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Posted by Ben Huber on Jul 6, 2014 in Fandom 
…And it’s better than any of Michael Bay’s films. Sure, I know that’s some low-hanging fruit, but this is pretty entertaining: Harris Loureiro on YouTube has put together an impressive short video featuring various Transformers battling it out, all in stop-motion. He filmed it all last year in September, and then began editing it in May, spending an entire month on the editing process. It oozes fan passion and nostalgia, along with a health dose of style. Harris admits the sound mixing isn’t the best and he lost some clips from it in a hard drive failure, but it feels so much more genuine. Check it out below! Read more…
Tags: Transformers
Posted by Ben Huber on Jul 5, 2014 in Cinema, Comic Books 
If you’ve ever wanted to take a trip to outer space locations like Knowhere or Xandar, the Galaxy Getaways website is here to help. This new promotional website for the Guardians of the Galaxy acts as a travel website for all of the various locations in the film, tongue planted firmly in cheek. Their travel agency boasts 937 1/2 television channels on all flights and warns if you encounter an Orolini, “let us know how it goes. We get this question a lot.” There’s also a short intro video that I’ve included below, if you don’ want to visit the site. Otherwise, click through, and check it out. Read more…
Tags: Guardians of the Galaxy
Posted by Ben Huber on Jul 5, 2014 in Videogames 
There’s always something new a creative coming out of the indie games scene, and Virginia really caught my eye. Just announced, this first-person interactive drama takes hints from Gone Home and Thirty Flights of Loving, combines it with Twin Peaks and a dash of the X-Files, and comes out feeling fresh and unique. It follows a recently graduated FBI agent and her partner as they investigate the disappearance of a young boy. The developers, Variable State, come from bigger developers in the past, but wanted to strike out and do their own thing, inspired by 90s TV dramas. I love the concept and the art design, so I’m sold already! The game isn’t releasing until 2015, but till then, check out the art and screenshot. Read more…
Tags: Indie Games, Virginia
Posted by Ben Huber on Jul 4, 2014 in Cinema 
Zack Snyder and the crew at Warner Bros. have sent out the first promotional image of Henry Cavill as Superman in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice — and guess what? He looks like Superman. In fact, I don’t think they changed anything about it at all, which is perhaps a first (usually there’s a change at least for action figure purposes). Snyder also spoke about Superman’s perspective, saying he’s enjoying “the fun of trying to figure out what to put in front of him that’s difficult.” He also said the reason they used “v” instead of “vs” is because they wanted “to keep it from being a straight ‘versus’ movie, even in the most subtle way.” Good luck, dude! Read more…
Tags: Batman v. Superman, Superman, Zack Snyder
Posted by Ben Huber on Jul 4, 2014 in Hobbies and Collections 
Super7 has some pretty cool collectibles at SDCC this year (like this Alien egg with blind-boxed figures contained inside), but the one that really caught my eye was their Alien Egg Chamber playset, complete with Kane, base, and cardboard backdrop. The perfect finishing touch? The Kenner-style retro boxart. It’s perfect! Sadly, you’ll have to be attending SDCC to grab these, and they’ll be limited to only 250 pieces at $100 each. Yeah, it’s a little much, but it’ll probably be a rare collectible in the future so… good luck, SDCC folks! Check out their Facebook page here to more updates. Read more…
Tags: Alien, San Diego Comic-Con 2014
Posted by Bob Muir on Jul 3, 2014 in Videogames 
Just how much of a difference does an HD remaster make? Take a look at this video for Kingdom Hearts HD 2.5 ReMIX, the second of two compilations that collect all but one of the currently-released Kingdom Hearts games. While you won’t see much improvement in textures, everything looks very crisp in a higher, widescreen resolution, with some models having much more “pop.” One of the bigger draws is the additional content in the previous Japan-only “Final Mix” versions of Kingdom Hearts II and Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep. Note that Sora is wearing a Tim Burton-esque Santa outfit in The Nightmare Before Christmas‘s Christmas Town, as opposed to continuing to wear his Halloween Town outfit like he did in the original North American release. All in all, looking good, but it’s a shame the game’s not coming out until this fall. Read more…
Tags: Disney, Kingdom Hearts, PS3, square enix
Posted by Bob Muir on Jul 3, 2014 in Anime, Cinema 
Just because Hayao Miyazaki has retired from directing doesn’t mean Studio Ghibli won’t be making new films. While we’re still waiting for GKIDS to release The Tale of Princess Kaguya in the US, Ghibli’s next film is coming out on July 19, 2014 in Japan. Called When Marnie Was There, it’s based on the novel of the same name by Joan G. Robinson. It tells the story of Anna, a young girl with no friends, who meets another girl named Marnie in a house across the marsh. One day, Marnie vanishes, and a new family moves into the house. Anna soon learns there’s more to Marnie than what she thought she knew. I’m interested in seeing this, but I suppose we won’t be seeing this movie until Princess Kaguya comes out this fall. Still, it looks wonderfully atmospheric! Read more…
Tags: Studio Ghibli
Posted by Bob Muir on Jul 2, 2014 in Videogames 
As long as the characters are balanced, offering additional characters as DLC for a fighting game can be a good way to extend playability. It’s a bit weird when that DLC is available at the launch of a new version (with new characters) of a previous fighting game, though. Perhaps to head off any complaints about money-grubbing, Atlus USA has announced in their newsletter that the Adachi DLC character for the upcoming Persona 4 Arena Ultimax will be free for a week after launch. You don’t even need to own the game yet, as you can download Adachi from Xbox Live or PSN during the free period. I’ll spare any further discussion which could spoil Persona 4‘s story and say that not only is this good, but that I also approve of Adachi’s alt-color that’s shown above. He belongs to the Jester arcana, so a Joker palette seems appropriate.
Tags: Atlus, Persona 4
Posted by Bob Muir on Jul 2, 2014 in Cinema 
I thought the whole point of the latest reboot of the Planet of the Apes franchise was to show the entire rise of a planet ruled by apes. But all of the good stuff in Rise of the Planet of the Apes was right at the end (or in the credits!), and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes is skipping over a lot of the first movie’s tumultuous aftermath. So I can understand the appeal of Fox and Vice releasing three prequels to Dawn, collectively titled Before the Dawn. The three short films depict the outbreak of Simian Flu one, five, and ten years after Rise. But why aren’t any of these events being put into the film series? This is like talking up how good Halo‘s story is when all the plot and details are in books, not the games. Read more…
Tags: Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, Planet of the Apes
Posted by Bob Muir on Jul 1, 2014 in Television 
It seems that “six seasons and a movie” is still a possibility for Community. When NBC declined to renew the critically-acclaimed yet ratings-deficient series, it seems that the aforementioned meme would finally be killed off. But on the last day before the actors’ contracts expired, Yahoo stepped in to renew the series for its sixth season. Creator Dan Harmon, producer Chris McKenna, and the regular cast will all return. Yahoo is trying to ramp up its original content, and snagging the next season of a cult show guarantees them a built-in audience for their service. The question now is whether or not Community will continue beyond this sixth season. Will the series do well enough for Yahoo to host a seventh season? Or will Community get its predestined movie? Read more…
Tags: Community, Yahoo!
Posted by Bob Muir on Jul 1, 2014 in Cinema, Comic Books 
It’s not just Star Wars Episode VII that motion-capture performer Andy Serkis is appearing in. Just as his company The Imaginarium is helping out that film, it’s also working on The Avengers: Age of Ultron. Serkis is specifically working with Mark Ruffalo, who needs mocap to actually become the Hulk. Supposedly, newer techniques will offer Ruffalo “ownership” of the character, though I was certainly satisfied with his performance in The Avengers. But Serkis isn’t just a consultant: he’ll also be appearing in the film in some capacity. Though he does not specify whether he is performing a mocap character or acting with his own appearance, Serkis doesn’t draw a distinction. It’s still interesting to speculate who he could be! Read more…
Tags: Andy Serkis, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Marvel
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 30, 2014 in Star Wars 
Everyone wants tidbits about the biggest (probably) upcoming film, Episode VII. So what do you do? Wring every detail you can out of the cast members! Recently in a interview with Sci-Fi Now, Andy Serkis spoke a bit about his role in the new Star Wars film, saying that his company (The Imaginarium) would be doing the mo-cap work and, “I myself am playing a character in it.” Of course, everyone is interpreting this different ways: some think he’s only doing mo-cap work, others think he’s playing a live-action character too. Suffice to say, there’s no way you’d hire Andy Serkis without using his mo-cap expertise in some way… but that isn’t the end of his abilities. I could definitely see him playing a non-CGI character. That’s the juicy bit, but check out of the rest of the interview here.
Tags: Andy Serkis, Episode VII
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 30, 2014 in Anime 
The dandiest man in space is back this coming Saturday! Space Dandy has been one of the most entertaining recent comedy anime from the mind of Cowboy Bebop creator Shinichiro Watanabe. Now only that, it’s also broken ground as being the first simulcast dubbed show, airing in English on Toonami around the same time as Japan. It’s pretty crazy. And this new trailer for season 2 also looks pretty crazy! More bizarre alien designs, more Meow & QT, more wacky hijinks, and of course… boobies. Check out the trailer below, and then catch Space Dandy’s return this Saturday at 12:30! Read more…
Tags: Shinichirō Watanabe, Space Dandy
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 29, 2014 in Star Trek 
Roberto Orci… is not exactly my favorite scriptwriter. But his skills as a director are yet untested, and he’ll have plenty to test them on with the third Star Trek film. Perhaps he’ll do well! Taking over from JJ Abrams, Orci has promised some things for the next film that sound good to me: the crew will venture into deep space, and discover new alien races. Speaking of using old races or creating new ones, he said, “because this is an alternative universe I think we can choose. I don’t feel the pressure to revisit anyone or not. We are lucky that way, but we have the ability to cherry pick what has become before. It will depend on what serves the story best.” Hopefully any new species will be unique enough to propel the film! Read more…
Tags: Star Trek, Star Trek Into Darkness
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 29, 2014 in Dr. Who 
You want to know how Peter Capaldi will do as the Doctor, right? Well, this teaser… will not tell you that. It barely shows anything, actually. But when you’re a desperate Doctor Who fan, you’ll take any morsel you can get. However, the real news isn’t the teaser, it’s the premier date for the eighth season: August 23rd. It’ll air on both BBC and BBC America, so no waiting for US-based fans, either (although that hasn’t really been an issue these days). Check out the short teaser below and then set your DVRs for August 23rd! Read more…
Tags: Peter Capaldi
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 28, 2014 in Cinema 
If you’re excited about Guardians of the Galaxy and want an early taste, or perhaps are just on the fence about spending money for a movie ticket, there’s some good news on the horizon: you’ll be able to see 17 minutes from the film for free, in IMAX! Marvel has picked a pile of IMAX theaters in which you can claim free tickets to see the footage, so you better hurry onto the website to grab them before they run out! No word on if the 17 minutes is from the beginning, a compilation, or something else. Sadly, there aren’t any near me, so I’ll be unspoiled for the opening evening, but for you impatient types, click here! Also, you’ll get a poster for attending, which I’ve posted below. Read more…
Tags: Guardians of the Galaxy, IMAX
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 28, 2014 in Cinema 
True believers, your time has come! If you held out hope for a Pacific Rim sequel, you can now rest easy, as Guillermo del Toro has confirmed that the project has been greenlit by Legendary Pictures and… Universal! Yup, Warner Bros. passed on a sequel and let Universal take over, which is an interesting change. While the sequel won’t come out till April 7th, 2017, you won’t have to wait long to get some more Pacific Rim goodness: an animated series will happen in the interim, and a second comic book series will begin as well. I’m actually very curious who will be behind the animated series and how it’ll be handled, but right now we don’t have any details in that regard. Check out del Toro’s full announcement video below. Read more…
Tags: guillermo del toro, Pacific Rim
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 27, 2014 in Fandom 
Spoiler-sensitive readers beware! George R.R. Martin has been teasing The Winds of Winter, the next book in the popular Song of Ice and Fire series (aka Game of Thrones) in a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly. If you’re not caught up, don’t look at this next quote: “We have more deaths, and we have more betrayals. We have more marriages.” He also confirms what many fans long knew, that two large battles would be opening the book (one in the North and one in Mereen). He also touches on Dany and Tyrion meeting (“Well, Tyrion and Dany will intersect, in a way, but for much of the book they’re still apart”), and also that the Dothraki would be returning “in a big way.” There’re a few more details at EW, but those are the biggest tidbits. When’s the book coming out, you ask? Words are wind, my friend. Sometime. Someday. Read more…
Tags: A Song of Ice and Fire, Game of Thrones, George R.R. Martin, The Winds of Winter
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 27, 2014 in Cinema 
You may have heard the news that Shane Black is “rebooting” the Predator series. However, Black has come out and started to talk about the project, saying he really doesn’t think of it as a reboot, and that it’s honestly more of a sequel. “Why start over, when you’ve all this rich mythology yet to mine?” said Black to Collider. It sounds like they’ll be going their own way with the movie, but not overwrite previous installments. Seems like an alright idea! Plus, would Black want to wipe his own character? Right? Read more…
Tags: Predator
Posted by Bob Muir on Jun 26, 2014 in Videogames 
Valiant Hearts: The Great War is out now, and Ubisoft has put out one last trailer to persuade you to download the game. The game is set during World War I and features hand-drawn 2D graphics, so there’s lots of war-torn battlefields to explore while you’re getting hit in the feels over and over again. I bet that dog in the trailer is going to die, because that’s just the sort of thing these games do. Don’t get me wrong, Valiant Hearts looks great, but it’s a little strange the way games have been ramping up the canine companions to add more emotional content to a story. Read more…
Tags: Ubisoft
Posted by Bob Muir on Jun 26, 2014 in Animation, Videogames 
The Legend of Korra is often compared to its anime influences, so it makes sense that Japanese developer Platinum Games has announced a game based on the popular cartoon. Platinum is known for its action games, and that’s what they’re delivering with this downloadable game published by Activision. The game is set between the second and third seasons, so Korra has access to all four elements in combat. The game is releasing this fall for PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One. (A turn-based strategy game made by Webfoot Technologies will release on 3DS.) The teaser shows that the graphics maintain the colorful look the show, so it looks great.
Read more…
Tags: avatar: the last airbender, Platinum Games, The Legend of Korra
Posted by Bob Muir on Jun 25, 2014 in Cinema, Comic Books 
Okay, so there’s a lot of horrible things about the new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Michael Bay is producing it, the CGI turtles’s faces look creepy, and the whole thing looks very overblown. But you know what? The turtles themselves still look like a fun crew of outcasts, and ideally, they’ll be the heart of the film. I’m skeptical that they will be with the way Bay tended to make the Transformers guest stars in their own film series, but at least it doesn’t seem like you can keep the turtles down. And at least it seems like they’ve got a sense of humor about the original concept for the film, where the turtles were aliens instead of, you know, mutants, because they mock that idea at the end of the trailer. Read more…
Tags: Michael Bay, Teenage Ninja Turtles
Posted by Bob Muir on Jun 25, 2014 in Anime 
JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure is a manga that has been running in Weekly Shonen Jump and Ultra Jump since 1986, spanning generations of the Joestar family having fights with bad guys and doing fabulous poses. The most popular portion is the third part, Stardust Crusaders, which is the only part of the manga released in America, as well as a partial anime OVA adaptation and a fighting videogame. So despite tons of content, most of the story has never seen an official release outside of Japan. But with a currently-running anime adaptation in Japan that started at the very beginning, that may change, especially due to a new announcement.
Read more…
Tags: JoJo's Bizarre Adventure
Posted by Bob Muir on Jun 24, 2014 in Videogames 
While I’m happy with my PS4, I don’t think anyone would say it’s worth buying for its amount of unique exclusives right now. There’s plenty coming up, and I’ve been preferring to buy my third-party games on the system due to the controller and slight graphical boost. But for now, one of the best exclusives is the downloadable indie game Resogun. The Defender-like game just got a big update, adding the ability to play the game in local co-op with your friends. You can now also edit your ship to look however you want (provided it can be put together with voxels). The developers even added the ability to share and download ships online. Read more…
Tags: PS4
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