Posted by Michael Sacco on Jul 10, 2011 in
Cinema 
We recently got a glimpse of Dori, Nori, and Ori, three of Frodo’s dwarf companions in the upcoming Hobbit films. Today, we get to see two more, in the form of Oin and Gloin, cousins of Thorin Oakenshield. The name Gloin should sound familiar to those who’ve seen the original Lord of the Rings trilogy — he’s Gimli’s dad! There’s definitely some family resemblance there. I’m pretty happy with the dwarves we’ve been shown thus far; all of them have a unique look, thankfully giving us an ensemble filled with something more than just a dozen Gimlis. Read more…
Tags: Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit
Posted by Michael Sacco on Jul 10, 2011 in
Cinema 
Normally, when two powerful forces meet, you only need to worry about which of them wins. But as we’ve learned with the Alien vs. Predator films, whoever wins, we lose. But could you survive a clash of these extraterrestrial titans? This handy infographic from Stephen Taubman helps you figure out your chances. It also gives helpful advice if you end up running into either side, like curling into the fetal position and peeing all over yourself if you meet a Predator. Good advice! Unfortunately, given the rest of the infographic, your odds aren’t so good even if you follow all proper protocol. Game over, man! Game over! Read more…
Tags: Aliens, Aliens vs. Predator, Predator
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jul 9, 2011 in
Fandom,
Star Wars 
Somebody asks their friend who had only caught bits of Star Wars to retell the tale of the trilogy: Read more…
Tags: fan videos
Posted by Michael Sacco on Jul 9, 2011 in
Animation,
Cinema 
There are many, many reasons why we’re glad that the planned Akira live-action remake reportedly isn’t happening, but we can now confirm an entirely new one. Chris Weston, a British artist who was working as a production artist for the film, talked with Cinema Blend about what some of his tasks were. One of them stands out as possibly horrific: he was charged with redesigning Kaneda’s prized motorcycle. You know, the iconic one? The perfect one? Weston said the very thought of it terrified him, since “the fanboys” (hey, that’ us!) would be at his throat if it came out wrong. Hell, they even discussed turning the bike black. There are just some things you don’t do, man. Read more…
Tags: Akira
Posted by Michael Sacco on Jul 9, 2011 in
Fandom 
HBO’s Game of Thrones finale got you in the summer doldrums? Need something to pore over while you wait for A Dance with Dragons to be released in stores? A good place to start would be this huge, detailed, spoiler-filled map of the Seven Kingdoms of the Game of Thrones universe (click to embiggen!). This particular map was created by an artist going by the name of Other-in-Law, whose gallery also features a bunch of other GoT maps as well. But this one is probably the crown jewel of the collection, filled with Easter eggs for observant fans. Read more…
Tags: Game of Thrones
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jul 8, 2011 in
Tech 
The good news is that the space shuttle Atlantis takeoff went well, but the bad new is that this is the last flight: As of this moment the only nations that have an active manned space program are Russia and China. It’s great that America has a good relations with Russia so we can bum a ride — but frankly we should be leading the way in space exploration. Making matters worse the successor to the Hubble telescope was canceled last night. We may not have realized it just yet, but we have entered a dark age of space exploration in the United States, and this is a very bad thing. Read more…
Tags: NASA
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jul 8, 2011 in
Japanese TV,
Star Trek 
Chupa Chups is a Spanish brand of lollypops and in 1995 their Japanese agency this very odd advert featuring a Mr. Spock styled alien in a silver spacesuit which seems a bit, well you be the judge: Read more…
Tags: Spock
Posted by Michael Sacco on Jul 8, 2011 in
Cinema,
Comic Books 
Well, it does, in Russia, the Ukraine, and South Korea, apparently. Captain America is nearing its release date here in the US under its proper title, but for its international release, Marvel gave overseas distributors the option to title the film “The First Avenger” rather than referencing America at all in its title for fear of anti-American sentiment. Surprisingly, all but three countries opted to use the original title. Of course, Cap represents more than just America — he also represents heroism and selflessness, which is something to which any audience can relate. At least, that’s what overseas distributors are banking on. Thor did very well internationally, so hopefully Cap can pull similar numbers to make it a profitable summer for Marvel. Granted, as we saw with Green Lantern, actually being a good movie probably helps with sales figures too. Read more…
Tags: captain america
Posted by Michael Sacco on Jul 8, 2011 in
Pulp Fiction 
The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction is considered to be the authoritative guide on the genre, but it’s oddly resisted the siren song of the information age. Until now, anyway! The Encyclopedia will be going digital, according to a press release on their website. All text will be free and available online, though admittedly that leaves the question of what won’t be free. Multiplatform users will appreciate that the Encyclopedia staff is investigating ebook and app versions of the tome as well. And for those who still love the feel of a book in their hands, fear not — a gargantuan physical version of the book will still be published. Read more…
Tags: Science Fiction
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jul 7, 2011 in
Animation,
Videogames 
This has to be the most cute sounding video I’ve ever listened to — I believe that it’s an announcement for the first live-action episode of The Idolmaster: Read more…
Tags: Anime, Japan
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jul 7, 2011 in
Comic Books 
Oh sure anybody can go to an anime convention these days — but this September 24th manga fans in Japan are in for a treat: There will be a one day festival that’s just focused on the manga artist’s collective CLAMP. The gathering will feature music, videos, interviews, skits and of course cosplayers are welcome to attend. Read more…
Tags: Anime, Japan, manga, shōjo manga
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jul 7, 2011 in
Star Wars 
It’s that extra warm time of year to enjoy cool beverages, and what better way to do that than with Han Solo ice cubes? This cute Star Wars Han Solo in Carbonite Silicon Tray allows you to make up to six mini-Solo ice cubes plus a giant-Han on ice for your punch bowl. By the way while researching this post I came across this wonderfully humorous tribute to George Lucas: Read more…
Tags: Han Solo
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jul 6, 2011 in
Star Trek 
There’s a cool series of viral videos on YouTube for Social Security that start none other than George Takei playing Sulu! In the below spot he gets in a nice dig at William Shatner, although he also has a Spock and a Chekov mention as well: Read more…
Tags: Captain Kirk, Sulu
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jul 6, 2011 in
Star Wars 
The very kind folks at 604republic.com are sponsoring a PredEwok t-shirt giveaway on our official Facebook page! To enter just go to this page and tell us if you love or hate Ewoks…
Tags: Ewoks
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jul 6, 2011 in
Animation,
Japanese TV 
When ever most of us think of anime we mostly think of TV shows or films — however like the US the use of animation was very popular for commercials in the 50s and 60s. Some of the nicer spots here also feature some amazing stop motion animation which reminds me a great deal of the look that Pixar has these day: Read more…
Tags: Anime, Japan
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jul 6, 2011 in
Dr. Who 
Oh sure any average Dr.Who cosplay fan can order a stock model sonic screwdriver — but this sweet goodie allows up to 80 possible combinations so you can be unique! Apparently this customizable sonic screwdriver also includes multiple sound effects to astound your co-workers and fellow geeks, however batteries are required… Read more…
Tags: Dr. Who
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jul 5, 2011 in
Fandom,
Star Wars 
Those damn bastards! You spend dozens of hours of hours and hundreds of dollars buying the coolest geeky stuff for your cubicle to keep up company moral — and then some dumb ass forces you to “clean it all”. Heartbreaking video shown below: Read more…
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jul 5, 2011 in
Animation,
Fandom 
After hours of research most of the cool photos we found this week were cosplay shots from Anime Expo — however we did stumble across a few nice examples of fan art: Read more…
Tags: Anime, cosplay
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jul 5, 2011 in
Star Trek 
ThinkGeek is carry this sharp looking Star Trek Metal Plated Stunt Phaser Replica — which to me of course is a bittersweet reminder that our somewhat distracted friend J.J. Abrams owes us fanboys another Star Trek film (which I bet we won’t see until 2012 at this rate). In the meantime goodies like replica will have to keep us fanboys happy! Read more…
Tags: Phaser
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jul 4, 2011 in
Animation,
Fandom 
TV Ashii in japan had a nice little segment on Anime Expo which was held in California this weekend. I loved where they were asking American otaku about the earthquake in Japan: Read more…
Tags: Anime, otaku
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jul 4, 2011 in
Tech 
As an old time BBS user I tend to be cynical about every new site that comes along, but not only did Google+ impress me — but it passed the ultimate test: It just ate most of my weekend. On the surface the program seems like a slightly updated version of Facebook, but as you begin to explore and really live with the program you start to realize that it’s so much more than that. Read more…
Tags: Google, Social Media, Twitter
Posted by Linda Yau on Jul 4, 2011 in
Hobbies and Collections 
Toward the last weekend in the month of June in New York City, the annual Origami USA convention took place. Occurring since 1962, Origami USA is a convention for paper folders and enthusiasts alike. This year’s guest of honor was Toshikazu Kawasaki who is world famous among paper folders for creating what is known as the Kawasaki Rose, a particular life like rose formed from a grid and a series of turns. The image above is from Herng Yi Cheung, a folder from Singapore while the image below is an example from Mr. Kawasaki himself. Read more…
Tags: Origami
Posted by Michael Sacco on Jul 3, 2011 in
Television 
While some may consider the Independence Day to be a day celebrating the birth of the United States of America, we know better. It’s Twilight Zone Day. SyFy has been broadcasting a 24-hour marathon of the Twilight Zone each 4th of July weekend for several years — that is, except for last year, when they inexplicably ran Greatest American Hero all day instead. This year, they’ve realized the error of their ways and are giving us a 24-hour block of the best Twilight Zone episodes known to man. Seriously, it’s a great lineup. And you’ll have time enough at last to watch it after those cookouts are over. Read more…
Tags: Twilight Zone
Posted by Michael Sacco on Jul 3, 2011 in
Cinema,
Star Wars 
I’m having trouble imagining a plot device convoluted enough to produce the image above, but then again, Star Wars non-film media has definitely erred on the side of “x character goes to the Dark Side for some reason,” so I’m sure this has happened in print at some point. Credit goes to Phil Noto for this great image. At least he had the courtesy not to give her the cinnamon-bun haircut. That probably would have reduced the badassedness a bit. Read more…
Tags: Star Wars
