What's In the Box?!?: March Nerd Block and Firefly Cargo Crate

Despite the threat of Superman vs Batman merchandise in this month's Nerd Block, that blockbuster-to-be actually formed a small percentage of the March content.

As usual, Nerd Block does not vary their packaging one iota. That's fine; you shouldn't judge a book by its cover, or a subscription box by its box. But it would be kind of nice to see some variation from time to time.

As soon as I opened it, it was clear what the big items were going to be.

Game of Thrones is a series I enjoy watching, although when I actually think about it, there are very few characters I actually care about. If I had to make a list, Grey Worm would probably be towards the bottom. He's a character who, to my mind, is distinguished from all the other hundreds of soldier characters we see by the fact that he has a name. So getting a Funko Pop of him doesn't particularly excite me. But that's the thing about subscription boxes, as I've mentioned before: they're a crap shoot.

I'm much more excited about the exclusive ShirtPunch Marvel Daredevil t-shirt this month. I really like Daredevil, both the comic and the Netflix TV show, and this shirt is a really nice design.

The other Game of Thrones item this month is a Funko mini mystery figure. Fortunately, this time, I got a little Dire Wolf. Not only do I like those animals just fine on the show--probably eve more than I do the humans--but this mini version is adorable. 

Another exclusive item this month is an autographed picture of Martin Kove from Karate Kid, and countless direct-to-video action movies. As a child of the 70s and 80s, this is fantastic!

This month's biggest "whatever" item for me is the Arrested Development Tobias Dress-Up Magnets. Arrested Development is one of those shows that I believe I am supposed to be crazy about, but I have never seen a single episode. So this really means nothing to me. (Again: crap shoot.)

Finally, the one Superman vs Batman item I received was a wall plaque. While it's got the characters that are featured on the movie on it, it isn't specifically depicting anything from the movie, as far as I can tell. So, instead of it being a piece of merchandise from a movie that doesn't particularly appeal to me, it's a nice picture of some of my favorite comic book characters. I appreciate that.

And, of course, there's a card explaining all the items.

Overall, this may not be my favorite Nerd Block of all time. But it came with a really nice T-shirt, a cute Dire Wolf mini figure, a nice superhero wall plaque, and Martin Kove's autograph.

Next month's Nerd Block is curated by Weird Al, so that should be fun. (Although it also includes items from Family Guy and Archer, two more shows I don't watch. Still, Weird Al!)

We also received the first in a new subscription from LootCrate: the Firefly Cargo Crate. Obviously, this is a subscription box designed to appeal solely to fans of the short-lived Joss Whedon-created science fiction TV series, Firefly, and its follow-up movie, Serenity. Fortunately, my wife and I are big Firefly fans, and as soon as subscriptions were available, I signed her up for a subscription.

The box is nicely designed, looking like an actual cargo crate from the show. Clearly, the postal service took the show’s setting of a run-down, dirty, lived in universe to heart, as you can see by the condition the box arrived in. Damage to the box aside, it’s a cool design, and the “Exported from Persephone” sticker was a really nice touch.

The box came packaged with a nice booklet, which not only details the contents, but also features some nifty articles. This month’s theme is Kaylee, so she is featured on the cover. There is also a new interview with Jewel Staite, who played Kaylee on the show. There’s a page of photos drawn from social media, and a “How to Speak Mandarin page.” The magazine also includes an interview with Maya Dinerstein, a Kaylee cosplayer who is a dead ringer for Jewel Staite. Ordinarily, we just toss out or recycle the insert cards and booklets that come with our sub boxes, but this is so nice, it may be a keeper.

All the contents of this box are exclusive, so if you are a Firefly collector, there is already value to this box. 

There’s a Kaylee Little Damn Heroes Mini Master, which is maybe 5 inches tall and so charming. The sculpt on the face looks more like Kaylee than it does Jewel Staite, possibly for licensing reasons, but even if it’s not a photorealistic sculpture a la Hot Toys, the pose and expression captures the character. And it’s pretty detailed, right down to the teddy bear patch on her knee.

Speaking of teddy bears, there’s also a teddy bear wearing Kaylee’s standard mechanic’s jump suit and flowered shirt. It even has a Kaylee patch on the knee! So adorable!

When my wife saw the “Exported from Persephone” label on the box, she proclaimed that she was going to cut if off and reuse it. Fortunately, that wasn’t necessary, since the box came with another copy of the sticker, ready to be used.

The idea of a blind box toy inside a subscription box—essentially a big blind box on its own—makes me smile because of the redundancy. But blind boxes are a hit, so the Cargo Crate includes one from Q-Bit. Apparently, the options were either Jayne Cobb or Simon Tam. We got Simon, which is appropriate. Now Kaylee won’t be lonely.

The box also included a Everything’s Shiny pin, styled to look a bit like Kaylee’s trademark parasol. 

Speaking of her parasol, we also got a 5-pack of little paper parasols for drinks, also styled to look like hers.

One particularly cool item—in a box full of cool items—is the pair of Firefly concept art mini-prints, showcasing early designs for the Reaver ships. They are nicely reproduced, and interesting to look at. If they are going to include something like this every month, we will probably need to get some sort of album or something to keep them in.

Finally, we received a pair of Firefly Board Game Cards, which go with the Firefly game, which we neither own nor play. The art is nice, but I honestly can’t say much else about them.

I should also mention that my wife also received an exclusive founding member Firefly Cargo Crate pin, in the shape of Serenity, a few weeks ago. I forgot to take a picture of that.

Overall, as a couple of Firefly fans, my wife and I thought this was a pretty good box, and look forward to the next one (featuring Jayne). If nothing else, we should get a nice complete set of Firefly figurines, and plenty of other cool stuff. Obviously, this box has a much more specific appeal than something like Nerd Block, or even the Marvel Collectors Corps. However, if you enjoy Firefly as much as we do, it’s worth taking a look.

Maverick Rewatch: Episodes 1-3

Prompted by the Warner Archive release of Young Maverick, which means all the Maverick TV series are currently available for purchase (and all owned by us), my wife and I decided to start watching the whole series from the beginning. Here are my thoughts on the episodes we’ve seen to date. As I said in the first post of this blog, but maybe bears repeating, these are not reviews; these are reactions and responses. There’s a whole internet of critical discussion about television in general and Maverick in particular, but that isn’t what you will find here.

Also, a word about spoilers: there will be some. I don't want to tap dance around plot details from a show that aired 60 years ago. I'm not going to be writing plot summaries, but I'm not going to avoid spoilers, either.

War of the Silver Kings: I’d seen this one before, and was a little anxious, because this would determine whether my wife and I would be watching the series together, or whether I’d have to find time to watch on my own. Fortunately, she was won over by the clever plotting and dialogue, and James Garner’s undeniable charm.

For myself, part of my concern about this maybe not being the best first episode for her to watch may have come from my knowledge that this wasn’t originally intended to be the first episode of the series. Warner Brothers nascent television division made creator Roy Huggins adapt this first episode from a novel they owned the rights to, so that he couldn’t claim the residuals he would have been owed if he was credited as the creator. I still think that’s a crappy thing to do, but if I don’t let that knowledge color my view of the show, this is a really good debut.

The story clearly introduces Maverick as a character who just wants to mind his own business as a wandering gambler, but when push comes to shove, he won’t hesitate to fight back. However, he prefers to fight using his brain, not his fists or a gun (although he does throw a fair few punches in this episode). That’s why I love this show, while other, more traditional Westerns of the period hold little interest for me. That’s probably also why this show has withstood the test of time, and been revived on multiple occasions.

The plot is pretty complicated, and they probably pack a feature-length movie’s worth of story into a TV episode. I feel like that especially shows with the character of Edie, the daughter of the miner who rescues Maverick after he is knocked unconscious by the thugs working for Phineas King. She’s a weird, quirky character who adds a lot of humor to the proceedings, but really only gets one scene to shine.

Having said that, I would rather have a packed 50 minute story than a padded 90 or 120 minute movie, so I’m fine with the pace and content of this episode.

I appreciated how Maverick arrives in town looking like a grubby cowboy, It wouldn’t make sense, seeing him riding from town to town in his ruffled shirt and fancy gambling duds. It really gives the sense that he is wearing clothes, not a costume. 

I also appreciated how, while Maverick clearly fights with his wits, he isn’t a cool, emotionless genius. He gets angry, and sometimes his anger gets the better of him. He’s a fully-drawn character, even in this first episode.

Of course, by the end of the show, Maverick’s wits have won the day, and he and Big Mike McComb are riding out of town and on to the next big thing. I can’t remember whether or not Big Mike shows up in future episodes, so that will be interesting to see.

Point Blank: Sure enough, Big Mike McComb is not in the second episode of Maverick. The episode opens with Maverick on the run from a group of riders, and we never really hear too much more about that. He shows up in the town of Bent Fork, once again filthy from the road, and almost immediately hoodwinks the (apparent) town bully with an old trick using a belt. However, Maverick being Maverick, he pays back twice what he won, claiming that the guy had given him a loan; he just hadn't realized it. 

However, Maverick still manages to run afoul of the local sheriff, partly because he doesn't trust an outsider gambler like Maverick, and partly because the sheriff appears to have a crush on Molly, the big city girl now working in the local saloon. For her part, Molly appears to be developing an interest in Maverick, and that interest is definitely reciprocated. But we soon learn that her interest is less romantic, and more nefarious.

We learn--well before Maverick--that Molly and her boyfriend, bank teller Ralph, are scheming to rob the bank. Maverick bears a superficial resemblance to Ralph; more than superficial if they were to blow his face off with a shotgun. The plan is to lure Maverick to his death--by way of the aforementioned shotgun blast to the face--so that, for all intents and purposes, the authorities will assume Ralph is dead, and he will be free to leave with Molly to spend their riches.

This episode is a lot more focused and deliberately paced than War of the Silver Kings. That one, possibly because of its origins as a novel, felt like it had a ton of story crammed into its 50 minutes of running time. Point Blank is able to take its time and build the characters and relationships. We get a genuine sense of Maverick's developing feelings for Molly, and similarly get a strong sense that she is developing feelings for him... OR IS SHE????? 

Contrasted with War of the Silver Kings, this story is much more character-based. This makes me happy; two episodes in, and it's clear that the formula is not as simple as, "What's Maverick's scheme this week?" In fact, while we see his gambling expertise at play several times, for the most part, Maverick is the one who is getting conned here. And once he realizes it, he doesn't come up with some sort of elaborate counter-scheme. Nope, he just goes and confronts Ralph with a gun. He does get Molly to confess her part in the plot in earshot of the sheriff, but it's not a complicated set-up. She just doesn't know he's there.

Because the characters have time to breathe, it allows them to build in a little subtlety. Particularly in the case of Molly, it's difficult to tell whether she really is falling for Maverick, or if it's all a part of the plan. The relationship between Molly and Maverick feels real, because it has time to develop, and that helps build that ambiguity into the story.

I've often seen Maverick described as an "anti-hero," but I don't believe that's an appropriate description for his character. Certainly, he doesn't behave like a stereotypical Western hero, and the scene in this episode--where he bargains the reward for recovering the stolen bank money up before returning the money--is certainly something that the Lone Ranger would never do. However, he is still a man who does the right thing when push comes to shove. For example, as he tells Molly--and here I am paraphrasing--"I tried to come up with some way to keep you out of it, but I just couldn't square it." He returns the money he tricked the town bully into giving away. He's a man who is focused on his own survival and profit, but not at the expense of others, or justice.

This episode also features my favorite Maverick quote to date. When the sheriff tells him he has ten minutes to get out of town, Maverick replies, “Sheriff, I’ve gotten out of towns this size in five minutes.”

According to Hoyle: In this episode, we do see the return of Big Mike, plus the debut of recurring female foil Samantha Crawford. In some ways, this episode combines the broader scope of War of the Silver Kings with the character focus of Point Blank, in that it ranges all across the west, from New Orleans to Wagon Wheel, Montana, but still deals with a relatively small group of characters.

We first see Maverick soundly beaten at cards on a riverboat by the sweet, demure, but apparently crafty Samantha Crawford. He makes a deal with a pair of steamboat line owners to draw passengers to their ship by promising a rematch with Samantha, if they stake him $5000 to a game. This time around, Samantha beats him again by relying on a little-followed rule from Hoyle.

She tells Maverick that he is responsible for her father being in prison for embezzling money from his bank, a course of action he restored to after Maverick ostensibly cheated him out of $50,000. Maverick apparently convinces her that he's not a cheater, then forms a plan with her to raise the money she needs to buy her father out of prison. It involves taking down a crooked saloon owner, Riggs, who Maverick humiliated on the river boat.

From here, things get twisty. It seems Samantha's story about her father isn't quite the truth, although she has been deliberately targeting Maverick as part of a revenge scheme involving a man he did win $50,000 from. Despite his charm, Maverick ends up facing setbacks at every turn, right up until the end. Ultimately, he doesn't really come out ahead, but neither does anyone else, and maybe that''s the best anyone can hope for in this situation.

Diane Brewster, as Samantha Crawford, makes a great foil for James Garner's Maverick. She's every bit as charming as he is. Ted de Corsia, as Riggs, is fantastic as the corrupt gambling hall owner. Esther Dale, as the feisty Ma Braus, is the very image of the tough old bird, in the best way possible. And Leo Gordon, returning as Big Mike McComb, is a great partner for Maverick. His character gets a nice ending in this episode, but I'm pretty sure this isn't the last we see of him, and I know Samantha returns in future episodes as well.

Once again, we are reminded that Maverick, despite his profession as gambler, is still a thoroughly honest man. He doesn't cheat at cards. He insists on repaying the $5000 to the river boat owners, even though they insist he doesn't have to do so. He chooses Wagon Wheel as a place to establish a profitable casino because it also means taking down a corrupt, cheating rat like Riggs. He's a good man who, whenever he has the opportunity, does good things. Those are not the actions of an anti-hero, to my mind.

Our only real quibble about this episode is that my wife and I aren't sure how Samantha was able to beat Maverick at cards. We see her using the Hoyle trick, but otherwise, he describes her as a bad card player. So how does she manage to take all his money? Is it as simple as she is able to hold her own, until ultimately she gets to the point where she is able to trick him into betting all his money against what turns out to be a sure thing? If she's as bad as Maverick claims, it doesn't make sense that he would get himself into that position.

However, despite that one objection, this is another fine episode in a series that definitely deserves its reputation. I enjoyed the range of geography this episode covered--even if that did mean a little more stock footage of river boats and trains and saloon fights than usual--and I particularly enjoyed the final scene, with all the adversaries putting their differences aside for a game of cards. Best of all, the story didn’t rely on the obvious trope of, “Oh, Maverick knew what they were up to and was one step ahead of them all along!”

What's in the Box?!?: Gentleman's Box and Star Wars: Smuggler's Bounty

Time for some of this month’s subscription boxes!

Arriving first this week: the March Gentleman’s Box! (I know, I just blogged about the February one the other week. Blame my weekly publishing schedule, but I just am not in a place to post more frequently than that at this time.)

As usual, the classy wood-grained exterior opens to reveal the explanation booklet. This month’s box is inspired by “Our Favorite Captain,” by which they mean Johnny Depp. 

Beneath the booklet are this month’s neatly-wrapped contents.

When discussing the February box, I talked about how we had decided to suspend my Sock Fancy subscription, particularly if I was going to be getting socks in the Gentleman’s Box. Sure enough, this month’s box included another pair of socks, from Unsimply Stitched. These ones don’t have a name (unlike last month’s socks) but they feel nice and soft. And, according to the booklet, this design is a special production only available to Gentleman’s Box members. Sock collectors take note!

A year or two ago, I had received some Billy Jealousy aftershave balm in a Birchbox box (to which we no longer subscribe). I liked it, but because I was getting so many different aftershave samples, I never needed to buy more. I was pleased to see that this month’s box included a sample tube of Billy Jealousy’s Shaved Ice aftershave. I’m no good at describing scents, but it’s a scent that evokes cool freshness without seeming minty, and definitely not floral. I’m looking forward to incorporating it into my aftershave rotation.

I don’t often wear suits, and I don’t think I’ve ever bothered with a pocket square, so I don’t know how often I’ll be wearing the shipyard pocket square from Knots Apparel. Apparently, they routinely dedicate a portion of their sales to specific charities, so that alone is worth applauding. The sales from Gentleman’s Box go to support The Joseph Fund. This particular design is—like the socks—exclusive to this month’s Gentleman’s Box, so, again, collectible! It’s a nautical theme, in keeping with “Our Favorite Captain,” so perhaps I will wear it if I am ever invited to the Yacht Club.

While I may not always wear a suit, I always wear collar stays with my nice shirts. I had been using some magnetic collar stays from Wurkin Stiffs, but those are designed to keep your collar down in place around a neck tie. I was just using them to keep my collar tips pointy, so I was underutilizing them. So I’m glad to get a set of wooden collar stays from Woodchuck USA. These will definitely be easier to use for my purposes, and they come in a variety of sizes, which will be handy.

Finally, this box included a pair of nice aviator sunglasses. They look really nice, and are the kind of sunglasses I’ve always wanted. Unfortunately, I wear prescription glasses, so I can’t really wear just these when I am out and about. Still, I will have them on hand if I ever get contacts, or just don’t need to see stuff too clearly.

The box also included a coupon for $20 off an order from a company called Parsonii, “the watch that changes with you.” I haven’t really looked into this yet, so I don’t know if it’s good value for money. Regardless, it’s just a coupon.

Overall, Gentleman’s Box says there’s $87 in value in this month’s box, and I’m going to use most of it. So it’s a good haul.

I also received this month’s Star Wars Smuggler’s Bounty. This month’s theme is Cantina, as evidenced by the image of Greedo on the box.

Inside, we get the usual patch and pin. This month’s pin is Greedo or some other Rodian, and the pin is one of the cantina musicians.

Inside, the boxed isn’t packed as fancy as Gentleman’s Box, but everything is pretty secure.

This month’s T-shirt is a cool Wanted: Han Solo design. I’ll definitely be wearing this when I am out and about. I appreciate that it’s a picture of Harrison Ford/Han Solo, not the Funko Pop version of him.

The other non-Pop item this month is a pen topped with a mini version of the Chewbacca Pop. It’s cute, but I haven’t tested the quality of the line and ink yet. (AS IF ANYONE GIVES A POOP.)

Finally, this month’s exclusive Pops: Obi-Wan Kenobi and… Red Snaggletooth? Nerd that I am, I do recognize this alien from the cantina scene in the original Star Wars movie. Seeing a Pop of him reminds me of my youth, when I would buy action figures of almost any background alien that Kenner would produce. As an adult, I do kind of wonder whether Red Snaggletooth is his real name, because that would be kind of cool. And I do kind of wonder what acclaimed Shakespearean actor Sir Alec Guinness would think about this plastic bobblehead version of himself. For what it’s worth, I think it’s pretty nifty. Plus, he’s standing there posed with his lightsaber, ready to go to town on some cantina drunks, so he looks pretty bad-ass.

Bonus box: I received this nifty gold Captain America statue as my charter member anniversary gift from the Marvel Collectors Corps. I think it looks awesome, except that the part of the arm holding the shield needs to be glued back on (of course). 

These are the boxes I had received by press time. I’m pretty happy with all of the stuff; even the things from Gentleman’s Box I might not regularly use are pretty cool, and I might make a point of using them, just to look dapper and cool. Please let me know in the comments what boxes you get, and your favorite items.