NOC Guide to the Top SDCC 2025 Offsites

July 19, 2025July 19, 2025 Mike Manalo

Comic-Con is just five days away everyone! As we discussed in our NOC San Diego Comic-Con Guide, we will be on the ground covering as much of the fun nerdtopia festivities as possible! However, SDCC is not just about panels. There’s so much to do around the convention center, including some events you don’t need a badge for. So allow us to sort through the entire collection of offsites happening during SDCC 2025, and bring you our Top Picks!

Conventions1 Comment

Your NOC Guide to SDCC 2025

July 16, 2025July 16, 2025 Mike Manalo

We are exactly one week away from San Diego Comic-Con, folks! As per tradition, The Nerds of Color is going to be there on the ground, not only bringing you the latest and greatest from the panels, but also participating as panelists in some of them (Looking at you, Swara, you rock star!) So as you gear up and prep for the biggest nerd event of the year, we’re going to break down the best panels and events you can’t miss!

Horror, Interview, Movies

Discussing Death and Blood with the Directors and Cast of ‘Final Destination: Bloodlines’

May 16, 2025 Mike Manalo

Death is a funny thing. Not so much “ha-ha” funny as it is “mysterious” funny. It’s also terrifying, gory, and nasty. And no series of films better encapsulates this sentiment better than the Final Destination franchise! Recently, we were given the great opportunity to witness the latest installment, Final Destination: Bloodlines, and speak with directors Adam Stein and Zach Lipovsky, and cast members Richard Harmon, Anna Lore, and Owen Patrick Joyner about the latest gruesome and gory chapter in this legendary saga.

Horror, Interview, Movies1 Comment

Talking Pinoy Power with the Stars of ‘Final Destination: Bloodlines’

May 14, 2025May 14, 2025 Mike Manalo

I’m proud to be Filipino. While I believe representation in film and television has been much better in recent years, you’d be hard pressed to find many major studio franchises centered on Filipino families or characters, let alone long-running horror franchises. Which is why I got really excited when I saw Final Destination: Bloodlines was centered on a mixed Filipino family! That meant the world to me, as did getting a chance to speak with the stars that brought that family to life: Kaitlyn Santa Juana, Teo Briones, and Rya Kihlstedt.

Horror, Movies, Reviews12 Comments

NOC Review: ‘Presence’ Weaves a Very Familiar Ghost Story

January 23, 2025January 23, 2025 Mike Manalo

The idea of seeing things from the perspective of those who have passed is not a new or innovative concept. From movies like David Lowery’s A Ghost Story to Peter Jackson’s adaptation of The Lovely Bones, we’ve experienced narratives of tragedy told from the POV of the ghosts acting as protagonists in these stories. Therefore, it comes as no surprise that despite its attempts to liven up the trope, a lot of the notes that director Steven Soderbergh and writer David Koepp hit in Presence are ones that are well trodden.

Fantasy, Podcasts1 Comment

The Middle Geeks Episode 68: ‘The Rings of Power’ Season 2 SPOILER Review

October 3, 2024October 3, 2024 Swara Salih

Arezou joins us once again to review The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2 on Amazon Prime!

Star Wars, Television4 Comments

‘The Acolyte’ is Exactly What ‘Star Wars’ Needed

July 25, 2024July 24, 2024 Swara Salih

Before The Rise of Skywalker at the tail end 2019, I was a big Star Wars fan. The release of the singularly subpar final chapter of the Sequel Trilogy had me distraught about the franchise, severely dampening my fandom. The recidivism of Episode IX had me believe that there was no true moving forward. We would be destined to remain in the strict boundaries of Jedi vs. Sith without a critical examination and growth of what these stories could be.

Podcasts, Star Wars, Television

The Middle Geeks Episode 67: ‘Star Wars: The Acolyte’ Season 1 Review

July 23, 2024July 23, 2024 Swara Salih

Arezou joins us once again along with new guest Noor to review one of the most riveting Star Wars series yet.

Podcasts, Streaming, Television

The Middle Geeks Episode 66: ‘We Are Lady Parts’ Season 2 Review

June 3, 2024June 10, 2024 Swara Salih

Isa joins us once again to review the second season of Nida Manzoor’s masterpiece Peacock series, We Are Lady Parts!

Movies

Donnie Yen is Officially Returning as ‘Caine’ in ‘John Wick’ Spin-Off Film

May 15, 2024May 17, 2024 Mike Manalo

What more is there to say about the legend of Donnie Yen that hasn’t already been communicated through his fists? The unparalleled actor and master of martial arts was recently seen giving John Wick a hard time in John Wick: Chapter 4 last year. But we’re not done with this seeing-impaired assassin just yet! Lionsgate is officially moving forward with a Caine spin-off!

Interview, Movies

Hiroyuki Sanada and Shamier Anderson Unload on ‘John Wick: Chapter 4’

March 23, 2023March 27, 2023 Mike Manalo

Yeah, I’m thinking he’s back. This Friday, Keanu Reeves returns in action as the Baba Yaga himself, in John Wick: Chapter 4! And this time, he’s not alone. Along for the ride are the terrific Shamier Anderson (Stowaway) and the legendary Hiroyuki Sanada (Bullet Train). And we, at The Nerds of Color, had a chance to speak with the new stars of the franchise about all the excitement the latest installment has to offer!

Movies, Reviews2 Comments

NOC Review: ‘John Wick Chapter 4’ is the Most Epic Installment in the Franchise

March 13, 2023March 24, 2023 Mike Manalo

Who would have predicted back in 2014 that John Wick, a movie starring Keanu Reeves as a former legendary assassin avenging the death of his puppy, would become a four-installment franchise phenomenon?

Movies, Trailers

The New Trailer for ‘John Wick Chapter 4’ Takes its Shot

February 16, 2023February 16, 2023 Mike Manalo

It’s Wick Week! All week Lionsgate has been putting out really cool announcements leading up to the debut of the new John Wick Chapter 4 trailer. And behold! The trailer is finally here!

Interview, Movies

Talking Rom-Coms with ‘Ticket to Paradise’ Star Lucas Bravo

October 21, 2022 Mike Manalo

The rom-com is back! It’s been a while since a proper romantic comedy has hit theaters, but today, the two most legendary names in the genre are back: Julia Roberts and George Clooney star in Ticket to Paradise! But as the two superstars will confirm, it takes more than just two stars to craft an iconic rom-com. Which is where co-star Lucas Bravo comes in!

Interview, Movies

A ‘Ticket to Paradise’ with Kaitlyn Dever and Maxime Bouttier

October 19, 2022October 20, 2022 Mike Manalo

You can’t get any more charming than Julia and George, can you? At least, that’s what I thought prior to meeting Ticket to Paradise stars Kaitlyn Dever and Maxime Bouttier!

Anime, Podcasts, Star Wars

The Middle Geeks Episode 32: The Promise of ‘Star Wars: Visions’

November 18, 2021November 18, 2021 Swara Salih

We’re excited to have Meg Humphrey of Rogue Podron on to discuss Star Wars: Visions, the new anime anthology on Disney+ that breathes fresh life into this franchise with Japanese creators, crafting stories in a universe that was *heavily* inspired by their own culture.

Animation, Marvel, Streaming

Make Way for Hulu’s ‘Hit-Monkey’

September 20, 2021September 20, 2021 Mike Manalo

M.O.D.O.K was just the beginning! This November, Hulu is continuing to crank out the epic Marvel animated shows, with its latest ambitious adaptation of Marvel’s Hit-Monkey!

Interview, Marvel, Movies2 Comments

‘Shang-Chi’ Screenwriter Dave Callaham on Keeping it Authentically Asian American

September 2, 2021September 2, 2021 Laura Sirikul

Marvel’s Shang-Chi premieres this week. As the first Asian-led Marvel film, there’s a lot of pressure to get this character and story right, given the comic book’s problematic history being rooted in stereotypical Asian tropes. Director Destin Daniel Cretton and screenwriter Dave Callaham did a lot of research on Shang-Chi’s comic book origins and knew what they wanted to do with him.

Horror, Interview, Movies

NOC Exclusive Interview: ‘The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It’ Actor, Andrea Andrade

May 26, 2021 Patrick Strange

Heyyy! It’s Kuya P back again with another NOC EXCLUSIVE! I recently sat down for a conversation with Actor, Andrea Andrade to discuss her role in the upcoming film, ‘The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It‘!

Interview, Movies

NOC Exclusive Interview: Asian American Eyz’d’s Ana Tuazon Parsons and Nicky Endres

May 22, 2021May 22, 2021 Patrick Strange

Heyyy! It’s Kuya P back again with another NOC EXCLUSIVE! I recently sat down for a conversation with Actor/Comedians’ Ana Tuazon Parsons & Nicky Endres to discuss Asian American Eyz’d (An Immigrant Comedy Special)!

Comics, Martial Arts1 Comment

Meet the New Oddjob in 007 Short Film ‘A Kill From The Other Side’

January 1, 2021January 1, 2021 Edward Hong

Almost two years ago, Greg Pak took the reins of rebooting the James Bond 007 comic book series but this time, having a revisionist take on a familiar and iconic villain, first introduced in the 1959 novel Goldfinger: Oddjob. Not only was the reimagined take refreshing and very much needed, the series itself was incredibly well done with the plot moving at a brisk pace, the action fun and invigorating to read, and the rivalry/bickering between James Bond and Oddjob (now known as South Korean secret agent John Lee) extremely entertaining and amusing to read.

Interview, Movies, Television

NOC Exclusive Interview: Actor, Miya Cech, of Nickelodeon’s ‘The Astronauts’

December 31, 2020January 5, 2021 Patrick Strange

I recently had the pleasure of sitting down for a NOC Exclusive interview with Actor, Miya Cech, currently starring as Samantha Sawyer-Wei on the Nickelodeon series, The Astronauts and will have a starring role in the highly-anticipated independent feature film Marvelous and the Black Hole premiering at the Sundance 2021 Film Festival! ENJOY!

Comics, Interview, Marvel1 Comment

An Interview with Greg Pak about Marvel’s New All-Asian Superhero Team ‘Agents of Atlas’

May 20, 2019June 15, 2019 Dominic Mah

(A version of this interview appeared originally at melancholyball.com) DOM MAH: Hi, Greg! So, for those of us (like me) who sometimes get the Marvel Events out of order in our head canon, can you tell us the overall premise … Continue reading An Interview with Greg Pak about Marvel’s New All-Asian Superhero Team ‘Agents of Atlas’