Darwin Fish keeps creating interesting time laps videos, and I am pretty sure the last one posted here was his life size Gundam rebuild (remember, a Gundam is much bigger than a human). This one is the new Tokyo Sky Tree, the new home of Radio and Television antennas in Japan’s most impressive city. These are actually several different stop motion studies edited into the finished product, and I find it quite visually impressive. Thanks to Crunchyroll for the heads up on this one.
Terrestrial Human
I missed the pilot for Saving Hope when it was broadcast, so once more I am happy about VOD both through cable and online. Now that I have seen it, I am ready for tonight’s episode, and I was impressed with the first story. I look forward to finding out if they can maintain the quality.
The folks over at NeuroSky have come up with a brainwave detecting headset about the size and shape of a pair of headphones, which plugs into your Android or iOS device. Right now it works with around a hundred Apps for some hands free control, and not all of them are games. It is a bit pricy, but at $130 it is hands down the cheapest and most portable EEG mapper you can buy. Thanks to the folks at Gear Patrol for the heads up on this one.
Jonathan Coulton writes and performs some truly excellent science fiction music, including the theme song to John Scalzi’s new book, Redshirts. Scalzi liked it so much, he did his own cover of it, on a Ukelele no less. And then he recently interviewed Coulton on his Tor Press blog/podcast segment, which you should read, then go back and listen to. It is good to know there are some people having this much fun while earning their living; it gives the rest of us something to aspire to!
Extraterrestrial looks like a lot of silly fun; you wake up with no memory of the one night stand who’s house you are in, to meet her wacky boyfriend and neighbors, only to discover the Earth has been invaded. While this movie is only opening in New York this weekend (it hits LA next weekend), it is also being released on iTunes, DVD, and VOD on Friday as well, so anyone who wants to can check it out.
This one may be a bit more thinkee but looks every bit as entertaining: Safety Not Guaranteed is a time travel comedy that won awards at Sundance and SXSW, and appears to have a lot of heart. Even though it had it’s initial 4 city release last week, I am mentioning it now because it is going to be on the big screen in my area starting this weekend.
The other interesting choice this week is not genre, but it is entertaining: Rock of Ages is based on the Broadway musical, and also looks a treat.
We have a few good movies this week, starting with Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, second in the film series. This is a required addition for my permanent collection, and extends into two of my favorite new media distribution trends. First, it includes an Ultraviolet copy, which means you can stream it from the cloud to any of your compatible devices, and download it to your computer if you want to back up the digital copy for when you do not have INet access. Second, you can download one or more apps (more, in this case) so you can slave your tablet/smartphone to your internet aware Blue Ray device, and run all kinds of additional information about the programing. Warner Brothers (who made the Sherlock Robert Downey movies) added this functionality to their Maximum Movie Mode, while Disney (who had the same combination of Cloud presentation with Apps extras slaved to the point the Blue Ray player is currently showing you built into John Carter last week) refer to it as the Disney Second Screen. They have been building towards this integrated combined presentation for quite a while now, slowly creating and debugging each process required to make it happen. Welcome to the future!
Another movie worth a look this week is Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, which is definitely worth your time to check out. While it may not be on a par with the first film mentioned today, it has a serious story to tell of its own. And let’s face it, it is always fun to watch Nick Cage go over the top with some silly or serious action. If you are in the market for something different, The Sultry Assassin: The Aphrodisiac Kill is the first in a series of eroninja novels turned into movies that will be making its way to the US.
For TV, the top spot has to go to The Sarah Jane Adventures: The Fifth Season, which unfortunately will be the final round of these. Doctor Who was a children’s show when it began (and still is, though it is hard for some geeks to recognize), and when they spun off Elisabeth Sladen’s character for the new series they definitely kept that in mind. She kept the original promise to the audience; this would always be a show that promoted a way for children to recognize positive problem solving influences and incorporate them into their own lives, so they could be the ones solving the worlds problems when it became their turn.
In new Anime, Zakuro, the Complete Series tells of the Ministry of Spirit Affairs, and the human/spirit teams they put together to solve the mysteries of the world.
For returning Anime, Bleach: Season 13 brings us episodes 194 through 205, in which Karakura town is threatened with destruction. One Piece: Collection 6 brings us episodes 131 through 156, and for the first time they actually try to get their pirate ship to fly.
We also have a couple of returning favorites coming out in more cost effective packaging. Mongolian Chop Squad: The Complete Series is coming out in a S.A.V.E. version, so you should be able to pick it up for around $20 if you shop around. If you are not already familiar with it, it is basically an animated version of the band BECK’s origin story, somewhat fictionalized. Also the Simoun – Endless Melody Collection is a re-release of that entire series for under $20, and you can find it for $15 if you shop around, so now is a good time to add both of these to your collection.