At the San Diego Comic-Con, I had the extreme pleasure of doing some roundtable interviews with the cast of Torchwood: Miracle Day. They’ll be appearing here on the site over the course of the next week.

Barrowman was dressed for Comic-Con in an Iron-Man T-shirt and was just incredibly pleasant to be around. He has an easy charm that you can’t help but like. And he might be one of the most energetic people after a day of interviews I’ve ever encountered. So, without further ado:

Q: How much bigger was Torchwood: Miracle Day than the other iterations?

A: You can see from television, the production value is bigger. I don’t want to negate what we did with BBC, we did a fantastic job, but we have a bigger budget. To be honest, without STARZ, there wouldn’t be Torchwood. We’re still on BBC 1, so that’s where our roots are, but this is just bigger.

Q: What does Jack feel about his newfound mortality?

A: You find out what he prefers better. He’s experiencing new things and it’s different. I don’t like giving out spoilers and I don’t want to spoil it. But Jack, you find out which one he prefers and which one he wants. How he gets it? Who gives it to him? What happens? I’m not going to tell you. Before he had the dilemma he didn’t like being a mortal and now all of a sudden he’s a mortal and he’s experiencing all of these things and there comes a point where decisions and choices are made.

Q: What about the controversy surrounding the censored sex scene?

A: There really wasn’t a controversy. Russell decided to cut it for pretty straightforward reasons. He didn’t want to push it too far because people would be watching with kids and would probably change the channel. The papers in the UK had to print a retraction because they mis-quoted me from an interview I did months ago and took my quotes out of context. I fully support the decision that was made.

But it’s not gone. And this man falls in love and this man has a passionate romance with this other man and, like everybody else does, the sex happens and there’s a wonderful lovemaking scene and it’s a great scene. I’m proud of it. If I saw that as a young man and saw that on TV that you could have a loving relationship like that, it would have helped.

And they cut down Mekhi and Arlene’s scene, too.

And there’s a love story. The love story doesn’t start until episode five. That’s where the romance is, in a flashback. The only real time stuff in that episode you’ve got there is the real time stuff between Jack and Gwen.

Q: With the mortality, does that change the Dr. Who? Aren’t you supposed to become the Face of Boe?

A: No. We’re not dictated by the rules of what was created before. I’d like to think that Jack becomes the face of Boe, but who’s to say they won’t lob my head off in the next episode?

And that was the end of the all-too brief interview. Lots of interesting tidbits in there, to be certain. They’re not tied to the constraints of Dr. Who and the Face of Boe? What does that imply for the series? Barrowman also said that they hope there will be more seasons and implied it all comes down to how well this season does. So if you like Torchwood, be sure to support it now as best you can and don’t pirate it. Watch it in a way that will let STARZ count you.

New episodes of Torchwood: Miracle Day are shown on STARZ on Friday nights.

And here is the Torchwood preview shown at Comic-Con:

It’s been nearly 11 years since Diablo 2 came out. So when Diablo 3 was announced in 2008 the internet was jumping for joy, but today the internet is having a bit of a backlash against Blizzard for some of the announcements this morning. So what exactly is going on?

First: It has been announced that Diablo 3 will be online play only. Many people were excited to have a good single player game like the first two but it seems this game is going the way of World of Warcraft in that you are completely unable to play the game offline. So not only can you not play the game without the internet but can Blizzard keep two highly successful online only games running at the same time?

Second: No Mods allowed under any circumstance. To the new gamer that doesn’t seem like a big deal but to the advanced gamers that’s like a shot in the foot. The entire DOTA franchise was created because of Mods made to the Warcraft 3 engine and so many people were already chomping at the bit for mods they could apply to the new Diablo game however it seems they will be unable to do so. Here’s from the official FAQ on Blizzard’s website:

“For a variety of gameplay and security reasons, we will not be supporting bots or mods in Diablo III, and they’ll be expressly prohibited by our terms of use for the game.”

Third: The online Marketplace will only use real money. Instead of farming for gold it looks like the only way you’ll be able to buy anything is with your real hard earned cash from outside of the game. It won’t be buying from Blizzard however it’ll be online transactions between players from one person’s bank account to another. There are just too many insane things that could come out of this. New people can quickly buy the best weapons without working for it, others could scam others by offering awful prices, and since mods aren’t available on the stores you may end up buying something for much more then you should without knowing about it. Of course there are a few who if they play it right could make money by always playing this game and getting all of the best weapons and selling them at high prices.

There are a very few who are praising Blizzard for these new things and most people are quite angry about these new developments. What do you think? Could this lead to a better gaming system? Or will it simply become a giant mess?

It was reported yesterday that Nintendo stocks fell around 19.9% in the wake of the steep 3DS price cut to USD $169.99. The cut was made all the way down to a loss-producing level in an attempt to drive up sales for the console (which has unfortunately struggled since its release).

In an even more drastic move that is somewhat more commonplace in Japanese culture, Nintendo President Iwata Satoru publicly took blame for the failing console and slashed his salary by 50%. Iwata also commented at a shareholders meeting, “For cuts in fixed salaries, I’m taking a fifty percent cut, other representative directors are taking a 30 percent cut, and other execs are taking a 20 percent cut.”

As Arse-bot reported earlier this week, there are a lot of quality titles coming out for the 3DS this year, so hopefully Nintendo will recover quickly from their losses. They do need to be somewhat cautious, however, with the launch of the Wii U coming up next Spring. The recent news in Game Informer that the Wii U may not support DVD, Blu Ray or backwards compatibility with Gamecube titles has not really been helping to boost public opinion for the new console, so perhaps some re-designs will be considered before the launch next Spring (or the launch price may be lower than anticipated).

Either way, it is a great time to go buy a 3DS right now, so go get one if you’ve been waiting for the price to be right!

This Week: Bandai is bringing Star Driver to Hulu and more shows are finding their way to Netflix streaming.

Aniplex (in partnership with Bandai) announced at their Otakon panel yesterday that they will be streaming Star Driver Kagayaki no Takuto on Hulu starting August 17^th. Crunchyroll will also be hosting the series, and both websites will stream with official English subtitles (no word on the dub yet).

https://youtu.be/-Z5HhK0fTsI

This 25 episode series from 2010 takes place on fictional Southern Cross Isle. As it happens on your typical mysterious island, a boy washes up on shore one starry night and, luckily for him, there is a cute girl nearby who senses his presence and gives him CPR. A rich local student takes him in for the night and (due to obvious anime plot reasons) enrolls Takuto at the local high school (and what kind of anime high school would this be if nothing unusual was going on?)… In fact, there are mobile suits (called “Cybodies”) hidden underneath the island that possess immense power and can be controlled by humans. An evil organization, Glittering Crux, is plotting to steal these suits and only Takuto and his friends can stop them.

The show suffers from some seriously overused anime plot points (an insanely rich kid with moe-inspired maids, a super mysterious guy with an unknown past that will turn out to be the hero, and a girl that I can almost guarantee will fall in love with him by the series’ end…) but overall it’s a decent watch. The interpretations of time and “zero time” are pretty cool and the Cybodies are interesting in that they somehow manage to be both mech suits and magical-girl / magical-boy transformation driven power suits.

…and while we’re talking about streaming, have you been keeping your eyes on Netflix lately? Part Three of Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood has just been made available (until now you had to get the disks). Other great shows on streaming right now include Mushi-Shi, Nana, Speed Grapher, Hetalia, Monster, Excel Saga and 109 episodes of Bleach. I have to fully recommend Excel Saga to anyone that’s been watching anime a long time. It’s an over the top, ridiculous spoof of anime and television and is highly rated by anime fans.

Alongside the new subscription options debuting in September I’m hoping a few more shows will continue to make their way to Netflix streaming. I keep requesting Irresponsible Captain Tylor, but maybe I’m in the minority in actually remembering that awesome show…

I leave you this week with another obscure piece of video from Japan’s youtube. It’s a political satire miniseries (based on the original manga) called The Legend of Koizumi. Very entertaining if you have read up on Japanese politics, and still rather amusing even if you haven’t. The premise of the miniseries is that international diplomacy is settled at the mahjong table, with real-life politicians depicted as masters of mahjong:

Hey! We’re finally at the end of the road for “Captain America”! It’s been an interesting ride to be sure, and it’s been fun sharing it with all of you. That being said, if you enjoyed watching the serial in, well, serialized form let your voice be heard! I have enough serials to keep this column going for at least a few years! Let me know what you’d like to see! We could share the various adventures of a downright violent Captain Marvel, find out the origins of the Misfits skull logo with The Crimson Ghost, or witness the trouncing of gangland by Dick Tracy! The serials are full of fun and history, and I want to share as much as I’m able! Until then though, let’s watch how Cap’s adventure comes to a close with Chapter 15: The Toll of Doom!

For our final supplement, I have a Return of Captain America lobby card for this chapter. It’s nothing spectacular, I know, but it is better than a glorified screenshot. Stay tuned for when Movie Serial Saturday returns with… something. I haven’t made my mind yet. Anyway, enjoy!

This first appeared on The Huffington Post.

With the release of the incredibly well-put together, amazing, thrilling Captain America movie, I think it’s time to take a look at one of the unsung heroes of the character. Joe Simon created Captain America (along with Jack Kirby) and he’s a living legend. Not many people remember his name since it was Stan Lee (another living legend) who revitalized the character in the 60s, again with Jack Kirby.

He released his autobiography this year (Joe Simon: My Life in Comics) and I have to say after reading it you get the feeling that comics today would not be the same without Joe Simon.

Penned without the aid of an assistant or ghostwriter and looking back on a long, eventful life, Simon’s memory is lucid and his writing is crisp and engaging. He starts at the beginning, working in newsrooms for Hearst papers, learning the skills that would make him a legend as a writer, designer, and illustrator. The book reads very much like a non-fiction version of Michael Chabon’s masterpiece The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay. It has wonderful anecdotes about working in newsrooms of the era, and even then they were expecting imminent doom for the newspaper industry, wondering how much longer it could possibly last.

Captain America is probably his best known creation, though he revolutionized comics in every genre, having his biggest successes at the time with romance and satire comics. In an interview for Big Shiny Robot!, Simon talked of his time creating the most successful comics ever made:

I’m especially proud of having created the romance comics, the most successful line of comics ever produced-each issue of Young Romance and Young Love sold a million copies and up. Those titles took a smaller publisher, Prize Comics, and gave them a huge hit. We were sitting on top with the big boys inside of a year, and they were stealing our ideas in an attempt to copy our success. Jack and I were on the way to see my wife in the hospital, where she had just given birth to our first child. We stopped in a candy store to pick up a card and saw a cluster of girls crowding around the comic book rack for the very first issue of Young Romance. That was when we knew we had a hit. We loved all of the different genres in which we worked, but the romance books hold a special place for me. It’s a shame that so much of the diversity we once had in comics has practically disappeared.

The book takes you through all of the highs and lows — through his storied career with hilarious and heartwarming anecdotes all the way through. It’s almost bizarre reading a book about comics before Stan Lee’s time, and to see stories told of him as this snot-nosed kid who came into the office because of a relative of someone who worked there, and Joe Simon gave him his first writing job. The book flows naturally from the dawn of comics, through the golden age and silver age. Anyone who loves the medium of comics would do well to read this tome, it should be listed as one of the definitive history books on the subject.

As a creative professional, Simon’s life is incredibly inspiring. He spent his life doing what he wanted, plying his art, and making a business out of it. He worked tirelessly, even in the old days, for the rights of creators, even if it bit him in the ass sometimes. And you’ll love reading about his misadventures during World War II.

If you enjoyed the Captain America film then you owe it to yourself to learn more about the man behind it, and Joe Simon is about as fascinating as they come. And the easiest way to do it is to read about it in his own words, do yourself a favor and pick up Joe Simon: My Life in Comics. You won’t regret it.

Bryan Young is the editor of the geek news site Big Shiny Robot! and author of Lost at the Con.

By Jerk-bot

KIRBY KRACKLE; “Super Powered Love” (Kirby Krackle Music)
WHO’S RESPONSIBLE? Kyle Stevens and Jim Demonakos (words and music)

The third time, as they say, is the charm. But for Kirby Krackle … the nerd-rock project for Seattle-based musician Kyle Stevens and comics shop owner/conventioneer Jim Demonakos … the third go-round offers proof that KK is not just a whimsy.

The duo’s third, full-length album is titled “Super Powered Love.” It’s the best of the bunch by far, both in terms of songwriting and performance. Stevens, who sings and plays guitar (as well as occasional ukulele) is backed by an actual band: bass guitarist Scott Andrew, keyboardist Bryce Francis and drummer Nelson Estes. (Rappers Adam WarRock and GMK the Great, as well as vocalist Kristina Horner, also chip in on a couple of songs.)

While the initial efforts (a self-titled 2009 release, and 2010’s “E for Everyone”) suffered a bit from their thin sound, “Super Powered Love” has a fuller, richer one. You can really hear how well this approach works with the rousing album closer, the pop-punkish “I Wanna Live in a World Full of Heroes.” A solid rhythm section only makes Stevens’ Ramones-like riffing sound more muscular. A quick plea to radio programmers: Give this winning song some well-deserved airplay.

Elsewhere, there’s expected Kirby Krackle silliness. “Booty do Math” fuses pop with hip-hop, “Hunt ‘em All Down” and “Bite of Another” freshen up overdone subject matter (the Transformers and vampires, respectively), and the title track crackles … excuse the pun … with electricity.

There are still a couple of stripped-down moments, too, though. Stevens busts out that aforementioned ukulele on “In Another Castle,” an earnest love song/plea that again touches on one of the pair’s favorite subjects, Nintendo’s best-selling series of Mario video games.

This is easily the most complete collection of songs. There are no duds here. And again, “World of Heroes” rivals any pop-punk being churned out by major-label act for sheer hooks and catchiness.

As has been done in the past, “Super Powered Love” is self-released. It’s available digitally (through iTunes and other sites, check www.kirbykracklemusic.com for more information), and in “hard-copy” form for old-schoolers like yours truly. (CD and booklet art by comics artists Jim Mahfood and Katie Cook make this purchase pretty irresistible.) KK also previewed several of the tracks on YouTube, so if you are not convinced yet, you should at least give these ones a listen. You’ll be hooked!

Another nice thing about “Super Powered Love”: The duo has had a semi-annoying habit of placing “secret tracks,” which appear after the album seems to end. (“Tony Stark” wound up being one of the best songs on their eponymous debut, if you listened long enough to find it.) Refreshingly, that’s not the case here. The bakers’ dozen tracks are it. And that’s more than enough.

Jerk-Bot is the robotic nom de plume of Utah-based movie reviewer and writer Jeff Michael Vice, who invites you to enjoy his other endeavors, for Xfinity’s Big Movie Mouth-Off review program, MSN’s Parallel Universe and MSN Movies, IN This Week magazine, X-96′s Radio From Hell, Geek Show Podcast and the Mediocre Show.

Until someone bootlegs it this is about all we are getting of The Avengers Teaser but it’s still enough to make me excited. If you haven’t seen Captain America this is a HUGE SPOILER. Otherwise enjoy

Thanks to http://www.slashfilm.com/

Since one of our “video game” robots Zombietron, the guy who loves his 3DS, seems to still be asleep like the lazy ass he is, I will go ahead and give you all the good news!

Starting on August 12, Nintendo will be dropping the price of the 3DS from $250 to $170!

“For anyone who was on the fence about buying a Nintendo 3DS, this is a huge motivation to buy now,”
– Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime

This may come as a surprise to some of you, to others, it may have been expected – I’m in the latter group. From the initial announcement of the 3DS I thought it was a pretty cool and immersive concept that they wanted to do with it, but felt that a $250 price tag was quite steep for a handheld gaming device. Couple that with a lackluster game line up and it’s not surprising Nintendo has seen less than impressive sales numbers from the 3DS (yes, I know “Ocarina of Time” was released on the platform, but one game can’t carry a pricey handheld gaming device such as this).

Between the launch of the 3DS in February and the end of their fiscal year on March 31, Nintendo had expected to see sales exceed 4 million, but reported in April that actual sales were at 3.61 million units. In the first fiscal quarter of this year (April-June) Nintendo saw 710,000 more units moved worldwide – only 110,000 of which could be attributed to US sales.

Prior to and after its launch, Nintendo reps remained adiment that $250 was a “bargain” for the 3DS and that once consumers realized the value of all that the device could do they would not have a problem shelling out this kind of money for a handheld gaming device.

In my usually-not-so-humble opinion (and Zombietron may jump in here later today and disagree with me) I believe that $250 has always been too steep of a price for a handheld gaming device – regardless of all the bells and whistles that Nintendo may have added to it. There is no doubt that the 3DS is a fantastic gaming platform with a lot of perks and interactivity to go along with it, but consumers are used to paying a bit less than $250 to get their gaming on the go. There was also the issue of a lack of quality gaming options released with the 3DS that seemed to keep many potential customers away. It’s hard to justify spending that kind of money on a gaming device if Nintendo hasn’t released enough titles to make it worth the cost.

This seems to be just the first step in Nintendo trying to boost sales of the 3DS. With the dropping of the price to a more reasonable $169.99 I think it is now more in the price-range of what handheld gaming consumers are willing to spend. Along with this price drop, gamers will also be happy to see that Nintendo has some big titles coming out for the 3DS over the course of the rest of the year including Star Fox 64 3D, Super Mario 3D Land, Mario Kart 7 and Kid Icarus.

With a better price-point for the 3DS, more big titles headed its way, and accounting for the fact that the holiday season is fast approaching I wouldn’t be surprised to see Nintendo see a big jump in 3DS sales like they are hoping. Prior to this price-drop I wasn’t even considering picking one up, but now I might be able to justify $170 to get my mobile gaming on.

Source: MSNBC

“Battleship” the board game: You use pegs to attack enemy ships.

Battleship the film: You use P.E.G. missles to attack aliens.

Sense: This film looks to make little.

Yes folks, it’s here. The most anticipated trailer of the summer. The trailer for Battleship, based on the classic board game. Somehow, Liam Neeson got roped into this film, so maybe there is something awesome about it we don’t know about yet. But then I look at the rest of the cast which includes Rihanna and go back to doubting it.

In any case, here is the first trailer for the film which does include Brooklyn Decker in a bikini – so that’s something I suppose. We also get, in an attempt to somehow tie elements of the game to the movie, a brief glimpse of the P.E.G. Missles . . . I think I may end up passing on this and wait for the Connect Four movie.

Official Synopsis

Peter Berg (Hancock) produces and directs Battleship, an epic action-adventure that unfolds across the seas, in the skies and over land as our planet fights for survival against a superior force. Based on Hasbro’s classic naval combat game, Battleship stars Taylor Kitsch as Lt. Alex Hopper, a Naval officer assigned to the USS John Paul Jones; Brooklyn Decker as Sam Shane, a physical therapist and Hopper’s fiance; Alexander Skarsgaard as Hopper’s older brother, Stone, Commanding Officer of the USS Sampson; Rihanna as Petty Officer Raikes, Hopper’s crewmate and a weapons specialist on the USS John Paul Jones; and international superstar Liam Neeson as Hopper and Stone’s superior (and Sam’s father), Admiral Shane.

Opening May 2012