The Bat iPod was a joke I came up with, but there are people out there who really can and do make very cool replicas of comic book items. Take this guy, for instance, who put together a kick-butt set of Wolverine claws:

Maybe if I send him my Bat iPod brass knuckles he could whip me up a real-life set? I can dream.

Or maybe I should send them to the guy who made the actual set of claws used in the X-Men movie. This article shows how Canadian special effects artist James Gawley crafted the iconic weapons, and the difficulties of translating comic book physics into everyday life. Well worth a weekend read.

James Bond scores with so many women, even his sound effects are filled with sexual innuendo. I think it’s pretty clear that “Swut” is really “Slut”:

“Skankt” is just plain ol’ “Skank”:

And while James probably doesn’t speak Yiddish, I think it’s clear what this sound effect is all about:

James Bond, License to Love.

Yes, James, you really lust. Must!

(All images and characters from James Bond 007: Serpent’s Tooth, No. 1, ©1992, Acme Comics Ltd., Dark Horse Comics, Inc., and Glidrose Publications, Ltd.)

I am pleased to announce that the full set of Expansion items comprising HeroMachine 2.5 is now complete and available on UGO.com, absolutely free! This release includes all of the bug fixes reported previously as well as 28 new component genres available for your use. I have copied over the most popular components into other slots so you can now have two items from the Coat component, or two from Undershirts, two Companions, etc. Here is the complete list of new component options:

Read the rest of this entry »