Netflix’s Daredevil becomes the second-most pirated show behind Game of Thrones. Considering that the total pirated number of GoT includes all four-plus seasons, that’s pretty nuts. If you’ve seen the way Matt Murdock handles criminals, you’d think twice about pirating this show. Source: Variety
Looks like John Ridley (12 Years A Slave, Red Tails) has been awarded the job of developing Marvel’s next TV series. Ridley has been in TV for decades, starting in the 90’s with Martin & Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and going all the way to the current American Crime… so the guy knows a thing or two about television. This could be the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. spin-off or something completely different. Source: EW
The NBA Playoffs are here! If you’re still confused on who to become a fan of, here’s one Redditor’s flowchart to break it down for you. Source: Bleacher Report
Bryan Singer (director of X-Men: Apocalypse) shared an Instagram photo that confirmed that Lucas Still will reprise his role as Havok in the upcoming film. This should be interesting, as it will (hopefully) dive into some sort of explanation as to what happened between Scott and Alex Summers in the movie timeline. The two have never met on-screen and there is a new Cyclops in Apocalypse. Source: Instagram
Star Wars Rebels will be back sooner than you know! Or not soon enough, depending on who you ask. At the Star Wars Celebration, the Season 2 trailer was released. If you listen closely, you can hear Buffy the Vampire Slayer around the 1:10 mark.
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More Star Wars news! In the Episode VII trailer that leaked, it’s being said that the badass chrome knight that pops up is going to be played by Gwendoline Christie (Game of Thrones‘ Brienne of Tarth). Source: Variety
Record Store Day was this Saturday. If you didn’t get a chance to visit your local record store, chances are they are still open the rest of the year, but you can find a list of exclusives made available in name of Record Store Day. Source: Record Store Day
The first set of official posters for Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice have been revealed by Zack Snyder. They look pretty great. Source: Twitter (Batman and Superman)
Another trailer for Fantastic Four has dropped, this time with more action and a look at Doctor Doom. Michael B. Jordan is going to be amazing as Johnny Storm. It certainly looks better than the first version, but does the world still care about the Fantastic Four? Source: YouTube
Another year is in the books, and we here at Hush Comics couldn’t pass at the chance to rank our favorites of this year’s releases in all types of mediums. Some of the winners will surprise you; heck, some of the results surprised us. The results are completely subjective, and therefore were chosen with infallible logic. We would love to hear your opinions on what we have chosen, or if you thought we missed anything. This should be a fun review before we gear up for 2015.
Click on the link to take you to the “Best of 2014” homepage.
Best Anime
Attack on Titan
Kill la Kill
Parasyte
Psycho-Pass
Sword Art Online
Check out the full details by visiting our podcast HERE!
Oh my stars and garters, Hushsters!We’ve skipped an entire week of news. In our defense, we were a little busy. We took a trip to Houston to visit Taylor Lowe, where we went to Comicpalooza. Not only was it a great time, but it was also kind of a milestone moment for us. We went as press for the first time, interviewed Batman artist Greg Capullo (also a first), met Stan “The Man” Lee, geeked out at the Buffy panel, and lots more. Check back on the site, or here for more of our Comicpalooza stuff, including a James Marsters panel and an in-depth synopsis of the weekend.
LeVar Burton is Kickstarting to relaunch Reading Rainbow. Will it work? Hell yeah it will; the campaign is “flying twice as high,” already shattering it’s $1,000,000 goal in less than 24 hours. “Take a look; it’s in a book. Reading Raaaainbow!”
X-Men: Days of Future Past was released this past weekend. It was “cool,” but we weren’t really that impressed. Here is my full review (SPOILER FREE) of the movie. On the bright side, they’ve released what the special edition Blu-Ray set will look like (August release?) and we will definitely be picking that up.
Sad times, as we lost one of the world’s greatest poets and civil rights’ activists in Maya Angelou.
A bunch of peeps are being cast for Season 5 of Game of Thrones. If you’re a book noob like me, then you probably don’t know who any of these guys are.
My most anticipated game of the summer came out yesterday. Watch Dogs promises to be an open world adventure of hacking goodness – the game has already broken the company’s record for single-day sales (the same company that owns Assassin’s Creed, mind you). The release hasn’t been smooth sailing, though, as bomb threats and crippling glitches have slowed it down. Hopefully we can sit down and murder this game to have a review to you in the next couple weeks.
Boardwalk Empire alumnus Charlie Cox will be playing lead Matt Murdock in the Netflix original Marvel series, Daredevil. I loved his work on Boardwalk, so I think this is a great pick-up.
DC Comics has gone through quite the transformation since they launched 52 new books in 2011… but here we are in 2014, and they’re close to canceling 52 books in three years. Yikes.
The guy who played Barry Allen in the 1991 series has been cast as Barry Allen’s father in the new Flash TV Series.
Comic book legend Alan Moore is launching a mobile app called Electricomics, designed to help self-publish independent creators. This could be the answer to what creators do after ComiXology was acquired by Amazon earlier in the year.
Ben Templesmith is releasing his Kickstarter-backed The Squidder, a four issue series post-apocalyptic tale.
Marvel is looking to do something superhero-ey, but not what you’d expect. Grab your 3D printer and get ready to recharge your imagination with Big Hero 6.
If you didn’t catch it, Season 4 of The Boondocks kicked off Monday night with a hilarious guest spot from Michael B. Jordan. It wasn’t up to par with the Season 1-2 hilarity, but it was good to have it back. It made me realize how many crazy things have happened since The Boondocks were last on the air in August of 2010. Here’s a great read if you want to be in the know.
Happy Birthday to Game Boy! The iconic hand-held console turned 25 on Monday. From Game Boy to Game MAN.
Amazon Prime has made a major move in the bout with Netflix by striking a contract with HBO (sorry Thronies, no luck for you). However, you can still catch classic shows like The Wire and The Sopranos on the streaming service; check the link here for more details. Does this change your view about switching streaming services?
Ubisoft is currently working on adding a co-op mode to Assassin’s Creed: Unity. This could be the thing that finally gets me into playing the online modes for AC. Unity drops Holiday season 2014.
Months after Quentin Tarantino lost his shit when somebody leaked the script to a film titled The Hateful Eight, he has dropped the suit (for the time being) and plans on continuing progress to create the film. Nobody wins here more than us.
If you thought the Cartoon Network show Beware the Batman was dead, you were almost correct. The poorly received show will be returning to CN, but airing at 3am on Saturday night – so pretty much still dead.
Looks like we should be gearing up for a video-game version of Kick-Ass 2 (check out our review here). I won’t lie – it looks terrible. As much as I love the franchise, it will take a whole lot of convincing to pay for something that looks this bad.
If you like picking apart each episode of Game of Thrones to predict the schemes and plot twists, but haven’t had time to catch up on the books like us, here is a little bit to get you through the weeks. Episode titles and descriptions give away more than I think they should, but it’s still fun to predict.
If I didn’t love Batman so much, I would say that DC Comics is overdoing it for their 75th Anniversary celebration. We can now look forward to Batman stealing the variant cover to almost every major DC book in July to commemorate the Dark Knight.
Oh boy, let the floodgates and scandal commence; whistle-blowers are blowing (poor choice of words) their whistles to uncover a “pedophile ring” among powerful Hollywood execs. If this really is the case, I hope justice gets served to the fullest.
On a lighter note (or maybe not) Chew, the Eisner Award winning comic book series about an FDA agent who uses psychic connection from the things (or people) he eats to solve crime mysteries, will be released in animated form, with The Walking Dead‘s Steve Yeun and Dr. Horrible‘s Felicia Day already down for voice acting.
It would seem the almighty Oprah Winfrey approves of comic books! The one in particular she advocated for on her show was March: Book One. Hush actually reviewed this book in honor of Black History Month; you can check it out here.
Here comes some news in a half-shell! The new TMNT movie trailer will debut in the previews for Captain America: Winter Soldier – one more reason to get geeked for Cap. The TMNT movie has been under a lot of scrutiny (the whole Michael Bay alien thing), so this will be it’s time to shine.
Cowabunga! Co-creators Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird are reuniting for a 30th anniversary issue of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. This doesn’t seem to be a one-time thing, as they and the voice actors from the original TMNT cartoon will be making appearances on the Nickelodeon series.
Sarah Michelle Gellar was the top hit on Yahoo! this morning, and for good reason. After years of fan debate, Buffy herself has finally answered the age-old question: Angel or Spike?
Better Call Jesse Pinkman? Not quite, but Breaking Bad‘s Aaron Paul has been rumored to be making appearances on the straight-to-Netflix series, Better Call Saul, released this November.
The Pokémon series that raised a generation in the 90s is now streaming via Netflix. Now you can Catch Em All at your own pace!
Barry Allen’s Flash costume has been revealed – at least the mask has, anyway. CW has done such an extraordinary job with Arrow that a Flash series has got to be worth watching.
In preparation of the film, a mobile game based off the X-Men: Days of Future Past will be released in May. They’re really milking this story-line, but it looks to be a fun play-through.
The DC MMORPG Infinite Crisis will be getting comic book and collectible tie-ins. We’re particular fans of Pajama Party Harley – sounds festive!
Telltale’s story-driven The Walking Dead game releases its next installment (Season Two: Episode Two) on Tuesday, March 4th. Clementine isn’t the same innocent girl she was in the First Season and we’re excited for more gory glory.
DC is prepping it’s next full-scale event – oh God, here we go again – and it’s called Futures End. Equipped with 3D holographic covers and the whole shebang, I’m skeptical of any of the “events” DC and Marvel push, but the concept of all our heroes in the futures is enticing enough to give a few of them a look.
With the release of the various X-Files Conspiracy books (Ghostbusters, Transformers, TMNT), IDW Comics is looking for collaborating on a grand scale. The Super Secret Crisis War(a bastardization of DC and Marvel events) will include a slew of Cartoon Network characters (Powerpuff Girls, Samurai Jack, Dexter, Ben 10 and Ed, Edd & Eddy) taking on all the villains from their respective series. We’re sold, but… where is Johnny Bravo?
The 86th Academy Awards have begun. We’ll be checking up on it in between commercials of The Walking Dead. Check out our past TWD reviews here, and see how we weighed in with our Oscar picks tomorrow.
With the expansion of Hush Comics, we have decided to give bi-weekly news updates. Anything we find news-worthy will be posted here bi-weekly. Have anything to add? Post it in the comments!
Arrow and Survivor come back tonight. About damn time! This week, we say hello to the Clock King.
Breaking Bad is finally completely available to stream on Netflix, in all it’s tragic glory. We laughed, we cried, we dressed up as meth cooks; it was the best. Open up our reviews or “Breaking Bad Week” articles while you enjoy the end of the decades’ best show.
Also in BrBa news, The Heisenberg himself, Bryan Cranston, is moving on to become a serial killer in the upcoming movie Holland, Michigan, acting along-side Naomi Watts. I’m instantly sold with anything this man does, so it will great seeing him back on the big screen.
The makers of Batman: Arkham Origins might not care about your glitchy game, but they do want you to enjoy the new “Cold, Cold Heart” DLC, released April 22nd and centered around a battle with Mr. Freeze.
Hideo Kojima has just collectively shoved everybody off the fence when it comes to buying Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes. When the game is released on March 18th, next-gen gamers will be able to purchase Ground Zeroes for $10 less.
A gentleman and an entertainer, original Ghostbuster Harold Ramis has passed away, after complications from an auto-immune disease he had been with for years.
I’ve given it five episodes before I spread the good word, but FX’s Chozen is the real deal. Give it ten minutes, and I swear he will be your favorite white, gay rapper ever.
The upcoming Joseph Gordon-Levitt led Sandman movie has found a writer in Jack Thorne, who has written several British shows – including Skins and Shameless.
Adam Driver has been cast as a villain in Star Wars: Episode VII. Yup, the guy from HBO’s Girls. I hold judgment, though, and take it as a sign that we are one step closer to an Episode VII release.
Jason Momoa, who Thronies (men who love Game of Thrones) might know better as Khal Drogo, actually turned down the part given the role of Drax the Destroyer in Guardians of the Galaxy to avoid being type-casted as the big, brooding alien – similar to his role in Stargate: Atlantis. His loss.
The track listing for the soundtrack to the movie Divergent has been released. If you like Ellie Goulding, sprinkled in with some alternative and Hip-Hop, then you should love it. It’s still not on par with the Hunger Games movies’ soundtrack.
Summer is over. Technically speaking, we have about a month until autumn is here, but if the kids are going back to school, summer is over. This poses the question, have you watched the Netflix summer hit Orange is the New Black? If not, or even if you have, here are my top 13 reasons why you should:
13. It’s witty but very thought provoking.
Orange is the New Black does an amazing job of making the viewer laugh at really inappropriate and sarcastic dialogue. Yet, the amazing part of the show is how significant the small things in life are so very important in prison.
Awww… perhaps.
12. Portrayal of prison isn’t overly glamorized.
Unlike many portrayals of prison in the media, where it is either totally funny or not a real consequence, Orange talks about the things that happen happen in prison that people don’t necessarily consider. There are plenty of funny moments in the show, but there are also plenty of horrible ones. The way the women are willing teach each other a lesson through the use of used feminine products, the drug use that women can find themselves still clinging to, and most obviously, the treatment of prisoners by (some) guards who don’t know where to draw the line the power struggle.
11. The details in the background.
There are many things that happen in the background that we only get a taste of. Whenever the protagonist, Piper, is on the phone, there is a woman in the background crying… every time. Of course there is also the devil-women who stays in the bathroom stall yelling constantly, an inmate’s beloved picture of Denzel Washington hanging on her wall, and the overweight guard who only eats soft foods in order to lose weight. These things are what make the show come to life and seem a little more palpable.
10. Representation of class system in America.
It becomes apparent quickly in the show that the portrayal of the women in the Litchefield prison come from varying backgrounds. Piper is one of the only (if not, the only) inmate who comes from an affluent background. It shows how easily people from lower economic status fall prey to not only crime, but to the stereotype that they are automatically criminals because they don’t have equal opportunities for success. That doesn’t mean that everyone from the “lower class” is likable or even people we can sympathize with. When a television show can so subtly convey this to the audience, it is quality writing.
9. Piper’s “Atheism” speech.
Piper has had few likable moments on the show, but the two she had are worthy of this list.
‘Nough said.
8. Piper’s “Life in Prison” speech.
Piper also said this to a “scared straight” student who has a bad attitude.
The whole speech goes:
“You know I could tell you a lot of things that would scare you, Dina. I could tell you that I’m going to make you my prison bitch. I could tell you that I’m going to make you my house mouse, that I will have sex with you even if we don’t have an emotional connection; that I’m going to do to you what the spring does with cherry trees but in a prison way. Pablo Neruda. But why bother? You’re too tough, right. Yeah, I know how easy it is to convince yourself that you’re something you’re not. I mean you could do that on the outside. You can just keep moving, keep yourself so busy you don’t have to face who you really are. But you’re weak. I’m like you Dina. I’m weak too. I can’t get through this without somebody to touch, without somebody to love. Is that because sex numbs the pain or is it because I’m some evil fuck monster? I don’t know. But I do know that I was somebody before I came in here. I was somebody with a life that I chose for myself and now, now it’s just about getting through the day without crying. And I’m scared. I’m still scared. I’m scared that I’m not myself in here and I’m scared that I am. Other people aren’t the scariest part of prison Dina. It’s coming face-to-face with who you really are. because once you’re behind these walls there’s no where to run, even if you could run. The truth catches up with you in here Dina and it’s the truth that’s going to make you her bitch.” – Piper Chapman, Orange is the New Black
7. Representation of GLBT Women
The Kinsey Scale. It’s even mentioned in the series. Ever heard of the Kinsey scale? Look it up. Everyone falls somewhere on it, including the women on the show. There is a transsexual, a butch (that’s not being insensitive, she has it tattooed on her forearm), and a bunch of other women who just like other women, whether it’s for the stay or not.
This scene is an “in your face moment” for a cruel guard who is a homophobe, but majority of the scenes show a tenderness between women, which is so rare in an industry that over-sexualizes women who dig each other.
6. The main character is a catalyst for all the other stories.
Ok, so I mentioned this before. Piper (the blonde in these pictures) isn’t very likable. She is snobby and whiny. She has been allowed to live a cushy life making soaps and not really working. But because of this, we get to appreciate the stories of the other women a lot more. The show does a great job of doing flashbacks to show different women’s lives before prison. Without Piper being the lead, it perhaps would have been hard to pitch the rest of the characters and a show may have never been made.
The women of Litchfield.
5. We root for different people at different times.
I love when characters are written so well that I don’t always like them. I may not like Piper all the time, but she has redeeming qualities. Red, the head cook and leader of the other inmates in the prison, is very dislikable by the end of the first episode, but as time wears on, she becomes one of the best. These are just some examples. But its also wonderful to root for people who society have always told us aren’t the people to root for.
4. Representation of Women of Color
Because the main character is a pretty, blonde, white female, many critics have faulted the show for not being able to truly understand the plight of being a minority in America. I agree with this, yet this show does a good job of not stereotyping one race or another as unlikable. It is clear that the whites stay with the whites, blacks with the blacks and the Latinas with the Latinas. But there are divisions within their own races, too. And it doesn’t mean that the races can’t mingle now and then. Race is a topic of discussion in the show. I don’t know of many shows who discuss race or are able to pull it off.
With that being said, there are also some hysterical moments about race:
3. Representation of Women
How many scripted shows on TV have strong female characters? How many of those women can talk about anything but men? How many of them range in age, sexuality, race and class? Not many, if any. And how many times do we associate female characters by who their boyfriends or husbands are? For once, we are seeing women as their own people with their own ideas, fears, and hopes. If for nothing else, watch Orange for this reason alone.
2. Taystee (and Poussey)
Taystee is just about everyone’s favorite character. She is loud, popular and funny. But she isn’t just one layer, either. Taystee has been known to say some pretty weird stuff (“So I’m sittin’ there, barbecue sauce on my titties, and I’m like ‘What the fuck? Again?'”), but she is academically one of the smartest people in the prison. She is the head librarian. When her new roomie gets a death threat, Taystee points out something very important.
And then is her friendship with fellow inmate Poussey. They fight, they make up, they love chicken together. And they can lean on each other when they are down. You wish you had a friendship like them.
1. Crazy Eyes
Oh Crazy Eyes. She may not give a single fuck when she pees on a fellow inmates clean floor, but she does give a single fuck about most things that happen to her. She is blunt and upfront about her feelings. She is eccentric. She loves acting and poetry. She loves easily. And she can see through bullshit. And she is just a tad… off. But I love her. Crazy Eyes aka Suzanne is the most sensitive woman on the show and she deserves to be loved. She may not become my prison wife, but if I went to prison and Crazy Eyes was there, I would befriend her.
How could you not love that face?
There are countless other occurrences I didn’t mention not for lack of want, they just didn’t fit in this top 13 list (13 for every month Piper spent in the slammer). Orange is the New Black has so many wonderful layers, characters and snippets of dialogue. Writing this makes me want to watch the whole thing over again! But mostly for Crazy Eyes and her pie 🙂
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