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Did Mark Hamill Leak THE LAST JEDI Trailer’s Release?

Are you ready for some football…and possibly the new trailer for The Last Jedi? We discussed Mark Hamill’s Star Wars/Monday Night Football Twitter slip up on today’s Nerdist News Talks Back, along with what went into the making of our Thor: Ragnorak ’80s–style trailer, and the scourge known as the Mad Pooper.

Guest hosting today was Geek and Sundry‘s Amy Vorpahl, and she was joined by our Director of Development Brendon Schulze, Nerdist News writer Joan Ford, and producer Kate Meyers. They kicked off with Mark Hamill‘s since deleted tweet that the next trailer for The Last Jedi will air during Monday Night Football on October 9th. Disney did this with The Force Awakens, so is this a winning strategy to garner the most eyes possible for the trailer’s premiere (or on the game), or should we throw a penalty flag on this play? And how does the hype and excitement for this film compare to TFA?

Then they went a little inside baseball about the making of our ’80s-style trailer for Thor: Ragnarok, which Brendon developed and Joan wrote. You’ll excuse us for being excited about the internet’s reaction to it, but since the film’s director Taika Waititi, along with stars Mark Ruffalo and Karl Urban, chimed in with their personal approval for it, it’s been a big deal in the office.

Finally (although this topic probably should have went number two), they talked about the grossest super villain ever, the Mad Pooper, a woman who was caught in public…well, I mean, you can guess what she did based on the nickname, right? What is up with this lady? Is what she’s doing ever okay? And can we come up with an even better moniker for her?

You can still help us smear her name in the comments below, but remember Nerdist News Talks Back airs every weekday at 1:00 p.m. PST live on our YouTube and Alpha channels. Tune in live so you can chime in with your own thoughts and questions for our panel.

Usually there’s not nearly as much football and poop talk.

What did you think about today’s topics? Talk back to us about them in the comments below.

Enjoy some more Star Wars!

Gaze at new Hot Toys Star Wars figures.
See a corn maze tribute to Carrie Fisher.
Learn who the last Jedi is.

Featured Image: Lucasfilm

WITCHBLADE Returns with a Brand New Team

Witchblade has long been one of comics most iconic, beloved, and cheesecakey comics property. Steeped in the wild world of ’90s badgirl books, the title has a devoted fandom and was a huge part of many of our formative comic book experiences. Marc Silvestri’s horror-tinged brand of superheroics and Micheal Turner’s erotic vaseline-lensed art defined a generation of crushes and comics. But as the years have gone by, it’s been hard for Witchblade to find its place in the modern landscape. At its core, though, Witchblade has always been a fantastic female led sci-fi story which, when you get passed the lore and sex, is some of the most fun comics has to offer. 2015’s Switch tapped into that spirit with a vivid YA reimagining of the Witchblade lore. But now Top Cow is relaunching the title with a brand new female-fronted creative team and a new character taking on the supernatural mantle.

With Caitlin Kittredge and artist Roberta Ingranata taking the lead on this new book, it’ll be the first time that Witchblade has ever been both simultaneously written and drawn by women, and the new team have created a brand new protagonist to wield the Witchblade. “Alex Underwood is a journalist who thinks she’s seen it all… until she becomes the unlikely host to an ancient and powerful artifact known as the WITCHBLADE,” said Top Cow’s press release, expanding on the new hero.

Beginning with our new hero left for dead on a New York rooftop and saved by the intergalactic weirdness that is the Witchblade, it sounds like the team plan to drop readers straight into the action. The ongoing series looks like it’ll follow Alex as she comes to terms with her new powers and tries to stop the epic battle between good and evil that’s raging on the streets of New York.

“Everywhere you look in the real world, you’ll see a hero. Not the kind that wears a cape and flies around a comic page or across the big screen but the kind you see walking around being kind of unremarkable. Basically people. People that, when given the choice, will simply do the right thing. Because that’s what a hero does. Doing the right thing isn’t always easy, as it often means being selfless. Without hesitation. But again, that’s what a hero does. Our most enduring superheroes come from this simple idea: people choosing to do the right thing. People like the wielders of the Witchblade,” said the character’s co-creator and Top Cow founder, Marc Silvestri.

Kittredge is a prolific novelist and comic book writer, known for her novel series Nocturne City and Black London, as well comics like Vertigo’s Coffin Hill and Throwaways from Image. Ingranata has worked primarily with Zenescope Entertainment, drawing for their Robyn Hood and Van Helsing series.

Witchblade #1 is available for preorder now, and will be hitting your local comic shop on December 6th!

Are you a hardcore Witchblade fan? Still waiting for that Witchblade tv adaptation? Just discovering the wonders of the Witchblade for the first time? Let us know in the comments!

Images: Top Cow

Get caught up in the latest comics news!

Fiona Staples returns to Archie
David Harbour looks super badass as Hellboy
Currently there are 20 DC Comics movies in the works

STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION Tiki Mugs Are Out Of This World

With this year being the 30th anniversary of Star Trek: The Next Generation, many fans are wondering which is the best way to celebrate. Should they pour themselves a goblet of Klingon blood wine, or raise a toast with a refreshing glass of Romulan ale? Or maybe get a little tipsy while on vacation to the pleasure planet of Risa, where Jean-Luc Picard once got his freak on? (ok, that last one might be off the table).

However you may plan to celebrate thirty years of “making it so,” the folks at Think Geek have the perfect way for you to pour whatever beverage you choose in one of these amazing Star Trek The Next Generation tiki mugs. This set of six tiki mugs allow you drink with (and from) Captain Jean-Luc Picard, Geordi La Forge, Worf, a Cardassian, a Ferengi, and even a drone from the Borg collective. No Data this time — guess we’ll have to wait for series two if we ever get one. You can get a sneak peek at the new “geeki tikis” in the video above, and in our gallery down below.

The ceramic mugs have a 14 oz. capacity, are 7″-8″ tall with 2 1/2″ interior diameter and 2 3/4″ – 4″ exterior diameter, and are microwave and dishwasher safe. They would look great lined up next to your Star Trek the Original Series geeki tikis (which are still available). These are the perfect addition to any Star Trek fan’s own personal Ten-Forward lounge. You can buy these now from Think Geek for $79.99 by clicking right here.

What do you think of these truly stellar collectible mugs? Let us know what you think down below in the comments.

Images: Think Geek

More Star Trek stories? Make it so!

We’re positively giddy about this Star Trek: Discovery video
Netflix reveals which Star Trek episodes get rewatched the most
Peter Capaldi and Anthony Stewart Head auditioned for DS9‘s Capt. Sisko

Get Your First Look at JUGHEAD: THE HUNGER (Exclusive)

Just in time for Halloween, we’re getting more Jughead: The Hunger and we couldn’t’ be more excited about it. The ongoing adventures of a cursed Jughead on the run from Betty “Werewolf Slayer” Cooper is our kinda jam. If we’re being honest, all things Riverdale are our jam but we’re especially in love with Archie Comics’ hardcore horror line. Who knew brutal violence and America’s most wholesome teenagers would go together so well?

 

Jughead: The Hunger #1 from Archie Comics

 

It’s our love of Riverdale, brutal violence, and werewolves that makes us honored to present this first peek inside Jughead: The Hunger #1. These pages are raw, uncolored, unlettered, and beautiful. You don’t always get a glimpse behind the curtain like this, so soak it in and savor. Artists Pat and Tim Kennedy (along with Matt Herms and Jack Morelli) deliver some awesome stuff here, especially the splash page above that appears to be summing up the events of the stage setting one shot that kicked off Jughead: The Hunger.

Speaking of why they were drawn to the project, the Kennedys said, “What appealed to us about this book was that it was a non superhero book. As kids we always liked the more quirky titles like OMAC and Jonah Hex. This book also combines two of our favorite things…noir and horror, a great combo if done right,” they explained.

This isn’t their first time with the Riverdale gang, but it’s given them an opportunity to go a completely new direction. “We’ve drawn these characters in a different storyline before with the Life with Archie title,” they continued, “but that was a soap opera type story. The art and storytelling was a little more subtle. With a horror book, the energy is completely different. Bigger panels, a lot more movement, less nuance. Obviously, Frank is having a lot of fun writing this. A fast paced script is always fun to draw as well.”

As a special little treat (you guys have been so good lately), we’ve even got some concept art from the series. The Jughead piece is fairly standard, but Reggie is all kinds of awesome. It’s been proven by science that anybody and everybody looks cooler in an eyepatch. Reggie takes things up a notch by adding a Punisher-esque skull to his eyepatch. We can only assume that Riverdale‘s resident jerk has revenge and death on the mind, which makes sense since several people close to him have been torn to pieces by a werewolf. That’s the sort of thing that’ll change you, you know?

While details on the series are still scarce, we know we’ll be getting more werewolf horror and more badass Betty Cooper, which is all we needed to hear. We’re ready for the madness writer Frank Tieri is about to unleash. This bad boy is on our pull list and we’re counting down the days. Take a look at the pages below and get hyped.

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Jughead: The Hunger #1 hits comic book shops on October 25th.

Images: Archie Comics

More of comics’ dark side!

6 horror comics you need to read
Mike Mignola discusses killing Hellboy and resurrecting his world
More news about Jughead: The Hunger

Somebody Modded Shirtless Mario Into SUPER SMASH BROS.

Mario has been the world consensus favorite video game character for years now, because historically, he’s had almost everything: Great games, the ability to play every sport at a world-class level, and killer overalls. We say “almost everything,” though, because since his introduction all these years ago, there’s one area in which Nintendo’s hero has been lacking: Sex appeal.

That recently changed in a HUGE way, though, when he was seen running around the beach topless in a trailer for Super Mario Odyssey. Mario’s nipples quickly became a sensation, and now he’s perhaps the sexiest plumber around (or rather, former plumber). We still have some time to kill before Super Mario Odyssey is released, but one fan didn’t want to wait a second longer to control half-birthday-suited Mario, so he did what any good modder would and created a Super Smash Bros. Wii U mod that introduces Shirtless Mario to the fight (via Kotaku).

And Mario can now be shirtless in Sm4sh… https://t.co/lpqK9xkeuh pic.twitter.com/CwXGbPYHAN

— Trying & Failing (@SmashingRenders) September 15, 2017

As seen in both the photos above an the video below, the results are pretty seamless. He looks great in his swim trunks, and the new skin doesn’t seem to have any noticeable impact on Mario’s movements and attacks. And also, of course, he looks amazing. If you know how to implement mods like this, head over here to find the resources you’ll need to make it happen on your own console.

What do you think of Shirtless Mario? Do you dig it, or are you really just waiting for Shirtless Luigi? Let us know what you think in the comments below!

Need More Maaaaario? It’sa Easy!

Here’s how to play a super-huge online mod of Mario 64 with 24 people.
Read about how Mario’s apparently…no longer a plumber?!
And last but not least: the 7 weirdest Mario spin-off games.

Featured Image: @SmashingRenders/Twitter

The Writers Panel #352: “Watercooler Meets Murderboard” from ATX

From Reddit threads and think pieces to live-tweeting and podcasts, the TV Theory business is booming. Yet, for a series with an ongoing mystery and unanswered questions, it can feel like the fandom is more interested solving a show than experiencing it. Michael Rauch (creator, Royal Pains), Monica Owusu-Breen (Alias), Javier Grillo-Marxuach (Lost), Noreen O’Toole (associate producer, Westworld), and Eric Goldman (Marvel, IGN) discuss how hyper-analysis does (and doesn’t) affect the creative process, balancing the art of misdirection vs. deception, and what it means to cede your story to an audience in 2017. Moderated by Natalie Abrams (Entertainment Weekly).

Recorded at ATX Television Festival on June 9, 2017.

Get your badge now for ATX’s seventh season, June 7-10, 2018, at http://atxfestival.com/

Follow @BenBlacker and Like the show on Facebook!

Breaking Down THE PUNISHER’s Violent New Trailer

Is Frank Castle going full Rambo? We went hard on the new Punisher trailer on today’s Nerdist News Talks Back, along with a round up of all the latest movie teasers, and what to make of Sunday night’s Emmy Awards results.

Today host Jessica Chobot formed her own Defenders with Nerdist News writer Joan Ford, associate editor Kyle Anderson, and producer Jason Nguyen. They started with the new Punisher trailer and whether its ultra-violent nature will help separate it from the other Netflix Marvel properties. And now that phase one of the Marvel/Netflix universe appears to be over, what did everyone think of all the shows?

We also got an abundance of new movie teasers this morning to whet our cinematic appetites, from the new Tomb Raider, the new Jumanji, and the original (what a concept!) Jack Ryan series (oh…wait) from Amazon. Find out what everyone thoughts of these sneak peeks, and how they think they’ll compare to past iterations of each franchise.

Finally, last night’s Emmy’s were a big win for diversity, but not so much for sci-fi like Westworld and Stranger Things. What did our panel think of the show and the night’s big winners? Was the absence of Game of Thrones an overall good thing for the show and industry? And what about that controversial appearance from Sean Spicer? Are people justified in being upset by it? (:nods yes:)

Remember, Nerdist News Talks Back airs every weekday at 1:00 p.m. PST live on our YouTube and Alpha channels, so tune in so you can chime in with your questions and thoughts on the biggest topics of the day while we’re discussing them.

We’re not saying we’ll punish-er you if you don’t, but we won’t defend-ers you either. (We promise our puns aren’t as bad on the show….usually.)

What did you think of today’s topics? Talk back to us in the comments below.

Featured Image: Netflix/Marvel

Sideshow Reveals Amazing New STAR WARS Obi-Wan Deluxe Figure

With the recent news that the third Star Wars stand alone film would center around Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi, presumably in the twenty year period he was exiled on Tatooine, fans have been actively wondering what a movie like that would look like. A good indicator would be Sideshow Collectibles, who made an extremely cool high end statue featuring Obi-Wan – or Ben as he’s known at this point – in what looked to be sometime right between the time periods of Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope. 

Now it’s been announced, via the Star Wars official site, that Sideshow is releasing a new 1:6 scale Star Wars Mythos Obi-Wan Kenobi figure, an adaptation of sorts of Sideshow’s original statue into figure form, which kicks off the return of the Mythos line. The new figure has many of the same  details as the statue, from Clone Wars era armor atop Obi-Wan’s backpack, to Anakin and Qui-Gon’s lightsabers dangling below. Star Wars fans will be able to see it in person at New York Comic Con, October 5-8, at the Sideshow booth, #1912, and can pre-order beginning September 21 at sideshow.com/obimythos.

What is particularly cool about this figure is that to create the facial sculpt, they made a blend of actors Alec Guinness and Ewan McGregor. According to Sideshows’ Kevin Ellis, “We gathered reference from many of (Guinness’) older films, as well as images from A New Hope and tried to blend the two together. As we progressed though, it became clear that approaching the likeness this way wasn’t reading as Obi Wan. It was a great likeness of young Alec Guinness, but younger Obi Wan doesn’t look like young Alec Guinness, he looks like Ewan McGregor! From there, it was about finding that balance between aging down Alec Guinness’s features from A New Hope, and adding in some of Ewan McGregor’s features from the end of Revenge of the Sith.”

You can check out all six images of the new Mythos Obi-Wan 1:6 figure in our gallery down below.

Is a live-action version of Sideshow’s Obi-Wan figure exactly what you’re hoping to see in the upcoming film? Be sure to let us know your thoughts down below in the comments.

Images: Lucasfilm / Sideshow Collectibles

More film stories!

Luke and Leia go to Crait in The Last Jedi prequel
Our review of Kingsman: The Golden Circle
A ReAnimator board game is in the works

Swan Pulls a HOT FUZZ, Gets Arrested for Road Rage (Seriously)

Hot Fuzz is the second film in Edgar Wright‘s Cornetto Trilogy, starring Simon Pegg and Nick Frost, set the fictional, accident-proned town of Sandford. Sure, most of the film is hilariously outrageous and exaggerated, but it turns out that part of the movie is more realistic than we thought. Yes, the memorable scene where Pegg and Frost’s character have to chase down and “arrest” an escaped, aggressive swan actually happened in England. What a time to be alive.

As the BBC reports, today in Cambridgeshire, England, the local authorities were called to apprehend a swan similarly troublesome to the one in Hot Fuzz. The real-life swan had managed to find its way onto the AA1123 highway, and proceeded to cause all sorts of problems.

According to the Cambridge Special Constublary, the bird was being “charged” with road rage, causing a collision, and obstructing the highway. That’s a lot of chaos for one swan to cause! Obviously, such a dangerous menace couldn’t be allowed to continue to wreak havoc on the commuters of England. So the officers acted fast, “arresting” the bird, ending its reign of terror. They even collected some photographic evidence of the epic apprehension on their Twitter account, using the hashtag #HotFuzz, naturally.

One in custody following road rage, RTC and obstructing the Highway!

New TRON Funko POPs Will Glow in the Dark

Greetings, user…err, reader. Greetings, reader! We have good news and bad news for you. The good news is we’re getting new Funko Pops. The bad news is we have a feeling it will be hard to master control over your wallet when you see them, because they’re going to suck you in like Flynn. That’s because these fantastic figures are from the classic Disney film Tron.

Funko has announced that the 1982 sci-fi action film is getting two new Pops! figures. One is of the eponymous security program that gives the film its name, the iconic blue Tron, and the other is his evil enemy, the red-colored command program Sark. And yes, they each are clutching a fighting disc so you can arrange them in a battle on your desk. Even better though is that they both glow in the dark.

Anybody with a Clu will want these, but they also will be available as 1-in-6 chase variants with different paint jobs. (Don’t worry, these also glow in the dark.)

 

Sometimes we think Funko is trying to bankrupt us, but any Tron fan knows there are no problems, only solutions, so we’ll figure out how to get these when they are available this November.

And hopefully we won’t have to wait over 30 years to get more of them.

What other characters from Tron would you love to see get their own Funko Pop? (Give me Dumont or give me death!) Enter the mainframe of our comments section below and let us know.

Images: Funko