December 2025 – Nicholas Diak's Homepage

Personal / Website News

My last website post for 2025! Starting in 2026 I am going to publish these news roundups monthly.

New Edge Sword and Sorcery

Awesome news to end 2025 on: issues five, six, and seven of New Edge Sword and Sorcery are now out!

I was honored to be asked to contribute themed cocktails to these issues, libations that celebrate different sword and sorcery and sword and planet characters. They are:

Issue Five – The Red Sonja or, The Scalemail Bikini
Issue Six – The Kai Lord or, The Lone Wolf
Issue Seven – The Brax or, Under the Warrior Star

Photo by Michele Brittany.

If you want to see the recipes proper you’ll have to pluck up these issues. They are available digitally and in soft and hardcovers. They can be bought at the NESS webstore. Sincere appreciation to Oliver Brackenbury for the opportunity to be a part of the NESS family.

Panthans Journal #343

The newest issue of the National Capital Panthans Journal has been published. This issue contains a re-print of my review of issue five of of the adult/neo-jungle girl series Vanya: The Lost Warrior. The original version of my review can be read right here.

Cover by Mark Wheatley. It depicts a jungle girl, with a knife in one hand and a vine in another, traversing across a large tree branch. — National Capital Panthans Journal #343

Paraphrased from the zine: The National Capital Panthans Journalis a monthly publication issued as a .PDF file on the Saturday before the first Sunday of each month. Contribution of articles, artwork, photos, and letters are welcome. Send submissions to the editor: Laurence G. Dunn at laurencegdunn AT gmail.com in a Word document for consideration.

Sincere appreciation to Laurence for the opportunity to have my work published in the journal.

New Citations

It’s been a hot minute, but a new citation has popped up!

Journal cover has a blue border top and bottom. The image in the middle is of a movie theater called "Sun Pictures". — Studies in Australasian Cinema vol 18.

The essay, “Indigenous monsters and the spectres of assimilation: Jon Bell’s The Moogai (2024) as Aboriginal Gothic” by Niamh Gallagher sites an essay in Horror Literature from Gothic to Post-Modern. I am 99% sure the essay cites Dr. Borwein’s essay “Synchronic Horror and the Dreaming”. I’ll see if I can confirm.

It always brings me joy when an author from this collection gets cited!

Update 2026-01-27: Confirmed! Dr. Gallagher cites Dr. Borwein! Citation page updated to reflect this. Sincere appreciation to Dr. Gallagher for the details.

Publishing Recap

Below is a recap of my external publishing endeavors so far in 2025.

Cover art of the Panthans Journal #332. It depicts a woman and a man with a hawk head, hunkered in a hole, firing laser pistols. The art is by Mark Wheatley. — Panthans Journal #332

Comic Book Review: “The Moon Maid: Catacombs of the Moon #2″ reprinted in the National Capital Panthans Journal #332.

A continuation of the cover of #332. This cover shows the woman and the hawk man, defensively shooting laser pilots out of a hole in the ground, wile savage barbarians with bows and axes descend upon them. The art is by Mark Wheatley. — Panthans Journal #333

Comic Book Review: “The Moon Maid: Catacombs of the Moon #3″ reprinted in the National Capital Panthans Journal #333.

Cover art of Panthans Journal #335, done by Mark Wheatley. It shows Tarzan leaping from a tree branch. All the colors are very dark blue, so it might be night time in the jungle. — Panthans Journal #335

“Tarzan Cocktail: Deconstructed – Reconstructed” reprinted in the National Capital Panthans Journal #335.

Original can be read here.

Panthans Journal #338. Cover is by Mark Wheatley. It shows Dejah Thoris riding atop a mountain against a red martian landscape with a domed building in the background. — Panthans Journal #338

“She’s Got the Killer Instinct: Vanya Issue 01” reprinted in the National Capital Panthans Journal #338.

Original can be read here.

Cover is by Mark Wheatley. It shows a 4 armed aliens holding two swords, in a dungeon, fighting John Carter and Dejah Thoris. — National Capital Panthans #339.

“Hunter – Lover – Killer: Vanya 02” reprinted in the National Capital Panthans Journal #339.

Original can be read here.

Cover of Panthans Journal #340. Art is done by David Michael Beck. It depicts Tarzan stabbing a dinosaur (A T-rex?) through the next with a spear, while the dinosaur stands atop a tree of roots and vines. — National Capital Panthans Journal #340

“Thunder in God’s Country: Interview with Jeffrey Mariotte” reprinted in the National Capital Panthans Journal #340.

Original can be read here.

Cover of Panthans #341 by Mark Wheatley. It's monochrome - black and brown. It shows Dejah Thoris in the center holding a sword and being her John Carter and a 4 armed alien. Behind them are the silhouettes of a city full of towers. — National Capital Panthans Journal #341

“Jungle Romps and T-Rex Chomps: Vanya 03″ reprinted in the National Capital Panthans Journal #341.

Original can be read here.

Cover art of #342 is by Mark Wheatley and it depicts Tarzan sitting atop a tree branch, holding a vine in his right hand. The horizon is a big prairie with a lion and zebras. It looks as if the sun is setting. — National Capital Panthans Journal #342

“Going Commando: Vanya 04″ reprinted in National Capital Panthans Journal #342.

Original can be read here.

“(Saber-tooth) Cat Class and (Saber-tooth) Cat Style: Vanya 05” reprinted in National Capital Panthans Journal #343.

Original can be read here.

Cover art for "Merry Creepsmas - The Red Book". It is red with a large X-mas tree that appears to have small, globby bodies as ornaments. The cover reads: Wicked Shadow Press Merry Creepsmas: The Red Book Christmas-Themed Horror Stories Edited by Parth Sarathi Chakraborty — Merry Creepsmas – The Red Book

“There’s Always Room” in Merry Creepsmas: The Red Book. Edited by Parth Sarathi Chakraborty. Wicked Shadow Press, 2025.

Cover art for the Burroughs Bulletin #109 by Dan Parsons. The top says "The Burroughs Bulletin New Series #109 Fall-Winter 2024". The art shows a T-rex chomping on a dude in a striped shirt. Below him are explorers with rifles. Behind him his a prehistoric sky, jungle, and a waterfall. — Burroughs Bulletin #109

“Tagliolini al Tarzan: Interview with Actress Bella Cortez on Taur the Mighty” in The Burroughs Bulletin #109. Edited by Henry Franke III. February, 2025.

Cover depicts a woman warrior, holding a sword in her right hand, standing triumphantly over a fallen warrior at the tippy top of a pointing peak/cliff. — New Edge Sword and Sorcery #05

Cocktail recipe for The Red Sonja or, The Scalemail Bikini published in New Edge Sword and Sorcery, vol 1 issue 5.

Order at the NESS webstore.

Cover depicts a blood soaked woman bursting out of the belly of a slain giant snake. — New Edge Sword and Sorcery #06

Cocktail recipe for the Kai Lord or, The Lone Wolf published in New Edge Sword and Sorcery, vol 1 issue 6.

Order at the NESS webstore.

Cover depicts another planet's surface with a warrior in a green outfit, holding two swords, and a lion crossed with a scorpion chases at him. There is a blue skinned woman with a rifle and 4 armed monkeys. On the horizon is a rocky landscape and atop one of the mountains a city with domed tops. — New Edge Sword and Sorcery #07

Cocktail recipe for The Brax or, Under the Warrior Star published in New Edge Sword and Sorcery, vol 1 issue 7.

Order at the NESS webstore.

Autographs from the Archive

Here are some autographed treasures I’ve shared on social media recently.

Steve Nazar and T&C Surf Designs NES Games

I am quite a few months late to finding this out, but artist Steve Nazar passed away in March earlier this year (article at Surfer.com).

Kids like me born in the 80s and with a NES system will remember Nazar’s work of “The Boys” for Town and Country Surf Designs, which made there way to two Nintendo games: Wood & Water Rage and Thrilla’s Surfari. I didn’t play Thrilla’s Surfari until much later in life when I started collecting retro games, but I played Wood & Water Rage many of times, and boy did that game kick my butt.

Two old school great Nintendo Cartridges. The one on the left is for T&C Surf Designs: Wood & Water Rage. It shoes a gorilla on a surf board, a man in a tiki mask, and a rockabilly dude with sunglasses and Elvis hair, both on skate boards, doing tricks on a skate ramp. The game on the right is Thrilla's Surfari, which shows the gorilla on a surfboard, rising a river of lava coming from a volcano while his buddies the tiki man, Evlis dude, and others run about, evading a shark and.... is that a hippogriff? In silver pen, both are signed "To Nick, Steve Nazar" — Nintendo games T&C Surf Designs Wood & Water Rage and Thrilla’s Surfari signed by artist Steve Nazar.

Getting into tiki culture in the 2010s made me appreciate Nazar’s artwork much more. He was a guest at a Yestercon event (RIP Yestercon, one of my all time favorite small affair pop culture shows), where I took my two video games for him to sign. He was a super cool dude.

News from Friends

Cool kids I know have been busy lately! Here are some signal boosts I’d like to give out.

New Ride the Stream Episodes

Michele Brittany and Travis Lakata are back with brand new episodes of their Ride the Stream vidcast and they dive into season 2 of the cult television series Lost.

Here is their discussion of Season 2 Episode 6:

And Season 2 Episodes 7:

Season 2 Episode 8:

And finally season 2 episode 9:

Prior episodes of Ride the Stream can be found on their YouTube channel, so please give that a subscribe. There is also a Bluesky account, so feel free to five them a follow.

New Fan2Fan Episodes

Brand new episodes of the Fan2Fan podcast are now online. Check these all out:

First there is Fright or Fiction: Subtitle Showdown Part 1:

Then The Shape of Trivia: A John Carpenter Horror Movie Quiz:

Followed by Fright or Fiction: Subtitle Showdown Part 2:

And finally 2025 Horror: Sinners, Weapons & Heart Eyes:

Older episodes of Fan2Fan can be found at its Libsyn page or via your podcast app of preference.

New John 3:16 Song

Philippe Gerber has a brand new track out under his John 3:16 project!

Cover is a black and white photo of a dead critter in the leaves and sticks. I'm not sure what animal, you do see its spine. It is pretty creepy. — John 3:16 – “Nephilim” cover.

The song is called “Nephilim” and it can be purchased at Bandcamp.

Personal / Website News

Bachelor Pad Nylon Nightcap #2 Review

New article up at my website! I’m a big fan of Bachelor Pad, the #1 digest for pinup and retro models. Earlier this year they launched their debut issue in their Nylon Nightcap line of issues and now they’ve recently published their second issue.

Cover shows model Brittany Jean, wearing only black garters and seamed flesh-coloured stockings with black heels and toes. She is sitting on a white, cushioned lounge chair. Behind her are a lot of ferns. — Cover art of Nylon Nightcap #2. Provided by Bachelor Pad.

As a stockings connoisseur I was excited to see the line continue. I did a review of the first issue, which can be read here, and now my review of the second issue is online and can be read here. Check them out and consider supporting the magazine and plucking up a copy./

New Edge Sword and Sorcery

The next three issues of New Edge Sword and Sorcery (numbers 5, 6, and 7, with one of them focused on the sword and planet genre) will be out soon! It sounds like digital and softcover copies will be out the last week of November and the hardcovers the first week of December. A reminder: I have a cocktail in each issue! Each cocktail is inspired by a different S&S and S&P character.

Copies of these upcoming issues (along with some older issues, in both softcover and digital) can be pre-ordered at Backerkit.

Scholars from the Edge of Time

There’s a brand new Scholars from the Edge of Time now online!

Poster of Serpent of the Nile. It shows a stone wall and a gate. In front of it is A roman trying to smooch Cleopatra. There is a skirmish in the background. — Poster of Serpent of the Nile from Wikipedia.

In this episode Michele and I dive into the world of William Castle peplum by taking a look at his Egyptian toga and sandal film, Serpent of the Nile (1953). The episode can be watched on Youtube here.

Publishing Recap

Below is a recap of my external publishing endeavors so far in 2025.

Comic Book Review: “The Moon Maid: Catacombs of the Moon #2″ reprinted in the National Capital Panthans Journal #332.

Comic Book Review: “The Moon Maid: Catacombs of the Moon #3″ reprinted in the National Capital Panthans Journal #333.

“Tarzan Cocktail: Deconstructed – Reconstructed” reprinted in the National Capital Panthans Journal #335.

Original can be read here.

“She’s Got the Killer Instinct: Vanya Issue 01” reprinted in the National Capital Panthans Journal #338.

Original can be read here.

“Hunter – Lover – Killer: Vanya 02” reprinted in the National Capital Panthans Journal #339.

Original can be read here.

“Thunder in God’s Country: Interview with Jeffrey Mariotte” reprinted in the National Capital Panthans Journal #340.

Original can be read here.

“Jungle Romps and T-Rex Chomps: Vanya 03″ reprinted in the National Capital Panthans Journal #341.

Original can be read here.

“Going Commando: Vanya 04″ reprinted in National Capital Panthans Journal #342.

Original can be read here.

“There’s Always Room” in Merry Creepsmas: The Red Book. Edited by Parth Sarathi Chakraborty. Wicked Shadow Press, 2025.

“Tagliolini al Tarzan: Interview with Actress Bella Cortez on Taur the Mighty” in The Burroughs Bulletin #109. Edited by Henry Franke III. February, 2025.

Autographs from the Archive

Here are some autographed treasures I’ve shared on social media recently.

Ilsa, She Wolf of the SS

Kino Lorber has been doing Blu-ray re-releases of the different entries in the infamous Nazisploitation Ilsa series: Ilsa, She Wolf of the SS (1975), Ilsa, Harem Keeper of the Oil Sheiks (1976), and Ilsa, Tigress of Siberia (1977). No Ilsa, The Wicked Warden (1977) though.

Grey-market DVD. Standard black case. Cover shows Ila, standing tall, her bosom pushed out and shirt unbuttoned. She's wearing a white shirt, with a swastika armband and an SS cap. It is numbered 45 of 50. In Silver it is signed "Don Edmonds". In gold it is signed "Dyanne "Ilsa" Thorne". — Personal copy of the Ilsa She Wolf of the SS DVD signed by director Don Edmonds and actress Dyanne Thorne.

Many, many moons ago, an online DVD website (like DiabolikDVD – it may have been them? I don’t recall, but an online place like them) were able to coordinate an autograph run of Ilsa, She Wolf of the SS signed by director Don Edmond and star Dyanne Thorne. They are kind of gray-market DVDs, but they did 50 of them and I, of course, scooped one up. So, in honour of these new re-releases, here is my old school, autographed DVD.

New Sword and Sandal Acquisitions

The ever growing peplum research library grows with these recent sword and sandal acquisitions.

The Ten Commandments 4K Steelbook

A brand new, 4K steelbook release of Cecil B. DeMille’s The Ten Commandments came out at the tail end of November.

Steelbook. It shows Charlton Heston holding two tables. Behind him the sky is really red. — 4K Steelbook edition of The Ten Commandments.

Another classic Biblical epic from the Golden Age of Hollywood epics that I have not seen (it’s like 4 hours!). So, on the to watch list. It’s got Yul Brynner! I love seeing Brynner in epic films, Michele and I covered him in Kings of the Sun (1963) and Solomon and Sheba (1959) on Scholars from the Edge of Time (see podcast list for links).

Soundtracks: The Egyptian and Gladiator II

A trip to our local used record/movie store, Zia Records, produced lots of great treasures, including finding two sword and sandal soundtrack: The Egyptian (1954) and Gladiator II (2024).

Two CDs, both in transparent jewel cases. The one on the left is for The Egyptian and the one on the right is for Gladiator 2. The Gladiator 2 soundtrack shows the main character recreating the Russell Crowe pose from the original movie of lifting up dirt from the arena and rubbing it in his hands. The Egyptian is just actors standing around. — CD soundtracks for The Egyptian and Gladiator II.

Feel free to check out my Peplum Ponderings about Gladiator II.

News from Friends

Cool kids I know have been busy lately! Here are some signal boosts I’d like to give out.

New Ride the Stream Episodes

Michele Brittany and Travis Lakata are back with brand new episodes of their Ride the Stream vidcast and they dive into season 2 of the cult television series Lost.

First is their dive into season two episode three:

Then episode four:

And episode five:

They also did another non-Lost episode where they talk about the 2015 film The Martian:

Prior episodes of Ride the Stream can be found on their YouTube channel, so please give that a subscribe. There is also a Bluesky account, so feel free to five them a follow.

New Fan2Fan Episodes

Brand new episodes of the Fan2Fan podcast are now online. Here are the most recent three episodes:

Conclusion to their discussion, “Why Do Modern Horror Movies Love the 1980s? Part 2“:

Followed by “Reflections of Fear: How Horror Remakes Mirror Their Times Part 1“:

And concluded by their part two:

Older episodes of Fan2Fan can be found at its Libsyn page or via your podcast app of preference

Travis Lakata Thankful For Article

Aside from the above episodes of Ride the Stream, Travis Lakata has been busy with lots of other projects, such as his Substack, The Never Ending Streamer, and writing articles for his “Geeky Parent Guide” at Fanbase Press. In his newest article, “Geeky Parent Guide: Sharing Some Love – What We’re Thankful for…”, Travis talks about the folks he is thankful for. I’m sincerely humbled that I am mentioned!

Travis’ article can be read at Fanbase Press right here.

Fright or Fiction: Subtitle Showdown Part 1 – Fan2Fan Podcast

The Shape of Trivia: A John Carpenter Horror Movie Quiz – Fan2Fan Podcast

Fright or Fiction: Subtitle Showdown Part 2 – Fan2Fan Podcast

2025 Horror: Sinners, Weapons & Heart Eyes – Fan2Fan Podcast

Why Do Modern Horror Movies Love the 1980s? Part 2 – Fan2Fan Podcast

Reflections of Fear: How Horror Remakes Mirror Their Times Part 1 – Fan2Fan Podcast

Reflections of Fear: How Horror Remakes Mirror Their Times Part 2 – Fan2Fan Podcast