Geek of Oz

For many geeks, Transformers was their first foray into the world of Japanese cartoons. Whether we realised it or not, this now legendary franchise was equal parts American cartoon, Japanese anime and universal toy selling monster. This collaboration between Sunbow, Marvel, Toei and Takara spawned 4 direct seasons (97 episodes) and a seriously expansive extended universe. Like it or not, the success of Transformers as a franchise was helped along, and no doubt dictated, by the sale of transforming die-cast robots. While some may see this a slight against the integrity of the series, I didn't and still don't particularly mind. Some of my earliest memories are of playing with my Transformers toys while watching early morning cartoons before school. Then I'd pack my school bag and sneak in a couple of the smaller bots like Seaspray, Beachcomber or Cosmos. So, to say that this series will be reviewed through rose-coloured glasses is an understatement. This is where i...

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, like many an 80's franchise, has seen a number of incarnations since its original release. Starting off as a comic by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird in 1984, TMNT found mainstream success in 1987 when the first season of the animated series was aired on CBS. From there the Turtles could be found everywhere. Merchandising for the series was bountiful an included action figures, clothing, home wares and everything in between. Ninja Turtles toys even made an appearance in Pizza Hut chains in kids meal deals, marketing genius. The rest, as they say, is history. Now, 29 years after their inception, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are back in what is undoubtedly the best form since the original animated series.  Follow on after the jump for our full review!

Transformers have been reinvented countless times since their inception in 1984. It all started with the classic series, best known as Generation 1, back when Bumblebee was a bug and Soundwave a cassette player (ask your parents, kids). Since then we've seen the futuristic Gen 2, Beast Wars and Michael Bay's much maligned movie trilogy and aside from this we've seen numerous animated spin offs and a tonne of comic books.  The Autobots and Decepticons have now returned in an all new animated series of unquestionable pedigree both in terms of production and voice work. One thing is for certain Transformers: Prime - Darkness Rising has this little Transformers fan is excited. 

The Madman have advised me that Ben 10 returns in December! Ben 10 is in incredibly popular series which airs on Cartoon Network and Channel 9 here in Australia. Everywhere you look there are kids with Ben 10 shoes, hats, shirts and Omnitrix's's's.  I have to be honest, I really dig it myself too! Ben 10: Ultimate Alien volume 1 of 7 is getting a December release here in Australia, just in time for Christmas. The perfect stocking stuffer! I'm also a big fan of Madman. They are the premiere source of anime here in Australia and thankfully they have also branched out into traditional anime and Adult Swim titles. I have an absolute load of Madman anime DVD's in my collection! They seem to be one of those companies that is run for fans by fans... it shows.