Does our fair khaleesi got herself a brand new ... army?
Yes, folks. That time is almost upon us. For the Night is dark and full of terror ... and Winter is coming!
Oh. My.
And, yes, that was a dragon on a chain. Stop for a moment and allow the enormity of what you just saw to sink in. A muther-fucking dragon on a muther-fucking CHAIN!!!! How sick is THAT?
Now that is what I call a trailer full of awesome! I bet some of you were wondering how long it would take for me to finally descend into Game of Thrones lunacy here on the Bimillennial Man as with previous years. What with Season 3 just a mere two weeks away, you must have wondered what was taking so long.
Well, see, I was waiting for the right promotional material to come along. And now I think we can get this party started!
What do you fans think? Especially those of you who have not read the books? What do you think this season will bring? Sound off in the comments section below.
I can tell you this much, as a book reader:
This is the season all of us in the know have been waiting for. Yes. If you thought the previous two seasons were spectacular (and, pfft! Why wouldn't you?), then you have to realize that everything you've seen thus far was really just a nice warm-up for much greater things to come! The third book in George R. R. Martin's ongoing multi-volume opus is probably the one tome that defines the series best. It's a pure masterpiece, no debate about it. And so massive that it's going to take two full seasons just to cover it in its entirety!
Let that sink in while, like myself, you press the replay on that there video clip up above and bask in the greatness of HBO again, and again, and again . . .
And, besides leaving your impressions in the comments, if anyone should have any questions about the upcoming season (NO SPOILERS!!!), please ask them of me and I shall do my best to answer (NO SPOILERS!!!).
Sometime early last year I put together this blog entry regarding a crazy dude by the name of Toby Turner (aka, "Tobuscus") who goes around creating these wildly hilarious parodies of popular video game trailers. Back then I linked to the ones for Dead Island and Dead Space 2. This time, Tobuscus has tackled a game I've been highly anticipating for later this year, Hitman: Absolution.
Quick background. I first fell in love with this series back during Hitman 2: Silent Assassin's run on the Playstation 2. The last one in the series I played was Hitman: Blood Money, which was a fine achievement in video gaming I must say.
The main character of Agent 47--the bald-headed, barcode sporting, white-shirt-and-red-tie-wearing assassin extraordinaire--is one of the most iconic badass figures in modern gaming today, and even the feature film starring him wasn't all that bad. But Hitman: Absolution seems to be going to the next level. I mean, awesome does not even adequately encompass all that this game is looking to deliver! Here is one of the more recent trailers, which doesn't show any gameplay but which is a really cool setup to the story that is to come:
Now, as is his wont, Tobuscus went ahead and made his own parody--a literal translation, if you will, of the trailer you just saw. As usual with these I could not stop laughing. This is some good shit right here! Seriously, if you're a gamer or just like to laugh, do yourself a favor and check out both the original trailer above and the parody version below:
Yes, I'm fully aware that today is not in fact Monday. But seeing as how I just got back from taking a few days off, it feels like a Monday to my mind. And one's state of mind is really what's important, wouldn't you agree?
Since I was out of touch with the interwebs for the most part during this brief hiatus, I was surprised by a couple of new developments in movie land while I was away. One good, one bad . . . and one interesting little tidbit.
I will, of course, start with THE BAD first. And it's an infuriating bad for me:
3-D Can Go Suck A Big One!
Yes, I regret to say that G.I. Joe: Retaliation, the second installment in the live-action series, has become the latest casualty of the idiotic 3-D push by Hollywood execs. Now, let me see if I can get this straight. See, this movie was looking pretty awesome. As some of you may recall, I gushed about it right here on this blog a few months back. Unlike the first film which was an all-around turd, I actually thought this one was shaping up to be the movie us fans had been waiting for. But now we're going to have to wait a very long time to get our Joe fix. A lot longer, in fact.
Originally slated to appear in theaters next month, G.I. Joe: Retaliation has now been pushed all the way back until March of 2013 -- that's NEXT YEAR, folks!
WTF?
And why is this being done? All so that the movie--already filmed and in the can, mind you--can get retrofitted with a new 3-D transfer. That's right. A film that has already finished being made and which was damn near ready to see release in theaters will be shelved for nearly 9 months so that the film execs can slap a 3-D certificate on it and charge a buttload more money on ticket prices.
I got your NO-DEE right heeere!
There's some other mumbo-jumbo the film execs are mouthing to justify this stupidity, but honestly talking about it here is only going to make me angrier. So, if you really want to read all the little details, check out the full story by clicking on the link right here.
This is some BULL SHIT!!!
And now on to the INTERESTING tidbit I mentioned earlier:
There Can Be [Maybe] Only One [Remake]!
Now normally the news of one of my most beloved 80s movies being rebooted would fall firmly under the "FURIOUS HEATED HATRED OF A THOUSANDS SUNS" category here on The Bimillennial Man . . . but honestly I've had a while to deal with this news and the remake of the 1986 cult classic, Highlander, no longer infuriates me like it did over a year ago when I first learned of this. But, what I am intrigued about is the most recent news over who The Powers That Be may cast as their titular hero. None other than Mr. Van Wilder himself--Ryan Reynolds!!!
This news seems to have met with a lot of anguish and hostile resistance from Highlander fans and non-fans alike, but I actually like the idea. Why? Well, because I always felt the franchise could do better with a little more thought and effort--and, hell, MONEY--put into it. Now RR being in the movie doesn't automatically mean we'll get either of these three things, but it's a good start. He's a fairly well-known name and has been in some big time popular movies (Blade III, Wolverine, Green Lantern . . . Harold and Kumar Go To White Castle). And plus, I actually like Ryan Reynolds! He's played some cool roles, and can do both drama and action perfectly fine.
He may be Immortal, but does he have inside him blood of kings?
And if he brings a little bit of comedic timing to some of the scenes, so what? Ain't nothing wrong with a little humor. Even Christopher "heh heh, what kept you!" Lambert infused a little mirth into the original role. So bite me, people! I for one would love for this news to be true. Unfortunately, Mr. Reynolds has only shown a cursory interest in the role. He's a busy dude these days, so it's possible he won't be taking on the kilt and fake brogue of our noble hero after all. But he has read for the role, and for that I'm hopeful. You can click here to read more if you like.
And now for THE GOOD:
The Name's . . . Skyfall.
Finally! As a huge James Bond fan--and an even HUGER Daniel Craig as James Bond fan--I'm so happy that they've decided to release a trailer at long last for the next installment in the franchise, Skyfall. It's slated to hit theaters on November 9th later this year, but get your sneak peek below to tide you over until then:
Oh man, this is just what I need! I'm so thrilled by what I'm seeing so far. I love the two shots fired while crossing laterally across the room in a suit. How freakin BOSS is that? I'm especially excited because Javier Bardem has been cast as the baddie this time around. And also because the director is none other than Sam Mendes, of American Beauty, Jarhead, and Road to Perdition fame. While his mixed pedigree of films might give some cause to worry, I actually have great confidence in this guy's talents. Can't wait to see if I'm proven right! Looking at the trailer alone, I get the feeling that this will be an even darker installment than the last two Daniel Craig-starring Bond flicks were.
Sick of my endless promotion of this series yet? Heh, heh -- TOUGH TITTY, as my mom used to say, because I'm not! :)
And so I present to thee the latest awesome trailer to come out for the second season of Game of Thrones. This one comes by way of James Hibberd over at EW.com, and is called the "Seven Devils" trailer. You'll know why once you hear the song HBO's PR department chose for accompaniment to the amazing new footage we're seeing:
Wow, FANTASTIC! I love the close-up of Arya Stark, chopped hair and all, as she masquerades under her new secret identity this season as "Arry."
And that chilling promise Tyrion makes to Cersei is so damn cool and straight out of the second book:
“I will hurt you for this. A day will come, and your joy will turn to ashes, and you will know the debt is paid.”
I'm not going to say any more, but if anyone has questions about what you're seeing in this trailer, ask them in the comments section and I'll try my best to elucidate.
Oh, and in case you wanted to know, the song is "Seven Devils" by the indie group, Florence + The Machine. You can see the official music video by clicking here. It's a great song, in fact. Perfect for this trailer and the ongoing theme for the second season, I think.
Yes sir! A full teaser trailer for the 2nd season of HBO's Game of Thrones aired last night before the premiere of their new show, Luck. And here it is below for all your viewing pleasure:
(If the above clip is too choppy or cannot be viewed properly, click on this link for the YouTube version.)
How stoked are you now? If you're like me, then the answer is: FLLBBPT@$!#!!!! Oh, sorry about that. It's hard to talk when you're drooling so much. But BY THE SEVEN! That looked friggin AWESOME! I love how that sneaky fat eunuch, Varys, can't help himself from hinting at what's really going on behind the scenes of this continents-spanning game of power. But if he thinks Tyrion is one to be cowed or awed by such hintings, then the Master of Whispers has seriously underestimated the dwarf. Or has he?
Although this next season will only cover Book 2 (and perhaps even parts of Book 3, I hear), Varys' words in this trailer echo some pretty amazing plot turns that occur much later in the series. If you haven't read as far as Book 5 yet, not knowing what I'm referring to won't be a big deal. Although, I do have to say that inklings of the spy master's true role in all the political machinations afoot in this series has already been revealed in the first season. So it's probably no surprise to anyone that the bald fucker has more of a hand in things than someone of his station should. And if you've read Book 2 already, you know he and Tyrion will make for interesting "bed fellows" during the full-on shit storm to come this season.
Oh, trust me: It's going to be glorious! :)
Season 2 of Game of Thrones will air Sunday, April 1st, only on HBO!
So, I don't think I've talked about it much here . . . but I hated that live-action G.I. Joe film that came out 2 years back: The Rise of Cobra. It wasn't a spectacular fail of my 80s childhood by any means (I liked it a lot better than the Michael Bay Transformers movies, for example), but it still left a lot to be desired by this fan.
Well, looks like that might all be changing when the sequel hits theaters next summer. At least, going by the recently released trailer, that is. Check it out below for yourselves:
Whoa! I like! I like it very, very much. I don't know how this is possible, but in some ways this one little trailer alone is far better than the entire 2009 film. HOLY HELLS! And yes, yes . . . I know that Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is now in this as "Roadblock," and that all the talk is about Bruce Willis's surprise cameo as the original "Joe" -- General Joe Colton. That's all cool and all. And, in fact, Willis's delivery at the end of the trailer is just damn hilarious!
But forget all that! Do you know who I'm excited to see in this movie the most? My favorite ninja girl -- Jinx!
You spot her a few times in the trailer with the red blind fold. She's a scion of the famed ninja clan, the Arashikage, and is a disciple of the one and only "Blind Master" (played by the RZA, of all people) -- hence her "blind" fighting style, which I just think is the epitome of AWESOME!
I first fell in love with this character in the original G.I. Joe cartoon movie released back in 1987. She was part of the new rookie recruits known as the "Rawhides", trained by "Beach Head." In fact, one of my all time favorite scenes in the movie is when Beach Head gives her a hard time and tests her to see if she's got what it takes to join his team. Check out the clip below, which I'm sure will bring back tons of memories to you fellow 80s kids out there! :)
They just don't do animation this well anymore, do they?
And, oh how I love this scene! And from this point on, little 10-year old me was a die-hard Jinx fan! I would even dare say I had a huge crush on her. *blushes*
So, imagine how pleased I was to find out that the talented and beautiful French actress, Elodie Yung, would be playing her in the film. Are you serious? SCORE!!!! To be sure, I only know her previously from the movie, District 13: Ultimatum -- but she was one of the more memorable presences in that otherwise forgettable film.
Yeah, I think she might just work out fine!
G.I. Joe 2: Retaliation is currently slated for release on June 29, 2012 -- the weekend before Independence Day here in the States. I, for one, will be there opening day!
Eh? Not as strong a tagline as I would have liked, but I'll take it. Even if it was never uttered in the books. Anyway, THE DAY HAS ARRIVED. Finally, after so long a wait, the first teaser with any actual footage has been aired for the next season of HBO's Game of Thrones! It aired just before the season finale of Boardwalk Empire last night, and it was GLORIOUS!
Watch it for yourself below, and I'll comment afterwards:
“My brother left no trueborn heirs. By right, and birth, and blood, I do this day lay claim, To the Iron Throne of Westeros. Let all true men declare their loyalty. The Iron Throne is mine by right. They will bend the knee, Or I will destroy them. The cold winds are rising.”
Whoa! We only get to see a small amount of new footage, but it was enough to whet this fan's appetite. How about you?
I feel I need to provide a little context for what was just seen, though, as I think it might be difficult to follow for those who are not readers of the books. Or for those to whom the last season is a barely remembered blur. Heh, heh . . . it happens.
First off, the man you hear talking is Stannis Baratheon, younger brother to King Robert (who died in the first season), and older brother to Renly. Renly, if you recall, is the guy who served as King Robert's Master of Laws on the Small Council, and who urged Ned to seize the throne before Queen Cersei could place her illegitimate son on it. Ned, of course, refused and Renly fled King's Landing to marshal his own forces. Both he and Stannis lay equal claim to the Iron Throne now, under the pretense that the new King Joffrey was no seed of their brother Robert. The two younger siblings, in turn, hate each other and seek to eliminate their rival despite the blood they share.
Yeah, it's getting positively Shakespearean up in this piece!
Although it is Stannis's voice you hear doing the narration (acted by the talented Stephen Dillane), the first person you actually see in the clip is Renly Baratheon, astride a horse and wearing the stag crown of his noble house. The next scene--a night time one--shows Stannis himself, accompanied by his wife Selyse and a host of soldiers. These two are new to the show, and were never seen in the first season. Stannis was only ever mentioned by name on several occasions, including once during that now infamous grooming/blowjob scene between Lord Renly and his buddy, Ser Loras Tyrell--aka, the Knight of Flowers.
You remember THAT, now, don't you?
Next we get a series of one-shots featuring many faces you should all be familiar with by now. Of particular note is the quick shot of a short-haired Arya Stark, who should have a sizable role this season if they are closely following the book. Yay!
Pay particular attention to what you're hearing near the very end of the clip (at the 0:30 mark). That's three horn blasts from the top of the Wall. This is significant, if you don't know. One horn blast means a Ranger of the Night's Watch is returning from patrol beyond the Wall. Two blasts means a Wildling attack is imminent.
But three blasts . . . well, that means the White Walkers are approaching. *shudder*
Damn, this season is going to be BAD ASS! Are you as excited as I am?
So, if you are big into genre movies like I am, no doubt you've already heard the hooplah surrounding the new trailer for Marvel's The Avengers movie. It was just released earlier this week and geeks are going batshit crazy over it. And I'm one of 'em! The film releases next May and will showcase some of the big blockbuster names in the Marvel universe who have already had their own standalone movies prior to now: Iron Man, Thor, The Hulk, Captain America. Now imagine all that bad-assery teamed together in one flick. What do you get? A kick ass-o-pacalypse, that's what!!!!
So, yes, I'm am very geeked out at the moment. And if you want to check out the trailer and see what all the fuss is about for yourself, click here. May 2012 can't come fast enough!
But it got me to reminiscing about other movie trailers in the past that got me seriously amped up. Now, I'm not talking good movie trailers -- or even great ones. No, I'm talking FUCKING great movie trailers! These are the promos that, before I even really new what the movies were truly about, had me literally tingling from head to toe with excitement. Yeah, I know it sounds like hyperbole and all, but trust me--this really was my reaction to each and every one of these!
I'm going to embed clips of each movie's trailer below, followed by a brief explanation of why they--more than most--stand out to this day as key defining moments in my movie going experience. By now, of course, those of you who know me should know that I'm a huge movie buff. I own close to 800 DVDs and Blu-rays at home! It's positively SICK, I tell ya! But before they arrived on my shelves, I first had to have seen the movies in theaters. And before even that, first came the promotional trailers. This is what I wish to focus on here. These things can be works of art, I tell ya.
Perhaps you'll love Jason Momoa as this summer's Conan: The Barbarian?
Yup, they went and rebooted the Conan film franchise. You knew they would one of these days, though, right? I mean, really nothing is sacred in Hollywood anymore.
But you know what? As much as the fanboys of the original Arnie film from the early 80s are bitching over this . . . I have to say this upcoming version of Conan feels more like the source material to me. Well, hell, let me show you guys the trailer so you can see what I mean:
See, to me, this world looks and feels more like Robert E. Howard's Hyboria than the John Milius movie did. The Conan I know and love always had this Lovecraftian feel to it, which this trailer definitely evokes. And Momoa's take on Conan seems a lot more true to the original pulp stories than Arnie's could ever dream of matching.
Of, course all I've seen so far are trailers and tv spots, so it's quite likely this movie could end up being nothing like REH's Conan and more like the Arnie flick than I realize. But for now I'm willing to give it the benefit of the doubt that the filmmakers were smarter than to try and rip off Milius's movie.
I loved the 80s Conan films, don't get me wrong. But I'm not going to pretend I'm not interested in a new take. Yes, the effects look kinda like SyFy channel budget effects -- but I'm still going to be there in the theaters for this. Yes indeed.
I'm reposting this video of an earlier Game of Thrones teaser trailer simply to hear Old Nan's awesome voice-over as she tells Bran what it truly means that "Winter is coming!" If you remember, at the very end of my Episode 3 commentary roundup yesterday, I mentioned that the actress playing Old Nan recently passed away. Which is much to the anguish of many fans who, like me, thought she was just the most PERFECT person to play her. Her lines are only at the beginning of this clip, but it still sends goosebumps up my arm.
Also, I thought it would be nice for some of you who have already seen a few episodes to take a second gander at this trailer and notice how it's all starting to make sense now. Cool, eh? Almost every shot in here is from the first 3 episodes, which have already aired.
I'm still trying to find a clip of just the Old Nan scene in Bran's bedchamber. Just that one part alone and nothing else. Preferably with impeccable sound so that I can savor the rich timbre of the actress's amazing delivery. But so far I've been digging up blanks.
I always liked David Hyde Pierce as Dr. Crane's wacky little brother, Niles, on the hit tv show "Frasier." But never in a million years would I have ever pegged him for being the perfect replacement for Dr. Hannibal "The Cannibal" Lecter. No, he's not playing that iconic role in his latest upcoming movie, The Perfect Host -- but damn if he doesn't display the glimmer of a Tony Hopkins-esque functional psychopath here. Watch the film's excellent trailer below and tell me you don't see it:
What do you think? Couldn't he totally be Hannibal Lecter if they were to make another movie in that series? Not that I think they should, mind you. But wow, DHP, I'm impressed. And what an intriguing premise! I'm now completely psyched to catch this thriller. How about you?
Well, it's a slow week around these here parts. Baseball season has begun, and my Yanks are doing their thang rockin' the Bronx into the late hours of the night again. :) They just won three out of their first four games of the season. Here's hoping that, despite my severe misgivings about our pitching this year, that maybe just MAYBE we'll have enough to muscle our way to the top spot in the league again. I don't care how many power bats we have at the plate -- it won't mean dick without power on the mound as well. At least our bullpen is looking fairly decent, though. It's our starters I'm worried about. I smell a big trade coming up in the next month or so to help on that front, because as of right now we are sorely missing Andy Pettitte.
Anyway, I didn't come here to talk about baseball. Nope. Actually, hadn't planned on saying much at all. What I *did* come here for was to show off two new and exciting video clips. The first one is for the new Thundercats cartoon coming out on the Cartoon Network sometime later this year. I talked about this project two months ago here in this entry, and even showed a very rough teaser. But now they've just released an actual full-fledged trailer.
Now, I'm a little iffy on this. To me it looks and sounds good, sure. I like some of the nods to the original cartoon, but not so much some of the departures for some reason. It's interesting that Mum-Ra still looks pretty much the same, as does Jaga. But Lion-O is very different compared to his 80s counterpart. Slithe seems more bluish this time around, too. But as a massive mutant toad, I suppose he could go either way, right -- green or blue? The only major element missing from this trailer, though, is Panthro. Where the hell did he go? We know he's in the series thanks to the promotional art that's been circulating, but I guess he just didn't make the cut for this particular trailer. Oh well. You do, however, catch a glimpse of Snarf. Ugh! I hated Snarf. Luckily for me, it seems that he will be voiceless this time around. Just a sidekick/pet I'm guessing, rather than Lion-O's incessantly annoying nursemaid. Which, to be honest, was just straight up weird in the original series.
Ultimately I will have to wait and see with this. From the trailer, I'm not liking how it's implied that the entire race of Thundercats live on 3rd Earth -- rather than hailing from another planet called Thundera. Perhaps the original story was just too uncomfortably close to Superman's Kryptonian origins? I always thought this was so even back when I was an 80s kid watching this cartoon. But of course these days Superman is even more in people's faces, so it's kinda hard to ignore blatant ripoffs now without hordes of avid followers crying foul. Of course, it could be that the trailer is misleading. There could be more going on here than what we can assume. Like I said, we will have to wait and see.
In the meantime, the other big video I wanted to show off is, of course, the airing of the first 14 minutes from the premiere episode of HBO's Game of Thrones. It appeared this past Sunday night just before the 3rd episode of Mildred Pierce. I didn't watch it. Like I've mentioned before, I wanted to save the awesome for when the full episode airs on the 17th. But for those of you who don't care about such things, or who just want a glimpse to decide whether or not to invest in this show . . . here's the first 14 minutes for you to take a gander over:
(Please click here for the Youtube version if the above vid doesn't work or is too choppy.)
I'm hearing from a lot of sources that this first episode is beyond amazing! For those critics who have been privy to advanced screenings, some are saying that it is the best of the new crop of cable shows premiering this month. Meaning, it's better than even Camelot (no surprise there) and The Borgias (whoa!). A lot better, in fact. Hmm, I don't know. I've seen the first episodes now of both these shows, and they're only "okay." So it could be that Thrones doesn't have a high bar to hop over. Still, as a big fan, I am optimistic and do honestly feel that this show is going to surprise a lot of people.
If any of you are brave enough to check out the preview clip above, please voice your opinions in the comments section below. You don't have to worry about spoiling anything for me as I already know, story-wise, what's going on in this clip. But at the very least tell me if what you've seen so far is enough to make you want to watch the rest of the episode, and perhaps even the rest of the season.
Well those of you with subscriptions to the top premium cable channels, that is. I've already discussed here on numerous occasions the show I'm anticipating the most: HBO's Game of Thrones. But unfortunately this won't air for another two weeks. In the meantime I'd like to introduce you all to two other very HOT and SEXY new drama shows premiering over this very weekend on the Starz and Showtime networks.
First up to bat tomorrow night (April 1st) on Starz is Camelot, a reworking of the much familiar legend of King Arthur. Based loosely on Sir Thomas Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur, Camelot will be a graphic, bloody and explicit version of the tale as only paid cable television can bring to you. Have I mentioned yet how much I love my subscriptions to these three premium networks? Camelot stars relative newcomer Jamie Campbell Bower as Arthur Pendragon, and veteran actors Joseph Fiennes and Eva Green as Arthur's mentor, Merlin, and wicked half-sister, Morgan le Fay, respectively.
I actually got a sneak peak at the pilot episode of this show back on Feb. 25th, after the finale of another Starz show, Spartacus: Gods of the Arena. I went into it not expecting much I must admit. But, whoa! I was impressed. What little I saw was very promising, and I can now safely say that this is one of my more anticipated shows this year. I can't say, however, that I care too much for the dude playing Arthur. He might take some getting used to. And I'm actually not a big fan of Joseph Fiennes, although his alternate take on the legendary wizard and advisor, Merlin, here is somewhat intriguing.
Who I'm truly impressed with, however, is Eva Green as Morgan (aka, Morgana to some of you). I've had a HUGE crush on this French-British actress ever since her role as Vesper Lynd in the Bond flick Casino Royale several years back. She also stole my heart again in Ridley Scott's epic film on the Crusades, Kingdom of Heaven -- the director's cut of which has become one of my top 10 favorite movies of all time. Keep an eye out for her in this show. I predict she's going to steal it!
Next, airing this Sunday at 9 pm on Showtime, is yet another brand new and potentially awesome drama series: The Borgias. To my fellow historical buffs out there, I'm sure I don't have to explain who these people are or their notorious place in the annals of history. But for those of you not familiar with the name, the Borgias were a Spanish family headed by Rodrigo Borgia (portrayed in this show by the brilliant actor, Jeremy Irons) who, through shrewed intelligence, guile, bullying--not to mention various other deceitful and often illegal means--bribed and cajoled his way to the highest appointment in all the Roman Catholic hierarchy -- the Papal seat itself! The wicked rise and fall of this powerfully influential family in Italy is the stuff of many, many sordid books and movies. In fact, the true history is so made-for-drama perfect that it was a huge influence on Mario Puzo when he set out to write this little book you may have heard of called The Godfather. Yes, that book. It's not by accident, then, that the Borgias are known as "the original crime family." In many ways, their story is very much similar to the story of the major crime families that would someday make up the notorious collective we call today "The Mob."
I swear, the month of April could not be made up of any more WIN if it tried!
So, as I wait for Game of Thrones to air, this is what I will be keeping busy with, tv-wise. If you would like a glimpse into these two new series, simply check out the trailers below:
Even from this quick footage alone of what the season will bring on both shows, I think it becomes clear just what kind of quality drama we're getting here. You know, I used to always scoff at Showtime and Starz as being "wannabe" HBOs. But lately both networks have been stepping up their respective games in the original drama department.
Yup, I had a feeling this would happen . . . and I wasn't disappointed! Just before last night's airing of Big Love, HBO showed yet another new trailer from the upcoming tv show I've been driving you all crazy about these past couple of months.
Ooooh -- I think this is the best one yet! It shows you just how dark and gritty the source material can be at times. More focus is placed on the Wall, the Wildlings, and the Others (aka "White Walkers") to the North. But we also get glimpses of Winterfell, the Red Keep, Pentos -- and hey, a Varys sighting! He's the fat, bald-headed dude speaking to Ned at the 1:01 minute mark. Nicknamed "The Spider," Varys is the spy master to the King, collecting all the choice secrets and dealings going on behind the walls of the Red Keep and beyond.
And of course I'm loving Queen Cersei's devilish delivery of the line: "When you play the game of thrones you win . . . or you die!"
Aw hell. Just check out the footage for yourself already, dammit! :)
(Click here for the Youtube link if the above video doesn't work for you.)
"I'll kill them . . . Ned Stark, the King--the whole bloody lot of them!--until you and I are the only people left in this world."
And before I forget, here's the official poster for the show, released just a few days ago:
Fresh on the heels of what I erroneously called HBO's first full trailer for Game of Thrones last week . . . comes the actual and official full trailer! Hmm, I guess that previous one was just a glorified teaser, then. As you may recall, in that blog entry I broke down the footage to clarify some of the more important scenes we were getting glimpses of. Well, after watching this brand new trailer now, I see that the previous one was meant more for fans of the books as this one below seems to be more easy to follow for newcomers.
Feast your eyes on the new footage, then, and I'll provide my thoughts after the cut:
Click here if the above video doesn't work for you.
Okay, now normally I wouldn't want to keep bugging folks reading this blog about the same thing so often . . . but I just had to post up this vid of Toby Turner's (aka, Tobuscus) latest installment to his "Literal Trailers" line of promo parodies. This time he's poking fun at the most recent Dead Island trailer, which I first talked about just last week.
The gag behind Literal Trailers is that Toby takes the footage and music from the trailer, and then sings his own interpretation in the same melody to exactly what's taking place up on the screen -- in other words, a *literal* translation of the trailer. It's HILARIOUS!
But first off, before watching the literal version, refresh your memories by watching the original Dead Island trailer.
All set? Cool. Now watch Toby's version below:
I swear, it was SO hard for me to keep a straight face through this. I was in "literal" pain after it was over. OMG, was not expecting to laugh so much so early in the morning! My favorite part? "Prin-cess . . . of Persia" LOL! You have to be a gamer to get the reference, but it's so spot-on funny!
You know, I'm not so sure how humorous this would be to anyone else on second thought. But it was to me, and this is my blog, so therefore -- SUCK IT!
No, no. I don't mean that. You don't have to suck it, or even find the trailer funny. But if you do, and if you would like more where that came from, head on over to Toby's website. Or check out his "Tobuscus" site on Youtube, which collects all of his vids in one handy place.
I recommend taking a look at the literal trailer for the game Dead Space 2, also. Again, before watching it, you might want to first watch the original trailer for Dead Space 2 here. Then check out the Tobuscus version here. I think the Dead Island one is funnier, personally. But the DS2 one is pretty hilarious in its own right.
Well, I told you I would update you on more Dead Island news whenever it became available. And now there's word that I'm not the only who was seriously impressed by the trailer of the game, which I first discussed here. Word has it that some Hollywood execs were so impressed by the video--which quickly went viral upon its revealing--that they immediately put the game on the fast track for development as a movie despite next to nothing even being known about the title. Not only that, but they specifically want the movie to be a Memento-style zombie survival flick--all because the trailer is shown in reverse order and in spite of the fact that the game itself will not play out in this fashion.
Can I get a big WTF?
Damn, Hollywood execs! Are you really that hard up for ideas? Not only are you making a movie out of a game that hasn't even been released yet, but you're specifically asking for it to be in a style that was only dreamed up by the game's PR minds for the purpose of marketing only?
It's a bizarre world we live in, folks. If you'd like, you can read the full story over at IGN Movies.
And while we're mentioning IGN, who first brought us the original trailer for Dead Island, the "Rewind Theater" folks over there have already dissected said vid and pointed out some juicy tidbits some of you may not have noticed upon your first viewing. Or, in my case, the 30th viewing!
In any event, below is their dissection of the Dead Island trailer. I think it'll be worth your while to watch, simply because it shows you only how awesome the trailer really is! This is quickly becoming the breakout title of the year that I had no idea was coming out.
Earlier this week in my entry concerning Super Bowl TV ads, I offered up the tv spot for the upcoming Summer blockbuster event, Captain America: The First Avenger. If you recall, I was pretty pumped by what little was revealed of this new Cap flick in that 30 second teaser.
Well, the folks over at IGN.com have been so kind as to provide a sort of frame-by-frame analysis of what the video is actually showing us less astute fans. And by "less astute," I mean YOU!
Nah, I'm just messing with ya! If you're a hardcore comics reader, then none of this is news to you. Although you might just jizz yourself a little because of how *geeking* AWESOME this movie is shaping up to be.
Anyway, below is IGN's video, part of their "Rewind Theater" series. Sound off in the comments section once you're done watching and let me know what you think, okay?
Personally, I find the whole concept of the million-dollar Super Bowl commercial spot way overblown. I mean, they're good . . . but they're not that good. Still, every year I do something very un-Batista like when I'm watching the big Sunday game, and that's: not using the Tivo buffer to fast-forward past all the commercials. Fast-forwarding through the commercials is a time-honored tradition in the Batista household. It's been going on since we got our first Tivo box back in 2001. This is up there as one of the best inventions of all time! And ever since I've been unable to watch normal, un-DVR'd tv again.
But on Super Bowl Sunday I revert back to the prehistoric agony of the 1990s. I actually force myself to watch every single commercial break. Like I said, it's not because I think that Super Bowl ads are God's gift to television or anything. No, I do it just so I can stay abreast and relevant of pop culture. Because, invariably, some of these commercials will be the talk of the office for the next week or so.
Now, with all that in mind then, allow me to present what I personally thought were the Top 5 commercials that aired last night. That's 5 out of a whopping 68 unique commercial spots! Some of these aired for the first time in America, while others were leaked onto the Net a few days prior. The top spot, for instance, was released an entire week before the big game. Wow, talk about impatient! Or maybe they just knew they had hit a home run out the park with this one, and realized that it wouldn't hurt to generate a little pre-game buzz?
Whatever the case may be, listed below in descending order from great to superior are my Top 5 picks.
For those who don't know, Spike TV aired its annual Video Game Awards show Saturday night, this year hosted by none other than NPH himself -- Neil Patrick Harris! He and some of the other presenters flubbed up a few times, but all in all it was a decent show. I was a bit miffed that Heavy Rain wasn't even nominated for Game of the Year, though, despite the fact that the title which did win (Red Dead Redemption) was my very close runner-up for that particular honor. Seriously, though, Heavy Rain is the clear winner for me. I mean, DAMN I love that game!
Of course, the most important reason to watch the VGAs is for the exclusive sneak peeks at the upcoming big games of 2011. And in this category, Spike TV did not disappoint! A bunch of big trailers were shown--like Resistance 3, SSX: Deadly Descents, Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, Forza 4--and we also learned that Kratos will be playable in the next Mortal Kombat game, which is just off the chart AWESOME!
But to be honest, 3 particular trailers stood out for me above the rest. It helps, of course, that these are sequels to games I just absolutely adore, each representing in their own way what I consider to currently be the primo best titles in their respective genres and/or console platforms. I'm going to embed a clip of each teaser trailer for you to enjoy after the jump below, in ascending order of personal excitement. Even if you never played these games but are interested in gaming in general, you simply *must* check these out. Trust me on this.
