Movie Review: The Dark Knight Rises

I Smell Sheep is lucky enough to know Marc Savage of Following The Nerd, who got to see The Dark Knight and he shares his thoughts with you!

The Dark Knight Rises (12a)
Directed By: Christopher Nolan
Starring: Christian Bale, Anne Hathaway, Tom Hardy, Michael Caine and Gary Oldman
Running time: 164mins

After the events of The Dark Knight, Gotham has been living is a state of relative peace, with crime at an all-time low there is a sense of foreboding, as everyone remembers the anniversary of Harvey Dent’s death and the dawn of peace, a new threat is planning to make its move in the form of muscular crime-genius Bane…

Oh my. There’s so much riding on this one. The end of the Dark Knight trilogy. The pressure on Christopher Nolan and the crew is immense. Can they avoid the curse of the trilogy (Jedi, Godfather, Matrix) and build on what has gone before? Or, more realistically, can they top The Dark Knight?

The Dark Knight Rises is, let’s get it out of the way quickly, the weakest of the trilogy. But, given the first two chapters, this is not necessarily a disaster.

With all the principals returning to their now familiar roles, it’s a quick jump into the story. And for the sake of spoilers, I’m loathe to go into much detail. All I will say is the story is a natural progression from The Dark Knight, that said it’s a very different beast right out of the stables. Oh and the movie you think you’ve already mapped in your head based on trailers and rumours? It’s unlikely you’ve worked this all out.
Gotham’s peace is very quickly pulled back to reveal a Bruce Wayne (Bale), Alfred (Caine) and Commissioner Gordon (Oldman) who are all haunted in different ways by the events of the last movie. A dark passenger rests in all the principal characters that is fighting to get out and tell the truth about past events.

The death of Harvey and the sacrifice of Batman weighs heavily on everyone. Instead of leaving them in peace it tears them apart and right away we know that things are going to be much, much darker than before. From the fresh enthusiam and idealism of Batman Begins through the confidence of The Dark Knight, we now reach the dark, unforgiving and relentless third act and we are left in no doubt that there is suffering to come.

And come it does as Gotham plays host to two new – but very different – villains: Hathaway’s Selina Kyle (never called Catwoman), a cat burglar who is in deep with ‘the wrong crowd’ and Hardy’s Bane, a pumped-up monster of a man who is not only blessed with the strength to kill with one blow, but the brains to bring down governments. A lethal combination.

And while both actors are great, Hathaway is very solid in the role but never feels quite right and Hardy does the best he can behind a mask that sadly allows little expression of character and while his Bane has a great presence and certainly comes across as the terrifying man he should be, the role could really have been played by anyone. And that’s a big part of the problem with The Dark Knight Rises. Eveyone does solid work but the movie really lacks a performance like Ledger’s Joker and sadly no-one comes close and although we knew this going in, the movie feels the void.

Another problem is plot holes – remember the scene in The Dark Knight where Batman dives out the window and rescues Rachel after Joker drops her? Well, remember the way no-one mentioned how Batman actually left the Joker and his henchmen in the penthouse full of prisoners? Well, this movie have many similar plotholes that are never resolved. And while The Dark Knight was so good we let them slide, The Dark Knight Rises is slowly paced (and could have been easily fifteen minutes shorter) and these things stick in the memory.

Joseph Gordon Levitts’ character, John Blake, is the new addition to the side of the angels but sadly feels very much like a wasted opportunity, with little development. And Batman has shockingly little screen time, which is very disappointing.

Ok, enough of the negative. What are the pluses? Well the performances are all great, and you know that scene in the trailer where Bane blows up the football field? Well there’s a lot more to that whole sequence than the trailer shows and it’s superb. As the tension builds as Bane makes his move on Gotham it’s pulse-racing stuff and Nolan, as we come to expect, handles it with aplomb. And there are several set pieces throughout the movie that are stunning – the opening sequence is incredible, especially when you realise it was all done practically.

And what of THAT scene? The breaking of the bat? Well, I’m not going to spoil it but I personally felt a little underwhelmed by it. As a fan of the Knightfall story arc (where Bane is introduced and breaks Batman’s back) I expected to be rocked to my core by it, but sadly it just didn’t have the impact (no pun intended) that I hoped for.
Nolan shows the confidence we expect and his direction is mostly solid here, but his pacing, especially in the mid-section is too slow and some of the movie feels disjointed.

This all said it is still a good movie and I feel that expectation was a big part of the problem, with my hopes raised unachievably high. I also think that it suffers from Revenge of the Sith syndrome where there’s just too much to wrap up, but it’s clear that Nolan did have a vision for the whole trilogy whereby there are threads from the last two movies picked up and given a satisfactory finish. But there are a few left open-ended too. Deliberately? Perhaps. But I felt that the scale was just a little too epic in places as odd as it sounds with Nolan a little lost with just how to handle it; Batman Begins and Dark Knight both worked so well because they were blockbusters that had a small, personal movie at heart, and it feels like this movie tries too hard to be massive.
So all in all, solid performances and confident direction but there are loose ends and it’s poorly paced. However, the thing I’m most interested in seeing is fan reaction to the end, I have a feeling it’s going to split audiences right down the middle.

Much like Prometheus, I loved a lot of it but there were many little things that niggle at the back of my mind that leave me coming away feeling it is something of a missed opportunity.
But it certainly isn’t a disaster. After coming out of the Dark Knight I remember commenting that there was no way it would be topped and sadly I was right.
A good if deeply flawed ending to the trilogy. But not the barn-storming finale I hoped for…

3 out of 5 Sheep 

Marc Savage (find more of Marc's reviews and all things nerdy at Following The Nerd)

Movie Review: The Amazing Spider-Man 2012

The Amazing Spider-Man (12a)
Directed by: Marc Webb
Stars: Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone and Rhys Ifans
Running time 136miins

Peter Parker finds a clue that might help him understand why his parents disappeared when he was young. His path puts him on a collision course with Dr. Curt Connors, his father's former partner.

Ok, so it’s a reboot of a series no-one even really knew was gone. And it’s a story we all know inside out. Or is it?

Marc Webb had an unenviable task with The Amazing Spider-man. As soon as it was announced people were full of hate. The latest in a long line of reboots no-one wanted to see. Of a character that was so familiar it almost seemed pointless doing it. Put that all together with a summer that is book-ended by The Avengers and The Dark Knight Rises and the odds seemed stacked against the very aptly named Webb’s movie. Which is a shame, because it’s actually damned good.

I’m not going to dwell much on the story because it is familiar. Peter Parker (Garfield) lives with his aunt and uncle, is very smart and a loner. One day he gets bitten by a radio-active spider and becomes one of the world’s greatest and most enduring heroes… Spider-man.

However, this time around Spider-man’s world feels much, much larger. With a history that starts 12 years before that spider-bite, with Peter’s parents leaving him with his aunt and uncle as they flee from a mysterious threat and right away we know that, despite the familiarity, this is new territory.

And it’s the new territory that works here. Much like Batman Begins, The Amazing Spider-man kicks off with a villain that is familiar to the fans, but not so much to the casual movie-goers, it’s a clever move not kicking off with Goblin, Venom or Doc Ock as it means the villain, Dr Curt Connors (Ifans) is given time to develop and is given an intriguing backstory. Had he something to do with what happened Peter’s parents? What has he to do with the mysterious, unseen, Norman Osborne? And what will lead him to becoming the monsterous Lizard?

Emma Stone’s take on Gwen in perfectly fine, but sadly, while she is strong and confident, she suffers as most love-interests do in superhero movies and acts very often as mere eye-candy. And here police chief father played here by Denis Leary is an interesting character but any hopes we had of him becoming a James Gordon type ally are soon shattered.

The real strength here is Andrew Garfield. After his superb performance in The Social Network, Garfield’s casting as Parker/Spidey was a welcome one. He perfectly embodies the Nerdy cool that defines Peter Parker and really demonstrates how vulnerable he is as Peter and how cocky and confident he becomes with the mask on – the duality of character is handled wonderfully and Garield’s performance in both roles totally railroads over Tobey Maguire’s performance in Raimi’s trilogy.

Which brings us neatly to the inevitable comparisons… is it better than the others? Well, yes.

This is a much more grown up and human take on Spider-man. It doesn’t have that awful unreal, airbrushed look and feel that Raimi’s movies had. In this reviewer’s opinion Raimi’s take was too cartoony (ironic, huh?) and never really possessed the right balance of real world and comic lore. From Willem DaFoe’s horrendous Green Goblin, to the dreadful handling of Venom, Raimi’s movies never truly worked. However Webb’s does.

True, it isn’t without its faults… signposting some things to the point where you feel like saying ‘ok, I get it, that’ll tie into the end’ and treating the audience like fools at least once – the scene where we find out what happened Peter’s parents from an Oscorp lackey is laughable. And indeed one scene where Ifans’ duality sees him arguing with himself harks back to the DaFoe’s character from the first Raimi movie – homage or accident, it doesn’t work. Also, the lizard’s plan makes little sense when you actually think about it.

Another fault lies in the effects, not in Spidey’s wall-crawling or swinging through New York - they are stunning, but in the lizard character. He’s scary and occupies real space in the movie but never truly looks real. He’s not Scorpion King bad, but it is a little distracting in parts.

All that said, the highlight of the movie where the lizard attacks the high school is on a par with anything in the Avengers and the character of Spider-man has never rang more true on film. He’s scared but cracking one-liners at a rate of knots while he and lizard demolish the building - and look for a nice piece of Gwen Stacey (Stone) foreshadowing Spidey fans.

The Amazing Spider-man is an overall success. Standing head and shoulders above most superhero movies, it’s smart, funny and confident and clearly writer James Vanderbilt is a fan of Spider-man. It’s not as good as Iron Man, but better than any of the other pre-Avengers Avengers movies. And, most importantly, it hints at a larger universe, a world that Spider-man can inhabit that is filled with characters yet to be discovered. It’s a great start to a series that no-one realised needed rebooted until now.

Yes, it’s flawed, but the short-comings are far, far outweighed by the strengths here. Spider-man is a fun and exciting movie that ticks all the important boxes in a story that could so easily have been un-necessary. My one big regret was that we will never (never say never?) see this Spider-man stand alongside Downey Jnr’s Iron Man or Mark Ruffalo’s Hulk. Yes, it really is that good.

Just do us a favour… go see it and give Spider-Man a fighting chance this summer, because we can’t wait to see what’s coming next.

4 out of 5 Sheep

Marc Savage- check out Marc's other reviews at Followingthe Nerd

Sheep Movie Review: Journey 2: The Mysterious Island

This review is brought to you by Following the Nerd

Journey 2: The Mysterious Island (PG)
Directed by: Brad Peyton
Starring: Josh Hutcherson, Dwayne Johnson, Vanessa Hudgens, Luis Guzmán and Michael Caine

In all fairness, when a sequel to a mediocre movie comes out and the original star is absent – in this case Journey to the Centre of the Earth and Brendan Frazer – it’s hard to imagine it being that big a deal. And in fairness, Journey 2 isn’t going to set the movie world alight but with Dwayne Johnson being his charismatic self, Michael Caine having an embarrassing amount of fun and Luis Guzman being, well, we just like to see Guzman on the screen, the fun level is amped to MAX.

With little time being spend on explaining why Sean (Hutcherson) isn’t with his uncle from the first movie (Frazer) but rather is now living with his mum (Kristin Davis) and stepdad (Johnson), we pick up in the middle of a bike chase. It seems that Sean is now a rebel who is searching for his grandfather (Caine) who has been missing for two years. However, his search gets him in trouble with the law as he breaks into a satellite research centre to get a coded message he believes leads to The Mysterious Island and must have been sent by his grandad. Luckily his new stepdad Hank is not only friends with the police (charges dropped) but also is an ex-marine code breaker (code deciphered). Always looking to be accepted by Sean, Hank offers to pay for a trip to the South Pacific so they can find the island – or rather prove once and for all that his grandad is mad and take the boy home to live a normal life. However when they show the co-ordinates to the island to the various guides available, only captain Gabato (Guzman) and his daughter Kailani (Hudgens) will take them…

Ok, so you’ve seen it all before. However, as a father, sitting watching this with my five-year-old son, I was reminded of my childhood and discovering all the Doug McClure movies and felt the excitement that I experienced back then through him.

Movies like this are sadly a dying breed and Peyton must be commended for keeping them alive… Journey 2 has everything you expect: Giant lizards? Check. Giant spiders? Yup. Tiny elephants? Yup. Peril at every turn, exotic locations and lost cities? Absolutely. What about references to keep the Jules Verne (Vernians ) fans happy? Absolutely.

But while it is an exercise in box checking, Journey 2 is done with such flourish and wit, thanks in no small part to the chemistry between Johnson and Hutcherson and the sense of fun that Caine brings to proceedings when he eventually turns up, that you have no choice but enjoy the adventure and by the time they reach the Nautilus, yes that one, you’re having a blast.

The direction is adequate with Peyton favouring the sweeping over-the-shoulder reveals, but the island often lends itself to it happily enough and there’s only so many times the camera can follow a creature until something in the foreground finally shows how small/giant they are before you start seeing them coming, but that said, he frames the action well and allows some nice comedy moments and uses the 3D to great effect. Showing that he, as other film-makers have, is learning that less is more with new/old technology.

I’m still not sure if I can forgive him for the pec-rapid-fire scene though. Don’t ask… if you see it, you’ll know.

All in all, I don’t think this is a movie I’d take a date to my nerdy friends, but if you have a couple of hours that need killed, or want something that you know the kids will love and will keep you occupied then this will do… at least until The Phantom Menace or Muppets open in a few weeks.

In closing, it’s nothing new, but it’s a fun throwback to the movies of my childhood and I love that my son loved it… that’s what it aims to do and it does it admirably. Now, when is the moon-bound part three coming?

Marc Savage gives this movie 3 Sheep!

Find more of Marc's reviews as well as all things Nerd

Following the Nerd Interview + giveaway

The Sheep ladies recently got the chance to sit down with our Nerdy brothers across the sea Following the Nerd. To find everything and anything you could possibly need in the nerd world make sure to check out their site. Stay tuned till the end for a fun giveaway!

Ireland. Nerd Headquarters. 2 Sheep and 3 Nerds meet.

Katie: How long have you all known each other?

Michael Bashford: I've known Marc for about a year through work. Dicky who I've never met but spoken to several times on Skype.

Marc-Nerd daddy: Actually ladies, we haven’t all even met! I probably know Dicky longest, although I’ve never met him. I had a radio show before FTN and Dicky found us through a mutual friend. He used to come on the page and give us random abuse and we eventually became mates.

Michael I only know about six months. He came to the office I work in as a sub-editor and one day, when he realized we share the passion that is Star Wars, we got chatting… the rest, as they say, is history. I now consider him one of my best and most trusted mates.

Dicky Clark: I became a fan and some time ago in the early stages of FTN and became known to the guys by posting the first "fan Photo" which was me at a shooting range in Los Angeles. From there, the messages flew and then I was adopted as one of the Nerds.

Sharon: How did Following The Nerd come about?

Michael Bashford: I sent a text to Marc one morning moaning about work. I told him about an idea I had for a website. To cut a long story short, we met that lunchtime. I told him my idea. He said it sounded ok but he had a better one. So we kinda integrated a little of what I was looking at into his grand vision. He is the Emperor when it comes to FTN were as I see myself as Tarkin. All in a good way though lol

Sharon: Tarkin? Is that a nerd thing? (looks to Katie for help)

Katie: It's a Star Wars character.

Marc-Nerd daddy: I had just come of a moderately successful radio show that had come to a premature end when myself and my co-host parted ways. I had considered quitting radio altogether… then, as cliché as it sounds, one morning I woke up and said to my wife ‘I’m going to do a show called Following the Nerd!’ she looked at me with that apprehensive look and asked if I wasn’t done with radio, like I said. But I assured her that, even though I had no idea what FTN was, I knew it needed pursuing. A few days later, Michael, who I had literally talked to a half dozen times, approached me about an idea he had for a website. He said he didn’t know why, but he thought I was the man to talk to. We married the ideas together… and here we are.

Katie: What was one of the funniest interviews you ever did?

Sharon: She means other than ours.

Katie: Obviously.

Michael Bashford: Marc and I met Julian Glover (Donovon in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade and General Veers in Empire Strikes Back) in Dublin recently. We were so afraid of approaching him for an interview at the Invasion Dublin event a few months back. He looked so grumpy sitting alone actually counting his wads of cash from his wallet. But, in fact, when we met him he was the nicest man.

Marc-Nerd daddy: That’s an easy one, a few weeks back we interviewed Clone Wars actor Stephen Stanton on the show. He’s a great guy with a very serious outlook on fandom and what it means to people, but when he starts impersonating Christopher Walken or George W it’s hysterical. The saddest part is that the best stuff was off-air! He called us back after the show and we were just chatting like a few geeky mates. Then he started rolling out the impersonations and cracking jokes. It was immense!

:::NERD MAGIC:::

Katie: If you each could meet any actor/character from any movie who would it be and why?

Michael Bashford: Tough one. I suppose it would be Harrison Ford, Sylvestor Stallone and Sacha Baron Cohen who will be playing Freddie Mercury in a biopic soon. Love all Ford's work, am a huge Rocky fan and as for Queen....you could say I'm their biggest fan.

Sharon: Queen rocks!

Marc-Nerd daddy: I think, over any actor, I’d have to say Christopher Walken. Or Sam Rockwell. Or… actually, I’ll stick with Walken. He’s an absolute legend and idol of mine. He has a style and presence that no-one can rival and the best thing is that he doesn’t seem to take himself too seriously most of the time. I love the man a little. But, alas, it isn’t returned

Sharon: I love it when Walken goes on Saturday Night Live.

Katie: We need more cow bell! Classic.

Dicky Clarke: I have met many celeb's in my time, but the one I would still like to sit down and chat to is Clint Eastwood. I have seen him at the Cannes Film Festival but he was a little bit busy at the time.
The funniest Actor I have spent time with is Rick Mayall. You might not know who he is but us in the UK love him.

Katie: What movies/shows has Rick been in?

Marc-Nerd daddy: I guess he’s mostly famous for the TV series The Young Ones, Bottom and Grim Tales, though he was in the movie Drop Dead Fred among others…

Sharon: What do you guys do for fun?

Michael Bashford: Time with my wife and daughter, working on nerd stuff and annoying Marc.

Marc-Nerd daddy: I always complain that I never do anything fun. I work long hours and rarely go anywhere these days. It’s not helped by the current climate and the fact that I have a young family. But, if I’m honest, when I’m playing with my little boy (5) and girl (2), just listening to their banter and how they interact with each other, it is so much fun and I usually can’t stop smiling. It’s just brilliant watching them be mischievous and funny… I love them and wouldn’t change a thing

Sharon: I’ll check back with you in about 10 years and we will see how you feel then Teenagers suck!

Dicky Clarke: Ride Motorbikes, shoot and sail.

Katie: How do you think Irish nerds differ from nerds in other countries?

Michael Bashford: ooooh, probably the accent lol

Sharon: Smart ass. *winks*

Marc-Nerd daddy: Well, It’s more a case of how American nerds differ from the rest of the world, y’know? You guys embrace it and love it. But over here it’s still a little taboo. Myself and the guys have a circle of mates who embrace it and wear their Nerd colours with pride but the majority see Nerds as spotty, overweight virgins who play Warhammer and live with Mom. But it just ain’t true. Mostly.

I’ll give you an example… my brother is a real cool kid, but one day he told me ‘you’re such a geek!’ I looked at him and informed him so was he. Adamant that he wasn’t, I asked him what his favourite films of the last few years were… when he told me The Dark Knight and Iron Man, he looked at me as if he just had a revelation, ‘Oh,’ was all he could say.

Sharon: Snort! I got to send you a link to a comedian (Ron White) He has this same sort of conversation about all men being gay, it is just to what extent

Sharon: Finish this sentence, Three Nerds walk into a bar….

Michael Bashford: And get very drunk!

Marc-Nerd daddy: ‘And the tallest one says ‘Ow!’

Dicky Clarke: A Greek, an Italian and an Irishman. Each man orders a beer. Three flies fly into the tavern and one fly lands in each man's drink. The Italian man pulls the fly out of his beer, says "tutto 'e bene"
(all is well)" and drinks the beer down. The Greek man shows his beer with the fly still inside to the barman and asks for another beer.
The Irishman grabs the fly out of the beer, takes it by it's wings,
while yelling "Cough it up, you wee theivin' bastard!"

Sharon: How come we are getting the joke from the British guy?

Katie: Sharon! [busting up laughing at Sharon.]

Katie: What would you like to see your site grow into over the next 5 years?

Michael Bashford: Become the biggest site in the world for news, reviews and competitions for all things nerd. I'd also like to see us host interviews with stars of the biggest summer blockbusters at Comic Con. Perhaps our own little section...is that too much to ask.

Katie: Not at all. We hope it happens for you as well.

Marc-Nerd daddy: Wow. That’s a tough one. I want it to be THE place to go to for all the news, review, interviews for fans of movie, TV, comics, books, toys and the paranormal. There’s a lot of sites out there doing these things, but I call us a ‘hub’ I want to take everything together and be a one-stop Nerdy shop. And we’ll have video and podcasts too, so we want to share our love of these things with everyone else…

Dicky Clarke: Once the website is online, I believe we would like the Facebook page and website become 'THE' place for information and interesting "stuff" that will be visited for fun. I would also like FTN to be discussed by other sites and used as reference for particular information.

Katie: What's one thing people may not know about each of you?

Sharon: Remember boys, this is a PG-13 site.

Michael Bashford: I play Singstar on the PS3 on my own!

Sharon: ha! I sing on RockBand.

Marc-Nerd daddy: I am a big fan of The Hudson Hawk. In fact, I think it’s Willis’ best movie.

Dicky Clarke: I'm English!

Sharon: Grab your iPods and hit shuffle…(we’ll wait) Each of you give us the first 3 songs that come up.

Michael Bashford: Anything by Queen...probably Innuendo, Bohemian Rhapsody and March of the Black Queen.

Marc-Nerd daddy: Chemical Brothers: The Devil is in the Details (Hanna OST)

Daft Punk: Sunrise Prelude (Tron: Legacy OST)

The Tasmanian Symphony: Wild Swans Concert Suite

Katie: LOVE these Marc.

Dicky Clarke: LOL, I really did this and WOW! 1. Robbie Williams Most of the remixes….mixed by 2 many Dj's. 2. Leftfield - Ministry of Sound Anthems II 1991- 2009. 3. Outkast - The Love below.

Katie: If you could travel anywhere in the world where would it be and why?

Michael Bashford: Seychelles....I fancy a life of luxury

Marc-Nerd daddy: New York. I’ve been there twice and I love it so much. I’d live there in the morning if I could. It’s constantly alive and there’s always somewhere to go. If I want a burger at 5am there’s a place for that. And I’ve found there’s nothing that can’t be found somewhere in NY. I love it.

Sharon: It is a great place to visit, but I wouldn’t want to live there.

Dicky Clarke: South Island New Zealand. Not for the obvious geek reasons, but because of the beauty of the place. Such fantastic Geology as well as great wine.

Katie: Shut up! I want to go there too and for the geology as well! We'll talk more about this later Dicky. *winks*

Katie: Where can folks find you?

Michael Bashford: At home

Marc-Nerd daddy: I’m always Following the Nerd on FB

Sharon: Where won’t we find you?

Michael Bashford: On holiday

Marc-Nerd daddy: On a LOTR forum. Actually, I might start trolling! lol

Katie: A little nerds test for you, I am going to give you three different lines from Sci-Fi movies/shows. Let's see how good you are.

"Admiral. There be whales!"

Michael Bashford: Star Trek: The Voyage Home

Marc-Nerd daddy: Star Trek (28 or something) the Voyage home

Dicky Clarke: Easy Star Trek IV

Katie: Okay, well done.

"I don't think of myself as a lion. You might as well though, I have a mighty roar."

Michael Bashford: Wizard of Oz?

Katie: What?! Really?! lol

Marc-Nerd daddy: I know it’s an episode of Firefly… does that count?

Dicky Clarke: Firefly

Katie: The rest of you boys got it right, good job.

"When a woman, whether she's a wife, a lover, or a slave you've purchased to be a wife or lover, leaves you repeatedly... take the hint."

Michael Bashford: No idea lol...I could have googled but that would be cheating!

Dicky Clarke: Farscape……

Marc-Nerd daddy: I had to Google this one… I never watched Farscape

Katie: Boooooo Cheater! Your answer doesn't count. lol Yes. It was said by Rygel XVI from Farscape.

Katie: When I was growing up the word "nerd" meant you were a total dork who lived in your parents basement and just played D&D all day long. lol But todays term is a bit more broad. What are your thoughts on all this?

Michael Bashford: Yesterday's nerd is today's norm. Those kids are now running multi-million pound (dollar) corporations and creating the next blockbuster movie.

Marc-Nerd daddy: Here’s the thing. As I said above, it’s still like that a bit. But it’s changing. When I see FCUK tees with Optimus Prime on it, or Adidas hoodies with The Death Star, it makes me smirk. Doctor Who is THE hot thing in the UK on TV – yet it used to be for sad people to an extent. When Batman, Thor, Iron Man etc rule the box-office, I realize things are changing. But here’s the thing… I was a kid who got a lot of grief for liking these things from the ‘cool’ kids. So when I see them at these movies, with these tops on or talking Who, it bugs me a little… It was all mine first! Lol… But it is changing and there’s plenty of room at the Nerd table for everyone.

Dicky Clarke: Have never been a proper nerd, maybe I am “out” now! I guess it has evolved since those days and now Nerds are cool!

Katie: And now we move on to the ever famous Rapid Fire Round. We will just go around the horn here so Marc you can start, answer with the first thing that pops okay? Ready?…..Set…..Go!

Katie: Dogs or Cats

MB: Dogs

MND: Dogs

DC: Dogs

Sharon: Once Upon A Time… or In The Beginning…

MB:Once upon a time

MND: In The Beginning…

DC: Once Upon a Time

Katie: Rainbow Bright or Strawberry Short Cake

MB: Neither

MND: Huh?

DC: Neither

Sharon: Apple pie or Shepard’s pie

MB: Neither...yuck

MND: Apple pie

DC: Shepards Pie

Katie: Star Trek or Star Wars

MB: Star Wars, although I love Trek too

MND: Star Wars!

DC: Star Trek

Sharon: One of these things is not like the other, one of these things just doesn’t belong…

Sharon: Beer or Lager

MB: Neither...vodka

MND: Neither, I don’t drink

DC: Beer

Katie: Vodka all the way!!! *high fives Michael*

Katie: Classy or Crappy

MB: Classy

MND: Can’t I have both? Oh, please let me have both ladies… lol

Katie: lol. You can only pick one...

DC: Classy

Sharon: Peacocks or Peahens

MB: Eh?!

MND: Em… Peacocks?

DC: Peacocks

Katie: Cheesy Western or Cheesy Ninja

MB: Ninja

MND: Western every time!

DC: Cheesy Western

Katie: Night in or Night out

MB: Night in

MND: Night in

DC: Both

Katie: Vampires or Werewolfs

MB: Vampires

MND: Vamps

DC: Vampiers

Sharon: Must be something in the water

Katie: Oh, they just know how awesome my people are. *winks*

Sharon: Greek Mythology or Celtic Mythology

MB: Greek

MND: Celtic

DC: Greek

Katie: Lion King or Madagascar

MB: Haven't seen first one and hated latter. I'll go with Lion King

MND: Madagascar

DC: Madagascar

Sharon: Coke or Pepsi

MB: Coke

MND: Pepsi

DC: Coke

Sharon: I knew you were my favourite nerd Marc

Katie: Oh stuff it Sharon! lol. I got TWO on MY team! Woot!

Katie: Sword or Gun

MB: Gun

MND: Aghhhhhhh…. Em, sword.

DC: Gun

Katie: Thank you guys so much for taking the time to sit down and chat with us today. Would you like to add anything before we wrap up?

Michael Bashford: Although I'm the silent nerd sitting in the background at FTN I'm very aware of you guys and appreciate your support as we grow this nerd monster.

Katie: Thank you Michael, we do what we can.

Sharon: Snort! He said Nerd Monster…

Marc-Nerd Daddy: Whatever FTN becomes, whether we become the next Mark Zuckerberg or go quietly into the night, we have met the best people – like you guys, and made friends on the other side of the planet who we may never meet but nonetheless hold dear. And in a world where social media and the internet makes us distant and alien to each other, I take that as a win. For every person who follows the Nerd we are grateful and count you all among our friends and, more importantly, our Nerdy family.

Katie: That was sappy sweet, you guys are real softies. *hugs the boys*

Sharon: I look forward to your watching your Nerd Magic grow

We want to thank the boys again for putting up with our random questions and overall girl antics. The boys were good sports and we love what they have going on. Now time for the giveaway!

The boys at FTN are giving away 2 graphic novels!

1) Batman: Joker's Asylum

2) Arkham Asylum: Madness

Click on the Facebook link HERE and like their page.

Make sure to leave a comment that says "The flock sent me to rock!" and you'll be entered for a chance to win!

Contest runs until August 8th at midnight.

Good Luck!