I know I have said more than enough times that Empire Strikes Back is my favorite in the original trilogy. I think the story was fresh and the characters were more than engaging in this sequel. With that being said, you have to give it up to Billy Dee Williams in his role as Lando Calrissian. Ever since the idea of the new sequels emerged, it was wondered if we would get another glimpse of this characters.

Film Buff managed to meet with the actor, who is turning 76 soon, at the Monster Mania Convention where they asked him if he would be returning. He replied to them in a direct fashion and said that he was asked to play the character again and was thinking about.

Williams claims that his age is a factor in whether he would want to return to the role. While the scripts are presumably back in the writing stages, it could be changed later on that they may not have his character back in the film.

If that were to happen, I would find myself a bit upset. Not simply as a fan boy, but at the idea that someone with as much charisma and charm that he has would not be utilized in the new sequels. One thing that we can take away from the George Lucas prequels is that charisma in the Star Wars universe isn’t always a given.

This video montage is an absolute must see for any Star Wars fan, as Total Film have been compiling footage of every star they’ve met over the last few months being asked about the future Star Wars movies of which the first shall be directed by J.J.Abrams.

Those stars include Ewan McGregor, Mila Kunis, Mark Strong, Joss Whedon, Eli Roth, Michelle Williams, Jason Statham, Mark Wahlberg and Bryan Singer.

Almost all of them would appear to express rather a lot of interest in having anything to do with the new series of film, as Abrams handling of the Star Trek reboot would appear to have wooed the majority of them

One star star who doesn’t see too eager however is Oz: The Great and powerful star, Mila Kunis.  Sweet Mila claims that she is a Star Trek fan first and foremost and so the a role in Abrams reboot is not at the top of her priority list.

Also of note, is that Wahlberg was previously offered a role in Abrams’ Trek reboot, however, I think Marky-Mark was unable to understand the script, bless him.

With all this speculation going on it is hard to get any conclusive facts on what will transpire in Episode VII, every single day we have a new rumor and a confirmed reappearance from an actor from the original series. Like today for example, Billy Dee Williams has confirmed he’s returning. I can almost guarantee you that within the next two days Williams will retract that statement.

So what do we know? Here’s five facts provided by ComicBook.com about the upcoming sequel :

5.Michael Arndt Is The Writer

4. George Lucas Met With Carrie Fisher And Mark Hamill

3.  Disney Is Talking To A Couple Directors (Other than Abrams)

2.Most Of The Main Cast Wants To Return

1.Episode 7 Will Be Released In 2015

Now for your viewing pleasure…

Not that this should come as a complete shock to anyone, but we knew the deal with Disney would affect some of the entertainment that is currently being produced by Lucasfilms. Yesterday, in a press statement from StarWars.com, Lucasfilms had announced their plans for the currently running series The Clone Wars and the yet-to-be-released Star Wars Detours.

After five seasons, The Clone Wars will come to an end with no more new episodes currently in production but there is a new story arch that will be making its way to television soon. The reasoning behind the shift is the production of Episode VII, and want to divert all potential money streams toward that movie.

They have decided that they will focus on a whole new Star Wars series that will be set in an entirely different setting that has been “previously untouched” in anything already produced for the Star Wars universe.

The new animated Star Wars series, Star Wars Detours was slated to be released fairly soon, but since they believe the series, which is produced by Seth Green, Matthew Senreich, and Todd Grimes, would be better suited closer to the release of the new movie. No new date was given but we can expect it no earlier than 2014, in the 2015 Episode VII release date holds firm.

In the cartoon universe, five seasons is a long time, and it was probably a good time to let the series end and focus on something new. However, since no one was currently producing anything news, Lucasfilm had to stick with something that would continue to revenue stream. Although, now it seems that Disney wants to give it some direction and that could be a good thing.

This week’s episode is actually last week’s episode. I had some trouble with SoundCloud, but it’s all gravy now. Enjoy!

George Lucas on the set of Star Wars

George Lucas the man behind all 6 Star Wars films has been quoted as saying he has no intentions of continuing the series past Return of the Jedi. Well when Lucasarts was to Disney, and the announcement of the upcoming Star Wars films was made, many fans wondered what would be George Lucas’s role. Well it is no known that George Lucas will serve as a creative consultant for the new Star Wars movies.

Source

With George Lucas “accidently” leaking that Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher and the great Harrison Ford are all expected to return to the franchise that created the worldwide phenomenon known as Star Wars; wild speculation has spread like an unkempt wildfire on how producer JJ Abrams will use them.

With the advent of computer generated imagery, this fan, which many forget is short for fanatic, hopes that they respect at least part of the expanded universe that authors have been writing about for decades. With one author in particular that started a brushfire of novels, Timothy Zahn’s; Grand Admiral Thrawn series, starting with the amazing read, Heir to the Empire.

Heir to the Empire is a wonderfully written book that gives Star Wars an incredible array of new characters, however with the setting just five years Return of the Jedi a monumental task would face the team that will bring the novel to the silver screen.

Considering it has been thirty years since the release of Return of the Jedi, the three aforementioned actors have aged and it would seem impossible to use Zahn’s novels as inspiration for upcoming screenplays. However, in Tron: Legacy, which is also owned by Disney, they used new face mapping technology to make actor Jeff Bridges appear as his younger self.

If Disney was able to use their technology for that movie series then surely they could use it for the upcoming Star Wars movies! This blogger is filled with enthusiasm and trepidation on how JJ Abrams will handle producing the movies.

Will they be duds like the horrific sci-fi disaster movie Cloverfield, or a “success” like his new vision of Star Trek, released in 2009? Many older Star Trek fans, not I, as the first Star Trek movie I watched was JJ Abram’s, are not entirely happy with the popular producer changing movie canon.

What will Disney do with the unbelievably popular franchise? Only a handful of people know, but this fan waits in hope that he knocks it out of the park. If he uses Zahn’s trilogy, the Star Wars franchise will be set up for our grandchildren’s grandchildren. Zahn’s characters are incredibly lucid, and is a “no-brainer” starting point to push the movies beyond, into a galaxy far, far away….

Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher and Harrison Ford (credit: Vince Bucci/Getty Images)

SAN FRANCISCO (CBS NEWS) – “Star Wars” creator George Lucas spilled the news that the films’ original, iconic stars Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher “have already signed” on to return to “Star Wars: Episode VII,” due out in 2015.

Lucas revealed that the cast negotiations took place before Disney bought LucasFilm in December.

“We had already signed Mark, Carrie and Harrison — or we were pretty much in the final stages of negotiation. So I called them to say, ‘Look, this is what’s going on,’” Lucas said in an interview with Bloomberg Businessweek.

Scene from “Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope” (Photo credit by AP Photo)

“Maybe I’m not supposed to say that. I think they want to announce that with some big whoop-de-do, but we were negotiating with them,” he said before hedging, “I won’t say whether negotiations were successful or not.”

But from his statements, it seems pretty safe to say that Fisher will reprise her role as Princess Leia (which she already hinted at on Tuesday), Hamill will return as Luke Skywalker, and Ford will come back as Han Solo. The actors originated these pop-culture staples in the first “Star Wars” in 1977, and continued until “Return of the Jedi” in 1983.

J.J. Abrams is set to direct “Episode VII.”

(Copyright 2013 by CBS San Francisco. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
 

Welcome everyone to our very first second weekly release. It’s Thursday, so you know that means another brilliant podcast from the Lazy Geeks Network. This week, it’s podcast #18 from The Crash Test Movie Dummies.

This week, Patrick returns and discusses just how much out of the loop he is about everything Star Wars when he didn’t even know that Star Wars Episode One: The Phantom Menace 3D version was released a year ago. Sad face.

We talk about the possible post-credits scene from Fast & Furious 6, as well as everything Star Wars and we discuss the Oscars. Why did he feel Argo didn’t live up to the hype and do they truly celebrate the best in films.

Listen:

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While some people may only know Carrie Fisher for her role in Star Wars, some may not remember her novels and other movies that she has been a part of. Some may think she hasn’t done much since Star Wars would need to get a reality check. Not only has she been an award winning author, with one of her books being turned into a movie, she has done some other acting roles in pop culture films, like When Harry Met Sally.

Recently Fisher, along with Mark Hamill and Harrison Ford, have been thrusted back in the spotlight with their possible return to the Star Wars franchise with the release of Episode VII coming in 2015. Depending on which media report you are listening to, Ford may/may not be back as Solo, but we know for sure that Fisher will be returning.

Speaking with Palm Beach Illustrated, she confirmed flatly that she will be returning as the iconic Princess Leia Organa in J.J. Abrams sequel. Of course, when asked what she thinks Leia would be like today, she answers with her famed sense of humor. “Elderly. She’s in an intergalactic old folks’ home [laughs]. I just think she would be just like she was before, only slower and less inclined to be up for the big battle.”

When asked if Leia is still wearing the “bagel buns”? Fisher replies, “The bagel buns and the bikini, because probably she has sundowners syndrome. At sundown, she thinks that she’s 20-something. And she puts it on and gets institutionalized.”

While Hamill has admitted openly that he has begun negotiations in regards to returning as Luke Skywalker, it will be interesting to see the old crew back together. I think it is more fitting to bring them on to usher in the new story they are about to tell and not pretend they don’t exist. Kind of like what the old Battlestar Galactica did when they did Galactica 1980.

I know we are only a couple of short years away from seeing a sequel that will make millions of dollars and hopefully restore the vestige that was the Star Wars Universe. However, in my opinion, George Lucas set the bar so low that Abrams can do nothing but succeed. My only concern about Fisher returning to Star Wars is the fear she will put that gold bikini back on.

*UPDATE* – I sincerely hate doing updates. However, this is worth pointing out that a representative for Carrie Fisher told CNN today that she was, in fact, kidding about coming back to Star Wars. Nothing is confirmed at this point, but that she was simply joking about it. You figure you wait long enough someone will debunk it or not, however, they needed more than a day to stop the nerd sites from reporting it. Way to get her back into the news cycle, guys.

Not long after Luke Skywalker himself (Mark Hamill) revealed to ET that he was in talks to join the upcoming Star Wars: Episode VII cast, Carrie Fisher has confirmed she will indeed dust off the gold bikini, so to speak, and reprise her role as Princess Leia.

When asked point blank by The Palm Beach Illustrated whether Luke’s sister would return for the much-anticipated J.J. Abrams-directed sequel, Fisher said “yes,” but warns that filmgoers should not expect a sexy return from the screen icon.

“She’s in an intergalactic old folks’ home,” imagines Fisher of her “elderly” reprisal in Episode 7. “I just think she would be just like she was before, only slower and less inclined to be up for the big battle.”

Source: ET Online

The House of Eliott at last!

Jack and Tilly arrive at the premises of Bea and Evie’s flat/atelier and Jack’s studio, to see a swarm of movers and builders bringing up furniture and furnishings, fixing the brass plate announcing the House of Eliott to the front of the building, and otherwise making a nuisance. We also hear our first mention of interior decorator Hugo, who has charmed Tilly. Upstairs, Bea and Evie navigate the hustle and bustle as they contribute to it with their own suggestions and items. Hugo, a dashing looking dark-haired young man who seems a trifle temperamental and exacting, is shown going over some of the mistakes–in his mind–made by the builders. As the workers begin to stagger out of the building, we see a pert blonde striding up to the doorstep to the appreciative whistles of the men loitering outside. She’s cheeky and bold, and enters the atelier with little hesitation as Hugo approaches Bea to suggest more decor–Bea introduces her as Madge Howard, their new head seamstress. Madge introduces herself to Tilly, who is trying to sort out the beading and tassels, and takes charge of her new place of employment.

The sun is setting when more workers leave the building, and the pouring of champagne (by Madge) in a room filled with neatly-dressed ladies and gentleman signifies the transformation of the Eliott flat into a fashion house is complete! The decor is bright and white, with the tiniest hint of Art Deco. Evie and Hugo’s conversation is interrupted by a drab and slightly dour looking Penelope, whose opening salvo when Evie introduces her to Hugo, is to castigate the appalling waste of money spent on fixing the flat up. Hugo’s response is the typical “we’re giving employment to people,” which Penelope has no doubt heard time and time again, judging by her expression–she is less than impressed. Penelope is also dismissing of Evie’s desire to introduce her to Sir Desmond. Hugo decamps to find more champagne and behind him slides Aunt Lydia, who is first glimpsed by Sir Desmond. Sir Desmond greets Lydia warmly after eighteen years’ silence, but a slightly humbled Lydia mentioned that hardly anyone is speaking to her. Slightly is the key word. Lydia remains imperious and waspish with Bea, who breaks away from Jack to greet her, and with Sir Desmond, who attempts to renew their acquaintance.

The party is briefly interrupted by Penelope rushing out of the flat. Evie runs after her to find Penelope almost collapsed on the stairs, but she refuses to share the source of her troubles and walks away. Later that night, as Bea is greasing her face in the mirror, Evie is stymied about Penelope’s reaction to their success. Bea is perceptive: Penelope has nothing but causes and oppressed people to worry over, not nothing to truly care for or feel fulfilled by. They then giggle over the prospect of Lydia and Sir Desmond, with Evie noting that her godfather can take care of himself. Jack and Hugo are chatting at a bar, where Jack expresses his fatigue with photographing dowagers in comparison with the excitement of film making and actresses. Hugo, however, is flippant and callous, obviously not understanding Jack’s inability to just keep things going the way they always have gone (makes me ponder Jack’s previous flippancy–hanging around with old comrades who want to live on champagne and velvet doesn’t go with his growing seriousness).

Penelope visits a prison, where she listens to an inmate recite a soliloquy. This seems to be another one of Penelope’s “projects”. To her surprise, the inmate, Mr. Fox, reveals he was put in gaol because of Sir Desmond’s perfidy. Penelope gets Mr. Fox to share his story, and apparently, Sir Desmond stole his ideas, forcing him to resort to crime to scrabble back to the top. The source of the story–Sir Desmond–is dining in private with Lydia, an event an edgy Lydia pushes at to discover whether their privacy is the result of his embarrassment to be see with her in public. She obviously cannot give anyone an inch because if the shoe was on the other foot, she would be unmerciful and cutting. Lydia perks up when Sir Desmond asks about Arthur, but is quick to let him know she would not give Society the satisfaction of fleeing London for backwards Boston as Arthur wishes. The old Lydia emerges when Sir Desmond offers a toast to the House of Eliott–she cannot take Evie and Bea’s couture house seriously (jealous of their ability and freedom to not care about Society!).

Hugo and Evie are in an art studio, where Hugo is exclaiming over the designs of his friend Miss Farrow. Hugo presses for Evie’s opinion, but when she does so, he belittles her misunderstanding of its destination (like she knew!). Hugo cannot understand why Evie is upset with his behavior, but feels he is pushing her to embrace her status as an artist. Evie, aware of her lack of education and her status as just a dressmaker, is skeptical, but Hugo’s impassioned support of her artistic endeavors gives her pause. Jack is moving towards his quest to get into the cinema industry by arranging a studio session with Francine Bailey, a languid, kohl-eyed actress, who takes Jack’s interest in her as personal as opposed to professional, and cuts off his awkward attempts to pump her for interest in his desire to direct movies. Jack’s usual suavity is gone, but the actress sets him back on his feet by giving him permission to flirt with her.

As Bea goes over the figures for the day, Evie pokes her head into the bedroom to share that Sebastian has rung her up. Bea is horrified at the thought of Evie going out alone with him, which gets Evie’s back up about Bea’s bossiness and lack of trust. Bea relents in the face of Evie’s determined brattiness, and the following day, Evie is out on the airfield with Sebastian, who wants to take her up in the biplane. They seem to have switched from brother/sister to potential lovers rather quickly! This is the beginning of Evie’s penchant for dangerous relationships at the expense of nice, safer men. Sebastian straps her in and takes the plane off for a flight. They soar over green pastures, much to Evie’s delight, but when they come back to the airfield, Sebastian’s employer is furious. Sebastian ignores him and strolls off with a beaming Evie. Bea enters Jack’s studio as he’s retouching Francine’s portraits, and he muses over not finding Francine attractive, but Bea is less concerned with that than with the trickle of clients streaming into The House of Eliott. Jack urges Bea to advertise the couture house rather than rely on word of mouth…as an aside, he also mentioned Penelope’s gaolbird and his vague accusations against Sir Desmond. Bea has other things on her mind, but is grateful to Jack for listening.

Jack takes the photographs with Francine, who is being fitted in her Egyptian-themed costume, and is out of temper with the whole film making business now that Hollywood is calling. Jack is noticeably enthralled to be on set. The excitement ends when Francine is sacked when the producer’s wife discovers their affair! Francine is more furious about being stripped of her one-of-a-kind wardrobe, and is determined to purchase a whole new set of clothes and swan off to Hollywood. Bea pays a call on Sir Desmond in his office, where he takes command of the conversation. Bea came to discuss the business with Evie’s godfather, but his high-handedness leads her to hold her cards tighter, and her tentatively open expression shuts down as Sir Desmond gives her hinting warnings about living modestly and safely. In the workroom, the seamstresses are fascinated by Tilly’s skill with beading, and Madge expresses her belief that work of that quality should be well compensated. She also reveals her strong will–she left her last place of employment due to a clash of personality…Evie’s date with Hugo feeds her mind, and he pontificates on as they stroll through a museum filled with ancient art. In contrast, her dates with Sebastian, first in an aeroplane, and then in Madame Tussaud’s, is all about fun and carelessness–as evidenced when he suggests flying her to Paris.

Bea continues to disapprove of Evie’s continued rendezvous with Sebastian, and her approval of Hugo is no doubt due to her awareness that Evie has a strong physical attraction to their ex-half-brother. Evie allays Bea’s fears that she would do something rash, like marry, and turns the topic to Bea’s own love life–Bea scoffs at the thought of romance and marriage at her age (33). Evie runs down a list of potential suitors–Jack, whom Bea dismisses for his flippant nature; Piggy, for his bankruptcy and acting fantasy; and Sir Desmond for being their father’s contemporary. Bea changes the subject when Evie strikes a nerve–Bea’s former suitor Phillip White. Evie follows tack and offers encouragement that the House of Eliott will grow and be successful.

Francine is back in Jack’s studio snapping more photographs of her, and she is furious with the London dressmakers, who have refused to accommodate her desire for an entire wardrobe in three weeks. Jack mentions the House of Eliott…where Francine orders an extensive wardrobe that will require extra staff and loads of expense. Bea refuses to budge on the subject of money, and the price quoted obviously impresses Francine Bailey, who declares that she would give them a bonus if they complete the commission on time. She swans out of the atelier with a beaming Jack. Evie and Bea work into the wee hours of the night on designs for Francine’s wardrobe, and their sketches are bright and daring, which meets Francine’s approval. The workroom is buzzing with activity of the new hands hired to take Francine’s work. Francine herself is being fitted by Bea, Evie, and Madge, and her earlier approval has been replaced by a rude, demanding impatience. Madge doesn’t bite her tongue, but Bea dismisses her–money is green! (or, well, the colors of pound notes /sez the American *g*). Bea, however, does not give Madge the sack as Francine would like, and Evie smirks as she cuts open the hem stitches to let down the hem of Francine’s magenta tea gown.

Hugo arrives in evening gown and in his motorcar to take Evie out for the night, but she must turn him down because of their heavy workload. Bea reprimands Madge in the workroom, who apologizes (despite her derision over Francine being a fellow cockney who gives herself airs)–this causes Tilly a momentary discomfort, who is torn between her loyalty to Bea and Evie and her burgeoning friendship with Madge. However, the outspoken Madge lets her know there’s no harm and they have a laugh over her paraphrasing Bea’s order to cease working in half an hour to grab a gin. Penelope visits Mr. Fox in gaol again, and Mr. Fox continues on his tirade against the ruination of his life by Sir Desmond, which appeals to Penelope’s mistrust of wealthy, powerful people who, in her mind, contribute to the suffering of the poor. He stokes the fires of suspicion in Penelope over Sir Desmond’s reach and power now that Mr. Fox is coming out of gaol, and convinces her that he is terrified. She rushes over to the House of Eliott to speak with Evie, but she is much too busy to listen and Penelope storms down to Jack’s studio to share Fox’s fears. Jack is busy as well, and Penelope slams out of the building and rides her bicycle down to Sir Desmond’s office. Sir Desmond’s usual wiliness routs Penelope’s usual bombardment and bullying to share his side of the story: Fox was a lazy manager and embezzled funds from the company Sir Desmond purchased when it was near ruin. Penelope can say nothing, and storms out after a slightly smug Sir Desmond has the last word by offering to help Fox when he is released from gaol.

Francine’s earlier petulance disappears now that her wardrobe is complete, and she primps and preens as Jack takes photographs of her in a new pink robe de style. The entire staff of the House of Eliott cheer over packing the last box of Francine Bailey’s wardrobe…but Bea and Evie’s smiles turn to frowns when, in the ensuing days, they receive no payment for their work! Bea is on the telephone to get to the bottom of this, and goes to see if Jack was gypped. He wasn’t paid either, and he and the Eliott sisters drown their disappointment in champagne (Jack’s special medicine!). To their surprise, Francine’s solicitor arrives with cheques for them both, and Jack immediately sweeps Bea into his arms for a kiss!

CDF Lieutenant Harry Wilson has one simple task: Watch an ambassador’s dog while the diplomat is conducting sensitive negotiations with an alien race. But you know dogs—always getting into something. And when this dog gets into something that could launch an alien civil war, Wilson has to find a way to solve the conflict, fast, or be the one in the Colonial Union’s doghouse.

I had a feeling that somewhere along the line with The Human Division I would come across an episode that really didn’t speak to me as a reader. This episode is the one where that happened. Scalzi’s typical humor was still abundant and we got to go back to the viewpoint of Harry Wilson who is one of my favorite characters in the OMW universe, but somehow I just couldn’t connect.

Perhaps it was that the driving device of the episode was a small dog and that just seemed a little strange to me. I also felt like very little was accomplished to further the story in this episode. The best way to describe it to me was that it felt very much like Scalzi was taking an opportunity to fiddle with some things as far as storytelling is concerned and perhaps even took an episode to do something he found to be fun just for the sake of it. I don’t really blame him to be honest. I think if I were an established author and was getting the chance to try something new with serialized fiction I would probably take the chance as well.

It doesn’t ruin anything by any means for The Human Division as a whole, but this was one episode that fell a little flat. I don’t think I’ll be feeling that way for very long though as the next episode, which comes out tomorrow, is entitled The Sound of Rebellion and Scalzi even mentioned on his site that the next episode is a pretty important one in the course of the series.

Grade: D
Length: 43 pages

Amazon   |   Barnes & Noble   |   Goodreads   |   Audible

Troy Denning’s upcoming novel, ‘Star Wars: Crucible’, got it’s first blurb posted by Random House. The blurb gives some insight to the plot of the book, but only enough to whet fan’s appetites. See for yourself…

When Han and Leia Solo arrive at Lando Calrissian’s Outer Rim mining operation to help him thwart a hostile takeover, their aim is just to even up the odds and lay down the law. Then monstrous aliens arrive with a message, and mere threats escalate into violent sabotage with mass fatalities. When the dust settles, what began as corporate warfare becomes a battle with much higher stakes—and far deadlier consequences.

Now Han, Leia, and Luke team up once again in a quest to defeat a dangerous adversary bent on galaxy-wide domination. Only this time, the Empire is not the enemy. It is a pair of ruthless geniuses with a lethal ally and a lifelong vendetta against Han Solo. They will stop at nothing to control the lucrative Outer Rim mining trade—and ultimately the entire galactic economy. And when the murderous duo gets the drop on Han, he finds himself outgunned in the fight of his life. To save him, and the galaxy, Luke and Leia must brave a gauntlet of treachery, terrorism, and the untold power of an enigmatic artifact capable of bending space, time, and even the Force itself into an apocalyptic nightmare.

I was already looking forward to this, and from the sound of things, ‘Crucible’ will not disappoint.

This week sees the introduction of an Extraction playlist for the first time in Halo 4, two new maps added to Capture the Flag and other changes!

New Playlist – Extraction

Extraction will finally be getting its own playlist in Matchmaking this week, you can see the planned settings below.

Capture the Flag changes

Two maps will be added to Capture the Flag this week, both Forge-made.

Simplex

The first map is Simplex, a community made Forge map from a well known forger known as SaLoT, this map was featured in the Community Forge Test playlist and is currently located within Team Throwdown.

Settler

The second map is Settler, an on-disc Forge variant which has been absent from Matchmaking completely, although it will be tweaked slightly from the on-disc variant to suit 5v5 play.

Majestic FFA changes

When the Majestic Map Pack launched last week, two playlists were put up for DLC owners, one of them was Majestic FFA.
Sadly, the Rumble Pro gametype in Majestic FFA accidentally had the motion tracker disabled, resulting in a less than optimal experience for the gametype – this issue has been corrected this week.

Majestic Team DLC changes

This week, respawn times for Majestic Team DLC will be revised for a more optimal playing experience, this includes turning off instant respawn in certain gametypes to match their non-Majestic counterparts.

Join in Progress Tweaks

The Join in Progress window for all playlists is being tweaked, including Majestic FFA this week, so if you are sick of joining games when you are at a huge disadvantage, worry no longer!

Spartan Ops Changes

Although Spartan Ops Season 1 is now over, that doesn’t mean Matchmaking support will be dropped, starting this week and continuing over the course of the following 5 weeks, Episodes 6-10 of Spartan Ops Season 1 will be making their way into the Matchmaking hoppers, starting off this week with Episode 6.

For details on what chapters you’ll be playing in Spartan Ops, be sure to check out the Spartan Ops page on Halo Waypoint!

And let’s not forget that Abrams is a fan of Star Wars. He’s going to have the same concerns as the rest of us. I’ve read more during the past few weeks about the overall pre-production and build up, and I have come upon some curious tit-bits. (Yes, America, tit-bits not tid-bits. You effing prudes/anti-ornithologists…) The most interesting of these concerns Michael Arndt, the only writer confirmed on the Episode VII’s script. His past wins should relax anyone worried about a Michael Bay-esque travesty, not to mention his screenwriting workshops, in which he holds up A New Hope as an example of the perfect screenplay. His treatments must be fairly impressive, as they (and presumably by extension, his continued involvement) were part of the package that Disney bought from Lucasfilm.

A big part of me wants to see the old trilogies and their characters left alone entirely, with no potential continuity issues, shitty one-liners or poorly thought out scenes to tarnish our perfect memories. For me, the joy of hearing that new Star Wars films were on the way stemmed from their potential for exploring the rest of the universe. There are acres of source material to draw from and iconic, brilliant characters yet to discover. Instead of rehashing the brilliance of the past, there is such possibility for Star Wars to be as fresh and exciting as we know it can be. Disney has clearly learned a thing or two from the ever-growing behemoth that is the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Let’s just hope they don’t get overly excited by their new acquisition and drop the ball.

On a much more self-serving note, as a digital artist with the typical hopes for my own future, the continuation of Star Wars means that there’s a chance, no matter how small, that I could work on one. (So if you’re reading this, hiring powers…)

Sorry… I need a moment.

Oh, and I want a lot more Sith. No more of this “always two there are…” bollocks.

 (artist credit )

It also appears that the Empire needs to rethink battle strategy for future endeavours – great article here.

On to new business… As part of my personal pledge to become more anti-social (thanks, Xbox), I’ve dived thumbs first into Portal 2. I am a relative newcomer to the world of console-based nerdery, my childhood gaming being exclusively PC-based (without Civilisation 2, I would be a very different man-boy today). I’ve dabbled previously with the odd beer-fuelled Call of Duty marathon and occasional dips into Battlefield 3. As a newcomer, I feel it prudent to avoid reviewing the game over a year after its release. I will only add that Stephen Merchant’s voicing of Wheatley is brilliant, hilarious, and perfectly timed within the overall narrative.

N.B. Having now completed the single player, I do feel Merchantisms were overused in the last chapter, but I wouldn’t say it spoiled my enjoyment.

The Walking Dead is finally back on after its infuriating mid-season break, so keep an eye out for that. Now we just need Breaking Bad to kick in again after the even more infuriating mid-season break that followed the show’s best cliffhanger yet.

Also this is happening:

My reaction:

Oh, and this cropped up last week:

Some fantastic designs and brave immersive scope. I just hope they address the scientific implications of a having a moon-sized object attached to Earth’s atmosphere…

Until next time…

///c

_

Via Screen Crush

By Mark Lukenbill

You can’t blame “Girls” for continually trying to duck expectations and try something new, especially when some of its best episodes have taken its characters and viewers outside of their usual comfort zone and into an alien environment — whether it be Hannah’s hometown in Michigan, a raging warehouse party in Bushwick, or the surreal home of a successful older man. In “Video Games,” Hannah and Jessa head up the Hudson to Philipstown (about fifty miles north of Manhattan, in case you were wondering) to visit Jessa’s deadbeat dad. Unfortunately, the episode manage to achieve the success of its predecessors. In fact, it’s a largely miscalculated — and, in some parts, almost terrifically awful — episode that is only sort of redeemed by breaking apart from the norm.

As with most TV shows, Lena Dunham and the “Girls” writers know that there is no better way to cut right to the inner psyche of a character than to force them to spend time with their parents. When Hannah went back to Michigan, she immediately devolved into a mopey child in front of her quietly disapproving but supportive parents. Earlier this season, we got a short look at Marnie’s passive-aggressive relationship with her mother as she strove for approval from an icy, immature woman who probably doesn’t deserve it. And now, with her marriage to Thomas-John in shambles, it’s Jessa’s turn to confront her absentee dad.

Jessa, who is clearly privately in turmoil after the split, responds dramatically to what Hannah decides was “probably a butt text” from her father, but what Jessa interprets as a sign that he’s ready to embrace and support her. It’s immediately obvious that this most likely isn’t the case when Mr. Johansson — brilliant Australian character actor Ben Mendelsohn (“Killing Them Softly”) in a perfectly cast role — doesn’t show up to pick them up from the train station.

I’m perfectly fine with a Jessa-centric episode. Jemima Kirke is, in my opinion, perhaps the strongest actress on the show and the most compellingly nasty character, and yet she is also a (bizzarely) likable character. Pairing her with an amazing actor like Mendelsohn has great promise, and the scenes of them together are enjoyable enough. Unfortunately, they don’t lead to anything earth-shattering, and as Mr. Johansson’s primary quality is that he’s never there for anyone, Mendelsohn is as such criminally underused. Instead, the bulk of the episode is spent on Hannah’s recurring STD problems and a brief fling with a creepy, virginal, oddly 80s-dressed teenager named Frank who is Jessa’s dad’s current girlfriend’s son; one of many endlessly quirky but ultimately useless country bumpkin characters who show up in the episode. Others include Mr. Johansson’s girlfriend Petula, who gives the episode its title in a nonsensical rant about how life is just a video game. At least it’s not named after Lana Del Rey, I guess.

There are a few inspired moments of comedy, such as Jessa asking a high school lacrosse star if all of the guys on the team “suck each other off,” and Jessa’s assertion that “no one speaks to” her dad’s five-year-old child from his previous relationship. “I wonder if her name is still Lemon,” she muses. Mostly, however, the episode falters under the weight of bizarre, uneven plotting and a goofy tone and characters that just don’t mesh with “Girls” sensibilities.

Mark Lukenbill is a contributing writer.  Email him at entertainment@nyunews.com.