I’m not big on collecting bobble heads, but these are really adorable. Funko’s releasing a line of Star Wars-themed bobble heads with our favorite characters from a galaxy far far away. In addition to Lord Vader, pictured above, the series will also feature Leia, Han Solo, Chewie, Yoda, Greedo and an Imperial trooper. Interestingly enough, I don’t believe they have plans for either a Luke or Obi-wan bobble head. Personally, I’m not too sad about that. If I’m going to buy one, it may as well be the badest sith in the galaxy, right?
The final piece of the current Trek miniseries, Typhon Pact, finally hit book stores late last month and I’ve been loving every minute of it. These novels have been dark, and full of gloom with just a glimmer of hope. It’s definitely not the Star Trek universe we’ve come to expect, but perhaps that’s a good thing. Some readers have expressed concern over the direction of the series. Specifically, that it doesn’t seem to know where it’s going — and it’s true, it doesn’t, but it’s that very same uncertainty it instills that makes me want more. Read more…
Rob Pratt, a veteran animator and storyboard artist who has worked on numerous projects including Disney’s Pocahontas and, more recently, Kim Possible, has put together this amazing tribute to the Superman of old, simply titled Superman Classic. The character designs are very reminiscent a mid-90’s Disney film, but Pratt made sure to include a number of features we’ve come to identify with the Man of Steel, such as his signature hair style and Clark Kent’s mild-mannered demeanor. I don’t expect the upcoming film to retain any of those features, but seeing this hand-drawn short was definitely a welcome change. Now if only Warner Brothers would option this instead.
For well over a year now, there have been rumors of a Playstation phone. While most Sony kept their lips sealed, journalists had been left in the dark, wondering if there was an ounce of truth to it. A few months back, a video was leaked that showed a playstation one title being launched from a phone. Many journalists viewed that video with skepticisim and others ignored it completely. Now, it looks like the Playstation phone is quite real. Sony Ericsson recently confirmed its existence via their facebook, posting this image and encouraging us to keep an eye on their Facebook for the official announcement on February 13th. Read more…
Of all the ads that were broadcast during this year’s Superbowl, only two of them had me drooling with anticipation. Marvel debuted not one, but two trailers for their upcoming blockbusters. First there was the latest trailer for Thor, and while we’ve seen a bit of that footage dating back to San Diego Comic Con, there was some new content mixed in. As for Captain America, I believe this is the first public trailer to be shown any where, and it looks pretty interesting. We even get a glimpse of Red Skull, which gave me goosebumps. Check out the trailers below, though I’m not sure how long they’ll be up.
Sony left many gaming journalists scratching their heads at the end of their official announcement of their upcoming next-gen handheld. While they did a decent job showing off their new hardware, Sony failed to reveal a number of key details such as the estimated price-point — which many assume will be on the higher end of the spectrum due to the quality of the components — or the existence of multiple models, akin to what’s available for Apple’s iDevices. Kaz Hirai has since leaked a few more details that may answer some of those lingering questions.
There’s nothing quite like owning your very own Tribble. They’re cute, adorable, and run on AA and AAA batteries — well, these ones do. Thankfully you’ll probably never have to worry about running into a Klingon, so I imagine they’ll probably stick to purring contently whenever you handle one. In addition to that, they won’t infest your starship, closet, or bed unless you purchase enough of them. Unlike their Original Series counterparts, they’re not born pregnant. As Kirk so poignantly put it, “Too much of anything, Lieutenant, even love, isn’t necessarily a good thing.” Read more…
This guy’s going to be Superman? Really? I feel as if asking repeatedly might some how result in a different answer, yet I’m more than aware that I need to just come to terms with the idea. It’s not that Henry Cavill is a bad actor — his work on Showtime’s The Tudors is evidence enough — but I can’t help but feel he simply doesn’t look the part. Perhaps it’s simply that I had been sold on Brandon Routh, whose visage so closely resembled that of a young Christopher Reeve. Reeve, of course, set the standard for what we’ve come to expect from the Man of Steel.
By now it’s not really a secret, but I’m sure there are plenty of you who never realized this little trick exists. Those of you who are fond of Infocom’s classic text based adventures will probably love this hidden gem in Activision’s Call of Duty: Black Ops. Immediately upon reaching the menu, you’re given the option to look around an interrogation room while strapped to a chair — nifty, if not a little over the top for a simple menu interface. What many people haven’t realized is that you can actually escape the chair if you play with your shoulder buttons a little, giving you the opportunity to explore the immediate area, including an old PC in the corner that provides you with a command prompt. Simply enter the word “Zork,” and you’ll be able to play the MIT version of the classic game. Read more…
Last year, it was revealed that ThunderCats would be making its return to television. It was exciting news, but until recently nobody had any idea as to what we could expect. Warner Brothers had mentioned the involvement of Studio 4°C, the animation studio responsible for numerous projects such as Detroit Metal City, and Spriggan. More recently, the studio was involved with several Warner Brothers projects including The Animatrix and Batman: Gotham Knight.
Poor Geordi. This litle edit from Star Trek the Next Generation has been floating around the net for quite some time now, but it never ceases to entertain. I’m not sure what it is about Star Trek that makes it so fun to edit, but I imagine a lot of it has to do with how easy it must be. There’s so much footage that I’m sure someone might be able to create an entirely new episode with little more than a few mouse clicks. On the other hand, every purist out there will look at each of these scenes and be able to tell you which seasons based on Riker’s hair, their uniforms and Troi’s ever-evolving wardrobe selection. Any way, if you’re interested in more edits like these, check out jandrewedits.com — beware, not all of these are work safe.
It remains to be seen as whether the advance US screening of GANTZ was a large enough success to warrant future engagements of that nature, but after being forced to sit through one of the worst dubs I’ve seen in recent history, I can completely understand if any of you may hesitate to attend one. I’m not really sure the decision to premiere the film in English was entirely the fault of any one party, or if in fact Viz Pictures, Goodman Media, or NCM Fathom were responsible for forcing the hands of the others, but there may be something each of you can do about it.
Posted by Tim Sheehy on Jan 26, 2011 in Tech, Videogames
When it comes to real-time simulations, Starcraft has pretty much cornered the market. Sure, we’ll still make a little room for the occasional game of Command & Conquer, or Civilization, as far as sales go, Blizzard’s entry reigns. They developed a title that withstood the test of time, and even captured the heart of an entire nation. I wouldn’t be surprised if South Korea named it their national sport at this point, but is there a game that can ever surpass it? Well, it seems someone might just have what it takes after all.
This new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles fan short — I can only hope they’ll be turning this into a full-length film — looks spectacular. A striking brunette, no doubt Apirl O’Niel, sits alone in her apartment having recently photographed members of what appears to be the foot clan. After tracking her down, they attempt to assualt her when she’s saved by Raphael. Read more…
[Update: Slashdot has confirmed that this is not happening, but I suppose there’s always wishful thinking. Thanks to Fanboy Brian for pointing this out.]
Keanu Reeves apparently gave quite the keynote at the London School for Performing Arts. During his speech, he reportedly dropped some details about upcoming projects including two Matrix scripts that are currently in the works. Now, that’s cool and all but I’m kind of concerned. While I enjoyed the first film quite a bit, the second film was a bit of giant CGI mess, and the third did little to improve on that, if anything at all. A shame really, considering how much promise the original film had. They could have literally taken the story any number of directions — hell, I can remember three or four different conspiracy theories I had at the time. The fact that they’re thinking of add two new scripts to the pile, both featuring Neo in some capacity, will at least give them another chance to surprise us with an interesting twist. The films will also be in 3D, so take that for what it’s worth.Read more…
Back in August we wrote about why it was so important that you attend the premiere of Scott Pilgrim vs. The World. The destined-to-be cult classic underperformed at the box office and that may have sealed the fate of future films based on independent comics. While GANTZ may not have the potential to carry the same weight in Hollywood, it’s still just as important you see it. Read more…
Posted by Tim Sheehy on Jan 20, 2011 in Videogames
I imagine many of you probably watched the teaser for Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception the other month and thought to yourself “oh, neat.” There wasn’t too much to it. We saw a table, some items, Nathan Drake reading a passage to Sully and what looked like an endless desert. What I never imagined was just how in-depth this teaser truly is. The guys over at GameTrailers actually took the time to dissect the teaser, pointing out numerous hidden bits of info that would have otherwise gone unnoticed. While some might be coincidental or just easter-eggs, a few of them might provide some serious clues as to what we can expect from the upcoming title.
Posted by Tim Sheehy on Jan 19, 2011 in Videogames
I’ve always had a soft spot for pixel art. I suppose I can attribute that to the endless hours I spent glued to various game consoles as a youth. Last weekend I attended MAGfest in Alexandria, Virginia where I encountered Adam Shub. The man had a booth set up in vendor room, and I had just happened by it. On his table, there were multiple pieces of pixel art he had hand-painted.
Following the success of their earlier bishoujo figures, Kotobukiya went ahead and expanded their bishoujo line to include figures from both the Marvel and DC universes. The figures, modeled after designs by popular artist Shunya Yamashita, have been selling out at various comic conventions over the past few years. This year, they’ve announced two brand new bishoujo figures. From the DC universe, they’ve brought us Supergirl, and for Marvel they’re introducing the Invisible Woman, Susan Richards. I have quite the collection going, but if they keep releasing these, I’ll never be able to keep up. The figures retail for around $65 each, and will likely be available by the time New York Toy Fair rolls around later this year. No word on if either will have a con exclusive.
Last weekend I attended MAGfest in Alexandria, Virginia. For those of you who aren’t already aware of the festival, it’s a relatively small convention held annually which features videogame-themed concerts, panels, guests, and more. while I was there I noticed a few posters for an upcoming Sonic the Hedgehog fan film. The movie is being produced by Eddie Lebron, the same man responsible for that niftyMega Man fan film released last year.Read more…
Nintendo, like Apple, knows exactly how to market their products to their core audience , no matter how much a gimick the product may be. Case and point, check out these commercials that are currently airing overseas. The system will be out in a little over a month, but rather than show how the product actually looks — I imagine it doesn’t look too impressive on a 2D screen — they’ve decided to simply hire the most popular boy band in the nation and have them react on film to what they’re seeing. So, how will that sell the system? Simple. If it’s good enough for them, it has to be good enough for you. Of course, it could very well be, but we won’t know until the system ships to North America later this year.
Posted by Tim Sheehy on Jan 13, 2011 in Tech, Videogames
If you can believe it, it’s been almost six years since the PlayStation Portable debuted, and while there have been a few notable titles, its library seems scarce when compared to the competition. Sony’s attempt at staking its share of the handheld market has been an uphill battle from the outset with Nintendo having practically dominated the market since the late 80’s. It’s not entirely Sony’s fault. The system does make use of the proprietary UMD disc format, which I imagine can cost publishers a bit to produce. The system’s digital market also remains seemingly stagnant, despite the introduction of the PSP Go. Read more…
Ever wonder what it’d be like to work at a Disney theme park? I know I have, and thanks to this fantastic video my curiosity has been satisfied, though I have to admit that no amount of food could possibly make up for having to listen to “It’s a Small World” on repeat. I pretty much figured it’d be exactly as he described in the video, minus the awesome doodles. I just had no idea the food was that spectacular. Read more…
These have to be the most confusing Japanese ads I’ve ever seen. In fact, had I not researched it further, I doubt I would have realized they’re for a pachinko machine — Sanyo’s Star Wars Fever. The machine hit the market a few years back and while I’m not sure you’d still find them littered through out Japanese pachinko parlors, you’ll probably find one if you look hard enough. I’d rather just sit back and enjoy these terrifying, yet hilarious commercials. I just love the Empire’s fleet of Darth Vader themed 747s — or are those suppose to be B-52s. It’s hard to tell. Read more…
