diamond, and bad art deals

- A completely misguided attempt at celebrating Labor Day

- A geeky and heartfelt Flashback Week, including:

+ My schoolyard days of playing Magic: The Gathering

+ Alex's unlikely baseball card collection quest

+ A long-overdue recounting of my first and only James Taylor concert

+ A somber piece that wasn't originally planned to be a part of this series, but seemed appropriate during a week of reflection: an outsider's perspective on the tenth anniversary of the September 11 attacks

+ The origin and progression of my ongoing endeavors to expose my girlfriend-turned-fiancée to the fandoms I love

+ Alex's confession that he wasn't always a geek

- Alex's weekly stream-of-consciousness opinion column, Waiting for Wednesday, which has returned to its comics-oriented roots in Volume 3, Issues 36-39, with coverage of Swamp Thing, Batman (concluding our Flashback Week), Wonder Woman, and Justice League Dark

- A Dungeons & Dragons-themed guest post I wrote some time ago giving advice on how to run a better battle

- Alex's chance to see Andrea Bocelli...and finally hear him sing

- Thoughts on DC Comics' massive relaunch

- An admittedly halfhearted celebration of International Talk Like a Pirate Day

- Complaining about changes to Windows, Office, Pandora, and Facebook without actually complaining

- Proof that actor Nicholas Cage is a vampire

- A spotlight on the radical content delivery style of Champion! comics magazine

- An admission that I am a fan of bad movies

- Reviews of two DC relaunch titles: the impressive Batman, Issue 1 and the controversial Catwoman, Issue 1

Month in Review: August 2011

If this blog were a television series, August would have been the two-part season finale that tied up several loose ends of the past season while introducing just enough new ideas to hint at the direction of the next season. One of the main characters returned to the show after a short hiatus, a few special guest stars made appearances, and viewers were treated to important character development and valuable backstory, as well as a few surprises along the way.

Don't worry if you missed any of it; we've got the reruns right here:

- Alex's return to blogging, and a heartwarming story of why the world needs superheroes

- Thoughts on how spoilers are damaging the comics industry

- Alex's weekly column that's part comics news and part personal journal, Waiting for Wednesday, Volume 3, Issues 31-35, discussing his time away from the blog, Kidnapping Kevin Smith, bad sushi, American Vampire, and a power outage

- A forward-facing retrospective look at the last decade of Marvel movies

- The tale of how this blog almost had a name that makes sense, and some encouragement to share in something Alex loves

- The realization that I am a fan of my own Mega Man videos, and am tired of waiting for the next one

- The creepiest...accessory...ever

- An analysis of what made Borders a success, and why it failed, along with a sobering firsthand account of one particular retail location in its final weeks

- My reaction to Two and a Half Men's major cast change, which was unprecedented because it was timely and about a TV show that was still on the air

- A link to nostalgia-inducing Retro Junk

- A filler post! And I'm not telling you anything about it, which means now you've gotta read it.

- Alex hears voices, battles an alien, and reviews the best issue of Daredevil to come along in a long time

- After a year of recording, the announcement of my highly anticipated and showofftastic playthrough of Mega Man 6, and a recap of the setback-ridden recording process

- Fresh musings on the nature of comics fans

- A guest review of a few LEGO Movie video games, and why Star Wars still reigns supreme

- Indecision that led to the most philosophical video game post I've written in a while, which revealed my clever system for choosing new games to play

- A guest explanation of what, exactly, constitutes the Marvel Cinematic Universe

- A list that somehow manages to combine Castlevania, commuting, and a court case.

- A Wedding Themed Post. Also, Zombies.

- A blurb about my cameo appearance in a Mega Man X2 video

- Our glorious celebration of Exfanding Your Horizons' third birthday! If you read no other post from this month, make it this one.

- A quick recap of Grant Morrison on the Death of Comics

- A moment to prepare for Alex versus the hurricane

- An ungraceful transition away from talk of the hurricane

- Controlled excitement over the possibility of a new Star Trek TV series; like, authentic Star Trek, without the rebootery

Month in Review: July 2011

With our personal lives being characterized by change, loss, and transition, July was unsurprisingly a month of the unexpected. We touched on fandoms we've rarely or never discussed, we reacted to the strange events unfolding around us, and I ended up writing for entire last week of the month, with the aid of a first-time guest poster.

See for yourself how varied and surprising July was:

- A recap of my contributions to videogame humor website GameCola.net in both June and July, along with a note that GameCola is looking for new writers

- A review of the game-changing Ultimate Spider Man #160

- A public service announcement about S.978, the Bill that would purportedly destroy the world

- A celebration of Independence Day

- The amateur's guide to displaying collectibles, a post that I started over a year before, but never took the time to finish

- Alex's personal journal and occasional comics news corner, Waiting for Wednesday, Volume 3, Issues 27-29, discussing the bitter aftermath of chasing a dream, The Dark Knight Rises, and a farewell to Borders, plus a special edition where I hijack Alex's column

- Rumination on being a community of one

- Notes about the San Diego Comic-Con discussing absurd protests, the time writer Grant Morrison met Superman, and feeling left out

- Alex talks about growing up with professional wrestling

- A ridiculous statistic-laden celebration of 1001 posts

- The tale of Alex's first foray into the depths of Middle Earth

- A trio of moving-related posts: packing the boxes, moving the boxes, and unpacking the boxes

- A story about breaking the law for the sake of baseball

- A spotlight on the hilariously quirky television show It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia

- Praise for the Baltimore Comic-Con and accompanying artwork

- An internal debate about whether or not I'm a serious Harry Potter fan

- A list of things to look forward to

- Free, handcrafted video game wallpapers by yours truly

- A quick update about posting

- Reflections on my time-consuming creative process

- A guest post regarding the ups and downs of the Dragon Age computer game series

Month in Review: June 2011

We've had months filled with variety before, but in this blogger's opinion, June contained one of the best blends of content and style we've ever had. We explained, philosophized, reported the news, waxed nostalgic, told stories, and asked readers for help. Post lengths ranged from barely over a paragraph to longer than every post we wrote in the first month of this blog combined. We had a genuine investment in each of the topics we discussed, to the point where even the filler posts were earnest, heartfelt blurbs about things we wanted to share.

We're happy to share these posts from June with you again, or for the first time, as the case may be:

- Alex's cathartically off-topic weekly comics news column, Waiting for Wednesday, Volume 3, Issues 22-26, covering DC's Flashpoint storyline, an impending trip to Las Vegas, The Li'l Depressed Boy, Death of Spider-Man, and the return of The Goon.

- A recap of my May contributions to videogame humor website GameCola.net

- Thoughts about the impact of DC Comics' plan to renumber the universe

- A list of possibilities for a Saturday to oneself

- An explanation of why Alex could be the poster child of pain and illness

- Anticipation of a summer of comics

- A reflection on being a retro gamer, part two

- Genghis Khan, Marriage Counselor (the name really says it all)

- Excitement over plans to see a Paul McCartney concert, and the insightful tale of the concert itself

- A massively comprehensive viewer's guide to Star Trek: The Original Series and its animated and feature film follow-ups, plus an explanation of what prompted me to write the post

- A link to a story about embarrassing your children with hilarious costumes

- A positive spin Duke Nukem Forever, the game people waited fifteen years to be disappointed by

- Observations about the home I am leaving behind, made during a long walk home

- A request for a new desktop background

- News of Free RPG Day!

- A note about Alex missing out on new comic book movies

- An Eddie Murphy-inspired theory proposing that you can judge a movie by its poster

- A review of the new, digital face of Wizard Magazine

- A bit of muckraking regarding Swamp Thing (alternately, a review)

- A farewell to legendary comics illustrator Gene Colan

- A message from Dr. Light

- An opinion piece on how our expectations affect our happiness

- A review of TrollHunter, the Norwegian thriller film

Month in Review: May 2011

Depth, variety, and a few surprises characterized our writing in the month of May, and I think we're both very pleased with how everything turned out. There were reviews, reflections, and ramblings, as well as our first guest post in quite a while.

Collected here for your convenience are all our posts from May 2011:

- A recap of my contributions to videogame humor website GameCola in April 2011

- A brief post that reads more like a journal entry about constantly being on the defensive

- Alex's weekly (and cathartic) comics news/discussion/nonsense column, Volume 3, Issues 18-21, covering Moon Knight, reverse commuting, The Rocketeer, and The Tattered Man, respectively.

- Thoughts about the much-ballyhooed Action Comics #900

- Thoughts about the results of the Smithsonian's Art of Video Games exhibition contest

- A celebration of Free Comic Book Day 2011, and regrets from afterward

- A story about hearing a discussion of comic books on the radio

- A review of Moon Knight, Volume 1, starring one of Marvel's most underappreciated heroes

- A comparison of Portal and Portal 2, which offers a dose of objectivity to put the hype of the sequel into perspective

- A teaser for a real post after Blogger came back from maintenance downtime

- A review of the highly recommended slice-of-life comic Local

- Original artwork that makes Death look really good

- A guest post relating some cultural and comedic experiences at the Sakura Matsuri Cherry Blossom Festival

- Our Geek Wish List, detailing some of the most earnest and outlandish hopes we two fanboys can muster

- A reflection on Final Fantasy, Dragon Warrior, and why RPGs are suddenly appealing again

- An almost-review of The Cartoonist: Jeff Smith, BONE, and the Changing Face of Comics

- A list of all the things Alex just isn't going to be able to do

- A reflection on what you leave behind

- A review of Marvel's Thor movie

- Musings about Kool-Aid

- Thoughts about becoming slightly more than a minor Internet celebrity

- A recap of Book Expo 2011, a convention that turned out much happier than the previous year's

- Music reminding you that you gotta have more cowbell

- A reflection on being a retro gamer, part one

- A celebration of Memorial Day 2011