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The Tech Fetish crew discusses the best announcements out of Google I/O, a text messaging bug that causes some iPhones to crash, Oculus Rift pricing, and AT&T's latest attempts to stall net neutrality. Also, laundry services.
Hop to the 02:44 mark to get to the tech talk.
Fantastic Four Director and Producer Address Casting Uproar
Josh Trank has spoken out to address the the casting criticism leveled at the upcoming Fantastic Four reboot, admitting he "knew it was going to get ugly."
In a recent interview with Hero Complex magazine (via LA Times), the director argued his decision to cast African American Michael B. Jordan as Johnny Storm (aka The Human Torch) and the relatively-short Jamie Bell as Ben Grimm (aka The Thing) was done out of a desire to not simply retread old ground and tell the same story in the same way.
"It only speaks to the greatness of any story that has been told for decades or centuries that people still want to tell that story," he said. "But you can’t just keep telling it the same way over and over again. And I think it only helps the world to be more honest with young kids, to show them the world that they go walk outside and see."
George R.R. Martin on Violence Against Women in Game of Thrones
Author George R.R. Martin has offered his take on women in his A Song of Ice and Fire novels and the hotly-debated topic of the violence, particularly the sexual violence, they suffer at the hands of men.
Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, it's important to note that Martin does not address the HBO show, which has come under fire throughout its lifetime for including rapes and sexual assaults that were not in the books, and their arguably mishandled aftermaths. Rather, he reflects back on the patriarchal building blocks used to create his fictional worlds of Westeros and Essos in his written work.
Musicals and Gaming Suits: An Interview with Pac-Man’s Creator
Smiling and laughing, Professor Toru Iwatani is impressively jovial, considering he just went immediately from a fourteen hour international flight to a large celebration in Pac-Man’s honor. But, such a demeanor is fitting of a man who created one of the most popular arcade games in history.
It’s been thirty-five years since Pac-Man first launched in North America and became one of the most beloved and widely-recognized characters of the classic gaming era. Pac-Man has become deeply embedded in modern popular culture - he has appeared in multiple films, television shows, video games, and licensed products, stretching from Nintendo’s Super Smash Bros. for Wii U to an episode of Futurama. People young and old all over the world recognize the wakka wakka sound Pac-Man makes as he chomps his way across the board. They know the ghosts that follow him. He is one of perhaps three video games the average grandmother in Middle America could name.
How Vacation Continues Griswold Legacy, R Rating Included
I’m a huge fan of National Lampoon’s Vacation – so much so that I named it one of my ten favorite movies ever when I listed my personal Top 10 for IGN a few months back. So suffice to say, it was pretty exciting to find myself standing at Walley World last year, watching Rusty Griswold and his family visit the fabled theme park.
Okay, sure Walley World was really Six Flags Over Georgia…* but still! There was the new generation of Griswolds, led by a grownup Rusty (Ed Helms)! And based on the conflict the Griswolds were having with another family (led by Office Space's Ron Livingston) as they tried to board a rollercoaster, Rusty's luck when it came to vacations was as terrible as his father's.
Hannibal’s Back and Everything Has Changed
It’s been a long, thirteen month wait, but Hannibal is back on Thursday night. The brilliant, beautiful, and bloody series has some big changes in store, in the wake of the shocking events that closed out Season 2, which Hannibal executive producer and showrunner, Bryan Fuller, jokingly calls “the Red Dinner.”
With Season 3 here, I spoke to Fuller about what to expect this year, as we follow Hannibal (Mads Mikkelsen) and Bedelia (Gillian Anderson) to Italy and gradually begin to learn just who survived the mayhem Dr. Lecter left in his wake back in Virginia. Fuller and I also chat about the latter half of the season, as the famous Red Dragon storyline begins, with Richard Armitage (The Hobbit) playing the “Tooth Fairy” killer, Francis Dolarhyde, and discuss the current plans beyond Season 3 and the ongoing question of whether Clarice Starling can ever be introduced, given that character’s film and TV rights (along with anyone else introduced in Silence of the Lamb) are currently held by MGM and not Hannibal’s producers.
Can FAST Racing Neo Fill the F-Zero Shaped Hole in Our Hearts?
Shin'en Multimedia FAST Racing Neo will come to Wii U this year, and it looks like it should scratch the itch Nintendo fans might have for a futuristic racer.
From the game's screenshots, it looks like a mix between F-Zero and Wipeout. Neither of those series have seen a new release in a while, and so a high-speed, futuristic racer could be a welcome addition to the Wii U library.
FAST Racing Neo is itself a follow-up to 2013's WiiWare game Fast Racing League. Shin'en Multimedia has been making games for Nintendo platforms for some time, with the superb Nano Assault Neo landing on Wii U in 2012. We gave Nano Assault Neo a 9.0 in our review, by the way.
DC Revamps The Omega Men
DC kicked off their post-Convergence relaunch this week with a number of new series and new storylines. One such new title is The Omega Men, a revamp of a lesser-known DC team by Grayson co-writer Tom King and newcomer artist Barnaby Bagenda. Not only does this series offer a bold new take on these characters, it kicked off with an eight-page preview that resulted in the apparent death of White Lantern Kyle Rayner.
We recently had a chance to chat with King and find out how this new series fits into DC's larger plans. Whether or not you're familiar with the team, King makes a strong case for why all DC fans should check out the first issue (available in stores and via digital providers today).
Batman: Arkham Knight File Size Revealed
Regardless of platform, Batman: Arkham Knight will require you to have a whopping 45 GB of free space on your hard drive.
Rocksteady Studios' upcoming superhero action game is up for pre-order, and according to the Steam, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4 listings, you'll need just shy of 50 GB to download an install the game.
Disney Wants to Bring Back Sister Act
Disney is reportedly developing a remake of the 1992 film Sister Act.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the film will be written by Kirsten Smith and Karen McCullah of Legally Blone, The House Bunny, and She's the Man. Cinderella's Allison Shearmur will serve as the film's producer.
