Shadowland Magazine Facebook Contest!

Shadowland Magazine is now on Facebook! To mark the occasion, we're holding a contest...

Just go to www.Facebook.com/ShadowlandMagazine and click the "Like" button. Then, send an email to ShadowlandMagazine@yahoo.com with the subject line: Facebook. That's all!

-2 Winners will receive a copy of Shadowland Magazine #1, #2, & #3
-5 Winners will receive a copy of Shadowland Magazine #3
-5 Winners will receive a pack of Fright Flicks trading cards

Contest ends April 20th. Contest winners will be chosen and contacted at random.

Model Kit Mania: Godzilla Kits from the '90s

Back in 1994 Kaiyodo released a line of Godzilla model kits, the largest one - dubbed "The Big Guy" - stood over 3 feet high and close to 8 feet long when assembled! Continue below for images from Kaiyodo's promotional flyer featuring all of their "new" 1994 releases.

Featured Comic: Tales From The Crypt (EC Classics) #11

Back in the early '90s EC Comics started reprinting a number of their old titles, Tales from the Crypt being the most popular (no doubt bolstered by the huge success of the HBO show). 

VHS OF THE WEEK: G.I. JOE: A Real American Hero

VHS RELEASE DATE: 1987

Family Home Entertainment began releasing G.I. JOE: A Real American Hero on both VHS and BETA in the mid-to-late '80s. Here is the first G.I. JOE video cassette to be released, which edits together the original M.A.S.S. Device five-episode mini-series (effectively serving as the show's pilot) into a 100 minute feature film. 

F.H.E. would later release Transformers, Thundercats, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles onto VHS. They did an amazing job on the cover art here, making the back of the box look like a comic book!

Featured Comic: Child's Play #1

In support of Child's Play 2, Innovation Comics released a 5-issue mini series featuring everyone's favorite killer doll, Chucky. The timeline of the comics took place between Child's Play 2 and 3.

Godzilla Kingdom: Series 1 Figures

Released by Bandai in 1999, these Godzilla Kingdom figures are a rare find! Never made available outside of Japan, each figure stands at approximately 1 1/2 inches to 2 inches tall and is featured in their own unique box with accessory and Japanese candy.

Featured Comic: Iron Fist #1

Martial arts films were growing increasingly popular by the mid '70s and Marvel scrambled to find a hero that would appeal to the newfound craze. Enter Iron Fist, a martial artist with a "kung-fu blow" that could destroy steel...or iron, as seen above on the cover of Iron Fist #1. Published in November 1975, the first issue boasts "a duel of iron" as Iron Fist and Iron Man duke it out!

VHS OF THE WEEK: The Fog

VHS RELEASE DATE: 1987

John Carpenter's The Fog, first released onto home video by Nelson Entertainment.

Featured Model Kit: The Munsters House

This resin kit depicts that iconic house on 1313 Mockingbird Lane, owned by the zany Munsters!

Horror Goes Postal!

For those that may not remember, back in 1997 the United States Postal Service released stamps commemorating the classic Universal Monsters. In addition, horror-themed stamps were concurrently available in Canada, Great Britain, and Ireland. 

The High Cost of Owning Anime During the Early '90s

They say everything comes with a price, and anime fans were well aware of the price back in the  '90s. Until recently, collecting Japanese animation has been a costly affair. Fortunately DVD and Blu-Ray prices are dropping. If you're not convinced, take a look at the featured advertisement: GunBuster for $34.95 (keep in mind that there were only two episodes on a single tape and that six episodes were available)! Dangaio ran at the same price - you only get one episode here out of three released). In order to have all six episodes of GunBuster, you would be shelling out $104.85 for three tapes! The same goes for Dangaio.

By the late-90s Japanese animation had become somewhat cheaper, but not by much. Many VHS tapes still cost around $24.99 (some of which only came with an hour worth of content).

VHS OF THE WEEK: Kolchak, The Night Stalker

VHS RELEASE DATE: 1996

By 1996 Columbia House was releasing a slew of classic television shows via their RE-TV Video Library. Many of these releases were not available in stores, but had to be ordered direct from Columbia House, which would send a new release either monthly or bi-monthly (depending on the title). In many ways, it was also a precursor to the print-on-demand manufacturing that Warner Brothers and MGM have recently adopted.

In this volume of the brilliant 1974 show, Kolchak: The Night Stalker, fans received the fourth and fifth episodes - The Vampire and The Werewolf. It's hard to believe that there was a time when you would only be able to get TWO episodes with ONE purchase - especially now, when entire seasons come on two to three discs.

Featured Comic: The Grim Ghost #1

The Grim Ghost #1 published in 1975 by Atlas Comics is a surprisingly good read and would make for a killer movie adaptation. The first issue sets up the origin story, taking place in the 1700s, where a notorious highway robber (the Grim Ghost) is captured by the law and sent to the gallows for his crimes. However, death is only the beginning of this tale, as the Grim Ghost lands in hell. After a warm welcome, Satan makes his new arrival a faithful offer: dedicate himself to collecting evil souls to occupy hell and be spared the eternal torment of languishing in the underworld.

Well, that's an easy deal and off the Grim Ghost goes (a real ghost now) to gather as many evil souls as he can for Satan. Though, instead of sending our 'hero' back to the 1700s, Ol' Scratch delivers him to the 1970s, where evil runs rampant (must have been all that disco and polyester).

Unfortunately, only three issues of The Grim Ghost were published before Atlas folded up and went out of business in 1976 (they opened in 1974). Grim Ghost fans might have a slight ray of hope on the horizon, however. Atlas Comics reopened their doors back in 2010 and announced that they were going to be releasing some new titles. In 2011 issue #0 of a new Grim Ghost comic was published. Sadly, little has happened since and the situation appears somewhat grim for future stories, though we'll keep our fingers crossed.

Movie Rumors from 1990: A Glimpse into the Pit of Development Hell PART V

And here we are, at the fifth and last chapter of Movie Rumors from 1990! This might just be our most interesting selection yet...

Featured Model Kit: Moebius' Elvira Mistress of the Dark

 

Featured here is the Moebius Elvira plastic model kit with a few customized touches (the movie poster and pillow Elvira is leaning against were added in and did not come with the original kit). Continue below for a macabre montage of the Mistress of the Dark in styrene!

VHS OF THE WEEK: Dracula - Sovereign of the Damned

VHS RELEASE DATE: 1992

Based on Marvel's Tomb of Dracula comics from the '70s, Dracula: Sovereign of the Damned is a feature-length animated film that details the exploits of Dracula as he confronts the Devil and a host of his followers. There's a bunch going on in this flick and it certainly has the 'feel' of Marvel's comic. It was co-produced by Japan's Toei Animation and Harmony Gold (the group responsible for releasing Robotech).

To read the full review of Dracula: Sovereign of the Damned, check out Shadowland Magazine #3 - available now!

Shadowland Magazine #3 Now Available!

Bat-fans are in for a treat this time around! In-stock and ready to ship!

Creature Features:

SECRET ORIGINS OF THE BATMAN: The real, true story of who The Bat-Man is, and how he came to be. 

FORESHADOWING THE BATMAN: Who was the real inspiration for Batman? The Shadow Knows!

REMEMBERING BATMAN RETURNS: A thorough analysis of Tim Burton's second Batman outing: the hype, the marketing, and the outcome.

IN DEFENSE OF THE NEON KNIGHT - HOW SCHUMACHER SUCCEEDED: Sure to be our most controversial article yet! A gripping argument for why Joel Schumacher's bat-films are worthy entries in the Caped Crusader's cinematic career!

INTERVIEW WITH STEVE ENGLEHART: Thirteen questions with "The Man Who Wrote the Definitive Bat!"

BATS OUT OF HELL: Which killer bat films should you see and which should be avoided? Find out here!

GYAOS, BAT KAIJU: Enemy to giant turtles everywhere! A primer on Japan's premiere bat-kaiju.

ALL SHALL LISTEN WHEN THE BAT WHISPERS: Roland West's masterpiece, The Bat Whispers, analyzed! The history and enduring legacy of this memorable old dark house film.

BEYOND FANTASTIQUE! Reviews of Dracula: Sovereign of the Damned, Boy Wonder, and Batman Arkham City.

$6.95 w/ FREE SHIPPING!

ORDER HERE!

Movie Rumors from 1990: A Glimpse into the Pit of Development Hell PART IV

We're continuing our Movie Rumors from 1990 feature with the long-awaited (a week is a long time!) 'Part IV.' What movies were supposedly on the way to theaters 22 years ago? To find the answer to the million dollar question, read on...