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Expansion Cards for Monty Python Fluxx

Monty Python Fluxx gets several new cards with the introduction of the Castle Expansion pack and the Sir Not-Appearing Promo Postcard. And there was much rejoicing!

You know you’ve always wanted a Castle! …unfortunately it also comes with a pesky French Knight, who is sure to Taunt you mercilessly. Seven new cards to add to the insanity that is Monty Python Fluxx.

Fans of the antagonistic French taunters and their “outrageous accent” will particularly appreciate the Castle Expansion pack since most of the cards are dedicated to those characters. It’s nice to see the Legendary Black Beast of Aaaaarrrrrrggghhh finally get his castle, too.

The new cards and their rules are:

Goal: Camelot — You win if you have the Castle and any Knight of the Round Table on the table in front of you.
Goal: The Castle of Aaarrghh — You win if you have the Holy Grail and the Castle on the table in front of you.
Keeper: The Castle — If someone targets you with the Catapult while you have this in play, none of your Keepers are discarded.
Creeper: French Persons — You cannot win if you have this unless the Goal says otherwise.
Goal: Taunting by the French — You win if you have French Persons and the Castle on the table in front of you.
Action: I Shall Taunt You a Second Time — If the French Persons are on the table, move them to another player. If not, find them and give them to the player of your choice. Look first in the discard pile; if you have to look in the draw pile, shuffle it afterwards.
New Rule: I Told Them We Already Got One! — The French Persons count as any other Creeper if you need a specific Creeper to meet the Goal.

There’s still no “I Bet You’re Gay!” card, alas, but perhaps one will be added in the next expansion pack release.

The Castle Expansion pack is available online for $3.00 US or, for a limited time, free with a $10 purchase from participating game stores. Search Looney Labs’ Retailer Roster to find the Looney Labs Superstore nearest you. At such a low price, how can you not afford to add all this extra fun to your game?

This special promotional card is an amusing nod to “(The aptly named) Sir Not-Appearing-in-This-Film”, the infant knight who appeared briefly in the opening credits of Monty Python and the Holy Grail. According to Looney Labs, “This Keeper card works only in Monty Python Fluxx where it functions as an additional Knight of the Round Table.” At $1.00 US per postcard, or free with purchase like the Castle Expansion pack, you’ll want to get two, one to play with and one to keep pristinely intact as a collectable piece. The postcard instructions say “Here is a new Knight for your Monty Python Fluxx game — to join the other Knights of the Round Table in their Quest for the Holy Grail! For best results, use scissors to remove card.” If you have an X-Acto knife and a steady hand, you’ll get even better results, eliminating any telltale rough edges that make punch-out cards so easy to spot in the deck.

Monty Python Fluxx supports 2-6 players, ages 8 and up. Game length: 10–40 minutes.

Order now at Amazon.com:
Monty Python Fluxx

Or order directly through the Looney Labs website.

Monty Python Fluxx is distributed by Looney Labs, published under license with Toy Vault & Monty Python. For more information on Monty Python Fluxx, visit the official product page at Monty Python Fluxx.

Swim like a Mermaid

Children twelve years of age and under can transform into a mermaid this summer with the Mermaid Swim Fin from FINIS, “The Worldwide Leader in Technical Swimming Development”.

Features & Benefits: Adjustable Velcro strap for safe and fun use. Lightweight soft plastic and TPR (Thermo Plastic Rubber) foot pocket comfortably fits shoe sizes 1-7.

There’s a Shark Swim Fin, as well, and adults have an entire line of Monofins to choose from.

With the introduction of the Monofin in 1993, our tradition of providing high-quality and creative technical products to the swimming world began. We have worked with an extensive list of coaches and swimmers over the past 16 years to create products that optimize training and competitive performance.

Order directly through the FINIS website.

The Mermaid Swim Fin, Shark Swim Fin, and Monofins are distributed by FINIS and its associated Dealers.

Project Natal: Felicia Day

Felicia Day gets hands-on with Project Natal at E3.

News That Squishes

from Squishable:

Hey Folks!

If you were chewing away on a delicious sandwich filled with news, you’d want to make sure it was Squishy News! And here it is!

1) We’ve got some new Understudies! Yes, indeed, and you could not ask for niftier Squishy alternatives.

Psychedelic Owl Understudy — This owl is far out! This owl is… extremely rad? This owl is even better than whatever adjective the kids are using these days! And he’s so very huggable. This owl got me through my finals.

Kauzbots — You know what will make that cute member-of-the-opposite sex across the hallway notice you? Robots! But wait, she/he still doesn’t realize how great you are? How about Robots that support good causes! Allow us to present Refugee Rescue Kauzbot and Clean Water Kauzbot. For each cuddly little fellow you take home, cash gets donated to a charity (refugee help or clean water, take your pick). She/he will be very impressed!

2) Everyone knows about the negative effects of peer pressure, like really bad 80’s hairstyles. But spare a moment to think of the good stuff: because of peer pressure we’re now offering gift certificates! Thank the ridiculous amount of mail we got telling us we should have them. Buy one for your mom/teacher/local gas station attendant/gerbil.

3) Many thanks to the awesome folks who sent in pictures to help support Play Pumps International get clean drinking water to African Villages! You guys rock! Really! And just to add to the nifty, for every picture we receive this month of your Squishable and his humans, we’ll send a buck to Autism Speaks, which helps promote awareness of autism and fund research and things (up to $250)! Really good stuff! Send ’em to hugme@squishable.com.

Thanks folks!

Zoe and Aaron
Squishable.com

The Bui Brothers Visit Felicia Day

The Internet’s sweetheart Felicia Day recently took a break from The Guild Season 3 pre-production to get her portfolio pictures updated with a visit from the online photographic and videography team The Bui Brothers. Not only did they take some gorgeous photos, they produced a fun video that captured some of the highlights of their day.

Watch/Download in HD
Original Music by Paul Dateh and Ken Belcher
Make-up/Style by Tracie Cotta
Love and support by Bonny Pierzina

Also, don’t forget to pick up your DVD copies of Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog, The Guild: Season One, and The Guild: Season Two from Amazon today!

Father’s Day goodies at ThinkGeek

from ThinkGeek:

Hoopy Froods,

Wherever you were last week on May 25th, we hope you carried with you your very own massively useful towel in honor of International towel day. If you did not, may you suffer a hundred years of Vogon poetry readings. For those that did, we’ve assembled the following heap of goodies for you to gawk upon…

Avoid the Force Choke — Get dad something good for Father’s Day!

Unless you were hatched, spawned or cloned, you probably have have a father. And unlike some dads in geek history (who shall remain nameless *cough*Vader*cough*) we’ll bet your dad deserves an awesome gift for Father’s Day. We know how difficult it can be to get something cool and useful for your dad, and though we can’t guarantee the “useful” part of the equation, we have a lot of gift ideas for dads ranging from useful to useless but all of them very cool. So hurry up and get shopping because you don’t want to show up empty handed on Father’s Day, unless you enjoy a good Force Choke.

Father’s Day is June 21st.

Find more What’s New items at ThinkGeek!

“Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog” DVD Hits Shelves Nationwide

from Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog:

Entertainment Weekly‘s Picks of the Week

Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog (out Tuesday). Joss Whedon’s musical about a lovelorn would-be supervillain and the video blog he records in his home doesn’t exactly scream surefire hit, but it took the Internet by storm last summer. This sweet and sinister tale about the eponymous mad scientist (Neil Patrick Harris) who battles his arch nemesis, Captain Hammer (Nathan Fillion, of Whedon’s dearly departed Firefly), for the affections of the crusading civilian Penny (Felicia Day) shot immediately to the top of the iTunes video chart, and was viewed over 2.2 million times in its first week. If you missed it then, here’s your chance to discover it. EW: An oral history of Dr. Horrible

"Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog" DVD

Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog
Neil Patrick Harris (How I Met Your Mother) stars as Billy, A.K.A. Dr. Horrible, a budding supervillain whose plans for world domination continually go awry. His two goals: getting accepted into the Evil League of Evil, and working up the guts to speak to his laundromat crush Penny, played by Felicia Day (The Guild). The only thing standing in his way is Captain Hammer, Billy’s superhero archnemesis played by Nathan Fillion (Firefly). With one big score, Billy could get into the E.L.E. and earn the respect of Penny, but only if he can keep her away from the dashing Captain Hammer…

DVD Features Include:
Over 90 minutes of bonus material

Distributor: New Video

Legend of Neil T-shirts Have Arrived

from The Legend of Neil:

Get your very own “You Deserve it After Committing Murder” T-shirt from the brand spankin new Legend of Neil Store. We’ve got posters too (which if you buy in conjunction with a T-shirt will be signed by creator Sandeep Parikh and star Tony Janning).

Help support the web-series you love, and look damn good while doing it. The T-shirts are high quality and come in almost every size imaginable including woman’s cuts. So get em while we got em (we only ordered 200) so they’ll go fast.

Spread the word and post the link on Facebook and Twitter: http://effinfunny.com/legend-store/

Mystery Science Theater 3000: Volume XV 4-DVD set due out this July

from Shout! Factory:

The Uproarious MST3K blasts off again on DVD!

Mystery Science Theater 3000: Volume XV

Featuring MST3K Film Episodes The Robot vs. the Aztec Mummy, The Girl in Lovers Lane, Zombie Nightmare and Racket Girls, Limited-Edition Mini-Posters, and All-New Bonus Content

In Stores Nationwide July 7, 2009, 2009, from Shout! Factory

In space, no one can hear you laugh. Unless, of course, you are aboard with the hilarious and beloved space travelers on The Satellite of Love from Mystery Science Theater 3000to skewer B-movies. To further celebrate Mystery Science Theater 3000’s cinematic chuckle fest, Shout! Factory, in association with Best Brains, Inc. proudly presents Mystery Science Theater 3000: Volume XV 4-DVD box set on July 7, 2009. The side-splitting 15th collection of the famed MST3K features the show’s never-before-released film episodes The Robot vs. the Aztec Mummy, The Girl in Lovers Lane, Zombie Nightmare and Racket Girls, four limited-edition mini-posters, along with a wealth of new bonus content, including new interviews with the stars from Zombie Nightmare Frank Dietz and Jon Mikl Thor in Zombie Nightmare = MST3K Dream featurette, Glimpses Of KTMA: MST3K Scrapbook Scraps I (original wrap-around segments from the KTMA season), Behind the Scenes: MST3K Scrapbook Scraps II, Kevin Murphy and Trace Beaulieu in a Sneak Peak from the Upcoming Hamlet A.D.D., and Promos. Join Joel, Mike, Tom Servo and Crow T. Robot as they supply their own playful brand of commentaries on some of cinema’s most misunderstood “masterpieces” in Shout! Factory’s Mystery Science Theater 3000: Volume XV. This collectible 4-DVD box set is priced to own at $59.99.

The Robot vs. the Aztec Mummy
The battle between machine and the undead comes to a chilling conclusion when an insane scientist invents a robot for the sole purpose of stealing an ancient artifact guarded for eternity by an Aztec mummy!

Only the second show produced after MST3K’s original year on KTMA, this remarkable episode features J. Elvis Weinstein as a virtually unrecognizable Tom Servo, plus the first part of the classic short Commando Cody & The Radar Men From The Moon.

The Girl in Lovers Lane
After his spoiled protégé’s frequent missteps leave him with the responsibility of making things right with the law, local pimps and hoodlums, Bix Dugan’s life as a drifter may finally be coming to an end. And what a shocking ending it is!

Join hosts Joel Hodgson, Servo and Crow as they send up the movie that divided the MSTie nation. Love it or hate The Girl In Lovers Lane, this memorable episode’s song — “What A Pleasant Journey” — is guaranteed to have you in stitches!

Zombie Nightmare
When a young baseball player is struck and killed by a car full of rambunctious teens, his grieving mother convinces a mysterious voodoo priestess to resurrect her son, allowing his zombied corpse the vengeance necessary to finally rest in peace.

The Satellite of Love crew — Mike, Tom Servo and Crow T. Robot — takes on this 1986 zombie classic starring Adam West and Tia Carrere in her very first feature film role!

Racket Girls
When lowlife wrestling manager-turned-gangster Umberto Scalli takes $35,000 from the wrong crime boss, he’s forced to run for his life. Real-life female wrestlers Peaches Page, world champion Clara Mortensen and Mexican champion Rita Martinez — as you’ve never seen them before — star in this sinister tale of deceit, drugs, prostitution and smack downs!

In this hysterical episode from MST3K’s sixth season, Mike Nelson, Crow and Tom Servo challenge the “gorgeous gals of the ring” for the comedy championship of the galaxy! But what’s funnier? The riffs onboard the Satellite of Love — or the Racket Girls themselves? Also includes the popular short Are You Ready for Marriage?

Power House: Green Essentials Edition

Thames & Kosmos has released Power House: Green Essentials Edition, a new version of their popular Power House science kit.

To live sustainably, we must use Earth’s resources at a rate at which they can be replenished, and thus provide for future generations to live as we have. In this kit, you can learn about alternative energy and sustainable living by conducting experiments and building energy-related models. Thirty of the best experiments and the ten most important building projects from the original Power House kit are presented in this new Green Essentials Edition.
The ten building projects include: the power house itself, a greenhouse, a solar cell array, a passive solar collector, a solar oven, an air conditioner, a refrigerator, a hydrometer, a lemon battery, and a wind power generator.

Experiment with the heating, cooling, and insulation of the house and greenhouse. Test passive solar collection methods with a solar collector. Assemble a solar power array to explore active solar power with photovoltaics. Build a model refrigerator and air conditioner to learn about heat transfer. Experiment with a lemon battery to learn about power storage. Set up a wind turbine to generate electricity from the wind.

As you perform the experiments, you will read the diary entries of a group of young explorers who are learning to live a sustainable existence on an island. To survive, they must implement real-world versions of the projects you are doing in the kit. Ages 10 and up.

Compare to Power House Full Version

Available through Thames & Kosmos or one of their Dealers. For all the latest product news, follow Thames & Kosmos on Facebook.

Squishable

“Squishables are cute giant balls of squishy love. They’re soft, huggable, cuddly, and all-around awesome,” say Squishable.com co-founders Aaron and Zoe of their signature, Asian-designed stuffed animals.

A couple years ago we were backpacking around Southeast Asia doing some volunteering and being bums. We ran into our first fat, fuzzy piggy in Hong Kong and bought it as a tribute to Jhonen Vasquez. When we got back to the US he was immediately kidnapped by rabid fans. We took the hint.

How do you adopt a Squishable of your very own? Easy!

Order your Squishable of choice — for the purpose of this review, the Squishable Octopus.
Track the parcel online as it wings its way towards you.
Squee and do a happy Snoopy dance when the box arrives.
Open the box, marvelling as the giant pink octopus emerges, its body expanding to about double the size of its cardboard packing cube.
Begin a Squishable Hug-a-Thon.

Squishable Octopus

No need to hide the schoolgirls, this well-mannered octopus just wants to be friends! Hug him! Take him to restaurants! Introduce him to your parents! This octopus is one classy cephalopod! 14 squishy inches of tentacle, polyester fiber, ages 3 and up

The Squishable Octopus is incredibly soft, like an oversized, fabric-covered marshmallow. Sporting tentacles, silky pink- and cream-coloured fur, and a big, friendly smile, it could easily pass as a benign alien from any light-hearted anime series or whimsical sci-fi show like Farscape, and would make a great creature prop for an amateur sci-fi web series. Squishable.com’s suggestion is to “Use ’em as a pillow. Throw them at people.” The manufacturer’s tag reads “pillow is intended for decorative use only”, so apparently the Squishable Octopus was originally meant to be a funky throw pillow rather than toy, but something that adorable just begs to be played with. It’s no surprise, then, that Squishables have become more popular as playthings than home décor accessories. (P.S. Does anyone name the fluffy Squishable Octopus anything other than the obvious “Octopussy”?)

Squishable.com generates warm fuzzies by doing more than sell plushies, though. Engaging in admirable social practices, this business leverages the squishy power of its website to Save the World. Contributions are made to a number of charities, including Kiva, a non-profit organization that alleviates poverty by microfinancing small businesses in developing countries. In addition, a dollar for each picture posted in the Squishable picture gallery is donated to a monthly cause. Planet-friendly products marked as Good Karma Items are Fair Trade, handmade, or crafted from renewable materials.

Order directly through the Squishable website.

Big Squishable Animals, the Squishable Wardrobe, and Squishable Understudies are distributed by Squishable.com. For all the latest product news, follow Squishable on Facebook and Twitter.

Milky Way and the Galaxy Girls: What Planet Are You From?

Milky Way and the Galaxy Girls, a website dedicated to the positive promotion of girl power, presents Milky Way and the Galaxy Girls: What Planet Are You From?, a picture book written and illustrated by site creator Lauren Faust.

Meet Milky Way and her intergalactic entourage, the Galaxy Girls! Each girl is named after some heavenly body, and none are afraid to be as individual as every star in the sky. With 11 girls in this celestial sorority, there’s bound to be one you can bond with. You may be a total hottie, sizzlin’ with solar power like the Sun. Or like Pluto, a rockin’ rebel who rejects demeaning labels like “Dwarf Planet.” Perhaps you’re an orbital oddball, like artistic, green-skinned Mars. Or a kind-hearted environmentalist with a soft spot for cute animals, like Jupiter. Read on, for this book is your personal guide to the girlaxy, and with a little personal insight you can find out… What Planet Are You From?

Independently published in 2007, What Planet Are You From? is a professional effort that deserves a much wider audience than it’s received so far. Like Neil Gaiman’s Blueberry Girl, it’s a refreshing alternative to the sea of pink, glittery, substance-free fluff that currently floods the bookstore shelves reserved for young girls. Fashioned in the style of an astrology guide, this small hardcover encourages girls to think about who they really are, not just who society and the media tells them they should be. As Faust writes on her website:

What do girls like? The first things that come to your mind may be: clothes, hair, make up and fashion. And you would be right. Most girls DO enjoy these things, and it would be foolish to ignore that fact. But who only likes one thing, right? The world often forgets that girls love art, sports, music, culture, animals, learning… the list is infinite! And, sadly, sometimes girls forget that, too. So why can’t girls be cute, stylish, cool, AND smart, empowered and a little different?

They can. Milky Way and the Galaxy Girls offers the best of both worlds for girls. Fun with trendy, funky clothes and hair styles AND a wide variety of personalities, nationalities and outside interests. Each character has a specific activity she loves and accessories and wardrobe that correspond. They are each individually adorned with a personal symbol and color scheme that define her and her life style.

So, there’s a girl for everyone! All you have to do is figure out… What Planet Are You From?

Faust worked on the popular cartoon series The Powerpuff Girls, and its visual influence can clearly be seen in the brightly-coloured and dynamic art of What Planet Are You From? Elements of Rainbow Brite and Sailor Moon give the simple yet iconic designs a touch of cheerful nostalgia, as well. The eleven Galaxy Girls — Milky Way, The Sun, Mercury, Venus, The Moon, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto — are given four pages apiece to tell their stories. (Earth is absent from the book since Lauren Faust fills the role of “Mother Earth” on the Galaxy Girls website.) Biographical information is listed on a two-page spread, with the name and picture of the described character splashily revealed when the page is turned. Nearly blank backgrounds allow readers to imagine whatever setting they desire. The book would make a memorable reading activity at a slumber party and, as an added educational bonus, can be used to help teach budding astronomers about the celestial objects that make up the solar system.

What Planet Are You From? is a stellar gift for girls of all ages, delivering a message that every child should take to heart: “Remember, there may be millions and millions of stars in the girlaxy, but each and every one is astronomically awesome and unique… and you are too!”

Once you’ve joined the Solar Sisterhood, proclaim your choice of Galaxy Girl mentor by picking up a t-shirt, poster, postcard, sticker, button, or patch at the online shop, and visit the Etsy shop where Faust sells handmade plush art dolls of the girls featured in Milky Way and the Galaxy Girls: What Planet Are You From?

Order now at Amazon.com:
Milky Way and the Galaxy Girls: What Planet Are You From?

Or order directly through the Milky Way and the Galaxy Girls website.

Milky Way and the Galaxy Girls: What Planet Are You From? is distributed by My Firefly. For more information on the book and its author, visit the official Milky Way and the Galaxy Girls website and its related Facebook and MySpace pages. Lauren Faust may also be followed on deviantART and MySpace.