On why I love Mediavengers and a new kind of “fan art / fiction”

My children, as I have said before, are big fans of superheroes.  They are also very creative and imaginative (well, Punky is.  I can’t understand Little Man enough yet to hear his stories, but he seems to be heading the same way) and like to make up stories about the toys and dolls and superheroes they’re playing with.

I am always looking for original and creative things to share with them to support their love of the things I love – books with the characters they love (to the point that I’ve debated creating my own), artwork with their favorite characters and scenarios.

I have even going so far as to look for news articles I can read them when they’re a little older and that I can use as learning tools when Punky is bored with all the other books she has read a hundred times already.

Obviously, news articles on the characters they love are difficult to come by.  I can find plenty of articles about the actors, or the shows, or the comics, or the movies, but, of course, the actual characters themselves?  Yeah……….those don’t actually exist so much.

Or, to be more correct, they didn’t exist before Mediavengers.

Oh my goodness, I love this website.

Mediavengers is run by a fellow fangirl named Kim.  I don’t know her personally, but I found one of the original articles she posted (a New York Magazine piece set as an interview with Tony Stark, Black Widow, Captain America, and Hawkeye (I think) two months after the Battle of New York from The Avengers).

 

The magazine cover for the article.  The full article is also available here.

I.  Was.  Fascinated.  This woman was (is) amazing with the detail she manages to bring to these characters, how real and human she makes them. She captures their personalities and brings them to life in a way few have managed.  I was completely captivated and I wanted more more more.

Part of my love and fascination with the Mediavengers pieces is that they capture my own curious, author brain (this Kim’s brain must work in a very similar way.  I may need to pick it in the near future).  I want, no need, to know things that most authors just don’t get around to.

Like what the heck made Bellatrix Black the way she is (seriously – no one is born that crazy)?  Or what exactly made Tony what he is (there have been hints, but I think there’s more there)? (Note: Mediavengers actually has touched on that one and has teased a larger piece delving into Tony’s brain.)  And, the crux of the entire project / website, just how would being a superhero (or associated with them, such as Hawkeye and Black Widow (superhero agents, that’s what we’ll call them) or Pepper Potts or Jane Foster) affect your life in the current society we live in with the tabloids and the focus on celebrities?  The comics kind of do go into it, but I don’t think they really get it right.

And this woman hits it on the head.

 

“Cover stories” for some of the amazing characters.

She doesn’t just do stuff supporting the heroes, either — because you know, in this world, that there would be people crying out for them to stop, or for any rebuilding from attacks they stopped to come out of their own pockets (because some people just don’t understand the concept of “villains”).

Covers for detractors — even these are beautiful!

Along with the amazing in depth articles, Mediavengers also looks at what tabloids and “lifestyle” magazines (OK!, US Weekly, People) would have to say about these new “celebrities”.  What about pictures of, say, Tony and Pepper at a charity function?  Or Thor out and about doing “normal” stuff?  Or Clint Barton and Natasha Romanov (out of uniform) stopping somewhere for coffee together?  What would they do with these things?

And, again, she pulls it off amazingly.

I mean, look at those.  Tell me you wouldn’t have to look twice if you saw those without a credit to confirm they weren’t actual magazine pages.

Mediavengers has also, as would be expected in the MCU, anticipated movies being made on the lives and events surrounding the movies.  There are mocked up posters and casting announcements – even a comparison of the “two rival views” of the Battle of New York.

 

The poster for one, an EW cover regarding another, and the comparison of the two.

All this to say, yes, I am a HUGE fan of this woman’s work.  I’ll be honest – I’m jealous of the fact that 1) she thought of it first and 2) she’s better with photoshop than I am.  :P

Also, when I have an office?  These will totally be framed on my wall.  There will be no posturing that they aren’t real articles because, oh my God, they’re awesome.

And some of these are totally going to be artwork on my son’s wall.  Because I know he’s going to love them (already does love the pictures, and will tell me who each one is).

So basically, I guess what I’m saying is, go read this websites stuff.  Follow the blog. Now.  Because this work is genius.

On the necessity of creative gift giving for small members of fandom

As I’ve stated often and loudly (and as is the entire point of this blog at times) I am unashamedly indoctrinating my children into geek and fandom.  I love that my daughter regularly, when I ask what she wants to watch between bath and bed, requests that I turn on Doctor Who.  I love that my son runs around pretending to be the Hulk or putting his arm up in that typical superhero-about-to-take-flight pose and making flight noises.  I adore that both my children know what a TARDIS is and will take any given opportunity point one out (and, thinking about that, I should probably make sure Punky’s new teacher is a Doctor Who fan, or at least knows what it is.  Otherwise she might be a little confused very quickly).

Now, some of the things my children love are pretty typical right now (you know, geek has become pretty mainstream) and rather easy to find.  I was pretty easily able to find my son an Avengers lunchbox (and my daughter a Doctor Who one).  I have no difficulty finding my son superhero toys that he adores (I think he has all of the Avengers in small figure form, and some of the aircraft).  There are even Harry Potter, Avenger, Lord of the Rings, and Hobbit legos and such (all separate sets, of course).

But there are some things that aren’t so typical.  There aren’t many (well, I don’t know of many) small children who are Doctor fans, and, while there are some toys (mostly building sets and small figures that go with them), there aren’t that many and, being that they are UK products, they aren’t cheap.  But there also really aren’t many options, not are there options for a little girl who likes, say, dolls.  And when it comes to superheroes, you can find figures easily but what about cuddly ones like for, say, a 3 year old who wants a superhero instead of a teddy bear?

Geek parents have to get creative sometimes.  And also thank God for Pinterest and Etsy.

Little Man’s birthday is coming up and I wanted to do something special for him that he would really like.  He loves the Avengers (especially the Hulk) and likes cuddly soft things too.  So, months ago, I was just looking around Etsy, looking for ideas, and saw a small, knitted, Amiguri of a weeping angel (from Doctor) that I adored.  And yes, that I now own (it sits on my desk).  I still love it and cannot imagine being able to make something like that (though my goal is to learn).  So I started thinking – why not ask the woman if she could do a commission?

About a month later, I got a package in the mail containing knitted Amiguri’s of all the Avengers from the movie, Loki, and Nick Fury (I should probably get her to do a Coulson at some point too).  It’s awesome and been sitting in my closet for the past three months (I’ve been good and NOT given it to him before his birthday.  He’ll get it when we do the family celebration next weekend).

So, creative.

Etsy has everything – stuffed toys (Doctor, Avengers, Sherlock, pretty much anything you can imagine – I even have a Falcor for when Punky gets older), clothes (good ones with fun designs (like Punky’s “Future Companion” shirt)), artwork for walls (Karen Hallion?  Amazing.  Punky has most of her Disney / Doctor crossover prints on her wall), decorations, pretty much anything you can imagine.  And books.  OMG the geeky books – Charles Thurston is amazing and I own every one of his little books.  And Good Night, Pond?  So.  Amazing.  And the stuff is amazing – much better than you could find in stores.

Pinterest is king of DIY geek toys – superhero and princess playsets from wooden dowels or pins; dress up materials from, well, anything; all kinds of felt-y crafts and projects; busy books based on Star Wars, Harry Potter, and everything in between.

They are amazingly wonderful sites and helpful for the parent wanting to give their kids better than what you can find in the stores.  Because “geeky toys” in the store?  Not nearly as good.

So this Mommy is going to have to start early (shop early, shop often.  Didn’t someone use that slogan once?) on things like birthdays and Christmas because what my children want (and what I want to give them) isn’t always easily findable in stores.

And I’m okay with that.

I’d rather have my kids love these amazing fandoms and have to search for the specific things they want (A TARDIS for your dolls you say?  Wow…..) than foregoing the possible lessons and amazingness that is fandom.

Besides, it means I get to play with the toys too, and that’s always fun.  Benefits of small children, right?

Reasons why I want to go to Comic Con (cause things like this happen!)

San Diego International Comic Con was last weekend. 

I hate hate hate that I wasn’t there.  Truly.

I want to go to that thing, someday.  My goal is that, sometime in the future, my children beg me to take them to Comic Con like many children beg their parents to take them to Disney World (and, of course, I will find a way to make it happen, like parents find a way to make Disney happen, because I love my kids and it would be totally for them and I wouldn’t enjoy a minute of it.  Really).  It shouldn’t be too hard, considering that my children already love Doctor Who, superheroes, comics (what I’ve let them see) and so much else that goes on there.

Including costumes.  Oh they love costumes.

Punky would have been in fangirl heaven had she seen those two.  Probably her two favorite Disney princesses!

But that being said, there are many many things that happened this weekend.  Many many things that I wish I could have seen and been a part of.  But, from what I’ve seen, these are some of the things I most wish I could have seen this weekend.

— Karen Gillian revealing that she pulled a Matt Smith with her hair – it’s gone.  GONE.  When she showed up, she still had the red hair, long, but it looked like it had been cut.  Still beautiful.  But then a panel leader asked about her playing Nebula (who is bald) in Guardians of the Galaxy and all of a sudden the hair is off and there she is with a bald head and her red hair is in the crowd.

Wow.

—  The DW fan meet up.  I’ve seen and heard about this but I don’t think it was the actual Doctor Who panel.  But fans were getting to ask Matt and Jenna and Moffat questions and they were just being frank and honest with them.  There was a phone call from another writer (Gattis I think) for Moffat and I’m pretty sure this is where Matt begged fans not to forget him and, in a moment of weakness, said he might have made a mistake in leaving (though we all know it was just a moment of weakness).  I just would have loved to be there. 

—  The actual Doctor Who panel.  With the trailer and everything.  Oh how I wish I had seen that!  (And Moffat apparently admitted to “lying [his] arse off” about the 50^th so as to keep things secret, so maybe my hope that John Hurt ISN’T the Time War Doctor might come true!)

—  The Walking Dead panel with the Season 4 trailer.  While, of course, I’ve seen it now, I would have loved to be able to be there and hear the questions and maybe get to ask some.  I love that show (yeah…we’ve been over that) and I want anything and everything I can get my hands on about it.

—  Andrew Garfield pulling his Spiderman stunt.  He showed up to a panel in a cheap Spiderman costume, talking about how he always wanted to come to Comic Con dressed as Spiderman and here they were letting him and then, all of a sudden, the mask comes off and there’s Andrew Garfield, the current Spiderman.  I can only say that is awesome and wish I could have seen it.

—  Also, Matt Smith walking around as Bart Simpson?  Yes please!

—  Loki.  Really do I need to say more?  But Tom Hiddleston, in full Loki regalia, showed up, in character, to introduce the trailer for the next Thor movie, and got the fans to kneel and chant his name.  Watching the video is rather amazing and oh how I wish I could have been there for it.

—  The X-Men: Days of Future Past panel.  I’m pretty sure this was rather a surprise panel?  Or maybe we just weren’t aware of who would be there?  But really – pretty much all the X-Men – both “current” and “past” – were there.  Stewart, McAvoy, McKellan, Fassbender, Dinklage, Jackman, Berry, Lawrence, Paquin, Ashmore, Hoult, Page, Peters – they were all there.  And apparently McKellan (current Magneto) was hitting on Fassbender (past Magneto).  Oh the fangirling I’m SURE that caused!  (But really, I’d just love to see McAvoy.  How I adore that man.  Never thought I would have to admit to having a crush on Professor X!)

—  Catching Fire trailer.  Yes.  Please.  God wish I had been there for that.

—  And Marvel Agents of SHIELD?  They totally showed the entire pilot to the panel!!  Gah.  (And Agent Hill totally appeared.  Yes please!!!!)

There’s more, of course.  So many things.  Everything.  EVERY.  THING.  And, of course, all the costumes and the amazing fans.  But really, I mean really.  These are the reasons I would love nothing more than to have been there for.

I even think Punky would have loved – or at least appreciated – most of it!