Monthly Archives: October 2019
Dark Horse Reveals New Game of Thrones and Metal Gear Statues
Dark Horse and First 4 Figures partnered up to bring fans an impressive NYCC booth. If your collection is in need of more Game of Thrones, The Witcher or Metal Gear figures, Dark Horse has something for you in the pipeline. Especially if you're in the market for a chibi Metal Gear Solid statue.
Check out the slideshow gallery below for a closer look at the new statues and figurines in the works from the two companies:
While some of the statues shown at NYCC would easily break the bank for most collectors (XM Studios' $500 Justice League statues come to mind), Dark Horse's lineup is much more on the affordable end of the spectrum. Their display focused on new additions to the The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt and Game of Thrones Premium Figure lines, which are smaller scale PVC statues priced in the $50-60 range.
Update: Viral Joker Outtake of Joaquin Phoenix’s Outburst Confirmed as Prank
Update 10/08: Joker cinematographer Lawrence Sher has given new context to the viral outtake of Joaquin Phoenix yelling at him on-set of the DC film, confirming, "it was a bit."
In a recent interview with Business Insider, Sher (aka the "Larry" referenced in the Jimmy Kimmel clip) explained that the outburst was staged, as Phoenix wanted to pull a prank on director Todd Phillips by appearing to get into a verbal disagreement with a member of the crew.
"It was a bit. Joaquin is actually a super playful guy and loose," Sher said, adding, "he's such a good actor that nobody even got it on set. He played it too straight."
South Park Banned in China
Long-running animated comedy South Park has generated a new international controversy, with the series now completely banned in China in the wake of its most recent episode.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, all South Park-related content, from video clips to discussion threads, have been scrubbed from Chinese websites. The Chinese government has apparently cracked down on all South Park-related content online, whether official or fan-based.
Randy Marsh attracts the wrath of the Chinese government in "Band in China."
PlayStation 4’s Newest Update Adds Remote Play for Android Devices
PlayStation 4 system software update version 7.00 launches later this week and brings the maximum number of party users from 8 to 16, adds a new Chat Transcription feature for US users, and allows for Remote Play on smartphones and tablets running Android 5.0 or higher.
PlayStation.Blog shared the details of this new update that also improves the Remote Play experience for iOS users by allowing users to choose to display the controller at all times and lock the screen orientation.
Android users looking to start using Remote Play will need to download the PS4 Remote Play App from the Google Play store.
Samuel L. Jackson Responds to Martin Scorsese’s Comments on Marvel Films
Samuel L. Jackson is the latest to respond to Martin Scorsese's comments about how Marvel movies are "not cinema."
Speaking to Variety, Jackson defended Marvel films against the director's criticisms.
“I mean that’s like saying Bugs Bunny ain’t funny," Jackson told Variety. "Films are films. Everybody doesn’t like his stuff either."
“Everybody’s got an opinion, so I mean it’s okay," Jackson continued. "Ain’t going to stop nobody from making movies.”
Peaky Blinders Season 5 Ending Explained
Full spoilers follow for Peaky Blinders Season 5, which premiered in the US via Netflix on October 4. The season was released in the UK on BBC One on August 25.
Peaky Blinders, centered around the notorious Birmingham gang led by Thomas Shelby (Cillian Murphy), closed Season 5 with a particularly shocking reveal and a powerful betrayal. The season finale also featured a riveting chat between Tommy and Winston Churchill, Polly's resignation from the gang, the murder of Aidan Gillen's Aberama Gold, and the return of Grace (Annabelle Wallis), tempting Tommy to join her in death. To break it all down, IGN spoke to Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight about the climactic Season 5 ending, and what's in store for the final two seasons.
Vin Diesel’s Bloodshot Revealed… in Action Figure Form
The Valiant superhero universe is finally making the jump to the big screen in next year's Bloodshot movie. While we're still waiting for the first trailer to drop, we did get our first glimpse of Vin Diesel's title character at NYCC. The catch? It was in the form of an action figure.
Check out the slideshow gallery below for a closer look at McFarlane Toys' upcoming Bloodshot figure (now updated with official promo pics from McFarlane Toys):
The figure gives us a much better idea of how Bloodshot's iconic look will be adapted for the film. Bloodshot's distinctive ivory white skin and tactical uniform have made the jump to live-action, though his traditional chest emblem has been replaced by a bleeding version. Another key change is that Bloodshot's close-cropped haircut has been swapped out for a completely bald look. In fact, it looks like Diesel's Bloodshot may have been rendered completely hairless thanks to his super-soldier transformation.
XM Studios Shows Off Epic Justice League Statues at NYCC
XM Studios has built a strong reputation in the statue collecting community in recent years, crafting expensive but extremely impressive statues of Marvel and DC's heroes. They brought some of those statues to NYCC, showing off bold takes on Justice League favorites like Batman, The Flash, Green Lantern and Aquaman.
Check out the slideshow gallery below for a closer look at the amazing pieces XM had on display:
XM Studios may not be a name familiar to all collectors and superhero fans. Historically, the company has only had a license to distribute statues in select international markets, leaving North American collectors to import pieces through third-party retailers. However, with their new line of 1:6 scale Justice League statues, XM finally has a global distribution license. At roughly $500 a piece, these statues are still hardly cheap, but at least they're much easier to acquire than in the past.
Report: Steam’s 30% Cut Is Actually the Industry Standard
Last year the Epic Games Store swooped in and started hoovering up game exclusives like they were Pokemon cards, offering PC publishers an alternative to Valve's 30% cut on Steam by taking just 12% from the games sold through its new platform. Since then, the cuts game retailers take and the effect it has on both players and developers alike have been a hot topic - and, as it often goes with the internet, a lot of misinformation can get mixed into those conversations.
We reached out to nearly half a dozen sources within the games industry (as well as the game retailers directly) in order to get the actual numbers on what cuts most major retailers take. While many of these sources prefer to remain anonymous, they paint a picture that could be surprising to some players, one where Valve’s now infamous 30% cut isn’t actually out of the norm. In fact, it's pretty much the industry standard.
Hasbro Brings Incredible New Star Wars Figures to NYCC
You may have heard there's a new Star Wars movie dropping in a few months. Unsurprisingly, Hasbro is putting a lot of muscle behind Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker in the months ahead, with new figures that span the entirety of the Skywalker Saga.
Hasbro will focus on three separate toy lines leading into The Rise of Skywalker - the Vintage Collection (3 3/4-inch figures with retro packaging), Galaxy of Adventures (stylized, kid-focused 5-inch figures) and The Black Series (collector-oriented, 6-inch figures). Check out the slideshow gallery below for a look at all the new figures Hasbro revealed at NYCC:
Among the noteworthy reveals at the con, Hasbro will release several new retailer and convention exclusives in the near future. Among these is a Vintage Collection Sith Trooper Armory figure exclusive to Amazon, which includes more weapons than found in the standard version. Target will also sell an exclusive "Cave of Evil" Vintage Collection set that includes Dagobah-themed versions of Luke and Yoda and a battle-damaged Darth Vader with Luke's face.