 As we promised, we're going to be doing a series of Cosplayer Spotlights and were going to give a fun interview to those Cosplayers whom we are fans of. This week we're spotlighting the lovely Ami Sonia!
Truthful Comics- So Sonia, let's start by asking you how long have you been Cosplaying?.
Ami Sonia- Actually I just started cosplaying this year... I've never done it before so I'm still a big newbie! Lol
TC- Cosplay or Crossplay? Or both?
Ami Sonia- Cosplay. Crossplay takes an immense amount of talent and ingenuity and I dont think I would do many male characters much justice.
Truthful Comics- Why do you Cosplay?
Ami Sonia- I cosplay for three reasons: its fun and it provides a great way to meet awesome new people who have the same interests and likes as I do, the feeling of seeing how much of a positive impact you make with kids and seeing them light up is just overwhelming, but mostly because everytime I look at my six year old son's face as he watches other kids run to me and are excited about the character I'm playing, all I see is pride. It's awesome knowing that your kid is proud of you... sappy I know. lol
 Truthful Comics- Is Cosplay a hobby you consider yourself doing for a long time?
Ami Sonia- Honestly, the more involved I get with cosplaying, the more excitement and ideas consume me. Yeah, I know its something I'm going to be enjoying for a long time to come.
Truthful Comics- Homemade Cosplay or bought/comissioned cosplay?
Ami Sonia- So far, bought cosplay. Eventually I would like to commission my own ideas to life but I lack skill at constructing anything so I doubt I will ever make one handmade... but then again, one should never say never!
Truthful Comics- Do you have a current Cosplay fav?
Ami Sonia- My most expensive, favorite and attention getting cosplay has to be Wonder Woman... its the only one I've done! lol
Truthful Comics- What is a cosplay pet peeve of yours?
Ami Sonia- I'm too new at this to have a pet peeve... I'm just still star struck and excited about the whole lot of it.
 Truthful Comics- What Cosplay has gotten more attention from your fans?
Ami Sonia- I was asked to go to a toy and comic con in Orlando, FL earlier in the year and couldn't believe how many people were excited and eager to get a photo with me (Wonder Woman).
Truthful Comics- Photoshopped or un-photoshopped images?
Ami Sonia- So far un-Photoshopped... I'm praying to have the ability to work with people who are talented and creative with the whole Photoshop thing!
Truthful Comics- How do you pay for your cosplays?
Ami Sonia- Out of pocket. Im a single mom and often life has a way of sucking you back to reality, but little by little I save what I need to fund the costumes.
Truthful Comics- When do you do Cosplays? At conventions only?
Ami Sonia- So far only a mini con and at my favorite comic book store ( colissium of comics sanford, fl) for free comic book day.
Truthful Comics- What got you into Cosplaying?
Ami Sonia- My son Justice. He showed an interest in comic book heroes and it kind of developed from there.
TC- Well, thank you for your time and continued success in all your endeavors. We definitely look forward to your next Cosplays and who knows, maybe you'll be Cosplaying as one of Truthful Comics' characters in the near future!
Best;
-M
 Why does Image matter?
By: Brian Harris
When I ask why does image matter? There are many ways to take it. But I am probably thinking of none of the ways you're thinking about. Being a high school English teacher I am always dealing with image, either the image I am portraying to my students, the image the students are portraying to one another, the image my class has when they are out and even as far and more importantly the image the author is portraying to us through their words with the literature we are reading.
 But again, none of these are the image I am speaking of...and I am more than an English Teacher. I am also an avid reader of comics and at one time owned my own Comic Store. The Image I am writing about is the publisher that may register only with the true comic fan. Although, if I bring up The Walking Dead many in the general population have heard about it, seen the show or anything associated with the show. They do not know who the publisher is. When talking to the non comic fan they know of Marvel and DC and the bigger than life heroes, Batman, Superman, Spider-Man, The Avengers and X-Men that are associated with those labels. But the general population do not know which character belongs to which publisher.
 It's important to know what Image is to understand why they are important. So what is Image? According to their website, "Image is a comics and graphic novels publisher formed in 1992 by seven of Marvel Comics' best-selling artists. Since that time, Image has gone on to become the third largest comics publisher in the United States." While owning my comic store I had a chance to meet and befriend one of the aforementioned artists that left Marvel to make Image. These artists were making characters and money for Marvel and felt like they had no control. Characters they fully created were being controlled by Marvel. I was told of the story of Jim Lee creating Gambit and then losing all rights to him because Lee created Gambit under the Marvel umbrella and through the title of Uncanny X-Men.
 These artists left Marvel because they wanted control of what they created. They wanted Creator Owned comics. What does "creator-owned" mean? "Creator-owned" means exactly that—the trademark and copyright of the work in question is wholly owned by its original creator. The majority of the comics and graphic novels published by Image are creator-owned. While Image as a company does have some say in the promotion and distribution of the titles it publishes, it is done with non-creative interference to protect the company and maintain responsibility for their public image.
Image allows the creator to create and control. They allow creators a way to get out there to the public and in the general comic store. without Image, many of comics current best story lines would not see the light if day. We would not have The Walking Dead and the cultural phenomenal that has bred with it. It is important that creators have options out there that allow them to keep the rights to all they create and be paid for it. I know in my own writing I'd want my characters to do what I want through what I create and not be taken away from me which could be done with the other publishers.
 Don't get me wrong...I read more then Image. I read good, well written comics. Doesn't matter the publisher. I also know it's still the dream of any writer or artist to work on tales of their favorite superhero. I would love to have a crack at writing stories for Detective Comics and Batman, but I also want a place to go with my own creations are allowed to be and create through my own mind; DC and Marvel are not that option...and this is why Image Comics is important.
 Also, don't forget about donating to the Helping Callie Initiative. Let's help a great cosplayer and a wonderful young woman in a time of need! If you'd like to help Callie, please visit: http://www.gofundme.com/savingcallie?pc=flwdgt Donate to this noble cause , Callie needs our help NOW!!!Truthfully;-M
 For the past two months me and two of my internet buddies have been doing a podcast delving into the world of comic books, movies, video games and everything else pertaining our geek culture. I've decided to announce it here on the blog now because I wanted to make sure we were going to stick with it and also, see if it would even work and so far; it has! We still got a lot to learn in the world of podcasting but we'll have fun getting there and hopefully you'll join us along for the ride. I'd like to introduce the Truthful Comics Podcast crew to everyone and the reasoning why we decided to do this.
 First off we have the man with the most podcasting knowledge, the mastermind if you will, Aaron Hoover (a.k.a. Uncool Aaron). This is the man responsible for the recording and editing the podcast as well as being the master of ceremony if you will. But that's not all he does, Aaron is the co-host of another podcast called confessions of a Movie Snob and he recently launched the Nerdvana Network, a website dedicated to all things geek that also serves as homebase to his podcast as well as his blog. If you like movies, comic books and everything else geek, you should check it out: http://nerdvananetwork.com/
 Then there's our young ward, Nolan's Batman #1 fan and Truthful Comics Podcast's boy wonder himself: Cory A. Gaitan! This dude has an encyclopedic knowledge of the Nolan Batman Universe as well as anything related to the Dark Knight. This self proclaimed DC fanboy is also writing his own comic book as well, so pretty soon we'll all be reading his work alongside our regular comic books. Cory is also an avid gamer and DC Comics connoisseur, so if you're thinking about picking up any DC book or maybe jumping into the New 52, it might do you a lot of good to listen to this young man.
 And last but not least is me, Manuel A. Carmona. As you might or might not know, I'm the co-founder of Truthful Comics as well as President of a non-profit organization called Comics For Christmas ( http://www.truthfulcomics.com/comics-for-christmas.html) and I'm also a comic book artist (Captain Action, Phazer, Project: New Wave). I'm a huge Star Wars fan as well as a longtime comic book fan. I read comic books on many genres and companies from Marvel to DC to Image to Dynamite and I'm a self proclaimed crusader of Ultimate Spider-Man (Miles Morales), The Mighty Thor and Stephanie Brown (Batgirl) LOL!
Listen to the Truthful Comics Podcast HERE: http://www.truthfulcomics.com/podcast.htmlI hope you join us on this crazy ride and enjoy our podcasting shenanigans. If you have any comments or suggestions, please leave them on our comments section, we'd really appreciate it! -M
 Today was one of those days when I just wanted to take my family out for a long drive without a specific destination and just wing it. Fill up the gas tank, lower the door windows, open the sun roof, turn the volume and just enjoy the ride; so that's what we did! We drove for a while and my wife spotted a dance studio (she's a professional dancer) and asked me if we could stop real quick, to which I replied: "Sure". Of course, I immediately spotted a book store right next to the dance studio and I told her I wanted to check it out afterwards. The books store was independently owned and it looked inviting.
 There were tow male clerks who immediately acknowledge me and my family and were very courteous, something that employees from every field are missing more and more these days! I looked around for a few minutes and they asked me if I needed help, but before I could ask them, I noticed that one of the clerks had a pile of at least 50 comics in front of him! All I could say was "Yes you do!" He looked at me funny and I said "Comics, do you guys carry comic books?" And he said "Yes we do!" He showed me three aisles full of comics ranging from Batman to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles to The Mighty Thor to Wildcats! It was a beautiful thing!!!
 As soon as I turned that corner where the clerk told me to, I was suddenly in front of what can only be described as a comic book hidden treasure! Even more so when it's located in Virginia Beach, so to me it felt like I was a pirate, and I discovered an abandoned treasure chest full of comic book gold! I'm talking about hundreds, if not thousands of comic books, and at great prices too! It's too bad that I had just went to my local comic shop and spent a pretty penny there, because I only had so much extra cash to spare. But rest assure, I'll be stopping by this book store on a more regular basis and I'll be getting a bunch of those comics they had in their store.
 So, next time you're in Virginia Beach and get the mood to buy some comic books, visit AFK Books, Music and Movies.
They're located at:
4801 Shore Drive, Suite D
Virginia Beach, VA 23455
(757) 962-1996.
 OK, so I saw Iron Man 3 in the theaters and I was itching to give you all my two cents about them the film but, I was giving you all some time to see it for yourselves. If the box office numbers are any indication, you've probably seen it by now so I don't think I'll be spoiling anything that you either haven't seen or haven't read on the internet already, so please; bear with me. :)
Due to the fact that I got the movie spoiled by some very annoying Facebook "friends", I went into the movie with a bit of negative feelings towards a few things regarding the treatment of classic characters; but I still gave it a chance. And guess what? I absolutely enjoyed this film! I actually enjoyed it way more than I thought I was going to for many reasons, and the few things that annoyed me weren't even that annoying after all. So, shall we begin?
 When we first see Tony Stark, he's having panic attacks, he's distant, doesn't sleep, he's hiding behind his work and his relationship with "Pepper" Potts is "rocky" to say the least. He's obviously still shaken up by the events that transpired in New York where he found himself looking for answers and for the first time, he had none! If there's one thing that Tony Stark can rely on is his genius and the ability to find all the answers, but the moment when he met a god of thunder, aliens and parallel worlds, he came to the abrupt realization that he was, as he himself puts it: "a man in a tin can".
 Enter: The Mandarin. For comic fans across the globe, The Mandarin is Iron Man's arch nemesis. Created by Stan Lee and designed by Don Heck, The Mandarin first appeared in Tales of Suspense #50 (February 1964), battling Iron Man of course! The character is described as being born in China before the Communist Revolution, to a wealthy Chinese father and an English aristocratic mother, both of whom died when he was very young. He is portrayed as a megalomaniac, attempting to conquer the world on several occasions, yet also possessing a strong sense of honor. The Mandarin is also a genius scientist and a superhumanly skilled martial artist. However, his primary source of power are ten power rings that he adapted from the alien technology of a crashed space ship. Each ring has a different power and is worn on a specific finger. But... as Hollywood often does, they completely changed the character to the point of him not even being "real", but just a ruse created by the true villain of the story. As you can tell, I'm a bit upset about this but I decided to just enjoy the movie for what it was and roll with the punches but I can totally understand why so many Iron Man fans are up in arms throughout the internet because of this plot twist. I feel your pain my brothers and sisters!
 Now, some of the best moments for me came by way of "Pepper" Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) and it went from fun to shock to amazement. She was vulnerable, funny and a badass at the same time and they did it in such a way that it takes you by surprise in such a great way! The fact that she puts on an Iron Man suit and saves Tony, she gets "killed" right in front of Tony and she comes back thanks in part to the villain, and she completely kicks ass; it was a blast to see on screen. Of course, Paltrow is always easy on the eyes, but to have her in a more action oriented role is perfect for the character, especially if you're a comic book fan like me, and have seen her become a part of the Iron man Corps and wear her own Iron Man suit, it was great to see in this movie a little bit of that. It also gives them the opportunity to potentially use her in a more demanding and active role n future installments of the series, which I hope they do.
 One of the cool things about this movie was the introduction of Iron Patriot into the fray. For those of you who don't read comics, the Iron Patriot armor is first worn by Norman Osborn during the Dark Reign storyline. Norman Osborn first dons the Iron Patriot armor when he establishes the Dark Avengers. The armor serves as an amalgam between Captain America and Iron Man. The Iron Patriot armor utilized a version of Iron Man's armor painted in the colors of the American flag. The armor featured superhuman strength, enhanced durability, flight, magnetic impact blasts, heat seeking missiles, miniaturized lasers, flamethrowers, and a communications system housed in his helmet which allowed him to interface with any U.S.-controlled satellite or computer network. While the original Iron Man armor utilized repulsor technology, Osborn's design does not. Stark destroyed all but one repulsor, and stated that "Oz is too stupid" to make his own repulsor-based weapons system. The star shaped Uni Beam projector on his chest because of its shape, also has a less powerful output than that of the original Iron Man model.
Now, in the movie, the Iron Patriot armor is an upgrade of the War Machine armor worn by James Rhodes (Don Cheadle). Rhodes is asked by the President to take on the Iron Patriot identity to be used as the US government's "American hero" symbol in response to the events that occurred in The Avengers. The armor is briefly stolen by Advanced Idea Mechanics (AIM) and used by Eric Savin to abduct the President, but Rhodes is able to recover the armor at the conclusion of the film and is the only Iron Man armor that still remains active. I personally enjoy seeing the character of "Rhodey" in action, be it as War Machine, Iron Patriot or as the soldier. He's one of the few people that Tony Stark can truly count on and he's also a badass; he proved it in this movie.
 Now to the real villain of the story, Aldrich Killiam. Dr. Aldrich Killiam was a brilliant scientist working alongside Dr. Maya Hansen. Together they developed Extremis, an attempt to create a new super soldier. Extremis was a techno-organic virus that rewrites the body's genetic code, regenerates organs and/or limbs, gives superhuman strength, speed, endurance, reflexes and the ability to project electricity and breathe fire. In the movie we see all of these features except the electricity part, but Killiam, in part because of Tony's egocentric tendencies, becomes obsessed with power and the desire of recognition. So, in a way, Tony Stark created his greatest foe.
He's also charming, elusive, conniving and just an evil genius the likes of which Tony Stark hadn't met before. Before all the genetic tinkering, Dr. Killiam was a genius, but after Extremis, he was also a physically superior to Tony Stark and for the first time, Tony was outmatched. It was truly a great battle at the end, and we could see just how superior Killiam was to Tony, how clever Tony had to be to even stand a chance against his most imposing threat ever and how lucky he is that the has loyal friends whom he can count on.
 All in all, I really enjoyed this film from beginning to end and like I said, even the parts that annoyed me didn't annoy me to the point of me not liking the film. If you haven't seen Iron Man 3 I got two things to say to you 1. Why haven't you? and 2. Give it a shot and I guarantee you it'll be money well spent.
I give it a rating of 8.5/10
-M
 The other night I was reminded why I love the internet so much! I've been a comic book fan since the early 90's and I've loved every minute of it. Of course I always follow artists since I'm an artist myself, and there have been a few that have always stayed at the top of my list in terms of the greats in my book. Jack Kirby is the first to pop in my head because of his importance to the comic book medium itself, but one of the most influential artists in the history of comics has to be the one I'm talking about today; Mr. George Perez!
His style is one of the most recognizable in the comics industry and I'd describe it as very "busy", because Mr. Perez has the gift of being able to put 10-15 characters in a page/panel and, not only make it work; but make it look amazing! Now, in the back of my mind I've always thought that Mr. Perez was from Puerto Rico not only because of his last name (Perez) but also for the fact that it'd be amazing if he was from the place I was born in. For those of you who don't know, Perez is a very Puertorican last name, it's almost like Smith or Johnson to the United States, so I had very hopes that this was the case. So, after all the years I've thought about this, only recently was I bold enough to apprach Mr. George Perez with my inquiry. Here's how the conversation went down...
Me- Mr. Perez, I'm a longtime fan of yours and I'm also a omic book artist. I'm currently working on my own book and I have a small indy label called Truthful Comics. But that's not why Im writing you, the reason for my email is to find something out that's been in my head for quite a while. My question is this, are you of Puertorican descent? I ask because I'm Puertorican and Perez is a very Puertorican last name. I could be wrong. Thank you for your time sir.
George Pérez- Manuel: Yes, I am Puerto Rican. Even though I was born and raised in New York City, my parents are both from Caguas.
Me- Oh man that's awesome!!! I lived all my life in Utuado, Puerto Rico and moved to Virginia 5 years ago. I hope I can meet you in person someday and hopefully I can get some original art from you (although Im pretty sure I cant afford it jeje) for my boy and tell him: "this was drawn by one of the greats, and turns out he's Puertorican like you!" Thanks for replying sir.  In case you don't know who George Perez is, here's a list of the books he's worked on throughout the years: DC- 52 #25 (Nightwing backup story) (2006)
- Action Comics (one page) #544; (full pencils): #643–45; (layouts only): #647–52, Annual #2 (1989–90)
- All-Star Squadron Annual #3 (among other artists) (1984)
- Batman #400 (among other artists) (1986)
- The Brave and the Bold, vol. 2, #1–10 (2007–08)
- Crisis on Infinite Earths #1–12 (1985–86)
- DC Comics Presents (New Teen Titans preview story) #26; (Superman and Omac) #61 (1980–83)
- DC Universe #0 (among other artists) (2008)
- DC Universe: Legacies #5–6 (2010)
- Flash (Firestorm backup stories) #289–93 (1980–81)
- Heroes Against Hunger (among other artists) (1986)
- Final Crisis: Legion of 3 Worlds, miniseries, #1–5 (2008–09)
- History of the DC Universe #1–2 (1987)
- Infinite Crisis, miniseries, #3–4, 6–7 (among other artists; 2006)
- Justice League of America, #184–86, 192–97, 200 (1980–82)
- Justice League of America, vol. 4, #0 (among other artists; 2006)
- Justice Society of America, vol. 2, #82 (2006)
- Justice Society of America, vol. 3, #50 (among other artists) (2011)
- New Teen Titans, (title then changes to Tales of the Teen Titans) #1–4, 6–34, 37–50; Annual #1–3 (1980–85)
- New Teen Titans, vol. 2 (then New Titans) #1–5 (1984–85); #50–57, 60 (1988–89)
- New Teen Titans: The Drug Awareness (1983)
- New Teen Titans: Games, graphic novel (2011)
- Secret Origins (Robin) #50 (1990)
- Secret Seven, miniseries, #1 (2011)
- Supergirl, vol. 6, #8 (2012)
- Superman, vol. 3 #1–6 (2011–12) (writer, layout breakdowns, and cover artist)
- Tales of the New Teen Titans, miniseries, #1–4 (1982)
- The Titans #25 (5-pages, among other artists) (2001)
- Teen Titans, vol. 2, #50 (among other artists) (2007)
- T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents #4 (with Cafu) (2011)
- Wonder Woman, #600 (among other artists) (2010)
- Wonder Woman, vol. 2, #1–24, Annual #1 (among other artists) (1987–88)
- War of the Gods, miniseries, #1–4 (1991)
- Worlds' Finest, #1–4 (with Kevin Maguire), #8 (with Cafú) (2012-13)
- World's Finest Comics (Teen Titans) #300 (1984)
 Image- Crimson Plague #1–2 (2000)
- Witchblade #92 (2-pages, among other artists) (2005)
Marvel- Astonishing Tales (Deathlok #25 (1974) 2-pages humor strip, Pérez' first published work for Marvel[47])
- Avengers #141–44, 147–51, 154, 155, 160–62, 167, 168, 170, 171, 194–96, 198–202; Annual #6, 8 (1975–80)
- Avengers (vol. 3) #1–15, 18–25, 27–34 (1998–2000)
- Bizarre Adventures (Iceman) #27 (1981)
- Creatures on the Loose (Man-Wolf) #33–37 (1975)
- Deadly Hands of Kung Fu (Sons of the Tiger) #6–14, 16–17, 19–21, 30 (1974–76)
- Fantastic Four #164–67, 170–72, 176–78, 184–88, 191–92, Annual #14–15 (1975–80)
- Incredible Hulk #435 (with Bruce Jensen) (1995)
- Hulk: Future Imperfect, miniseries, #1–2 (1992–93)
- Infinity Gauntlet, 6-issue miniseries, #1–3 (full pencils); #4 (with Ron Lim) (1991)
- Inhumans #1–4, 8 (1975–76)
- Logan's Run #1–5 (1977)
- Luke Cage, Power Man #27 (1975)
- Marvel Comics Super Special #4 (1978)
- Marvel Fanfare (Black Widow) #10–13 (1983–84)
- Marvel Premiere (Man-Wolf) #45–46 (1978–79)
- Marvel Preview #20 (1980)
- Marvel Two-in-One #56–58, 60, 64–65 (1979–80)
- Monsters Unleashed (Gullivar Jones) #8 (1974)
- Sachs and Violens, miniseries, #1–4 (1994)
- Silver Surfer (vol. 3) #111–123 (1995-96) (writer)
- Thunderbolts Annual 1997 (3-pages, among other artists) (1997)
- Ultraforce/Avengers (1995)
- Unknown Worlds of Science Fiction #2–3 (1975)
- What If (Nova) #15 (1977) — Pérez’ first collaboration with Marv Wolfman
- X-Men Annual #3 (1979)
DC and Marvel together- JLA/Avengers, miniseries, #1–4 (2003)
 I wanted to share this with all my friends because I was so excited, I felt I was about to explode! Now, I can tell my son "You see these comic books, how amazing they look, well they were drawn by one of the greats. And guess what? He's a Boricua just like you and me. He made it, he became a legend, and if he did... so can you".
Truthfully;
-M
 As we promised, we're going to be doing a series of Cosplayer Spotlights and were going to give a fun interview to thos Cosplayers whom we are fans of. This week we're spotlighting one of the cutest Cosplayers in the world, the lovely Teeny Foxx!
Truthful Comics- So Teeny, let's start by asking you how long have you been Cosplaying?
Teeny Foxx- I've only been serious about it the past few years... but I've always dressed up in costumes for fun.
TC- Cosplay or Crossplay? Or both?
TF- Both. I like taking male characters and doing a female version.
I do it often with sentai Characters and Spiderman making Anya Corazon basically raiding Peter and Ben's closets.
 TC- I see. Why do you Cosplay?
TF- because I enjoy having fun and what's more fun than being super heroes? Seeing kid's faces at events and cons just makes me wanna do this forever.
TC-Is Csoplay a hobby you consider yourself doing for a long time?
TF- I don't plan on quiting anytime soon.
TC- If someone told you they hated your Cosplay, what would you do? Be honest now!
TF- People have both good and bad to say all the time. I usually just take in stride.
 TC- Great attitude! If someone told you they loved your Cosplay, what would you do?
TF- I'm always thankful for the support and compliments.
TC- Homemade Cosplay or bought/comissioned cosplay?
TF- I have made some of my Cosplays like my Starfire, but I also commission work from people like my Sentai suits.
TC- Oh yeah, you did an awesome job on the Starfire Cosplay. There is a lot of debate if western/asians should Cosplay. Your thoughts?
TF- I encourage people to do whatever they enjoy.
 TC- Do you prefer to work alone or with others?
TF- I've worked with lots of Cosplayers and always enjoy working together.
TC- What is your most expensive cosplay?
TF- Sentai costumes can get pretty pricey with helmet costs.
TC- I can imagine! They look crazy though. What Cosplay has gotten more attention from your fans?
TF- I get different attention with different costumes from different people, but my Sentai Cosplays tend to get the most positive attention from all ages.
TC- What is a cosplay pet peeve of yours?
TF- People who are in it for something other than smiles.
 TC- I like that about you, you're doing it for the right reasons. What was your first convention? What was the reaction?
TF- A toyshow in NJ, 4 years ago; I loved it! I found such fun stuff and it started my love for conventions.
TC- It's always great to discover a convention for the first time, it definitely opens your eyes to a whole new world! What was your last convention? What was the reaction?
TF- Zenkaikon - it was smaller than most I attend but was still very nice and had some fun panels.
TC- Photoshopped or un-Photoshopped images?
TF- I usually post un-Photoshopped pix but I like both. If a photographer does edit work, I post it just the same. I also recieve alot of pretty cool edits from my page supporters.
TC- How far are you willing to go while in Cosplay? At the end of the day, are you "YOU" or are you the character?
TF- When I am in costume, I stay in character for the kids I meet with, but once the day is done and the helmet comes off... I'm just normal me.
 TC- How do you pay for your Cosplays?
TF- I work a regular job and do freelance makeup as well as get paid for Cosplay appearances.
TC- Nice! When do you do Cosplays? At conventions only?
TF- I try to do charity events, in-store appearances and photo shoots outside of my convention appearances.
TC- What got you into Cosplaying?
TF- A childhood dream to the characters I saw in cartoons and comics.
TC- Well, thank you for your time and continued success in all your endeavors. We definitely look forward to your next Cosplays and who knows, maybe you'll be Csoplaying as one of Truthful Comics' character in the near future!
Best;
-M
Press Release- Apr. 3, 2013 - OLATHE, Kan.
A new podcast, blog, and sales group, the Nerdvana Network is a new force in the digital geek subculture. The Nerdvana Network is a podcast, blog, and merchant network that releases weekly content aimed at all facets of nerds and geeks under one banner of Nerdvana. Modeled after the immensely successful SModcast Network, pioneered by podcaster and filmmaker Kevin Smith, the Nerdvana Network has recently taken to heart the musings and words of Kevin Smith: "Surround yourself with 'Why Not' people."
The Nerdvana Network is a network of podcasts, blogs, and websites promoting the concept of "Why Not?" The network will be offering advertising network-wide to those interested in reaching a wide demographic of technically savvy, intelligent, creative people of varying ages. The network has launched with the Gamer's Haven Podcast, a staple of internet podcasting for over six years, and the Gamer's Haven Actual Play, an ever-growing collecting of tabletop game recordings and quite possibly the biggest depository of actual play audio online, Confessions of a Movie Snob, a podcast just celebrating its third birthday about film and the irrational love of the medium by the hosts.
Bringing up the blogging front is Project Uncool, a website devoted to the betterment of Aaron, who is Uncool, and Why Not Write, a blog aimed at helping not only the blog's author, Ethan, write more often, but also inspire others to write more.
In the merchant arm of the Nerdvana Network, the shop bring the creative works of Elinor Parker, costume creator and artist to the teeming masses. Offering custom corsets and costumes to all kinds of nerds in all kinds of sizes, the Costume Wrangler's Closet is the place to go for the best costuming for Cosplay, Live Action Role Playing, or just for that extra bit of geeky apparel that is one-of-a-kind in the world.
 This blog entry was copied from the Geek Girls website and it was done in order to help a friend in need. We hope this will bring another spotlight on the gravity of Leah's situation and if there's anything else that we can help with, please let us know. Our prayers go out to Leah and her family.
Helping Callie
Hey Geek Girls fans and friends,
It is never easy to see a friend hurting, it is never easy to watch someone you care about going through something tough and not being able to make it go away. Sitting on the sidelines while someone you love is in trouble is one of the worst places to be as a friend...
When I became a Geek Girl I did not even dream that it would be anything more than just a fun little side hobby, I figured I would cosplay a little and write some cool articles and that would be that. Wow was I ignorant. I now have come to know that being a part of this site, this team, this family has been one of the greatest things to of happened to me in a long time. I never had a lot of friends, let alone girl friends that I could relate to. I never thought for a million years I would come to have all of these amazing women on my side cheering me on, and being there to talk to when I needed them.
I met Leah, aka Callie Cosplay about 5-6 months ago when she was taken on as a Geek Girl officially. At first I thought “Wow this girl is so freaking stunning”. She was the perfect mix between girl next door and fierce super heroine that makes you smile and makes your heart skip a beat all at once. Her costuming skills and ability to produce a single costume in a day are unlike any others I have seen. The fact she can create a photo shoot in not even a week from scratch is mind blowing to me. Needless to say at first glance, she is the PERFECT geek girl. I then started to chat with her one on one as Leah. At first I met a quieter, but spirited young lady. She was opinionated and passionate in her beliefs and matched with me that could be a bad mix haha. But no, we immediately clicked. We sat for hours that night and spoke about everything going on in our lives. We were as open as we had ever been before with anyone and we had never even met. It was like having a sleepover with your best friend of 8 years. She was so easy to talk to, so relaxed, so caring and attentive and I knew then that she was something special.
So this post comes from a hard place for me. Here is what Callie Cosplay, one of our fellow Geek Girls, and friend had to tell all of us about her situation right now. This was taken from her personal donation site. To read the rest of the story please visit the link:
“I lost insurance a while back before I needed a surgical procedure so the doctors could rule out lymphoma or another type of cancer. I saw 8 doctors who told me I needed to have the surgery, and was in and out of 3 hospitals frantically trying to find someone who would remove a lymph node before I got worse. All of the doctors were throwing around the "cancer" word while they kept ruling out everything else through seemingly endless amounts of blood work. I lost insurance officially back in November 2012, 7 hours before my scheduled surgery. The one that was supposed to rule out the scary thing the doctors kept telling my family and me. I have only gotten worse since then.
My immune system has completely shut down, and all of my lymph nodes are still swollen. I continue to get worse in health, as the doctors cannot do the right procedures to figure out what is wrong with me due to the fact I am unable to afford all of the expenses. I am in pain all the time, and my body hurts so much it is hard to function in everyday life. I have endometriosis on top of this and have struggled with depression about my medical issues, and my overall health and well being. I have gone through hell and back, been stuck with needles hundreds of times and with no answers at all, aside from the fact that yes, something is seriously wrong.”
Callie is very sick. And I had known for a while that she was but did not know the extent of it. But now I do. She messaged me and confided in me about it and I could tell she was feeling completely defeated, and that wasn’t like the girl I had met before, so I was worried. And what can we do? What can we do as friends but to be there with an open ear and a shoulder to cry on, especially when living across the world from one another. I felt helpless. So I thought to do the one thing I knew I could. Reach out. I know Geek girls has a large platform of fans and I decided to use it to help as best as I could. So I teamed up with Dana (Our Geek Girls co creator) to make this post. Callie is well aware of it, but at the same time I know she does not want to be pitied as she is such a strong woman, but I tell her sometimes it is ok to ask for help.
We are a family at Geek Girls and no matter what we protect our own.
Here are the links to her Print Store where all of the proceeds will be going towards her medical expenses, and also to her donation site where even a little goes a long way. All of the information from herself about what is going on is in the description on the donation page. Please read it. No one should have to suffer alone. Let’s all stand up and get on the field. We are all now Callie Cheerleaders.
Thanks and much love,
-Roxy Lee
Again you can help by contributing to her fundraiser or by buying some of her awesome stuff at Callie's closet or by sharing these links. Any help at all that you can give is greatly appreciated, every little bit helps. ♥
“Everyone has an Angel. A Guardian who watches over us. We can't know what form they'll take. One day, old man. Next day, little girl. But don't let appearances fool you, they can be as fierce as any dragon. Yet they're not here to fight our battles, but to whisper from our heart. Reminding that it's us. Its everyone of us who holds power over the world we create.“
-Sucker Punch
Geek Girl: Callie Cosplay
Photographers:
Black Widow: David Love
Black Cat: John Corley
This is the link to Leah's Medical Fundraising: http://www.gofundme.com/savingcallie?pc=flwdgt
We ask everyone who reads this blog to please help Leah in any way you can, it'll be greatly appreciated! We wish Leah all the best in the world and we'll be praying for her. From the Truthful Comics Family to yours, God Bless you Leah!
Best;
-Manuel A. Carmona
|
RSS Feed