Has 'Avatar' been forgotten?

James Cameron's Avatar is the highest grossing film of all time. It beats the next film by $600 million. It got everyone and their mother to see the movie. And got millions to go back a time or two. But what did it not do? Leave a lasting impact on pop culture.

Avatar came out December five years ago. It amazed people with it's gorgeous 3-D. But the story was quickly compared to a hundred different movies. Dances with Wolves, Pocahontas, and Ferngully: The Last Rainforest just to name a few. And with the boom of 3-D that followed, it became cool to hate on Avatar. I doubt that you will find very many people willing to say they even like the movie. It's not a movie you can quote and not a movie that launched anyone. Heck, Zoe Saldana got more press from this year's Guardians of the Galaxy, and Avatar made two billion more dollars.

But the movie still made a lot of money. Pretty much everyone saw it. It even won a few Oscars. And the effects still hold up, even on DVD. Yeah, it wasn't the most original and it didn't have the most memorable characters, but it shouldn't have been so quickly forgotten. Yet, it has been. It's not quoted. No one mentions it in the conversation when you bring up the best movies of the 2000s. Kids stopped dressing up as the Na'vi as soon as they started. And the only time I really hear about the movie is when we are talking about its sequels or what is the most overrated movies.

It was a movie that was ripe for sequels. And if Cameron wasn't the director, Fox would've made it one already. They're coming out with three more movies starting 2016, but they have probably missed their window. They are running into the same problem Star Trek did. Star Trek had four years in between films and the sequel didn't do as well. Sure, even if Avatar 2 makes only half of the first one, it'd still make $1 billion. But I'm not even sure it'd make that much. These are movies that should have been made years ago.

In a world were sequels are the top movies. Were we are not allowed to forget about certain movies and franchises. Were one off movies can easily be forgotten, no matter how much money they make. But while movies like Inception, District 9, and Zombieland are remembered and loved, Avatar has is not. Maybe because it became cool to hate it. Maybe because it started the movie industry into it's latest round of loving 3-D. Maybe it was just a flash in the pan. Just something that became a event that could never stand on its own.

Whatever the reasons, Avatar has been forgotten by the majority of people. It's not a bad film. It's a fun and entertaining watch. The characters and plot aren't the most original, but the effects hold up and the movie still looks great. I don't know what the future holds for the upcoming sequels. But Fox is confident if the sequels. And Disney is willing to bet on an Avatar Land for their parks in 2017. Those are two companies that know how to make franchises. For better or worse.

Today in....

A Parks Return and A death of a Oscar winner


....Movies

- Oscar winner, Luise Rainer, died Today at the age of 104. Her daughter says she died of pneumonia. Rainer was the first person to win Oscars in back-to-back years. She did it with 1936’s The Great Ziegfeld and 1937’s The Good Earth.

....Television

- Paul Rudd is set to return to Parks and Recreation for two episodes in it's final season. Rudd will reprise his roll of Bobby Newport, Sweetums Scion. Bobby, whom Leslie trounced in a City Council election, will show up in Pawnee when Ben (Adam Scott) thinks he would be a good fit for an open position.

- Mondays aren't always great, but this one brought the premiere of Today: The Musical. I don't want to describe it, so you'll just have to watch it.

....Video Games

- Friendly reminder here. If you haven't picked up a Xbox One yet and you want to save $50 bucks, you have till Saturday to do so. the deal includes the AC bundles with and without Kinect.

-If you were hoping for another True Crime game under the Activison banner, I got some bad news for you. Activison has let the trdemark for the game go. It is unclear at the moment  if they plan on getting it back or not.

The Year of Broken Games

The first year of a console generation can be a rough one. The consoles we have now, will not be the ones we see at the end of the generation. Developers are still learning what makes the consoles tick. So, you do expect there be some problems. But the string of big games with issues is not that.

From Assassin's Creed: Unity to Halo: The Master Chief Collection, so many games had issues. So many games were not playable. Unity had climb glitches and faces not rendering. You were basically just watching two eyes float in the middle of a characters face. And Halo had matchmaking issues for days. Ubisoft got hit twice as players had issues connecting to servers for Far Cry 4. PS3 players had issues even playing the game.

Essentially, studios were releasing broken games. Yes, there were quick fixes. And free things were handed out. But that does not erase the fact that the games were broken in the first place. These companies know how to release games. They know how to test games to make sure things like this doesn't happen. So, what happened?
Yeah, you sometimes can't anticipate what will happen when you have millions of people playing at the same time. But in-game bugs should be caught in testing. They should be caught before people pay sixty bucks on a game.

If you play games you know what a patch is. It's something that developers release after a game's release to fix problems and bugs. And as great as it is to fix bugs months after a game comes out, there shouldn't be a day one update. And this brings us to the topic of DLCs and unfinished games.

I don't mind DLCs. They can be fun and sometimes be worth the price. If they are not done in time for the games release than I don't want that in the game. But season passes that details exactly hat you get and when you get it. And day one DLC, like Mass Effect 3's From Ashes, don't make me happy. When you are holding something that you can already put in the game just to make money, that is not okay. You are selling a game that you know is not the game you plan on, that you know is incomplete, and that is a form of fraud.

I think I got off topic for a moment. This article was supposed to be about the many games that were broken. That were not playable. That studios had to apologize for. But when you talk about broken games, you get to unfinished games. And then you get to DLC. But the point was that, in a year were you got some great games, what people will remember is the broken games. And that is probably not fair.

Top Ten Domestic B.O. Movies of 2014

With the last weekend of the year ending yesterday, I thought we might take a look at the B.O. numbers for the top ten movies of the year. These numbers are domestic and does not take in consideration the international numbers. And I do realize some movies are not done with their runs in the theaters yet.

1) Guardians of the Galaxy, $332,749,244

2) The Hunger Games: Mockingjay- Part 1, $306,656,000

3) Captain America: The Winter Soldier, $259,766,572

4) The Lego Movie, $257,760,692

5) Transformers: Age of  Extinction, $241,410,378

6) Maleficent, $241,410,378

7) X-men: Days of Future Past, $233,921,534

8) Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, $208,545,589

9) The Amazing Spider-Man 2, $202,852,933

10) Godzilla, $200,676,069

You can't be too surprised at this list. If you asked me at the beginning of the year, I would've had seven of these movies on here. Not in the same order, but on here. The three that weren't? Maleficent, The Lego Movie, and Godzilla. And Godzilla barely made it with Big Hero 6 only a $1M behind it. Thought Lego would be stupid and a bust. And just wasn't sure about Maleficent. But after Frozen, I'm not surprised.

The biggest thing I didn't think would happen? Guardians being #1. It was a new franchise that no one knew much about. It was obscure and a risk that only Marvel knew would work. I mean come on, a walking tree and a talking raccoon could not possibly be #1 at the domestic box office. But it is. And good for it. It's a fun, smart, entertaining, and just the kind of movie that deserves to top the list.

Hunger Games was the movie that I was betting on. It did well and probably will end up with a domestic run closer to Guardians if not pass it. But if part 1 did this good, just imagine part 2. If only that was taking place during a less crowded year.

Marvel and it's properties did well this year. Captain America hitting #3 was a big win for a property that had a less than thrilling first installment. Fox fixed X-men and made a lot of people much more excited for the upcoming Fantastic Four. SONY had the first of it's issues with Spider-Man 2 not performing the greatest. It still cracked the top ten but #9 was not were anyone thought it would end up. This will probably continue next year with Avengers 2, Fantastic Four, and Ant-Man. I expect all three hitting the top ten, with Avengers 2 being #1. Yes, Star Wars, but that doesn't come out till December and coming off the prequels.

This year will be remembered as a year with a disappointing box office. As a year with only Hunger Games earning a hundred million opening weekend without being contested. As the year before the massive 2015. But it was a year with some great movies and should be remembered as a year full  of superheroes, animated hits, and weirdness can still be pretty cool. Also Chris Pratt.

Today In....

Weekend B.O. and Microsoft Departures

....Movies

- The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies grabbed #1 at the box office again this week with $41.4M. Unbroken was only $10M behind with $31.7M for the three day and $47.3M since Christmas. Into the Woods snagged #3 with a $31M three day and $46.1M since Christmas. The last two in the top five were: Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb, $20.6M and Annie, $16.6M.

-  Pirating is a problem for both the movie and television industry. This years Top 10 most pirated movies have been revealed. The list follows:

1. “The Wolf of Wall Street”: 30.035 million (Paramount, Dec. 25, 2013)
2. “Frozen”: 29.919 million (Disney, Nov. 27, 2013)
3. “RoboCop”*: 29.879 million (MGM, Feb. 12, 2014; and Orion, July 17, 1987)
4. “Gravity”: 29.357 million (Warner Bros., Oct. 4, 2013)
5. “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug”: 27.627 million (Warner Bros., Dec. 13, 2013)
6. “Thor: The Dark World”: 25.749 million (Disney/Marvel, Nov. 8, 2013)
7. “Captain America: The Winter Soldier”: 25.628 million (Disney/Marvel, April 4, 2014)
8. “The Legend of Hercules”: 25.137 million (Summit, Jan. 10, 2014)
9. “X-Men: Days of Future Past”: 24.380 million (20th Century Fox, May 23, 2014)
10. “12 Years a Slave”: 23.653 million (Fox Searchlight, Oct. 18, 2013)

....Television

- To continued with the theme of pirating, Game of Thrones, for the third in a row, was the most pirated T.V show of 2014. Most surprising entry on the list? Suits coming in at #9. The whole list follows:

1. "Game of Thrones"
2. "The Walking Dead"
3. "The Big Bang Theory"
4. "How I Met Your Mother"
5. "Gotham"
6. "Arrow"
7. "Grey's Anatomy"
8. "Vikings"
9. "Suits"
10. "South Park"

....Video Games

- Xbox Director of Development and founder of Xbox Live and XNA, Boyd Multerer, has announced that he will be leaving Microsoft. He said he wanted to "do something new." He founded the development team for Xbox Live that launched in November, 2002. He was also instrumental to the design of the Xbox One’s core architecture.

Weekly Round Up- 12/22-12/26/14

Top stories of the week in movies, television, and video games.

Movies

SONY once again scores the top spot again. Them releasing The Interview on VOD and in more than three hundred theaters. Not counting VOD, the movie has made over $1M on Christmas.

Honorable mention goes to Star Trek 3. The movie got a release date and a director. Justin Lin,
famous for his Fast and Furious films, will direct the film that will be released on July 8, 2016.

Television

Marvel snagged another hero. Mike Colter landed the role of Luke Cage. He will appear in the upcoming Netflix series A.K.A. Jessica Jones, as well as the Luke Cage series and the Defenders series. And I for one, can't wait for these series.

Video Games

No story was bigger than the Christmas day DDOS attacks. The group called Lizard Squad as taken credit for the attacks. Though some of the trouble might have been because of a bunch of people trying to connect their new consoles for the first time.


Video of the Week

Ever heard of the Youtube Channel, The Game Theorists. Well if you haven't and you are a fan of video games, you should check it. MatPat, the guy behind it, takes something about a game and goes way to deep in it. His videos about Mario are a perfect example of that. But the videos that I'm putting here are about Five Nights at Freddy's and its sequel. They're a little creepy but I think you'll like them.

Today in....

Christmas Box Office and DDOS Attacks

....Movies

- The Christmas box office was better than people thought. Unbroken made $15.6M at 3,131 theaters. Into the Woods hit $15.1M at 2,440 theaters. The Hobbit: Battle of the Five Armies continued its run with $13.6M at 3,875 sites. The three movies will probably end up with $40M four-day weekend.

- The Interview played on screens in 331 theaters as well as on VOD. It got a first day gross from the theaters of $1M dollars.

....Television

- The animated How the Grinch Stole Christmas hit a five-year high with 5.9M viewers and a demo of 1.9. The live- action version did 5M viewers and 1.8 demo. Big Bang Theory was the most watched show with 6.8M viewers and a 1.2 demo.

- The Sopranos alum Michael Imperioli is heading to Hawaii. The actor will appear in at least two episodes as a reformed criminal, originally from Staten Island, who has a passion for surfing. Now, he owns an Oahu-based barbershop and acts as a confidential informant.

....Video Games

- Had trouble connecting to Xbox Live or PSN yesterday? That's because the hacker group, Lizard Squad, decided to ruin some Christmas days by preforming a DDOS attack on the networks. Both seem to be up now.

- Call of Duty: Advance Warfare has released a new mode that is all about the sniper. The mode, called One Shot, is, as described by Advanced Warfare developer Sledgehammer in a blog post, "a brand new snipers-only game mode with decreased health and highly specific classes." It has five different sniping classes that the studio says were created in collaboration with the famed Call of Duty pro player, NaDeSHoT.  

Thursday's Look Back

Today we look back on something in pop culture that I totally missed out on. Today that is....

Game of Thrones

There are somethings that you miss that just seem so daunting to get into. Though there are only four seasons and they're only ten episodes each, it just seems like a lot to take in. So many houses and character names. Who did what and who killed who. It just seemed like a lot of work. Add in the books and a couple of games and it seems like a lot of mythology to take in.

And I'm not the only one to see it that way. I've talked to a few friends who have gotten into it. And each one said they are too intimidated to watch. As one person said, "I feel that if I watch and get a name wrong or something, I'll never live it down." I don't know if I'll go that far, but it is an intense feeling of being on the outside looking in.

I do plan on watching this one day. Probably will even read the books. But I don't know when.

What are your thoughts on this? Should I watch it? Should I not? Have something else I might have missed out on? Hit the comments and let me know.

Forbes' Most Overpaid Actors of 2014

Every year, Forbes puts out a list of the most overpaid actors in Hollywood. They do this by looking at an actors last three movies before June 2014. They take the movies' box office and what the actors got paid to do them and find out how much the actor generated per dollar they made. Simply put, for every dollar an actor made, how much did the movie make?

The Forbes's top ten are as follows:

1) Adam Sandler, $3.20 for every dollar paid

2) Johnny Depp, $4.10 for every dollar

3) Ben Stiller, $4.80 for every dollar

4) Ryan Reynolds, $4.90 for every dollar

5) Tom Hanks, $5.10 for every dollar

6) Will Ferrell, $6.60 for every dollar

7) Channing Tatum, $6.70 for every dollar

8) Denzel Washington, $6.90 for every dollar

9) Sandra Bullock, $9 for every dollar

10) Ben Affleck, $9.37 for every dollar


Adam Sandler tops the list for the second straight year. Grown Ups 2 was a hit, but it couldn't make up for Jack and Jill and That's My Boy. This probably doesn't bother him too much as he inked a deal with Netflix to produce and star in four original movies.

As for the rest of the list, some are there because of of big backend deals (Tatum, Bullock). Some are there because they had a big bomb (Hanks, Cloud Atlas). And some, like Ferrell and Washington, didn't have flops, but they also didn't have hits.

Some names aren't surprising, though. Depp has had a lot of hits meaning that he can ask for a big paycheck. Because of this, he becomes an expensive risk that doesn't always pays off. And Stiller just has really had a movie to hit it big.

Studios take risks. They take them from hiring unknown directors or making original movies. And studios also take risks by paying actors a lot to get them into movies. Some pay off while others don't. Either way, studios will continue to do this.

Today in....

The Interview release, Walking Dead Spinoff casting, Telltale Bundle


....Movies

- It seems SONY is not done with The Interview quite yet. The movie will get a limited release starting Christmas and going to New Year. It will probably be in less than a hundred theaters and mostly in smaller theaters, but it seems that if you want to see it, you might get a chance. Here's a list of theaters, according to Deadline.

- Star Trek 3 just got a director and a release date. The movie is now set to release on July 8, 2016 and be directed by Justin Lin. He is most famous for directing four of the Fast & Furious franchise.


....Television

- Deadwood alum Kim Dickens landed the female lead in The Walking Dead spinoff, code named Cobalt. She will play a guidance counselor who's in a relationship with a divorced teacher, played by Gang Related's Cliff Curtis. Th show itself will be a prequel of sorts, taking place in Los Angeles and dealing with the early days of the epidemic and trying to stop it.

- AMC's Breaking Bad prequel series Better Call Saul has dropped a new trailer. The series will premieres with a two-night event starting Sunday, February 8 and Monday, February 9 at 10/9c.

....Video Games

- Sunset Overdrive has released it's first DLC, Mystery of the Mooil Rig. It adds more story missions, weapons, quests, Amps, and other items. It will cost you $10 or free for season pass owners.

- Want to play Telltale games on Xbox One, but have done it yet. Here's a good excuse to do it. A Telltale Games collection is available for $55 to Xbox gold members. The collection includes both seasons of The Walking Dead, all episodes of The Wolf Among Us, and the first episode of both Game of Thrones and Tales from the Borderlands. You'll have to what for the rest of the episodes, but you do get the season passes for those two. The bundle does not seem like it will come to other consoles.

Are there too many superhero movies?

That's a question a lot of people are asking. And it's a legitimate question to ask. With Marcel's and DC's having massive slates coming up, each releasing at least two movies a year starting 2016. Add in  Fox and their X-men and Fantastic Four plus whatever SONY does with Spider-man. That's a lot of superheroes. But is that too much? My answer is no.

The first reason is that even with six a year, that is still only one every two months. That sounds like a lot but it's not. That's about the same with every other genre. And you don't hear people complaining about too many comedies. Yeah, not all of those comedies are good, but no one is complaining about two many. And that is what is going to happen with superheroes. Some will be good. Some will be great. And some will be bad. But there won't be too many.

Another reason is that they will not all be the same. Man of Steel and Guardians of the Galaxy are to very different movies. But they are still superhero movies. And I believe that you will see that a lot. Suicide Squad is going to be a different tone than Ant-man. Different types of heroes are going to tell different stories. Some will be the typical superhero movie. But some will be a space adventure. Some will heist films. Some will be horror or suspense. But they all be different than each other.

And maybe there will be too many movies. Maybe we will get tired of them. But the studios sure don't think that will happen. Whether you trust in Marvel or DC, I believe you have to have some faith in the studios that own them, Disney and Warner Bros. These are studios that know how to make franchises. They know how to make good movies and they are smart. If they think we will still be into superhero movies in 2020, then there is a good chance we will be.

And we are not telling them any different. When a movie that is not entirely loved, like The Amazing Spider-man 2, can make over $700 million dollars worldwide, then obviously a lot of people are seeing these types of movies. Superhero films are big money and every studio wants a piece of pie. So, if you want these movies to stop being made, don't go to the movies. Once a maturity of these movies don't make money, then studios will slow down.

There is a lot of talk about superhero movies these days. Whether there are to many? Whether they can be good or not? Is this the right move for studios? Truth is, no one will know till a few years down the road. The only thing you can say for certain is we got of superheroes in our future.

Today in....

Laika's new film, new PS4, and one new superhero

....Movies

- Laika and Foucus Features, the studios behind the animated movies Coraline, ParaNorman, and The Boxtrolls, have announced their next project. Kubo and The Two Strings is described as a “sweeping, swashbuckling adventure set in a mythical ancient Japan” and will be filmed in the company’s signature 3D stop-motion and CG hybrid technique. This will be the first of a three-picture deal between the two studios that was announced in October.

- It was a good start of the holidays for Warner Bros. and The Hobbit. The Battle of the Five Armies $56.1M for the weekend and $90.6M since Wednesday. The rest of the Top Five shapes up as follows: Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb ($17.1M), Annie ($15.9M), Exodus: Gods and Kings ($7.89M), The Hunger Games: Mockingjay part 1 ($7.7M).

....Television

- Marvel has found a new superhero. Mike Colter, known for The Good Wife, The Following, and Halo: Nightfall, has been tapped to play Luke Cage in Netflix's and Marvel's AKA Jessica Jones and most likely the Luke Cage series as well. He is joined by Kristen Ritter, who is playing Jessica Jones.

- SNL has announced that Kevin Hart will host the first new episode of 2015 on January 17. No word on who will be the musical guest. Hart last hosted in 2013.

....Video Games

- Microsoft has announced three free games for their January Games with Gold. D4, a bizarre murder mystery, will be available for download all month for Xbox One. For the first half of January, MX vs. ATV Alive, and during the second have The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings, will be available for 360 owners.

- In another case of Japan getting something news, SONY has announced a red and black PS4 will be released in Japan on March 19, 2015. It will also come with Final Fantasy Type O. No word of if it will be coming to America, but Type O drops in the US on March 17, 2015, and on March 20 in Europe.

  

Legend of Korra: Saying goodbye

It's hard to say goodbye. Especially to something you love. And what I'm saying goodbye to today is The Legend of Korra. I know the finale came out Friday, but I needed a few days to think and to let it all sink in.

I've read a good amount of reviews and articles about the finale. Some are good. Some are bad. Most liked the finale. A small few didn't. Most talk about the last few moments in a lot of detail. Most talk about the series as a whole. And as much as I thought I will miss it, I will also feel grateful to have been able to watch a show like this.

This show has had a lot go on outside of the show. From starting as a miniseries turning into four books. Taking a long time between book 1 and book 2. Having episodes of book 3 leaked leading to a pushed up release of that book. Moving to online only and having budget cuts. And through it all, there was the fans. Korra proved that when a series is great, people will watch it anywhere.

And what a great series it was. As a sequel series to Avatar: The Last Airbender, Korra had a lot to live up to. And I think it did. Say what you will about the first two books, the last two were amazing. And they also tied in the important parts of the first two into the plot of book 3 and 4. They made a show that built upon a world that Avatar and made it richer. Made it more mature. Yes, the first series was mature at times, but it was still a show about a eleven-year-old trying to save the world. Korra might seem be that much older at times, but she is. And the characters around her are as well. It just made for a more mature show. Don't take that a shot at Avatar. I love the first series and it holds a special place in my heart. And if I had to chose between the two, and as much as I love Korra, I'd still chose Avatar.

With that said, Korra was a show about it's characters above all else. Yes, the storytelling was great.  The action better than a lot of live-action movies and television shows. It had top notch directing and score. But it was the characters that had you coming back for more.

It was Korra maturing and recovering from near death. It was Bolin going from being the comedy relief to a man trying to make up for a mistake he made because he wanted to do something good. It was Jinora coming into,her own as a airbender, And as much as it was the show was about Korra, it was also about the Beifong family. Some of the best episodes were about them. The story of Lin and Suyin drifting apart and than finding each other again. And who could forget how they handled Toph. It was great to see her back. To see her interact with Korra and to see her relationship with her daughters. It was fun and a blast to see. And there plus many more great side characters: Mako, Asami, Tenzin and his kids. I could go on and on.

To the finale, I loved it. It mixed a few great character moments in with a whole lot of action. It left a few things open, but all story lines were tied up. I loved it. It was a pretty good way to end the series. I wish it didn't end, but it did. And because I know you will ask, I was okay with the last few moments I wished they had more time and maybe made it more obvious. But I think they did as much as Nick would allow them to. And if you asked the creators, I doubt they would tell what they meant by it.
Overall, the series was a not only a great follow up but also a wonderful series all in it's own. It's a sad day. And I wish more series were like this one. It's been a fun ride.

Weekly Round Up-12/13-12/19, 2014

Biggest Stories from the week.

Movies

No story, movies or otherwise, was bigger this week than SONY and The Interview. Starting with massive leaks and ending with threats, things kept getting worse for SONY. Then theaters started dropping the movie and eventually SONY decided just to not release it at all. There wasn't a day when this wasn't the top story.

Television

Trailers, Trailers, and more Trailers. From Parks and Recreation to Orphan Black. Following will be links to few of them:
Parks and Recs
Orphan Black
Bates' Motel
Game of Thrones

Video Games

Rockstar has been promising GTA: Online heist for a long time. And we finally got some news. And a trailer! And a new timeframe! Early 2015. Hopefully this times it sticks.

Honorable mention to Minecraft: Story Mode, the Telltale episodic game announced this week.

Video of the Week
Honest Trailers. League of Legends. Enough said.

Today in...

Wahlberg for more Transformers, Bates' Motel trailer, and More Far Cry

....Movies

- Looks like the Transformers liked Mark Wahlberg. It was revealed that he will becoming back for Transformers 5 after making his debut in Transformers: Age of Extinction. It's unclear about who will join him or who will direct, but Wahlberg has said he's committed to "a couple  more" Transformer films.

- Sony Pictures as acquired the rights to the 1983 animated film Fire and Ice. They also got Robert Rodriguez to sign to direct a life-action version of it. This is a big win for a studio that is having a rough few weeks.

....Television

- It seems like a great time of year for new trailers as I talked about two yesterday and am about to talk about one more. This one? Bates' Motel season 3. And this one pays homage to Psycho.

- AMC has found their lead for their direct-to-series martial arts drama with the working title, Badlands. Hong Kong actor Daniel Wu will play Sunny, a ruthless, well-trained warrior. He will also produce. Wu has previously been featured in more than 60 films and won a Hong Kong Prize for Best Directer.

....Video Games

- Fan of the Wii U? Not a fan? Either way, it's two-years-old and Nintendo is already thinking about the next console. From an Associated Press interview, Super Mario Bros. creator and leading Nintendo visionary Shigeru Miyamoto stated,

"For the time being, our focus is on the Wii U hardware, but Nintendo as a whole has groups working on ideas for new hardware systems. While we're busy working on software for the Wii U, we have production lines that are working on ideas for what the next system might be."

It should be noted that this kind of planning is normal from console manufacturers. It probably be a few more years till you have to worry about this.

- Dying for more Far Cry 4? Well, you only have to wait till January 13, Ubisoft announced. Escape from Durgesh Prison, which was revealed with the season pass, will have players completing challenges and finding weapons across Kyrat while also upgrading skills and gear. It will be playable in single player and Co-Op, but beware, if players die, they have to start all over again.

The Rise of Telltale Games

Games historically have more or less been about gameplay. Story was a great extra if it was good, but as long as the gameplay was good, so was the game. This is in full display in Call of Duty or the recent Destiny. They have their issues, but they're fun to play.

But with games like Gone Home, The Stanley Parable, and The Last of Us, things have changed a bit. Yes, people say good things about the gameplay, but these games are known more for their story than anything else. And the studio known for games that are talked more about for their story over gameplay? Telltale Games.

As the makers of The Walking Dead Seasons 1-2, The Wolf Among Us, Tales From the Borderlands, and Game of Thrones, Telltale knows how to tell a story. Telltale games leave gamers wanting more and begging for the next episode. But how do they do this? Well, like I said, they know how to tell a story.

Telltale tells stories the captivate people. They make stories the suck people in. And they make stories that are paced perfectly. Just when you think things settle down, something else comes up. And with heartbreaking choices, they leave gamers speechless. With some many different outcomes and choices, no one's experiences are the same. And that is fun to talk about with other people.

Telltale does a lot right. But what they do the best is characters. From Lee and Clementine from The Walking Dead to Rhys and Fiona from Tales from the Brorderlands, they make characters that are different. They are flawed, but lovable. Characters that change with every choice and every game.

And the last thing about Telltale is they make you feel. They leave you regretting every choice, yet wanting to play them again. They make feel sad when someone dies and happy when someone else doesn't. They make games like Games of Thrones where there is no right choice but you still feel like you made the wrong one.

Telltale became part of pop culture with The Walking Dead but stays there with every game that follows. They tell stories that don't need gameplay to enjoy. They make games that are so good at what they do that they are so frustrating and nerve-racking to play. And if they dropped a game today that people knew nothing about, people would still buy it.

Today in...

Two Trailers and Minecraft Game

....Movies

- The Hobbit: The Battle of Five Armies started of its run strong. On Wednesday it earned 24.5M of 3,875 screens. This was the third highest Wednesday opening behind two Lord of the ring films: Return of the Ring and Two Towers.

- AMC Theaters have announced a new subscription program called MoviePass Premium. With the subscription, movie goers will be able to see one movie a day without a ticket. The service will cost up to $45. But it will only be available in Denver and Boston during its trial period.

....Television

- Parks and Recreation released its first final season trailer yesterday. NBC will premiere two episodes every week starting January 13,2015 at 8PM ET. And the one hour series finale will air February 24. I don't know about you, but I'm both looking forward to and dreading January 13. I will miss this series.

- Orphan Black gets a release date and a teaser. Season 3 will premiere April 18, 2015. A date I can't wait to get to. As for the teaser, let's just say "This Is War".

....Video Games

- Mojang and Telltale Games have announced they're making a game about Minecraft. Minecraft: Story Mode will be out sometime in 2015, and like Telltale's other games, will be released in a series of episodes. Here's what Telltale had to say:

Minecraft: Story Mode will be an all-new narrative-driven game series developed by Telltale in collaboration with Mojang. Set in the world of Minecraft, the series will feature an original story, driven by player choice. It will not be an add-on for Minecraft, but rather a separate standalone product that will premiere in 2015 on consoles, computers and mobile devices. 

Telltale's game series will mix new characters with familiar themes, in an entirely original Minecraft experience, inspired by the Minecraft community and the game that continues to inspire a generation.

- Valve has announced the start of the Steam Holiday Sale. The press release follows:

"The Steam Holiday Sale is on now thru January 2, 2015. Throughout the sale, Steam customers may take advantage of special deals running every 12 hours and new Featured Deals happening each day. In addition, holiday shoppers may vote in the Community Choice promotion to determine which games receive deeper discounts. And those who participate in the sale may also earn exclusive Holiday Sale Trading Cards."

Thursday's Look Back

In Thursday's Look Back, I'll look back at things that I either missed the band wagon on or things I think other people did.

This week I look back at...

The Walking Dead (Television Show)

I think it's quite clear that this is not something other people missed out on. No, that was definitely me. But that was not because of my family. No, my two siblings and my dad watch this and early on tried to get me to, too. And let's take a look to as why that didn't work.

I was never the biggest horror fan. So when this first came on, I thought this was just a horror zombie thing. And I don't know if I was right or not, but nothing ever got me to tune in. I've since caught two episode because of aforementioned family. And though those episodes weren't scary, they were very much a zombie show and that didn't make want to catch and watch the show.

Then there were all the mixed reviews after the first season. So said season two was making the show better every episode and many others said the complete opposite. That is was getting worse. My family certainly thought the second. And that continued every season, including the current one. So that has always stopped me from catching up. That and the show just never seemed interesting to me. 

And it's also not because I don't like zombies. I do. World War Z is a great book. Zombieland cracks me up. I've even played the Telltale Game, The Walking Dead. And I loved it. Not the way it made me feel. but the game itself. I just don't care much for the show.

So, that's that. I don't get what's so special about the show. But if you do, good for you. Everyone has their own tastes. And obviously a lot of people disagree with mine. If you do like it, can you explain it to me because my family sure has tried.

Is there anything you have missed out on? Anything you think I should check out? Leave a comment.

The Most Viewed Movie Trailers of 2014

A list of the twenty most viewed movie trailers on Youtube was released today. The reseach was conducted by Zefr, a youtube data and marketing company. The list is as follows:

1) Fifty Shades of Grey , 93m views
2) Star Wars: Episode VII- The Force Awakens, 81m views
3) Avengers: Age of Ultron, 78m views
4) Jurassic World, 64m views
5) Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, 58m views
6) Furious 7, 57.5m Views
7) Minions 54m views
8) The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies, 45m views
9) Dumb and Dumber To, 44m views
10) Interstellar, 39m views
11) The Hunger Games: Mockingjay- Part 1 trailer #1, 38m views
12) Transformers: Age of Extinction, 37m views
13) The Fault in Our Stars, 33.7m views
14) X-Men: Days of Future Past, 32m views
15) Dracula Untold, 30m views
16) Sex Tape, 29.5m views
17) Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, 29m views
18) The Hunger Games: Mockingjay- Part 1 teaser trailer, 27m views
19) Mad Max: Fury Road, 26m views
20) Pitch Perfect 2, 25.8m views

Universal leads with five in the top ten. Paramount fills three more spots in the top ten. Disney with two and Warner Bros. with one make up the rest of the top ten.

Star Wars had the best start with 58.2 million in its first five days but that was not enough to catch Fifty Shades's four month head start. Jurassic World also had a great start with 53.9 million views within its first week.

No one can be too surprised about this list. All the big blockbusters are there. Heck, Hunger Games shows up twice. I do wish the star wars or Avengers got more views to top Fifty Shades, but it is what it is. The main should be that we got a lot of great trailers this year.

Here's to hoping 2015 can be another great year in movie trailers.

Today in...

Suicide Squad Casting, SONY Issues and GTA Heists

....Movies


- According to Latino Review, Viola Davis has landed the role of Amanda Waller in the upcoming movie Suicide Squad. Granted. That is as long as they can work around her filming schedule of her television show, How To Get Away With Murder. This is still a rumor as Warner Bros. or Davis has confirmed this is true. And Latino Review does not have the best record when it comes to scoops. But if it is true, I can't be happier with the way this movie is shaping up to be.

- After the threats from the SONY hackers, theaters are decided not to show The Interview. Bow Tie Cinemas and Carmike Cinemas have dropped it while ArcLight Cinemas is also rumored to as well, but that is not yet confirmed. Landmark has also cancelled the premiere that was to take place Thursday night in New York. The two biggest theater chains, AMC Theaters and Regal Entertainment Group, have not commented. And the National Association of Theatre Owners (NATO) made a statement stating that it is up to the theaters themselves if they want to show the movie or not.

UPDATE: AMC, Regal, ArcLight, Cinemark, and Cineplex Entertainment have all pulled The Interview. That means that all major theater chains have pulled this movie. SONY has also pull all TV advertising. It seems like it is pretty much dead now.

UPDATE #2: Sony has cancelled the movies Christmas release. They didn't say they will never release the film. They are looking at other options at potential release strategies.

....Television

- Daisy Betts and Julian McMahon have joined Syfy's new series, to premiere in 2015, Childhood's End. A six-hour miniseries, based on Arthur C. Clarke's book, finds a group of powerful aliens assuming control of earth, stripping mankind of its culture and identity. You might recognize Betts from Chicago Fire and McMahon from Nip/Tuck or Charmed.

- According The Hollywood Reporter, former JAG star David James Elliot will guest-star in an upcoming episode of Scorpion. He will play Bruce Jones, a former Secret Service agent that turns to the Scorpion gang to help recover an important, 15-year-old memory after terrorists threaten to break into a nuclear missile silo.

....Video Games

- Heists are finally coming to GTA V. In an interview with IGN, GTA Online producer and lead mission designer Sarwar discussed how they work and shared a trailer. And a release window: Early 2015. And they'll be free.

- Life is Strange, the new episodic game from Square Enix and Dontnod Entertainment, is releasing its first episode on January 30, 2015. Dontnod Entertainment are the people behind Remember Me. You can watch the trailer here. The synopsis of the game is as follows:

Life is Strange is an episodic, narrative driven adventure game which tells the compelling story of Max; a Senior photography student who suddenly discovers she is able to rewind time. She uses her power to save the life of Chloe, her childhood friend, whom she has not seen in five years. For Chloe it’s been a turbulent time and she’s been drifting off course since her father’s tragic death.

The reunion will turn their lives upside down, as increasingly strange events plague the small town of Arcadia Bay both teenagers find themselves involved in a grim investigation into the mysterious disappearance of a high school student.

Why DC is winning on Television

Don't let the title fool. I am a huge fan of Marvel. I love their movies. I enjoy Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and definitely look forward to Agent Carter. I know more about Marvel. But I don't pretend that DC hasn't kicked Marvel's butt in T.V. land.

Starting with Arrow and its spin off, The Flash. From compelling characters and plots to amazing action, I contend these are the two best superhero shows on television. Yes, The Flash is only a half season in, but what a half season. No, it's not perfect, but it's finding its way. Arrow had to do the same thing and they did it well. With the same people running The Flash, I have a lot of trust. And how great was the recent crossover between the two?

I haven't seen Constantine, so I won't comment on that. Though I have all the episodes recorded and do plan on a binge day. But I have seen Gotham. I will admit it has had its ups and downs. And probably more downs than ups. So did S.H.I.E.L.D. And ever since Cap 2, S.H.I.E.L.D. has been on a roll. Granted, Gotham doesn't have a Cap 2 on its horizon, but it does have another half season to fix some of the problems. And though I have less faith in the Gotham showrunners (and Fox for that matter), I still have hope. They just have to figure out what they want to be.

The biggest thing that DC shows have over Marvel's? They're not tied to the movie universe. I mentioned earlier Cap 2 and S.H.I.E.L.D. Yes, that did a lot of good for S.H.I.E.L.D. it also hinders it. S.H.I.E.L.D. cant do certain things because it could mess with the movies. They can't destroy New York or Washington D.C. or anywhere else for that matter without serious consequences for the movies. And Marvel and Disney won't let that happen. Arrow can do what it wants with only affecting The Flash and vice versa. And for two T.V. shows airing on back-to-back nights on the same network that works. For a show that is just a side project in a much bigger universe, not so much.

And now to look to what DC has coming down the road: CBS has Supergirl and TNT has Teen Titans, a.k.a. Titans, and Syfy with Krypton. All of them could be awesome. Or all of them can be disasters. But, either way, I look forward to find out as DC looks to put even more distance between itself and Marvel in T.V. land.

But in the end, it really doesn't matter. As long as we are getting great superhero television, I don't care if it comes from DC, Marvel, or someone else. And neither should you.

Welcome!

Welcome to Press Play.

This blog will be about what's happening in movies, television, video games and more things pop culture. You will get posts daily about what's going on. From the news to reviews to opinions.

This is a journey I'm excited to start and hope you come along with me.