Tag: Deathstalker

News

News Roundup: February 2026

Post author By Nicholas Diak
Post date February 28, 2026

Personal / Website News

Vanya #8 Review

First new article for 2026 and it is a review of the adult, neo-jungle girl series Vanya!

Cover depicts Vanya, crouched in foliage, drawing back on a bow. It is kind of dark, with a little beam of light coming through the leaves. Her red hair is in a pony tail. — Vanya #08 standard cover by Zoran Jovicic and Zork Marinero.

I take a gander at issue eight from the series, and my review can be read right here. A review for issue nine will be published in early March.

H. P. Lovecast Podcast Returns

After over a year of hibernation the H. P. Lovecast Podcast is back!

Image shows the Synapse blu-ray boxset next to the Synapse DVD. On top of both is a well space Deadly Spawn toy. The DVD is autographed "Thanks Nick! Best Wishes, Douglas McKeown" — H. P. Lovecast Podcast Episode 63 thumbnail – The Deadly Spawn

Recorded in January but published early February, we just dropped our first episode since November 29th, 2024. So, it has been a while. Sorry about that folks, things have just been busy with Michele and I juggling a lot of projects and doing real life stuff.

We return back with the great cult film and Lovecraftian horror movie, The Deadly Spawn (1983)! One of our favorites, it was great to talk about, so hear us discuss it at our Buzzsprout page here, at the player below, or via your podcast app of preference.

The plan for our next episode is the 1991 Dan O’Bannon film The Resurrected.

Talkin’ Talkies Appearance

Author Robert P. Ottone, who has been a guest on our H. P. Lovecast Podcast (check out those appearances here and here), has his own vidcast called Talkin’ Talkies that he does via Instagram livestreaming/reels. I was super honored to be invited on his last episode to talk about non-Italian giallo films!

Square podcast thumbnail. Done in an old Golden Age of Hollywood style. There is a chevron style diamond in each corner. In the center is a film reel. It says Talkin' Talkies hosted by Robert O. Ottone. — Logo for Robert Ottone’s Talkin’ Talkies IG vidcast.

Aside from Ottone hosting and myself as a guest, the other two guests were some rad folks: Michael Varrati (co-host of Midnight Mass podcast) and Adam Allen (co-host of the Horrifically Well Read, Bled, and Said podcast). Check out their pages and podcasts.

The episode of Talkin’ Talkies I am on is hosted on Instagram, so you may have to be on your IG account on your mobile to view it. Here is the direct link. Sincere appreciation Rob for having me on!

Scholars from the Edge of Time

For February’s Scholars from the Edge of Time Michele and I talk about the 2010 neo-peplum film, Centurion.

Standard Blu-ray case. Cover shows A roman soldier swinging a sword at a legion of other soldiers. Above them are headshots of Olga Kurylenko, Michael Fassbender, and Dominic West. — Personal copy of Centurion on Blu-ray.

The episode can be streamed on YouTube.

Note: Centurion was heavily written about in Dr. Wetmore’s essay in The New Peplum. If you are curious, consider plucking up a copy of the book at McFarland.

Publishing Recap

Below is a recap of my external publishing endeavors so far in 2026.

Cover is by Mark Wheatley and called "The Beasts". It is red hued. It shows Tarzan riding atop of an elephant. Below the elephant are two gorillas and a lion. Behind them is a tree and a setting sun. — National Capital Panthans Journal #344.

“All E.T.’s Aren’t Nice: Vanya 06” reprinted in National Capital Panthans Journal #344, January 2026.

Original can be read here.

Cover by David Michael Beck. It's a drawing of Tarzan atop an elephant, with 2 axes in front. — National Capital Panthans Journal #345.

“The Prehistoric Purge: Vanya 07″ reprinted in National Capital Panthans Journal #345, February 2026.

Original can be read here.

New Sword and Sandal Acquisitions

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

Hercules and the Captive Women Film Masters Blu-ray

Back in 2021 The Film Detective released a Blu-ray edition of Hercules and the Captive Women (1961) that was full of special editions, such as the MST3K version of the film, documentaries and commentaries (PeplumTV did a review of the release and compared it to other versions. It can be read here).

Standard blu-ray case. Cover is mostly white. It shows the legs of a Hercules character, with a goblet in hand, spilling out. Between his legs is a blonde woman in a blue top and bottom. There are flames behind her. You know that poster for the Bond film, For Your Eyes Only? it's just like that, but with a muscle man legs instead of a Bond girl's. — Film Masters 2026 Blu-ray of Hercules and the Captive Women.

Not five years later another Blu-ray of Hercules and the Captive Women has been released! This one is put out by Film Masters and is a bare bone release (no supplemental material). I decided to double dip (well, triple dip, since I have this on the Retromedia DVD) and pluck this copy up. Maybe I’ll do a comparison between the two Blu-rays, see if there is a difference in image? Might be fun!

Ben-Hur 4K

Hercules and the Captive Women is not the only classic sword and sandal getting a re-release in early 2026! Mutha-fucking big daddy papa pump OG Ben-Hur (1959) is as well!

Standard black 4K case. Cover shows a statue holding a shield. The words "Ben-Hur" diagonal. Below that is Charlton Heston on the Chariot with 4 horses. — Personal copy of the 2026 4K release of Ben-hur.

Back in 2022 I did an unboxing article for the Ben-hur 50 year anniversary Blu-ray set (which can be read here). That edition came out in 2011. So, 15 years later (65 year anniversary!) there is now the 4K edition of Ben-Hur.

Amazon sold out of the steel book edition, so I had to go with this version. Going to DVDCompare, the 2026 release vs the 2011 release, it looks like the 2026 version lacks trailers and the 1925 version of Ben-Hur. The 2026 version omits the 57 minute “Ben-Hur: The Epic That Changed Cinema” 2005 documentary that appeared on the 2011 version, but replaces it with two new, way shorter featurettes: “Ben-Hur: Anatomy of an Epic 2026″ (6 minutes) and “The Cinematography of Scale 2026” (8 minutes).

Both have the 78 minute “Charlton Heston & Ben-Hur: A Personal Journey” 2011 documentary, the 58 minute “Ben-Hur: The Making of an Epic” 1994 documentary, the 5 minute “Ben-Hur: A Journey Through Pictures” 2005 featurette, 29 minutes of screen tests, and some other features. The 2011 has a plethora of other, smaller, features, such as newsreels, Academy Award ceremonies, etc. that are not present on the 2026 edition.

So overall, just at a cursory glance, it looks like the new Ben-Hur may have better image quality at 4K, but scales back the supplemental material. Maybe this is ok: you can only re-re-re-re-release the movie so many times and re-re-re-re-re-reuse the same supplemental material before it gets stale?

Deathstalker Comic and Remake

2025 was the year for the cult 80s sword and sorcery series, Deathstalker, and I got some loot!

Graphic novel is hardback and has a wraparound of the original movie poster. The Blu-ray shows all the characters collage together with mountains behind them. — Deathstalker the graphic novel and the Deathstalker remake on Blu-ray.

First, there is a remake of the film, simply called DeathStalker. I’ve heard good things about the remake, and I actually dig Daniel Bernhardt (Michele and I talk positively of him in G2: Mortal Conquest [1999] on Scholars from the Edge of Time). I’m excited to watch this one!

The next thing is the Deathstalker graphic novel that was done via Kickstarter. I did the Tier IV plus which was supposed to be a cloth bound hardcover, a standard dust jacket, a Kickstarter exclusive dust jacket, and a book plate. Instead the hardcover is not cloth bound, and no book plate has been sent. Per a January 12th post, it sounds like book plates will be sent later on, and they decided to change from a cloth bound book mid-production. Thems the risks doing Kickstarter, I guess.

Autographs from the Archive

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

Hard Drive

On Robert Ottone’s Talkin’ Talkies vicast (see above) we brought up 90s erotic thriller films.

Snap case DVD. Cover shows a woman in the throes of passion, eyes closed, holding a candle in her hand. In black marker it is signed "Nick - Lots of Love! Stella Stevens — Personal copy of Hard Drive on DVD signed by Stella Stevens.

This was a perfect opportunity to show off my copy of Hard Drive (1994) which is signed by legendary starlet Stella Stevens (RIP). Her son, Andrew Stevens, acted and produced a lot of erotic thrillers, and Stella appeared in a handful of them. It’s been probably 1.5 decades since I last saw this, maybe time for a re-watch!

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 have some brand new episodes of their Ride the Stream vidcast, but something has gone down! Netflix has removed Lost from their services! That means Ride the Stream is looking at other shows and movies to talk about.

The duo kick off their post-Lost content talking about The Thursday Murder Club:

And then move on to a new show, Falling Skies!

Here is their discussion on Falling Skies, season 1, episode 1:

And then episode 2:

And finally, episode 3:

Make sure to subscribe the Ride the Stream YouTube channel to see when new episodes drop.

New Fan2Fan Episodes

Brand new episodes of the Fan2Fan podcast are now online.

First is their episode “Earl Owensby with Noel Manning“:

Then “Cinema, Criticism & Classrooms with Noel Manning“:

Followed by “Friday the 13th Franchise Part 1“:

And “Film Reviews: At the Movies to the Algorithm“:

This is followed by a new series of episodes called “Monster Mania”.

First there is “Monster Mania: Defining Monsters & Universal Horror“:

Next is “Monster Mania: The Wolf Man 1941“:

And then “Monster Mania: Creature from the Black Lagoon“:

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

Pacuła: Najsłynniejsza Polka na świecie

Marta Górna has a new book coming out and about cult Polish actress Joanna Pacuła (Gorky Park, Dinocroc, Tombstone, Virus). This is the first laser focused retrospective on the actress. The booked is titled Pacuła: Najsłynniejsza Polka na świecie (Pacuła: The Most Famous Polish Woman in the World).

Cover is a black and white photo of actress Joanna Pacula. It is a close up of her head, with her chin resting on her arms. — Pacuła: Najsłynniejsza Polka na świecie by Marta Górna.

Górna’s book can be (pre) ordered here. It is slated to be published March 25th by Agora Publishing House.

Morgana Pendragon Kickstarter

Madeleine Holly-Rosing (Boston Metaphysical Society) has a new Kickstarter up for issue two (with issue one caked into some of the reward tiers) of her other comic series, Morgana Pendragon.

Cover depicts a woman with long hair, lots of magic/rune-like tattoos on her face and arms. She is walking barefoot through a forest with pointy sticks and thorns on the ground. — Morgana Pendragon cover art by Claudia Ianniciello.

Check out the campaign on Kickstarter.

The End is Trending Trailer

Dannie Delisle is in an upcoming movie called The End is Trending. Check out the trailer at Youtube or below. Dannie is the conspiracy lady!

The director, Mark Christopher (husband to Kathleen Kaufman who has appeared on a few episodes of the H. P. Lovecast Podcast [this one and this one]), has a Substack where more info about the film can be found. There is also an entry at IMDB.com.

Laser Joan and the Rayguns Kickstarter

D. J. Kirkbride (whom I’ve interviewed prior on my website, check it out!) has a Kickstarter going to reprint his comic miniseries Laser Joan and the Rayguns that was originally in Dark Horse Presents.

Cover depicts two ladies, both new wave style, kind of like Gem and the holograms. They are holding guitars/guns and have stars painted over their faces. They look to be rocking out. — Laser Joan and the Rayguns.

Check out the campaign here.

Action Girls Kickstarter

J. Manfried Weichsel (whom I’ve also interviewed before on my website, check that out here) has a Kickstarter for an omnibus called Action Girls that collects three of his prior stories: Jungle Jitters (2021), Into the Bush (2024), and Space Escapades (2025) into one book.

Cover says "Action girls: Triple Threat. Jungle Jitters. Into the Bush. Space Escapades." It shows there circles, each with a themed lady in them: a jungle girl, a safari lady, and an astronaut girl wearing fishnet stockings. — Action Girls by J. Manfred Weichsel.

This campaign can be found on Kickstarter and it goes live March 3rd at 4pm EST. Click the “Notify Me on Launch” button if checking out the campaign before then.

News

News Roundup 2025-08-17

Post author By Nicholas Diak
Post date August 18, 2025

Personal / Website News

Interview with Jeffrey Mariotte

Brand new interview is online at the website!

I had the honour to talk to editor/writer of fiction and comics, Jeffrey Mariotte. Mariotte is also the guest of honour at the upcoming Edgar Rice Burroughs Chain of Friendship (ECOF) gathering (see below).

Jeffrey Mariotte author photo (provided courtesy by Mariotte).

The interview with Mariotte can be read here – check it out for sure!

On the subject of the upcoming ECOF, check out this sweet new artwork for the event done by Gilead:

Poster art. The top half of the poster shows Burroughs, Tarzan, John Carter, Dejah Thoris, an Alien, and the Apache Kid. Below is a row of building from Fort Grant. — ECOF Poster art done by Gilead.

Death Nell Issue Two

Back in February 2023 I reviewed the first issue of Death Nell (check it out here). I meant to review the issues as they came out, but got distracted with other projects. With the physical edition of Vanya #8 still a bit from being released, and the fifth and final issue of Death Nell about to come out, now is the perfect time to pivot and get caught up on the reviews for this series.

Cover depicts Nell, surrounded by other characters of the comic, with hearts in their eyes, all looking at her in adoration. There's multiple spotlights of different colors shining on her as she sparkles. — Standard cover of Death Nell #2 by Cammry Lapka. Image from the Bad Bug website.

So here we are, two and a half years late, my review for Death Nell #2 is finally online and can be read right here.

ECOF 2025

In September of 2025 there will be an Edgar Rice Burroughs Chain of Friendship (ECOF) event down in Willcox, AZ. This event is to celebrate the 150th birthday of Burroughs while also honoring him with a plaque in the town due to his stationing there with the 7th U.S. Cavalry in the 1890s. (Note: another ERB convention was held in Willcox back in 2019 and an event recap of that can be read at ERBZine #7059).

Here is the flyer for the 2025 event:

The flyer shows desert mountains with three insert images: one of a young Edgar Rice Burroughs in 1896, one of the author Jeffrey J. Mariotte (who is the guest of honour), and one of the Willcox train depot in the 1880s. The flyer reads was follows: Edgar Rice Burroughs ERB Inc.'s Commemoration of ERB's 150th Birthday! 7th Cavalry Historical Monument Celebration Willcox, AZ, September 25-28, 2025. Formal Dedication on September 27th, 2025. Sponsored by the Suplher Springs Valley Historical Society and the Arizona Apache Deveils Chapter of the Burroughs Bibliophiles. — Flyer for the Edgar Rice Burroughs Circle of Friendship (ECOF) Gathering in Willcox, AZ 2025.

Here is the press release:

RENOWNED AUTHOR EDGAR RICE BURROUGHS’ CAVALRY SERVICE TO BE MEMORIALIZED IN WILLCOX, AZ

“Tarzan” Creator and Pop Culture’s Influential “Grandfather of Science Fiction and Fantasy” Commemorated for His 150th Birthday.

WILLCOX, AZ – The renowned “Master of Adventure” Edgar Rice Burroughs started his adult life as a cavalryman at Arizona’s Fort Grant in May of 1896. This September, as part of the late author’s 150th birthday celebration, his cavalry service will be memorialized with a monument at the restored Southern Pacific train depot in Willcox, where he arrived on his way to Fort Grant (35 miles north).

The influential creator of Tarzan of the Apes, John Carter of Mars, and The Land That Time Forgot series of stories wrote in his “Autobiography” that he specifically requested “to be sent to the worst post in the United States” and was then promptly assigned to Fort Grant in Arizona Territory, where his troop would spend some time hunting after the Apache Kid and other outlaws.

Many believe that Burroughs’ initial stay in Arizona influenced his first Martian story, Under the Moons of Mars, which begins with the first chapter titled “On the Arizona Hills.” The John Carter Martian stories would go on to influence generations of science fiction and fantasy books and movies, and would inspire many young people to become scientists, engineers, and astronauts. He would later author the books The War Chief and Apache Devil, both set in Arizona during the Apache Wars of the 1860s – 1880s.

This Willcox Edgar Rice Burroughs Chain of Friendship (ECOF) Gathering will take place from September 25 to 28, 2025, with the 7th Cavalry Historical Monument formal dedication ceremony on Saturday, September 27th from 10:00 AM – 12:00 Noon near the historic Southern Pacific Railroad Depot.

The monument dedication at the Willcox train depot will include guest speakers and participation of local Buffalo Soldier reenactors. All other convention events will take place at the Elks Lodge #2131 in Willcox, and will include discussion panels, a “huckster” (vendor) room, Guest of Honor and speaker Jeffrey J. Mariotte (author of Tarzan and the Forest of Stone), Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc. speakers, a Saturday night banquet/ dinner, a Tarzan movie screening, and other surprises.

These events are sponsored by the Sulphur Springs Valley Historical Society and the Apache Devils chapter of The Burroughs Bibliophiles. The celebration is open to the public for free (except for the dinner and movie), but full attendees can register for a fee that covers a goodie bag, a huckster table, and the Saturday dinner.

This is a must-attend event for fans of Edgar Rice Burroughs and pop-culture historians alike. If you’d like to visit the place where it all began, don’t miss this very special celebration. (Note that some convention activities will require full event registration – the registration form is provided separately.)

The Holiday Inn Express & Suites Willcox is offering a special daily room rate of $119 plus taxes for the nights of 25 to 27 September for attendees. The group name is “ECOF.” You can make reservations at this rate by calling the hotel at (520) 384-3333; rooms are limited. The address is 1251 N. Virginia Ave, Willcox, AZ 85643.

If you would like more information about the 2025 ECOF event, please call Frank Puncer at 520.281.1818, or email him at fwpuncer at gmail dot com.

Here is the registration from:

Registration Form for the 2025 Edgar Rice Burroughs Chain of Friendship (ECOF) Gathering in Willcox, AZ (v9)Download

2025-08-17 Addendum: Special Event Bags and Contents are Available for the First 50 Registrants.

Michele and I will be in attendance for this convention, so I’ve added it to the appearances section of my website as well. I’ll be doing a presentation on Tarzan as a Maciste-like peplum character in Tarzan and the Lost Empire. Hope to see yall there!