The Walking Dead is an interesting beast of a show to me. I both love and hate it simultaneously. There were long stretches of, honestly, very little happening the first half of season 2, but whenever they kicked up the action it was clear they could still handle the show competently. So forgive me if I’m a little more optimistic for the second half of season 2 due to the amount of action featured in this trailer. Decide for yourself after the break. Read more…
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jan 28, 2012 in Dr. Who
As seen in this breaking headline The Daily Beast has confirmed that not only isn’t Dr. Who a fictional character but that he played a key role in taking out Bin Laden. It’s about time that the lamestream media got honest about this sort of thing…
Last night marked the season 3 premiere of the animated FX series, and cult-favorite, Archer. For those of you who don’t watch, the series follows Sterling Archer, an over-the-top, self-absorbed spy who works for organization named ISIS, similar to MI-5, ran by his own mother. It often plays like a raunchy spoof of every Bond film ever made. Any way, it’s hilarious and definitely worth checking out. While you can find the first season readily available on Netflix, many viewers might want to play catch up. A lot can happen over the course of a season, so missing an one might leave you a bit dazed and confused. Fortunately, Amazon is having an amazing deal right now. You can get season one and two of Archer on Blu-ray for just $20 — that’s half off.
Volkswagon uploaded a teaser for their 2012 Game Day commercial entitled “The Bark Side.” The short features a group of adorable pups barking out John Williams’ “Imperial March,” with complete with some ATAT-cosplay at the end. The whole commercial is beyond adorable, and while I’m not sure what it has to do with selling cars, there’s no denying how awesome it is. In the span of a few short hours, the clip has attracted 50,000 views. To learn more, check out Volkswagon’s official game day invite page here. Read more…
The BBC has never been known for breaking the bank when it comes to special effects, but is that such a bad thing? Take this awesome clip from the early days of Doctor Who, starring Jon Pertwee as The Third Doctor, for example. We were decades away from Jurassic Park and animatronics, but that couldn’t stop the BBC. They need dinosaurs, so they made it happen, and it was glorious — terrible, even hilarious, but glorious nonetheless. In fact, if this clip alone hasn’t convinced you to stomach classic Who‘s terrible acting (often on the part of his companions,) then I’m not sure what will. If, on the other hand, you can’t get enough of these killer special effects, and you wish to brave the acting, some of those classic episodes are still available via Netflix instant streaming.
Posted by Tim Sheehy on Jan 10, 2012 in Dr. Who, Fandom
Every once in awhile, I come across a TeeFury design that I just can’t pass up. More often than not, they relate to Doctor Who, due to the lack of awesome Doctor Who merchandise we get here in the States. For example, today’s design features an beautiful ad for the Sonic Screwdriver Mark VI, which you might recognize as the model used by Tennant and Eccleston throughout the 2005-2009 seasons. While I love how classy it looks, especially against that background, I’m not so sure I’d look good in it — cream really isn’t my color. Girls, on the other hand, will luck out with a white alternative. Why only two colors? Great question. All I know is that the shirt will only be on sale for the next 24 hours, so if you really want one, don’t wait.
I know we’ve all been biting our nails over this, but fans of NBC’s Community may sleep a little easier knowing the show will definitely return this Spring. NBC’s entertainment chairman Robert Greenblat made the announcement as they kicked off their portion of the Television Critics Association 2012 Winter Press Tour last Friday. As you may recall, NBC pulled Community mid-season to make room for 30 Rock, which premieres later this week. While we had heard that it could possibly return in the spring or even later this summer, there had been no official confirmation until now. That said, Greenblat was quick to point out that the series has yet to be renewed for a fourth season, and that the network will likely wait to make a decision. Again, it’s not exactly what I wanted to hear, but it’s far from “the darkest timeline,” at least for now. Speaking of which, Star Trek 2 officially starts filming this Thursday and should continue through the next four months — about time, don’t you think?
The other week, Softbank debuted a lengthy 5 minute 30 second long ad for their mobile phones starring the ever-popular “White family.” For those of you who haven’t seen any of the previous ads, they were centered around a multi-racial Japanese family with a dog (Otousan) as the father and often range from hilarious to adorable. The latest ad sees Otousan attempting to fulfill his dream of traveling in space, and guest-stars Japanese astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, who had spent several months on the International Space Station last year. you can watch that portion of the ad above. The final three minutes of the full ad feature former Japanese boy-band, turned Television hosts, SMAP and can be viewed by clicking here. Read more…
No, it wasn’t the worst Christmas special ever — it’d be difficult to top the infamous Star Wars Holiday Special — but, this year’s special certainly wasn’t one of The Doctor’s best. It’s true, the episode had almost everything we’d expect from this post-Tennant era. Another space ship in distress, a bit of suspense, Matt Smith running around like a madman, and an Eco-friendly story about a mother’s love for her family. The episode was chock-full of references to C.S. Lewis’ The Chronicles of Narnia, and The Doctor’s involvement throughout, though sporadic, is sufficient enough to win us over. But is that really enough? Read more…
Posted by Michael Pinto on Dec 26, 2011 in Television
The talented puppeteer Caroll Spinney turns 78 years old today! Several generations know Spinney as the man behind Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch thanks to his collaboration with the talented Jim Henson. Spinney first met Henson in 1960, but sadly Spinney didn’t get Henson’s hint that he’d like to hire him. Then in 1969 the two bumped into each other at a convention and then went on to make history with Sesame Street. Read more…
We haven’t really covered it much, but last month David Yates discussed plans for a potential Doctor Who motion picture. Yates, credited for directing final four installments of the wildly successful Harry Potter film franchise, mentioned his desire to reboot the series from scratch, setting aside the series crafted by Russel T. Davies and Steven Moffat. Though I couldn’t fathom why, Yates insists a reboot would be necessary for Doctor Who‘s transition to a feature film — Moffat doesn’t agree.
It’s a sad day for fans of The Doctor’s latest companions, Amy & Rory. At a Doctor Who press screening in London today, series producer Steven Moffat confirmed our fears when he announced that the Doctor would be moving on next season with a “new friend,” stating “The final days of the ponds are coming.” Read more…
Here’s some exciting news for all you Whovians out there. BBC Worldwide just announced the first in a new line games planned for home consoles. Doctor Who: The Eternity Clock, currently being developed by Supermassive Games in collaboration with BBC Wales, is set for both the PS3 and Playstation Vita early next year. Not much is known about the plot, but we can expect a completely new adventure featuring the voices of Matt Smith, and Alex Kingston reprising her role as River Song. If you only own an Xbox, don’t worry — the game will also be receiving a PC port. For more info, head over to the official twitter feed and be sure to check out a short teaser after the jump. Read more…
It’s probably irrational of me to be so upset about a show being put on hiatus like this, but NBC’s Community consistentlyproves to me why its among the best on television. Read more…
BBC recently launched a Doctor Whoadvent calender for the month of December. Each day, the official site will be updated with fresh content related to the series, with everything from exclusive clips and interviews, to free wallpapers, cards and more leading up to the premiere of Christmas special, The Doctor, The Widow, and the Wardrobe. We’re only four days into the month, and they’ve already given us a small clip of Matt Smith discussing the upcoming special, along with a few promotional images to be used as cards for friends and family. The special airs stateside December 25th at 9/8 PM central on BBC America. Read more…
Just like Darth Vader’s cameo in a series cell phone ads, Yoda recently starred in a Japanese commercial for Nissin’s Cup Noodles — speaking English, no less. Of course, they had to subtitle him, but it would seem the Jedi master wants Japan to recover from its recent tragedies as much as anyone else; the commercial ends with him wishing the force be with the entire nation, kind of a sweet little gesture on Lucas’ part. I wasn’t aware you could use the force to boil water, though. Also, the line “Boil Japan.” looks a bit strange out of context. Oh well, it’s still kind of cool.
Here’s the recently released trailer for the upcoming Doctor Who Christmas special set to air Christmas Day. The episode, titled The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe, is an obvious homage to C.S. Lewis’ The Chronicles of Narnia. The story is once again set during World War II, and while I’m starting to grow tired of that particular period of history, it certainly fits the Narnia gag. They haven’t said much about the plot, but from the trailer, it looks as though he’ll accompany a family of children, and who I can only assume is their widowed mother, on an adventure that takes them into a world that very much resembles the frozen forests Narnia. Both Amy and Rory are notably absent from the trailer, and there’s still no word on if they’ll be making any more appearances next season.
Posted by Tim Sheehy on Nov 21, 2011 in Television
HBO recently released a production trailer for their upcoming second season of Game of Thrones. I believe the new season will cover the events of the second novel in the on-going series of novels A Song of Fire and Ice, entitled A Clash of Kings. The trailer shows off some of the new faces will be seeing throughout the season, as well as the return of several fan favorite who managed to live through last season — there might be a spoiler or two for those who haven’t read the book or seen the show, but nothing that should ruin it for you. If you haven’t seen the first season, it’s currently available for pre-order via Amazon and won’t hit stores until January 10th. If you’d rather just read, or listen to the book itself, both the audiobook and original novel are currently available at your local retailers, or can also be purchased via Amazon or iTunes.
Get ready for the most adorable video ever. Believe it or not, this is an actual product — an inflatable, talking Dalek that a kid can actually drive around. Honestly, who needs Power Wheels when you can ride around threatening to exterminate people? Don’t bother trying to answer, it’s rhetorical. If I had a kid, this would be purchased immediately, despite the fact that you need a European power outlet or adapter to charge the sucker. I probably won’t have a niece or nephew old enough to drive one of these around for a few more years, I’m actually a little giddy at the thought. Unfortunately, I don’t think we’ll ever see an adult-sized model, but if anyone wants to build one for Halloween next year, that would be really cool. If you do, take pictures or shoot a video for us please. If, on the other hand, you want to pick one of these up, you can actually import one, just keep in mind my note about the power adapter. The Ride-in Dalek retails for a hefty $299.99 and ThinkGeek will toss in an optional adapter for an additional $20. Read more…
Seeing as the next Doctor Who Christmas special is just a month away, now’s a great time to get into the spirit of things with this ridiculously cool Snow-lek shirt. I never really thought of building a Dalek snowman, but after seeing this, I kind of want to try. Of course, I’m sure nobody else will get the reference unless they’re fans, but I guess that’d be the point of doing it in the first place. The shirt, designed by artist Malcassairo, is currently being sold at TeeFury, and like every other design they print, will only be available for the next 24 hours. Their shirts are usually decent quality, and should only cost you $10 + shipping, but if you’d rather pass, there’s always a chance the shirt could pop up on a site like RedBubble, though it would be significantly more expensive to order it from there. If you’d rather just see more of Malcassairo’s work, a larger portfolio is available at their Deviant Art page.
Posted by Tim Sheehy on Nov 15, 2011 in Television
Earlier today, NBC decided to tout their new mid-season lineup. Rather than the awkward sound of crickets or the occasional tumbleweed associated with such an announcement from the fourth-place network, my twitter-feed exploded with the hash tag #savegreendale. I immediately re-examined the press release only to discover that, sure enough, Community was nowhere to be found. As you can imagine, I freaked out. It’s only natural, after all, it’s one of the few NBC sitcoms I still enjoy on a regular basis. Thankfully, it turns out the show isn’t cancelled, per se. It’s just “on the bubble,” so they’re just thinking about it. So, what can you do to save it? Read more…
Posted by Michael Sacco on Nov 11, 2011 in Television
You might remember that Quantum Mechanix released a pretty huge (1:160) scale replica of Firefly‘s famous starship Serenity. You may also remember that it costs like a million dollars. For those among us who want the old bird in their home without getting a second mortgage, QMx is now offering another option — this time, it’s a 1:400 scale replica, at about 1/25th the price of the big version ($99). It’s built with highly accurate parts as small as a millimeter across, and QMx used the show’s actual CG files to build it. So, pretty cool. Ship like this, be with you ’til the day you die. Or until the dog chews on it, I suppose. The LDH Serenity goes on sale in December. Read more…
Sony likes to joke that their PS3 can do everything. Clearly, they’ve never seen a Sonic Screwdriver. I always thought the Doctor seemed a little too quick to pull one out, but after sitting through this hilarious short, maybe I should give him more credit. After all, if he were to just “sonic” everything in sight, Doctor Who would become the least climatic show on television. You may as well just watch paint dry. Still, the video makes a good point, even if they never really intended to — Sonic Screwdrivers are awesome, and science needs to make them happen, ASAP. Read more…
