MARVEL ZOMBIES EASTER EGG HUNT

Normally in a game of Zombicide players work together to cooperatively overcome challenges as one united team. It is players versus zombies. Over the Easter weekend though, game maker CMON released a free add-on scenario for the Marvel Zombies edition of the game. In "Good Egg Hunting" players are divided into two teams of heroes competing against one another to gather the most Easter Eggs hidden within a zombie infested mansion that once housed Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters. 

This new Easter Egg themed scenario utilizes the components and rules of the X-Men Resistance hero box for Marvel Zombies gameplay. Two to four players divide into two teams of X-Men to see who can come out on top in this Marvel Zombies challenge. Race around the mansion trying to pick up as many of the objective cards that Professor Xavier hid throughout it. Don't linger because whichever teams scores the most points in 8 rounds is the winner.

Watch out for the zombies, but also the players on the other team! This Marvel Zombies add-on scenario allows players on the other team to steal your Easter Eggs from you. Earn one point for each red egg collected, two points for the rare blue egg and three points for the green one. Plus earn bonus points for rescuing bystanders and eliminating zombies. Whichever team has the most cumulative points after 8 rounds wins the game and gets Zombicide bragging rights.

My daughter and I battled it out in this Marvel Zombies Easter Egg Hunt. I selected Colossus and Wolverine to be my heroes. She selected Rogue and Storm. 

There are four types of zombie enemies to battle in Marvel Zombies: X-Men Resistance. James Madrox, the Multiple Man, became infected by the zombie virus and now keeps replicating creating an ever growing herd of walkers. The Hellfire Club's cybernetically enhanced tank-like Reavers now are lumbering brutes of zombies.  And with the zombies in the Marvel universe retaining some semblance of intelligence, the Hellfire Club assassins are more dangerous then ever now they have turned into monsters that are running all over the place. 

If those three types of zombies weren't bad enough, also lurking around are heroes and villains that have turned into zombies overwhelmed with hunger. Players potentially have to face off against Cyclops, Dark Phoenix, Iceman, Juggernaut, Pyslocke and Sabretooth who are roaming the X-Men mansion grounds as zombies. All these zombies have their own special abilities and traits to strike fear in even the most powerful of the Avengers or X-Men. Don't let the fact they are zombies now have you let your guard down. These zombies are uncannily dangerous! 

So how did we fare in our "Good Egg Hunting" challenge? It was a close contest, but Colossus and Wolverine prevailed over Rogue and Storm ... by 2 points. My grabbing both the blue and green eggs plus stealing a red one from my daughter were what put me over the top in the points total. All in all though we both won because it was a fun family game night playing CMON Zombicide Marvel Zombies edition.

The Marvel Zombies corebox and X-Men Resistance gameplay box are available to purchase at Amazon.com. Download a pdf of the "Good Egg Hunting" for FREE from this post or by visiting zombicide.com. Happy hunting! 

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BEST COMIC BOOK BUNNIES

Happy Easter! Did the Easter Bunny make a visit to your house? My wife commented to me the other day about the long lines she witnessed of parents taking their children to get a picture with this holiday icon when she stopped by the shopping mall this week. Made this comic book fan wonder if there were any super bunny characters to be geeked about? So, here is a roundup of some of the best bunnies in comic books over the years:

JAXXON

Jaxxon the space bunny was introduced in Marvel Comics original Star Wars run in issue #8. This green-man sized rabbit looking alien teamed up with Han Solo on a number of missions until George Lucas intervened saying the character was to silly to be associated with the Star Wars brand. After not being seen since his 15 appearances in the 1970s era Star Wars comic books Jaxxon is back! 

Jaxxon has made a re-emergence in IDW Publishing's Star Wars Adventures series aimed for young readers. He has been a featured character in a number of stories including the Halloween themed Ghosts of Vader's Castle and more recently in Star Wars Adventures 2021 Annual. In the 2021 Annual, the rabbit-like race of Hoojib make an appearance too after not being seen since some story arcs in the '80s Marvel Star Wars comic books. Two examples of some super bunnies from a galaxy far, far away. Jaxxon was even recently made into a Hasbro Star Wars Black Series 1:12 scale action figure. Shows you that you just can't keep a good bunny down!

BUGS BUNNY

That crazy rabbit who first became popular as the main character in short films shown at movie houses in the 1930s hopped to the printed page for comic book adventures in the 1940s. He has continuously been featured in comic books since his first appearance in Looney Tunes & Merrie Melodies Comics #1 published by Dell Comics in 1941 and which had a 153 issue run through 1954. Bugs Bunny got his own comic book series from Western Publishing that ran from 1953 - 1983. At this time DC Comics began to incorporate Bugs Bunny into their publications as Warner Bros. owned both the rights to Looney Tunes characters and the comic book company. DC Comics is currently publishing a monthly Looney Tunes series full of adventures with Bugs Bunny and his friends as well as occasionally including that wacky wabbit in spin-offs and cameos with the other superheroes in their fantasy universe.

USAGI YOJIMBO

This comic book series by Stan Sakai is about a rabbit rōnin on a warrior's pilgrimage. Usagi Yojimbo has been nominated for 20 Eisner Awards ( the Oscar of the comic book industry) and won 5 awards for BEST LETTERING (1996/2012/2015/2018), BEST SERIALIZED STORY (1999) and TALENT DESERVING WIDER RECOGNITION (1996). The samurai bunny in these tales is based upon the famous Japanese swordsman Miyamoto Musashi and has teamed up on a number of cross-over occasions with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. In fact, Usagi Yojimbo recently was picked up by IDW Publishing, the comic company that also has the license for TMNT.

CAPTAIN CARROT

Multi-verses have become a popular story telling tool for comic books. It allows for different scenarios and spins on superhero stories from mainstream storylines. Captain Carrot is based in Earth-C of the DC Comics superhero universe. This is a dimension where this bunny is the world's greatest superhero and leads a team of animals known as the Zoo Crew. Captain Carrot has teamed up in cross-overs with heroes ranging from Batman to Donald Duck as well as had is own comic book series. A great hero for kids, and kids at heart, to enjoy! His stories are sure to give you a fuzzy feel good feeling.

HULK BUNNY

Speaking of multi-versus, the Bruce Banner of Marvel's Earth 8311 which is inhabited by sentient animals instead of people transforms into the HULK BUNNY when he gets angry. Hulk Bunny can be seen in the comic book and cartoon adventures of Peter Porker, the Spectacular Spider-Ham.

THUNDERBUNNY

Thunderbunny is a 1980s comic book character that combines the traits of Bugs Bunny, Shazam, and Venom. The premise is a human boy named Bobby Caswell who bonds with an alien artifact that turns him into a giant super-powered pink rabbit. Thunderbunny hopped among a few different publishers but just never took off with comic book readers.

Created by Larry Hama (the guy behind G.I.JOE comic books, Bucky O'Hare was published by Continuity Comics in the mid-80s. The comic book series revolved around a ragtag crew of funny animal space swashbucklers led by a fearless bunny in a fight against the villainous Toadies. The comic book series inspired a television cartoon series, toy line and a video game that was available to play both at arcades and on the NES home gaming console. Jaxxon's creators must be envious!

SUPER RABBIT 

In the 1940s, Timely Comics published humorous stories about a super-powered rabbit fighting bad guys ranging from Nazis to street thugs. Waffles Bunny a shoeshine boy discovers a magic ring that when rubbed transforms him into SUPER RABBIT! The character appeared in Krazy Comics, Comic Capers, Funny Tunes, All Surprise Comics and his own Supper Rabbit series at a time when comic books could be bought for a dime per issue.

HOPPY THE MARVEL BUNNY

Created by Fawcett Comics, Hoppy the Marvel Bunny was created as a comedic spin-off of Captain Marvel (now known as SHAZAM!). Hoppy debuted in Fawcett's Funny Animals #1 (1942). Rights to Fawcett's characters and titles were purchased by Charlton Comics in the 1950s which were then subsequently sold to DC Comics in the 1980s. Ironically, Captain Marvel (aka SHAZAM!) and Hoppy the Marvel Bunny are the intellectual property of DC instead of Marvel Comics. Therefore, Captain Carrot and Hoppy can team up to fight crime!

There you have it! Some of the best bunny rabbits to grace the pages of comic books. Happy Easter!

TINY FOX AND GREAT BOAR

TINY FOX AND GREAT BOAR → See how two friends help each other and learn to be brave in this beautiful watercolor book for children by award-winning Polish artist Berenika Kolomycka. This delightful story is available now distributed by Simon & Schuster; plus you have a chance to get your hands on the book for FREE with a special Easter Weekend giveaway!

The coloring of the illustrations in Tiny Fox and Great Boar remind me of marble Easter eggs my grandmother use to decorate her house with during the holiday. That is a special memory for me, so I wanted to host a giveaway to do something special for someone else this Easter. One lucky winner will receive a free Tiny Fox and Great Boar book! 

Just complete the entries in the Rafflecopter form below for a chance to have this children's storybook sent to you courtesy of Oni Press. Entries need to be submitted by 11:59 pm ET on April 17, 2022. Must be a United States resident over 18 years old to participate. Good luck!

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One beautiful fall day, as Tiny Fox relaxes under his favorite tree, he meets a new friend: Great Boar! Great Boar loves to explore the beauty of nature and the changing seasons, but Tiny Fox thinks adventuring can be scary...but so is the idea of being without his new pal! What will Tiny Fox do?

EASTER PICNIC BASKET GIVEAWAY

My wife and I's very first date was on the Fourth of July. We packed up a picnic basket and enjoyed sitting outside on a blanket at a city park watching a holiday fireworks display take place above us. While dating and after we got married but before we had kids, we'd often bring along a picnic basket and blanket to eat dinner during Detroit Symphony Orchestra performances at the Metro Parks or have lunch at a State Park beach.

Now that we have kids, our family still enjoys having a picnic from time to time. Just instead of it being a romantic getaway, these picnics tend to be us relaxing while taking in one of our kids soccer games. My son hauled out our picnic basket and a blanket this weekend so we could all sit together along a soccer field sideline cheering on his sister during her first game of the Spring season.

For our family, Easter marks for us the start of Spring. Having springtime picnics has become a family tradition. Having evolved from a fun date to spending quality family time together, this activity has become very important to us.

Just like celebrating our faith on Easter which involves both attending mass and an annual routine involving another type of basket. The holiday just wouldn't be the same without my kids searching for their Easter Baskets before heading to mass. We'll probably be having Easter Basket hunts in some form or another until they head off for college because the activity put as much a smile on my face as it does theirs.

6 WAYS TO PREP FOR AN EPIC EASTER

What traditions does your family have that make Easter special? Check out these tips from the hosts of CatholicCentral.com on 6 ways to prep for an epic Easter. You can turn to Catholic Central to tune into a collection of videos that entertain, enlighten and inspire people regarding their Catholic faith produced by a team of witty writers and learned theologians.

PICNIC BASKET GIVEAWAY

To help a lucky winner create their own family traditions for Easter and throughout the year, Catholic Central has provided ageekdaddy.com with a picnic basket to giveaway. This EASTER PICNIC BASKET GIVEAWAY includes a wicker basket with cutlery, plates, glasses, tableware and a fleece blanket. Complete the rafflecopter entries below before 11:59 pm on April 22, 2019. Must be a United States resident over 18 years old to participate. One lucky winner will be randomly selected from all eligible entries. If someone wins this promotion from multiple outlets he or she will only receive one prize and alternate winners will be selected for the duplicate prizes from the other websites and social media channels. Good luck!

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ABOUT CATHOLIC CENTRAL

You have questions about the Catholic faith and what it means to be Catholic. We have answers! We’ve created shareable, snackable videos that teach the timeless truths and deep history of the Church with humor and heart. Produced in the Family Theater Productions studios on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood, CATHOLIC CENTRAL entertains, enlightens and inspires.

WHIFFER SNIFFERS ARE A SWEET TREAT FOR EASTER

** A Geek Daddy received the featured product for free to review **

My daughter loves Whiffer Sniffers!  She's covered her backpack with these amusing plush caricatures of sweet treats when school started last fall. They aren't just fun to look at but also are great to sniff as each one is slightly scented to smell like its featured treat.  The school year is almost half over and kids still excitedly run up to her before and after school to get a smell of the Whiffer Sniffers decorating her backpack.  The scents on these backpack clips last for about a year but are also designed so the smell is only noticeable up close so as not to be prominent or overpowering when carried around.  These really are a great way for a child to personalize his or her backpack.

A new Spring collection of Whiffer Sniffers has been released just in time to make for a great addition to a child's Easter Basket, especially for those who suffer from food allergies.  My daughter has a severe peanut allergy and most of the Easter candy sold in store holiday aisles isn't safe for her to have either because of ingredient or contamination issues.  So the Easter Bunny avoids bringing candy and leaves a basket filled with non-edible goodies for her each year.  This year there will be a bit of a twist on that theme though as my daughter will find some sweet treats in her Easter basket that don't present a risk to her --> the newest Whiffer Sniffers to add to her collection.

The whimsical designs and variety of smells incorporated into these plush backpack clips have delighted my daughter so I'm sure she'll be thrilled to find some additions to her collection.  In addition to showing them off, kids also have fun collecting these cute plush creations.  Whiffer Sniffers release new product in waves and retires older versions after awhile so you should be on the lookout and pick up the ones you are really interested in before they can't be found anymore.  The Spring 2017 wave includes a red jelly bean (Jay Bean), cinnamon roll (Howie Roll), bottle of grape soda (Izzy Sodalicious),  ice cream cone (May B. Minty),  jelly doughnut (Phil O'Jelly), orange (Sonny Shine), green apple (Sour Saul), macaron (Maci Macaron) and chocolate milkshake (Mikey Milkshake).  Keep an eye out for Jay Bean as he'll only be distributed around Easter time.

You can purchase Whiffer Sniffers individually either in clear sealed tube that identifies the character or by getting a blacked-out mystery pack container where you can get a randomly selected plush which you won't know what you have until the package is open.  In addition to the fun of being surprised, mystery packs often are the only place to find certain characters.  For example in the Spring 2017 wave Maci Macaron and Mikey Milkshake are exclusive characters that can only be had by finding them in a mystery pack.  If you open a mystery pack and find a sealed bag inside you've really struck gold.  In this case you've got yourself a really rare Sniffer Mix which is a combination of two Whiffer Sniffer characters and are also exclusively found within mystery packs.  The two newest Sniffer Mixers are a Strawberry Milkshake (Bitsy Shakin) and Mint Macaron (Minty Macaron).

CLICK HERE to find a retailer near you who sells Whiffer Sniffers.  They can also be purchased online at WhifferSniffers.com.  If you want to give a child a sweet treat that won't contribute to giving them cavities pick up a Whiffer Sniffer.

A Geek Daddy's 10 Favorite Easter Eggs From Last Year

When I think of Easter Eggs it normally isn't the decorated holiday decorations that come to mind but rather the inside jokes and references that are often hidden within movies.  Whenever we add a new movie to our family's home video library, I always enjoy going on an Easter egg hunt to find these hidden tidbits within a film.  As an Easter treat here are ten of my favorite discoveries from the last year:

10.  THE MARTIAN

When a group from NASA secretly works to save a stranded astronaut on Mars they call their effort Project Elrond in a reference to the secret mission that is the heart of the plot for The Lord Of The Rings.  Also actor Sean Bean has major parts in both movies.

 9.  JAMES BOND: SKYFALL

The Mi6 safe house location in the film is hidden behind a storefront that says "Hildebrand - Prints and rarities - Established 1953, London" which is a reference to James Bond creator Ian Fleming's  collection of  five short stories titled For Your Eyes Only which included one called The Hildebrand Rarity.  

8. STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS

While rummaging through the Millennium Falcon, Finn comes across the training orb used by Luke Skywalker from when he trained with Ben Kenobi during his first voyage on the ship. A nice homage to the original Star Wars movie. 

 
7.  ANT-MAN

While watching the Ant-Man scenes within Hank Pym's house keep an eye out for shrunken items sprinkled throughout the house from the scientist's experiments.  One of the items to look out for is a little red chair that is a reference to Pym's first comic book appearance in Tales To Astonish where he shrinks this chair to test his invention before using it on himself.

In another scene of the movie the character Darren Cross during his speech introducing the Yellow Jacket militarized shrinking suit jokes about Hank Pym saying "an Ant-Man sounds like tales to astonish" referencing the Marvel comic book series in which the Ant-Man and Wasp characters were first introduced.  Hank Pym first appeared in Tales To Astonish #27 and the Wasp joined him in his adventures beginning with issue #44.

6. MAD MAX: FURY ROAD

The movie references a popular character from past Mad Max films, Gyro Captain, in a gruesome scene.  When the Road Warrior is captured by the War Boy's one of the captors is hoisting a totem that has a human skull mounted at the top wearing the Gyro Captain's cap and flight googles.  Alas it appears this is the end of the road for the Gyro Captain in Mad Max films.

5.  FANTASTIC FOUR

When the Johnny Storm character is introduced in the movie there is a hint to his future fate hanging from the rear view mirror of the car he is racing -- A Super Mario Fire Flower which spits out flames in the video game.

4.  JURASSIC WORLD

 Jeff Goldblum may not have appeared in Jurassic World, but the book God Creates Dinosaurs (written by his Jurassic Park character  Dr. Ian Malcolm) is shown in the movie during several different scenes.

3.  AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON

When Tony Stark needs to replace JARVIS at the end of Age of Ultron to help him control the Iron Man suit he considers several alternate AI programs to use including versions called Friday, Jocasta and Tadashi.  Friday is a reference to an AI secretary used by Stark in Marvel's comic books; Jocasta was a robot built by Ultron as his wife in a comic book story arc; and Tadashi refers to the character that created the Baymax robot in the Disney animated movie BIG HERO 6.

2. INSIDE OUT

Disney / Pixar films are know for being filled with Easter eggs, especially ones with clues to upcoming movies, and INSIDE OUT is no different with references to The Good Dinosaur and Finding Dory.  In one scene you can see an image of Nemo on the box for a board game called FIND ME in a tease for the upcoming sequel.  There is also a scene where Riley's family car has a run in with a dinosaur tale to tease The Good Dinosaur.

1. FURIOUS 7

While the Rock's character is staying in the hospital he's watching a football game that features footage of his real life self (Dwayne Johnson) playing as a defensive tackle in a Miami Hurricanes versus Florida State Seminoles game.

So what are some of your favorite Easter Eggs from movies that you've stumbled across?

The Secret Life of Pets: Easter Teaser

My kids have been looking forward to seeing THE SECRET LIFE OF PETS since they first started seeing its trailers at the theater last year and while they still have a few more months to go before the film debuts they were excited to get another advance peek at the movie with this Easter themed teaser that Illumination Entertainment and Universal Pictures released for the holiday weekend.



THE SECRET LIFE OF PETS' story revolves around a Manhattan apartment building where a dog named Max has his life as a favorite pet turned upside down when his owner brings home a sloppy mongrel named Duke.  Max and Duke have to put their quarrels behind them though when they find out that an adorable white bunny named Snowball is building an army of abandoned pets determined to take revenge on all the happy-owned pets and their owners in their building.

This really looks like an original and funny movie that children and kids-at-heart of all ages will enjoy.  Our family will absolutely be going to see it after The Secret Life of Pets arrives at movie theaters across the United States on July 8, 2016!  For more information, visit thesecretlifeofpets.com

#SecretLifeofPets #HappyEaster