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.