Trek Nation

I was watching one of my favorite shows, Mythbusters, when I saw a promo for a two hour documentary called 'Trek Nation.' I immediately went from zero to closet geek in 6.5 seconds. The documentary boldly goes where no one has gone before by exploring the relationship between Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry and his son Rod Roddenberry as well as the influence Star Trek had on society. The documentary has amazing guest cameos by George Lucas, JJ Abrams, Stan Lee and former Star Trek crew and castmembers. 'Trek Nation' is set to air on SCIENCE (Formerly known as the Science Channel) on Wednesday, November 30th at 8pm.



Release Date For Transformers: Exiles Moved to October 4

Awhile ago, the Closet Geek reported that the release date for Transformers: Exiles, the sequel to fan-fav Transformers: Exodus, is September 27. It now appears that the release date has been moved back to October 4, according to the release date on Amazon. I was a huge fan of Exodus and can't wait to get my hands on Alex Irvine's sequel to the war for Cybertron. I'm a little bummed that it's only available in paperback but I won't let that stop me from scooping one up. Below is the book description as it appears on Amazon.com:

The epic battles between Optimus Prime and Megatron have long thrilled Transformers fans. But these two giants weren’t always great leaders and bitter foes. This new novel continues the electrifying saga that started with Transformers: Exodus, unveiling the origins of the conflict—the explosive events that unfolded before Optimus and Megatron arrived Earthside, forever altering the destiny of their kind.

Once allies, Optimus and Megatron are now enemies in a civil war. To prevent Cybertron from falling into Megatron’s hands, Optimus jettisons the planet’s heart, the AllSpark, into space, then sets out to find it with Megatron hot on his heels. Optimus is determined to defeat Megatron, bring the AllSpark home, and restore Cybertron to its former glory.

But a saboteur lurks aboard Optimus’s spaceship, and ahead lie lost colonies, some of them hostile. Optimus needs help of the highest caliber, but from whom? Heroes such as Solus, Nexus, and Vector Prime are just names from make-believe stories of long ago. Or are they? Maybe it’s time for Optimus Prime to find out. Maybe it’s the only chance he has to vanquish mighty Megatron.

Pittsburgh Steelers Filmed in The Dark Knight Rises

Holy terrible towel Batman!

According to NFL.com, Pittsburgh Steelers Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and about 12 of his teammates will play football players in Christopher Nolan's latest Batman movie, The Dark Knight Rises. When asked about his thoughts on being in a big blockbuster movie, Big Ben replied "It's not like we're chasing Batman down or anything," Roethlisberger told the Post-Gazette. "It's something neat -- that in 10 years or 20 years we can tell our kids we were in a movie." The other players listed in the film are: Hines Ward, Willie Colon, Maurkice Pouncey, Mike Wallace, Heath Miller, Aaron Smith, Ryan Clark, Troy Polamalu, James Farrior and Casey Hampton. Below is a excerpt from NFL.com in regards to the coaching staff for Gotham's football team:

And the Gotham coach? Why it's Bill Cowher, the former Steelers coach who left the team after the 2006 season and is now an analyst for CBS Sports. Kevin Colbert, the Steelers' director of football operations, will reunite with Cowher as a Gotham assistant coach.

The rumored name of the football team is the Gotham Rogues (pictured above at Heinz Field). Not sure how a football team figures into the movie but, my thoughts are that Bruce Wayne (played by Christian Bale) probably won't simply be rooting for the home team at a football game but rather the owner of the Gotham Rogues. As always, only time will tell.

Here is the link to the news page from NFL.com.

Mortal Kombat: Legacy Episode 9

It's been a little while and to be honest, I thought they left us hanging but apparently the makers of the webisode series were waiting for Comic Con to reveal the last episode of Mortal Kombat: Legacy. The episode features Cyrax and Sektor and like many of the episodes, looks pretty darn cool...and realistic. Previous episodes can be found here.

The Dark Knight Rises Teaser Trailer

For the past couple of days, the teaser trailer to Christopher Nolan's last installment of the caped crusader has popped up on various websites and blogs but has quickly been taken down each time. Finally, the official trailer is out for closet geek consumption! Like most teaser trailers, it doesn't reveal much but does enough to excite the senses. Enjoy!

The Dark Knight Rises - Teaser Trailer #1 [VO by cinemakervideo

HD]

 



Roberto Orci On Star Trek Video Game and Teaser Trailer

I've always been jealous of Star Wars' fans because they always had better video games (Rogue Squadron and The Force: Unleased being my personal favorites) related to their universe. For years I've yearned for a Star Trek video game that rivals the awesomeness that Star Wars video games often have. Finally, my wait might be coming to an end. Below is a teaser trailer of the newly proposed Star Trek video game presented at the E3 convention last month. The music score from the movie plays well with the video game and I love the third-person shooter aspect. I also love how you get to pilot a shuttle craft and space jump from the USS Enterprise. The game will tie into the reboot Star Trek movie directed by JJ Abrams as well as the upcoming sequel. Below is a quote from writer Roberto Orci concerning the movie and 'Canon':

True fans will tell you that canon is only what’s filmed. I’m not an authority on what is canon. However, I will tell you that this may be the first game that falls within the parameters of the people who are in charge of canon for now; the “supreme court,” as we call ourselves because we are the ones in charge of Star Trek for now. We won’t be in charge forever, but for right now we’re deciding what canon is, so I can tell you this is the first time where the game itself is generated by the people who are deciding canon and we generated the game to fit within canon.

I always loved that Star Trek had a very rich and continuous canon, that’s one of the reasons why Alex and I and Damon and J. J. even though it’s not our responsibility, and we don’t care what we get paid for it, we want to help make the games, the comics; we want consistency. We do it because we love Star Trek.

The release date for this game is unknown but it is expected to hit video game stands sometime between April - June of 2012 (Note to self: mark calendar).

Michael Bay Re-Uses Footage From 'The Island' in TF3

Below is a video comparing two different scenes from Transformers: Dark of the Moon and The Island, both Michael Bay movies. The video clearly shows that Bay re-uses footage from The Island in the new Transformers movie.

New Miss USA Is A Bonafied Closet Geek

I know I'm not the only closet geek out there and here's my proof...Newly crowned Miss USA (California) answers a few Star Wars questions with ease and even schools the person asking her the questions. Check out the video:

Transformers: Dark of the Moon Release Date Move Up...Again!

A few weeks ago, the Closet Geek reported that the release date for Transformers: Dark of the Moon was moved up from July 1st to June 29, well today we have news from deadline.com that the release date has once again been move up to June 28 at 9:00pm. The reason for the move most likely has to do with box office figures. Paramount estimates the movie to make roughly $150 Million in the first 5 days of the movies release. This figure seems a little low seeing how Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen made a little over 390 Million its first 5 days of its release. Interesting how the last movie in the series (rumored) will fair.

Pretty Cool Disney Medley Video

I'm a fan of Disney movies and one of the things that make them so great are their songs. I came across this video of the UMass Amherst Doo Wop Shop singing a medley of Disney songs and it's actually pretty epic. Check it out.

Mortal Kombat: Legacy - Episode 7

The pilot webisode for Mortal Kombat: Legacy, called Mortal Kombat: Rebirth, featured Sonya Blade, Jackson Briggs, Johnny Cage, Baraka, Reptile and Scorpion. Jax, Sonya and Johnny Cage's stories have already been told but we have yet to see the episodes starring Reptile and Baraka. However, we now have the back-story on Scorpion as well as the introduction of Sub-Zero. Enjoy!

New Transformers: Dark of the Moon 3D Trailer

Here's the latest Transformers: Dark of the Moon trailer as it was shown in 3D movie theaters. There are some slight differences from the trailers that we've already seen before. One difference is we see Optimus and Ratchet walking around the Ark. Another is that we see Bumblebee and Sam spinning in the air. We also see Optimus walking by Sam and Epps as he is discarding a bullet case. We see more of the Dweller as it tears apart a building as well as Optimus flying towards the Dweller while shooting at it.

First Image of Bane From The Dark Knight Rises

To say that I'm excited is an understatement. I'm freakin' stoked! Looks like the people at Warner Bros are looking to go viral with the marketing of The Dark Knight Rises. The movie's official website appears blank but has, what sounds like, people chanting in the background. The chant doesn't make sense, that  was until a SuperHeroHype Forums member figured out using an audio program that in spectrum the audio says "#thefirerises" and is linked to Twitter.com/TheFireRises account. A picture of the spectrum is shown below.

Because of this ingenious ploy by WB, we now get our first real image of Bane, played by Tom Hardy. The image remains true to director Christopher Nolan's view of the Batman series as dark, gritty and most importantly, based in reality. 

I'm sure that more is to come with the viral marketing of this movie and already fans can impose themselves into the above image by following TheFireRises account. The Closet Geek is now one of the many images embedded into the photo below. Can you find me?

There's no doubt that more is to come and I for one, can't wait!

Release Date For Transformers: Dark of the Moon Moved Up

Looks like there has been enough buzz about Transformers: Dark of the Moon that Paramount has decided to move up the release date from Friday, July 1 to Wednesday, June 29 reports Deadline. "Early response to footage, especially the 3D footage, has been great so we want to get the word out that this film is as good or better than the first and much better than the last," an insider told Deadline. This is not a big surprise as sometimes big blockbuster movies are released on a Wednesday instead of the typical Friday release during the summer.

Mortal Kombat: Legacy - Episode 6

Ok folks, below is the latest episode of Mortal Kombat: Legacy. The episode introduces the god of thunder and protector of Earthrealm, Raiden. Enjoy!

Details of PlayStation's "Welcome Back" Package Announced

The other day, The Closet Geek reported that the PlayStation Network was back up for certain areas of Europe and the U.S. and that a "Welcome Back" pacakge would be coming. Well we now have the details of that package. The details of the package was announced on PlayStation's official blog. PSN customers have the option to download two of the following list of video games to keep:

• Dead Nation
• inFAMOUS
• LittleBigPlanet
• Super Stardust HD
• Wipeout HD + Fury

PSP customers have the option to download two of the following list of video games to keep.

• LittleBigPlanet (PSP)
• ModNation Racers
• Pursuit Force
• Killzone Liberation

In both cases, customers have 30 days to make their selection. In addition to the above, PlayStation is also offering the following:

• A selection of “On Us” rental movie titles will be available to PlayStation Network customers over one weekend, where Video Service is available. Those titles will be announced soon.
• 30 days free PlayStation Plus membership for non PlayStation Plus subscribers.
• Existing PlayStation Plus subscribers will receive an additional 60 days of free subscription.
• Existing Music Unlimited Premium Trial subscription members will receive an additional 30 days of free premium subscription.
• Additional 30 days + time lost for existing members of Music Unlimited Premium/Basic subscription free of charge for existing Premium/Basic members.
• To welcome users Home, PlayStation Home will be offering 100 free virtual items. Additional free content will be released soon, including the next addition to the Home Mansion personal space, and Ooblag’s Alien Casino, an exclusive game.

I appreciate what Sony is doing and all the cool stuff that the "Welcome Back" package includes but at the same time, the games listed are older games. Whether this will be enough to make up for the mistakes it made is debatable.

Fake "Dislike" Button Scams Facebook

If any of you guys has seen a post from a friend claiming that Facebook has a "Dislike" button, DON'T CLICK ON THE LINK!

A new scam is making its way around Facebook in the form of a "Dislike" button. Researchers at the security firm Sophos first detected the scam over the weekend, when messages offering a dislike button began emerging on Facebook users' walls. The message reads: "Facebook now has a dislike button! Click 'Enable Dislike Button' to turn on the new feature." According to the security firm, hackers were able to replace the share button with the phony dislike button, making the scam that much more convincing to its users. Clicking on the link will prompt users to follow specific steps including copying and pasting JavaScript in their browsers which then attempts to scam other Facebook users to do the same by posting it on their wall.

Thus far, the "Enable Dislike Button" ploy doesn't appear to be malicious in nature but rather a typical survey scam designed to maximize profits on a per-click or per-user basis. But security experts say that viral trickery has the same potential to run malicious code on victims' machines, which could cause their systems to crash or enable hackers to install malware that could completely take control of their computers to access and steal sensitive data.

So the bottom line is that if you truly dislike something on Facebook, send a private message.

Movie Review: Thor

Director: Kenneth Branagh

Actors: Chris Hemsworth, Anthony Hopkins, Tom Hiddleston and Natalie Portman

Plot: At the center of the movie is The Mighty Thor (Chris Hemsworth), a powerful but arrogant warrior whose reckless actions reignite an ancient war. Thor is then stripped of his powers by Odin (Anthony Hopkins) and casted down to Earth where he is forced to live among humans as punishment. Once on Earth, Thor learns what it takes to be a true hero when the most dangerous villain of his world sends the darkest forces of Asgard to invade Earth.

Pros: While I consider myself a DC fan, I can understand why Marvel has the market share of comic book fans and now, movie goers. The movie is fun to watch. The action scenes are great, the references to Hawkeye, Banner and Stark are subtle yet pleasant to closet geeks and the comedy was actually a lot more funny than I though it would be. Chris Hemsworth, who also played George Kirk in the reboot of the most recent Star Trek movie, does a fantastic job as Thor. The surrounding cast: Anthony Hopkins, Tom Hiddleston (Loki), Natalie Portman (Jane Foster) and Clark Gregg (Agent Coulson) wasn’t too shabby either. While I thought the suits were a bit goofy, I loved how they kept fairly close to how the characters actually looked in the comic books, particularly Thor and the Destroyer. Like all other Marvel movies, you have to stay till the end for another pleasant Easter egg.

Cons: I thought that Thor’s suit as well as the suits of the other Asgardians were too “shiny” and modern and were reminiscent of the goofy suits in Batman and Robin (See comparison below). 

I also didn’t feel that there was enough of a bond between him and Jane Foster to break him of his arrogant ways and yield the power of Thor. If you’re planning on seeing this movie in 3D, don’t waste your money. It doesn’t add any value to the special effects or the movie in general.

Verdict: Thor is a fun movie to watch even if you aren’t into comic books. Ladies will love Chris Hemsworth and closet geeks will love the references to other Marvel characters. Thor gets a 7.5 out of 10 from the Closet Geek.

Playstation Network Back Online

Finally...the PlayStation Network is back online, at least in parts of Europe and the U.S. today. This news was announced on PlayStation's official blog. On the blog is a map of the updated areas where the PSN has been restored. New security measures have been installed and users will be asked to install a firmware update on their PS3 console as well as change their passwords. In addition, Sony is offering customers free enrollment in identity theft protection programs where available. Also on the blog is a video statement from Sony Computer Entertainment CEO Kazuo Hirai. In the statement, Hirai apologizes to PlayStation users for the inconvenience and talks about the new security measures Sony is undertaking. He also mentions that a “welcome back package” would be coming. Not too sure what that may be but it sounds good to this closet geek.

Below is the video statement from Sony CEO Hirai. A link to the blog can be found here. 

Mystery Space Ship in Transformers Trailer?

I've seen screen shots analyzing the different parts to the various trailers for Transformers: Dark of the Moon but I haven't seen anyone notice this scene. There appears to be a spaceship behind Optimus as he is telling Sam that "From here, the fight will be your own." This suggests that we may have just seen the last of the Autobots in this movie (sad face). There's been discussions that the space ship that crash lands on the moon is the "Ark." If that's the case, what mystery ship is this? Is this a new ship or perhaps a re-built Ark? What do you guys think?

Penelope Cruz Used Her Sister as a Body Double

With Pirates of the Carribean: On Stranger Tides set to hit movie theaters Friday May 20, all eyes are on the cast, in particular Penelope Cruz. An interesting note to the movie is that Cruz was actually carrying her first child with husband Javier Bardem during the filming of the movie. Another interesting note was that her sister, Monica Cruz (Pictured to the left with Penelope), was on the set of the movie to fill in as her body double during certain scenes (I would imagine probably the more active and strenuous scenes). While the rigors of filming a movie while pregnant would take a toll on anyone, Penelope said that the toughest job making the fourth movie in the series was staying in character opposite of known prankster, Johnny Depp (who plays Captain Jack Sparrow). Penelope and Javier's son's name is reportedly Leo.

Transformers: Exiles Set for Release September 27

Alex Irvine, author of Transformers: Exodus, announced that the sequel to the war for Cybetron is set for September 27, 2011 and is titled Transformers: Exiles. Here is the product description as stated on Amazon:

The epic battles between Optimus Prime and Megatron have long thrilled Transformers fans. But these two giants weren’t always great leaders and bitter foes. This new novel continues the electrifying saga that started with Transformers: Exodus, unveiling the origins of the conflict—the explosive events that unfolded before Optimus and Megatron arrived Earthside, forever altering the destiny of their kind.

Once allies, Optimus and Megatron are now enemies in a civil war. To prevent Cybertron from falling into Megatron’s hands, Optimus jettisons the planet’s heart, the AllSpark, into space, then sets out to find it with Megatron hot on his heels. Optimus is determined to defeat Megatron, bring the AllSpark home, and restore Cybertron to its former glory.

But a saboteur lurks aboard Optimus’s spaceship, and ahead lie lost colonies, some of them hostile. Optimus needs help of the highest caliber, but from whom? Heroes such as Solus, Nexus, and Vector Prime are just names from make-believe stories of long ago. Or are they? Maybe it’s time for Optimus Prime to find out. Maybe it’s the only chance he has to vanquish mighty Megatron.

I am a HUGE fan of Irvine's first book Exodus and can't wait for Exiles to come out. If its anything like the first, it'll be a top shelf book for this closet geek.

Complete Offering of Star Trek Series Coming to Netflix July 1

Netflix has announced that the complete list of all your favorite Star Trek series will be available for instant streaming July 1, 2011. Yup, all your favorite Star Trek series including: the Original Series, Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager and Enterprise will all be available for your viewing pleasure. Even the lesser known Animated Series will be available. Now I can re-watch Voyager, my favorite series, from beginning to end. That being said, what's you're guys' favorite Star Trek series? Vote in the poll (to the right) and see how other closet geeks are voting.