Okay, it’s time once again for your guide to things you can do in and around Charleston as summer turns to fall. In this week’s edition of STUFF TO DO, we’re going to start off with four cool projects you can Kickstart, and in the first case, you’d better act fast.   

First up, and with less than two weeks to go in this short campaign, we have RRParksCARDS Ninth Annual Halloween Trading Card Event,  Now the thing is, I can’t go into great detail here about this cool trading card set because I wrote about it in the just-published latest issue of Non Sport Update magazine (seen right and available at bookstores now, or you can order it online).

I have an agreement not to write about the same things in the blog here that I do for Non Sport Update. So go read the article for an in-depth look a the history and future of this fun Halloween card set, and then go kick in. It’s already met its goal, some twenty times over.

Check out the graphic below…

Next up we have another Kickstarter campaign for a trading card set, and this is another entry in the Fearsome Weirdos line by Robert Jimenez.  Ghouls Of Yule is the 4th Fearsome Weirdos set. This set of 18 trading cards features a mash-up of Monsters and the Holidays, written and illustrated by Robert Jimenez, with help from Wacky Packages writer Paul Harris. This is the perfect thing for folks who love Halloween, but also want to get in the Christmas spirit.

The set is made up of a Wrapper/Checklist card, 13 Characters and 4 Vintage Holiday Ad Parodies. Also included with the set is a Tuck Box, 2 Promo Cards and a Lenticular Card.

Add-On Rewards will include original art, extra discounted sets, extra sketch cards, past Zerostreet Trading Cards and more!

This looks like loads of fun for fans of the macabre and the holidays. You can find the Kickstarter campaign HERE,  and buy more cool stuff (including previous Fearsome Weirdos sets) HERE.  This project is also totally funded, so you know you’ll get your rewards. Check out the video below…

Our third Kickstarter recommendation today is for a graphic novel written by the Charleston-area creator of Pinpricks and other cool projects, Jason Pell. Flickering Lights is an erotic horror tale set in outer space. The crew of the space vessel, the Demeter, have been mysteriously transported across the universe.

As if being lost and unable to ever reach home wasn’t bad enough, strange lights have begun following the ship. With each visit, the lights leave behind lust and madness. The crew is caught in the wilds of the universe, and there is nowhere they can run or hide. The lights are coming.

Flickering lights is haunting 34 page erotic/horror comic with art by Emilio Utrera and story by Jason Pell. Edited by John MacLeod. Ths one is for Mature Audiences ONLY- it includes Nudity, violence, and sex, which automatically makes it WAY COOL!

The project is already fully-funded, with three weeks left in the campaign. You can find the Kickstarter campaign HERE, where you will have your choice of multiple cover variations in “nice” and “naughty” versions.

Our final Kickstarter recommendation is over 70% funded with four weeks to go, and it looks like a great project.  Frankenstein the Unconquered is set  500 years in the future as arctic thaws and the Beast awakens to a bombed out post-apocalypse as hideous and hostile as he is.

Seeing an opportunity to reinvent himself and live the peaceful life he always wanted, the Beast attempts to settle down and live simply with villagers who are unafraid of his ghastly appearance. But when soldiers come to collect their due, violence is the only answer the Beast can come up with, and his dream of living simply is ripped away.

Having followed his war path to its bloody conclusion, the Beast was exiled to the stars, his legacy tarnished, his family flayed before his eyes. For thirty years, the world has known an uneasy peace, but the Beast never stopped fighting for control and now, on the dawn of the 200th year, the sky explodes and the Beast, bathed in the cosmic blood of stars and comets, has returned. God help anyone who stands in his way.

Chapter One shows Frankenstein monster’s return to the Earth after his exile in the stars and explains how he ended up in this post apocalyptic future.

Chapter Two introduces two pivotal characters, The Wolfman and The Bride. In the present, Frank discovers a massacre and a lone survivor welcomes him into his home, offering the beast food, comfort and hospitality…until the sun goes down and the full moon rises. Meanwhile, in the past, Frank is attacked by a warlord and must work with his Bride to fight his way out. They’re outnumbered, but far from outmatched. Carnage, anger, and loss permeate comic with consequences that will walk with the Beast for the rest of his unnatural life.

You can visit the Kickstarter page and get both chapters HERE.

This serously sounds like a pretty incredible comic, with a combination of Frankenstein, John Carter of Mars, Conan, and maybe the finale of Ken Russell’s Lisztomania.  I’ve kicked in, and if that sounds really cool, you might want to as well. Check out the video…

Meanwhile, in and around Charleston

Live Music is back at Taylor Books. There is no cover charge, and shows start at 7:30 PM. Friday it’s The Carpenter Ants. Saturday is as-yet-unscheduled at Charleston’s beloved Bookstore/coffeehouse/art gallery institution.

Please remember that despite what some folks are saying, the pandemic is not over yet. Many people who have very good reasons are still wearing masks, and many of us, understandably, are still nervous about being in crowds, masked or not. Be kind and understanding  while you’re out.

If you’re up for going out, here are some suggestions for the rest of this week, roughly in order.

Since we’re running this feature early this week, there’s bound to be more cool things pop up…