Interview w/ Sean Szeles, Storyboard Artist on 'Flapjack' and 'Regular Show'

He's worked on a string of fan favorite animated show including El Tigre, The Misadventures of Flapjack, The Drinky Crow Show and Regular Show, but would you believe his dream job was once delivering pizzas? Lucky for us he fell back on his insane artistic skills which have helped Cartoon Network's latest 'toon (Regular Show) earn a nomination for an Annie Award for Best Childrens' Television Production. Not too shabby.

When he's not busy writing songs or directing short films, Szeles enjoys taking care of stray cats, sketching, making with the funny and sipping Kool-aid from complete strangers. Good thing too, cause we just brewed a fresh gallon!

Thanks for taking some time out to share with us, Sean. Would you care to have a seat on our vintage, furry Alf head bean bag chair while we chat? A bowl of candy corn perhaps?

No problem SK, I'm glad to be here in your dungeon. I don't approve of killing any alien life forms and making them into chairs, but seeing as it's that or sitting on the cold, damp concrete- don't mind if I do! No candy for me though, thanks. We're not that familiar with each other and I'm allergic to razor blades, but some mysterious red liquid to drink? Yes, please!

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Trailer Terrors: Robot Jox (1990)

During the 1980's, and early 90's, the BattleTech franchise dominated the geek market with arena-style combat between monolithic robots called BattleMechs. From board games to video games, BattleMechs laid claim over aspiring computer engineers everywhere and formed a devoted and obsessed fan base that couldn't get enough of the series. It was no surprise then, that in 1990 Hollywood tapped in to the market with the full-feature film Robot Jox.

Directed by Stuart Gordon (Re-Animator) and co-written by Gordon and Joe Haldeman, Robot Jox hit the scene and then was quickly forgotten. The movie typically gets bad reviews, scoring only 4.7 stars on IMDB, but I personally enjoy Robot Jox despite it being low-budget and outdated. For some reason it still manages to keep me entertained and more so than most current films. It's like a hybrid between Rock 'em Sock 'em Robots and the movie Best of the Best. OK, I know that sounds bad, and maybe it's just the nostalgia from me remembering how much I loved robots as a child, but Robot Jox is a very fun, if not funny, movie to watch.

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Head Games: Splatterhouse (2010)

"You've got red on you."

With an epic quest that began a little over a decade ago, the King of Carnage has returned to us in better shape than ever in a blood-drenched redux driven by revenge, ultra-violence and a whole lot of badassery. Full of abhorred mutations from another dimension and a mask with questionable (but very helpful) intentions, Splatterhouse begins as it typically does... with Rick Taylor reborn in blood and fueled by hate thanks to the mysterious Terror Mask.

Of course, one of the many things this new version of Splatterhouse does well is provide a plethora of more background information than previous entries in the franchise, essentially combining the storylines of all three games into a singular mythology.

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Splatterhouse Retrospective Part III: The End?

Splatterhouse 3/Splatterhouse Part 3 (Namco: Sega Genesis/Mega Drive, 1993)

"As long as that Mask remains... it can happen again." - Rick Taylor, Splatterhouse 2

A glittering red crystal slowly rotates in the darkness as eerie music begins to play. Without warning, ghostly heads appear all around it, roaring as they fade away. More appear, all roaring as the crystal spins serenely. The heads and the crystal are replaced by a flickering light, an ominous shadow the only thing that can be seen. Its red eyes pierce the darkness, shining steadily through the strobing lights.

And from the right, a familiar bloody logo begins to scroll past your eyes.

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Splatterhouse Retrospective Part II: The Terror Mask Returns

Splatterhouse 2/Splatterhouse Part 2 (Namco: Sega Genesis/Mega Drive, 1992)

When we last left Rick Taylor, the worst night of his life had just ended. It all began when he and his girlfriend, Jennifer Wills, had sought refuge from a thunderstorm in the old West Mansion. Jennifer had been abducted by monsters, and Rick had been bonded to a horrible ancient relic, the Terror Mask. Armed with the power that the Mask had given him and any weapon he could find, Rick had battled his way to the very heart of West Mansion, only to find that Jennifer had been altered by these creatures and was transformed into a horrible monster before his very eyes. The only way to save her... had been to kill her.

But even after Jennifer's death, his fight was not over. But finally, Rick stood victorious. The old mansion was being consumed by flames as the Terror Mask broke away from his face and hit the ground. Was it truly over? Judging by the ominous rebirth of the Mask after the credits rolled, probably not.

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Interview w/ Christopher Zenga from "The Day After"

Chris Zenga is a name that those of you who travel in the same side of the horror blogosphere might be familiar with. As an illustrator and die hard horror fanatic, Chris is one of the hardest working people you're likely to have come upon in the past year of so. His enthusiasm stems from his undying love of the horror genre and a philosophy of emotional transference that he believes his work instills in the viewer.

He's done portraitures of bloggers, personal heroes and zombie teddy bears from beyond the grave and yet each piece offers something unique from its subject matter. It's in this offering that Chris prides himself in taking a live model or photograph and peeling back the mortal coil to reveal something far more sinister. Much like the written work of H.P. Lovecraft, Chris' world is one of the living dead and monsters lurking in the dark corners of our minds... sometimes it's what you don't see that you should fear the most.

Thanks for joining us at Strange Kid HQ, Chris. Can you tell us a little about yourself and what the concept behind 'The Day After' is?

Thanks for having me, and thanks to Mrs. Strange for the Pop-Tarts and Tang. I'm a 30 year old artist from Mississauga, Ontario Canada. I'm a husband, a father of two and a staunch Atheist. I love all the things that your parents told you where not under your bed, and I hope to entertain EVERY TIME I put pencil to paper. The Day After set out to be my perception of the world The Day After the BIG ZomBie Apocalypse. I wanted to put my undead take on every idea in my head and leave a record of how everything COULD have been.

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Interview w/ Illustrator Eric Gonzalez of Muertoons

Halloween isn't the only shindig where a fella can rattle his bones. There's also Día de los Muertos (November 2) where spooks and spirits can come alive and magic is in the air for those that honor their dearly departed. This year illustrator Eric Gonzalez and the crew over at the recently formed Muertoons have decided to spread the magic a bit with their new book, Rosita y Conchita.

No stranger to such fun-hearted fare Eric is an accomplished artist in his own right, having sharpened his skills on shows like Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends and El Tigre. He was kind enough to cop a squat with us here at the clubhouse to talk about his experiences and shed a little more light of little sisters Rosita and Conchita.

It's great to have you here at the clubhouse, Eric. Can you give us a bit of background info on yourself?

I graduated from Cal State Fullerton with a degree in Animation/ Entertainment Arts in 2005. I was very lucky to start my career in animation as an intern in the shorts department at Cartoon Network. Later, I landed a job as a Production Assistant on the show Foster’s Home For Imaginary Friends. It was such an amazing opportunity to be working with Powerpuff Girls creator Craig McCracken and his wife Lauren Faust as well as the amazingly talented crew of Foster’s. After that I was very fortunate to make the jump from Production Assistant to Props & Effects Artist on the show Class of 3000, which was created by the performing artist Andre 3000.

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Head Games: Scott Pilgrim vs The World

Get the hot girl. Defeat her evil exes. Hit love where it hurts.

Despite its poor box office earnings I found Scott Pilgrim vs The World to be a really entertaining and fun film that, seemed to possess the necessary mix of glammed-out special effects and fight sequences while maintaining some solid storytelling and characterization. Having since taken my daughter to see the film she's been devouring the original graphic novels as well as expressing an interest in playing the appropriately titled video game tie-in, Scott Pilgrim vs The World: The Video Game. I have to say, much like the film, it's tons of retro-inspired fun.

A somewhat separate (but familiar) storyline than either the books or the film adaptation, Scott Pilgrim vs The World: The Video Game is a cleverly constructed homage to many of the greatest 8-bit games of my misspent youth sitting in front of a Super Nintendo. Everything from all 3 Mario Bros. games to Sonic the Hedgehog is referenced here from its beat'em-up style of gameplay to the different ways in which each character exits the level.

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Head Games: Radioactive Teddy Bear Zombies

As the name implies, Radioactive Teddy Bear Zombies by AdultSwim.com is a solid platforming/action game in which you play as Cody Durkin, a "misfit survivalist with violent tendencies" whose newfound mission in life is to kick the gooey stuffing out of a horde of... well, radioactive teddy bear zombies (among other creatures such as rabbits, horse heads, elephants and a few T-Rex) When a strange outbreak hits the local Friendly Hugs Plush factory, Cody's father (Sheriff Durkin) is dispatched to investigate. Mysteriously, Sheriff Durkin doesn't return and now a horde of mutated, puss-riden plush monsters have invaded the city. Being the tough tyke that he is, Cody ventures into town to set things straight and rescue his father.

Aside from these anchor points, I have to admit that I didn't follow too much of the story as I was having much more fun blasting apart these hideous, stuffed freaks with an assortment of guns, flame throwers and rocket launchers. You'll soon discover that the "how" and "why" rationale of these weapons being "left behind," along with tons of gold coins, aren't really relevant to the zombie smashing fun. In face, having clocked in at just under 2-3 hours of gameplay I can't really even remember what caused the outbreak to begin with. However, I do know that it's a lot of fun to see an overgrown, zombied cat explode into bits after you nail it with a few well-placed shot of your maxed-out heat seeking rockets.

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Head Games Preview: NeverDead

50% Devil May Cry. 50% Katamari Damacy. 100% Awesome.

Announced earlier this summer at E3, NeverDead is a title being developed by Rebellion Studios (Aliens vs Predator: The Video Game) in conjunction with Konami (home of the Metal Gear franchise) that no one really knows too much about. Even with the premiere of a new trailer at GamesCon this past week, specific details on the gameplay dynamics or storyline is still very much under wraps.

What little has been revealed seems to indicate the the game takes place in a post-apocalyptic France and features a seemingly immortal protagonist, Bryce, who is able to reattach severed limbs in a way most similar to a katamari ball. Accompanied by a straight-laced (yet sexy) partner, Bryce's wicked sense of humor seems to be well balanced. Honestly, it looks pretty freaking cool and I kinda like the advantage of not having to restart a game because I'm dead. It does, however, beg the question if such a mechanic could lessen the sense of excitement but with monsters the size of bulldozers running around I'm sure it equals out.

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SDCC 2010: An Interview w/ Splatterhouse Artist Dave Wilkins [EXCLUSIVE ART!]

So the time for San Diego Comic-Con is finally upon us and what better way to kick things off than with an interview with stellar comic/concept artist Dave Wilkins, one of the twisted minds behind not only Namco's imminent Splatterhouse franchise reboot but some of Marvel Comics hottest selling titles.

A talented artist, driven by his own fanboy inclinations, Dave's work has quickly become the face of the new Splatterhouse game. With every new magazine cover or promotional event that Namco releases in anticipation for the game (due out in October) you can be sure that Dave has concocted some outrageously bloody massacre for fans to admire. He's also a pretty darn, nice fella to boot as he took some time to subject himself to one of Strange Kid's infamous Q&A sessions here at the clubhouse and even dropped us a bone with a Comic-Con exclusive. What a charming fellow!

To learn more about Dave and see even more of his insanely gruesome artwork, be sure to visit his blog and hit up his DeviantArt account.

Thanks so much for joining us, Dave. Let's start with an introduction, can you tell us a little about yourself?

Hey man thanks for having me!! I’ve been in the gaming industry for about 14 years and the comics and film industry for about 6; basically I’m living the fanboy dream. I’ve been really very fortunate. I get to earn a living drawing monsters and superheroes!

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Head Games: Cletus Clay

A wild and crazy, no-holds-barred, rootin’ tootin’ varmint shootin’ side-scrolling platform brawler.

You remember Play-Doh, right? That squeezable, multi-colored dough in a can from childhood that touted endless possibilities of 3D sculpted fun? Well, for some, the fun never ends and they manage to turn what's become known as claymation into a full-time career. I've always found it to be a more "genuine" method of animating in 3D myself, cartoonish naysayers aside. From Ray Harryhausen to Nicholas Park (Wallace and Gromit) the art of breathing life into rolls of plasticine models is one of the most admirable jobs of any kid ages 8-12 past or present.

As much as Hollywood would have us believe that traditional effects are "obsolete" in today's digital landscape, it would seem that a few talented game designers are out to prove that playing with clay still has its charm. The studio in mention is indie developers Tuna and their clay-concocted creation is Cletus Clay, a zany backwoods 3rd person platformer currently slated for an undisclosed date on XBOX Live Arcade.

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Head Games: MadWorld (2009)

So after a good year of procrastination I finally decided to give Sega's ultra-violent MadWorld a spin. Was it worth the wait?

The short answer is yes, yes it was, but not for all the right reasons. As a Wii-exclusive, MadWorld is one of the only games on that system to feature over-the-top violence and shameless gore which I for one applaud. The presentation of the game is highly stylized, granting the player a give glimpse of what Miller's Sin City might look like in pixel-form. The comparisons between the two properties really ends at the visual level, however, as MadWorld's zany cast of Road Warrior inhabitants are either killed, maimed, or disemboweled quicker than they can "respawn" leaving little room for you to take any interest in them beyond shoving a chainsaw down their gullet.

Now, I'm all for mindless violence and destruction, but I admittedly felt disoriented not only by the rapid pace by which both enemies and task are dealt out, but with the black and white color palette which offers little distinction to the untrained eye between environment, power-ups and enemies. I can see how the red fountains of henchman render much more artistically under these circumstances, but when you can hardly tell them apart in the first place it begins to make little difference how gruesome their fatalities may be.

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Head Games: Fist of the North Star: Ken's Rage

Kenshiro + punches = bloody explosions.

No doubt one of the more brutal games to come out of E3 this week, Fist of the North Star: Ken's Rage is a beat 'em up action style game based on the Fist of the North Star manga. I'll admit that I've never read the book, but I have seen a few of the animated episodes and movies and if there's one thing that I learned its that Kenshiro is the manliest man to have ever lived (take that Sonny Chiba). These aren't your ordinary haymakers that 'ole Ken is dishing out, no sir, these are bonafide death bombs guaranteed to reduce any living (or nonliving) thing into a pulpy mass of flesh and muscle. Wicked cool.

If the video game is anything like the Fist movies I've seen, gorehounds players will be plenty satisfied with the high blood to boobs ratio and filled with a spastic desire to inflict as much damage to your opponents as humanly possible. For a better taste of the whoop-ass that's in store, make sure you check out the gameplay footage below.



[via PlayScope]

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Head Games: Ghoul Patrol (1994)

Ever wonder what happened to Zeke and Julie after Zombies Ate My Neighbors?

Well just like Macaulay Culkin after the success of Home Alone, they went out and partied hard for a year before making their next-gen comeback. Of course, unlike Home Alone 2, Ghoul Patrol was actually a worthy successor to the franchise. Perhaps my second favorite game series (behind Splatterhouse), Ghoul Patrol is a top-down side scroller that picks up more or less after the events of Zombies Ate My Neighbors and features the return of the previous game's young protagonists.

Having grown a little since their last monster-bashing escapade, Zeke and Julie are set against a horde of slightly tougher-looking zombies, ninjas, aliens, ghouls and giant demons than before. Thankfully, their tools have also received an upgrade and are pretty generously scattered throughout each level. Speaking of levels, Ghoul Patrol sees its 16bit heroes traveling not just through the neighborhood but entire universes thanks to the mysterious and magical book of Ghosts & Demons.

The gameplay will be familiar to anyone who has ever played the original game and the graphics are really only slighter richer despite having been upgraded from the Nintendo to the Super Nintendo. That doesn't make the game any less fun; however, and I recently discovered (yes, I know now its been out for awhile) that the game has been made available on the Wii as downloadable content which means plenty of hours will be spent on the couch this weekend reliving the ghoul-squashing glory of killing a horde of corpse grinders with nothing but a gun that shoots bubbles.

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Head Games: Whiplash (2003)

One crazy weasel. One unbreakable bunny. With one problem... they're chained together.

Not since Laurel and Hardy Abbott and Costello Angelina Jolie and Billy Bob Thornton has there been a pair of off-kilter bipeds whose sole purpose is to spread panic and mayhem amongst mankind.

Forged in the same absurdist vein as Conker's Bad Fur Day or Crash Bandicoot, Eidos Interactive's Whiplash is a frantically paced action adventure game that features Spanx (weasel) and Redmond (rabbit); two lab animals who have gone rogue and are bent of bringing down "The Man." The Man in this case is evil corporation Genron, whose twisted and generally nasty experiments on animals have brought this unlikely duo together under a common goal: destroy everything.

More or less forced to work with one another thanks to some sort of unbreakable alloy chain that binds them, the two "heroes" embark on a mission of high stakes slapstick that is more Looney Tunes than Animal Farm. Upon their escape, the player learns to utilize Spanx and Remond in the most sadistically entertaining of ways... most of which involve Spanx mashing, smashing and bludgeoning Redmond into a variety of dangerous situations. But don't worry PETA animal on animal violence is natural... right?

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Head Games: Thrill Kill (unreleased)

A modern day Mortal Kombat that never was.

Second only to Splatterhouse in its gruesome gaming glory, Thrill Kill was a game developed by now-defunct game developer Paradox that has stuck with me moreso for the controversy it ignited rather than that gameplay value it offered. In fact I have yet to play a working copy of the game, though I have heard that copies do exist online that can be played on a modified PS2 system.

Compared to many of todays gore-laden games such as God of War (PS3) or Madworld (Wii), the concept of Thrill Kill is rather mundane. I mean, what's so wrong about throwing a bunch of depraved, murderous lunatics into Hell and having them battle it out for a chance at freedom? All of the typical taboo stereotypes were there: a deadly dominatrix, psychotic plastic surgeon, redneck cannibal, serial killers, circus freaks and even a demon from Hell. Apparently people before the new millenium just weren't ready for such unrepenting gaming entertainment and the unfinished Thrill Kill has languished in limbo for the past 12 years or so. Shame really.

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Head Games: TMNT Tournament Fighters (1993)

No Street Fighter has ever seen fighting like this.

TMNT Tournament Fighters is one of those rare games (at least back in the day) that was released on three different platforms that each featured a distinctly different cast of characters. Of course, the favorite amongst the three has to be the SNES version which not only boasted the biggest roster of playable characters but also the best gameplay for your buck.

No TMNT-based video game before or since has offered up so many of the cool characters that fans of the cartoon, comics and toyline have come to know so well. I mean sure, the obvious choices of Bebop & Rocksteady are noticeably absent, but in their place we get all 4 turtles PLUS Shredder, a monster named War, the crazy man-bat known as Wingnut, a cyborg killing machine (Chrome Dome), a ninja girl named Aska and a mutant shark called Armaggon. Much moreso than the NES or Genesis versions, these characters had excellent controls and some pretty sweet special moves.

The bosses of the SNES version, while not epic, were also better than the other versions and included the Rat King and Karai (a character that has become more prevalent in recent animated incarnations). It would have also been nice to see Krang and Casey Jones who were present in the other versions, but there's always hope for a sequel... right? Let's hope so.

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Head Games: Sanitarium (1998)

The Sleep of Reason Produces Monsters.
-Francisco Goya

Sanitarium is a very special game here at the clubhouse as it is the first game I ever really owned... sorta. See, when the game was first released by Dreamforge Entertainment in 1998, the company sent out a series of demo discs in the mail. I can only guess that the recipients were chosen completely at random because at age 15 I was lucky enough to get one, my name on the label and everything.

At the time, all I knew of the game was that the cover looked pretty wicked and reminded me a lot of a mix between DC Comic's Shawn Martinbrough illustrated Creeper miniseries and TurboGrafx-16's Splatterhouse. Aside from that, the cover had a man who resembled a mummy and promised plenty of freakish denizens to interact with including monsters, demons and aliens.

Since I've only ever played the demo, I can't say how the entire gameplay experience feels, but for the one chapter I did play it was pretty stunning. From the tortured cries to your fellow filthy Sanitarium inmates who wander around aimlessly to the challenging psychological puzzles, Sanitarium offers a mind-numbing mix of reality and imagination. As each chapter represents a different aspect of the players mind/memory, the game was pretty liberal with its creative license and, from what I'v read, it only got crazier the deeper into the game you got. From the titular Sanitarium you'll visit a literal parade of bizarre locales such as an amusement park, haunted cemetery and even an ancient Aztec temple. This is definitely one that'll keep you up all night long.

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Head Games: Ghoul School (1992)

Bullies are the least of your problems.

Have you ever just had one of those days at school? You know, where aliens invade from outer space or monsters appear seemingly out of nowhere? In short, that's the premise for Ghoul School, a horror/survival game for the NES and produced by Electro Brain a lesser known game studio that went under in 2008.

Essentially you take on the role of Spike O'Hara aka Matthew Lillard from SLC Punk (see insert) sans all the teenage angst and anarchist tendencies... come to think of it our hero Spike is the complete antithesis of the punk mentality. I mean, what kind of kid would want to prevent their school from being destroyed my monsters? Well I suppose its worth mentioning that trapped in the basement is Samantha, the hottest cheerleader at Ghoul School, so I guess hormones do play factor in judgment.

All that said, Ghoul School is a notoriously bad game with poor controls and glitchy gameplay. There are only a few different types of ghouls that you'll encounter and your initial weapon, a bat, has the force of a soggy, rolled up newspaper. There are upgrades and power-ups that become available as you progress including a Gamma Gun, Sickle, Spring Shoes, Sandwiches and Embalming Fluid that works much like the Holy Water from Castlevania. Unfortunately, most of these don't come until near the end of the game, making the first two-thirds unbearably mundane. The only thing that's actually good about the game is its soundtrack, composed by the game's creator Scott Marshall. For a great interview with Marshall, hop on over to Bogleech (creator of The Fear Hole web series).

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