Unpacking the Power of Power Pack

Episode 132 FF #4: The Beating of Drums...

So Reed has a big plan that he has developed with his less than trustworthy father, his over-intelligent and under-age daughter, and his mortal enemy. And he has invited his teams evilest villains into his house. What could possibly go wrong?

Let us talk about all of the things that go wrong. The first thing is food. You always think you have enough food in the house before guests arrive, and then you realize that you forgot to make head-cheese. It is even worse when villains are involved. If you do not have their favorite brand of knock off soda, they will probably threaten to invade a small nation.

The next is music. You need to have something on in the background, otherwise it just gets awkward. If you do not have some sweet sounds drifting behind the din (or lack of din) of conversation, there is the possibility that fighting will break out. This is a fact, music prevents bad guys from being bad. So, hook up that Wi-Fi set and play some funky music.

As far as the guest list goes, you do need to be selective. You want to make sure you are inviting the respectable villains, not just your garden variety goombahs. Do not let the hairy hordes of Helena just rampage on your carpet. Be sure you know what evil you are letting in your front door. Oh, and for your information, Google Dictionary does not like the word 'goombah'.

And if you do invite the wrong kind of people, or if you think you may have party crashers, you may want to hire bouncers. This can help regulate the level's of evil in your sitting room, not to mention your bathrooms. Of course, you will need to find some good bouncers. Check your local Angie's list for suggestions.

If you do have a party with your enemies, be ready to face a little resentment from your friends. They may feel hurt or betrayed by your actions. This is normal and should be met with ignorance or shunning on your part. I mean...you obviously are smarter than they are and can make much better decisions. You know who your true friends are....they are your enemies. Jeez...read some Sun Tzu.

Above all else, make your enemies happy. Make sure they are comfortable, that they feel at ease. Allow them into your home and your heart. Make it an evening they will never forget. Make them a key to your front door. Allow them to wear their shoes inside. Give them their choice of all your bedrooms. You might as well....they are probably going to kill you anyway.

 

Check out the artwork we talk about over at our website:

https://jeffandrickpresent.wordpress.com/2023/04/22/episode-132-ff-4-the-beating-of-drums/(opens in a new tab)

 

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Our show supports the Hero Initiative, Helping Comic Creators in Need.  http://www.heroinitiative.org/

Eighties Action by Kevin MacLeod 
Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3703-eighties-action 
License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 

Energy 2013 by Sascha Ende 
Free download: https://filmmusic.io/song/211-energy-2013 
License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Episode 133 FF #5: ...The Sound of War

We are in the party zone now. We have a bunch of Reeds and a bunch of villains and a bunch of kids.....and don't forget the mistakes and regrets. What else can POSSIBLY go wrong.

First of all, we probably should talk about underestimating the problem. You make plans and you estimate the size of the opposition and then you head out to fight. Now, what could be the worse that can happen during this step...well, bad intelligence and low balling the threat. You can end up out there all alone. One little man against a mob.

That brings us to fire power. Do you have the right weapons for the job? Do you have competent people to operate the weapons? Do the weapons work? Honestly, it is amazing that we are able to be successful at all with the number of moving pieces in the world. Sometimes we just need suction cup guns to even the playing field.

If you have the correct response and the appropriate weapons, do you have a good visual on your enemies? This is a good question to ask when you are attacking or about to be attacked, or if you have fallen into a deep dark hole, or if you have been hit in the face with webs....or something.

OK, so now you are in trouble. You have failed and have been caught....maybe by a net, or just by a bad decision.....or by a crustacean. Whatever happened, here are some things you should do . First, don't panic. Second, get some Bactine, that looks nasty and could get infected.

What about villains? Yeah, you got them, and you should be worried about it. They usually come with big plans, big guns, big lackeys, and big egos. So what are you gonna do? Well hotshot?

Oh, you are going to shoot them with a gun. Nice. Way to go hotshot. Now you have really made a mess of things. I don't even know what we are doing. No really...I don't....I am watching a movie while I am writing this so I really do not know what is happening.

Well, I just hope that you have accomplished what you wanted to. I hope that you are sitting in the chair that you so richly deserve. I hope that you have destroyed your enemies and made the world see how awesome you are. If not...I hope that you had fun.

 

Check out the pictures we talked about by clicking on this link:  https://jeffandrickpresent.wordpress.com/2023/04/28/episode-133-ff-5-the-sound-of-war/

 

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Our show supports the Hero Initiative, Helping Comic Creators in Need.  http://www.heroinitiative.org/

Eighties Action by Kevin MacLeod 
Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3703-eighties-action 
License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 

Energy 2013 by Sascha Ende 
Free download: https://filmmusic.io/song/211-energy-2013 
License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license 

Episode 134 Amazing Spider-Man V1 #666: Spider-Island - Prologue: The One and Only

It is Spidey time!!! We have a costumed crusader, we have an island, and we have a LOT of spiders....They are everywhere. So let's take some time and talk about spider stuff.

The Spider Flip is apparently part of a course redesign in an American Ninja Warrior show. It was an obstacle that was used, but was incredibly tough. They should have had Agent Venom do it. Boom. All done.

Spider Kick is a gym that emphasizes health And well being. They use martial arts philosophy and training to accomplish this. I do not know if they inject their patrons with spider juice so they can do split kicks.

Here are the ingredients for Spider Punch. For the instructions, ask Shanghai Chi.

• Thin black licorice ropes
• Black sanding sugar (optional)
• Corn syrup (for the rim of glass, optional)
• Grenadine syrup
• Ice
• Orange juice
• Straws

Lets talk about spider science. No one teaches spiders how to make their webs; they just seem to know. This stumps scientists a bit, but this fact is an excellent example of how even the tiniest insects somehow know how to keep themselves alive.

Do you know that you can make bets on spider fights. I mean, you can bet on anything, and I am sure that there are some people that would say that there are no victims in a spider fight. But I would say, we all are victims.

Dodge Ram Black Widow. Rugged Luxury. Redefined. No truck on the road is as intimidating in factory form as the RAM line of pickups. We add in our Premium lift components, custom wheels and luxurious interior details to set you apart from the pack. Explore our full line today.

Spidey Swing is a fun-addicting Spider-man rope swing game that you can play online and for free on Silvergames.com. Control the Peter Parker rag doll in his spidey costume through all stages using his well-known spider web. Try to jump from one spot to another swinging, letting go and shooting your powerful spider web again. Avoid hitting the walls and other obstacles too hard or the poor, masked superhero will suffer serious injuries, like losing a leg or an arm… or his precious spidey life. Earn up to 3 stars on every level and show you have what it takes to be a hero.

I hope you all learned something. I learned d how to search for things on the internet.

 

Check out the lovely pictures that go with these strange prose at: https://jeffandrickpresent.wordpress.com/2023/04/28/episode-134-amazing-spider-man-v1-666-spider-island-prologue-the-one-and-only/(opens in a new tab)

 

We also have some merchandise over at Redbubble. We have a couple of nifty shirts for sale. https://www.redbubble.com/people/jeffrickpresent/?asc=u

You can also subscribe and listen to us on YouTube! 

Our show supports the Hero Initiative, Helping Comic Creators in Need.  http://www.heroinitiative.org/

Eighties Action by Kevin MacLeod 
Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3703-eighties-action 
License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 
 
The Road Home [2023] by Alexander Nakarada
https://filmmusic.io/song/10745-the-road-home-2023
License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Episode 135 X-23 V3 #14: Chaos Theory (Part 2)

What has six claws, a painful past, and a crop top? No, not Britney Spears carrying a six pack of White Claw....it is X-23! And what does she have to do with Power Pack......not too much, but here we are.

So how did we come to this moment? We are supposed to be a Power Pack podcast, but we had been steadily rocking the Fantastic Four vibe. Why are we caring about the stabby girl with knife hands? Well, it is for the kids.

OK, maybe it is not really for the kids. Let's face it, there is some violence in here. Or at the least, attempted violence. And that was against a child....and a cookie.

So why are we all the way out in this book? Why are we exploring the mysteries of an X-23 book that no one really talks about? Why are we admiring broken planets and broken dreams?

Because it is fun! Because it is what we do. We look into the eyes of the comics that were made and we find the Power Pack in them. We trace and explore where ever that road leads us.

We play around and follow the stories and develop a timeline that was unintentionally created by a series of comic book creators. It is our mission statement, and one we take seriously.

So thank you for hanging around with us and listening to our silly show. We do what we do, and we have fun doing it. We also eat sandwiches in hallways and make messes, but that is a totally different conversation.

Oh....and we also do this because we follow Power Pack and Alex is in this one.

 

Check out the art we talked about at this link: https://jeffandrickpresent.wordpress.com/2023/05/26/episode-135-x-13-14-chaos-theory-part-2/

 

We also have some merchandise over at Redbubble. We have a couple of nifty shirts for sale. https://www.redbubble.com/people/jeffrickpresent/?asc=u

You can also subscribe and listen to us on YouTube! 

Our show supports the Hero Initiative, Helping Comic Creators in Need.  http://www.heroinitiative.org/

Eighties Action by Kevin MacLeod 
Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3703-eighties-action 
License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 
 
Digital Motor [Better version] by Luis Mayorga
https://filmmusic.io/song/7034-digital-motor-better-version
License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

 

Episode 136 X-13 #15: Chaos Theory (Part 3)

Part two of our two part dive into this two clawed lady where she is teamed with the FF, who are made up of two pairs of heroes. This is just too exciting.

So I am sitting here, attempting to write up some words to describe the pictures and general story of this book, but I am also watching A Clockwork Orange. So, my question to you, my dear reader, is how much will the movie reflect what I am writing.

Laura and her friends are out one night, looking for some fun, causing mischief and mayhem. They were hoping to cause pain and suffering on....wait...wait....this may not be right. No, Laura and Spidey and Sue got nicked to another dimension.

The fun and game turn horribly painful and deadly. We really think that these people are not good or friendly. What with the spears and the death.

There is something to be said for the horror and destruction that is caused by the deprived and the sadistic. And the demon that Laura is fighting is just really really bad. I mean, it took over Val...even though that is at the end of the book.

There is violence. Much violence. Building shaking violence.

Violence that goes through wall and down the side of a building. That is one heck of a fall. It is also an nice view. Let's not forget that.

Now let's get into the real violence of it all. Let's talk about the blood and pain and the real terror that this book dives into. The demon disassembles a poor man, just because the flesh got a little cut. Well, that is sad.

I guess, that in the end, everyone just needs a really good throat punch. Not us...especially not my co-host. At least more than once.

Well, I guess I will just put on some Beethoven and then we will see what the night brings us.

 

You can see some pictures here: https://jeffandrickpresent.wordpress.com/2023/05/26/episode-136-x-13-15-chaos-theory-part-3/

We also have some merchandise over at Redbubble. We have a couple of nifty shirts for sale. https://www.redbubble.com/people/jeffrickpresent/?asc=u

You can also subscribe and listen to us on YouTube! 

Our show supports the Hero Initiative, Helping Comic Creators in Need.  http://www.heroinitiative.org/

Eighties Action by Kevin MacLeod 
Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3703-eighties-action 
License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 
 
SpiderJam by Keith Wolk
https://filmmusic.io/song/9668-spiderjam
License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Episode 137 FF #11: Intelligence

And we are back to the FF. Oh how we missed these two wonderful letters during our month and a half adrift in the world of Alex's broken arm. But all of that is behind us. Now, we look forward and we see what is new. Hey....what is this brochure for new employee orientation?

Take your seats...take your seats. We are about to begin new hire orientation for FF: Flipping Fries restaurants. Thank you all for time and attention. We hope that this will be informative and instructive. Please no using powers during the presentation.

I know that some of you may feel that this is beneath you or that you already know everything. I cannot stress enough that knowledge is power and everyone can improve through retraining. Please, keep an open mind and open ears.

Our restaurants are more than just fast food joints. They are businesses and workplaces. You should treat them as your second home, with respect and cleanliness. Think about the type of place you would want to walk into.

Your supervisors and managers are there to help and guide you. They are well trained and have good information and guidance for you. Yes, it may feel that they are looking over your shoulder, but that is just to ensure things are going the right way.

We know that we are all humans, and we cannot really control our feelings or how relationships develop. That said, we want to recognize fraternization. Please be upfront with your management team if there is a relationship that does occur.

OK, we are having too many side conversations. I appreciate your friendly conversations, but I need you all to focus on the content up here. We will have a break very soon.

Nobody likes to talk about terminations, but we need to bring it up. If you fail to live up to our expectations, you will be terminated. We understand this is harsh, but you know what you signed up for.

Thank you for your time.

 

 

Please check out our website at: https://jeffandrickpresent.wordpress.com/2023/06/02/episode-137-ff-11-intelligence/

 

 

We also have some merchandise over at Redbubble. We have a couple of nifty shirts for sale. https://www.redbubble.com/people/jeffrickpresent/?asc=u

 

You can also subscribe and listen to us on YouTube! 

 

Our show supports the Hero Initiative, Helping Comic Creators in Need.  http://www.heroinitiative.org/

 

Eighties Action by Kevin MacLeod 
Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3703-eighties-action 
License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 
 
Captain Scurvy by Kevin MacLeod
Free download: https://filmmusic.io/song/3475-captain-scurvy
License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

 

 

 

Episode 138 Fantastic Four #600: Forever

We have a big book to cover today, so it is time to focus and give our followers good content to go with these pictures. So here we gooooooo...

Oooh....looks like a new trailer just dropped on that new movie that I wanted to see....hang on a second...need to watch this.

Oops....got some tech issues occurring. Gotta fix these or nothing is going to work. Just one moment.

Well this is embarrassing. Just got a call from a friend of mine and I need to run off to help her. There is always something, amiright?

Ok...not my fault....just got into a little fender bender and I need to talk to my insurance company. This may take a while.

I have no explanation or excuse except to say....aliens are attacking.....be right back.

Ok...I am ready to give you wonderful people a synopsis of this story without giving any spoilers.....Wait...Holy Heck!!!! Johnny Storm is alive!!!

Maybe you should just listen to our show.

 

Check out some of our pictures so those jokes make sense:  https://jeffandrickpresent.wordpress.com/2023/06/28/fantastic-four-600-forever/

 

We also have some merchandise over at Redbubble. We have a couple of nifty shirts for sale. https://www.redbubble.com/people/jeffrickpresent/?asc=u

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Our show supports the Hero Initiative, Helping Comic Creators in Need.  http://www.heroinitiative.org/

Eighties Action by Kevin MacLeod 
Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3703-eighties-action 
License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 
 
To the Tooth by Keith Wolk
Free download: https://filmmusic.io/song/9731-to-the-tooth
License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Episode 139 FF #12: All Hope Lies in Doom, Part 1: Too Many Kids

So you decided to take a flight on Cheapskate Travel. You do not know the destination, you do not know the transportation, and you do not know if you will ever see your luggage again. Well, good luck, roll the dice.

The world is your oyster, only you hate seafood. that is OK, because as your budget travel agent, we allow you to put your money into the things you care about, like world domination. Those oysters are not going to kill themselves. You are the man for the job.

As you pack for your trip, we suggest you be broad in your choices of clothing and gear. True, you have no idea if your luggage will arrive, but if it does, a bikini in the alps is not going to help you. Sometimes a suitcase full of blankets and some scissors is a better option.

As you prepare to enter our debarkation lounge, be sure to look at all the fancy pieces of technology we have. Sure, some are broken, and some we do not know how to use, and some we know we should not use...but that is what is making this fun. Also, do you really NEED two legs?

No, we do not cater our travel. That is just wasted money and this is cheap. You may want to pack your own food, or just scavenge whatever looks fresh or unattended. Your choice, we really do not care.

Traveling in large groups is not the best idea. You may not all end up at the same location or you may all appear at the exact same location. Either way, it gets awkward and embarrassing. We suggest that you go solo on this one.

If you arrive at your destination in one piece, congratulations, you have beat the odds. Now is the time to enjoy your luck and good fortune. Hopefully you have some money to get home.

*Cheapskate Travel is not responsible for any of the unfortunate accidents that will probably happen over the course of your travel.

 

Check out the art from this issue at our website: https://jeffandrickpresent.wordpress.com/2023/07/09/ff-12-all-hope-lies-in-doom-part-1-too-many-kids/

 

We also have some merchandise over at Redbubble. We have a couple of nifty shirts for sale. https://www.redbubble.com/people/jeffrickpresent/?asc=u

You can also subscribe and listen to us on YouTube! 

Our show supports the Hero Initiative, Helping Comic Creators in Need.  http://www.heroinitiative.org/

Eighties Action by Kevin MacLeod 
Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3703-eighties-action 
License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 
 
OzMosis by Keith Wolk
Free download: https://filmmusic.io/song/9718-ozmosis
License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

 

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Episode 140 FF #13: The Bridge

Let's talk about bridges. Being based in Portland, Jeff and Rick see them a lot. To give you an idea, there is a bridge pedal that occurs in the city and you can travel over nine different bridges over the Willamette river...and that is not all of them. We are talking 23 miles of biking awesomeness.

Rick has a special love for three types of bridges. The Ribbon Flotation Bridge, the Bailey Bridge, and the MGB Bridge. He learned to construct these bridges when he was in the Army. It was neat and he had fun learning how to do this hard work. He also got to drive really awesome vehicles.

Jeff really loves to build bridges out of Lego. He and his daughter spend hours upon hours building cute little bridges with red and blue bricks. But never yellow. Yellow is for the devil.

The longest bridge in the world is called the Danyang-Kunshan Grand Bridge. It stretches out for 102 miles and is in China. I mention this only because Rick has never been China. So he has never been on that bridge, and is therefore very sad.

Rick's favorite bridge may be the bridge that he jumped off of the first time he bungee jumped. It was a beautiful sunny day, and it was a nice solid bridge. But, money was paid and his youth was not going to be wasted, so off he jumped. he had fun.

Jeff has stated that his favorite bridges are those on star-ships. While those are neat with all of their flashing lights and alarms and inexplicable steam pipes, it is not really the answer we were looking for. I do not think he studied properly.

Todd Bridges was an actor on Diff'rent Strokes. But that is also not the answer we were looking for.

Needless to say, we are phoning this page in. It may be midnight when I am doing this, so you get what you get.

 

If you would like to see some pretty pictures, check out this website:  https://jeffandrickpresent.wordpress.com/2023/07/29/ff-13-the-bridge/(opens in a new tab)

 

We also have some merchandise over at Redbubble. We have a couple of nifty shirts for sale. https://www.redbubble.com/people/jeffrickpresent/?asc=u

 

You can also subscribe and listen to us on YouTube! 

 

Our show supports the Hero Initiative, Helping Comic Creators in Need.  http://www.heroinitiative.org/

 

Eighties Action by Kevin MacLeod 
Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3703-eighties-action 
License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 

Go Cart by Kevin MacLeod
Free download: https://filmmusic.io/song/3813-go-cart
License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

 

Episode 141 FF #14: 27 Minutes

I like to do a variety of gimmicks on these pages, especially since I run out of ideas on what to talk about. So, for this one, I am going to give myself 27 minutes to write content for this page. After 27 minutes, I am going to stop....cold. This is actually a good idea since I waited till the night before to put this together. So here it goes.

Ok...all of the pictures are loaded and it is 9:41PM. I am going to write until exactly 10:07PM. Hopefully I did my math right. It was a long day and I did volunteer at an information booth to talk about the program I work at, so my brain is a little fried. But that is not helping inform you, the dear reader about anything. Onward.

Look at these kids, sitting around, looking at a space gate. Man, when I was there age, I had a stick. I was told that that would be my toy and the firewood for the night so don't get too attached. But these spoiled kids get bored by looking at space and different realities. Bad parenting.

A little tip for all of you people. If you are ever faced with a galactic entity or a giant robot, never discount the effect of running away and hiding. Sure, when they destroy your world, the game is over, but still. Maybe you can go out with dignity. Ok, you probably will not, but at least you tried.

Speaking of dignity, our Alt Reed buddy had zero of it left when he snuffed it after using the ultimate nullifier. Way to represent your cult my dude. You effected zero change. The only thing you contributed was a momentary light source when your body turned itself into a flame.

Now Doom, he is class. Absolute style. He went out like a boss. It does not matter how many times the Fantastic Four take him down. or how much they make him look like a fool. He is Doom.

Again, giant robots are not your friends. Never were, and never will be. I think we all know that artificial intelligence will one day destroy us all...either that or a really bad fish taco. I cannot remember what the prophecy said.

But Doom...DOOOM....DOOOOOM......he will give us hope....if that hope is that we will all be ruled by someone who wants to rule us like a dictator. Huh...we probably will deserve that.

Ok. So that is it. I set myself a time limit and let's see what we have. Well, I have 14 minutes remaining, and I have produced a bunch of hot garbage. Good game coach, good game.

We also have some merchandise over at Redbubble. We have a couple of nifty shirts for sale. https://www.redbubble.com/people/jeffrickpresent/?asc=u

 

 

If you would like to see some cool pictures from this comic, check out our website: https://jeffandrickpresent.wordpress.com/2023/08/26/ff-14-27-minutes/(opens in a new tab)

 

You can also subscribe and listen to us on YouTube! 

Our show supports the Hero Initiative, Helping Comic Creators in Need.  http://www.heroinitiative.org/

Eighties Action by Kevin MacLeod 
Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3703-eighties-action 
License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 

Music: SpiderJam by Keith Wolk
Free download: https://filmmusic.io/song/9668-spiderjam
Licensed under CC BY 4.0: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license