Mike Sterling manages Ralph's Comic Shop in Ventura, California, and writes a daily blog devoted to the strangest of the material he sifts through, Progressive Ruin. The blog's funniest feature, in my opinion, is the monthly string of catalog scans, with commentary, entitled The End of Civilization.
Diamond Previews is a monthly catalog published by Diamond Comics, suggested for comic shop owners to stock their wares from...or for geeks to order from directly, if they can afford it. Much of the unbelievable product inside is so overpriced, you have to wonder...are there nerds out there who are that rich? (The answer is yes: some nerds can become very rich.)
The saga began on January 26, 2005, when Mike was looking through the aforementioned catalog and found the Buffy the Vampire Slayer Stake Prop Replica with Satin-Lined Case. $100 for what amounted to a wooden stick. "So help me," wrote Mike, "if I find out that you've bought this, I'm going to go to your house and punch you."
In the next month's Previews he found something else bizarre enough to scan...and then the next month, more and more....and six years later, more and more still. The End of Civilizations used to be easily accessible through the blog's own search tags until Mike switched weblog programs; now with the exception of the few most recent, entire years' worth of Civs are buried with everything else under the "Uncategorized" tag. Mike doesn't have the time or the will to manually realign everything.
It was up to me and an 8-hour archive binge to resurrect the funniest comments and compile them into one spot. From this point, it's all Mike. Now bear witness to the End of Civilization:
p. 405 – Star Trek The Next
Generation Deluxe Shirts:
Also, if you get one of these, don’t wear it to jury duty. I mean, honestly.
p. 356 – Star Wars Darth Vader Robotic Arm:
Will make a nice Life Day gift for the fans of Darth Vader’s arm in your life.
p. 424 – Star Trek Retro Cloth Scotty Figure:
What the hell is Scotty doing? “Och, Capt’n, I’ve got descriptive text crawlin’ up me pants! My disco moves canna stop ‘em!”
p. 410 – Watchmen Be@rbricks 3-Pack: Oh, dear…you may wish to avert your eyes:
p. 438 – Wolverine Enameled Cufflinks:
So Wolverine wears cufflinks…with his own face on them? Does anyone else do this? I mean, aside from Donald Trump?
p. 501 The Texas Chainsaw Massacre Chainsaw Prop Replica:
For only $214.99, now you too can make every single person you know…very, very nervous.
p. 363 – Great Figures in History: Mother Teresa & Nelson Mandela GNs:
I’m not ready for the adventures of Superdeformed Pokemon Teresa. Though I am curious if Nelson ever finds all the Dragonballs.
p. 316 – The World of Warcraft Guide to Winning at Life SC:
p. 354 – Disneystrology HC:
How can so much hard science be contained in only 48 pages?
p. 528 – Elvis Talking Giant Pez:
That’s it. It’s official. Science has gone too far, too far.
p. 505 – Doctor Who Tardis Talking Ice Bucket:
p. 355 – Jailbait Zombie SC:
That’s too much High Concept. TOO MUCH.
p. 529 – Hulk board games: I can’t decide which is my favorite…the “Hulk Smash” board game:
The “Operation Hulk” board game:
But I think it has to be the "Don’t Wake Hulk” board game:
p. 340 – Barbie Harley Davidson Doll:
p. 346 – Charlie’s Angels Kelly Doll Gift Set:
“You got it, Charlie!”
p. 437 – Barbie Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds Doll:
p. 372 – Mr. Sinister Statue:
p. 460 – Naruto Pakkun Plush Bag:
“Well, I have this bag that looks like a decapitated dog’s head.” “Does the dog look sad about being decapitated?” “Well, certainly.” “You, sir, have a sale.”
p. 450 – The Cactus Friends: Polpettinia Vinyl Figure:
I don’t even know what the hell this is. All I do know is that it disturbs me deeply. And that it’d probably hurt a lot if you tried to swallow it.
p. 387, 390 – Pretty Face Volume 1 TP:
All right, that’s it…Japan, what the hell is going on over there?
p. 407 – Star Trek Tiberius Cologne for Men:
p. 454 – Emily’s Fat Balms “Kitties Rock!” Lip Gloss:
It’s like they just toss a bunch of youth-oriented buzz words and images into the “Teen-Goth-Exploit-A-Tron 3000" and out comes new Emily merchandise.
p. 447 – Caution: Reanimated Corpse t-shirt:
Written prior to the release of X-Men Origins
Oh, for the sake of the movie, I hope not.
p. 405 – Wolverine Extreme Green Large Journal:
Marvel Previews p. 79 – Marvel Minimates Series 28 – Wolverine Movie Assortment:
p. 124-5 – Blammoids: What th–?
p. 437 – Smallville RPG Core Rulebook:
“I’ll fly after him.” “Sorry, you can’t fly yet. Not until after ten years of campaign time have passed.” “Wait, what? What can I do, then?” “You can look longingly into Lana’s big watery eyes and say incredibly evasive things that exacerbate everyone’s problems.” “Oooh, I roll for Save Vs. Ridiculous Plot Developments.” “Yeah, you can try.”
p. 458 – Desperately Seeking Susan Minimates 2-Pack:
p. 515 – Star Wars “Vader Was Framed” Poster:
p.113 – Marvel Bromance TPB :
I believe it was pal Dorian who observed that once Marvel got their hands on this particular term “bromance,” that means it’s likely near the end of its life cycle. We can only hope.
p. 406 – The Big Lebowski: The Dude Wig & Goatee Set:
p. 59 – Hellboy 8" Qee and Tara McPherson Variant:
p. 424 – Star Trek The Original Series Tribble Role Play:
Someone, somewhere, at some Star Trek convention or even just in the privacy of their own homes, has dressed as a tribble. Let that ease your dream-filled sleep.
p. 476 – Revoltech Danboard Action Figure:
Oh, c’mon, jointed plastic boxes…? You people just aren’t even trying.
p. 350 – Pac-Man Bonus Fruit Energy Drink:
I might have to pass on the Custer’s Revenge Engorged Arrow Energy Drink, however.
p. 328 – Marvel Comics Iron Man 2 Trading Cards:
p. 450 – Rocky Apollo Creed Boxing Trunks Replica:
God bless the current onslaught of Rocky merchandise:
“WEARABLE.” Fantastic. The solicitation also reads “limited to 1,000 pieces (the year of the film’s release)” but I’m gonna guess that’s a typo.
p. 183 – Ghost Rider Desert Statue:
Um…
…just sayin’.
p. 346 – Sleepy Joe the Egg:
p. 379 – Marvel Comics Coloud Headphones:
“War Journal Entry #5511: I had hoped the soothing sounds of Billy Joel’s An Innocent Man would ease away the pain I live with every day…the pain of loss that never ebbs no matter how many drug dealers or mob bosses I take down. But if Hulk doesn’t shut up about his Gloria Estefan record, I swear to God I’m going to shoot the son of a #$%@”
p. 406 – Mr. Potato Head Elvis Presley:
p. 418 – Monopoly 1935 Deluxe 1st Edition:
p. 191 – Spider-Man 3 Pumpkin Bomb Prop Replica:
p. 198-9 – Wizard #194:
p. 437 – Zombie Fragrance Oil:
I don’t even know where to start on this.
p. 424 – Mr. Toast and Shaky Bacon Plush Toys:
p. 548 – I Am The Amazing Spider-Man Personlized (sic) DVD:
Ahem. “Learning with J. Jonah Jameson.”“Let the cranky, Hitler-mustachioed Jameson yell at you and call you names as you get minor bits of spider trivia wrong, wrong, WRONG!”
p. 424 – Batman Folding Pen:
…Which totally has the Batman logo on it. That Wayne, he’s got chutzpah.
p. 416 – Saw – Jigsaw’s Gauntlet Prop Replica:
On second thought…perhaps I would like to remain blissfully ignorant.
p. 380 – Thor The Frog God of Thunder Mini-Bust: And now…the greatest Marvel statue ever made: |