Category Archives: News

Summer comes to a close when ‘Phineas and Ferb’ airs its finale in June

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As a grown-up well into his 20s, it is without reservation that I say I’m going to miss the hell out of Disney’s animated musical comedy Phineas and Ferb. The Mickey Mouse company made it official that a mid-June installment of P&F–titled “Last Day of Summer”–will serve as the series finale. After 126 episodes, five one-hour specials, and the fantastic Disney Channel Original Movie Across the 2nd Dimension, the end of an era is upon us.

To celebrate our time spent with the inventive step brothers, Disney XD will air a massive 73-hour marathon showcasing every Phineas and Ferb episode to date, leading up to the super-sized one hour series finale. Mark your calendars: the binge begins Tuesday, June 9 at 8pm, and “Last Day of Summer” airs Friday, June 12 at 9pm on Disney Channel and Disney XD.

There’s 104 days of summer vacation then school comes along just to end it… Is it the education system that will help Candace finally catch her siblings in the act and expose their oftentimes dangerous creations to their mom? That’s my theory, anyway. The official logline goes like this:

In the one-hour Phineas and Ferb episode titled “Last Day of Summer,” the summer season is coming to a close and it’s Candace’s last chance to bust her brothers. She is quickly foiled, but is presented with an opportunity to redo the day when she sets off Dr. Doofenshmirtz’s Do-Over-Inator, which results in other consequences like rips in the space-time continuum, the shortening of days and the disappearance of her brothers.

Now that sounds like a good time! No doubt P&F creators Dan Povenmire and Jeff “Swampy” Marsh are going to bow out on a creatively high note. So what’s next for the talented force behind the ‘toon? In tandem with marking the end for P&F, Disney formally announced Povenmire and Swampy’s next creation, Mikey Murphy’s Law. The new series will follow the fictional great-great-great-great-grandson of the Murphy’s Law namesake. The duo is taking a bunch of P&F contributors with them to their new show including Robert F. Hughes, story editor Scott Peterson, and staff writers Joshua Pruett, Dani Vetere, and Martin Olson. Mikey Murphy’s Law is set to debut on Disney XD in 2017.

“Dan and Swampy are two of the most respected and proven show creators in the animation series business,” said Disney XD exec Marc Buhaj in a statement. “They are incredibly gifted storytellers who have a track record of creating smart, original and relatable characters that are universally appealing to both kids and families.  It’s a coup for Disney XD to continue working with this talented duo on their latest creation ‘Mikey Murphy’s Law.’ We’re looking forward to another great creative partnership.”

It’s true: with Phineas and Ferb they, in fact, imagined Danville’s greatest invention of all–a universal comedy jam-packed with humor for children and grown-ups alike. The slick animation style, the vibrant color palate, the fun voices, the catchy tunes, the diabolical scheming (going to miss you, Doof!) weaved into playfully engaging stories. P&F took the simple idea of two tinkering brothers in their backyard and transformed it into one of the wittiest, smartest, hilarious, and heartfelt comedies of our generation. This all might sound a bit grandiose–it’s a Disney Channel animation sitcom, after all–but if you haven’t watched it before, I dare you to queue it up on Netflix and not get sucked in immediately.

Following the P&F series finale is a stand-alone one-hour special called The O.W.C.A. Files which follows Agent P and his angency animal pals. After that, the future is free of new brotherly adventures unless, of course, that long gestating movie comes to fruition! Fingers crossed.

Fox reportedly cancels ‘The Mindy Project’–will Hulu be its savior? [Update: Saved!]

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UPDATE (5/15): Confirmed! Hulu has saved The Mindy Project with a season 4 order consisting of 26 episodes! That’s a lot of episodes–the series debuted with 24 episodes, followed by seasons with 22 and then 21 episodes aired. The streaming service has been the exclusive home to all previously aired Mindy Project episodes, so making this pickup with the show’s producer Universal TV wasn’t that much of a stretch.

“Mindy has been a beloved member of the Hulu family, so this deal is a natural extension of our relationship,” said Craig Erwich, Hulu’s SVP and Head of Content.

The real Mindy Kaling–who plays Dr. Mindy Lahiri in her show–also commented on the exciting news to break today. “I am thrilled The Mindy Project has found a new home on Hulu, where so many of our fans are already watching the show,” she said.

While season 4’s premiere date is still up in the air, you can now rest assured knowing that you’ll get to see Mindy have her baby with Danny by her side; how comforting is that?! Plus, according to Deadline, Hulu has the option to renew The Mindy Project for additional seasons after its original pack of installments debuts. Today is a good day.

PREVIOUS (5/7): Scrolling through my Twitter feed…checking out the Trending Topics… The Mindy Project is cancelled?!

Though Fox has yet to confirm it, reports are swirling that the network has axed the low-rated but universally lauded Mindy Kaling sitcom after three seasons. Though the show certainly went through some growing pains, The Mindy Project rather quickly found its creative groove delivering funny–and sometimes even downright touching–material on a consistent basis. Since the series had trouble holding its ground in the ratings, news of cancellation isn’t that shocking for the perpetually on-the-bubble romp. Still, for loyal fans it’s a really hard pill to swallow. Allow me to quell your ferociously building furor.

Industry sources, such as Deadline, say that the romantically-tinged trials and tribulations of Mindy Lahiri and Danny Castellano will continue even if/when Fox formally pulls the plug. Universal Television, the studio that produces The Mindy Project, is apparently negotiating with Internet streamer Hulu to keep the series alive for at least an additional two more seasons. Hulu already works with Uni TV to stream previous seasons of Kaling’s comedy, so a deal to help manufacture new episodes with the studio isn’t completely farfetched. Fingers crossed; more to come soon, I’m sure.

Click here for other renewal/cancellation news from the big networks.

[Via Deadline]

Microsoft demonstrates powerful educational capabilities with Windows Holographic

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“Imagine a computer that allows you to put your images anywhere and you can interact with things as a combination of the real world and holograms.”

Microsoft’s been hard at work on its physical world meets digital world hologram technology ever since the company unveiled it to much fanfare in January. Windows Holographic, as well as Microsoft’s augmented reality headset that enables it–HoloLens–were on display this week at the company’s developer conference Build 2015. The video embedded above reintroduces the breakthrough technology, and it also peels back the many layers and sensors packed inside.

“We envisioned an all-in-one device this is untethered with built-in batteries, hands-free and floating audio,” says a HoloLens engineer. The hardware is powered by a dedicated Holographic Processing Unit (or HPU) and Windows 10.

Microsoft is collaborating with Case Western Reserve University to advance medical education in incredible ways with Windows Holographic. A professor and student were invited to the stage to demonstrate HoloLens’ real-life capabilities. Harness the headset to visualize three-dimensional representations of the human body. Unlike a solitary cadaver, HoloLens pushes the learning experience further with the ability to instantly separate and focus on separate systems (muscular, skeletal, etc.), as well as parts of the body such as an animated yet lifelike beating heart. Click here to watch the demo.

Using Windows Holographic with Hololens for medical studies is just the beginning. The school is also experimenting with uses across many fields including chemistry and genetics, art, engineering, and paleontology. Additionally, the demo made it clear that HoloLens promotes remote learning, too; if you can’t make it to class, your teacher can see what you see and even view and respond to questions and comments.

Having the ability to plaster Netflix virtually anywhere around you sounds like a neat idea, but the way in which Microsoft’s futuristic foray into holograms will push the medicine, science, and engineering is what should be exciting you most. The possibilities here are truly endless and so exciting.

Elsewhere at Build, Microsoft branded its new web browser for Windows 10. Jump after the break to learn its new name. Continue reading Microsoft demonstrates powerful educational capabilities with Windows Holographic →

Apple reports ’15 Q2 results: $58 billion revenue & $13.6 billion net profit

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On April 27, Apple reported its 2015 second quarter financial results. Apple posted a record quarterly revenue of $58 billion and net profit of $13.6 billion. Compare this to one year ago, that’s up from revenue of $45.6 billion and net profit of $10.2 billion. Says CEO Tim Cook: “We are thrilled by the continued strength of iPhone, Mac and the App Store, which drove our best March quarter results ever. We’re seeing a higher rate of people switching to iPhone than we’ve experienced in previous cycles, and we’re off to an exciting start to the June quarter with the launch of Apple Watch.”

Now let’s break it down by product category. Apple sold a record 61 million iPhones in the quarter (compared to 43.7 million in the year-ago quarter); 12.6 million iPads (compared to 16.4 million); and 4.6 million Macs (compared to 4.1 million). Apple does not specifically disclose sales figures for the iPod and Apple TV. As for the recently released Apple Watch, it’s too early to tell, but you can expect Cook and co. to share numbers in the upcoming third quarter.

Looking ahead to the third fiscal quarter of 2015, Apple CFO Luca Maestri expects revenue between $46 billion and $48 billion.

In related Apple news, Cook confirmed during the earnings conference call that Best Buy stores will (finally) support Apple Pay later this year. Also, if you’re a Discover cardmember, you will be able to get in on the Apple Pay fun this fall.

[Via Apple; Engadget; BusinessWire]

Hideo Kojima/Guillermo del Toro/Norman Reedus ‘Silent Hills’ game is dead

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It’s with a heavy heart that I must report that Silent Hills, the highly anticipated next chapter in the classic horror video game franchise, is dead.

Metal Gear creator Hideo Kojima, filmmaker Guillermo del Toro (Pan’s Labyrinth), and actor Norman Reedus (The Walking Dead) were all set to collaborate on the game that was first announced last summer at Gamescon. The title’s unveiling was a memorable one: Sony announced a mysterious new horror game from unknown developer 7780s Studio called P.T. Gamers would go on to download the “playable teaser” on PS4 and upon completing the haunting demo they’d discover it was actually a conceptual first-look at Silent Hills, a new installment in the long-running franchise from Kojima Productions, with del Toro producing and Reedus starring.

del Toro first broke the unfortunate news at the San Francisco International Film Festival. “It’s not gonna happen and that breaks my greasy heart,” he told a crowd. Reedus would soon comment on it as well. “Super bummed about this was really looking forward to it. Hopefully it’ll come back around. Sorry everyone,” he tweeted.

Kojima, on the other hand, has not shared public remarks on the matter. That’s likely because he and Silent Hill publisher Konami are no longer on good terms following a certain falling out. It’s been reported that Kojima is parting ways with Konami following the release of Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain. The publisher has stated that it will continue to make MGS titles without the franchise’s coveted creator; this fact, mind you, does not sit well with me. Though there is no direct evidence connecting the demise of Silent Hills with Kojima’s exit from Konami, it’s easy to lay blame here.

Konami confirmed the sour news with this: “Konami is committed to new Silent Hill titles, however the embryonic ‘Silent Hills’ project developed with Guillermo del Toro and featuring the likeness of Norman Reedus will not be continued. In terms of Kojima and Del Toro being involved, discussions on future Silent Hill projects are currently underway, and please stay tuned for further announcements.”

As of April 29, the Silent Hills demo P.T. is no longer available for download on the PlayStation Network. Konami was forced to pull it since its contract period with actor Reedus had expired. Hope you had the right mind to scoop it up while you had the chance. Though it was billed as a demo, it will go down in history as one of my favorite games. Stunning graphics, intense puzzles, and effective scare tactics make it one to remember. A damn shame that’s all we’re going to get.

Update: I’m back to make your depressive slump a little less, erm, excruciating. After playing through P.T., again, for the fourth time, because it’s bloody awesome, I got stuck (like always) during the final puzzle where you have to get “the second baby laugh” and the telephone to ring. So I took to the ‘Net to see if anyone has, at long last, figured out a solid solution to complete the demo. Lucky me, I stumbled upon TheGrateDebate, a YouTube channel hosted by a couple gamers solely dedicated to Silent Hill lore. Not only do they provide a solution to the final P.T. puzzle (whisper “Jareth” into a connected mic to trigger the second baby laugh)–they also explain in a 10-minute video how they discovered the ingenious ticket to the Silent Hills teaser. Additionally, they intelligently deduce that Silent Hills may have been a virtual reality title headed to Sony’s Project Morpheus. And then there’s the sprawling 40-minute clip “The Story of P.T.” where they piece together all the clues featured in the demo to try and tell the haunting narrative in a compelling way. Perhaps our collective obsession over all things P.T. and Silents Hills might will the game back into existence. If that doesn’t happen, we’ll always have the addicting demo to replay over and over again. Just make sure that you never delete it from your PS4’s HDD; Konami has removed it from the PlayStation Store.

[Via BloodyDisgusting; Eurogamer]

Look out for mysterious ‘Wayward Pines’ and the return of ‘Halt And Catch Fire’ in May

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Welcome to May, the month typically associated with punchy TV season and series finales. While you’re dealing with anticipatory cliffhangers and dramatic conclusions, there are two shows coming on the air this month you shouldn’t let go under your radar.

Wayward Pines is a fresh Fox series created by Chad Hodge (The Playboy Club) and executive produced by filmmaker M. Knight Shyamalan (The Sixth Sense, Unbreakable, Signs), based on the novel Pines by Blake Crouch. It’s a gripping, suspenseful mystery with a promised twist coming before the end of the 10-episode run, straight out of Shyamalan’s toolbox.

[The series] follows Secret Service agent Ethan Burke who, while investigating the disappearance of two fellow agents, finds himself trapped in the titular town, a Stepford village of the damned in which no one is allowed to leave. The citizens live in abject terror of the mysterious people in charge who run things via random phone calls, which seem to usually involve orders to commit terrible acts upon pain of death.

Matt Dillon (Crash) stars as Burke and Empire‘s Terrence Howard–who is pulling double duty for Fox here–plays the town sheriff. Check out the rest of this all-star cast: Melissa Leo (The Fighter), Toby Jones (Infamous), Carla Gugino (Entourage), Shannyn Sossamon (How To Make It In America), , Reed Diamond (24), Tim Griffin (Prime Suspect), Charlie Tahan (Charlie St. Cloud) and and Juliette Lewis (who currently stars in ABC’s Secrets & Lies).

The mystery begins to unravel when Wayward Pines premieres Thursday, May 14 at 9pm on Fox. Preview the series at YouTube.

Jump after the break to learn when AMC’s technologically infused drama Halt And Catch Fire returns for its second season. Continue reading Look out for mysterious ‘Wayward Pines’ and the return of ‘Halt And Catch Fire’ in May →

Bidding ‘Revenge’ farewell as showrunner confirms fourth season is ABC drama’s last

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Emily Thorne’s “Revengenda” is coming to an end. On Wednesday, showrunner and executive producer Sunil Nayar confirmed to Entertainment Weekly that the upcoming fourth season finale of ABC’s Revenge will effectively serve as the series finale.

“We can officially tell our fans that this will be the end of the story,” Nayar told EW. “We’ve been talking to the network and we all just wanted to make sure that we felt very confident. Now that everybody has seen the finale—which is fabulous—everybody understands that as much as we all adore the show, it has hit exactly the mark it needed to to end. This is the series finale of Revenge that will be airing in a couple weeks.”

Though technically speaking this is a series cancellation on the network’s part (Nayer has previously publicly stated that he had ideas to keep the show going for additional seasons), it surely doesn’t feel like one. In fact, this axing (or dare I say, red sharpie takedown) is very much in the same vein as what Fox did with Prison Break in 2009. Revenge has simply reached its conclusion, properly exhausting itself creatively over a solid amount of time. Though four seasons doesn’t sound very long (Lost, for example, bowed out after six seasons), Revenge set out to tell a tale that naturally could only sustain itself for a limited run.

–Spoilers start here–

From the start, it was protagonist Emily Thorne’s hell-bent mission to make the Grayson family pay for wrongfully accusing her father of being a terrorist. Today, three of the four Graysons are dead (most recently co-star Madeline Stowe–Victoria, Queen of the Hamptons–offed herself) and Emily’s father David Clarke (surprise!) is alive and his name has been cleared. Though the showrunner had plans to keep things chugging along, it’s simply hard to imagine Emily’s scheming to continue without Victoria, the proverbial thorn in her side. And on top of all this, Emily is no longer Emily; this season she formally came out as Amanda Clarke.

So what’s on the water-logged horizon for our favorite Hamptonites? The series is coming full circle now that Emily has been framed for a murder she did not commit (carried out from the grave by Victoria, no less!). Other dangling threads: David Clarke is undergoing cancer treatment, and then, of course, there’s Jack. Will the two lovebirds finally connect romantically and make it last? This is something I’ve been waiting for ever since that incredibly emotional and memorable scene between Emily and Jack on the pier in season one, where Jack proclaimed his feelings for her: “I feel like this feeling comes along once or twice in a lifetime, if we’re very lucky…” That one. If you take the final episode’s title into consideration, your inner-shipper might start to falter.

–Spoilers end here–

The series finale is titled “Two Graves” (airing May 10), and if can harken back to the pilot for a minute, you’ll remember that it opened with this Confucius quote: “Before you embark on a journey of revenge, dig two graves.” After everything that she’s accomplished, will Emily meet her maker in the end?

“There are epic emotional moments in the finale,” says Nayar. “There are really shocking things that happen in the finale. It’s a tricky thing because the fans are such passionate lovers of the show and we really want to give them what they want, but the hard part about a finale in a show like this is you want to give them some of what they want, some of what they don’t know they want yet and some of what they never expected, and it needs to be a perfect mix of all those things. I truly believe our finale is the perfect mix of all those three things. I think they’re going to be extremely satisfied.”

Fans should know that Nayer and his creative team put the season four closer together not being fully aware that it would eventually serve as the series ender. And so a cliffhanger remains, despite promised closure. Nayer elaborates: “There’s a tiny little cliffhanger in the series finale. We don’t want people to get weary of the stories we’re telling, so we felt like they deserve an ending to this novel that Mike Kelley started four years ago. I really feel like the last couple chapters are worthy of the first many.”

So we bid farewell to the conniving Graysons, the two-faced Emily Thorne, her soul mate Jack Porter, and let’s not forget the one and only Nolan Ross. Over the course of four seasons, Revenge took its loyal fanbase on a thrilling, emotionally charged ride. After an audacious start, the show rode creative highs (red sharpie take down episodes!) and lows (read: The Convoluted Initiative). In the end, though, there’s no denying all of that addicting dialogue and its soapy, twisty, sexy, flair for the dramatic.

Star Wars stand-alone pic ‘Rogue One’ details surface; ‘Star Wars: Battlefront’ game trailer inside

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The Star Wars Celebration convention continues. Mere days after unveiling the universally enjoyable second teaser for Star Wars: The Force Awakens, a second panel packed with franchise fans would parcel fresh intel regarding one of the two upcoming Star Wars stand-alone films. Today’s panel was originally supposed to feature Gareth Edwards and Josh Trank, but the latter director was a no-show due to an illness. So, only Edwards’ Rogue One spinoff film was discussed, and Trank’s still untitled Star Wars pic wasn’t brought up. Moving on!

Godzilla director Edwards was joined on stage by Lucasfilm’s Kathleen Kennedy and Kiri Hart. First and foremost, we’ve got a description for Rogue One: “A band of resistance fighters unite for a daring mission to steal the Death Star plans,” spills Star Wars’ official Twitter feed. At the panel, it was confirmed that The Theory of Everything‘s Felicity Jones will star as a Rebel soldier.

A brief teaser was screened at the panel; Lucasfilms has yet to post a clean copy of it online, but that never stopped the Internet before. You can search YouTube for cell phone recordings but be quick about it–they’ll be pulled before long. In case you can’t find it, here’s a quick description of the action. It opens with narration from Alec Guinness who played Obi-Wan Kenobi in the original Star Wars film. The dialogue pulled from A New Hope went like this: “For more than a thousand generations, the Jedi Knights were the guardians of peace and justice in the Old Republic. Before the dark times. Before the Empire.” The visuals start on a planet teeming with lush forestry. As the camera starts panning towards a bright sky, a TIE Fighter zooms by heading for what appears to be the planet’s nearby moon. As we follow it fly away, we realize that’s no moon–it’s the original Death Star hanging beyond the clouds. The teaser goes black, and just as solider radio coms chatter starts to get hectic, the Star Wars Rogue One title card appears.

Be mindful that this footage was made in collaboration with the folks at Industrial Light & Magic specially for this reveal. Edwards and his team are currently in pre-production with shooting set to begin this summer. The clip is a mere taste of what’s to come. In addition to the footage, concept art was also displayed for the rabid crowd; it depicts soldiers storming onto a rainy, muddy planet.

Edwards briefly expanded on Rogue One. “It’s the reality of war. Good guys are bad. Bad guys are good. It’s complicated, layered; a very rich scenario in which to set a movie,” he said. Don’t expect the film’s main set of characters to bring down their enemies with The Force or other mythological powers, because they won’t. Edwards says, “It comes down to a group of individuals who don’t have magical powers that have to somehow bring hope to the galaxy.” Sounds like a much more grounded, realistic approach to the franchise, one we haven’t yet seen. Edwards’ spinoff is very much a war movie; the director cited Saving Private Ryan and Black Hawk Down as inspirations. “It’s called Star … Wars,” he reminded the crowd. In terms of where it fits in the Star Wars timeline: Edwards confirmed Rogue One takes place after Revenge of the Sith and before A New Hope.

Expanding Star Wars‘ inherently sci-fi tendencies and pushing the franchise’s genre in new directions is, in fact, the point here. “The idea behind these movies is that Star Wars, as much as it is a set of stories and characters we know, it’s also a place–a place we can explore in terms of character and time,” said Hart. Edwards’ Rogue One will showcase a heist story set in a gritty, war-torn environment with relatable soldiers who wield no magic. Though we don’t have information to go on yet about Trank’s spinoff, his film is also set to play with the genre and inject new storytelling elements into the franchise.

We should stop using the term “spinoff films” at this point, since Kennedy and Hart introduced a new branding term for all non-trilogy franchise films. All spinoff/standalone movies set in the Star Wars universe are to be referred to as films in the “Star Wars Anthology Series.”

Star Wars Rogue One, the first Star Wars Anthology Series film, is slated to hit theatres December 16, 2016.

An incredible look at Electronic Arts’ video game Star Wars: Battlefront waits after the break. Continue reading Star Wars stand-alone pic ‘Rogue One’ details surface; ‘Star Wars: Battlefront’ game trailer inside →

A memorable new teaser for ‘The Force Awakens’ arrives at Star Wars Celebration, plus new character details

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Today at the Star Wars Celebration convention in Anaheim, California, director J.J. Abrams and producer Kathleen Kennedy unveiled the latest teaser for Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Tons of fans present at the event exploded in excitement over the new one minute fifty-nine second teaser, and now you can too; go on, don’t hesitate, mash play above and let all of its glory wash over you! Done? Watch it again.

A few things to note. That is original Star Wars star Mark Hamill providing voice-over during the first half of the teaser; his lines are directly plucked from Return of the Jedi when he’s revealing to Leia that Darth Vader is his father. “The force is strong in my family,” says Hamill’s Luke Skywalker. “My father has it. I have it. My sister has it.” The line that comes next is new: “And you have the power, too.” We’re left to assume here that Luke is talking to a next-generation Skywalker in The Force Awakens, but neither Abrams nor Kennedy would confirm. Seeing Darth Vader’s utterly maligned helmet here is a striking image that I know will sit with me for some time.

What else? Referring to the desert world that made its debut in the first teaser, Abrams confirmed it is not Luke Skywalker’s home of Tattoine, but instead an entirely new world called Jakku. These expansive, beautiful sequences were filmed in the deserts of Abu Dhabi.

The latter half of the panel introduced new franchise stars Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, and Oscar Isaac. Respectively they play a scavenger named Rey, a Stormtrooper named Finn, and an X-Wing pilot named Poe Dameron. Though plot details are still being tightly kept under wraps, Abrams allowed each of them to briefly let some character details fly.

“We discover Rey on the desert planet Jakku,” Ridley shared with the crowd. “She is a scavenger in a ship graveyard. She’s completely self-sufficient and does everything for herself, until she meets another character and an adventure begins.” Boyega picks up and says, “When we find Finn, he’s in incredible danger. The way he decides to react changes his life and launches him into the Star Wars universe in a unique way.” Issac goes on to describe Dameron like this: “He’s the best fricking pilot in the galaxy, that’s who he is! He’s been sent on a mission by a certain princess. He comes across Mr. John Boyega’s character and their fates are forever intertwined.”

Making fun surprise appearances today were R2-D2 and the new droid BB-8. Though The Force Awakens admittedly uses lots of green screen for its special effects, Abrams reiterated his film’s reliance on practical effects and BB8 is a prime example of that. “We talked about how having a CGI BB-8 would be easier,” Abrams noted. “But we thought it would be better for the actors and the performances to have the real thing.” The director is taking a cue from Star Wars creator George Lucas’s playbook here; the original trilogy took advantage of robotics and advanced puppetry to pull off some of the most inventive and impressive stunts in cinematic history. Sounds like J.J. is on board with that, too. Watch BB-8 in action on stage right here.

The trailer ends with perhaps the most exciting bit yet: Han Solo and Chewbacca return in fleetingly grand fashion and ignite the nostalgic part of our collective brains. “Chewie, we’re home,” Han positively snarls, which is then followed by the lovable Wookiee’s signature roar. Though Han’s portrayer Harrison Ford wasn’t on hand at the event, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Anthony Daniels, and Peter Mayhew showed up to express their ultimate gratitude for the generations of passionate Star Wars fans. “I have a simple message: a simple thank you,” Hamill gushed. “If it weren’t for all the UPFs—Ultra Passionate Fans—we wouldn’t be here. It never ceases to amaze me.”

Star Wars: The Force Awakens opens December 18.

[Via EW 1, 2]

‘Revolution’ returns to provide closure, but not in the way you think

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Closure is coming! About a year after NBC cancelled Revolution, the cult J.J. Abrams sci-fi apocalyptic drama, it was announced today that series creator Eric Kripke and his entire creative team are reuniting to wrap up the dangling storylines left open at the end of the season two finale.

Alas, there is a slight catch: Revolution is not returning to television but in the form of a four-chapter digital comic book. Fans of the short-lived series may be disappointed to hear this, but at the end of the day, diehards should be elated that Kripke and co. are delivering the ending Revolution deserves–one imagined and written by the makers of the show. Plus, don’t hate on comic books; they’re just as fun to explore as any TV series!

So who’s working on the comic book, exactly? Well it’s Kripke, fellow executive producers J.J. Abrams, Bryan Burk, Rockne S. O’Bannonm, and Jon Favreau (who directed the pilot), as well as the show’s other creative team members Paul Grellong, David Rambo, Trey Callaway, Anne Cofell Saunders, Ben Edlund, Matt Pitts, and Jim Barnes. Revolution writers David Reed and Ryan Parrott are penning all four installments and illustrations are drawn by DC Comics artist Angel Hernandez. See a group picture of select members from this group at work after the break; can you spot series co-star Tracy Spiridakos in the mix? Tagged with this picture is a sneak peek at Hernandez’s illustrations; striking hand-drawn versions of Charlie Matheson, Miles Matheson, and Sebastian Monroe are previewed.

To reiterate, the upcoming stories will be featured in digital comic books made exclusively available online; hard copies are not being produced at this time. The four chapters will debut at ComicBook.com beginning Monday, May 4. Chapters 2 through 4 will arrive May 18, June 1, and June 15, respectively. A week after landing at Comic Book’s site, they’ll be made available at Revolution‘s official Facebook page.

Over the course of 2 seasons and 42 episodes, Revolution had its ups and downs as it weaved an intricate adventure about family and alliances. A heavy mythology had viewers guessing all about why the damn lights went out and thankfully it didn’t take that long for answers. Still, by the time the season-turned-series finale rolled around last May, new questions arose that took viewers by surprise. By closing one chapter (remember that awesome trickery involving our heroes getting the “President” to confess his part in Carver’s death?), Revolution opened a new door of intrigue when the omnipresent nanotech started to manipulate a zombie-like army of sheeple. The digital comic book will surely reintroduce that cliffhanger and aim to resolve it. Also, is Miles the father of Charlie like we always suspected?!

Be sure to jump after the break to read Kripke’s heartfelt letter to fans of the series. In it he acknowledges the passionate #RelocateRevolution hashtag that went viral following the show’s rude cancellation, and he profusely thanks the fans for their loyalty. Revolution‘s showrunner is excited to “end the story. On our terms. Exactly the way we would have.” Continue reading ‘Revolution’ returns to provide closure, but not in the way you think →

Rock on: ‘Guitar Hero’ returns with all new ways to play

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Guitar Hero is dead. Long live Guitar Hero! More, long live the rhythm-based video game genre!

In March, Harmonix–the developers behind Guitar Hero (2005), its 2006 sequel, and spinoff Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s (2007)–announced the revival of Rock Band with the fourth iteration in that long-running game franchise. Today, Activision followed suit by unveiling an unapologetically bold take on Rock Band‘s competitor, Guitar Hero. That’s right–the title that started the rhythm-based revolution is coming to current-gen consoles and it’s packed with fresh songs, a retooled guitar peripheral, and most exciting, new forms of gameplay.

Jump after the break for all the juicy details. Continue reading Rock on: ‘Guitar Hero’ returns with all new ways to play →

HBO renews ‘Veep’ & ‘Silicon Valley’, ‘Game of Thrones’ attracts record ratings

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Not even 24 hours passed after HBO aired the season premieres of Veep and Silicon Valley and yet the premium cable network announced pickups for two of its most high-profile comedies. The Julia Louis-Dreyfus vehicle and Mike Judge’s take on the tech world will return for a fifth and third season, respectively.

“Veep and Silicon Valley are terrific series, and I’m immensely proud that they will return to HBO next year,” HBO head Michael Lombardo said in a statement. “Along with Game of Thrones and Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, both of which have already been renewed for 2016, they give HBO a stellar Sunday night like no other.”

When Veep returns next year, it will do so with its creator and showrunner on board. Armando Iannucci confirmed his exit from the show following the season currently being aired.

“‘Veep’ returns Sunday, HBO10.30pm.Our best season yet.Time for me to quit airports. I’m leaving on a high and kissing goodbye to jet-lag,” Iannucci tweeted on April 10.

The unfortunate departure is an amicable one, and the series will go on with new showrunner David Mandel. Per HBO:

“We have had conversations with Armando for some time about the challenges of maintaining his family life in
London and producing a show in the states. Armando is not replaceable, but we are confident that Veep will continue to be produced at the highest levels with new showrunner David Mandel.”

Mandel previously worked with Louis-Dreyfus on Seinfeld (where he was a writer), and again on Curb Your Enthusiasm (where he served as executive producer) along with Seinfeld creator Larry David. Like the network said, it’d be near impossible to replace Ianucci’s signature charm, but if anyone can try his shoes on for size, it sounds like Mandel is the guy to do it.

Moving on to Thrones, HBO had previously renewed the fantasy drama for a fifth and sixth season last April. New we can report today is that the season 5 premiere, which aired this past Sunday, attracted the series’ largest audience to date: a grand total of about 8 million people, according to Variety. “The Wars to Come” garnered about 800,000 more viewers than any other episode that came before it.

[Via THR; Variety]