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The Three Best Mobile Web Browsers

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Our mobile phones can do so many things and be so many things that they have become an integral part of our lives. Not even a decade ago we would carry three or four different gadgets that are now all rolled into one. Our smartphones can be our own personal jukeboxes with thousands of songs to entertain us, they can be small arcades to keep up occupied on a long trip, they can even be our own photography studios to capture moments that might otherwise have been lost. What were once just tools to keep us in contact with people are now so much more.

Perhaps the most useful aspect of having a well-connected small computer in our pockets is access to the web. You can now check your emails, catch up on the latest news, send pictures and videos to your friends and even find love all on your phone. All of these experiences become better and more fun if you are using the right mobile browser. There are so many options to suit different needs. From huge brands like Microsoft and Google to innovative start-ups trying to give us something new, the choices are vast. So, to help you out we thought we would give you our three favourites.

Google Chrome

A classic and one that is on millions of people’s phones for a reason. Google Chrome’s mobile browser is often the first thing people download when they get a new phone owing to the fact it is fast, secure and easy to use. It is the perfect browser for people who are used to Google’s ecosystem as it syncs across devices so if you use Chrome on your computer you can pick up where you left off on your phone. Your bookmarks are available on all devices as is your history, so you can find any page you’ve been on in case you forget the web address. It also has a system of extensions that allow you to install app-like plug-ins to help you get the most out of your time online.

CM Browser

By far the best choice for anyone interested in security and privacy, the CM browser is built to be efficient, safe and highly customisable to ensure that if you don’t want to share something it is not shared. If you want to be especially safe make sure to use a VPN in conjunction with CM browser. When you are on public Wi-Fi a VPN will keep your browsing session private on Android and iOS phones. VPNs, or virtual private networks, allow you to create your own private bubble when you are online ensuring your personal data is safer. CM has a built-in ad-blocker, a great incognito mode to hide your browsing history, it scans your downloads to ensure they are safe and has a superb anti-virus system built in.

 

Smooz

Smooz is designed for one handed use to make your mobile experiences as simple and as user friendly as possible. With so many giant phones on the market like the Samsung Galaxy S8 or the new iPhone that are tough to use with just one hand, apps like this are essential for people who want to visit web pages quickly and without having to stretch to reach the top of the screen. It uses simple taps, swipes and gestures to help you control your online experience, a great choice for its ease of use.

 

 


‘Molly’s Game’ (review by Leyla Mikkelsen)

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Produced by Mark Gordon,
Amy Pascal, Matt Jackson

Based on the book by Molly Bloom
Written and Directed by Aaron Sorkin
Starring Jessica Chastain, Idris Elba,
Kevin Costner,
Michael Cera,
Jeremy Strong, Chris O’Dowd, Bill Camp

 

It is safe to say that Aaron Sorkin is one of the best screenwriters working today, a status he has deservedly earned thanks to excellent writing credits including the award-winning scripts for The West Wing, Steve Jobs and The Social Network.

While Molly’s Game continues Sorkin’s current trend of writing scripts concerning the lives of real people, the film also marks his first time directing.

Telling its story by segwaying back and forth between the reality of Molly’s life before and after her arrest in usual, non-linear Sorkin style, all the elements one has come to expect from a Sorkin piece are present in Molly’s Game. The snappy exchanges and tightly-scripted dialogue are as plentiful and as enjoyable as ever, which will likely make Molly’s Game a treat for fans of the writer’s previous works.

Jessica Chastain once again proves that she is the thespian gift that keeps on giving, showing just how well she can deliver Sorkin’s trademark quick-witted dialogue with a panache that will likely thrill fans of another 2017 Chastain offering, namely the Sorkin-esque Miss Sloane. Thanks to the combination of Sorkin’s writing and Chastain’s talent, her turn as Molly Bloom therefore makes for a compelling portrayal of an intriguing woman with an unusual life story.

Idris Elba keeps up with Chastain for the most part, which is a welcome reminder of the presence he can at times muster, something that is painfully needed after Elba severely failed to impress in recent atrocities such as The Mountain Between Us and The Dark Tower. While Chastain’s magnetism is evident throughout the film, Elba’s presence is more restrained, save for a particularly outstanding monologue in the latter half of the film. As such, the two leads manage to spar well with one another, ensuring a dynamic contrast of characters, which elevates the dramatic potency without compromising the necessary balance.

Where the film may fall short for some is in terms of its heavy emphasis on the world of poker. While fans of poker will likely enjoy the film’s suave, yet thorough and competent insights into the game, the various players and their dynamics, it may be too niche for those who have little to no knowledge of poker. Thus, the uninitiated may struggle to maintain their interest through significant portions of the film, even though the poker elements are introduced and portrayed in that rapid-fire style so typical of Sorkin.

In addition to the potential issue of the film’s true target audience being too narrow a demographic, the issue of pacing is unfortunately also prevalent. With its 2 hours and 20 minutes, not only is the film substantially longer than usual Sorkin fare, it is also slightly too long from a more general cinematic point of view. Being a little harsher in the editing room could have left the film flowing better, as the intrigue of the story and writing does dip dangerously low at points, however, thanks to the talent and skill on display, the drawback of the runtime is not too severe.

While not a particularly monumental effort from Aaron Sorkin in terms of his well-known writing and his debut as a director, Molly’s Game does succeed overall. As a film about a strong-willed, intelligent and assertive woman, Sorkin once again excels at writing a great character, which Chastain brings to life like only she can. With its pacing issues and overly specific subject matter, Molly’s Game may not be a cinematic royal flush that will win everyone over, but for fans of poker and Sorkin, the combined elements will likely add up to a game-winning full house.

Verdict: 8 out of 10.

 

 

‘Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle’ (review by Leyla Mikkelsen)

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Produced by Matt Tolmach, William Teitler
Screenplay by Jake Kasdan, Chris McKenna,
Erik Sommers, Scott Rosenberg, Jeff Pinkner

Story by Chris McKenna
Based on Jumanji by Chris Van Allsburg
Directed by Jake Kasdan
Starring Dwayne Johnson, Jack Black,Kevin Hart,
Karen Gillan, Nick Jonas, Bobby Cannavale

 

As Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson continues his vendetta against iconic elements of 90’s pop culture, no property appears to be safe.

Having already tormented cinemagoers with the painful Baywatch film earlier this year, it is therefore understandable that many have expressed their concerns about his involvement with Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle.

Being not quite a sequel and not quite a reboot either, Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle seeks to show us the inside of the Jumanji board game, which has now become a video game, a change that only spurred further outrage from fans of the 1995 original.

It thankfully turns out that there is a reason for this change other than mere marketing, and the action-filled fun is soon under way as the four teenagers land in Jumanji in the form of their in-game avatars. Kevin Hart more or less plays himself, Karen Gillan brings a believable physicality to her martial arts expert avatar, and The Rock portrays the lead character of the geeky Spencer. As per usual, The Rock oozes charisma and clearly has fun with playing an insecure teen, as this contrast does indeed make for several amusing moments. The real standout among the main cast, however, is Jack Black; while he is definitely having a whale of a time portraying the self-obsessed Instagram addict Bethany, he surprisingly does not overdo it in the role of the shrill teenage girl, instead keeping his performance unexpectedly balanced, and thereby ensuring that Bethany not only feels relatable, but also has a rather satisfying character arc.

With the teenagers in the real world being matched with avatars in Jumanji that are polar opposites to their real-life selves, lessons obviously need to learned in order to make the teens grow from the outlandish experiences of the game. While some clichés are to be expected in this type of narrative, a surprsingly enjoyable dynamic is achieved for the most part, albeit Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle hardly manages to be particularly deep or groundbreaking. As such, it works well in terms of the narrative of the group dynamic of the quartet of teens, their being stuck in avatars being a humorous paraphrasing of the youthful dilemmas of coming of age, accepting yourself and growing as a person.

When the film is good, it manages to capture the over-the-top fun associated with family blockbusters of the 90’s, even managing to occasionally convey the slightly darker and more perilous adventures associated with the animated series. This is a refreshing approach, however, it is not utilized near enough to make the film as uniquely intense as it had the potential to be. This is particularly evident from the antagonist, who makes for a cartoonish menace, however, the sense of danger he should embody never truly lingers, thus making him little more than an unpleasant set piece.

The idea of emulating certain computer game elements such as cut scenes and respawn points is delightful and fun, largely avoiding going overboard in terms of the meta aspect of such self-aware gimmicks. As such, the wittiness of this element is surprisingly restrained, once again lending a certain charm to the proceedings. As a result, Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle is therefore a rather entertaining flick for when you just want to switch off your brain and chomp down some popcorn.

Many had voiced their negative opinion about even the mere idea of a new Jumanji film, demonizing the new cinematic take on the diabolical game before having had a chance to see it. While the combined star power of the cast is sufficient enough to assure that plenty of people will be lured into seeing the film, it also serves as a reminder that new takes on older properties can be rather entertaining in their own right. Thus, if you are able to take off the rose-tinted goggles that many seem to be wearing when reminiscing about the frankly mediocre 1995 adventure with the late, great Robin Williams, the latest take on the world of Jumanji is simply enjoyable, disposable fun, which will undoubtedly make a new generation of cinema-goers anxious at the sound of jungle drums.

Verdict: 6 out of 10.

 

Video Game Memories Of Christmas Past

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In honour of the Christmas holidays and in true Dickensian style, this week I’m writing about my Games of Christmas Past, hopefully with less ghosts…and bad Disney adaptations starring Jim Carrey.

One of my earliest festive gaming memories was on Christmas morning of 1990. My sister was four months old at this point and I remember feeling bored of her existence and thoroughly ignored. I was whole five years older than her and had been used to being on my own, plus I had decided that babies were icky, annoying and cried too much. My parents, clearly sensing my disappointment and sibling apathy, made a decision that year to buy me my very first console.

My dad already owned a ZX Spectrum (which incidentally, was how he had first taught me to play chess) but that fateful morning in December 1990, I unwrapped a Sega Master System and my joy was so intense that I didn’t want to open up any of my other presents, fervently insisting that my parents set it up for me immediately.

Really at this point, all other presents and my crying baby sister were irrelevant. It came with rules however, for instance I could only play it if I behaved well and was nice to my baby sister. Like any other five year old I didn’t care for the rules but I followed them anyway because I was happy to have my very own console. Naturally, I became a teacher’s pet in school, did all of my homework, tolerated my sister and became a polite, well-mannered young girl.

I quickly became obsessed with the in-built game, Alex Kidd in Miracle World. The game had no save system so I spent countless hours playing through it, learning when to jump, how to dodge at the correct time, what rocks to break and most importantly, work out whether to choose rock, paper or scissors in the duels at the end of certain stages. It went on to become the first game I ever completed and thus began my love of gaming.

The following Christmas, realising how much I had adored my Master System the previous year, my main gift was a Game Boy complete with Tetris and Super Mario Land. I could now take my games outside, on car journeys or to boring family gatherings and let me tell you, as a six year old in the early nineties at the time where mobile phones weren’t a thing yet, this was absolutely mind blowing.

A year later, I had another surprise. It was Christmas 1992 and there was a large box at the back of the tree without a tag on it. After we were done unwrapping our gifts, being a curious child I asked about the unlabelled present abandoned at the base of our tree, but my parents feigned ignorance, shrugging their shoulders and keeping up the pretence.

Oh well, my seven year old brain deduced, maybe Father Christmas left it here by mistake?

So, it was left to sit under the tree…until after dinner. At which point, my dad began rustling around behind it, conveniently finding the tag like a magician. Of course it had my name on it and I was ecstatic.

I’d barely finished my trifle (and believe me, I never leave trifle) but I dashed to the tree and began tearing off the paper excitedly. I’d only revealed part of the box but it was enough to stop me in my tracks. I froze…I had only recognised the “Se” of the Sega logo but I knew. It had been completely unexpected and I began jumping around the living room almost knocking over the tree and tripping over our dog, Sandy who was always somewhat confused by Christmas but enjoyed chewing on the gift wrap anyway.

That evening, I played Sonic the Hedgehog 2 on my new Mega Drive (Genesis) until I had to go to bed and to this day, it still remains one of my favourite Christmas gifts and is probably the console I get most nostalgic for. I didn’t have many games at first, but over next few years I had played through Altered Beast, Golden Axe, Revenge of the Shinobi, Michael Jackson’s Moonwalker, Aladdin, Streets of Rage II, The Little Mermaid and Ecco the Dolphin. We used to rent games from the local video shop and I’d try out a new game every month.

I never considered it back then, but I realise now that I was extremely lucky that my parents could afford to support my love of gaming. I know many other people who didn’t own consoles until their teenage years and know that I as definitely one of the rare ones.

So, I raise my glass (damn right, I’m drinking mulled wine right now) to my parents, my childhood and to gaming Christmases of old,

Of course, as well as those past Christmases, I also want to pay homage to games of Present and Future as I look towards 2018!

These days, I can afford to support my own gaming habits and am often playing through three or four games at any one time, as well as dipping into various mobile games. At present, I’m re-playing Skyrim because it’s what feels most appropriate to play in Winter and has become my mandatory game for the festive season.

I’m also playing through the remastered version of The Last of Us in preparation for Part II out next year and I’m still taking my sweet time with Fallout 4 because I love the universe and am obsessed with it. I’ve recently downloaded Animal Crossing Pocket Camp which has been a nice change of pace, it’s a game I tend to play on a lunch break to pass the time.

I’m currently also enjoying Purrfect Date, a very funny visual novel dating game where you date cats and uncover mysteries on Cat Island. I’m really enjoying visual novel games right now despite the fact I’d never previously been interested in them in the past.

Other than Skyrim, none of these games are particularly festive but then neither is Sonic the Hedgehog 2. My point is, the games you play during the holidays can sometimes end up defining your fondest memories.

And as I look forward to 2018, there’s plenty on the horizon to look forward to. I’m still quite excited to play the dystopian A Clockwork Orange looking, Orwell inspired survival game, We Happy Few. It looks similar in tone to the BioShock series and its release was pushed back to 2018, which hopefully means developers, Compulsion, have had more time to work their magic on it.

Speaking of BioShock, the remake of System Shock is also due to be released next year, which if you haven’t played is excellent and BioShock wouldn’t exist without it.

Inspired heavily by Blade Runner, Odd Tales’ The Last Night is set for an Xbox exclusive release next year, this beautifully pixelated cinematic platformer looks to be one of the most interesting titles released next year.


Also due for release in 2018 is Kingdom Hearts III, a sequel that fans have been waiting 13 years for.

However, the one game I’m most excited for in 2018 was one that was originally due to be released this year and that’s Red Dead Redemption 2. I enjoyed its predecessor 8 years ago in 2010 and have longed for sequel.

What are your fondest gaming memories at Christmas? And what games are you most excited for in 2017? Let us know in the comments below.

Until next time, have an excellent festive period and may your days be merry!

 

‘All the Money in the World’ (review)

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Produced by Chris Clark, Quentin Curtis,
Dan Friedkin, Mark Huffam, Ridley Scott,
Bradley Thomas, Kevin J. Walsh

Written by David Scarpa
Based on Painfully Rich: The Outrageous
Fortunes and Misfortunes of the
Heirs of J. Paul Getty
by John Pearson

Directed by Ridley Scott
Starring Michelle Williams, Christopher Plummer,
Mark Wahlberg, Romain Duris, Charlie Plummer,
Charlie Shotwell,Timothy Hutton, Andrew Buchan

 

What would you give to ensure the safety of the one that you loved most?

In the case of billionaire John Paul Getty, the answer was “nothing” when his 16 year old grandson was kidnapped.

Director Ridley Scott brings depth and pathos to this tale of greed, perseverance, and no small amount of soul searching.

It is interesting to think of the kind of wealth that Getty was able to amass, and the gray areas of morality that he waded into in order to get there. As one of the richest men in the world at the time, he was both envied and vilified. It should be noted that Christopher Plummer replaced Kevin Spacey production had wrapped, though you would never know from the ease in which he slips into the hastily recast role. His deft portrayal of a man twisted and gnarled from the inside by his reverence for wealth brings to mind his recent turn as Scrooge less than a month ago, but he manages to stay on the side of despicable yet believable human behavior.

Plummer’s callousness is ever-accentuated by the persistence and grace of Michelle Williams as ex-daughter-in-law Gail. All empathy remains on her side, as she is unwavering in her commitment to return her son home. As she anxiously waits for developments from the police alongside a oddly forgettable Mark Wahlberg as Getty’s operative, ex-CIA spy Fletcher Chase, you can see the emotional toll that it is taking with each moment that her son’s safety is in question. Especially as the ticket to his freedom sits comfortably on top of his piles of money and refuses to part with a dime.

As this kidnapping went on for months, with no intention on the side of Geddy to pay for his grandson’s ransom, Gail’s grit and resolve become the defining traits for Williams to hold fast to as she explores the role. On the other side of the country, an emaciated and despondent John Paul Getty the Third is played with fragility by Charlie Plummer (unrelated to Christopher). His portrayal is somewhat marred by an unaffected teen air that cannot seem to be transcended, even as his health and spirits deteriorate. He is too pretty and still too nonchalant to drum up the same sense of angst we feel for Gail. But the real standout in that storyline is French star Romain Duris as the troubled Cinquanta, the kidnapper that stays by John’s side throughout it all. The moral dilemma that he faces as he becomes emotionally attached and protective of the teen is its on wonderful story.

Though All the Money in the World is not without its flaws, mainly in that such a technically beautiful movie has to be particularly careful of not becoming mechanical, this tale of a mother’s dedication, a grandfather’s disturbingly skewed hierarchy of concern, and a kidnapper’s change of conscience makes for a particularly engrossing version of history.

 

Stream On: New To Netflix For January 2018

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The new year is filled with handfuls of classic pics, shark flicks galore, rom-com romps and more Batmans than you can shake a stick out.

While Netflix continues to grow its original series, specials and movies, the streaming giant continues to fill its catalogue with binge worthy classic pics worthy of your weekend.

January is filled to the brim with Batman movies galore (even the bad ones), hours of The Godfather and all the Lethal Weapon you can possibly need.

 

JANUARY 1

10,000 B.C.
Roland Emmerich runs out of shit to destroy on Earth, so he travel back in time and does battle with a Sabre-tooth tiger.

30 Days of Night
Vamp pic in Alaska, where the little biters get an edge thanks to super long nights.

Age Of Shadows
South Korean period actioner about resistance fighters who attempt to thwart Japanese forces by blowing up weapon facilities.

AlphaGo
“On March 9, 2016, the worlds of Go and artificial intelligence collided in South Korea for an extraordinary best-of-five-game competition, coined The DeepMind Challenge Match.”

America’s Sweethearts
This charming romcom was made back in the days when John Cusack was believable as a bankable star and people thought Julia Roberts could play down-to-earth.

Apollo 13
“Houston, we have a problem.”

Thriller about the cursed seventh manned lunar mission by the Apollo space program. Stars Tom Hanks, Kevin Bacon, Gary Sinise, Ed Harris and the late, great Bill Paxton.

Batman
Batman & Robin
Batman Begins
Batman Forever
Batman Returns

Spend the day slowly watching the decline of a great series from pop culture phenomenon to horrible snow puns and jokes about bat nipples. Go from Vicky Vale to Catwoman to Poison “Holy shit, what the hell were they thinking?” Ivy and her atrocious dance number and you, too, will have a new appreciation for Christopher Nolan.

Breakfast at Tiffany’s
The best ad campaign a jeweler ever had.

The classic movie that instructed millions of ladies that class is nothing more than a little black dress, giant sunglasses and a messy bun.

Audrey 4eva.

Bring It On
Bring It On Again
Bring It On: All or Nothing
Bring It On: Fight to the Finish
Bring It On: In It to Win It

“I said: BRRRR! It’s getting cold in here! There must be some Toros in the at-mos-phere!”

But that’s just the first one. The rest are meh.

Caddyshack
Directed by Harold Ramis, one of the best sports movies of all time featuring comedy legends Rodney Dangerfield, Chevy Chase, Bill Murray, a rodent hand puppet and a well-placed candy bar.

Defiance
Three brothers struggle for survival during WWII as they hide from their would-be captors in a nearby forest, evading capture, killing soldiers and inspiring others. Stars Daniel Craig, Jamie Bell and Liev Schreiber.

Definitely, Maybe
Before he discovered his own McConaissance, Ryan Reynolds was once in rom-com purgatory, forced to star in mediocre movies about Mr. Right. Like this.

Furry Vengeance
Animals rage against Brendan Fraser, a greedy land developer who hates adorable creatures for the sake of a family “comedy.”

Glacé (aka The Frozen Dead) (Season 1 – Netflix Original Series)
“A grisly find atop a mountain in the French Pyrenees leads investigator Martin Servaz into a twisted dance with a serial killer in this icy thriller.”

How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days
Before the McConaissance, the Oscar-winner was in a whole bunch of terrible rom-coms. Here is a one of them.

Justin Bieber: Never Say Never
Say never.

King Kong
Remake of the classic giant ape pic that has lost its momentum over of the years.

Lethal Weapon
Lethal Weapon 2
Lethal Weapon 3
Lethal Weapon 4

This is the gift that keeps on giving. When you are done watching great American sagas like The Godfather, treat yourself. Watch Mel before he proved himself a shithead. Watch Danny before he got too old for this shit. Watch this, because it’s great and you deserve it.

License to Wed
The late, great Robin Williams in one of his more meh turns as a reverend who makes a couple go through a “marriage test.”

Like Water for Chocolate
The moving story of Tita and Pedro, two would-be lovers who are kep apart by Tita’s overbearing mother. Forced to swallow her emotions, Tita uses her deft hand in the kitchen to express her feelings as the food she prepares conveys her emotions.

Magical realism at its best.

Love Actually
A more recent holiday classic featuring a series of vignettes set around the holidays.

Lovesick (Season 3 – Netflix Original Series)
“In his quest for true love, Dylan found chlamydia. Joined by friends Evie and Luke, he relives past encounters as he notifies all his former partners.”

Maddman: The Steve Madden Story
“Maddman tells the unlikely rags to riches story of Steve Madden, who went from selling shoes out of the trunk of his car to becoming the mogul of a billion-dollar designer footwear empire.”

Marie Antoinette
Sophia Coppola tries her hand at historical period pieces but with a New Order soundtrack and Kirsten Dunst.

Martin Luther: The Idea that Changed the World
“Examine the life of Martin Luther and the impact his ideas had on the course of history.”

Midnight in Paris
Owen Wilson does his best Woody Allen as Woody Allen does his best in the director’s chair in the whimsical fantasy movie about an American in Paris who is magically transported into the past to meet his heroes.

Stardust
Matthew Vaughn’s underrated and little-seen fantasy flick featuring an all-star cast that includes Robert DeNiro, Michelle Pfeiffer, Peter O’Toole, Charlie Cox, Claire Danes and Sienna Miller. A wonderful frolic that you should watch, share and watch again.

Strictly Ballroom
Baz Luhrmann fana can trace his beginning to this colorful romp about the world of competitive ballroom dance.

The Dukes of Hazzard
Sometimes there are great Hollywood adaptations that expand the original material and make it relevant to today’s audience with great performance and a witty script. Like The Addams Family or 21 Jump Street.

Then there is this shit.

The Exorcism of Emily Rose
A priest is on trial for murder and must prove that he was attempting to save the soul of a girl from the devil.

The First Time
Teens from opposing schools fall in love.

The Godfather
The Godfather: Part II
The Godfather: Part III

Find the time to binge the first two chapters of this American masterpiece of filmmaking. A true epic that follows the Corleone family from their humble roots in Sicily to their billion dollar crime syndicate in America. While the third chapter is often dismissed, it is still important as it wraps up the saga and brings the whole tale to its foreseeable end.

The Italian Job
Remake of the 1969 classic heist thriller with Edward Norton, Jason Statham, Mark Wahlberg and Charlize Theron.

The Lovely Bones
Peter Jackson’s adaptation of the dramatic novel by Alice Sebold about a murdered teen and the effect of her death on her family and her community.

The Shawshank Redemption
Filmmaking at its best and one of the best adaptations of Stephen King’s work. The story of a jailbird wrongly accused for double murder and forced to serve a life sentence in Shawshank Prison.

“Brooks was here.”

The Truman Show
Peter Weir’s brilliant, satirical look at society’s obsession with media and television starring Jim Carrey as the unbeknownst star of his own reality channel and Ed Harris as his evil showrunner.

The Vault
Sisters plan to rob a bank to save their brother. Hijinks ensue.

Training Day
Denzel Washington won an Oscar for his turn at Det. Alonzo Harris in Antoine Fuqua’s spectacular noir crime thriller about corruption in the LAPD.

Troy
The story of Helen of Troy and stands as a monument of what can be accomplished with the best dietitians and personal trainers available in Tinseltown.

Holy shirtless fight scenes, Batman.

Wedding Crashers
Super fun romp starring Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn as lawyers who spend their free time crashing weddings and hitting on bridesmaids.

Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory
The best. The only. Except no chocolate-covered Depp substitutes.

 

JANUARY 2

Mustang Island
Buddy pic about a man who heads on a road trip to win back his lady.

Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales
The Pirates franchise gets back on track as Captain Jack Sparrow returns to reunite old friends and break old curses.

Rent
Movie adaptation of the hit Broadway musical with most of the original cast +15 years.

 

JANUARY 5

Before I Wake (Netflix Original Movie)
“Still mourning the death of their son, Mark and Jessie welcome foster child Cody into their lives. Soon they discover he has a strange ability.”

Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee (Netflix Original Special)
“In Jerry Seinfeld’s unique series, he picks up a guest comedian in a cool car, then they set off for laugh-filled conversations fueled by caffeine.”

Devilman Crybaby  (Season 1 – Netflix Original Series)
“With demons reawakened and humanity in turmoil, a sensitive demon-boy is led into a brutal, degenerate war against evil by his mysterious friend, Ryo.”

 

JANUARY 6

Episodes  (Seasons 1-5)
“When husband and wife writing team Sean and Beverly set out to reproduce their British TV hit for an American network, all of their worst fears come true as Hollywood lives up to its reputation for absurdity.”

 

JANUARY 8


The Conjuring

Before James Wan headed underwater to talk to fish, he was able to scare the bejesus out of the people on a small budget with simple effects. A great scary movie and a wonderful period piece.

 

JANUARY 10

47 Meters Down
Mandy Moore and her sister vs. sharks.

Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie
Animated feature few saw but kids seem to enjoy. Features a thumb in underwear.

In The Deep
See entry for 47 Meters Down.

 

JANUARY 12

Disjointed  (Part 2 – Netflix Original Series)
“Pot activist Ruth Whitefeather Feldman runs a medical marijuana dispensary while encouraging her loyal patients to chill out and enjoy the high life.”

The Man Who Would Be Polka King
“John Mikulak and Joshua von Brown’s irreverent documentary traces the rise and fall of Grammy-nominated polka music superstar Jan Lewan.”

The Polka King (Netflix Original)
So, Netflix made a movie about the docu listed above and it stars Jack Black.

“Determined to make it big in America, Polish-born bandleader Jan Lewan draws his fans into a Ponzi scheme in this comedy based on a true story.”

 

JANUARY 14

Wild Hogs
Tim Allen, John Travolta, Martin Lawrence and William H. Macy define midlife crisis by hitting the road on motorcycles.

 

JANUARY 15

2018 Olympic Winter Games Preview: Meet Team USA & Go for the Gold
Title says it all.

Rehenes (aka Hostages)
The true story of seven young Georgians attempting to flee the USSR in the ‘80s by taking hold of a commercial airliner.

Unrest
“Jennifer Brea is about to marry the love of her life when she’s struck down by a fever that leaves her bedridden. When doctors tell her “it’s all in her head,” she turns her camera on herself and her community as she looks for answers and fights for a cure.”

 

JANUARY 16

Dallas Buyers Club
The beginning of the McConaissance…

The true story of Texan Ron Woodroof, who after learning that he has AIDS, begins smuggling in unapproved drugs and selling them to others in need.

 

JANUARY 17

Friday Night Tykes  (Season 4 – Netflix Series)
“This docuseries dives into the cutthroat world of Texas youth football, where kids face grueling demands and pressure from coaches and parents to win.”

 

JANUARY 18

Bad Day for the Cut
A middle-age Irish farmer goes on a killing spree in the criminal underworld of Belfast after his elderly mother is murdered.

 

JANUARY 19

Grace and Frankie  (Season 4 – Netflix Original Series)
“They’re not friends, but when their husbands leave them for each other, proper Grace and eccentric Frankie begin to bond in this Emmy-nominated series.”

The Open House (Netflix Original Movie)
Home invasion thriller along the same lines of Don’t Breathe with a few of the same cast members.

Trolls: The Beat Goes On!  (Season 1 – Netflix Original Series)
“Picking up where the film left off, Poppy and all the fun-loving Trolls adjust to living with their Bergen neighbors in this colorful animated series.”

 

JANUARY 26

A Futile and Stupid Gesture (Netflix Original)
“Will Forte and Domhnall Gleeson star in this exploration of the troubled life and groundbreaking career of “National Lampoon” co-founder Doug Kenney.”

Llama Llama  (Season 1 – Netflix Original Series)
“Llama, his family and his good friends have heart-warming adventures in a safe, friendly town. An animated show based on the award-winning books.”

One Day at a Time (Season 2 – Netflix Original Series)
“In a reimagining of the TV classic, a newly single Latina mother raises her teen daughter and tween son with the “help” of her old-school mom.”

The Adventures of Puss in Boots (Season 6 – Netflix Original)
“The world’s greatest feline fighter, lover and milk connoisseur takes on daring adventures in exotic locations in this family-friendly comedy series.”

 

JANUARY 29

The Force
A hard look at the long struggled Oakland Police Force and its recent scandals.

 

JANUARY 30

Death Race: Beyond Anarchy
Frankenstein returns for another spin around the track.

Retribution  (Season 1 – Netflix Original Series)
“A dishonest banker pays the ultimate price for his wrongdoings when he is held hostage in his own speeding car by a bomb-making extortionist.”

 

JANUARY 31

Disney·Pixar Cars 3
Third outing for Lightning McQueen who finds himself in the slow lane after an accident.

 

OH NO THEY DIDN’T! Podcast Episode 15: ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’

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A long, long time ago in a galaxy far, far away just got very, very twisted, and we love it.

On the latest episode of Forces of Geek Presents OH NO THEY DIDN’T we’re talking about STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI.

Join the resistance, and listen to why we think anyone who didn’t like it has turned to the dark side.

DON’T FORGET YOU CAN DOWNLOAD THIS PODCAST FOR FREE ON iTUNES and Google Play, simply by subscribing to the show (also free).

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter (@ONTDpodcast)

‘Teen Titans: The Complete First Season’ Arrives on Blu-ray 1/23/18 from Warner Archive

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Teenage super heroes never looked so good as Warner Archive Collection brings another favorite from the Warner Bros. Animation canon to Blu-ray with the January 23, 2018 release of Teen Titans: The Complete First Season.

Pre-orders are now available via wbshop.com and your favorite online retailers.

With awesome super skills and powers galore, these crime-fighting partners kick butt and squash evil like nobody’s business! But as roommates in Titans Tower, it’s every hero for him/herself when it comes to living in peace. Not even super heroes can settle fights over who’s in control of the TV remote.

In these 13 action-packed adventures, the Titans face all your favorite villains – Mad Mod, The Puppet King, Killer Moth and, of course, their arch-nemesis Slade – in one power-packing showdown after another. Some battles even pit the Titans against each other. Featuring bold animation, funky music and fun characters, this complete Season One from the hit TV series is an intergalactic knockout.

The renowned Teen Titans core cast features Khary Payton (Cyborg), Tara Strong (Raven), Scott Menville (Robin), Greg Cipes (Beast Boy) and Hynden Walch (Starfire).

Guest voices line up like a Murderer’s Row of celebrity actors, led by the ever-present Ron Perlman as Slade. Also featured in Teen Titans: The Complete First Season are Malcolm McDowell (Mad Mod), Clancy Brown (Trident), Wil Wheaton (Aqualad), Dave Coulier (Captain, Tramm), James Arnold Taylor (Overload, Cash), Kevin Michael Richardson (Mammoth), Rino Romano (Kai), David Sobolov (Cron), Dee Bradley Baker (Cinderblock, Plasmus), S. Scott Bullock (Thunder), Quinton Flynn (Lightning), Tom Kenny (Mumbo, Fixit), Roger Bumpass (Dr. Light), Keith Szarabajka (Trigon), Tracey Walter (Puppet King) and Lauren Tom (Gizmo).

Produced by Glen Murakami, Teen Titans: The Complete First Season features direction by Michael Chang, Alex Soto and Ciro Nieli, and scripts from Rob Hoegee, Amy Wolfram, David Slack, Adam Beechen, Greg Klein, Tom Pugsley, Rick Copp and Teen Titans guru himself, Marv Wolfman.

Executive Producers are Sam Register and Sander Schwartz. Associate producer is Kimberly Smith. Producers are Bruce Timm and Linda Steiner.

Episodes on Teen Titans: The Complete First Season are:

  • Final Exam
  • Sisters
  • Divide and Conquer
  • Forces of Nature
  • The Sum of His Parts
  • Nevermore
  • Switched
  • Deep Six
  • Masks
  • Mad Mod
  • Car Trouble
  • Apprentice: Part 1
  • Apprentice: Part 2

 

Warner Archive Collection (WAC) continues to serve as host to some of the most beloved films, television series and animated entertainment in history – and many are now available on Blu-ray. WAC’s canon runs the gamut from restored and remastered Blu-ray classics such as The Americanization of Emily, The Big Sleep, The Great Race, She Wore a Yellow Ribbon, Victor/Victoria and Yankee Doodle Dandy to adored TV offerings such as Longmire (on Blu-ray), Alice and Family Matters (on DVD) to feature-length animated films, including the recent Blu-ray release of Batman: Mask of the Phantasm, to animated TV series headed by recent Blu-ray releases such as Justice League Unlimited, Young Justice and a wealth of classic animated series on DVD including dozens of Hanna-Barbera classics. WAC offerings can be found via wb.com/warnerarchive and your favorite online retailer.

 


‘The Shield Vol. 1: Daughter of the Revolution’ TP (review)

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Written by Adam Christopher,
Chuck Wendig
Illustrated by Drew Johnson,
Rachel Deering, Kelly Fitzpatrick
Published by Dark Circle Comics
ISBN-13: 978-1619889415
Released 11/21/17 / $14.99

 

Recently I positively reviewed the first issue of Archie’s latest superhero group revival, The Mighty Crusaders, noting that the group’s leader was now a female version of The Shield.

I knew I had seen the character around earlier but I didn’t know her backstory. With her red hair and all, she could have been the daughter of the original MLJ Shield. Now, however, I’ve had a chance to read this Shield’s own collected story, in which we see that she has, in fact, been The Shield throughout various wars over time.

It’s well-told, well-paced, well-drawn but overall, I didn’t care for it.

Why?

Well, the use of adult language for one. In what could have been a solid all-ages superhero story, we instead get a Teen+ rating along with more than a few F-bombs and associated cursing. The words don’t bother me. I know how to spell them and use them in a sentence and I have been heard doing just that from time to time. No, my problem is that they just aren’t needed here.

The story is dark and serious but, hey, for decades talented comics creators have managed to write dark and serious superhero stories dealing with dark and serious issues without using so-called adult language. Thus, its inappropriate, over-the-top usage here comes off—at least to me—as ridiculously pretentious.

The overlong preview of Dark Circle’s Hangman revival at the end of the book even continues the trend, adding torture porn to the mix.

I just don’t understand the screaming need people seem to have to make Archie’s goofy superheroes grim and gritty. Outside of the Hangman—who was pretty grim and gritty in the first place—it just makes no sense. There’s simply no call for a grim and gritty Bob Phantom.

As far as it goes, I like the Victoria Adams Shield. I do NOT, however, much care for her past history in comics as chronicled in this volume…but I’m already on record as liking her potential future in the new Mighty Crusaders.

Look forward, not back.

 

 

First Look: Insight Editions’ ‘Marvel’s Black Panther: The Illustrated History of a King’

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From Africa to America, from the pages of Fantastic Four to the silver screen, Black Panther has become an icon in the universe of American comics, capturing the hearts of readers and viewers for decades.

Also known as the King of Wakanda, Black Panther was one of the earliest black comic book characters, and the first to ever wield superpowers. He became the first black Super Hero to enter mainstream American comics and, in time, one of the most legendary comic characters.

Apart from being a Super Hero with strong mystical connections, Black Panther is an Oxford PhD holder who is considered one of the smartest people in Marvel Universe; a gymnast and martial artist; a master inventor; a politician; a skilled hunter and tracker; and among the wealthiest people in the world.

Black Panther seemingly has it all—and so does this book!

Cataloguing more than fifty years of history, Marvel’s Black Panther: The Illustrated History of a King (Insight Editions / January 9, 2018 / $45.00) features exclusive concept art and sketches as well as hundreds of images from the character’s robust archives. Alongside these are interviews with many of the artists and writers involved in bringing this iconic character to life. Complete with a specially commissioned piece of cover art by renowned Black Panther artists Denys Cowan and Bill Sienkiewicz, this deluxe hardcover book will, like its namesake, captivate for years to come.

Timed to coincide with the release of the Black Panther feature film, Marvel’s The Black Panther: The Illustrated History of a King will be available beginning January 9, 2018.

For more information, visit www.insighteditions.com.

 

 

Death Slot: ‘Freakylinks’

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Freakylinks was a half season FOX series from 2000 that has the unique distinction of being cancelled 3 times within 13 episodes and was still a pretty damn good show.

After The Blair Witch Project was the massive underground hit that redefined cinema (for good and ill) in 1999 it’s creators (Eduardo Sánchez, Gregg Hale and Daniel Myrick and their company Haxan) became the most sought after people in film. Soon enough the FOX network enticed them into creating a series for the 2000 TV season not based on The Blair Witch Project, but in the style of the film. The ensuing program would be known by the less than easy to roll of the tongue Freakylinks but it was originally titled Fearsum while in production (the unaired pilot even holds this title).

Before the series was marketed though the Haxan guys used a similar tactic to how they marketed The Blair Witch Project… viral internet marketing and obfuscation of the true nature of the upcoming series.

Freakylinks.com was a real website (no longer working but for a few years was kept up) that boasted real interaction with the shows “characters”. Initially no one knew this was a fake paranormal site designed to advertise TV series but it functioned as a real 2000 era site to talk about ghost sightings and the like.

In the series this was also the website run by the characters to the point that after an episode aired the story of that encounter would be added to the Freakylinks site as if it were a real event. These days this might seem goofy or hokey but remember this was in the infancy of what we think of as the internet and just the initial Blair Witch site snookered people so did Freakylinks.com (frames and all).

What was Freakylinks the series though?

The general story was one of Derek Barnes who used to run the site with his twin brother Adam, who died under very mysterious circumstances.

Now Derek uses the site to gather and catalog “the strange and unusual” hoping to find a clue as to what happened to his brother.

He is aided in this by Adam’s fiance Chloe, Derek’s best friend Jason and his tech gal Lan (subtle).

Also there is a shadow character that knows FAR to much about things that go bump in the night and pops in how and then in the form of Vince Elsing who may or may not be completely crazy. That is the general plot flowing through the episodes but the show takes a case by case manner to present things yet always preserving continuity. This is a series that must be viewed in order (more on that later).

Shot with a mixture of handheld and standard horror camerawork the “monster of the week” stories are all VERY interesting and more than once did NOT go where the viewer (even a jaded viewer such as myself) thought they would. In fact, episode 2 “Subject: Threethirteen” had a jumpscare in it that was both earned and deserved. This show did not skimp on the horror elements even though there was a great deal of humor as well.

The strongest reason Freakylinks worked was the characters. Not only were the actors all fantastic but I would argue that the character interactions were more of a reason I returned week in and week out to the series. These people acted like real people in very unreal situations.

The main cast was Ethan Embry (Dutch) as Derek and Adam Barnes, Lisa Sheridan as Chloe Tanner (Invasion), Karim Prince (Mighty Morphin Power Rangers) as Jason Tatum, Lizette Carrion (Over There) as Lan Williams and the amazing Dennis Christopher (Fade To Black) as Vince Elsing. The show didn’t pull back on the awesome guest cast though as we had appearances by Jennifer Aspen, Ron Canada, W. Earl Brown, Jeffery Combs, Peter Onorati, Daniel Roebuck, John Billingsley, Eric Balfour and Eric Szmanda just before he got CSI.

The series was surprisingly well written and acted and as stated previously it had moments of genuine horror for television. Freakylinks is also hopelessly dated now though. The internet lingo, the digital handheld video (it was from the Blair Witch guys after all) and even the reliance on pay phones might make 2018 viewers snicker a little but remember that at the time this was the height of technology.

If I am praising this show so much (and it has a devoted fanbase today) why was it cancelled 3 times and only lasted for 13 episodes?

That is because FOX is run by morons. As I stated earlier the series is continuity based even though it might seem to be a “Monster of the week” kind of series. FOX aired nearly every single episode out of order to the point that it became a joke among fans that we could always look forward to the new episode referencing next weeks episode in the past tense.

It got so bad that this is the order FOX aired this continuity based series. “Pilot”, Episode 2, Episode 3, Episode 1, Episode 4, Episode 5, Episode 6, Episode 8, Episode 7, Episode 10, Episode 9, Episode 11 and finally Episode 12.

Basically the only episodes that aired where they took place were the pilot and the finale. Can you imagine what it was like attempting to keep the story straight? One week Chloe has lost her psychiatry license then she has it again then the team has to help her not lose it and then she has it again and finally the episode that CAUSES her to lose her license airs. It’s things like that which drove viewers away.

That is one reason viewers tuned out and this led to FOX cancelling the series after only airing 5 episodes. A letter writing campaign forced FOX to burn off 4 more episodes in the dead zone that is January of 2001 but the ratings for those 4 were even worse than the initial 5 so it was cancelled again.

ANOTHER letter writing campaign (using the internet ironically enough) made FOX burn off the the final 4 episodes in the summer of 2001 to no fanfare whatsoever (not even really advertising it). FOX was done with the series and after taking a year and a half to air 13 episodes Freakylinks was gone. The website continued for another year or two and was eventually archived on the official Haxan website but even that is a dead link now.

Did Freakylinks deserve better?

Of course it did, I would not writing about it if there was not merit here. There was never a DVD release and it did rerun a few times on the (now defunct) Chiller network, but those episodes were STILL run out of order AND were cut for time to add more commercials.

I have a homemade DVD set from my initial FOX broadcasts which I have placed in continuity order and that will have to do for now.

 

Tommy Wiseau’s Infamous Indie ‘The Room’ Returns to U.S. Cinemas for One-Night Event on January 10

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Referred to as “the ‘Citizen Kane’ of bad movies,” “The Room” is receiving a remarkable resurgence due to the popularity of James Franco’s “The Disaster Artist.” Movie buffs across the nation will have the opportunity to see auteur Tommy Wiseau’s opus on the big screen when “Tommy Wiseau’s ‘The Room’” comes to U.S. movie theaters on Wednesday, January 10, 2018 at 8:00 p.m. local time. In addition to the full-length feature, moviegoers will enjoy a special look at the new “Best F(r)iends” trailer, starring Wiseau and Greg Sestero.

Tickets for “Tommy Wiseau’s ‘The Room’” can be purchased online by visiting www.FathomEvents.com or at participating theater box offices. Fans throughout the U.S. will be able to enjoy the event in nearly 500 select movie theaters. A complete list of theater locations is available on the Fathom Events website (theaters and participants are subject to change).

Starring Tommy Wiseau, directed by Tommy Wiseau, written by Tommy Wiseau, screenplay by Tommy Wiseau and produced by Tommy Wiseau, “The Room” follows the story of Johnny (Wiseau). Johnny is a bank employee who, seemingly, lives happily in a San Francisco townhouse with Lisa, his fiancée. One day she gets bored with Tommy and seduces his best friend, Mark (played by Wiseau’s best friend, Greg Sestero, author of the award-winning 2013 memoir “The Disaster Artist”). Johnny screams, “You’re tearing me apart, Lisa!”– and, with that, nothing, or no one, will ever be the same.

“We’ve seen a tremendous response to ‘The Room’ as a RiffTrax event,” said Fathom Events VP of Programming Kymberli Frueh. “With interest in the movie at a fever pitch, thanks to ‘The Disaster Artist,’ we can’t wait to bring Wiseau’s creation back to the big screen to stand on its own unusual merits.”

 

For more information, visit www.fathomevents.com.

 

 

Elvis Returns in ‘Bubba Ho-Tep and the Cosmic Blood-Suckers’

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Hail to the King, baby! Prior to the events of the original Bubba Ho-Tep cult story, Elvis was enlisted by President Nixon to defeat an alien threat unlike anything he’s faced before. IDW and award-winning writer Joe R. Lansdale present Bubba Ho-Tep and the Cosmic Blood-Suckers!

Bubba Ho-Tep was an accidental story that turned out to be my first film adaptation, and it’s still going strong in story and film,” said Lansdale. “And finally, it has inspired a background story that was first a novel, and is now represented in the medium that first made me want to be a writer: comics. Graphic novels. What we used to call Funny Books. I’m excited and looking forward to readers discovering it all in color and looking fine. May more Bubba comics burst into existence and give the world the true story of how the world has been protected from evil, and for quite some time. Thank goodness these defenders are out there, working in the shadows.”

In adapting this acclaimed work for comics, Lansdale will be joined by writer Joshua Jabcuga and artist Tadd Galusha (Godzilla: Rage Across Time), to help bring the story to terrifying life. Part of a secret government organization designed to protect civilians, Elvis Presley and a group of hardcore warriors set out to save the world from an invasion of hive-minded, shape-shifting, vampire-like creatures from a dark dimension.

Issue one arrives this March with covers by Galusha, Baldemar Rivas, and Timothy Truman.

”The Killing of a Sacred Deer’ Arrives on Digital HD, Blu-ray and DVD 1/23

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Director Yorgos Lanthimos (The Lobster) reunites with Golden Globe winner Colin Farrell (Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy, In Bruges, 2009) in one of this year’s most frightening thrillers, The Killing of a Sacred Deer, arriving on Blu-ray™ (plus Digital) and DVD January 23 from Lionsgate. Co-starring Oscar winner Nicole Kidman (Best Actress, The Hours, 2003), the 2017 Cannes Film Festival Best Screenplay winner is an unforgettable thriller about the sacrifices one man has to make in order to protect his family.

Dr. Steven Murphy (Farrell) is a renowned cardiovascular surgeon presiding over a spotless household with his ophthalmologist wife, Anna (Kidman), and their two exemplary children, 12-year-old Bob (Sunny Suljic) and 14-year-old Kim (Raffey Cassidy). Lurking at the margins of Steven’s idyllic suburban existence is Martin (Barry Keoghan), a fatherless teen he has covertly taken under his wing. As Martin begins insinuating himself into the family’s life in ever-more unsettling displays, the full scope of his intent becomes menacingly clear when he confronts Steven with a long-forgotten transgression that will shatter the Murphy family’s domestic bliss.

Unforgettably enthralling and suspenseful, the Rotten Tomatoes Certified Fresh The Killing of a Sacred Deer includes a behind-the-scenes featurette and will be available on Blu-ray (plus Digital) and DVD for $24.99 and $19.98, respectively.

 

BLU-RAY/DVD/DIGITAL HD SPECIAL FEATURES

  • “An Impossible Conundrum” Featurette

 

For more information, visit Facebook.com/TheKillingOfASacredDeer

 

Mike Mignola’s ‘B.P.R.D.’ Delivers The Greatest Holiday Gift (spoilers)

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In today’s issue of B.P.R.D.: The Devil You Know #5, co-written by Mike Mignola and Scott Allie and illustrated by Laurence Campbell, fans were treated not only an unexpected finale, but also one that will send a wave of joy throughout fans of the Mignola-verse as we head into the new year.

 

Last chance before spoilers…

 

As the issue ends, the B.P.R.D. team visits the wreckage of their old headquarters which was destroyed last year. As the sift through the wreckage, they discover Hellboy’s coffin – and as it opens, it appears that Hellboy appears to be opening his eyes…

Speaking with Heat Vision, Mignola revealed that, “For a very long time we’ve known where this series was going.  The reveal at the end of issue 5 was planned years ago and I sincerely hope it catches readers by surprise. The internet being what it is, it’s not easy to keep secrets these days, but I’m hopeful fans will help us out and keep a lid on things for awhile, until more people have had a chance to read the comic.”

More details regarding the return of Big Red in the coming months.

Until then, Pancakes!

Hellboy ©2017 Mike Mignola


I Have No Opinion About ‘Star Wars, Episode VIII: The Last Jedi’ (a.k.a. “Another Obligatory ‘Star Wars’ Think Piece, 2017 Edition)

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Guest post by Javier Grillo-Marxuach

I have a dirty and shameful secret to share with you: I have no opinion about Star Wars, Episode VIII: The Last Jedi.

Now – when I first saw Star Wars, Episode VIII: The Last Jedi, I had a metric shit-ton of opinions, which I gleefully shared in the form of lengthy arguments with my friends on social media. For many in my generation, having opinions about Star Wars is kind of like having oxygen, and the more extreme and passionately argued those opinions the better.

Then I went to see Star Wars, Episode VIII: The Last Jedi a second time. It has been my tradition to see these movies at least twice in a theater since I was seven years old. Having sated my thirst to have a strongly stated opinion about Star Wars, Episode VIII: The Last Jedi in the week following its release, I found myself walking out of the theater from my second viewing with no opinion at all.

Is it a good movie? A bad movie?

I honestly don’t know.

And it is in the not knowing that I have found how I truly feel about this film – and all the many Star Warses that have come before and will undoubtedly come after.

* * * * *

One of the hardest moments I have had in a writers room came a few years back on a deeply serialized series which I had struggled to master. After pitching an episodic story I had spent the better part of a week developing with the rest of the staff to one of my colleagues – hoping for a blessing to take the story up the flagpole to the showrunner – my colleague shook his head and, with much sympathy told me “It’s not that it’s not a story, it’s that I only see The Churn.”

If you can imagine me walking out of that room with my head downcast and the “sad Charlie Brown” music from the old animated specials playing, you have an idea of the aftermath…

And as I walked out of my second viewing of Star Wars, Episode VIII: The Last Jedi, my colleague’s turn of phrase hung over my head like a hangman’s noose.

The Churn.

* * * * *

The Churn – I’ve come to believe – is what happens to all “tentpole” movie franchises. The Churn is what happens to all television shows that overstay their operational life before exhausting their fanbase’s appetite for the characters. The Churn is what must happen for comic books, soap operas – and the works of countless fantasy novelists – to exist.

The Churn is the river into which those who want to make a fortune from narrative storytelling must wade… and the rapids which they must survive.

The Churn, is – for both good and bad – the constant invention, reinvention, escalation, re-escalation, doubling down, and re-doubling down of concept and incident that must take place in order for long-term narratives to endure. The Churn is what you get when the property makes money and there is no end in sight.

The Churn is the latest chase, abduction, or standoff; the new villain, and the new love interest. The Churn is the reboot, the preboot, the prequel, the sequel and the equal.

The Churn is what audiences get when stories go from being “a story with a beginning, a middle, and an end” to being like life: an endless series of obstacles, setbacks, repetitions of behaviors good and bad, relapses into behaviors both good and bad, deaths, births, and comings and goings, with little hope of a real resolution. The Churn when the myth of Odysseus – something with a defined beginning, middle, and end – morphs into the myth of Sisyphus: an endless challenge that can never be completed.

* * * * *

With Star Wars, The Churn has been with us a long time, even if the mainstream audience does not realize it. The Churn kept Star Wars alive in the dark days between Star Wars, Episode IV: Return of the Jedi and Star Wars, Episode I: The Phantom Menace.

During these years, over 400 Star Wars novels, e-books, and comic books were released. In absence of filmed Star Wars product, the faithful filled their story-craving bellies with a stream of titles beginning with Timothy Zahn’s (justly) venerated “Thrawn Trilogy” and culminating with the 19 novel epic serial “Star Wars: The New Jedi Order”.

In the course of these narratives, the character known as Luke Skywalker was married (to a subaltern of his arch-nemesis Emperor Palpatine, no less), imprisoned (in almost every story – usually with a fiendishly clever trap that somehow nullified his Jedi abilities), promoted, demoted, turned into a gladiator, tempted to join the Dark Side, eventually made to join the Dark Side and apprenticed to a clone of Emperor Palpatine, forced into a lightsaber battle against his own clone (the somewhat comically named “Luuke”), made deathly ill multiple times, cut off from the force multiple times, had a child, forced to reckon with his faulty knowledge of the totality of the force (also several times), built and destroyed several Jedi temples, had his wife become deathly ill several times, forced into exile, forced to ally with his deadly foes – The Sith – to defeat a common enemy, almost had to abandon his son when his mind was overtaken by the telepathic ability of a colony of insectoid aliens, and blown up imperial planet-killing weapons by the metric ton. It would be fair to say that Luke Skywalker has been subject to more dramatic incident in the form of life-or-death situations than any human being could possibly face while remaining sane.

And that was all before Disney purchased Lucasfilm and all of its assets and declared the entire kit and kaboodle null and void. All the old publications (known as the “Expanded Universe”) were rebranded as “Star Wars Legends” and a whole new set of novels detailing an entire alternate life for our hero has been in motion for years now. Of course, the “Star Wars Legends” have remained in print for anyone who wants to read newly non-canonical Star Wars fiction. There’s still gold in them thar hills.

I bring all of this up to illustrate two points.

One, where there is money to be made with characters for which an audience has a bottomless craving, the gods of commerce will have no problem commissioning hundreds of artists to create as many adventures for those characters as humanly possible: and those adventures will all have a slew of tropes in common, eventually becoming a repetitive cycle of Philip Glassian proportions.

There will always be another rogue Jedi who has been in hiding, another bounty hunter with strange powers that boggle those who rely on The Force, another brilliant officer of the Galactic Empire with a plan so dangerous (usually involving a heretofore unknown planet killing weapon hidden by Emperor Palpatine before his death) that it could mean the fate of the galaxy (in at least one occasion, it was a double of a brilliant officer who was propped up by other brilliant officers in order to use his PR value as a brilliant officer to revive the Galactic Empire).

In short… The Churn.

My second point is that, as I went whole hog into the game of having opinions about Star Wars, Episode VIII: The Last Jedi, I kept hearing otherwise sane people railing vitriolic about how awful it was “what they did to Luke Skywalker! Which is kinda hilarious, considering all that has already been done to Luke Skywalker in the name of “keeping the franchise alive”.

In the name of The Churn.

* * * * *

It has been at least three decades since Star Wars entered The Churn – and it has never looked back. The relative quality of each new installment, regardless of media or venue, is pretty much insignificant at this point because everyone who loves Star Wars (which nowadays seems to be not just the entire civilized world, but also all the jocks who used to beat me up for liking Star Wars) has a constant lifeline to Star Wars that will continue to churn new material as quickly as possible.

And in the thick of The Churn, there’s another churn: The Churn of public narratives about the behind the scenes of Star Wars… and make no mistake, the stories of the making of Star Wars – and what it “means” that Star Wars is being made, and by whom – is as important to keeping the franchise alive as the movies themselves.

That Churn demands that we occasionally be sold the idea that the latest piece of Star Wars product is “a revitalization” of the source material: as is the case with the latest and greatest. Much of the press around Star Wars, Episode VII: The Last Jedi centers around the promotional narrative that this is a “bold reimagination” of a franchise; that a new auteur writer/director has been given the reins and infused the entire enterprise with new life, new ideas, and such newfound wisdom that this will not only register to the faithful as a pleasant return to a beloved universe, but also blow the collective mind with its sheer newness.

Meaning no disrespect – and making no judgment about the quality of Star Wars, Episode VIII: The Last Jedi – I just don’t buy it.

Why? Because of The Churn.

For forty years of my life Star Wars has been a self-contained ecosystem with its own predatory megafauna. Both within the story and without, those of us who care enough to stand under the bombs have been continually shelled with promises that each forthcoming novel/book/comic/e-book/TV movie/animated series/animated series pilot turned theatrical release/series of animates shorts/movie is a “bold reimagination” of our beloved space opera; that each new creator has brought to it Something Remarkable, and we will be blown away.

Of course that’s never really the case.

Here’s what invariably happens in all Star Wars stories, “bold reimagination” or not…

The Jedi Knights/Rebellion/New Republic/New Jedi Order get in a bind created by a former Imperial officer trying to restore Palpatine’s glory/a rogue Jedi who escaped the purges and went into hiding only to be twisted by the Dark Side/the First Order/The Yuuzhan Vong/a clone of Palpatine/a Grand Moff who sat out the Galactic Civil war. The galaxy is threatened. Someone is abducted. There’s a light saber duel/starship battle. There’s a few twists and turns in which some character you could have sworn was evil or good turns on the heroes. The balance of the Force comes into question (perhaps with some “daring” and “new” ideas about how The Force works and that there really is no Dark or Light side)…

And the status quo is eventually restored after, perhaps, some significant loss – but not of a member of the core ensemble.

(Up until it became necessary for Disney to kill an increasingly crotchety septuagenarian Han Solo in order to convince an increasingly crotchety septuagenarian Harrison Ford to return for one last go in the racing stripes, the only time Star Wars even remotely made good on killing one of our beloved heroes was in “Vector Prime” the first novel of the “New Jedi Order” series… in which they dropped an entire FUCKING MOON on poor Chewbacca to prove that the bad guys meant business.)

(No really. They meant it. Business.)

* * * * *

(And if you think what they did to Admiral Ackbar in Star Wars, Episode VIII: The Last Jedi, it seemed, at least to me, far less ignominious than his arrest and imprisonment for embezzlement (?!?) at the beginning of “Heir to the Empire”.)

* * * * *

So the business of Star Wars churns on… having done so for four decades without any real signs of stopping.

Entire literary canons consisting of hundreds of works have been excised from the mainstream narrative, films have been remastered, re-edited, and re-visual-effected, entire technologies have been invented to allow us to experience the original – and new works – in ways we never could before, new canons are being invented, and the characters from the originals – and the increasingly superannuated actors who play them – are being gracefully allowed to bow out in favor of exciting new characters…

Who happen to be a young, force-sensitive person whose raw power means a rebirth of the Jedi Order, a rogue pilot whose ability with the stick far outpaces his judgment and wisdom, a couple droids, a couple of cute aliens, a masked and mysterious character who doesn’t amount to much, a dark lord who is conflicted about his commitment to evil, and a loyal friend who will remain true through thick and thin.

* * * * *

You may, at this point, be thinking that my rehashing the old chestnut that “there is nothing new under the sun” is a gateway toward a declaration that I am somehow above enjoying Star Wars and that I have achieved a higher plane of consciousness and need to let you know it. Let me reassure you. Having read the majority of the 400 publications mentioned earlier, and having seen Star Wars, Episode VIII: The Last Jedi on opening night, and knowing that I will see it multiple more times – nothing could be further from the truth. Look, Star Wars is so crucial to my being that one time, I had to go cold turkey from it for a year to prove to myself that there was more to me than Star Wars.

While I have made my peace with Star Wars and still enjoy it, I could not do so without acknowledging that the pleasure centers of my brain that received it so eagerly for decades are no longer firing as brightly as they once did.

Also, it would be disingenuous to dismiss a franchise because of The Churn… because, as with all things having to do with the magic of creation, The Churn is neither all bad nor all good. Not everyone has had Star Wars in their life as long as others. One person’s feeling that they are merely in The Churn of a story that has to be kept in life support in the name of profit is another person’s first step into a much larger world.

Let’s face it: there are people out there for whom Kathryn Janeway was their first Star Trek captain – and the best in their mind. There are those who swear that Pierce Brosnan is the greatest Bond ever. There are those for whom Chris Pine’s Captain Kirk is THE Kirk (and that Shatner guy is just some old weirdo who trolls people on Twitter).

There are even people out there for whom Colin Baker is the ONE TRUE DOCTOR.

* * * * *

As the sales pitch on Star Wars, Episode VIII: The Last Jedi gives way to countless reports of its success in comparison to other Star Wars product – and to countless analyses of how it was received by the public – the narrative has come to echo one the film’s core thematic concerns. Apparently, a lot of O.G. Star Wars fans who are excessively attached to the old ways are unhappy with the movie’s bold and reinventing ways and have been vocal about it.

Concomitantly, newer fans wish that we O.G. Star Wars geezers would stop having opinions about our beloved characters and stop grousing about the boldness of reinvention on display. The film, after all, is about how the old must give way to the new, and the geezers who once sought to save the galaxy must acknowledge the truth that the Galaxy still needs saving, and the people to do this must be given lease to build on the old legacy.

I for one, am willing to do that.

Seriously. I have no beef with anything that has been done to the old characters, or how the uniforms and costumes have been changed, or the spaceships redesigned, or any such thing. The Churn needs fodder, just like the spice must flow.

But what I do ask you give this old geezer in trade is an acknowledgement: that you can understand how it might be a little hard to believe that Star Wars will ever be bold, new, reimagined, or turbocharged by a new creative auteur/team of auteurs with ideas so radical that they will make me see the universe in a new way.

Star Wars has always been rife with new beginnings, new directions, and new ideas… but it really has never been all that good with endings. The laws of business pretty much dictate that Star Wars must never have a conclusive ending.

As long as we pay good money for those tickets, and the novels, and the comic books, and the spinoff animated series, and the streaming service that carries the spinoff animated series, The Churn will churn will churn will churn.

You’re probably thinking that I’m being melodramatic. I mean, hey, the end of Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi felt pretty conclusive and emotionally gratifying. And it was. Hell, it even featured a curtain call…

Until a few years later, when Uncle George stuck us with the prequels. And then a few years after that, when Disney bought the franchise and the First Order arose from the Dark Side with a great deal of the Empire’s livery and haberdashery intact.

* * * * *

That livery and haberdashery – Jedi robes, Stormtrooper armor, Darth Vader’s samurai-inspired helmet – are part of a set of icons so powerful that it has sustained the touch of many, many artists – simultaneously delivering a message of hope while constantly mustering challenge after challenge to that hope, all in the name of The Churn. Whatever else anyone has to say about Star Wars, I don’t know a single artist who doesn’t wish – usually with a great and envious fury – to invent something as simple yet universally evocative – and provocative of heroic dreams – as a light saber.

We go to Star Wars because its symbols trigger powerful, primal, and archetypal emotions that often transcend the need for such things as good dialogue, cohesive plotting, and characters who are consistent in their raisons d’être.

It all comes down to this: Star Wars, Episode VIII: The Last Jedi may boldly – but mostly loudly – declaim its intent to “let the past die”… but the past ain’t going anywhere.

In this case, the legend of Odysseus has been the myth of Sisyphus for a very long time, and what so many of us now realize is that the Dark Side will never fall. The Empire – and all of its ilk – will never be conclusively defeated. There will always be a planet-killing super weapon lurking behind some heretofore uncharted nebula.

Star Wars is no longer heroic aspirational fiction. Star Wars is now pretty much exactly like life. A thing that just keeps happening to people.

And because The Churn is an endless river, some will step into it for the first time and absolutely feel that they are seeing something bold and new. I envy them, as I envy those for whom that endless river is an infinite source of satisfaction.

There’s nothing wrong with continuing to love something that just keeps going. Icons are important, symbols are important, the idea of hope is important. The great thing about Star Wars is that for most viewers will be done with it long before it is done with them – and for those who choose to leave, it will just keep going in their absence, lying in wait for the moment when the heart grows fonder.

For some of us who live Star Wars – and have loved it since the beginning – the consumption of these narratives is much like going to a once surprising, and now frequently remodeled, restaurant where we can always get a table and have tasted everything in the menu. It would take a very serious screwing of the pooch on behalf of the constantly-changing management for the meal to be truly awful, and on those occasions when the food isn’t up to par, the discussion of the whys and hows of that failure with our fellow regulars are every bit as entertaining as the product itself.

* * * * *

So I have no opinion about Star Wars, Episode VIII: The Last Jedi.

Is it good? Sure. Is it bad? Sure. Is it Star Wars? Sure. It says so on the package, and a lot of far less deserving material has carried the same label and been accepted as such, so why not this one too?

Was there ever any doubt that I was going to show up on opening night and be ready to engage my fellow geeks in heated discussion of its particulars?

Absolutely not.

And so it will be until the day comes when some young artist pulls off a feat worthy of the son of a stationery store owner from Modesto, California and creates (with the help of great collaborators, nascent technology, and a popular culture ready for a sea change in the types of subject matter it considers worthy of mass appeal) a story so chock full of transcendent iconography that it eclipses everything else in the media imagination with the bright and shining appearance of that most hallowed of commodities – newness.

Then perhaps Star Wars will do that thing it keeps promising to do. That thing it cannot do while fortunes are being made and people are willing to accept the notion that each subsequent iteration is something previously unseen.

That thing that will truly – and conclusively – earn it a place in the ranks of the greatest stories ever told…

It will end.

 

 

Though best known as one of the Emmy Award-winning producers of Lost, Javier Grillo-Marxuach is a prolific creator of TV, movies, comic books, and transmedia content who most recently co-executive produced the upcoming Netflix revival of Jim Henson’s The Dark Crystal. He can be found on twitter at @OKBJGM and the web at www.OKBJGM.com.

Javier fully acknowledges that he makes a living off The Churn and makes no excuses for himself.

 

This essay is ©2017 Javier Grillo-Marxuach and is reprinted with permission of the author.

 

World Premiere of ‘Scooby-Doo! & Batman: The Brave and the Bold’ Set for 1/6/18 in Hollywood

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Warner Bros. Home Entertainment invites Los Angeles area fans to attend the World Premiere of Scooby-Doo! and Batman: The Brave and the Bold at a family-friendly event on Saturday, February 6, 2018.

The screening will commence at Noon (12:00pm) at the TCL Chinese Theater #1 (6925 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood, CA). The event will include a post-screening interactive panel discussion, an autograph signing on collectible posters, and a few other special surprises.

Diedrich Bader, the voice of Batman, headlines the acting and filmmaking talent slated to attend the event. Bader, currently starring on ABC’s hit sitcom American Housewife, reprises his role as the Dark Knight from the popular animated TV series, Batman: The Brave and the Bold.

A limited number of free tickets are now available to the general public, and families are encouraged to come enjoy the film and festivities. Fans wishing to receive free tickets to the Los Angeles event on January 6 must RSVP via email to BraveBoldScooby@gmail.com. The body of all fan RSVP emails MUST include the first & last name of the entrant, a valid email address, and how many tickets are being requested. Submissions should be simply stated as follows:

(example)
Velma Dinkley
ScoobyGirl1@gmail.com
Four tickets

Tickets to the event will be distributed on a “first come, first served” basis, and fans will be notified via email promptly.

In Scooby-Doo! and Batman: The Brave and the Bold, super sleuths Scooby-Doo, Shaggy, Fred, Daphne and Velma join forces with the world’s greatest detective, Batman, when they discover that villains from both of their respective rogues’ galleries have also combined efforts to terrorize the city. With Scooby snacks in tow, the crime-fighting teams encounter classic Batman foes (Joker, Catwoman, Riddler, Penguin, Scarecrow, Poison Ivy, Harley Quinn) and allies (The Question, Aquaman, Plastic Man, Martian Manhunter) along with a bevy of fiends from Scooby-Doo lore (Spooky Space Kook, Gentleman Ghost, Miner 49er, Ghost Clown). As always, you won’t know who the ultimate villain is until those “meddling kids” pull off the mask!

Avid Scooby-Doo fans know this isn’t the first time the Caped Crusader has partnered with Mystery Incorporated. Forty-five years ago, Batman (and Robin) were the featured guest stars in a pair of The New Scooby-Doo Movies. Premiering in 1972, the renowned detectives worked to solve crimes together in the hour-long television movies entitled The Dynamic Scooby-Doo Affair and The Caped Crusader Caper.

Produced by Warner Bros. Animation and DC Entertainment, Scooby-Doo! & Batman: The Brave and the Bold will be distributed January 9, 2018 by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment on DVD and Digital.

5 Movies To Remind You That It’s Gamble From Home Instead Of a Casino

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Image via Wikipedia

From sitting behind a table and playing cards to relaxing at home playing online, gaming has evolved to be a socially acceptable (and sometimes very rewarding) past time.  Whereas movies make gambling more dramatic by focusing on cards, reality has shown us that more and more games played on your computer like slots, provide the the thrill without leaving your home.

And unlike Vegas where you need to look for a lucky machine, online you just need to find a slots game that’s either a good fit, or offers a nice package like Bitstarz-bonus-code.

Check out a list of five films that take a look at the highs and lows of getting dealt in, and instead play at home.

 

21

Based upon the book Bringing Down the House by Ben Mezrich, 21 told the true story of a group of MIT students who, under the leadership of their unorthodox instructor, Professor Micky Rosa (Kevin Spacey), used their math skills to win big in Las Vegas.  The movie received some criticism as a mostly Caucasian cast were substituted for the actual players who were Asian.  Jim Sturgess plays Ben Campbell, a brilliant student in need of cash to pay his tuition, who joins the group.  The cast includes Kate Bosworth, Aaron Yoo, Josh Gad and Lawrence Fishburne as casino security chief Cole Williams, who’s monitoring the blackjack team.  Campbell is interrogated and kicked out of the casino, returning to Boston to discover he’s been robbed and kicked out of school.  Believing that Rosa has betrayed him, Campbell looks to make one last win to set things straight.

 

Rain Man

Learning of his wealthy father’s death, Charlie Babbitt (Tom Cruise) learns that the estate is left to his autistic brother Raymond (Dustin Hoffman).  Having only vague memories of his older brother, Charlie lures him from his mental institute in order to take custody and as a result, inherit his father’s fortune.  Raymond and Charlie drive across country, resulting in a genuine relationship and Cruise gaining both some wisdom and insight.  That of course happens after a detour to a Las Vegas casino where Charlie coerces the mathematically gifted Raymond to count-cards, in order to help resolve his debt issues.  The film won four Academy Awards; Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay, Best Director, and Best Actor in a Leading Role for Hoffman.

 

The Cincinnati Kid

One of the original poker classics, this 1965 film set during the Depression sees an up and coming poker player, branded ‘The Kid’ (Steve McQueen), earn his acclaim to the point he earns a shot against big-time-baddie Lancey ‘The Man’ Howard (Edward G. Robinson). Although the film revolves entirely around card games, it proves to be incredibly tense and is an extremely enjoyable watch, despite its near two hour run-time.  The cast includes Karl Malden, Ann-Margret, Tuesday Weld, Rip Torn, Jack Weston, Cab Calloway and Dub Taylor.  The film ends in a tense game which inevitably comes down to the last hand in order to determine the winner between ‘The Kid’ and ‘The Man’. It’s one to watch and was arguably an inspiration of the modern casino movies.

 

Owning Mahowny

Philip Seymour Hoffman plays Dan Mahowny, a quiet, meek bank employee from Toronto who leads a secret life as a compulsive gambler.  Owing his bookie massive debt, Mahowny starts regularly visiting Atlantic City where his losses continue to add to his considerable debt.  When his promotion at work changes his responsibilities, he starts covering his debts with loans from non-existent clients until it all comes crashing down.

 

California Split

This cynical and nearly forgotten film by Robert Altman, California Split focuses on two compulsive gamblers, Bill (George Segal) and Charlie (Elliott Gould) as they search for that ever-elusive big score.  The film doesn’t romance their addiction, instead acknowledging the hollowness and joylessness of the compulsion of gambling.  The film is essentially about nothing; no one learns any great lesson.  Instead it’s a fascinating character study executed perfectly by Segal and Gould that’s both hysterically funny, introspective and devastating at the same time.

 

A Look Back At The Top-Rated Smartphones of 2017

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With 2017 now finished, it’s about time we looked back at the smartphone market and how it has evolved over the year.

We’ve certainly seen some seminal handsets released this year, with market leading brands including Apple and Samsung exceptionally active. There has also been a potentially game-changing release in the form of iPhone X, which is currently being sold at the hefty price of £1000.

In this article, we’ll look back at the very best phones from 2017, and ask which has come out on top of the pile? Will it be Android or iPhone?

1.  The iPhone X

We start with the iPhone X, which boasts a progressive and ground-breaking specification to justify a four figure price tag. Of course, you can avoid this one-off outlay by spreading the cost over a monthly contract, but the most important thing is that you achieve value for your investment.

Some providers are also offering the iPhone X with no upfront cost, so this is definitely something to look out for.

This is certainly the single most unique iPhone to be released since the original handset in 2007, with its minimised bezels, 5.8-inch OLED display and the absence of a home button.

The OLED technology that underpins the screens has been borrowed from Samsung, while the impressive, dual-rear camera will arguably set a new standard in the smartphone marketplace.

2.  Huawei Mate 10 PRO

We have a surprise selection at number two, but Huawei’s latest handset combine superb performance with an exceptional specification to devastating effect.

The Huawei Kirin 970 processor is at the heart of everything that is good about the handset, as this drives the speed and power that the handset is known for. The dual-rear camera also has to be seen to be believed, while its 6-inch, 18:9 OLED display also provides some exceptional real estate for streaming films and playing games.

There’s also between 4 and 6GB of RAM available depending on your precise choice of model, while the huge, 4,000 mAh battery also allows for continuous usage no matter what you are doing.

3.  The Google Pixel 2 and the Pixel 2 XL

Google’s Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL were launched with a huge fanfare earlier this year, initially to mixed reviews by experts and consumers alike. Some innovations were welcomed, of course, with the improved water resistance and smaller bezels on the XL being exceptionally well-received.

These progressive changes were offset by the removal of the standard, 3.5mm headphone jack, which saw Google follow in the footsteps of Apple and receive the same, initial backlash).

Still, Google’s expertise has managed to produce a pair of smartphones that add genuine value to the marketplace.

The XL boasts a superb, 6-inch 18:9 display, for example while a Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processor guarantees the type of performance that you would expect from a software brand such as Google. There is also a single rear 12 megapixel camera, along with a 3520 mAh battery that is not the best on the market but capable of allowing for sustained use.

This makes it a top smartphone, and one that has managed to keep the outstanding Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus off our shortlist!

 

 

‘Doomsday Clock’ #2 (review – spoilers within)

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Doomsday Clock #2
Written by Geoff Johns
Illustrated by Gary Frank
Published by DC Comics
In stores Dec 27, 2017 / $4.99

Zack Snyder’s film adaptation of Watchmen was criticized by many for being too overly faithful to Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’ original graphic novel. I mostly agree with that assessment, but I also believe there were key elements he got wrong–not in terms of plot, but in feeling. (For instance, a movie about retired older crime fighters shouldn’t have said retirees jumping around like Neo in The Matrix.)

That’s how I feel about Doomsday Clock. The notes are correct, but the feeling is off.

The first issue of Doomsday Clock reintroduced us to the world of Watchmen, which had fallen apart since the events of that book.

Picking up from there, a dying Ozymandias and the new Rorschach escape a nuclear explosion in a dimension-hopping Owlship, along with the Marionette and the Mime, a pair of villains from their world. Adrian Veidt’s plan is revealed: he has found a way to track Dr. Manhattan across universes and hopes to find him and convince his old teammate to return and save their Earth.

Arriving in the DCU, Veidt’s plan is to contact the two smartest men on this Earth, Lex Luthor and Bruce Wayne. Neither meeting goes especially well, but Veidt’s attempt to convince Luthor goes especially sideways when a face from Adrian’s past emerges and opens fire. Meanwhile, Rorschach ignores Veidt’s cautions and touches something he shouldn’t, something belonging to a certain Caped Crusader.

I suspect this will likely read better in trade–I hope so, anyway, because right now, the DCU bits are a disorienting experience. (This I can understand, as Johns has said this book takes place a year into the future.) It’s easy to see Johns is trying to keep a sense of mystery throughout the book, but something about it rings hollow to me. Johns and Frank have kept the formatting choices of the original series–the first page on the cover, the nine-panel grid layouts, the text backmatter fleshing out the world–and have cranked up the stifling dread even as they port it over to the DCU.

But it’s still hard for me to care about any of these characters. We’re told the Mime and the Marionette are important, and even shown why in flashback. But they’re not especially engaging characters except as a sort of Watchmen reflection of the Joker and Harley. The new Rorschach and Adrian Veidt are driving the plot, but not really making an emotional connection. Perhaps part of it is Johns’ dialogue. While everyone has a unique voice, none of what they’re saying is very interesting. A robbery sequence is notable only for unnecessary profanity and a bit of gruesome violence meant to be darkly comic but mostly coming across as flat.

Then again, would I feel this way if this weren’t connected to Watchmen? It’s hard to say. Johns’ strengths as a plotter aren’t lost here–it isn’t like we’re wasting time in this issue. And Gary Frank is turning in typically fine work, although the grit may be a little too heavy.

If this were just another event book, it would be inoffensive, even fine. But you can’t really call the Watchmen comparison unfair when the book invites it.

Perhaps when it ends, we might look at this as a classic, but right now, I’m worried we have a long ten months ahead.

 

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