8 Things to Watch This Week
This week on the ol' tube, FOX's Gotham closes out its hit first season while HBO airs an intimate documentary about Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain and Dr. Wells uses Gorilla Grodd as a weapon on The Flash.
Netflix in May: Inglourious Basterds, Boxtrolls, More
Plus, CBS' Person of Interest caps off its thrilling fourth season, Damon Wayans Jr. bids farewell to New Girl, Revenge wraps up its series run, NBC's Undateable runs a live episode, and the villains get their own personal happy endings on Once Upon a Time. Let's take a look...
Middle-Earth has a High Oxygen Content, Study Reveals
Ever wonder how Aragorn pulls off the insane moves he does in battle? A new study explains that it may be due to the higher oxygen content available to people in Middle-Earth.
In a study titled "Does the Oxygen Content of Tolkien’s Middle Earth Allow for Greater Endurance?," Richard Walker and Alice Cooper-Dunn of The Centre for Interdisciplinary Science at the University of Leicester attempt to provide an answer.
Citing incidences such as the Battle of Helms Deep and Aragorn's ability to survive the night tirelessly fighting orcs, the study found Aragorn's endurance was likely explained by a higher level of oxygen available for him to breathe, which would in turn afford a greater amount of oxygen to the blood for a longer, more sustained amount of physical activity.
Digital Honeybee Brain Used to Pilot Quadcopter Drone
Green Brain Project scientists in the UK have successfully piloted a drone using a digitally recreated honeybee brain.
Using video cameras and the artificial honeybee brain, the quadcopter drone was able to fly down a corridor the same way a trained honeybee would. According to Green Brain Project's James Marshall, the drone even reproduced similar behaviors seen in honeybees. You can see the drone in action in the BBC video below.
For now, the scientists have only been able to recreate the part of the honeybee's brain related to its vision. However, they hope to eventually recreate a complete European honeybee brain.
Toys-to-Life Are Gaming’s Hottest-Selling Accessory
Toys-to-life Skylanders Trap Team, Disney Infinity, and Nintendo Amiibo comprise the best-selling gaming accessory of 2015 so far.
According to data tracker GfK Chart-Track and as reported by MCV UK, sales of Skylanders toys are up 44% in units sold and 25% in revenue for the year so far.
Disney Infinity is up by 56% in units sold and 37% in revenue.
Winning the sales race is Nintendo's Amiibo line, which has seen unit sales jump to 145% and revenue to 121%.
“Skylanders and Infinity are up year-to-date because of the launch of Skylanders Trap Team and Disney Infinity
Grey Hulk Originally Planned for Age of Ultron
Marvel's Avengers: Age of Ultron was originally going to feature a grey version of the Hulk.
In a recent interview with the visual effects team at ILM, it was revealed that the color change for Bruce Banner's alter ego would've happened during the Hulk vs. Hulkbuster scene.
“Initially, Hulk was actually planned to turn grey when he’s angry Hulk in the Hulkbuster sequence but hey, everybody wanted the green guy," Wired reports. "So, in the end, ILM just changed his eyes to make them look more sullen when he’s under the control of Scarlet Witch.”
Interestingly enough, we were teased with the possibility of a grey Hulk earlier this year when a new Funko POP! Vinyl toy showcased the assembled team, complete with a grey rendition of the character.
I Am Bread Gets Free Star Wars Update
Star Wars content is in full force (sorry) for May the 4th and Bossa's I Am Bread is no different.
A new update titled Starch Wars adds a full-fledged space shooter to the bread simulator, which you can play for free now.
Based on the trailer, the update features various bread loaf and toast-inspired ships, including bagel TIE fighters.
This isn't the only Star Wars news and content spawning from today's date.
There's a new leaked image of the chrome trooper from The Force Awakens, plus the reveal of Adam Driver's character.
Nintendo Apologizes for Amiibo Shortages, Working on Solution
Nintendo has provided an update on how it plans to handle its toy-centric NFC platform amiibo going forward, apologizing for supply issues in the past and promising to deliver a better experience for consumers in the future.
"We appreciate the enthusiasm that our fans continue to show toward amiibo. Sales for the product have exceeded our expectations. We understand how frustrating it can be at times if consumers are unable to find certain figures, and we apologize for that," the company said in a newly released statement.
"We’re trying to meet the demands of our fans and consumers by increasing the amount of amiibo we manufacture and ship to retail. We may continue to see consumer demand outpace supply levels for certain characters at times, but we will do our best to prevent that from happening."
Rock Band 4 May Be the Last Music Game You’ll Ever Need
Bruce Springsteen is 65 years old. Two key members of his E Street Band have passed away in the last seven years. In fact, for a decade-long period that covered most of the 1990s, Springsteen and his band broke up, and The Boss spent most of the Clinton years not doing much of anything, musically.
The point is, Springsteen was gone. Not forgotten, but gone. And then one day, he came back (2002’s The Rising album), and everything was both familiar and comfortable again, but also brand-new.
Kind of like Rock Band.
All gameplay images (c)2015 Harmonix Music Systems, Inc.
Scott Snyder Teases Batman’s Future
Warning: this article contains spoilers for Batman #40 and Divergence #1!
In the aftermath of several huge Batman-related twists in the New 52 (including the deaths of Batman and Joker and the debut of Commissioner Gordon as Batman's armored replacement), writer Scott Snyder briefly took over DC Comics' official Twitter account for a "Batman Chat." Snyder answered fan questions about Endgame, the weekly series Batman Eternal and how both will impact the series going forward.
Batman #41 cover
Mortal Kombat X’s New Jason DLC Trailer Earns Its M Rating
To celebrate Mortal Kombat's upcoming DLC, Warner Bros. Interactive has posted a new trailer, filled with all the blood-splattering violence you've come to expect from NetherRealm Studios' fighter.
The Jason Voorhees Bundle for Mortal Kombat X will be available starting tomorrow as an early download for Kombat Pack owners. Give it a look above.
This is the first time we've been graced with an extended look at Jason in action, and based on the footage, it looks like his trusty machete will serve as his primary method of attack. From hacking, to jabbing, to brutally slashing, Voorhees' move set is one that clearly only reinforces the game's "Mature" rating.