Category: Fantasy

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Fantasy Television

Merlin Returns to Syfy with New Episodes Friday January 6

Merlin Season 3 DVD Cover

The Darkest Hour opens the new season of Merlin on Syfy on Friday, January 6.

In The Darkest Hour, Arthur and his loyal knights, including Lancelot, are forced to protect the kingdom when Morgana summons the mighty Callieach.

Merlin Season 3 DVDI’m looking forward to the return of a fantasy TV series I thoroughly enjoy. Slightly hokey, but completely charming, Merlin is a take on the coming of age of Arthur through the eyes of Merlin, a sorcerer in hiding in a land where magic is forbidden and using magic brings with it a death sentence.

The Merlin Season 3 DVD will be available January 17 so fans can add it to their collection of Merlin memorabilia.

Looking at the episode list for the new season gives me a lot of pleasure because it’s apparent there are some good episodes coming up. I’ve included the titles below, but not the descriptions, so no one reading this is spoiled for the upcoming season of Merlin.

Merlin Episodes Coming in Season 4

  • The Darkest Hour Parts 1 & 2
  • The Wicked Day
  • Aithusa
  • His Father’s Son
  • A Servant of Two Masters
  • The Secret Sharer
  • Lamia
  • Lancelot du Lac
  • A Herald of the New Age
  • The Hunter’s Heart
  • The Sword in the Stone Parts 1 & 2

Merlin stars Colin Morgan as Merlin, Bradley James as Arthur, Angel Coulby as Guinevere, Katie McGrath as Morgana,  and Anthony Head as King Uther Pendragon.

Categories
Fantasy Television

The Heart is a Lonely Hunter from Once Upon a Time

Once Upon a Time - The Evil Queen

The Heart is a Lonely Hunter is one Once Upon a Time episode that you really can’t afford to miss.

Two major events happened.

These events deserve a spoiler notice so you don’t have the episode ruined for you if you don’t like knowing what happened in an episode before you’ve had a chance to watch it.

Needless to say, The Heart is a Lonely Hunter is a special episode for these two very important and as yet unnamed reasons.

Spoilers below so don’t read on if you don’t want to know what happened in this episode of Once Upon a Time.

Seriously.

This is major spoilage.

Okay, you asked for it.

  1. Graham was revealed as The Huntsman when his memories of his past life came back.
  2. Graham died.

Of course Graham died. As soon as I realized his memories were returning and not likely to disappear because of some convenient something or other, I knew Graham was a goner. I had to convince the kiddies of that before it happened so that they could brace themselves.

I hate that this happened, because I actually really enjoyed the chemistry between him and Emma. But… the dramatic impact of his death was significant and well played. This episode will stand out as one of the truly excellent episodes of the season.

Both my son and daughter are very into this show though, and since it also makes the adult in me happy too, I have to say Once Upon a Time is one of my favorite TV shows to come along in a very long time. It fits into that place in my life occupied by shows like Eureka and Warehouse 13. Young enough to be safe for family viewing, fun enough to actually keep my family watching!

R.I.P. Sheriff. You will be missed.

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Books Fantasy Television Tie-in Merchandise

Warehouse 13: A Touch of Fever

Warehouse 13 - A Touch of Fever

Warehouse 13 - A Touch of FeverI think it’s apparent I’m a fan of TV series tie-in novels for television shows I like. Today, I came across the first tie-in novel for Warehouse 13, a show I’ve been watching since it premiered on Syfy a few years ago. The book was published in June 2011 and I’m not sure how I missed seeing it then (oh, yeah, I do, but I’ll save you the drama… It’s not nearly as interesting as Warehouse 13 :)

If you’re a Warehouse 13 fan who also enjoys reading, you’ll want to buy A Touch of Fever.

Warehouse 13: A Touch of Fever is a story from Greg Cox based on the Syfy series Warehouse 13. In it, an epidemic of mysterious illnesses and reports of a psychic healer have Warehouse/Secret Service agents Pete Lattimer and Myka Bering leading a dangerous investigation that gets Pete infected with a deadly disease. Myka, Artie, and Claudia have to find a pair of cursed gloves, stop a madman from unleashing a plague, and save Pete!

This is an official tie-in novel written by Greg Cox (New York Times bestselling author) and published by Pocket Books for Syfy’s Warehouse 13 television series.

Warehouse 13 houses historical and ancient artifacts that have supernatural/paranormal properties. Warehouse 13 is a top-secret facility in South Dakota where the most innocent seeming artifact can be deadly.

The book is available as a mass market paperback or as an ebook compatible with a variety of ebook readers.

Book Details

  • Warehouse 13 Media Tie-in
  • Characters: Pete Lattimer, Myka Bering, Artie, Claudia, others
  • Pocket Books, June 2011
  • Mass Market Paperback, 320 pages
  • ISBN-10: 0743491734
  • ISBN-13: 9780743491730
Categories
Fantasy Television Tie-in Merchandise

Once Upon a Time Poster of Prince Charming

Oh, my. I was searching for something today and came across several interesting posters for the Once Upon a Time TV show and of course, this particular poster really caught my eye. I’m sure you can see why.

This poster promotes Once Upon a Time, and plenty of fans of the show will be interested in adding this lovely poster to their Once Upon a Time memorabilia collection, or using it to start one.

This is a fabric wall scroll poster so it’s something a little extra special. There are actually several variations, and you can buy a complete set if you find yourself or a family member/friend really getting into the show.

There are other posters for the show. The color variations are really cool and the set as a whole is just gorgeous.

My daughter will adore these, and they’ll make great room decorations. There are also additional sizes and variteties of the Once Upon a Time wall scroll posters, and you can see what’s available by clicking the link.

This TV show is without a doubt one of my new favorites. Although I’m enjoying several other new series, Once Upon a Time is the best new show of the entire season this year. Here’s hoping there are many more episodes of this fascinating fantasy series to come.

Categories
Books Fantasy

The Iron Druid Chronicles

The Iron Druid Chronicles fantasy series by Kevin Hearne has gotten a lot of great reviews. This series is one that I haven’t tried yet but I have just added it to my list of books I want to read.

This urban fantasy series has a wide appeal and lots of readers enjoy the humor and fun, along with the excellent writing.

The Iron Druid Chronicles: The books

Click the title for more information, to read reviews, or to buy any of the books at Amazon.

  1. Hounded
  2. Hexed
  3. Hammered
  4. Tricked

   

The books are available as audio, paperback, and ebooks, except for the newest, Tricked, which is available for preorder.

The books in the Iron Druid series are currently part of the 4-for-3 promotion at Amazon, which means you can get all four books for the price of only 3 books, making this a really good time to buy the series.

The Iron Druid Chronicles: What it’s all about

Atticus O’Sullivan runs an herbal & occult bookshop in Arizona. He can shape-shift, and although he looks about twenty-one, he’s really twenty-one centuries old and is one of the last Druids.

Urban fantasy is a genre I’ve enjoyed for a while. Two of my favorites of the genre are Jim Butcher and Karen Marie Moning.

If you’re not sure what urban fantasy is, see this article on urban fantasy at wikipedia.

I saw the books in this Kevin Hearne series when I was looking up a Jim Butcher book. I’ve heard these books appeal to Jim Butcher fans and the descriptions sound interesting.

Book 1: Hounded

Atticus takes on the angry Celtic god of love, Aenghus Óg, who wants Atticus’ magical sword.

Book 2: Hexed

Atticus takes on some badass witches.

Book 3: Hammered

It’s time for Atticus to make good on some promises, and to do that, he’ll have to take on Thor and his lightning bolts!

Book 4: Tricked

Atticus battles Skinwalkers and betrayal.

Iron Druid Chronicles Series Review

I haven’t yet read these books, but I’ll update with reviews when I do. Have you read any of them? Feel free to share your thoughts with me.

Categories
Fantasy Television

True Blood Season 3 DVD

True Blood: The Complete Third Season was released at the end of May 2011 to an impressive collection of favorable reviews and comments.

true-blood-season-3-dvd

True Blood DVD – Season 3

These 12 episodes mark the introduction of several new characters, many twists and turns, and new "supes" to keep things interesting.

Fans of the series are probably going to want to buy the True Blood season 3 DVD box set and add this season to their collection, if for no other reason than that the show has begun to take on a more expansive feel as subplots thicken and what we know about the community of Bon Temps deepens.

Special features include everything from "Anatomy of a Scene" to a Snoop Dogg "Oh Sookie" video. There are also episode commentaries for 6 episodes.

Click here to read the reviews or order the True Blood Season 3 DVD set

Don’t miss this season set of True Blood.

Categories
Fantasy Television

Comic-Con Interview with Colin Morgan of Merlin

Lynn (@scififantasies) has shared a Tweet with you:  “SFXmagazine: Exclusive Comic-Con interview with Merlin’s Colin Morgan talking about series 4 http://t.co/u0bXHSK”

I watched the video and found it quite interesting. :) I like the hint that Merlin can’t continue to hide his magic forever. I would love to see him exposed as a sorcerer before the end of the series, because I think it would be fascinating to see Arthur come to terms with it.

Categories
Fantasy Science Fiction Television

Warehouse 13 Season 1 DVD

The Warehouse 13 Season 1 DVD is on sale at a significant discount. If you’re a fan and you’ve been thinking about owning this excellent science fiction TV series, this is probably the best chance you have to get a great price on the DVD box set of the entire first season. Check the price before you buy.

warehouse-13-season-1-dvd

Warehouse 13 Season 1 DVD Box Set

Warehouse 13 is about two secret service agents who save the president’s life and end up transferred to "Warehouse" number 13 where items and artifacts that have some connection to the paranormal are stored. As Warehouse agents, Myka and Pete are tasked with finding and collecting artifacts that are dangerous or powerful and bringing them back to the warehouse where they’re neutralized.

I enjoy owning DVD box sets for a variety of reasons, including the idea that I can watch whenever I want without having to worry that there’ll be no repeats or that some online service will quit streaming the episodes.

Because I’ve already had the opportunity to watch both season 1 and season 2, and season 3 is airing, it’s easy to see that the series is getting better with time. The series started off well, but as it matures, Warehouse 13 had developed into a great little fun and entertaining science fiction television series that’s family friendly but adult enough to keep anyone interested.

Purchase the Warehouse 13 Season 1 DVD Box Set if you like quirky and fun and watch (or rewatch) season 1.

Episodes on the Warehouse 13 Season 1 DVD Box Set

The Warehouse 13 episodes listed in order below can be found on the season one box set.

  1. Pilot
  2. Resonance
  3. Magnetism
  4. Claudia
  5. Elements
  6. Burnout
  7. Implosion
  8. Duped
  9. Regrets
  10. Breakdown
  11. Nevermore
  12. MacPherson
Categories
Fantasy Science Fiction Television

Warehouse 13 Season 2 DVD

Season two of the hit Syfy series Warehouse 13 is available on DVD now for a great price! If you’re a fan of the show or just want to opportunity to catch up, you might enjoy having this DVD box set in your collection.

warehouse-13-season-2-dvd Warehouse 13 Season 2 DVD Box Set

The season 2 DVD set is cheap right now at a huge savings. Click here to check the current price. I’m not sure when the price will rise again, but right now it’s 60% off! This makes right now a perfect time to build up your collection of Warehouse 13 DVDs. :)

Warehouse 13 stars Eddie McClintock, Joanne Kelly, Saul Rubinek, and others, all great at bringing the characters of Warehouse 13 to life.

Read on to see the list of episodes that are included in the season 2 DVD set. If you buy the DVD, you’ll want to know that the Christmas episode isn’t on the DVDs. It’s my understanding that Secret Santa is going to be released separately.

There are many great episodes on this DVD set that I enjoyed watching, including my favorites Merge with Caution, Age Before Beauty, Around the Bend, and Vendetta.

I think the show is improved from season 1, although I admit I’ve always liked it. Season 2 brought Myka and Pete closer together, but there’s not any real romantic spark between the two, who seem more like brother and sister than anything else. It’s a great show though, and well worth watching for the second or even the fourth or fifth time.

Purchase the Warehouse 13 Season 2 DVD for

If you’d rather watch season two of Warehouse 13 online, you can see all the episodes on Amazon Instant Video.

Season 2 Episodes on the DVD Set

  1. Time Will Tell
  2. Mild Mannered
  3. Beyond Our Control
  4. Age Before Beauty
  5. 13.1
  6. Around the Bend
  7. For the Team
  8. Merge with Caution
  9. Vendetta
  10. Where or When
  11. Buried
  12. Reset

Does NOT include the episode Secret Santa, which I’ve been told will be released at Christmas time as a special release. (Subject to change!)

Categories
Books Fantasy

Game of Thrones 4-Book Boxed Set

A Dance with Dragons: A Song of Ice and Fire: Book Five in the highly acclaimed Song of Ice and Fire series by George R. R. Martin was released earlier this month.

Recently, HBO began airing a new series based on these novels, called Game of Thrones.

If the new series has intrigued you and made you want to read the books, this boxed set is the perfect way to prepare for the newest novel so you can get all caught up with the critically acclaimed fantasy series.

The boxed set of the first four books contains A Game of Thrones, A Clash of Kings, A Storm of Swords, and A Feast for Crows.

The best price for the Game of Thrones novels might very well be this boxed set, which costs less than $20 (at the time of this post). At this price, that’s less than $5 for each book. You can get used copies for less, but new paperbacks cost significantly more. These are long, thick novels.

A Dance with Dragons is George R. R. Martin’s New Game of Thrones Novel

Released July 12, 2011, A Dance With Dragons is the fifth book in the series, where the Seven Kingdoms once again face threats, enemies, conflicts and betrayals.

A 1,040 page hard cover novel, A Dance with Dragons brings back familiar characters while introducing new.

Description of the Book

Now the #1 New York Times bestselling author delivers the fifth book in his spellbinding landmark series–as both familiar faces and surprising new forces vie for a foothold in a fragmented empire.

In the aftermath of a colossal battle, the future of the Seven Kingdoms hangs in the balance once again–beset by newly emerging threats from every direction. In the east, Daenerys Targaryen, the last scion of House Targaryen, rules with her three dragons as queen of a city built on dust and death. But Daenerys has three times three thousand enemies, and many have set out to find her. Yet, as they gather, one young man embarks upon his own quest for the queen, with an entirely different goal in mind.

To the north lies the mammoth Wall of ice and stone–a structure only as strong as those guarding it. There, Jon Snow, 998th Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch, will face his greatest challenge yet. For he has powerful foes not only within the Watch but also beyond, in the land of the creatures of ice.

And from all corners, bitter conflicts soon reignite, intimate betrayals are perpetrated, and a grand cast of outlaws and priests, soldiers and skinchangers, nobles and slaves, will face seemingly insurmountable obstacles. Some will fail, others will grow in the strength of darkness. But in a time of rising restlessness, the tides of destiny and politics will lead inevitably to the greatest dance of all….

Sci-fi fantasies