On August 11, 1991, the pilot episode of Ren and Stimpy aired on Nickelodeon for the first time.
Created by John Kricfalusi, the show revolved around Ren, a Chihuaha, and Stimpy, a cat. The two characters were near opposites of each other, with Ren being an emotional wreck and Stimpy bringing lack of intelligence to the show.
Ren and Stimpy was aired for five seasons, providing fans with 52 episodes in total.
To this day, the programming is looked at as one of the better cartoons from the 1990s. Although it was up against shows like Rugrats and Rocko’s Modern Life, it’s still remembered with glaring nostalgia, and for good reason. Cartoons in 2017 rarely push the envelope and tinker with different types of humor, and that’s something that Ren and Stimpy did with spectacular execution.
Do you have any fond memories of watching the show? What’s your favorite episode? Sound off in the comments below!
Like we said earlier in the week, the Star Wars hype-machine is just getting started, and the latest update on ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’ comes in the form of more information on Benicio Del Toro’s new character DJ.
DJ is the best codebreaker in the galaxy, he plays both sides of the war for money, and he’s part of the mission that Finn and Rose undertake to the wealthy, gambling resort city of Canto Bight, according to EW. Lucas film had this to say – “DJ is an enigmatic figure whose tattered, threadbare clothes and lackadaisical attitude conceal a sharp mind and expert skills.”
“We just need a codebreaker, and he’s the best in the galaxy. Unfortunately, he’s very dodgy and only in it for financial gain. He doesn’t fight for any side,” said Boyega to EW. “He has distinct opinions. The Resistance bombs the First Order one day, the First Order bombs the Resistance on another. It’s an ongoing war that will never end. For him, he’s trying to benefit off of that — which doesn’t make him the person you want to trust.”
It looks like the new trilogy has found its Han Solo character. All you need to do is swap ‘smuggler’ with ‘codebreaker,’ and you describe ‘Star Wars: A New Hope’ Solo to a T.
What do you think of the comparison? Comment below.
About ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’
The Skywalker saga continues as the heroes of The Force Awakens join the galactic legends in an epic adventure that unlocks age-old mysteries of the Force and shocking revelations of the past
‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi,’ which is written and directed by Rian Johnson and continues the storylines introduced in ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens,’ stars Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Lupita Nyong’o, Domhnall Gleeson, Anthony Daniels, Gwendoline Christie, Andy Serkis, Benicio Del Toro, Laura Dern, and Kelly Marie Tran.
‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’ hits theaters on December 15.
Set in 1985 Los Angeles, ‘GLOW’ follows Ruth Wilder, a struggling out-of-work actress as she auditions for, trains and eventually makes the first-ever women’s wrestling TV show. Inspired by the short-lived but beloved show from the 80s, ‘GLOW’ is a Cinderella story with bodyslams.
‘GLOW’ is created by Liz Flahive and Carly Mensch. ‘Orange Is the New Black’ creator Jenji Kohan and Tara Herrmann are executive producers alongside Flahive and Mensch, who are serving as showrunners.
‘GLOW’stars Alison Brie, Betty Gilpin, Sydelle Noel, Britney Young, Marc Maron, Britt Baron, Kimmy Gatewood, Rebekka Johnson, Sunita Mani, Kate Nash, Marianna Palka, Gayle Rankin, Kia Stevens, Jackie Tohn, and Ellen Wong.
Donald Sutherland is the latest talent to join an all-star cast in James Gray’s science-fiction epic, Ad Astra.
The always excellent Sutherland joins Brad Pitt, Tommy Lee Jones, and Ruth Negga in the story of “one man’s (Pitt) journey across a lawless and unforgiving solar system to find his missing father, a renegade scientist who poses a threat to all of mankind.” Odds are, Sutherland will play the missing father in question, unless Tommy Lee Jones steps into that role. My money is on Sutherland.
A “lawless solar system” is an interesting premise for a sci-fi adventure; I’m not sure what that means. There is also the little detail that Gray and Ethan Gross wrote the Ad Astra original screenplay themselves. This is not based on any previous material, which is always an exciting prospect for science fiction.
Pitt’s Plan B is also producing Ad Astra, which is a promising sign as well because Plan B makes some great films. Long story short… this sounds like it’s going to be an excellent sci-fi adventure worth your time. Stay tuned for more updates.
Previous on ‘The Mist‘ – I saw Frances Conroy’s bum. That is literally all you need to know about last week. (Her bum is fabulous by the way.)
What The Fuck?!
I guess I have to just go straight into this! I repeat – WHAT THE FUCK! Everyone decided to go just a little bit crazy this week. This is officially my favorite episode of the season to date. Everything worked. The tension at points of this episode was intense. I’ve been quite hard on some of the characters so far, but after the events this week I take almost all of it back. (Some of my points about Eve I’m totally sticking too.)
I knew it!
There have been hints for weeks that Adrian was the rapist. However this week, not only did the truth come out. So did every single other bit of crazy that Adrian has been holding back. I have to say that Russel Posner was superb in every single scene. He brought some Grade A psychopath to the forefront this week but managed to try and keep some shred of humanity. Then Adrian shot his Dad and tried to kill Kevin. But he did it with some humanity. The revelation that he had raped Alex to poison her against Jay was jaw dropping. Not that he did it, it was finally getting to see the depth of darkness in him.
The whole setting of Adrian’s house and the ensuing interactions with his father brought some needed depth to Adrian. At first, you’re led to feel sorry for him. In the first episode Adrian’s dad was not painted in the best of lights, so when you saw he was covered in blood, the natural assumption is that he’s going to be a villain. The subsequent reveal that all along Adrian has been the villain was brilliant. From his hysterical confession to first his father and then Kevin, he’s cemented himself as a dead man walking next week.
Jonah and Mia finally consummated their relationship. After the weeks of building up to it, I was glad they had a moment together. It’s quite obvious that Mia is keeping more secrets and with this being ‘The Mist’, there’s a huge chance they’ll have to deal with something horrific next week.
Gus Is A Bad Man.
I was only complaining last week that Gus had barely lived up to any hype. “The Law of Nature” gave him the chance to show how far he is willing to go to remain in the mall. Although his food smuggling has seemed small when his safety is threatened he wasted no time in killing his accuser. As if that wasn’t bad enough, he wasted no time in using the mounting paranoia about Alex to his advantage and accuse her.
Eve featured very little this week, but after an episode filled with eye rolling moments aimed towards Alex and Jay, I’m glad. The romance between the two teens is very uncomfortable to watch. I’m quite happy Eve decided to lock Jay in the basement. At the very least it keeps the love birds apart. It’ll be interesting to see if the reason the mist didn’t want Alex comes out in the next episode. It didn’t want Nathalie or Adrian either – for all we know Alex could also be a murderous psychopath.
The Church Of Nathalie
Frances Conroy was beyond good this week. In fact, the entire church setting was fantastic. Not only did Nathalie command the rest of the congregation, but she also had me enthralled. The slow descent into darkness with her character has been so gradual that by this point, there is no memory of the early days. The events of last week have renewed her faith in the purpose of the mist. Crooked Connor also did amazingly this week. He’s been without a cause since Kevin escaped and watched Nathalie convince him to murder his son was mesmerizing. Watching him grasp towards a purpose and the acceptance that came with it showed the depth his character had sunk too. Darren Pettie did a terrific job during his breakdown, however bittersweet it is, now that we know Jay is innocent.
When only four of the church characters decided to leave, I had an ominous feeling about those that had rejected Nathalie. Sure enough, when she set the church ablaze and locked them in it cemented that she had completed her journey to the darkness. Screaming soundtrack included. Her power over her new followers extended to making sure they all played a part in sacrificing the remaining church characters.
Verdict
I cannot wait for the next two weeks! This show is the definition of a slow burner. It’s a shame that a lot of people might have switched off around episode 4 or 5, because if they’d just stuck with we’re starting to get the payoff. I’m guilty of this thinking myself. Watching how the characters have evolved to fit into the new world around them has been engrossing. This week was a fantastic pay off to a lot of loose ends story lines and has started bringing them all together for what I can only assume is going to be a bloody and horrific showdown.
Red Hood & The Outlaws has been a surprisingly effective title for DC Rebirth. The current arc, “The Life of Bizarro”, has kicked it into overdrive. Writer Scott Lobdell has been targeting the heart strings of readers, and with this story he makes Bizarro an undeniably tragic character.
***SPOILERS LIE AHEAD***
Last issue, Bizarro made a huge sacrifice of body in order to save his friends. Jason and Artemis have no choice but to trust Lex Luthor to save him. During the procedure to save his life, Bizarro reflects on his experiences. Artemis and Jason open up to each other about how important their third member has been in finding their own purposes.
There’s a certain classic comic book feel to this arc, especially this issue. The end of the issue reveals that Lex saved Bizarro, but he’s the DC equivalent of “Smart Hulk” now. Everything about this screams Silver Age comics, in a very good way.
Somehow Lobdell manages to fully commit to Bizarro’s vernacular without it becoming a chore to read his narration. Red Hood & The Outlaws is easily the most memorable Bizarro material in years.
Jason Todd hasn’t had a long list of spectacular starring series, this is truly something special. Revisiting his past constantly, and his messy relationship with Batman, humanizes him in a way that readers weren’t necessarily accustomed to. Lobdell has also done the same in making Artemis a fascinating character who stands on her own from Wonder Woman and the other Amazonion warrior women.
Lex Luthor’s change of heart in DC Rebirth has produced mixed results across all the titles he’s been featured in with an “S” on his chest. His characterization here is toeing the line between sinister and helpful in the best possible way.
The art in this issue is a standout, a showcase of diverse styles and approaches. Dexter Soy’s pencils are top-notch for every shift in style, Veronica Gandini’s color accents beautifully through every change as well.
Red Hood & The Outlaws is another surprise success from DC’s line of Rebirth titles. Lobdell hasn’t always been critics’ favorite writer, but he and his art team are onto something here. This series is well worth your time, regardless of how you feel about the characters it stars.
One-hundred-plus years of filmmaking provides a long, rich, and deep history to look back on. Retro reviews and analysis of old films are practically necessary full-time specialties. Month after month, films release, vying to make as much money as possible. Some rise, some fall, but regardless of financial success, it’s never a sign of a lasting effect. A great example is the little-mentioned 2012 film released just eight years ago. 2012 made nearly 800 million dollars and effectively vanished off the face of the earth.
So, where does that leave past box office champs? Let’s take a look back ten, twenty, and thirty years ago at the biggest movies released in June.
4In August of 2017, I predict …
I’m a little late with my monthly examination of the box office, and so we already saw The Dark Tower come and fizzle out. August used to be a sleeper month when no one paid attention, and a little talked about film stole the show. Those days are long gone. However, since Dark Tower didn’t dominate, what’s left this month? Annabelle: Creation will be a solid horror hit. Detroit will be a critical success but not likely a commercial one. The Hitman’s Bodyguard might ride the Marvel wave with two stars from different dimensions of the MCU.
It’s been 2 years since NBC canceled it’s psychological thriller series Hannibal. Streaming services Amazon Video and Netflix were asked to pick up the show, but declined.
The show’s executive producers Bryan Fuller and Martha De Laurentiis have “started conversations” about reviving the show, but it still may be a while before we see it.
During an interview with Collider in 2016, Fuller stated that the show’s producers couldn’t start exploring revival options until two years after the series finale.
“August 2017 is when we can actually start talking about it,” he explained. “That’s when we would have to see what the rights are for the character and for the story, and see who’s interested and how we get it done.”
Well it’s August 2017 so will we have a revival?
“Conversations couldn’t start until 2 years after the final airing of season 3,” Fuller wrote on Twitter earlier this week, in response to a request for news about Hannibal. “@neoprod has started those conversations. This takes time.”
Photo Credit: Twitter
Earlier this year while on Mick Garris podcast Post Mortem Fuller made this statement.
“I have conversations with (Hannibal executive producer) Martha De Laurentiis. I have conversations with Mads and Hugh. We’re are all excited about the prospect of returning to the story. There’s some hurdles to get through… [But] I just had a great idea for season 4. There’s an interesting next chapter in the relationship between Will Graham and Hannibal Lecter that would be fascinating to unpack. I’ve shared it with the gentlemen and they’re both keen on it.”
How do you feel about a possible Hannibal revival?
Season three of ‘Fargo’ was interesting and had its moments, but it was really tough to top series creator Noah Hawley’s sweet spot he hit with season two. The right mix of actors, story, and action produced an incredible television experience. Now that Hawley’s star is burning bright the fourth season of ‘Fargo’ might take some time to come together.
The series has taken place in a different time period each season, so to even nail that down for season four would be a huge nugget for fans of the series
FX CEO John Landgraf gave an update at the Television Critics Association:
“I haven’t heard. We haven’t heard the idea from Noah for what the fourth season would be. I think what we’ve encouraged Noah to do is think about it and make sure he has something he’s really excited about and has something to believe in. There’s a possibility he won’t have that idea for some time. There’s also the possibility because Noah’s been fertile and productive, that we’ll hear that idea soon,” said Landgraf to SlashFilm.
Hawley is working on season two of ‘Legion’ and a Doctor Doom standalone film. An update on Fargo might come after production on ‘Legion’ wraps.
Do you have a favorite season? Vote and comment below.
Variety is reporting that Riz Ahmed, who’s known for his role in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, is in talks to star in Sony’s upcoming Venom movie.
Additionally, The Hollywood Reporter states that, “Sources say the actor was considered for the role [Carnage] before script changes were made.
Venom is set to be directed by Ruben Fleischer and written by Jeff Pinkner and Scott Rosenberg; Amy Pascal, Avi Arad, and Matt Tolmach are producing the picture. Tom Hardy has been cast as the lead.
Who do you think Ahmed will be portraying in the film? Comment below, let us know your thoughts.
