Mass Effect 3, while polarizing, is one of my favorite games of this generation. Sure Mass Effect 2 was fantastic, and yes, Mass Effect 3 had its issues, but I still keep coming back for more. While I’m late to the party on Citadel, it was ridiculously worth the wait, and I haven’t even finished it yet. Then how can I go on and on about how great it is if I haven’t finished it, you ask?

Well, because somewhere along the way I forgot to actually enjoy the games I talk about, review, write about, or ooh and ahh at trailers about, etc, etc, and all it took was James Vega ordering a Pizza (delivered by a Volus no less) somewhere in the middle of discussing an assassination attempt to remind me why I started doing this in the first place.

It happens to all of us at some point. We all have lives, and between work, keeping up a decent social life, GameTyrant, helping with wedding stuff, and just life in general, my plate continues to be pretty full, so finding any small opening to fit games in is a challenge all its own. Most times I’m playing something for the sole purpose of being able to speak intelligently about it, but occasionally I forget to actually have fun while doing it. 

Joker and Tali’s constant reminders of how I “broke” their favorite sushi restaurant are a small part of recapturing what made games fun in the first place for me. My adoration of games grew from my joy of visiting strange and interesting places and meeting memorable characters along the way, a note Mass Effect has continued to hit for me. While Final Fantasy (pre and post XIII), and later Mass Effect, are the epitome of that for me, everyone has a different game or series that is the video game equivalent of being home again. Sometimes it takes going back there every now and again to remind yourself of what you're doing and why the hell you're doing it. We get involved with the games industry because we are passionate about them, and it's important to not lose sight of that amidst all the chaos related to covering it. 

Who knew it would just take a few hours with Wrex and Liara to bring some of that passion back?

It's good to be home. 

Here's a great series of character art that features a mashup of Disney princesses and characters from Avatar: The Last Airbender. The illustrations were created by DeviantArt user racookie3. You can check out the full series below and let us know if you like what you see!

Showtime has released the promo for next week's episode of Dexter, "Are We There Yet?" The show is going in so many different directions, but everything is falling into place, and Dexter is getting getting sloppy and putting himself in situations that are going to get him in trouble. Check out what's in store for us next week! 

Artist Marco D’Alfonso created this amazingly cool illustration called Jokers. As you can see, the piece features all of the Jokers that have fought Batman on the big and small screen over the years. I love the whole jack-in-the-box theme! 

Breaking Bad came back in full force last night, and holy shit, it started with a bang! There was so much intensity and awesomeness packed into that episode, and to think that it's only the beginning of of the end. We've got seven episodes to go, anything can happen. In the end though, it doesn't look like things are going to end up going well for Walt. This first episode was great, and I imagine they are just going to get better and better! Here's an extended promo for the next episode! 

What did you think of last night's episode?! 

I believe this is roughly the fifth or sixth casting rumor for the upcoming Man of Steel  sequel. At first Warner Brothers was looking for a younger Bruce Wayne, which launched rumors of Teen Wolf   star Tyler Hoechlin as the lead, but just when the nerd-world erupted, the rumors changed. WB switched paces and was rumored to say they wanted an older Bruce Wayne, so that launched theories of Josh Brolin, Ryan Gosling, and Michael Fassbender as Mr. Wayne. Batman vs. Superman (Or whatever the film will be titled) isn't due out until 2015, so obviously there will be countless rumors and theories as to who will play what part in the epic sequel, but of course we here at Geek Tyrant keep you up to date on all the rumors and theories running loose in the Geek-verse! The newest rumor for the movie is that Orlando Bloom is up for the role of Bruce Wayne/Batman. Apparently an "anonymous source from within WB" told The Daily Express that Bloom was "top choice" to portray Bruce Wayne.

Image via The Goddamn Batman

Now personally, I like Orlando Bloom as an actor, but being the tremendous Batman fan that I am, i do not want to see him play my favorite character. I have my reasons of course, the main one being I want the next on-screen Bruce Wayne to at least match the character I know and love from the comics,  like seriously Warner Brothers, is it so hard to cast an actor with BLACK HAIR... Well that's my rant for today! What do you guys think as far as Orlando Bloom being Batman? Would you like to see him play the part? Or do you agree with me that he's not such a great fit? Whatever your choice may be, I know we're all excited for the 2015 release of the sequel to Man of Steel   , so stay tuned here for all the latest news, theories, and gossip! Same Bat-Time, Same Bat-Website!

For podcast news, all things Comics, and relatively geek related things, follow me on twitter! @ThatBHoove

I love the Batman femme fatales and Poison Ivy is one of my favorites. Over the years we've seen a ton of different character designs for her, but this design is different from any of the other designs I've seen. It was created by Nicolas Siner. 

Seriously though, is it so hard just to drop one nugget of info about Episode VII Disney?! All these casting rumors, for what?! For you to tell us there's a comic based on George Lucas's original vision of Star Wars  in development?! Were done with that clown (seriously though, I'm just mad, don't strike me down, George)!

Let's be real though...you guys purchased Lucasfilm close to a year ago and we've heard nothing save that you cancelled some pretty awesome games in development (well, 19 games and Star Wars 1313) in exchange for EA developing Star Wars: Battlefront 3. Honestly at ten months out I have to say you dropped the ball here at D23.

Some fans are more than overjoyed about literally no information coming out about the film, but personally, it makes me worried. Given the 2015 release date I'd have to say we are give or take about 9 months out from the first trailer if we are to remain on track for this film, and we don't even know who the cast is yet? I'm sorry let me rephrase that, we don't know the cast, have had no tease of the story, no poster, hell, there's not even a title save the one we saw when they announced the list of cancelled projects. 

I just read a recent Forbes article commending Disney for not divulging information saying "the film's not out for two years," what could you possibly want to know? Well a title would be nice, not to mention that was 80% OF THE REASON PEOPLE EVEN SHOWED UP TO THE LAME EXPO (19.5% Marvel .5% diehard Dog With A Blog Fans). It's kind of what geeks do when they show up to these cons, we get little snippets and obsess and make fan fictions and art for the two years leading up to the film so after seeing it we can scratch our heads and say "meh" and move on to the next thing! 

Seriously though Disney, I really hope we get some info on this film before the end of 2013, so you can at least prove that this billion dollar acquisition wasn't  just so Phineas and Ferb could "know what they are going to do today".

I think I found my laptop wallpaper until the end of the year... or perhaps forever. I really thought this was a BBC poster when I initially saw it even though it's a bit darker than the ones they've done in the past. That being said, it's a damn good fan-made poster. One of the few complaints about this photo has been that the Doctor does not burst into flames, he sparkles. This I don't mind, as I'd love to see the Doctor go out like a Phoenix in this installment! The second complaint is if you zoom in really close to the hair it looks like there is a turtle on his head. It took me a while to notice, but I think it's just his hair or something. Anyway, incredible photo, hope there is an option to get a poster of this! For those wishing to see a larger image, click here. 

This week's Art Attack features Hulk, Star Wars, Brave, Beauty and the Beast, Avengers, Grumpy Cat, The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, The Lion King, Mega Man, Iron Man, King Kong, Elysium, Godzilla, ID4, The Shining, Toy Story, Luxo, Psylocke, TMNT, Angela, Pokemon, and Sailor Venus.

Hulk by Diburros

Star Wars by Andreameloni

The Bear and the Bow & The Beauty and the Beast
by Lehuss

Avengers by Juliantotinotedesco

Grumpy Cat - The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, and The Lion King - Mashup
by Tsaoshin

Mega Man: Spectacular Battle Android by Jalbhenn

Various Movie Art by Raid71

Psylocke by 2ngaw

Kevlar Soul Dariaen Dresen

Art by Frank Paur

TMNT by James Boorm

Keep The Streets Empty For Me by Nanfe

Little Angela by Skottie Young

Star Wars by James Boorman

Pokemon: Grab Your Stater by Jalbhenn

Journey by Clonerh

Sailor Venus by Redreevgeorge

Green Lantern: Rock Vs Scissor by 2ngaw

Hellboy by Clonerh

Get more Art Attack

In a world full of instant tweets and Facebook uploads, it really is no surprise that there are countless rumors of celebrities being involved in huge Hollywood productions such as The Amazing Spider-Man 2. The latest rumor was spurred by a fan who was on set in March who tweeted a photo of Jim Carrey on location where they were filming scenes at The Ravencroft Institute (The fictional mental health facility which houses some of Spidey's deadliest foes,) as mentioned by the website Comic Book.

Now, here's where my geek-fandom comes into play, the reason I mention The Ravencroft Institute is because there is one main baddy who resides there, Cletus Kasady... Otherwise known by his Super Villain name, Carnage. For those of you who don't know, Carnage is a murdering, psychopathic symbiote who will stop at nothing to make Spider-Man's life a living hell, terrorizing the innocent and the helpless. Carnage is "The Joker" of the Marvel universe, just to put it in layman's terms. If the photo was taken while the film crew was shooting at the set of The Ravencroft Institute, does that mean that Carrey could be playing Cletus Kasady in The Amazing Spider-Man 2? We know that he can hold his own in a crazy role, so i think he could pull off Kasady quite nicely. My verdict? If Carrey IS playing Cletus Kasady in the movie to set up the villain Carnage for a sequel, I am 100% on board and looking forward to it, but please do remember this is all speculation and social media rumors, so don't believe anything unless some official statement is actually released. As always, we're here to bring you the breaking news of the geek world! Stay frosty everyone.

For podcast news, all things Comics, and relatively geek related things, follow me on twitter! @ThatBHoove  

Warner Bros. Man of Steel sequel Batman Vs. Superman has the potential to be legendary! I hope they are able to pull it off and create the incredibly badass film that it should be. We'll eventually find out, but in the meantime, let's enjoy some of the stuff the fans have been creating for the film, which will be released in 2015. Bring on the World's Finest! 

This really cool poster comes from CBM and was created by Deviant Art user dDsign. What do you think of the design? 

Found this cool bit of concept art on Nate Hallinan's blog of a medieval recreations of the X-Men. The project, titled The Order Of X, envisions the mutants as outcasts living under the grace of their Lord Xavier. While the concept alone sounds interesting enough to spin off a whole series, the best part about this artwork is the amount of care and detail that went into the retooling of each mutant's medieval form. Read this description behind the different-looking Colossus.

(Personal notes) I didn’t want Colossus to have the typical perfectly sculpted bodybuilder look he usually does. I wanted his form to come across as though he gained it from hard labor. The best reference were guys from strongman competitions. His name is after all is Colossus, so I not only wanted him to be mountainous in muscle but pretty thick as well. I also thought it would be cool to make more iron (not chrome) giving him a darker, rough, natural look.

Perhaps even better than that, however, is this LOTR-inspired dwarf-meets-Hobbit Wolverine I spotted in the concept art. 

This guy needs some Marvel backing...and perhaps a Kickstarter, as I am 100% on board with what he's doing. Go to his site here, and check out his art work for Cyclops, Beast, Nightcrawler, and more!

If you want to own any of this cool art go to his store.

(Prints available for purchase here )

Here's a beautifully animated romantic martial arts short film called "Requiem For Romance." This is a stunning short. It has a great concept, and the technique is brilliant. I'd like to see another short like this get made. The movie was created by Jonathan Ng, and here's a statement that came along with the film:

In this "crouching love, hidden breakup" story, inspired by 50's Shanghai water ink animation & kung fu films, themes of distance, tradition, art and longing dominate a telephonic conversation as a martial arts tango provides the visual backdrop.

Shannon Kook, star of Degrassi the Next Generation and The Conjuring, won the best voice performance at the ACTRA awards for his role on the film. Vid Cousins and Kid Koala teamed up again to create the atmospheric music.

Enjoy the short!

I know this is a low resolution photo, but it gives most of you your first look at Chris Pratt in full costume as Star Lord in director James Gunn's Guardians of the Galaxy.  I was hoping they would have showed a little bit more of this movie at the D23 Expo this last weekend, but they only showed us the same stuff from Comic-Con, which was still cool! The movie looks awesome, and I have no doubt that Marvel fans are going to love what they did with it, especially Racket Raccoon. That character is going to kick so much awesome ass! Audiences are going to go crazy for him.

The movie also stars Dave Bautista as Drax the Destroyer, Michael Rooker as Yondu, Zoe Saldana as Gamora, Benicio Del Toro as The Collector,  Karen Gillan as Nebula, Djimon Hounsou as Borath, and Lee Pace as Ronan the Accuser. 

The movie will be released on August 1st, 2014. What do you think about Star Lord's look in the film? 

Via: CBM

20th Century Fox and Chronicle screenwriter Max Landis are no longer working on the sequel together due to creative differences. The studio has hired a new writer to work on the project to cater to what the studio wants to see. But! That doesn't mean we can't know what Landis was planning. He took to his Twitter recently and described the following:

"in retrospect, I'm not even sure if fans of the first film would've been ready or eager for my second installment as originally written. Gone was the aspirational 'what would you do,' gone were the pranks and the bromance, gone were lovely tragic Andrew and hopeful, bright Steve.

In their place was a dark, frustratingly unblinking stare into a complicated world that posed the question is it worth it to be a hero, told from the point of view of a heartbroken and insane woman who would martyr herself to the cause of being the world's first villain.

It was, in my estimation, a sequel that elaborated on the ideas and situations from the first to create a different genre of movie, in the best of worlds, in my optimistic but wildly prejudiced eyes, this could make it an Aliens, a Terminator 2… in the worst a Grease 2. So, at the end of the day, maybe it's better that Martyr never saw the light of day. Sad I didn't get to do some of my other versions. The multi-movie low [budget] Chronicle-based found footage superhero universe culminating in an Avengers type team up was a real good one."

What do you think of the direction Landis was going to take the sequel?

This wonderfully entertaining animated short film is called Granny O'Grimm's Sleeping Beauty. It centers on a grandmother who reads the classic fairy tale, Sleeping Beauty, to her granddaughter as a bedtime story. The awesome twist is, the little girl is absolutely terrified of her granny! I think I'd be terrified too if my grandma used to read me bedtime stories like this. I love how the little girl is just freaked out from the very beginning, and you see why as granny really gets into the meat of the story. 

This short film was written and performed by Kathleen O’Rourke and directed by Nicky Phelan for Brown Bag Films in 2008. It was on the short list of films nominated for an Oscar in 2010. Enjoy the show!

Hot Toys has released photos of their three new Iron Man 3 collectible action figures that you'll want to see. They include The Mandarin, the Silver Centurion armor, and Tony Stark The Mechanic.

I've included the photos of all of these below including information on each of the action figures. Check them out below!

The Silver Centurion is a classic suit worn by Tony Stark in the Iron Man comics and has been a fan favorite since its debut. Marvel’s Iron Man 3 has brought back this popular armor and restyled it to join the rest of the Iron Legion. During the intense battle between Tony Stark and Aldrich Killian, Tony quickly suits up in the Silver Centurion and cut of the Extremis mastermind’s arm with the suit’s hidden blade. 

Hot Toys is delighted to introduce this amazingly designed armor – the 1/6th scale Silver Centurion (Mark XXIII) Collectible Figurine, the Enhanced Energy Suit to its Movie Masterpiece Series. It is specially crafted based on the image of Robert Downey Jr. as Silver Centurion in the movie, highlighting the detailed head sculpt, red and silver-colored armor, interchangeable battle damaged chest armor, forearm blades, and LED light-up functions.

"The master is here." 

From the menacing portrayal in Iron Man 3's movie trailer to the actual film that brings an unexpected twist, The Mandarin has been one of the most attention-grabbing characters in the movie. Although the representation of The Mandarin in the movie may have deviated from the comics, Sir Ben Kingsley has given a great performance to this peculiar role and Hot Toys is happy to present the 1/6th scale The Mandarin Collectible Figure from the movie. 

The Mandarin collectible figure is specially crafted based on the image of Sir Ben Kingsley as The Mandarin in the movie, highlighting the newly developed head sculpt, tailored costume with remarkable details and accessories.

Tony Stark, the beloved hero and billionaire genius, faced some challenging issues in Iron Man 3. Terrorists badly injured his friend, destroyed his house, and kidnapped his girlfriend, but despite the downward spiral that he was in, Tony didn’t give up and was determined to take down The Mandarin.

Hot Toys is thrilled to introduce the Tony Stark (The Mechanic) Collectible Figurine after the exciting scene where Tony Stark creates homemade weapons to infiltrate The Mandarin’s mansion. 

The movie-accurate Tony Stark (The Mechanic) Collectible Figurine is specially crafted based on the image of Robert Downey Jr. as the genius billionaire Tony Stark in his battle damaged civilian attire in the movie, highlighting the newly developed head sculpt, an advanced body with light-up chest light and greatly detailed weapons and accessories. It is now open for pre-order.

The bonus 1/6th scale Homemade Wrist Repulsor will be included for selected markets only. 

 Saoirse Ronan (The Host) is the star of this new drama called How I Live Now. It comes from The Last King of Scotland director Kevin MacDonald, and the story centers on a teenage American girl named Daisy who is sent to live with some relatives in the English countryside when World War III breaks out. Things seem to start out well, but eventually the war reaches the countryside and Daisy is forced into a situation of survival and protection of her cousins. 

The film is an adaptation of the novel by Meg Rosoff. I've never read it, but the movie looks like it will be really good. Here's the story description:

Fifteen-year-old Daisy is sent from Manhattan to England to visit her aunt and cousins she’s never met: three boys near her age, and their little sister. Her aunt goes away on business soon after Daisy arrives. The next day bombs go off as London is attacked and occupied by an unnamed enemy.

As power fails, and systems fail, the farm becomes more isolated. Despite the war, it’s a kind of Eden, with no adults in charge and no rules, a place where Daisy’s uncanny bond with her cousins grows into something rare and extraordinary. But the war is everywhere, and Daisy and her cousins must lead each other into a world that is unknown in the scariest, most elemental way.

How I Live Now opens in the U.K. on October 4th. It still has yet to get a U.S. date. Check out the trailer below. 

During the D23 Expo this last weekend a new trailer premiered for a great-looking documentary that focuses on Walt Disney Imagineering. It is being directed by Leslie Iwerks, and it explores the past, present, and future of this incredible team of people that are the brains behind the Disneyland theme parks. This is a great trailer for a very interesting-looking doc. As a fan of Disney and Disneyland, this is something I'm very much looking forward to seeing. It's cool to get a behind the scenes look at how the magic is created!

Iwerks is the perfect person to bring this project to life, as her grandfather was an early Disney animator and her dad is a former Imagineer. Her previous work includes profiles of Pixar Animation Studios and visual effects house Industrial Light and Magic.

Walt Disney Parks and Resorts is partnering with Leslie on this latest project that will explore in unprecedented depth the facts, faces and fantastic stories behind the magic of Disney Parks.

The film is due for release sometime in 2016. Enjoy the trailer!

Via: Disney Parks