Doing the math, there’s about a month and 4 days until our heads are exploded by this film.

There’s no two ways about it, it looks incredible and it seems like Joss Whedon nailed it. They keep showing us one tiny little shot or two extra with every trailer and I know they’re still holding stuff close to their chest.

But simply put, this movie looks amazing. Just this 30 second spot brought a tear to my eye.

We recorded an episode of The Big Movie Mouth-Off tonight and there was some speculation that the bad guys could be the Titans of Thanos. But I don’t care who they are. This movie looks amazing.

Spider-Man has one of the best collections of villains ever concocted. Sure there are terrible ones, for every Scorpion, there’s a Hypno Hustler lurking around the corner. When it comes to A-listers though, Spidey has some really good opposite numbers. I wanted to spotlight my personal favorite today. Sure the Green Goblin usually gets top billing as Spidey’s #1 nemesis, but that didn’t happen until he decided to get all personal and murder Gwen Stacy. Before that, the Web-head’s best baddie was always considered to be the guy you see above. He of the bowl cut and multiple appendages, the one, the only Doctor Octopus!

As our story commences, Spidey is on a routine patrol when he comes across some nameless miscreants. Spidey makes such short work of them, that he laments his lot in life. He longs for a villain that can give him a run for his money. I guess that whole “power and responsibility” thing kind of slipped your mind there for a bit, Pete. At this point we leave the cocky web-spinner and cut to one of the many, many nuclear research facilities that existed in the early Marvel Universe. We’re introduced to a man named Otto who with a special harness can well, harness the awesome might of nuclear energy. This apparatus has already earned him the nickname of Dr. Octopus!

"So you see, you put the lime IN the coconut and drink them both together!"

As these things usually go, something goes horribly awry and Octavius is caught in a bit of an explosion. Taken from the wreckage, it is discovered that the good doctor is alive, albeit with a great deal of radiation absorbed into his body. If you think that means he’s slowly dying anyway, you’ve never read a Marvel comic! Welcome to the blog, by the way! Anyway, what the radiation actually does is fuse the arms to Otto’s body somehow. This is comics, we don’t need real science to explain awesome things! As it is, Ock’s brain is also been a bit addled. When he wakes int he hospital some time later, he assumes he is being imprisoned for his vast intellect. Because of this, he lashes out, and finds that the arms now respond to his mental commands rather than clunky analog controls. That’s right, Doc Ock has bluetooth arms, apparently! Of course being the fresh off the operating table maniacal genius he is, Doc Ock decides to just take over the whole damn hospital. Although he does it in a hilarious way.

Thank you Comics Code for keeping the door shut.

Meanwhile a the Daily Bugle, J. Jonah Jameson assigns Peter Parker to get some pictures of the scientist. All they know at this point is that no one is being admitted to the hospital. Actually, the whys and wherefores don’t matter. It’s a good excuse to get Spider-Man on the scene! When the titanic teen stumbles across Doc Ock hassling the staff and generally being a bad guy, he jumps through the window, itching for action! What follows is quite a heated battle that introduces many staples to the Doc Ock/Spidey mythos, such as Spidey getting punched by a tentacle and the hero subsequently webbing the arms up. Sadly for the webhead, the battle is not in his favor. In fact, Doctor Octopus makes such short work of the hero, he adds insult to injury by not even bothering to remember Spidey’s name…

At least he remembered the hyphen?

So, after this exchange, Doc Ock literally slaps Spidey around for a bit, and then tosses him out of the 3rd story window like so much garbage. This leaves Peter devastated, as this was his first ever defeat. His confidence is shaken so much, that he goes home as Peter, not Spider-Man. Meanwhile, Doc Ock takes this opportunity to leave the hospital before the police arrive. In the interval, he goes to yet another nuclear research facility (told you there were a lot), and takes it over as well. Thinking himself invincible, Octopus takes the time to gloat.

"Now to resume my vaguely threatening experiments in... RADIATION!"

Cut back to teenage Peter Parker who is being incredibly mopey just because he got his webbed behind handed to him. He goes through his daily routine of getting picked on in school. Not even the promise of the Human Torch coming to school to give a speech can rouse his spirits. In fact, if he wasn’t so mopey, he’d be on the verge of heckling the Torch, thinking it’s easy to exude confidence if you’ve never been defeated. As the Torch’s demonstration continues though, a chord is struck within Pete that truly galvanizes the young lad into action.

No snark here, just a great sequence by Ditko.

As soon as classes for the day end (Peter is responsible, after all.), Spider-Man gets ready to take the fight back to Ock. We even see the first use of the web-catapult to get Spidey past Doc Ock’s defenses. While inside the facility, though, surveillance devices track the web head’s every move. Using his innate cleverness and the trusty ‘ol spider-sense, he manages to evade detection and makes his way to the chem lab. Methinks our young hero has a clever plan.

"Wow! You really DO put the lime in the coconut!"

Spidey finishes his concoction just in time as he is then ambushed by Doc Ock. Using his newly created chemical formula, Web Head manages to fuse two of Ock’s arms together! Doctor Octopus is having none of it though, and still advances on Spidey, backing him into a wall. Worse yet, the arms that got fused together now give Ock a formidable club to smash spiders with! Spider-Man is running out of options, and decides to make a desperate gambit. He manages to web Ock’s glasses to his face, but the arms don’t need eyes to bludgeon the young hero, so that plan was a bit futile.  Ock gets the webbing off of his face and is about to deliver the coup de grâce. Spidey makes one last attempt to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat with his handy spider speed.

"Wow, if I had just HIT him, I could have avoided all of this unpleasantness!"

So, getting by with the skin of his teeth, Spidey wraps the unconscious Doc Ock in copious amounts of webbing and leaves him for the cops, because of course they’ll be able to handle him now that the dirty work is done. While Ock is defeated, this origin tale does a superb job in establishing that he is more than a match for the webbed wonder. In subsequent appearances, Octopus would go on to become a proto-Kingpin as the Crime Master, the de facto leader of the Sinister Six, among other things. Possibly the worst offense was when he very nearly became Peter’s new uncle when he wooed Aunt May. Currently, Ock is kind of a mess, with a debilitating disease leaving him a dying husk. That doesn’t have him down though, he still has the entire world in the palm in his hands with his current machinations.  Over the years, Doctor Octopus has been all over the map in terms of his place in Spidey’s pantheon of villains, but he’ll always be my number 1, thanks in most part to this story here.

This tale was originally printed in Amazing Spider-Man #3, July 1963. It has been re-published too many times to count, notably in Essential Spider-Man Vol. 1 and Marvel Masterworks: Spider-Man Vol. 1. It is also available digitally.

After a backlash from fans Lionsgate had stopped legal action against the Hunger Is Not A Game campaign that is using the publicity of the Hunger Games to do good and help people. Once again the internet wins and shows a corporation that it’s ok not to be a dick.

This is the first I had heard about any of this and I wish I had known that there were campaigns like this going on. Whenever something as big as The Hunger Games can be used to do good and not just rake in millions I like to follow and see how it’s being used.

Here is the press release from the Harry Potter Alliance that gives full details including a bit of a timeline of what has occurred.

Following Fan Outcry, Lionsgate Agrees to Allow “Hunger is Not a Game” Campaign to Continue Boston, MA – On Thursday March 22, just one day after The New York Times ran a positive piece on the real-world hunger campaign, Hunger is Not a Game, Lionsgate, the movie studio that produced The Hunger Games sent a letter, which demanded that the campaign end immediately. In response, members, fans, and press alike expressed their outrage at such a demand and called for Lionsgate to reconsider. “Hunger is Not a Game” is working during the month of March to energize Hunger Games fans to work toward making a dent in real-world hunger in conjunction with the release of the movie. The campaign includes signing Oxfam’s GROW pledge to fight food injustice, planning community food drives and educating members on systematic causes of hunger throughout the world. When fans heard about the letter it was clear that they wanted the studio to reconsider. Within the next day a petition was posted on Change.org with that intent, gathering 10,000 signatures in less than 24-hours and reaching a total that surpassed 18,000. Prominent journalists, best selling authors, and social media savants expressed their support for the campaign, amongst them Judd Apatow and Eli Pariser of MoveOn.org. “We fans are not mere consumers. We are engaged citizens who take the messages of the stories we love seriously,” Harry Potter Alliance (HPA) Executive Director Andrew Slack said. “We believe that we can embody those messages to help individuals and communities across the world.” On Friday night, just hours after Change.org launched its campaign, the LA Times reported that Lionsgate had rescinded, stating that they had no plans on pursuing legal action and that no further request to stop the campaign would occur. The campaign is continuing its last week of activities while Slack continues conversations with Lionsgate on how to work more effectively together in the future. “While the incident with Lionsgate was a harmless misunderstanding, it is reflective of larger issues,” Slack continued. “We have been hoping for a year and a half to receive positive and cooperative dialogue from Warner Bros. on the questionable practices of their chocolate licensee, Behr’s. Though an independent report demonstrates that Harry Potter chocolate may have cocoa that comes from child slaves. Warner Bros has chosen to answer tens of thousands of concerned fans with silence. We hope the incident with Lionsgate could be a teachable moment for all studios around respecting when fans stand up for children’s rights.”

 

I was very wary of the new Muppets film, but when it came out, I was completely won over. Jason Segal proved that he really understood the characters and the world and helped created a movie that appealed to Muppet Fans new and old alike.

From my original review of the film:

Segel and crew did an amazing job replicating the feel of the old Muppets at the same time making it feel relevant. The entire movie is adorable and sacharine sweet and puts a smile on your face the whole damn time. In fact, the opening song (Life’s a Happy Song) puts that smile on your face and you never lose it through the whole movie.

It’s just that perfect.

And did I mention the music is fantastic? New songs were written by Bret McKenzie of Flight of the Conchords fame and you can tell. They’re all fantastic but the solos he gives Chris Cooper and Amy Adams stand out more amongst a crop of stand outs.

And did I mention that it’s funny? I don’t think I’ve laughed this hard in a movie in a long, long time. But it wasn’t just me laughing, my kids were dying, too. It mastered the all-ages comedy bit in a way that I thought only Pixar was capable of.

My only complaint about the film? Mickey Rooney had more lines than Rizzo the Rat. That’s it. That’s the only thing I found odd about this film.

After repeated viewings of the film in the theatre, and a purchase of the soundtrack, I counted the days before my copy of the Blu-ray would arrive. It wouldn’t have mattered if there were no special features of any kind, I really just loved this film and couldn’t wait to watch it more.

But, for this Blu-ray edition of the movie, they really pulled out all the stops. From behind the scenes documentaries and deleted scenes to hilarious intermissions and sight gags galore, they made this one of the most must have Blu-ray discs in the history of the format.

The behind the scenes documentary is partly the real thing, but it’s mainly performance comedy. It’s more Muppets doing their thing: being hilarious and entertaining.

The deleted scenes were shocking. I can’t believe how much hilarious material was actually cut from the film. More than that, I had a hard time believing how many celebrity cameos they cut. Billy Crystal, Rob Cordry, extended cameos with other celebrities…  I can see the delicate balance they were walking, though. The film was perfectly paced the way it was, would the extra cameos bog it down or slow down the pacing? Certainly. But that’s why I’m glad we have this Blu-ray edition. Now I can have my cake and eat it, too. The cameos are available to watch and the film doesn’t suck because of them.

Perhaps my favorite feature of this Blu-ray is the pause button.

Go ahead, dig your Blu-ray out and pause the film.

Yes, that’s right. You’re treated to another show. There must be as much new Muppet material on this disc as there is of the movie proper, and it couldn’t be more welcome.

When you add in a free download of the soundtrack (granted, I already bought it, but it’s a nice bonus) and a digital version of the film, this Blu-ray is a must.

The price comes in at around $26 on Amazon and it’s more than worth it.

A new animated series revolving around Batman is set to hit the airwaves later this year as part of Cartoon Network’s DC programming block. The show, titled Beware the Batman, will mark the first series featuring the world’s greatest detective in CGI form. There will also be changes to some of the characters, including making Alfred an ex-secret agent. I’d imagine a change like this is made to make Alfred more “capable” of playing a larger role in Batman’s more dangerous adventures. It’s quite the change, but a change that I think could hold some unique possibilities for this take on Batman.

Of course, there have been several incarnations of the Dark Knight in animated series form, but none better that Batman The Animated Series – though I quite enjoyed the camp and humor of Batman The Brave and the Bold. I will definitely be tuning in to check out this latest, and apparently “darker” version!

A cool, new take on the classic Dark Knight franchise, Beware the Batman incorporates Batman’s core characters with a rogues gallery of new villains not previously seen in animated form. Along with backup from ex-secret agent Alfred and lethal swordstress Katana, the Dark Knight faces the twisted machinations of Gotham City’s criminal underworld led by the likes of Anarky, Professor Pyg, Mister Toad and Magpie. Produced by Warner Bros. Animation, this action-packed detective thriller deftly redefines what we have come to know as a “Batman show.” Featuring cutting-edge CGI visuals to match the intricate twists and turns of the narrative, Batman steps out of the shadows and into the spotlight for an entirely new generation of fans. With WBA’s Sam Register executive producing, and Batman Beyond’s Glen Murakami and Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated’s Mitch Watson producing, Beware the Batman, based on characters from DC Comics, is coming soon to Cartoon Network!

Yeah that’s news now, that’s happening. Wait… perhaps I should elaborate on this.

Alright to anyone who was a fan of the 2004 hit comedy “Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgandy” starring Will Ferrell, and has waited eight years to get more, congratulations a sequel was announced tonight. If you are yet unfamiliar with the movie I invite you to go to your nearest DVD or BLURAY retail location and by it, not to go check it on IMDB, not to get it from netflix, just go buy it, it’s worth it.

Now you may ask where was it announced, like in a press conference with studio heads present? No. Well was it announced as a teaser trailer sent with prints of “Mirror Mirror”? Nay. Will Ferrell in character as Ron Burgandy announced it on Conan tonight. Boom.

Check it out here.

“>Anchorman 2 Announcement

And the rest is silence.

I am Alive is a rarity in the gaming world, one that tries to scare me, not with monsters, but three generic bad guys and a single arrow for my bow. This simple game has a crazy way of giving me more anxiety than most horror titles. It deals out these moments of vulnerability through the use of one of the most primitive and effective tools in gaming, limits. By giving the player limits you force them to think through problems that most games in this generation simply allow you to shoot through. By giving you incredibly limited amounts of ammo, supplies, health, and even strength you can create games like this, ones that make you cautious to go across a street.

This game starts with your character, Adam, arriving home in search of his family after spending a year crossing a post apocalyptic united states on foot. The world is a collection of mostly climbable disheveled ruins occasionally shrouded in a poisonous dust. The decrepit state of the world is blamed on what is only vaguely called the event. You learn during the opening stage that your character is quite the climber but that his stamina is like most men, limited. You must manage your characters efforts correctly in order to survive, anything but standing and walking depletes your stamina which will only regenerate when you stop running, climbing, jumping, or in a lot of cases holding on for dear life. Simply standing in the toxic fog covering the city streets will also peck away at your stamina. An anxiously paced soundtrack can be heard growing stronger in the game like the cold fingers of death tickling your spine as your stamina depletes. You can keep climbing after your stamina is gone, but this extra effort comes at a high cost; for every second that you over exert yourself, your ability to keep stamina in reserve will be decreased. Doing this will likely force you to use items which could have been used at more life threatening moments in the future or to save dying victims and citizens you come across throughout the game. But with so much thought being put into the climbing and physical exertions of simply traveling through the ruined city of Haventon, the question springs to mind, How do you fight?

Climbing Mechanic: Strong

Two of the most important principles you’ll need to understand to survive in this game are your distance to target, and the ability to bluff. The Fallout 3 rejects that are your only enemies throughout the game really seem to hate your guts, they will kill you on sight just to lay claim to a bottle of water or some delicious rat meat. Your tools for survival against the redneck remnants of Haventon will consist of a Machete, a pistol, and a bow and arrow (one arrow). The machete is only good for a surprise attack or a one-on-one fight, anything else spells death. The pistol can easily become a paperweight if your quick on the trigger from playing too much Call of Duty, as you will rarely have even four bullets at your disposal. But the gun has a feature in this game that is rarely if ever used in gaming, intimidation. Just pointing your gun will stop most enemies dead in their tracks, this is so rare in games that is at first utterly baffling; your enemies don’t want to die. There are tough guys though who, even at gunpoint, talk like they’re bulletproof, prove these morons wrong or you will die. You can bluff these enemies with an empty gun if it’s all you’ve got, but you better have a plan that doesn’t include trying to fire an empty weapon (it won’t go well). And your bow is by far the best weapon, quiet, long range, intimidating, and the most important thing is that you can reclaim a used arrow. Using these weapons and their strengths in concert is vital to surviving in this game.

Combat Mechanic: Strong

Story is by far the weakest link in this game, usually I consider this a deal breaker, but in this case it can feel a lot like less may be more. The story feels honest most of the time, since you play a decent guy, it’s reasonable that you get caught up in helping people, which is a grand majority of the story. Unfortunately, finding your family is put on the back burner for most of the game, which makes you wish that nice guy Adam would try prioritizing more. It also makes me ask how did this guy get across the entire country in a year, if all he’s doing is bailing people out with his time and supplies.

Story: Weak

If my review for I Am Alive reads more like a strategy guide, there is a reason for that. Strategy is all this game is, after every ordeal you will find yourself repeating the title in your head, “I Am Alive!”. This game succeeds in building an appreciation for resources, more than any game in recent memory, and is a must have for any survival game fan.

9/10

Obviously I want to hear other opinions so dish’em out. And by the way if you disagree with me, that’s ok, it’s not a contest. I’m just right.

Looking forward to the remake of Total Recall? Well you’ll be able to catch the world premier of the trailer this Sunday on ABC during the NBA game between the Boston Celtics and the Miami Heat! For all of you out there that don’t like basketball, the NBA, or just sports in general you’ll be able to catch an extended version of the trailer over at apple.com/trailers shortly after it airs on ABC. Not really sure why there is such a big todo over debuting this sci-fi trailer during a professional basketball game, but I also seemed to miss the apparent connection when the Green Lantern film was doing promos with the NBA last year. A commercial splicing scenes of the Green Lantern film and footage of Kobe Bryant making a jump-shot . . . Why?

In any case, keeping with the new(ish) trend of showing teaser trailers for trailers, you can check out a quick look at what to expect from the full trailer coming later this week below!

WORLD PREMIERE OF “TOTAL RECALL” TRAILER THIS SUNDAY DURING CELTICS-HEAT GAME ON ABC

Moviegoers will begin their Recall experience on Sunday, April 1, as Columbia Pictures debuts the trailer for the highly anticipated action thriller Total Recall during the NBA game between the Boston Celtics and the Miami Heat broadcast nationally on ABC, it was announced today by Marc Weinstock, president of Worldwide Marketing for Sony Pictures. Total Recall will be released in theaters nationwide on August 3, 2012.

The world premiere of the Total Recall trailer will air during the first half of the game and will be promoted with tune-ins in the week leading up to the game.

Following the trailer’s premiere on ABC, a special extended trailer will debut online at www.apple.com/trailers.

The trailer will also launch simultaneously in over 30 countries on broadcast and online outlets.

Commenting on the announcement, Weinstock said, “We’re thrilled to be working with the NBA and ABC to give millions of fans all across the country this exciting first look at the trailer.”

Total Recall is an action thriller about reality and memory, inspired anew by the famous short story “We Can Remember It For You Wholesale” by Philip K. Dick. Welcome to Rekall, the company that can turn your dreams into real memories. For a factory worker named Douglas Quaid (Colin Farrell), even though he’s got a beautiful wife (Kate Beckinsale) whom he loves, the mind-trip sounds like the perfect vacation from his frustrating life – real memories of life as a super-spy might be just what he needs. But when the procedure goes horribly wrong, Quaid becomes a hunted man. Finding himself on the run from the police – controlled by Chancellor Cohaagen (Bryan Cranston) – there is no one Quaid can trust, except possibly a rebel fighter (Jessica Biel) working for the head of the underground resistance (Bill Nighy). The line between fantasy and reality gets blurred and the fate of his world hangs in the balance as Quaid discovers his true identity, his true love, and his true fate. The film is directed by Len Wiseman. The screenplay is by Kurt Wimmer and Mark Bomback and the screen story is by Ronald Shusett & Dan O’Bannon and Jon Povill. The producers are Neal H. Moritz and Toby Jaffe.

ABOUT SONY PICTURES ENTERTAINMENT

Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) is a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, a subsidiary of Tokyo-based Sony Corporation. SPE’s global operations encompass motion picture production, acquisition and distribution; television production, acquisition and distribution; home entertainment acquisition and distribution; worldwide television networks; digital content creation and distribution; operation of studio facilities; development of new entertainment products, services and technologies; and distribution of entertainment in more than 142 countries. Sony Pictures Entertainment can be found on the World Wide Web at

http://www.sonypictures.com

Marshall has gone and created the most bad ass mini fridge on the planet. With authentic logos and facing as well as control knobs that go to 11 you really can’t find a better fridge for your office/dorm/Nerdorium/everywhere because it’s that cool. It has your standard features; 4.4 cu ft. of space, can storage, and is Energy Star compliant.

I reached out to Marshall and they told me they have been contacted by a number of Hollywood producers who want to put the fridge in their productions. I can see this thing feeling right at home in Tony Stark’s garage/machine shop.

If you want one you’ll need $299 and patience to wait until October 1st. Until then check out their site and enter to win one. 

It’s always good news to find out that there is new material from Kurt Vonnegut to be read and today Rosetta Books released a 20,000 word novella entitled “Basic Training” from the author.

It was written in the 1940s while Vonnegut was still working at General Electric and he was trying to make it as a writer. This predates his first novel, Player Piano, by quite a bit.

His family has acknowledged that the novella is autobiographical and he tried selling it to magazines in his day.

You can pick it up for the Kindle for $1.99.

I’ll be sure to let you guys know what I thought when I’m done reading it.

If you’re a Vonnegut fan, you might be interested in the book of stories and essays I put together and published. Each essay and story was inspired by or about Vonnegut.

It’s called God Bless You, Mr. Vonnegut and you can catch it for The Kindle or the Nook.

I’d like to hear from you guys, though. What’s your favorite Vonnegut novel? Have you ever even read a Vonnegut novel?