No new post this week since I AM ON VACATION! Taking the family on a little road trip. Nothing major, just wanting to get the kids out and have some fun for a change this year. Hope all of you are having a great summer. Remember when the stress and heat get to be too much, just CHILL OUT!
The comic book I am most excited to read this week is... ICON & ROCKET: SEASON ONE #1 (W) Leon Chills (A) Doug Braithwaite Long ago, the stranded alien known as Arnus gave up hope of returning to his home planet. Tragically, he’d also realized that his adopted home of Earth was beyond saving. Content to waste away his long life in a human guise, Arnus was past caring…until the day a young woman named Raquel Ervin crashed into his life. Soon she’d convinced him to put his incredible power to work again as the heroic Icon…and to transform her into his sidekick, Rocket! But an innocent question on Rocket’s part—“Why can’t we do something about the drugs on my corner?”—quickly sets a chain of events in motion leading to the pair becoming the most hunted beings on Earth…and they’re not just being pursued by Earthlings, either! Writer, director, and producer Reginald Hudlin (Black Panther: Who Is the Black Panther?) and superstar artist Doug Braithwaite unleash a tale of power and responsibility that will stretch from the boardrooms of corporate America to the jungles of South America and the depths of deep space! If you’ve ever thought there were certain things that a superhero story just couldn’t do, it might be time to start thinking differently… SRP: $3.99 Synopsis Provided By: DCcomics.com
Throw on your Sweet Leather Jacket and head to get some dance lessons as we take you back to the 80's! Without further ado, here is the 20 Years Before 2000 THROWBACK JAM OF THE WEEK!
Artist: Dino Song: I Like It Album: 24/7 (1989) Peak Billboard Hot 100 Position: 7 Bonus Fun Fact: This song was the 3rd of 5 singles released off of Dino's debut album in 1989.
This past weekend the movie Space Jam: A New Legacy debuted in theaters. I was a huge fan of Michael Jordan and in turn the original Space Jam movie. When it was released in 1996 I drug one of my New York Knick loving friends to a showing of Space Jam and he pretty much threatened to kick my butt if the movie sucked. We both left the theater and there was no butt kicking to be had. Needless to say, I was super hyped to see this new installment that took 25 years to make! Myself and my 3 kids decided we would head to the drive in this past Saturday and dub the entire day "Space Jam Day".
We started the day by watching the original Space Jam movie and chowing down on some Space Jam: A New Legacy cereal. The movie was great as usual and the cereal was pretty good too. It tasted like a not so sweet version of Boo-Berry.
Next, we had some chores that needed to get done around the house, so we put on the Space Jam soundtracks and got to work. The "Space Jam: A New Legacy" jams are actually not that bad, but nothing can standup to the greatness of the original which includes Biz Markie (R.I.P.).
Chores were done, so we busted out the Playstation and had a Space Jam: The Video Game Tournament! if you have never played this game before, it is sort of like NBA Jam with Looney Tunes characters. You can view a bit of gameplay in the video below.
It was no surprise that I ended up beating my youngest daughter in the championship game, but she put up a good fight and in her defense I've had 25 years of experience with this game.
After playing some video game hoops, it was time to go outside and play some real hoops. Me and the kids decided to play a modified game of horse where instead of spelling horse we had to spell "Space". After that game we played a game of "Jam". It was really hot outside, so we headed indoors after the game was over.
By this time, we were ready for lunch. My wife whipped up a few boxes of Space Jam: A New Legacy Macaroni and cheese with hot dogs and we drank some Kool-Aid Space Jammers! It was delicious!!
While settling down after lunch, I dug through my long boxes and found the kids my old Space Jam comic book adaptation from DC Comics. My son loved it and asked if he could read the Space Jam: A New Legacy comic, but my girls were quick to shut that down to avoid spoilers.
While my son was busy reading my girls made everyone in the family these rubber band bracelets in the Tune Squad uniform colors. We all wore them to the movie that night!
Later that evening we hit up McDonalds for some dinner. I got a Quarter Pounder with bacon meal, the wife got a spicy chicken sandwich and the kids each asked for cheeseburger Happy Meals!
The people working the drive through were nice enough to look for 3 different toys for the kids and they ended up getting Bugs Bunny, Road Runner and Taz. These toys kept them busy for a while until we were ready to get packed up for the drive in!
We all threw on our Space Jam shirts...
packed up our Space Jam snacks and we were on our way!
We arrived at the drive in a little early to make sure we got a prime spot. There were a few cars in front of us, but while we were waiting the kids were getting primed for the movie by watching some old Looney Tunes cartoons I brought for them to watch on our van's DVD player.
Around 9:30pm, we were settled in, had popcorn and snacks in hand and the movie started. We all enjoyed it and some of the cameos in the movie were pretty cool to see. My favorite was the Michael Jordan scene. Overall it was entertaining, but not as good as the original Space Jam. If you were a fan of Space Jam or LeBron James, I would highly recommend you give this movie a watch. My kids actually want to go back to the drive in this weekend to see it again, but I'm thinking we will wait for the home release before we give Space Jam: A New Legacy a rewatch. What a great day full of fun, food and Fog Horn Leg Horn! Can't wait for Space Jam 3 to drop in 2046!!!
For more Space Jam goodness, check out these other posts from the past on 20 Years Before 2000!
The comic book I am most excited to read this week is... BLUE & GOLD #1
(W) Dan Jurgens (A) Ryan Sook
Desperate to regain the spotlight, Booster Gold looks to attract the public’s (and Justice League’s) attention the same way any washed-up, second-rate hero would—social media. The not-so-tech-savvy hero from the 25th century enlists the help of his best friend, Blue Beetle, who possesses both the money and the brains to help his old pal navigate the scary world of internet influencers. Watch out, evildoers, our heroes are live and online! Don’t miss Dan Jurgens’s triumphant return to Booster Gold with the help of all-star artist Ryan Sook (Legion of Super-Heroes), telling a tale filled with heart and maybe even redemption for DC’s two favorite underdogs!
Throw on your Tune Squad jersey and head to the Space Jam as we take you back to the 90's! Without further ado, here is the 20 Years Before 2000 THROWBACK JAM OF THE WEEK!
Artist: Quad City DJ's Song: Space Jam Album: Space Jam: Music From and Inspired by the Motion Picture (1996) Peak Billboard Hot 100 Position: 37 Bonus Fun Fact: This song was part of the Space Jam soundtrack that reached #2 on the US Billboard 200 chart. In 2001 the soundtrack was certified 6x platinum by the RIAA!
One of the great thrills of growing up in the 80's/90's was that every great cartoon had it's own magazine. From He-Man to Garfield to The Real Ghostbusters had their own magazine. It was such a feeling of joy to go to the mail box, or P.O. Box in my case, and pull out a the new month's magazine. This is a joy that sadly kids these days will not be able to have. Anyway, when I was growing up one of the magazine subscriptions my Mom did allow us to have was for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Magazine! We had a subscription for a few years starting with issue #1.
When I saw a recent ebay auction from the collection of Gary Richardson, CEO of Mirage Publishing, pop up with several of these TMNT Magazine issues, I put in a low bid amount and actually ended up winning! It was incredible to flip through these issues after all these decades. They had posters, exclusive TMNT comics, feature stories and of course ads! What better way to sell TMNT items then in a TMNT magazine. Today I would like to share a few of these ads with you in the hopes that stirs up those good feelings from back in the day. ENJOY!
The comic book I am most excited to read this week is... MY LITTLE PONY: FRIENDSHIP IS MAGIC #100 (W) Jeremy Whitley (A) Brenda Hickey (A/CA) Andy Price Season 10 continues here in a landmark issue! Rainbow Dash, Spitfire, Celaeno, Lyra, and Bon Bon find themselves in the Bird Kingdom, where old friendships are tested and a new, mysterious enemy lurks in the shadows... who are the Knights of Harmony? SRP: $7.99 Synopsis Provided By: PreviewsWorld.com
Throw on your bright red codpiece and head to Times Square as we take you back to the 80's! Without further ado, here is the 20 Years Before 2000 THROWBACK JAM OF THE WEEK!
Artist: Cameo Song: Candy Album: Word Up! (1986) Peak Billboard Hot 100 Position: 21 Bonus Fun Fact: This song has been sampled by such musical acts as 2pac Shakur, Will Smith, The Black Eyed Peas, Mariah Carey and 8ball & MJG!
A few weeks ago I showed off some incredible items that myself and the fam saw at a local antique store. some incredible items there. Of course the majority of it was way over priced, but I did manage to score some solid deals on a few items. These are those items!
1989 Topps Baseball Pack
I have collected baseball cards since 1987 and recently the hobby has become quite the cluster. Resellers are snapping up everything they can before collectors like myself can even get a pack. Cards that used to sell for around $2 a pack last year, will now set you back at $25 on the secondary market. I found this unopened Topps pack at one of the booths for $5! I could see the pack contained several Hall of Fame players like Kirby Puckett, Rickey Henderson and a Craig Biggio rookie card. Those guys alone justified the $5 price tag. Hoping to score a fresh Bo in this pack!
Masters of The Universe: Buzz-Off
Buzz-Off was one the first Masters of the Universe action figures that I ever owned, so he holds a soft spot in my heart. He was $7 and I was happy to find that he still had his wings, so Buzz-Off is now hanging with He-Man & Skeletor on my MOTU shelf in the basement.
Mighty Ducks Puck
Myself & my kids had been watching an episode of the new Mighty Ducks: Game Changers series on Disney+ every Saturday as part of our weekend morning routine. We just finished the series a few weeks ago and we all loved it! It was nostalgic and a bit predictable, but still a very fun watch. We saw this puck in a case and probably overpaid for it at $5, but we were still in the afterglow of the Don't Bothers big win. It now resides on my daughter's dresser in the girls room.
Pac-Man Candy Tin
I am a sucker for anything that is vintage Pac-Man. This tin was produced in the early 80's at the height of "Pac-Man Fever" and at one point held candy inside. I know this because their was still 40 year old candy residue in it! I did a quick Google search and saw that these tins can go for around $30, so not a bad pickup for $3.
Swimming Smurf and Peewit
We saw quite a few Smurfs at some of the booths in the antique store, but the prices were higher than what I would like to pay. As I said in a previous post, I have loved the Smurfs for as far back as I can remember. I still even have the Smurfs blanket my Mom made back when I was about 2 years old! Anyway, I found these 2 Smurfs figures for $3 each. I picked the swimming Smurf because my neighbor used to have him and I loved playing with him and I had never seen a Peewit figure before and thought he would be a cool addition to my Smurf collection. Now I just need to find a figure of his buddy, Johan!
Street Shark Streex
Any time you find a Street Sharks figure, you must pick it up! This one was in good shape for around $7. My younger brother loved the show and toys back in the 90's, but I always thought they were a TMNT ripoff. I guess that's partly true, but it wasn't until recently that I have come to appreciate these heroes who kick some serious fin. I have been watching the cartoon with my son recently and I see the joy in his face while it's on and I can finally see it for what it's worth. It's a fun trip back to the 90's full of absurd action and characters with a JAWSOME intro song. I'd like to end this post by sharing that song with you below...ENJOY!
The comic book I am most excited to read this week is... MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE: REVELATION #1 (W) Kevin Smith, Rob David, Tim Sheridan (A) Mindy Lee (CA) Stjepan Sejic This is the official comic book prequel to the upcoming Netflix television show written by Executive Producers Kevin Smith and Rob David and episode writer Tim Sheridan and featuring art by Mindy Lee (Crimson Lotus). Following a vicious Orlax attack on his father King Randor, He-Man learns the creature is linked to the origin of the sword of power. To save Randor and put an end to the chaos He-Man embarks on an epic journey that pits him against his longtime foes Skeletor and Evil-Lyn, and sees Teela take the reins of a powerful legacy. The official prequel to the upcoming Netflix show! SRP: $3.99
Throw on your dopest party suit and head to the studio as we take you back to the 80's! Without further ado, here is the 20 Years Before 2000 THROWBACK JAM OF THE WEEK!
Artist: Johnny Kemp Song: Just Got Paid Album: Secrets of Flying (1988) Peak Billboard Hot 100 Position: 10 Bonus Fun Fact: This song was written & produced by Kemp with help from Teddy Riley. The final version of this song was intended for another singer, but Kemp's sample "scratch vocal" was what ended up on the released single! NSYNC did a cover of this song in 2000.
It's been a crazy year, so I hope everyone can safely celebrate this amazing American holiday full of block parties, cookouts and breath taking fire works displays. Meet up with family & friends and toss the baseball around the backyard while patriotic music plays on the jam box and the smells of mouth watering barbecue fills the air! Let's make this a 4th of July to remember! God bless America!!!!
