The Montreal Comic Con has now come and gone and it’s safe to say it was a huge success. A small, intimate convention pulling around 2500 attendees, it was an absolute blast featuring some of the most awesome artists (Darwyn Cooke, Mike Allred, Karl Kershl and Herb Trimpe just to name a few), stellar guests (both the Hulk and Lou Ferrigno were in attendance), cool companies (Eidos showed off Arkham Asylum and brought giveaways) and more. With next year shaping up to be even bigger, we at CmdStore.com can’t wait to attend!
And until then, I’ll be looking forward to taking part in our upcoming show, the Montreal ToyCon. Featuring a ton of retailers selling the best of the best figures and collectibles, awesome LEGO and art showcases, plus appearances by the 501st Legion and dozens of other cosplayers, it’s definitely worth the trip down.
The Montreal ToyCon takes place October 18th, 2009 at the Courtyard by Marriott, from 10am to 5pm. Tickets are only $4, with kids 5 and under getting in free.
And before I sign off, here’s a look at the fun we had this past weekend at the Montreal Comic Con. There were comic books, toys, creators, cosplayers and more!
If you said “Saturday”, you’re right. And if you said the Montreal Comic Con, then you’re right about that one, too. But the answer we’re looking for is that September 19th is…
TALK LIKE A PIRATE DAY!
That’s right! Talk like a Pirate Day lets people all over the world unleash their inner buccaneer for 24 hours of Awesome. And to make things even better, this year, even wannabe pirate Guybrush Threepwood is getting in on the action!
On the 19th, you can get yourself a FREE download of the first chapter from the latest Monkey Island Adventure, Tales of Monkey Island. It’s available as WiiWare and boasts the return of the games awesome cast, confounding but entertaining puzzles and a stellar script.
So if you’re not too busy pillaging, make sure to take the time out to snag this Lucasarts/TellTale hit!
A follow-up to our last post announcing The Sims 3: World Adventures, here’s an artcle from Kotaku that tells use about a brand new addition that makes the expansion pack even better.
The Sims 3 expansion pack World Adventures brings with it a basement tool, which everyone will use to build tombs, and not underground Sim torture chambers.
The new basement tool allows The Sms 3 players to create underground structures up to four levels deep, and EA has plenty of new tomb objects in store in order to help facilitate the joy of exploration. Objects like the Fogger, which hides unexplored areas from the player’s view, or hidden stairways, which help facilitate secret passages. Other important objects include that old staple the floor switch, and traps that shoot fire, steam, electricity, or darts. This is going to be so much fun. Toss in a couple Saw-inspired face bear traps and I’ll be in heaven.
Check out the rather large list of tomb objects EA released today below, and start planning out your tomb so you can get building when the expansion arrives on November 17th.
And yes, I am already planning my underground Sim torture chamber, but don’t you dare judge me, or you’ll be right there with them.
Here is some of the dozens of Tomb Objects and Object Updates:
Tomb Object (Fogger): The tomb object is the cornerstone of tomb building and will often be placed in every room of the tomb. The Tomb Object is what creates the “fog” that hides non-explored rooms from the player. This lets you create a sense of discovery and suspense as your Sims explore new tombs. The “fog” will recede from a room when a player enters the room through a door, descends stairs into the room, enters a room that is connected to a fogged room with an arch, or if a Sim “Looks Through” a window that looks into a fogged room. Adding or Removing fog is also a potential Activated Behavior.
Floor Switch: The floor switch is a classic adventure game object. It is a small, 1 tile floor object on which Sims can stand or push statues. Stepping On and Off the switch are both Triggers that can connect to Activated behaviors. Floor Switches can also be set to Appear or Disappear.
Wall and Floor Trap: The traps are two different objects that can be placed on the wall or floor. These can be set to shoot fire, darts, steam, or electricity on unsuspecting Sims. They can have a variety of states, including hidden and dormant, armed and visible, hidden and armed, or hidden and firing. Each of these states can be activated by Sims walking over them or as an Activated Behavior. Traps can light Sims on fire or knock them out. However, there are multiple ways to handle traps. Sims can disarm them by tinkering with them, or push statues upon them to disarm. Water will disarm a fire trap, which makes a great puzzle element when paired with the steam trap…which creates water! Sims can walk with immunity through a fire trap when soaked. Experiment and come up with your own puzzles!
Dive Well: Dive Wells are one of the most exciting Tomb Objects. Sims can use them to become Soaked, which makes them immune to fire, or to put themselves out when already on fire. A Hidden Switch can be set at the bottom of dive wells as a Trigger. You can always place treasures at the bottom. Another fun element is that you can set the color of the water in the dive well, so fire tombs can have blood red water, whereas a tomb with a poison theme can have murky green water. Dive Wells are most fun when they are set up as portals. Dive Wells set as Portals will connect to each other. Sims will go to the bottom, and then emerge from the closest dive well on the same floor. It’s also possible to designate a Dive Well as an Uber Dive Well. Here, you designate a name so that you can define the precise point of origin and exit – even across multiple lots in the world. This lets you create one-of-a-kind entrances to island tombs and other inaccessible areas.
Treasure Chest: The biggest reason to explore anything is to find treasure at the end. Treasure Chests let you fill your tomb creations with various treasures, keys, garbage, or whatever you can imagine. Opening and Inserting a Keystone a treasure chest are also Triggers that can set Activated Behaviors.
Sarcophagus: The Sarcophagus can act as a large, ornate treasure chest, a place to hide, a place to sleep, and even a place to WooHoo. Most exciting, however, is its ability to spawn mummies. Mummies will patrol tombs in search of unsuspecting Sims to pummel and *gasp* curse! Mummies provide an element of danger and the unexpected to any tomb.
Torch Lever: The torch lever, like the Floor Switch, is an object for Sims to pull on to trigger Activated Behaviors. Some can be set to active, whereas others can be dummies, forcing players to carefully examine their surroundings. It’s possible to define the colors of the torch light, which allows Tomb Designers to provide hints and clues on how to complete puzzles. Or, to simply set the ambience of a tomb!
Pushable Statues: Pushable Statues are another classic adventure game element. They can be pushed on top of traps to disarm them, or cleverly pushed through a maze to unveil a formerly blocked path. Their most common use is to be paired with a floor switch. Floor Switch triggers can be set so that they activate something when a Sim is on them, but deactivate as soon as a Sim steps off of them. This means a Sim must push a statue on top of them in order to keep the floor switch depressed. Pushable Statues can be set to be secretly pushable (they require inspection), visibly pushable (no inspection needed), or not pushable at all.
Hidden Stairways: Stairways from The Sims 3 can be set to Hidden now. This is an Activated Behavior, so that a Trigger can now Hide or Unhide the stairs. Hidden Stairways are a great way to surprise players. Just when it seems there’s no way out, pulling a switch reveals a stairway!
On the heels of the Twilight 2-Pack from NECA comes the next series of toys from the film franchise based on Stephanie Meyers’ trendy vampire book series.
The first series of toys from the hotly-anticipated New Moon consists of four figures: Edward and Bella, plus Alice and the werewolf, Jacob Black. Rendered with all the skill you’ve come to expect from the folks at NECA, they look just like the actors and are a great way for fans to get just a little bit closer to their favourite characters–or just Robert Pattinson.
In or around Montreal and looking for something to do this weekend?
Then make your way down to the Montreal Comic Con, which this year is bigger and better than ever! A two day pass is a mere $15 (one day is $10), so come check it out!
Saturday, September 19th, 2009, from 11:00am to 6:00pm
Sunday, September 20th, 2009, from 10:00am to 5:00pm
Place Bonaventure, room 200-N
800, rue de la Gauchetière Ouest, Montreal, WC
Still an intimate convention (meaning you get more time to shop for your favourite comics and collectibles and talk to your favourite artists, writers and personalities), this year boasts talents like Darywn Cooke (Catwoman, The Hunter, New Frontier, etc.), Michael Allred (Madman, Mallrats, X-Statix, etc.), Karl Kershl (The Abominable Charles Christopher, Teen Titans, etc.), Kelly Tindall (Proof, Squeak, Archie Snow, etc.) and many, many more. Check out the official site for more details.
Naturally, we’ll be exhibiting our wares at the Comic Con, so come check out out among other exhibitors like Eidos Montreal, NCW, IWS, Paradise Comics, Komico and more. It’s sure to be an awesome time, so hurry down!
And then, in October, Montreal plays host to yet another convention: The Montreal ToyCon! Featuring dozens of retailers selling literally thousands of toys and collectibles, old and new. It hits the Marriott on October 18th, so come check us out! For more details, here’s a link to the official site!
LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) – Patrick Swayze, whose hunky good looks and sympathetic performances in such films as “Dirty Dancing” and “Ghost” made him a romantic idol to millions, died Monday. He was 57.
Swayze died of pancreatic cancer, his publicist, Annett Wolf, told CNN.
“Patrick Swayze passed away peacefully today with family at his side after facing the challenges of his illness for the last 20 months,” Wolf said in a statement Monday.
Swayze’s doctor, Dr. George Fisher, revealed in early March 2008 that Swayze was fighting the disease.
Most recently, Swayze starred in A&E network’s “The Beast,” which debuted in January. He agreed to take the starring role of an undercover FBI agent before his diagnosis. The network agreed to shoot an entire season of the show after Swayze responded well to cancer treatment.
In an interview with ABC’s Barbara Walters in January, Swayze said his work on that show was exhausting, requiring 12-hour workdays in Chicago, Illinois, doing his own stunts. But he said the show’s character “just felt right for my soul.”
“If I leave this Earth, I want to leave this Earth just knowing I’ve tried to give something back and tried to do something worthwhile with myself,” Swayze told Walters, when asked why he decided to do the show. “And that keeps me going, that gets me up in the morning. My work … is my legacy.”
“The Beast” was canceled in June because of Swayze’s illness, after doctors told him the cancer had spread to his liver.
We are saddened by the loss of one of our generation’s greatest talents and a member of the A&E family,” a statement from the network said. “Patrick’s work on ‘The Beast’ was an inspiration to us all. He will be greatly missed and our thoughts are with his wife, Lisa, and his entire family during this difficult time.”
Swayze was mostly known for a handful of supporting roles when he broke through with his performance as dance instructor Johnny Castle in 1987′s “Dirty Dancing.”
Co-star Jennifer Grey, who played his young lover, “Baby” Houseman, in the film, described Swayze as “gorgeous and strong.”
“Patrick was a rare and beautiful combination of raw masculinity and amazing grace. … He was a real cowboy with a tender heart. He was fearless and insisted on always doing his own stunts, so it was not surprising to me that the war he waged on his cancer was so courageous and dignified,” Grey said in a statement.
“When I think of him, I think of being in his arms when we were kids, dancing, practicing the lift in the freezing lake, having a blast doing this tiny little movie we thought no one would ever see. My heart goes out to his wife and childhood sweetheart, Lisa Niemi, to his mom, Patsy, and to the rest of their family.”
Three years later, he became an even bigger star with the movie “Ghost,” in which he played investment banker Sam Wheat, who dies and learns to tap into his unspoken feelings for his partner, Molly Jensen, played by Demi Moore.
“Patrick you are loved by so many and your light will forever shine in all of our lives,” Moore said in a statement.
“In the words of Sam to Molly. ‘It’s amazing Molly. The love inside, you take it with you.’ I will miss you.”
“Ghost” won Whoopi Goldberg an Oscar and helped make Swayze People magazine’s “Sexiest Man Alive” in 1991.
“Patrick was a really good man, a funny man and one to whom I owe much that I can’t ever repay,” Goldberg said in a statement. “I believe in ‘Ghost’s message, so he’ll always be near.”
Swayze told Entertainment Weekly in 1990 that, “The movies that have had the most powerful effects on my life have been about romantic characters.”
He expanded on the effort he put into love scenes for People in 1991.
“It’s possibly the scariest thing I do,” he said, “doing something so personal and giving people out there the opportunity to see if you’re a good kisser or not.”
Patrick Wayne Swayze was born on August 18, 1952, in Houston, Texas. His father was an engineering draftsman; his mother was a ballet dancer and later the director of the Houston Ballet Dance Company.
She led her son into the dancing world, which wasn’t always easy for a Texas male. The young Swayze played football, practiced martial arts and was an accomplished diver and track star while growing up, though he was good enough at dance to earn a college scholarship.
After playing Prince Charming in an early 1970s version of “Disney on Ice,” Swayze returned to Houston, where he met Lisa Niemi, a student of his mother’s. The two married in 1975 and moved to New York to pursue their careers.
Swayze seemed set on a dance career: He studied with the prestigious Joffrey Ballet and joined another company, the Eliot Feld Ballet Company. But surgery for an old football injury ended his ballet career and he turned to acting, nabbing the lead role of Danny Zuko in the long-running Broadway production of “Grease” in 1978, about the time the movie starring John Travolta was hitting theaters. “Grease” earned Swayze some Hollywood attention, and he and Niemi moved West.
After a couple of bit parts, including one in a 1981 episode of “M*A*S*H,” Swayze picked up the role of Darrel Curtis in Francis Ford Coppola’s 1983 film “The Outsiders.”
The movie included future stars Matt Dillon, Rob Lowe, Ralph Macchio, Emilio Estevez and Tom Cruise.
Swayze also was one of the leads in 1984′s “Red Dawn,” about teenagers defending their town from a Soviet attack on America.
“Not only did we lose a fine actor today, I lost my older ‘Outsiders’ brother,” actor C. Thomas Howell, who also starred with Swayze in “Red Dawn” and “Grandview, U.S.A.”
But it was with “Dirty Dancing” that Swayze hit it big. The film about a girl’s coming of age at a Catskills, New York, resort in the early ’60s was intended for a limited release but became one of the decade’s biggest sleeper hits and made Swayze and Grey household names.
The film gave birth to a catchphrase — “Nobody puts Baby in a corner,” spoken by Swayze’s character to Grey’s domineering father — and led to a follow-up, 2004′s “Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights.”
Swayze even sang a Top 10 hit, “She’s Like the Wind,” on the film’s soundtrack.
Swayze, known as a down-to-earth, nice-guy actor, was determined not to follow a predictable career path. He followed “Dirty Dancing” with “Road House” (1989), in which he played a manager of a rough-and-tumble bar (the film was particularly popular on late-night cable).
He succeeded “Ghost” with “Point Break” (1991), about a group of thieves; “City of Joy” (1992), in which he played a doctor in a poverty-stricken Indian village; and “To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything, Julie Newmar” (1995), in which he starred as a drag queen.
“I don’t want to be Mr. Romantic Leading Man. I don’t want to be the Dance Dude. I don’t want to be the Action Guy. If I had to do any one of those all my life, it’d drive me crazy,” he told Entertainment Weekly in a 1990 interview.
Swayze’s career diminished in the late ’90s. He broke both legs in 1997 while making the film “Letters From a Killer,” and went into rehab for a drinking problem.
In 2000, he was flying in his twin-engine plane when it depressurized; Swayze landed in a housing development in Arizona. Though some witnesses said he appeared intoxicated, he was later revealed to have been suffering from hypoxia, related to the depressurization and his three-pack-a-day cigarette habit.
Swayze re-established his knack for picking sleepers with “Donnie Darko” (2001), a dark film about a troubled student that became a sensation on video. Swayze played a creepy motivational speaker and won raves.
Swayze’s more recent work included a TV version of “King Solomon’s Mines” and 2007′s “Christmas in Wonderland.”
Though he still made hearts flutter — 22-year-old Scarlett Johansson, on receiving Harvard’s Hasty Pudding Award in February 2007, said her dream date was “probably Patrick Swayze, my dream come true” — Swayze wasn’t too impressed with himself.
“Good-looking people turn me off,” he once said. “Myself included.”
Swayze is survived by his wife of more than 30 years, Lisa, and his mother, Patsy.
Back by popular demand, Series 9 of the DC Universe collection from DC Direct has been re-stocked and is back on our shelves. So if you were waiting on your favourite member of the series 9 crew, your time has come.
Wildcat, Green Arrow, Black Canary, Deadshot and The Flash are just a few of the figures in this collection of DC Heroes and Villains. Each toy comes with one piece of the massive Build-a-Figure. This time out, you can construct a terrifying rendering of the the toxic menace, Chemo. Doing so, of course, means that you will be joining the ranks of the most terrifying supervillains of all time, but as long as you’re prepared, we can supply you.
The one exception to the re-stock is the comic version of DC’s MANTIS. But never fear! Though he hasn’t yet arrived, we’re expecting a new shipment next week!
The court auction for the bankrupt Phoenix Coyotes NHL team has concluded its final day with little indication of how the judge overseeing it may rule.
Canadian billionaire Jim Balsillie has been trying to buy the Coyotes for the past four months. An auction for the team, which is being overseen by Judge Redfield T. Baum, wrapped up on Friday after two days of hearings.
At the conclusion of Friday’s hearing Baum said he would hand down his decision at a later date, but didn’t say when that might be.
Balsillie has an offer on the table, as does the NHL, and both adjusted their offers as the clock ticked down during the hearing.
The co-CEO of Research in Motion Ltd., the Ontario firm that makes the ubiquitous BlackBerry smartphone, has offered to buy the Coyotes for US$242.5 million, so long as the team can be moved to Hamilton, Ont.
The league has offered $140 million for temporary ownership, with plans to sell the team outside of bankruptcy.
Balisille improved his offer in the final moments with a guarantee that Glendale, the city where the team now plays, would get $50 million. He also removed the Sept. 21 deadline for a deal, from his offer.
The NHL agreed that Coyotes owner Jerry Moyes and managing partner Wayne Gretzky, should take a $14 million payout. In its original deal, the NHL offered nothing to Moyes.
However, Baum has said it’s possible he will reject both offers, resulting in no sale, and that any successful buyer will have to satisfy several legal criteria.
The NHL claims Balsillie is ineligible to bid on the team since the league’s board of governors rejected his application for ownership by a margin of 26-0.
The main opponent to Balsillie’s ownership bid is NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman. He took the stand Friday for about 40 minutes, defending his argument that the league is best positioned to take over ownership of the team.
While on the stand, Bettman dismissed the claim he put the NHL in a conflict of interest by secretly plotting to buy the team before the league rejected his offer. Bettman said the NHL didn’t decide to put an offer together until about 24 hours before they submitted it.
Balsillie had also been expected to take the stand Friday, but the league’s lawyers waived their right to cross-examination.
Tony Clark, the lawyer representing the NHL, said if Baum rejects both bids the league will seek a ruling allowing it to take control of the team to prepare for a resale.
A third offer for the team — worth $148 million and led by Jerry Reinsdorf, owner of the Chicago White Sox and Bulls — was scrapped in late August.
Balsillie’s legal team has urged the judge to overturn the NHL governors’ decision to reject him as an owner. They’ve also asked that the ruling allow the team to be relocated without the league’s permission.
Jeffrey Kessler, one of Balsillie lawyers, has argued the team would be more successful in Hamilton, and the judge should make his decision accordingly.
NHL lawyer Tony Clark has asked whether Balsillie has the right to be an owner, underscoring that Balisllie’s lawyers had referred to a “secret conspiracy” by the Toronto Maple Leafs to keep a team out of Hamilton.
I came in this morning only to be greeted by three new faces: Tony Stark, the White Queen and X-23. Naturally, I would never complain about starting a day off with Robert Downey Jr. and the girls seem to be faring well with the male contingent here in the office. They’re the latest additions to Sideshow’s dazzling Marvel collection and some of the best yet. Best of all, they can be yours (well, maybe we’ll keep one..) by checking out our awesome collection of Marvel Collectibles by Sideshow Toys. But first, here’s a look at the trio now gracing our office with their esteemed presence.
Adam Hughes’ Black Queen Comiquette features another stunning recreation of Hughes’ incredible art. All the smooth lines and pin-up simplicity are retained while still offering every detail and texture element that makes his art so unique. As beautiful in her sensuality as she is in her power and with cape flowing around her legs and whip held almost lazily in one hand, she looks every bit as regal as her name suggests.
X-23 is a relatively new character in the Marvel universe, especially in this incarnation, but judging by her design, she’s here to stay. A mutant whose dangerous claws give her an easy physical advantage over those who might underestimate her, this sculpture is tantalizing enough that anyone would be willing to take the risk.
My personal favourite from this week’s shipment is this Iron Man Mark I statue. The detail on this thing has to be seen to be believed. Not only does it light up, but every piece of tarnished metal, ever joint and even the rugged tan on Tony Stark’s face is perfect. From all angles, it’s just a really impressive toy and would make a great addition to the shelf of any Iron Man or Marvel (or RDJ!) fan.
The pending sale of the Montreal Canadiens will soon put the hockey team in the hands of a partnership group led by the Molson family, after eight years of majority ownership by U.S. businessman George Gillett.
The partnership group that will be acquiring the team includes Bell, the Woodbridge Company Ltd., the QFL Solidarity Fund, as well as businessmen Luc Bertrand and Michael Andluaer, who owns the hockey team’s farm club. It will take control of the hockey team, the Bell Centre and the Gillett Entertainment Group, which handles concerts and other events at the hockey arena.
The Quebec government provided a $75-million loan so that the deal could go forth.
The deal remains subject to approval by the National Hockey League, and is expected to be officially completed within a few weeks.
The structure of the new ownership group was announced Thursday at the hockey team’s annual charity golf tournament.
Geoff Molson will act as chairman and chief executive officer of the new partnership group.
“As head of the partnership group, I look forward to working with the club’s existing management team as we embark in this exciting new challenge,” Molson said in a statement released Thursday.
According to a news release, two-thirds of the money involved in the deal was invested by Quebec-based partners.
The financial terms of the deal have not been disclosed, though CTV Montreal’s Daniele Hamamdjian said some reports have placed the value of the sale as being between $575 million and $600 million.
The pending deal was originally announced in June, when Gillett said he had reached an agreement to sell his majority share in the team.
On June 20, Gillett said he was pleased to sell the team back to the Molsons, who have had a hand in Canadiens history for decades.
“Our family has been very proud to be associated with the Montreal Canadiens over the past eight years and particularly to be a part of their Centennial Season,” Gillett said.
“I am fully confident that the Molson brothers, who have been a great part of the heritage of the club, will ensure the preservation and development of this great sports institution.”
Gillett bought 80.1 per cent of the team in 2001, as well as the Bell Centre, for the sum of $275 million.
The remaining 19.9 per cent of the team that is owned by Molson Coors, would be transferred to the control of the partnership group under the terms of the pending deal.
Gillett told reporters that the only thing he regrets about his eight-year stretch as Canadiens owner was that he could not bring back another Stanley Cup to Montreal.
The Canadiens last won the Stanley Cup in the 1992-1993 NHL season.
We just got our shipment of McFarlane NHL Hockey Series 22 featuring former Habs Captain Saku Koivu and many others…..check it out.
Posted by actionfigurecanada 
The Sims 3: World Adventures, here’s an artcle from 
