ZINE REVIEW: I Don't Care I'm Still Free

I DON’T CARE I’M STILL FREE

A Fanzine Celebrating Joss Whedon's Firefly
By Sarah May
(Pioneers Press)

Firefly was a show which aired for exactly one season in 2002-2003. Despite its premature demise, it was quick to attract a cult following which eventually earned the program, and Firefly fans, a full-length movie, Serenity in 2005.

The Firefly saga is set in the future, although it employs cowboy & western themes in its setting on the outer planets of the galaxy (which have been terraformed to look exactly like southern California). 

Zine author, Sarah May is a bit obsessed with Firefly. I've watched the series, and while it certainly has its charms, it is a bit corny and I sometimes grapple with the sci-fi/Old West/Rebel hodgepodge with Chinese phrases mixed in, but I get it, it's the future, it's a big ol' heaping cultural mash up. Some episodes struggle to hold my interest, but I definitely see its appeal. At any rate, this post isn't about Firefly, necessarily, it's about a zine about a show called Firefly and it will surely resonate with fellow fans of the show in its unabashed love for this short-lived, rebel cowboys-in-space adventure.

The zine contains trivia, song lyrics, anecdotes and a recipe for Mudder's Milk, which is an intoxicant consumed by the Mudders while they mine mud in Canton on muddy Higgin's Moon and worship Jayne Cobb, who is one of the crew members on -- oh never mind. If you're a fan you already know all that and as a fan you should be sure to obtain this handy Firefly companion. Why? Because they can "burn the land and boil the sea, you can't take the sky from me." Or something!

ZINE REVIEW: Big Diamond

BIG DIAMOND
By Liam Ira Christian
(Pioneers Press)

If I would have read the "About the Artist" page at the end of this zine first, that would have cleared up a lot of things for me early on. However, I did not see it until I had finished reading this short zine. That said, I was trying hard not to be too judgmental of this publication and its creator as I turned the pages, but I was beginning to think Liam Christian a bit overzealous in what I could only describe as an attempt at outsider art. Discovering that Liam is in fact a three year old who took the photos, wrote the captions and chose the accompanying artwork for the zine himself, came as some relief. I started over from the beginning with this new found knowledge and suddenly it all made sense. Well, it made more sense at any rate.

Big Diamond is Liam's first zine. It is a collection of photos and cutout images he finds interesting. Star Wars is a theme that is explored here. He is the son of Jesse Duke, the proprietor of Pioneers Press and the Hard Fifty Farm in NE Kansas. That would mean Liam has been surrounded by zines his entire life and there will surely be more of his own publications to come. No matter what age your are, three to 83, everything you create is valid and worthy of publishing and sharing, in my opinion, so save your stuff, save your kid's stuff. My mom did and look what happened to it all these decades later.

The Apocalypse Approacheth

What will happen when the Reglar Wiglar blog hits 100,000 page visits? Will the counter explode? Will the Universe implode? I don't know. No one knows, but it is about to happen. Just eleven more visits? 

Were you the 100,000th visitor?

Classic Woodrows Albums: Snake in the Grass

Snake in the Grass

(RoosterCow) 1980

Trust me, you don't wanna be hangin' out in the Woodrows' backyard! Snake in the Grass is twenty-five fantastic tunes by the Fearsome Foursome, including the awesome title track. Raunchy Woodrows classics like "Mowin' Your Lawn, Trimmin' Your Bush," "Ho in the Garden," and "Fetchin' Wood," will be sure to offend everyone of your neighbors as if they lived next store to the boyz themselves.

Visit the Woodrows' Discography Page on reglarwiglar.com for more great albums!

ZINE REVIEW: Nesting: Self-Care tips for Autumn and Winter

NESTING

Self-Care Tips for Autumn and Winter 
by Katie Johnson

This short zine provides tips for taking care of yourself as the temperature drops lower and lower and the sun drops sooner and sooner. It includes advice on a whole manner of things, such as eating the right foods, sleeping the right amount of time, waking up correctly and going to work like a boss. There are tips for managing the whole day in fact, including the proper way to hit the sack.

Winter is a tough one for everybody, but some people are affected to a stronger degree than others. Doing the things outlined in this zine will cost you nothing and may even save you a buck or two as Katie advocates abstaining from alcohol during these months. A good many lot of us rely on booze to get us through these frigid times, so observing this particular bit of advice ain't gonna be easy. In fact, I ain't even gonna try. Other things like eating right, reading before bed, stretching and staying hydrated are easy enough. It’s good to have all these tips compiled here in one place where they can be referred back to as needed. So get it, read it and good luck, everybody!

Cavemen 4 Trump

Follow my new friend Ogmund "Og" Ogg on Twitter. He's got something to say.

Og rendering by Mike Dixon.

Classic Woodrows Albums: Shit or Get off the Pot!

Shit or Get off the Pot!
(RoosterCow) 1980 

Shit or Get off the Pot! That's the Woodows' way of saying "put up or shut up," which is exactly what our boys do on this 15 minute blast of pure punk rock energy. There's no such thing as a sophomore slump when you're talking about the most prolific punk band in the history of recorded music. This firecracker second offering in the Woodrow's catalog features early Woodrow classics like "Weed Bag," "Purple Nurple" and the blistering "Charlie Nutsack." 

The record also contains a first for the Frightening Four, a romantic ballad that's guaranteed to bring a tear to the eye of even the crustiest of punks: "(Sorry, Baby) Too Stoned to Bone."

Visit the Woodrows' Discography Page on reglarwiglar.com for more great albums!

Portrait of the Artist as a (Very) Young Man

Vengeance of the Earth Mother, 1975 Crayon & paper

Art lovers, please enjoy this newly added feature to the Reglar Wiglar website: an engaging series of critiques by the famous art critic, Robert Studwood Hues concerning the art of yours truly. I am honored to have received the attention of this very famous art critic and recognize his genius in recognizing mine. Enjoy!

Portrait of the Artist as a (Very) Young Man.

Classic Woodrows Albums: Run, Woodrow, Run!

Run, Woodrow, Run! 
(RoosterCow) 1980 

Run, Woodrow, run! That's good advice if you're a Woodrow. This is the debut album from the world's most notorious punk rock band. Before the fame and worldwide, whirlwind tours, it all started in a garage in Antigo, Wisconsin. 

While early recordings would eventually be discovered, Run, Woodrow, Run, was long thought to be the first recording of this seminal band. 

They don't make 'em like this any more and heaven help us if they did. Running time is only ten minutes but that's more than enough time for 30 raunchy Woodrows gems. 

This LP contains classic Woodrows tunes, like, "Piss Pants," "Ricky's Got a Boner," "Naked Twister," "Firecracker," "Zonked Out!" "Bum Rap (Revisited)," and the all time great ode to freedom, "Just Got Out of Jail and I Feel Like Gettin' F'd Up" plus 23 more!

Visit the Woodrows' Discography Page on reglarwiglar.com for more great albums!

Happy New Year!

ALWAYS READ REGLAR WIGLAR!

To celebrate another new year on planet Earth, I have re-designed and re-launched the re-glar wiglar website. It is now more mobile friendly as the Great Google Algorithm has commanded. It is also a work in progress and no doubt still contains many bugs, broken links, typos, mistakes and confusion. If you've ever read this blog or visited the RW website (or read an issue of the zine) in the past, then you know that's how I roll. Deal with it and thanks for reading.

In case you missed it, 2015 saw the publication of RW#23. While RW#22 is still available for purchase through the Quimby's website, Chicagoans will have to hoof it to the store at 1854 West North Avenue for their copy of #23 (and #22 of course).