Contest Winners and Update

I hope everyone reading had a great Christmas. Hopefully, now I'll be able to get back to posting updates a bit more frequently. Case in point...

December's contest for a superb calendar from myzombiepinup.com ended on the 18th and I am just now getting around to announcing the winners. So congratulations to:

Christina M. from Asbury Park, NJ

William A. from Baltimore, MD

Thank you to all who entered. It was a lot of fun receiving all of the great entry pics. Here's a sample of the entries.

New Years Eve will also be the final day to enter for your chance to win a great shirt from Zombie Liquorice. Full details can be found here.

January's prize is going to be one of the best yet and you can expect to find out more this weekend.

Thank you to everyone reading, emailing, retweeting, and Facebooking; You have made 2009 a great year. I'm working hard to maintain the momentum into the new year and will continue to do so as long as there is interest. Have a safe and happy New Year! Cheers!

Tofu the Vegan Zombie In Stock

Remember that adorable vegan zombie toy I reviewed a short time ago? Well, Tofu the Vegan Zombie is now available to purchase in the Zombie Toy Store!

Pick yours up today for $19.99

"Carriers" Movie Review

I don't think I have ever watched a movie and thought to myself when it ended, "Wow! Now that was an okay movie!". Well, "Carriers" is just an okay movie. Here is my extremely brief description of Carriers:

It is kind of a gumdrop and lollipop post-apocalyptic movie. A diet version of 28 days later only not as good and without the zombies.

Does this mean you shouldn't read my full review? No. I mean, after all, I'm taking the time to write it. It is a movie worth a watch... just not what I was hoping for. It was a dark vision of what would transpire if a highly lethal and contagious virus were to spread. There were several brutally realistic moments which made the movie fun. Harsh decisions are made, people are killed, and circumstances force actions all in the name of survival. The story follows two brothers and their girlfriends as they travel the desolate roads to their childhood vacation spot. Why? It's on a beach, it's a large hotel, it's nowhere easy to find, and it has been closed for several years. Along the way they have encounters that are not anticipated and are forced to deal with situations they were hoping to avoid. Christopher Meloni does a great job portraying a desperate father trying to cure his daughter.

So what didn't I like about Carriers? I think it was a little too "pretty". The cast, to me, seemed just a little too perfect and pretty. Even the fake scar on Chris Pine doesn't help. I also felt some of the acting was a bit cliche for the characters. While there were events and decisions that made sense, there were just as many that did not. Another gripe? If the virus is really that contagious, would a surgical mask do much good?

Overall, Carriers is worth a watch. It's not very gritty and is more or less a post-apocalyptic date-night movie for the younger crowd. Granted, I did have high hopes for this one so maybe I'm being a little harsh. If you have seen it, I'd be curious to hear what you think.

Another Zombie Attack!

Not really, just another hacked sign. I don't condone hacking these things but hearing and seeing it always brings a smile to my face. Actually, the biggest hazard is my constantly checking when I drive by one to see if it's hacked.

Two signs were recently altered to read, "ZOMBIE ATTACK!! EVACUATE" in Gainesville, FL. Federal Department of Transportation spokeswoman Gina Busscher reported, "we've not seen any zombies on University Avenue."

Source: Gainesville.com

New Zombie Toys!

The Zombie Toy Store continues to grow and if you haven't checked it out in a while go have a look. We have added some new novelty items such as the Zombie Devil Duckie, Zombie Finger Puppets, and Remote Control Zombie. There's the cute zombie-ish Deady the Bear keychain. And we have added an "Art Toys" section that will continue to grow and features items that should appeal to your zombie loving side.

The biggest news, however, is the arrival of Zombies & Toys' first exclusive! Working with October Toys, there is now an exclusive pink color of their great Z.O.M.B.I.E. toys. Even better? They glow red in the dark! The only place to get them is at the Zombie Toy Store. They are limited to only 200 sets so don't delay for too long.

Update

I can't believe it's been a week since my last post. Like many of you, the holidays kept me busy. Even though I still have several personal commitments yet, I hope to have a few updates for you this week. Here's what you have to look forward to:

I will be posting the winners and entry pictures for the My Zombie Pinup calendar contest. I have some exciting news about the first Zombies & Toys exclusive toy that arrived last week. There are several new toys in the Zombie Toy Store I will mention. My review of the movie "Carriers" will be posted shortly. There will also be posts about some of the new friends I have made including someone who made a zombie coloring book! Of course, there are more contests in the works as well including some zombie accessories, rare games, handmade goodies, clothing, toys, swag, books, and movies.

2010 is going to start off great and thanks to all of you reading and contributing should be even better than 2009. Thanks for taking the time to read. For more frequent updates and occurrences as well as exclusive information including pics and news of upcoming contests, follow me on FaceBook.

Natalie Portman, Zombie Slayer

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. We all know the drill... Seth Grahame-Smith added zombies to the Jane Austen novel. I still can't bring myself to read it but reviews I've seen are split down the middle. I posted earlier about the news of turning this book into a television mini series. Now the latest news (or latest news about a week or two ago, sorry) is that Lionsgate gave the thumbs up to turn the story into a movie. Oh yeah, and Natalie Portman is going to star in and produce the film.

"The original text of Jane Austen's beloved novel with all-new scenes of bone-crunching zombie action. As our story opens, a mysterious plague has fallen upon the quiet English village of Meryton—and the dead are returning to life! Feisty heroine Elizabeth Bennet is determined to wipe out the zombie menace, but she's soon distracted by the arrival of the haughty and arrogant Mr. Darcy. What ensues is a delightful comedy of manners with plenty of civilized sparring between the two young lovers—and even more violent sparring on the blood-soaked battlefield as Elizabeth wages war against hordes of flesh-eating undead."

SkullyBoom

Who remembers the days of break dancing and ghetto blaster? Well, for those of us who still enjoy sharing music with friends, SkullyBoom is doing their part to help cut down on the earbuds we see everyday. These portable speakers are customizable and available in several different colors.


What really drew me to them was their familiar look. Fortunately, SkullyBoom is also a vinyl canvas. They are available in black, white, and glow-in-the-dark and are perfect for anyone who enjoys customizing. Here's my attempt at creating my favorite dead guy out of a SkullyBoom.



SkullyBoom will be sponsoring a contest here in the coming months! We have three SkullyBooms to give away with some cool artwork by Squidnik. This contest will launch soon and run slightly longer than previous ones. One thing is certain, additional entries for this contest can be earned by customizing your very own SkullyBoom! These will be available in the Zombie Toy Store shortly but I am gauging interest now. If you plan on picking up a SkullyBoom, drop me an email at zombiesandtoys@gmail.com. They will be priced at $9.99.



SkullyBoom is what happens when art and technology get intoxicated and hook up.

MEOW

Man, I love zombies! Is there anything that can't be made better by adding zombies? Movies? Check. Marvel comics? Check. Classic literature? Check.

Now we have a horrific zombie attack of... of... KITTENS!!!

Youbentmywookie unearthed a great video that shows us what the zombie apocalypse would be like if conducted by cats.

Tofu the Vegan Zombie

Here’s an interesting concept: What happens to a vegan when bitten by a zombie? Or what if you’re a zombie fanatic but your significant other is repulsed because zombies eat meat? Maybe you’re just looking for another fun way to introduce the little tikes to the enjoyment brought about by zombies. Or it could just be that you like cute zombies with unique stories. Allow me to introduce Tofu: The Vegan Zombie.

“Tofu is a friendly zombie, created from a botched experiment in Professor Vost’s laboratory. Monkey # 5, one of Vost’s lab animals, stuffed a block of tofu into the zombie boy’s open skull after accidentally losing the brain. As a result, Tofu eats only vegetables and grains and has no taste for human meat. However, if Tofu ever loses his “tofu-brain”, he turns into a dangerous zombie creature, craving human flesh.”

This little guy is brought to us by Applehead Factory. If Applehead sounds familiar, it’s because they are the creative genius behind the Teddy Scares (more on those later). Tofu’s story is different and the video is fun. Tofu is the result when you replace a zombie’s brain with a chunk of tofu. And what could possibly be better than the story of an adorable vegan zombie? How about a toy of an adorable vegan zombie?

Tofu stands about 7” tall and features 4 points of articulation. While it may seem that his head is moveable, sadly it is not. However, the chunk of tofu keeping him tame is remove-able. The lack of articulation doesn’t ruin this guy but some options would have been nice. Details are substantial for a figure of this type with grooves in the boxes and solid color application. Another nice touch are the thin strands of rope holding Tofu’s mouth somewhat closed. Or at least should assist in case his tofu brain becomes dislodged.


Tofu is available for $24.99 through Applehead Factory. This cute little guy would make the perfect desktop decoration for the zombie fan on you Christmas list.

Now, grab some popcorn and enjoy Tofu The Vegan Zombie in “Zombie Dearest”.

To view this video and more clips about zombies and toys, check me out on YouTube.

Zombie Pinup Contest Update

Just a reminder that the contest this month for the Myzombie Pinup Calendar ends this Friday. For your chance to win one, email a before and after zombified photo of yourself, your zombie tattoo, or a classic image that would benefit from the Myzombie Pinup treatment. For full details, click here.

You can zombify yourself for free at zombieme.com and zombieland.com. If anyone reading has other resources they would like to share, email me or post them in a comment.

Here are a few entries we have received so far:

After you enter the pinup contest, don't forget to enter for you chance to win a shirt from Zombie Liquorice. You can enter to win both shirts. However, in the unlikely event you are chosen as the winner for each you can only pick one. It is possible to win both the calendar and a shirt.

For complete details on our Zombie Liquorice contest, click here.