Chris Hardwick's Blog, page 1926
October 22, 2017
Bring the Sugar for THOR: RAGNAROK with Mjolnir Candy Apples
We are only a couple of weeks away from Thor: Ragnarok, and if the early reviews are any indication, Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) fans will not be disappointed (you can read our review here). Marvel wants you to be just as excited as they are, so they are helping you get ready for both the God of Thunder and Halloween with tasty looking Mjolnir candy apples.
Now, while seeing it done in a video and doing it in real life usually aren’t the same thing (ask anyone that tries to follow along with a Bob Ross tutorial), this candy apple recipe looks simple enough that even Volstagg would take a few minutes to prepare them before chowing down. The hardest part looks to be making sure the color of the melted candy wafers matches that of the gray icing to give Mjolnir the right, metallic look. If it doesn’t though, who cares? It’ll give your treats some character and give your party goers something different–much like director Taika Waititi is doing with the film (see what we did there?).
You can get the full recipe for these great looking treats on Marvel’s website. Thor: Ragnarok, starring Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Tessa Tompson, and Cate Blanchett, opens in theaters on November 3.
Will you be sneaking these awesome looking snacks into the theater? What other classic Marvel accessories or weapons would you like to turn edible? Let me know on Twitter @donnielederer or sound off in the comments below.
Images: Marvel
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Tested Made an Incredibly Creepy STAR WARS BATTLEFRONT II Costume
Despite interstellar travel, medical advancements, and the ability to control what’s essentially “space magic,” the Star Wars universe is seriously plagued by a blind spot in how to convey messages. Hyperdrive? Easy. Laser weaponry? No big whoop! Droids with AI so advanced it’s like they have souls? Done! And yet the concept of email has never come up.
This is actually a good thing though because we get characters like Palpatine’s Messenger droid from EA’s upcoming Star Wars Battlefront II. And with that, we get this incredible cosplay of the droid created by Tested.
Ignoring the fact that no Skype call should ever be so darn ambulatory, this Sentinel droid exudes the creepiness required for any message Palpatine would ever need to convey. While the character looks to be holographic in the game, the Tested team was able to nail the look with practical effects instead of going digital. A Palpatine mask was created for their cosplayer to wear under the custom helmet equipped with LEDs that cast light in such a way to recreate the projected look of the droid.
It should come as no surprise that Tested has such a knack for creating cosplay items as it’s something they tend to do fairly often. Plus, this isn’t their first rodeo alongside EA for Battlefront II. Back in July, they recreated Iden Versio’s helmet in order to present it to the character’s mo-cap and voice actor, Janina Gavankar, actress at San Diego Comic-Con.
What’s your favorite Tested creation? Have their videos helped your own cosplay in some way? Let’s discuss in the comments below!
Images: Tested/EA
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It’s Official: Fidget Spinners Were Meant for Space
Marine fighter pilot, aquanaut, and NASA astronaut Randy “Komrade” Bresnik has taken some astounding photos and videos aboard the International Space Station (ISS) since his tenure there began in July. He’s nailed perfect spacewalk selfies, as well as shared some unique looks at what it’s like to eat a floating meal. But nothing tops Bresnik’s latest video of a spinning fidget spinner in space. The video not only showcases Newton’s laws of motion, but also how badass astronauts can immediately revert back into goofy kids if you give them a toy and some microgravity.
The ISS fidget spinner video, which comes via Sploid, was posted to Bresnik’s Twitter account with the caption “A fidget spinner in space! How long does it spin? I’m not sure, but it’s a great way to experiment with Newton’s laws of motion.” It’s also apparently a great way to pass the time between lighting spacecraft on fire and planning secret escapes.
Bresnik notes in the post that “Allowing the fidget spinner to float reduces the bearing friction by permitting the rate of the central ring and outer spinner to equalize, and the whole thing spins as a unit.” This is even cooler when you realize that the microgravity aboard the ISS is due to the fact that it’s falling at 17,500 miles per hour around Earth, and it’s that constant falling that causes everything to float far more than the craft’s distance from Earth.
Below are a few of Bresnik’s Instagram posts, which display other objects floating aboard the ISS in a similarly surreal manner.
A post shared by NASA Astronaut Randy Bresnik (@astrokomrade) on Oct 14, 2017 at 2:23pm PDT
Bresnik shows off some floating pudding and chocolate sauce.
A post shared by NASA Astronaut Randy Bresnik (@astrokomrade) on Sep 18, 2017 at 2:51pm PDT
Balloon animals Bresnik made for his children.
What do you think about this video of a fidget spinner in space? What anxiety-reducing toy do you want to see launched into orbit next? Give us your thoughts in the comments below!
Images: NASA Johnson
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Stephen King Says THE DARK TOWER TV Series Will Be a Complete Reboot
Last summer, The Dark Tower came and went at the box office. Unfortunately, the tepid response it received may have doomed plans to turn Stephen King‘s epic novel series into a multi-film franchise. However, there is still hope that The Dark Tower could live on as a television series. But if that happens, it’s going to get a fresh start.
While speaking with Vulture, King indicated that previous plans to tie The Dark Tower TV series to the films have apparently been abandoned. “The TV series they’re developing now, we’ll see what happens with that,” said King. “It would be like a complete reboot, so we’ll just have to see.”
If The Dark Tower television series is now going to be a full reboot, it probably means that we won’t see Idris Elba reprise his role as Roland Deschain in the framing sequence, as it was originally planned. For the better part of the last decade, the TV spinoff was described as a chronicle of Roland’s early years as a Gunslinger, while the potential movies were intended to handle the bulk of the story from the novels.
Ultimately, this could turn out to be for the best. Fans of The Dark Tower novels were frustrated by some of the changes that were made for the movie. It was inevitable that certain characters and subplots would be dropped for the big screen, but if The Dark Tower TV series is free to tell the story at its own pace, it could potentially be a much deeper and more satisfying adaptation. Ideally, the show would downplay the young Roland stories and just start with The Gunslinger before going on from there.
How would you like to see The Dark Tower‘s potential television adaptation play out? Let us know in the comment section below!
Images: Columbia Pictures
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The Most Popular DUNGEONS AND DRAGONS Race and Class Combos
The Elven Ranger. The Dwarf Fighter. The Half-Orc Barbarian. The Halfling Rogue. Anyone who has played Dungeons & Dragons for long enough starts to see certain race/class combos come up time and again. But how popular are they really?
Now we know.
In August, Wizards of the Coast introduced D&D Beyond, a new online tool that compiles the game’s 5th Edition rules together in one place and allows users to easily create characters online. Best of all, much of the content is totally free, so lots of people have already signed up.
Lucky for us, Wizards of the Coast and Curse, the developer of D&D Beyond, decided to share their first month’s worth of data with FiveThirtyEight. They analyzed the race/class combos to see which are popular and which are rare. While many of the classic combos are indeed chosen frequently, there are a few surprises.
Humans are the most popular race by far, accounting for just over a quarter of all characters created on D&D Beyond, likely because of that sweet +1 to all ability scores Humans get in 5th Edition. Human Fighters make up almost 1/5 of that, or about 5% of all characters.
At the other end, the least popular race/class combo is the Aasimar Ranger, representing 0.06% of all characters. Not terribly shocking, since the Aasimar’s divine heritage makes them better suited for Paladins (0.43%) or Clerics (0.27%).
For long-time D&D players, the biggest revelation might be the popularity of the long-overlooked Half-Elf, who made up more than 10% of all characters, behind only Humans and Elves. Also of note: their most popular class combo is the Half-Elf Bard (1.8%), a good fit for the race’s +2 Charisma bonus.
The data shows some classic combos have fallen. The Rogue is now only the fourth most popular class for the infernal Tieflings, who now lean heavily toward Warlocks (2.2%) and Sorcerors (1.1%). Gnome Bards are far less popular than Gnome Wizards (Illusionists, perhaps?) (1.4%) and Rogues (0.6%). And that classic tank of yore, the Dwarf Fighter, is now a close second (2.0%) to the Cleric (2.2%).
On the other hand, some iconic combinations remain popular, including the Elf Ranger (3.1%), the Half-Orc Barbarian (1.7%), and the Halfling Rogue (1.8%). The more things change, the more they stay the same.
How does your favorite race/class combo stack up? Is it among the most popular, or is as rare as a Half-Orc Sorceror? Let us know in the comments!
Images: Wizards of the Coast
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Stitching THE WALKING DEAD Together With Classic Movie Posters
This weekend, The Walking Dead‘s eighth season will begin with the 100th episode of the series. To celebrate the occasion, zombie guru and executive producer Greg Nicotero commissioned a series of Walking Dead mash up posters that re-imagined the heroes and villains from the show with iconic images from cinema history.
Via The Hollywood Reporter, Nicotero recruited Michael Broom and John Wheaton from his special effects company, KNB, to bring this unexpectedly awesome series of posters together. One of our favorites turned the Xenomorph imagery from Aliens into something more appropriate for this show.
A post shared by Greg Nicotero (@gnicotero) on Sep 7, 2017 at 12:13pm PDT
(Although you being a zombie doesn’t prevent others from hearing you scream. Unless you’re conscious and screaming on the inside? Jeez. Dark.)
At this point, the survivors are probably wishing that they had a time machine to go back and prevent the zombie apocalypse. Therefore, Rick and Carl became Doc Brown and Marty McFly in this Back To the Future-inspired image.
A post shared by Greg Nicotero (@gnicotero) on Sep 2, 2017 at 12:10pm PDT
Somehow, I don’t think we’ll ever get tired of evoking The Thing‘s visually striking poster either.
A post shared by Greg Nicotero (@gnicotero) on Sep 28, 2017 at 4:50pm PDT
While the other posters seem obvious in retrospect, this Thunderball mash up was both a nice surprise and a great callback to an iconic Bond film.
A post shared by Greg Nicotero (@gnicotero) on Sep 17, 2017 at 5:10pm PDT
If there is ever a remake of The Omega Man, this poster casts its vote for Norman Reedus’ Daryl Dixon to take the lead.
A post shared by Greg Nicotero (@gnicotero) on Sep 22, 2017 at 5:08pm PDT
You can find more of The Walking Dead movie mash up posters on THR. The season premiere of The Walking Dead will drop this Sunday, October 22 on AMC.
What did you think about these TWD mash ups? Let us know in the comment section below!
Images: Michael Broom and John Wheaton
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October 21, 2017
Watch the Trailer for Krysten Ritter’s Thriller Novel, BONFIRE
Most of us know Krysten Ritter as Jessica Jones, the B in Apartment 23, or Jesse Pinkman’s doomed girlfriend on Breaking Bad. And while she’s proven time and again to be a stellar actor, you might not know that she’s also an author. Her first book, Bonfire, is a psychological thriller about long-hidden secrets and corporate greed and corruption. Entertainment Weekly has released her book trailer that features some pretty impressive endorsements for her book alongside of Ritter’s own narration. It sets the scene for a truly chilling book. Take a look:
If that trailer piqued your interest and you want to sneak a peek at the book, EW also has an excerpt posted on their site. But suffice it to say, if you dug any of Gillian Flynn‘s books, you’re going to like Bonfire. Ritter does a great job of creating a web of a story that sucks you in while addressing the dark parts of everyone’s past. Abby Williams is also a protagonist that you can’t help but root for.
Bonfire hits bookstores everywhere on November 7, and Ritter will go on a book tour in the US to promote the book. You can check out the Penguin Random House website to see if she’ll be stopping at a city near you. Of course, if she isn’t, you can always pre-order the book, and get yourself a signed bookplate instead.
Are you going to be picking up Ritter’s book? What are some other thrillers we need to add to our shelves? Let us know in the comments!
Feature Image: Marvel/Netflix
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TALES FROM THE CRYPT Theme Gets a Metal Cover for Halloween
It’s been far too long since the Cryptkeeper’s chilling laughter burst forth from our TV screens. But with Halloween just around the corner, Danny Elfman‘s classic theme for Tales From the Crypt has received a new metal cover, courtesy of Eric Calderone (a.k.a. Erock).
Back in the early days of HBO’s original programming, Tales from the Crypt stood out as the only horror series on television that didn’t censor itself or hold back. John Kassir’s performances as the Cryptkeeper were always ghoulishly entertaining, and it was ridiculously fun to see so many big name stars make guest appearances on the series before meeting deliciously ironic and gory fates.
Several of Tales from the Crypt‘s stories were based upon the classic EC horror comic books that were infamously banned during the ’50s. Think of the show as a Twilight Zone riff without all of the morality lessons. Amazingly, none of the attempts to reboot Tales from the Crypt as a TV series have been able to rise from their graves. Even M. Night Shyamalan‘s attempt to revive the show at TNT ran into fatal complications. The last two reboot attempts would have actually left out the Cryptkeeper entirely. That would probably have been a mistake, but it would be pretty amusing to watch an episode about the Cryptkeeper getting his revenge on modern Hollywood executives!
To hear more music covers by Calderone, visit Metalyze.com or check out his YouTube channel.
What did you think about the new Tales From the Crypt cover? Rock out in the comment section below.
Images: Warner Home Video
A Nintendo Switch Knockoff That Can Play Basically All Retro Games
The Nintendo Switch seems to be selling pretty darn well, and yet, there are some people who still seem unable to get their hands on one. Maybe that’s why a guy named Tim Lindquist decided to build one of his own, although he took a decidedly different approach to his version of the console, one that will please retro game enthusiasts (via Gizmodo).
This summer, Lindquist designed and built what he oh-so-cleverly named the Nintimdo RP, a homemade console that looks a lot like a Switch, but differs in a few key ways. For example, the Joy-Con controllers on the side don’t actually detach from the screen. Still, Lindquist’s creation is based on a Raspberry Pi running the RetroPie emulator, meaning that this thing he made can play games from classic systems like the Nintendo 64, Sega Genesis, Super Nintendo, and many others.
The device appears to be thicker than an actual Switch, but it was also built by one guy with everyday, non-specialized parts. Inside the shell, Lindquist stuffed an LCD screen, a 10,000 mAh rechargeable battery (which more than doubles the Switch’s battery capacity), a cooling system, a Broadcom BCM287 processor, and a motherboard that includes two USB ports and HDMI output to connect the Nintimdo to a larger screen. It’s an impressive build, and in lieu of an actual Switch, this thing looks pretty darn fun.
Is this the coolest Raspberry-Pi based project or coolest homemade video game console? Let us know what you think in the comments below!
Featured image: TimEE/YouTube
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Funko Goes to the ’80s with MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE Pop Figures
In the early ’80s, fans were introduced to the fantasy world of Eternia in Mattel’s classic toy line, Masters of the Universe. Three decades later, He-Man, Skeletor, and the rest of the Masters seem poised for a comeback. While it may take a few years for a new movie adaptation to happen, fans won’t have to wait long for the next round of Masters of the Universe Pop figures. Funko has set a massive wave of fresh vinyl to hit in early 2018, including designs based upon the battle damage armor worn by He-Man and Skeletor.
Amazingly, the Pop version of Orko looks more faithful to the cartoon’s design than the figure that actually came out in the original toy line. Stratos of Avion is the only other ally of He-Man in the current batch of non-exclusive figures.
Skeletor’s minions and henchmen make up the rest of the wave, including Evil- Lyn, Beast Man, and Merman.
If you prefer your Merman to be blue, there’s a 1-in-6 chase variant for that figure.
Finally, there are three very enticing store variants. He-Man’s evil double, Faker, will be a Target exclusive, while Trapjaw will only be available at FYE. He-Man’s occasional ally, Moss Man will be a Toys “R” Us exclusive.
The new Masters of the Universe Pops are currently available for pre-order at Entertainment Earth, for $10.99 per figure. They are expected to be officially released in January 2018.
Which Masters of the Universe Pops are your favorites? Call down the Power of Grayskull and unleash your thoughts in the comment section below!
Images: Funko
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