The Walking Dead: 5 Huge Differences between the Comics and TV Show (spoilers)

1.) Daryl mother-trucking Dixon:

I don't think I'm posting any major spoilers here for non-comic readers if I tell you, Daryl doesn't exist in the comics. Neither does his brother, Merle. No motorcycles,. No sexy in a you need to shower type of way man-meat.  There isn't even a character I can think of to draw a parallel to here, other than possibly attributing Tyreese's much less aggressive tv show counter-part to Daryl's existence as Rick's right hand man. Daryl is a brilliant character, and I have fallen in love with him, along with most of the country, but I can't predict what's going to happen to him from reading the comics. Which is probably what the TV show producers were going for. 

 2.) Carol is a strong psycho killer, with a dead daughter:

I'm sort of bundling here. For one, Sophia is dead on the show and alive in the comics. She becomes Maggie's adopted daughter, much like Enid on the show. This is of course after Carol dies in the comics. Which happens pretty early on in the comics. In the TV show, Carol has turned into a stone cold pragmatist who thinks nothing of putting bullets into people who have been infected with a virus and threaten to infect the group at large. It’s a huge transformation, both from her Season 1 days suffering emotional and physical abuse from her husband and from the comics, where she is a bit of a looker (not the mousy, short haired and quiet character in the show), a total nut job and much feistier, flirting with and dating Tyreese and suggesting a threesome with Rick and Lori.

3.) Where the heck is Andrea? 

Oh yeah, dead. Andrea's initial indecision and emotional imbalance annoyed many viewers. Her decisions to relocate to Woodbury, to begin a relationship with the Governor and to leave Rick’s group riled many fans; it was tantamount to unforgiveable betrayal. But her death, or turning, in the TV show is pretty hardcore. This episode just doesn’t happen in the comics. Instead, Andrea becomes a sharp shooter and is central to the defense of the prison. What the heck TWD!? Andrea was hands down my favorite female character in the comics. Don't get me wrong, Michonne is awesome, but Andrea is a sniping badass who ends up with Rick, as Carl's Mom. She is the perfect for Rick. The lack of Andrea has brought Michonne and Rick together which is great and all, but is going to be interesting to the story arc since it cancels out any chance of Michonne developing a relationship with the "King" of the Kingdom. They've really rearranged the characters here. Which is confounding, but I'm excited to see where they take it. Who will the whisperers end up killing NOW?!

4.) Dale's early demise:

God love him and his penchant for open Hawaiian shirts, bucket hats, that trusty RV and moral philosophy. Dale dies sooner, and far more suddenly, in the TV show than in the comics. In the former, a few walkers ambush and disembowel him as he takes an ill-advised walk through fields. In the latter, Dale’s demise is a more prolonged affair, involving two bites and an amputation to stymie the first. This has a few major plot affects. For one, he and Andrea never date. I know it seems weird and creepy but Andrea and Dale were totally in love in the comics. This also leaves an opening for Bob, the alcoholic medic, who in the comics was a white guy who falls in love with Lilly Caul and helps out the Governor. That was a really weird twist. 

5.) Morgan's super weird story line

So... on the show there's a goat and a homemade jail cell mixed with a zen buddhist attitude. All very strange. In the comics he leaves his crazy booby-trap infested home with Rick and makes his way to Alexandria with the group after the jail is blown up. He's with Rick when he goes all zombie crazy and bites a dude who's threatening Carl. He is one of Rick's main men. The change could be partially attributed to Daryl's place in the show or could have just been a scheduling conflict. Who knows?

Interested in catching up on the comics. Get started here!

So what do you think? Am I on point? Did I miss any HUGE differences you would have mentioned? Let me know in the comment section. 

Nerd Boxes, The Good The Bad and The Ugly (From My Personal Experience)

In this review I plan to go over what I consider to be "the big three" nerd/geek boxes. Lootcrate, Nerd Block and GeekFuel.

The first box I ever subscribed to was GeekFuel and to be honest, my husband and I both loved it. GeekFuel offers a "monthly mystery box of geeky goodness". They advertise a $50 value in every box. While this is the retail value of the products that ship like with any mystery box what the products are worth to you may vary. Every box ships with a t-shirt. If you bill monthly the box is $17.90 and costs an additional $6 in shipping. Making for a recurring payment of $23.90/mo. Below are a few of the GeekFuel boxes I received.

The pillow case pictured here has an "It's a nap" quote on it. Not gonna lie one of my favorite items to come in a GeelFuel Box.

This was the last GeekFuel box my husband and I received as part of our 6 month subscription and it made it REALLY hard to leave GeekFuel. I loooooove Firefly so the Jayne hat was amazing, and I'm also a huge Deadpool fan. So the keychain and shirt were big hits as well.

Another GeekFuel I received. I friggen LOVED my pac man salt and pepper shakers, Fallout poster and Star Wars shirt were also key. Oh, and my official vault tec badge. This was a solid box for me.

So I'm a huge fan of useable geek items. The Star Labs mug pictured here was a hit with me and I also really loved this time travel shirt, but with the exception of those 2 items this particular box wasn't super exciting for me. 

This was the first box we ever received from GeekFuel and let me tell you I was STOKED on those ice cube trays. I literally did a happy dance, and I loved the T-Shirt as well. 

Overall I have to say GeekFuel always had atleast 2 items in each crate that I would have gone and bought in a retail location. Which means for me I about broke even on what I would have spent shopping for these items. I'll add that GeekFuel usually ships with a steam code for an indie game and for some computer gamers that is a HUGE plus. I tend to game more on my consoles personally so it wasn't a big selling point for me. Overall I would definitely suggest GeekFuel to my friends, especially if they're big PC gamers.

My husband received his first LootCrate this month. I actually sent in an email to request the February "dead" box because I missed the cutoff by a day or two and they honored my request which is a HUGE plus for me. The T-Shirt is amazing. We got a walking dead character (ours was Daryl) and so overall we were super happy with the box. I personally also subscribed to the Firefly Cargo Crate but haven't received the first one yet, but I will definitely update once it arrives.

I'm glad LootCrate is offering some variety in their crates now. They offer an anime crate, firefly cargo, are launching a star wars crate soon, and offer both a standard and leveled up general crate. They also have a lootcrate specifically for gamers and one for pets.

The Standard LootCrate boasts $45 worth of loot in each crate and is $13.95 plus $6 shipping, so you pay $19.95/mo. They do now include a t-shirt in each crate which is awesome. They do offer a level up option but personally I wouldn't do it. It's costly although you do have the option to add and remove it month by month if you see they're offering something you want. 

NerdBlock has the choices we all crave!! Seriously if you want to go through one company to get boxes for the whole family NerdBlock is the way to go. My first "block" was the comic block and it came with 3 comics plus a rad t-shirt. ABSOLUTELY worth the $19.99/mo especially if you factor in that they are GUARANTEEING you atleast a $60 value. If you love comics this is definitely a must have.

Pictured here is the "stuff and things" that came in both my Sci-Fi NerdBlock and my classic NerdBlock, minus the t-shirts. Which were both pretty cool.

NerdBlock offers Classic, Arcade, Sci-Fi, Horrow, and Comic Blocks, all for $19.99/mo and they all include t-shirts. They also offer a Jr option for both boys and girls at $13.99. If you check RetailMeNot there are almost always coupon codes. I used the code SUBBOX for 10% off, but check the site because they're always changing.


Overall I loved literally every subscription service I tried, but in terms of value, and overall selection I really think that NerdBlock  is the "winner". LootCrate is a close second and unfortunately although I loved every box I received GeekFuel ranks last. They're the most expensive and only offer one option. Any one of these crates is a good option and if you're a PC gamer like I stated earlier GeekFuel is the way to go. But if you're just a collector looking to have something added to your collection each month without having to go to the store or surf the web, NerdBlock or LootCrate are better options. If you have the extra cash I suggest giving them all a try, and please click on my referral links found in this blogpost. It will get you a credit and me a credit. That's a WIN-WIN.

So what's your opinion? Which block/crates/boxes have you tried? What's your favorite? Do you have a favorite item you received? Am I on point or off base? Let me know in the comments.

And if you have a subscription service you want me to try/review send an email to megan@megan-killion.com with details and I'll try to help you out.




Happy Friday!

How to make an AWESOME Fallout Gift yourself

http://www.thinkgeek.com/product/1af2/

Label, for a Nuka Cola Cherry wrapped around Jones Cherry Zilch

Cram Label wrapped around a can of spam

Radaway Label slapped on a bloodpack energy drink can also be used for blood pack. Alternatively this would also work.

Rad-X label around a Flintstones gummies bottle should do nicely

Here is a tutorial on how to make a Stimpak

Need: Locktight super glue

10mm syringe with plunger

A nail

Pressure Gauge

Strip of Brass 1/4 inch wide completely flat, 8.5 inches long

2 mm craft foam

Exacto knife

Ruler

11/16 outer diameter washer

Kwik Seal

Pliers

Secondary tutorial just in case. I'll probably end up making some combination therein.

Both Jet and Addictol are basically just inhalers, with red handles. Which means I will somehow have to find my inhaler(s)

Med-X is just a metal syringe with purple (or teal) liquid

Nuka-Cola Caps seem easy enough, because deviants before me are amazing. These New Vegas caps are extra awesome

Sugar bombs label goes around a cereal box. I'll have to print it before I decide which cereal box.

Fury/Psycho looks extremely complicated to make, but maybe I can figure it out.. or commission one.

Mentats label should be wrapped around some altoids resulting in something like this

I can't find any x-cell tutorials yet, but hopefully that will have changed by April

Looks easy enough to make an irradiated blood label if I bother buying a green blood pack. I could use that one for all of them, I suppose.

Now all I need is a purified water, deezer's lemonade, dirty water and bobrovs best moonshine label and I should be ready to roll. 

I think I'll pick up an ammo box to put it all in. This particular one would need some green and yellow paint.

Throw in some cases of ammo with labels probably wrapped around match boxes

And maybe some Grognak comics , a you're special book, Tesla Science (on a science journal?), guns and bullets (on a gun magazine?), and a massachusetts surgical journal or 2

Ah a tumblr dedicated just to fallout props *dies*

This girl did a particularly amazing job with hers.


< br /> If you don't want to do it yourself there's someone on etsy who sells them.

Upcoming Nerd Conventions Central Florida 2015-2016 (A Work In Progress)

Comic Cons

Clermont Comic Con is a Comic Convention at 3700 S Highway 27 Clermont, FL 34711 featuring Mitch Hyman and Alex Savuik taking place on November 22nd.

Clearwater Comic Con takes place at the Clearwater Main Library sometime in March and is sponsored by Emerald City Comics.

Tampa Bay Comic Conhttp://tampabaycomiccon.com/

http://www.wizardworld.com/home-orlando.html

http://northfloridacomiccon.com/

http://www.ancientcitycon.com/

http://daytonabeachcomicconvention.com/

http://www.florida-comics.com/ (Melbourne)

http://megaconvention.com/ (Orlando)

http://infinitytoyandcomicon.com/ (Orlando)

http://coralspringsmuseum.org/comics-fest-coral-springs/

Gaming Cons

http://www.enigmacon.net/

http://www.ameliacon.com/

http://umicon-daytona.com/

http://www.hmgs-south.com/vendors_13.html (Orlando)

http://www.wasabicon.com/ (Jacksonville)

http://www.boardgaming.info/cruisecon/index.html (cruise out of Jacksonville)

http://www.jaxarcadex.com/

http://www.boardgaming.info/convention/ (Kissimmee)

http://www.rapiercon.com/ (Jacksonville)

Sci-FI

http://necronomiconfl.com/ (Tampa)

http://www.omniexpo.com/ (Orlando)

http://www.floridaanime.com/ (Orlando)

http://www.spacecoastnerdfest.org/  (Melbourne)

http://www.hurricanewho.com/ (Orlando) October 30th- November 1st

https://www.facebook.com/events/1591498794467876/ (Tampa) October 25th


More: http://www.floridageekscene.com/category/conventions/page/2/

Subscription Boxes

So I compiled a list of subscription boxes I want to try. Some I tried. Some I'm waiting on, and some I decided weren't for me.

Conscious box is one I would LIKE to try. It's a bunch of products from "brands who care".
Hand-picked healthy, socially conscious and natural home, food and beauty items delivered monthly! Discover a beautiful life inspired by brands who make a difference. It's 19.99 a month and I'm not sure how much I would USE the products but it's definitely something I'm considering. I think it may be a Christmas gift for one of the people in my life.


I DID subscribe to gamergirlmonthly and so far I LOVE it. I got a yoshi keychain, portal earrings,
pokemon bracelet and zelda necklace in my first box. It's only $13 a month and so far I enjoy it a lot. I think this is a great one for any nerdy girl in your life. The jewelry is cheap but definitely worthwhile. In the end. I cancelled this particular box because it only shipped USPS and they manage to deliver my mail to the wrong address or not get it to me on time pretty much every time. The box gets a 4/5. Most of the items were things I was into and of decent quality but the shipping really killed it's value.

Club W is one that I am definitely planning on subscribing to. They send you wines based on your taste profile so basically as soon as I'm off my diet I am ALL ABOUT THAT.

I just ordered Lootcrate  which was on my list to try, but the new "level up" system threw me off a bit. When our Geekfuel subscriptions ended after 6 months I decided to give it a try and got my husband their standard box, and myself the Firefly Cargo Crate. The subscription boxes look awesome but the price to add a shirt to the mix seemed silly to me. They seem to have changed things around now and you typically get a shirt. The standard box is only 13.95 and includes atleast $45 worth of "loot". The level up option now offers 4 different choices depending on the types of accessories you're interested in adding. They also offer a lot of other specialty boxes including gaming, pets, star wars etc. I haven't gotten my first box yet but when I do you can check out my review in my Nerdy Boxes Blogpost. If you'd like to try it out please use my referral code.

For my anniversary I subscribed to Blue Apron and it was the best decision ever. ALL the meals have been amazing and it gets my husband and I to cook together. We did the family plan twice a week and for 69.95 it's less than it would cost me to buy the ingredients to make these meals in the grocery store. After a few months we did cancel. Mostly because we stopped shopping at Aldi's but overall this is a great option for most families. This box gets a 4.5/5

Citrus Lane caught my attention but I don't plan on trying it. None of the toys were anything my kids would like. If the toys appeal to you 29.95 a month isn't too horrible of a price to have something you and your littles can get excited for each month.

I tried graze last year and I actually enjoyed all of the snacks they sent me. For 11.99 a month the pricing seems fair enough and its something I'm considering re-ordering. Overall the box gets a 3.5/5

Taste Trunk was a hahahahah no. They're boxes start at $99 a month and offer you gourmet food to try.

Tinker Crate is one I'm considering for my son and husband to do together each month. For 19.95 a month they send you all the parts for a project.

I really wanted to try Hello Fresh. My friends had said great things and many of the meals looked good but they didn't offer my diet. Major bummer. It's $69 a week for 3 meals for 2 people.

I'm currently subscribed to Geek Fuel and our first box was a major success. I loved the t-shirt and Doctor who ice cube tray, plus the bob's burger's comic book, array of pins, nail wraps, and poster. The steam code was a definite bonus. I paid like $130 upfront for 6 months and so far I'm a FAN. If you decided you'd like to try out Geek Fuel please use my referral code. For a deeper review check out my upcoming "nerd boxes" blog post. I'd give it a 5/5. We only cancelled because we wanted to try something else, and may very well be back.


I want the comic block from Nerd Block SO bad. I'm gonna start dropping hints to hubby so hopefully I can lock it in for XMas this year. It's only 13.99 a month and includes 3 comics, a comic collective, plus a t-shirt. Unbeatable! All their other boxes look equally awesome. I think this definitely needs to be our next one. My husband could do Arcade or Classic and I could do the Comic one. SO MUCH EXCITE. I finally subscribed to this on 2/24/16 so look for more details on my upcoming "nerd boxes" blog post. If you decide you want to grab this one, also please use my referral code.

The Book Drop offers 4 different subscriptions based on the types of books you'd like to read and costs $16/ month. The idea is really cool, however I can probably purchase my own book that I know I'll enjoy and haven't previously read for under $16/month. Still really cool for someone too busy to go to the bookstore or who is trying to get their kid/teenager into reading.

Pley allows you to rent unlimited Legos. Which is beyond amazing, because my son goes through legos like it's his job. The only down side would be trying to return all the pieces when he's done. Probably wouldn't work for us until there's no toddlers in the house. Pley also donates a toy to underprivileged child for every new member which is AMAZING, but one major downfall is that they didn't list their pricing anywhere on their site. I would've had to sign up for a free trial to see the options. Not a fan of that mumbo-jumbo.

Book Free allows you to rent books. You can do 2 books a month for 8.99, 6 for 21.99 or unlimited starting at 15.99 (to have 2 books out a time) Now I know the library does this for FREE, but this company ships the books both ways free of charge and gives you recommendations of what to read next. If I didn't go to the library for my kids ANYWAYS I would definitely be into this.


For more information about these and other subscription boxes check out cratejoy.com


:-)