The Black Tribbles’ guide to Christmas shopping for geeks

‘Tis the season to show that special geek in your life just how much he or she means to you. Go the extra mile and bring home one of the geek-centric holiday gift items the Black Tribbles have discovered in 2014.

Each month, Philadelphia’s prolific podcasters, the Black Tribbles (winners of the 2014 Streaming Project of the Year award), visit Speak Easy with special reports on everything sci-fi, comic books, movies, video games, cartoons, and other stuff that every nerd needs to know.

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Tis the season to show that special geek in your life just how much he or she means to you. Are you content with stuffing the latest Batman trade paperback into a pocket of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer wrapping paper? Heck no! A glowing light saber deposited with Jedi acuity into a velvet stocking hung by the chimney with care might do the trick … but not in your house!

You’ve already shown that you think outside the box simply by embracing the nerdtastic leanings of your special someone as your own. Now go the extra mile and bring home one of the geek-centric holiday gift items the Black Tribbles have discovered in 2014.

1. Alien mind control

Capes and cowls are cool for the average geek, but trust the BatTribble — this mask will rock your geek’s rapture socks off! The Horrordome’s exclusive Alien Mind Control Mask is insane; a full oversized foam-filled depiction of an alien literally in the driver’s seat of your body.

The attention to detail is sick. The little alien is shown working the remote control of your brain from his tiny command seat grafted to your head! You will never wear another Halloween costume. And think of the fun you can have all year round in this puppy. The mind boggles … or did he just downshift?

2. You gotta have art

Instagram works wonders. Just ask Storm Tribble, who has caught herself staring at her feed at the eerie renderings of Chuck Hodi for minutes at a time. Steeped in a gothic aesthetic wet with mood, Hodi’s prints of the surreal, the pop and the punk are four-color celebrations of divine geekery. There are over 100 prints to choose from in a variety of finishes and sizes so choose wisely. But be quick. His original creations are incredible but his pop-art Wonder Woman is a big seller at his Etsy store.

3. Save money like a boss — of everything

According to SuperTribble, the most powerful weapon in the Marvel Universe is the Infinity Gauntlet, and there is no safer place in Marveldom for your money than the Marvel Infinity Gauntlet Bank by Entertainment Earth. Six inches high, nearly six inches across of yellow-swathed awesome bejeweled at the knuckles with the Infinity Gems. Rule creation and save for vacation on Mars at the same time. Of course, if you rule creation you can pretty much vacation wherever you want.

4. Chim chim cher-ee

For the family of musical geeks, Spider-Tribble suggests an evening of musical merriment with Mary Poppins, floating across Philadelphia this winter. Based on the classic Disney film and the original books by P.L. Travers, Mary Poppins promises a “Jolly Holiday” for everyone looking for “A Spoonful of Sugar” to sweeten their chim chim Cher-tea.

Mary Poppins is at the Walnut Street Theatre now through Jan. 4.

5. What’s lost is found

If you can’t live without it, then you can’t live without the Tile, Master Tribble’s pick for gizmo of the holidays. Attach the Tile to your keys, wallet or anything you cannot bear to lose, and you are tethering it to the Tile app on your phone. The Bluetooth signal helps locate your “precious” lickety-split. Plus every phone with Tile joins the search team.

I wonder if it works on hairlines?

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Hear the Black Tribbles’ guide to Christmas shopping for geeks on their new podcast, Tribble Nation, available soon in the App Store, Google Play and Pod-o-matic.

Tribble Nation is a new monthly podcast focusing on the geek in every color imaginable, from scientist to author, from comic book artist to comic book collector. Each episode features an interview with a special guest and a review of current topics within his or her field of geek interest.

The Black Tribbles are: Jason Richardson, aka Spider-Tribble; Len Webb, aka BatTribble; Kennedy Allen, aka Storm Tribble; Erik Darden, aka Master Tribble; and Randy Green, aka Super Tribble.