Battlestar Galactica: The Plan comes to DVD today; contest offers dinner with Admiral
The direct-to-DVD “Battlestar Galactica: The Plan” comes to DVD and Blu-ray today, exploring the events of the series from the Cylons’ point-of-view.
It’s also a little racier than the cable series, as there are no particular restrictions on the direct-to-DVD release. (It’s still no racier than an R-rated film, however.)
Tying into the film’s release, UGO is offering fans a chance to win “Dinner with the Admiral.” The winner will receive a trip for two to Los Angeles for dinner with Edward James Olmos.
Marvel motion comics finalists named
Aniboom has announced the finalists in its Marvel motion comics contest. The motion comics chosen adapt either a Jeph Loeb-written Wolverine vs. Hulk fight or a Dan Abnett-Andy Lanning “Nova” tale.
The five finalists — from Los Angeles, New York, New Hampshire and Australia — will each receive $2,000 to expand their motion comic into a full-length story. These five, plus one additional “Wildcard” finalist, will compete for the grand prize of $10,000 and the opportunity to showcase their work across Marvel’s digital network, according to the release.
The winner will be announced Nov. 16, after a week of voting at aniboom.com.
Click past the cut to see the five finalists’ videos.
- Matt Price
Monday movie quote challenge #50
“Screws fall out all the time, the world is an imperfect place.”
Identify who said the above quote in what film in the comments!
Musical episode of Batman: The Brave and the Bold airs tonight
Neil Patrick Harris guest-stars as villain “The Music Meister” in tonight’s episode of “Batman: The Brave and the Bold.” “Mayhem of the Music Meister” guest-stars Neil Patrick Harris as the Music Meister, whose power makes those around him break into song and do his bidding.
“Brave and Bold” is always a fun half-hour, and “Meister” is no exception. While the plot’s pretty thin, it’s a lot of fun to see the proceeding turn into a musical. Black Canary, voiced by Grey DeLisle, is the show-stopper, singing about her unrequited love for Batman, but NPH gets to show off quite a bit as well. “He Drives Us Bats” is a take on Batman from the villain point of view that’s quite catchy, besides.
The soundtrack goes on sale Saturday on iTunes.
- Matt Price
DVD review: Easy Virtue
Director Stephan Elliott (“The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert”) adapts the early Noel Coward play “Easy Virtue” into a motion picture starring Jessica Biel, Colin Firth and Kristin Scott Thomas.
Biel stars as Larita, a breezy American race car driver who marries into an upper-crust British family in the 1920s. Mrs. Whittaker (Thomas) is opposed to the marriage, having intended her son John (Ben Barnes) to marry Sara Hurst (Charlotte Riley), whose father owns the neighboring farm. Mr. Whittaker (Firth) responds well to Larita, but he’s barely present in his own life — he’s never recovered from his days in the first World War.
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Contest to reward Peanuts look-alikes
Kristin Chenoweth, left, was chosen as a celebrity look-alike for Sally Brown, right.
Is your child a ringer for Linus, with or without security blanket? If your son or daughter has the look of a “Peanuts” comic strip character, you can submit photos at www.peanutsphotocontest.com.
Entries can be submitted through Nov. 3, and the grand prize is an all-expense-paid trip for four to Cedar Fair amusement park in Sandusky, Ohio, home of Planet Snoopy.
Jill Schulz, daughter of “Peanuts” creator Charles Schulz, will join judge Jo Frost (“Supernanny”) and two Oklahomans — Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood — in selecting finalists. The public vote begins Nov. 11.
Q&A with Jill Schulz about Peanuts 60th anniversary and more
Jill Schulz
Jill Schulz, daughter of Charles Schulz, talked to The Oklahoman about the Peanuts comic strip and the plans for the 60th anniversary.
Matt Price: What do you think accounts for the enduring popularity of the Charlie Brown characters?
Jill Schulz: My Dad was a great observer of people throughout his entire life and I know he had great empathy for children and how cruel they can be to each other on the playgrounds and neighborhoods. I know my Dad had a great understanding and very clear memories of what it is like learning to fit in and negotiate social interaction even as a child, which is something we all go through whether we were a very shy child or the leader of the group. In the comic strip we are always seeing the challenges between the characters, their personalities ,and situations which are so familiar to us all, it gives us a chance to relate and say “oh, yeah, my sister is crabby” or “yes, I feel alone at lunch time,” … and of course who doesn’t experience the Little Red Haired girl or some other kind of rejection in their lifetime. These are issues that have been and will always be there for everyone ,which I believe is why Peanuts has become such a timeless strip for all of our generations.
Hulu may charge by 2010
Hulu.com, which I’ve told many people is the greatest invention on the internet, may be about to get a lot less useful.
Broadcasting & Cable announces that News Corp. Deputy Chairman Chase Carey says “Hulu … needs to evolve to have a meaningful subscription model as part of its business.” And Carey assumes that will happen by at least 2010.
Paying for a subscription to Hulu when you already pay for a cable subscription seems like double-dipping. And if you’re using Hulu without cable, it’s possibly because you don’t want to spend a ton of money on your television viewing.
Hulu provided a way to get caught up on shows that you might be behind on in an easy, cleanly formatted way. And I never had a problem watching a few ads to do that. I’m not one who wants to pirate anything — I like obeying the law — so going to get illegal torrents just isn’t going to do it for me. On the whole, if Hulu becomes a pay site, and the cost isn’t relatively negligible, my response will be to simply watch less TV.
Entertainment Weekly already has 200-plus comments on the story, with most promising to stop using Hulu if it becomes a pay site.
- Matt Price
Who is your favorite Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle?
With today’s announcement of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles being purchased by Nickelodeon, let’s find out who the favorite Turtle of Nerdage readers is.
NewsOK Comics Podcast: Incredible Hulk 602, Supergirl 46, Justice League 38
Matt Price and Kyle Roberts provide comic-book reviews for Incredible Hulk 602, Supergirl 46 and Justice League 38 in this week’s NewsOK Comics Podcast. It’s Hulk vs. Wolverine: The Next Generation in “Incredible Hulk” No. 602. The Hunt for Reactron ends in Supergirl 46. And James Robinson (“Starman”) begins his run on “Justice League of America” in issue No. 38.
