The Arsenio Hall Show was canceled. Unfortunately, it was just on at the wrong time.
Stargate is going to be remade. As much as remakes are so passé, Stargate was phenomenal.
If you really want to be spoiled, Buzzfeed reviewed season 2 of Orange is the New Black, out next weekend. Again, only read if you want to be spoiled.
And even though in internet terms, this is “old” news, Reading Rainbow is making a comeback. Yeah, if you read our site, and you should, you know that this has been mentioned before. But it is so, so important to make sure that kids in our country can read. It may be shocking to know that many cannot. So instead of buying Starbucks or a foam Minecraft sword, donate to LeVar Burton instead. Do that HERE.
That about wraps it up. See you on Wednesday for more news!
The Olympics are finally over, and all I could think about was that NBC’s Community, Arrow, and Scandal are coming back to the air!
To christen Jimmy Fallon’s Tonight Show debut, Justin Timberlake hooked back up with the formal SNL comedian for the fifth installment of “The History of Rap” and it was epic! This came after an incredible “Evolution of Hip-Hop Dancing” skit with Will Smith.
There’s trouble in paradise here in Denver, as Denver Comic Con is having some internal issues, low-lighted by accusations of fraud and embezzlement. The two accusers are holding a town meeting to elaborate. We’ll give you guys the full scoop as it unfolds. Remember, there are two sides to every story.
Heroes will be making a comeback, by way of a 13-episode event. While the director, Tim Kring, will make a return, there will be an entirely new cast of heroes – hopefully with new powers. It’s not the Heroes we need right now, but it’s the Heroes we deserve.
The Buffy the Vampire Slayer comics have been fairly lackluster according to resident Buffy expert Adrian Puryear, but there will be 3 issues of season 10 written by Nicholas Brendan himself. Perhaps those issues will be more noteworthy than all the other comics? In addition, James Marsters will be penning a graphic novel set during the final televised season. Will in be Spike-centric? Let’s hope!
Space Jam 2 is a real thing, regardless of whether or not LeBron James is going to be in it. To say that I’m skeptical about this would be a massive under-statement, but I know I’ll go see it anyway.
The hilarious independent comic book Burn the Orphanage, inspired from 90’s video-games and pulp style, will have a sequel out this May entitled Reign of Terror. We’ll be lucky enough to meet Sina Grace at ECCC, but I suggest you all download the first two issues of Burn the Orphanage and keep up
Vince Gilligan’s (you know, the guy who created Breaking Bad) upcoming crime drama, Battle Creek, has found itself its first cast member in Kal Penn (House, Harold & Kumar). He’s a very entertaining actor, and I think he’d be great for the detective role.
The Green Goblin has reared his ugly head in thisAmazing Spider-Man 2 still. What do you guys think? I kind of miss the purple hood, personally.
Matt Ryan, who voiced the main character in the Assassin’s Creed IV video-game, will be playing the title role in the upcoming Constantine TV series. He definitely looks the part, and I was a big fan of his voice work in AC4.
Will Smith is in the talks to start in Brilliance, based off the sci-fi novel that was released last year. The concept sounds goo enough that we will be reading the book. Another Will Smith sci-fi? Well, we kinda think the man can do no wrong, so we’re looking forward to it.
The Suicide Squad will be joiningArrow on March 19th. The Suicide Squad (as it is now, a group of criminals offered to go on suicide missions for reprieve) is over 25 years old, but hasn’t been able to catch on. But, I mean, Michael Jai White and Sean Maher together?! Geek. Out.
The Walking Dead continues with “Claimed” tonight. If you’re not caught up, check out our most recent reviews. Abraham, Eugene and Rosita have made their debut, and Rick is recovering from the ass-whoopin’ that the Governor put on him, so I expect much of the screen-time will be given to them. Predictions, questions, gripes? We want to hear them all.
Ubisoft is re-releasing the original Far Cry on the PlayStation and X-Box Live networks this week. If you are the girlfriend of a gamer, you should plan on not seeing them over Valentine’s. Just a tip.
Yoshi’s Island and the 3DS are being sold as a bundle. Slurp!
Flappy Birdsended as quickly as it began. So long people who won’t talk to you because they are too busy tapping their phones like madmen.
Sonic is going to be a television show on Cartoon Network. It will be fully CGI and they kinda look weird. Honest opinion. Check out more here.
Batman is back. More than likely, there will be a new Arkhamgame released.
Kotobukyia is pretty much the best in figures right now. So it only makes sense that they are releasing new Arkham figures.
Will Smith declined to star in the Independence Day sequel. Now how will we survive the alien invasion?!
The novel Redshirts is being adapted into a mini-series on FX. Sci-fi nerds will have to wait for this one though, because it looks like the series still needs a writer.
A little late, but Huey Freeman will be gracing your screen again. Season 4 of The Boondockspremieres April 21st.
The new series Gothamcast its Jim Gordon. Ladies will definitely approve.
Zombeavers is destined to be the film of our generation. And the tagline is truly amazing, “You’ll all be dammed!”
Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg are developing a show for AMC based off the comic series Preacher.
The Olympics are happening. And its super controversial. But take the time to watch this.
Oh, and The Walking Dead premieres tonight. Read our predictions here.
I’m sure you’ve heard the news; James Avery, known to a majority of young adults and teenagers as Philip Banks in Fresh Prince of Bel-Air or The Shredder in the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles animated series of the late 1980’s – early 1990’s, passed away late Tuesday night from complications stemming from open-heart surgery. If you’re like us, Uncle Phil raised you. The generation before us had the Huxtables, and we had the Banks. Uncle Phil was an exemplary father figure. Sure, there were a lot of comedic relief, but underneath all the laughs were some heart-felt moments. He could entertain and he could stir emotion. We’ve compiled our top five Uncle Phil moments here:
5.) Season 1 Episode 21, “Bank Shot”
Since all our other moments are dramatic, we figured a light-hearted moment was needed to break the ice. Uncle Phil was always a man on the right side of the law, so when Will gets himself into trouble – a commonly recurring phrase – by getting in deep with some hustling pool sharks who hold the Bank’s Benz as collateral until Will pays up, Philip tries to go down to the hall to set things straight. When the shark challenges Banks to win back the money Will lost, Banks bashfully accepts. After losing horribly and tempting the shark into upping the ante. Then, Uncle Phil brazenly says, “Geoffrey, break out Lucille” and continues to sandbag the hustlers. When it’s all said and done and they pay up, Phil warms them never to mess with his boy again. As much as Will and he butt heads, Phil is always there for him.
4.) Season 1 Episode 6, “Mistaken Idenity”
You would think that a television sitcom would be afraid to tackle the elephant in the room that was racial stereotyping. You would be wrong. Just six episodes into this series and Carlton and Will are being targeted as car thieves when one of Phil’s legal partners asks them to drive a car back to Los Angeles. Will and Carlton and wrongfully accused of stealing the vehicle and thrown in a cell without due process. Phil finds out and is furious. When the deputies begin trying to put Phil and Vivian in their place, Phil begins throwing his weight around legally. It’s amazing to see two parents bail their kids out like this in such fashion, and it teaches viewers that you don’t have to resort to violence to resolve difficult issues such as this and thatstanding up for what is just can be rewarding.
3.) Season 1 Episode 4, “Not With My Pig, You Don’t”
White collar lawyer, Princeton & Harvard alumnus, forefront of the civil rights movement. All these attributes earned him the Urban Spirit Award. So when he his parents came to town to attend the ceremony, Philip is embarrassed of his rural upbringing in North Carolina. His parents take this to mean that Phil is ashamed of them, too. It takes Will, who leaks the story of “Zeke” and his pet pig to the press to garner more interest in his story, to make Phil realize that his hard-working, strong family dynamics are what have made him so successful, both personally and professionally. At the end of the episode, Phil gives a moving speech about how proud he is to be the son of his parents.
2.) Season 1 Episode 1, “Pilot (The Fresh Prince Project)”
The mere concept of this series was revolutionary for the 90’s. Take a ghetto kid from Philly and put him in the ritziest part of Los Angeles and see how they interact. Anybody who grew up in the city can tell you that the fears of not fitting in with the upper crust of society are very real; it’s not an assimilation that happens without losing a bit of identity. Right off the bat, Fresh Prince showed us that by acting out, Will only alienated himself. He assumed that Philip had lost his way, forgotten where he came from and abandoned his hard-knock roots. Uncle Phil, always quick to retort in intellectual battle, challenges Will to find out what somebody is all about before judging them. It’s a lesson that goes both ways, though, as Phil hears Will playing Beethoven’s Für Elise on the piano. It’s a social statement that wasn’t made enough in that time period, and a great discussion-starter for racism vs. classism.
1.) Season 4 Episode 24, “Papa’s Got a Brand New Excuse”
A strong father figure, sometimes isn’t enough. When Will’s dead-beat dad returns to Bel-Air and tries to “reconnect” with his son, Will begins to push away Uncle Phil, at one point yelling at him that he’s not even his real dad. Phil has been a father to Will since his arrival in Bel Air, and tries to be supportive of Will and his newly-reunited dad. However, it’s all too predictable when it turns out that his father is just using Will’s family ties to take money from them. As Will’s father bails one last time, Phil warms him to never come back. We see Will really unload emotionally, and right into the arms of Uncle Phil. It’s the most emotionally charged scenes in the entire series for us, and it solidifies Uncle Phil as not just Will’s uncle, but his father, as well.
I know it’s much the tribute that Avery deserved, but it’s the one we needed to share with you all. If we missed any Uncle Phil moments you felt should have made the cut, let us know. Rest in peace to a great actor and our TV dad, James Avery. Avery’s last contribution to a film was in an independent film directed by and starring Zach Braff (Garden State, Scrubs) called Wish I Was Here, scheduled for release in September 2014.
Genre –Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Post-Apocalyptic World
Director – M. Night Shyamalan
Cast – Will Smith, Jaden Smith
Alluring element – Will Smith
Check it out if you liked – The Hunger Games, any moderately sci-fi movie made.
I will start off by saying that I liked After Earth. It had everything that I like in my entertainment: science fiction, a little bit of fantasy, a survivalist plot, and an unlikely hero. I thought the acting was good. I thought the special effects were decent. I liked that even though it was an M. Night. Shyamalan film (SPOILER), there was no crazy twist. I was a little worried that there would be a twist and that it would be that it wasn’t Earth after all.
So why have other critics given it such bad reviews? I think because the film was marketed badly. The good part of the marketing was to not mention M. Night Shyamalan’s involvement. But it was made to look like a film starring Will Smith, which is really for adults. But he was a supporting actor to his young son Jaden. Jaden Smith was the star here, so it was misleading to make the star Will. It may have received better reception had the film been marketed as “young adult” a la The Hunger Games.
(Major Spoilers ahead. Skip this paragraph if you don’t want to know details) The background of After Earth is that an alien invasion is going to happen on the new civilization of Nova Prime. The Ursas are aliens who can smell human fear. They are ruthless. But Cypher Raige can kill them. He is able to by “ghosting”, or turning off his fear. He teaches this method and other military regimens to the people of Nova Prime. His son, Kitai is one of these people. Kitai is denied advancement to become a Ranger at the beginning of the film. Kitai’s mother convinces Cypher to take Kitai on his last mission. It goes wrong and they crash-land on to Earth, which humans have not inhabited in over 1,000 years. The beacon that could send an emergency signal to their people is on the tail of the ship, which landed about 60 miles from their location. In the crash, the whole crew except Cypher and Kitai die. Cypher breaks his leg badly and Kitai must brave the Earth to retrieve the beacon. All with the possibility that the Ursa they were smuggling on the ship may have survived the crash and is roaming around waiting to kill.
I thought the action was great. Because Jaden has already played the “Karate Kid”, it was easy for him to play this role well. Other critics didn’t care for the acting. Because Jaden is the main actor in the movie, I think it is a little unfair to give a 15 year old such a harsh reaction. He has grown up in Hollywood, but because he is the son of a superstar, and starring in roles right next to his father, it becomes very easy to see his setbacks as an actor. But his father has been perfecting his craft since he too was a teenager. Will Smith is now 44 years old. And as you may recall, Will Smith didn’t start out in major motion pictures playing action heroes, he started out on television playing, well, himself. So let’s give Jaden a break. He did a great job.
The story was good. There weren’t any major plot holes that I saw. Kitai was a normal teenager with a shaky past. He has some issues psychologically due to his father’s sterile treatment of him and his sister’s death, which he blames himself for. The intense scenes of Kitai vs. Nature kept me at the edge of my seat for the majority of the movie. I really enjoy survivalist movies. The new world was easy to imagine if it were to be abandoned. The beginning scenes of Nova Prime are breathtaking. The special effects of the sky were spectacular. Could After Earth have been better? Perhaps, but for a simple plot, I think it was tops. Lots of action, good acting, no sex and not too much gore. That’s a winner for me.
Hush Comics 