The Most Iconic LGBTQ Superheroes of Comic Books

Acknowledging and celebrating the inclusivity of the superhero genre.

via The Nerd Machine

http://www.newsarama.com/31497-the-top-lgbt-superheroes-of-comic-books.html

‘The Fifth Element’ is Coming Back to Theaters

Yep, you heard right! In celebration of its 20th Anniversary, The Fifth Element is coming back to theaters thanks to the wonderful people at Fathom Events and and Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, who are organizing a two-day theatrical release on May 14 (Sunday) and 17 (Wednesday) that will feature an introduction by Luc Besson himself and an exclusive look at Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets, which premieres in U.S. theaters July 21, 2017. This version of the movie will be a 4K restoration of the original film and anticipates the film’s release in 4K Ultra HD on July 11. Tickets to “The Fifth Element 20th Anniversary” can be purchased online Fathom Events, where you will also find more info event. 
 
Check out our thoughts on the Five Elements That Make The Fifth Element Awesome in anticipation to seeing it in theaters again!
 

David Casares
via The Nerd Machine

http://www.nerdhq.com/the-fifth-element-is-coming-back-to-theaters/

Fallout Miniatures: Meet the Man Behind the Upcoming Game

By: Thomas Riccardi

When I first heard Bethesda was releasing Fallout 3 and it would be first person POV, I could not wait to play it. The game’s various environments to explore and people interact with, not to mention monsters to kill, sucked you in so hard. But what if you could take the Fallout experience beyond your console or computer and play it with friends? The folks over at Modiphius are hard at work at the first-ever, licensed Fallout miniatures game. I had a chance to catch up with Modiphius’ Chris Birch, and he had this to say about his upcoming project.

1.) Please introduce yourself.

Hi, I’m Chris Birch, founder and publisher of Modiphius Entertainment.

2.) Tell us a bit about Modiphius Entertainment.

We launched five years ago with Rita (my wife) and I working out of a basement flat in London. We had a string of successful Kickstarters for Achtung! Cthulhu, Mutant Chronicles, the Thunderbirds co-op board game, Infinity, and Conan RPGs that helped grow the family business to the point we now employ around 15 full time staff as well as about 100 freelance writers, artists, designers, proofreaders, editors, and so on across the world. We’ve worked hard to have a great track record of awesome customer service and a great connection with our community, without whom I’d still be making T-shirts.

3.) Tell us more about the recently announced Fallout miniatures game.

It’s a miniatures wargame consisting of highly-detailed resin multi-part 32mm scale miniatures and terrain. Designed for groups of three up to 30 figures, we’ll be releasing the game in retail-friendly packs: starter sets for factions, expansion boxes, and a big two-player starter set in plastic. Players will be able to play each other, play solo against the game, or co-op vs. the game (or use the game as a third player in a vs. game).

4.) How is this game going to be sold (i.e. core sets, factions)?

Single-player Faction starter boxes, two-player starter boxes, and then a gradual rollout of expansion boxes for each faction. The factions won’t all releases at once; we’re starting with three, then the two-player starter box, and then the rest of the faction.

5.) What will be the price range of these miniatures?

Right now I can’t give a price, but they will be comparable to other major high-quality miniatures games.

6.) Are we just getting minis based on Fallout characters and monsters, or are we getting scenery as well?

Oh yes, scenery! We’re producing the Red Rocket and other familiar building from Sanctuary Hills, plus familiar things like rusted old cars, Nuka Cola machines, work benches, turrets, etc.

7.) Is this the first miniatures game Modiphius has put out?

Nope, we had the Achtung! Cthulhu skirmish miniatures game launch this spring, and we have the Star Trek Adventures miniatures line coming out in September and previewing at GenCon, then John Carter of Mars this summer, too.

8.) Seeing as this is a license held through Bethesda, is there a chance we might see more games based on other titles?

We’re just working on Fallout for now. But who knows?

9.) What would be one of the dream projects you would love to work on going forward?

Well, Star Trek and Fallout were dreams I had to work on, both of which we spent a long time putting the deals together. I’m not sure how much bigger you can get that’s not been done yet!

And there you have it. If you want to check out some of the images and announcements as they are released, you can point your browser over to Modiphius’ website. So get ready, folks, because there is about to be a war and war…war never changes.

admin
via The Nerd Machine

http://www.nerdhq.com/fallout-miniatures-meet-the-man-behind-the-upcoming-game/

Report: McAVOY's PROFESSOR X Will Not Be In NEW MUTANTS After All

Or at least, James McAvoy reportedly won't...

via The Nerd Machine

http://www.newsarama.com/34457-report-professor-x-will-not-be-in-new-mutants-afterall.html

CANNONBALL Enlists In U.S.AVENGERS Just In Time For SECRET EMPIRE

A preview of next week's U.S. AVENGERS #6.

via The Nerd Machine

http://www.newsarama.com/34452-cannonball-enlists-in-u-s-avengers-just-in-time-for-secret-empire.html

What We Know: American Assassin

By: Jaclyn Cascio (@jaclynator)

Based on the recurring popular character created by author Vince Flynn, CIA operative Mitch Rapp will make his way to theaters this fall with CBS Films’ American Assassin.

Flynn passed away in 2013, but not before writing many popular novels, 15 of which star the character of Rapp. CBS Films acquired the rights to Flynn’s series in 2008 and were originally set to adapt the book Consent to Kill for the first film. The film studio’s projects had not been performing as expected, and the project was then delayed. In the meantime, Flynn published a prequel to the series, telling the story of how Rapp came to be a master operative, which then became the source material for the upcoming film!

The journey to get American Assassin on the screen was still not an easy one. Not only were there delays, but the director’s seat has also been the focus of a sort of musical chairs. The film was originally set to be directed by Antoine Fuqua (Southpaw) and several other actors were in line for the lead role (such as Thor himself, Chris Hemsworth, who was unable to take the offered role due to scheduling conflicts). Eventually Edward Zwick was in the director’s chair, until he was replaced by Jeffrey Nachmanoff in early 2012. In March 2016, Michael Cuesta finally took the director’s chair and helmed the project that will be coming to screens this year. Meanwhile, the script for American Assassin went through several writers, from Zwick and Marshall Herskovitz, to revisions by Michael Finch, and a final writer, Stephen Schiff, was added in 2016 (when Cuesta was given the director’s seat).

The rest of early 2016 consisted of casting, and principal photography finally began in September 2016 in locations such as London, Rome, and Phuket, with additional filming in Valletta and Birmingham. In March 2017, a release date was finally announced, and it is expected that the film will premiere in September of this year. (Mark your calendars!) Meanwhile, attendees of CinemaCon in Las Vegas in April were the first to see a poster for the film as well as a teaser. A full trailer for American Assassin was recently released, even bringing lead actor Dylan O’Brien out of his Twitter slumber (he hadn’t tweeted since October 2016!) to promote the film and the trailer.



If you’re not a reader of Flynn novels and the spy thriller is new to you, here’s a quick rundown for the Lionsgate Film-distributed movie:

An origin story, American Assassin tells the tale of Rapp (Dylan O’Brien), an Arabic linguistics expert, who loses his girlfriend in a terrorist attack. Rapp finds himself on a mission for revenge, eventually recruited by CIA black ops to put his talents to good use, undergoing intense training with Cold War veteran Stan Hurley (Michael Keaton). Hurley and Rapp team up to investigate a seemingly unrelated wave of attacks on military and civilian targets. As they look for a pattern and prepare to stop the threat, they combine forces with a Turkish agent anmed Annika (Shiva Negar). As they work under the direction of Deputy Director Irene Kennedy (Sanaa Lathan), they find themselves facing off against Ghost (Taylor Kitsch), who is intent on starting a world war in the Middle East.

With Keaton, a former Bruce Wayne/Batman, training young Teen Wolf star O’Brien, American Assassin has the potential to bring in audiences across the age spectrum. However, viewers beware: the spy thriller, produced by Lorenzo di Bonaventura (Transformers: The Last Knight) and Nick Wechsler, is currently unrated, but with mature material, a G or PG rating is off the table. The film is clearly the beginning of the story of Rapp. The studio is hopeful the film will be successful and will lead to a franchise based on the series of books revolving around the character, even purposefully casting college-aged O’Brien as an actor who can grow in the role as the character also grows in potential future films. (He resembles a younger and leaner Mark Wahlberg, so this isn’t a stretch of the imagination!)

American Assassin is currently set to release September 15, 2017. While you wait, check out the books by Vince Flynn and follow the film’s progress on Twitter!

admin
via The Nerd Machine

http://www.nerdhq.com/what-we-know-american-assassin/

First Two NEW MUTANTS Cast

Meet the new Magick and Wolfsbane.

via The Nerd Machine

http://www.newsarama.com/34456-first-two-new-mutants-cast.html

Fox's GOTHAM Renewed For Fourth Season

With Bruce Wayne getting closer to becoming the Batman.

via The Nerd Machine

http://www.newsarama.com/34455-fox-s-gotham-renewed-for-fourth-season.html

Best Shots Rapid-Fire Reviews ROCKET #1, ALL-STAR BATMAN #10, THE FIX #9, More

As well as SECRET WARRIORS #1, THE FIX #9, X-MEN: BLUE #3, BUG!: THE ADVENTURES OF FORAGER #1, MS. MARVEL #18, BLACK CLOUD #2, and AMERICA #3.

via The Nerd Machine

http://www.newsarama.com/34454-best-shots-rapid-fire-reviews-rocket-1-all-star-batman-10-the-fix-9-more.html

Injustice: Gods Among Us #2 - Tom Taylor, Jheremy Raapack & Axel Giminez

Injustice: Gods Among Us #2 Tom Taylor, Jheremy Raapack & Axel Giminez Genre: Graphic Novels Price: $0.99 Publish Date: January 22, 2013 Publisher: DC Comics Seller: DC Comics

When someone close to Superman disappears—apparently a kidnapping victim—the Man of Steel summons his fellow Justice League members to help him search. But why can’t Superman find this person himself? And will their efforts be in time?

get it now at https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/injustice-gods-among-us-2/id595560028?mt=11&uo=2&partnerId=11&at=1010ldoE

PINMAGGEDON Finale Draws Near In COADY & THE CREEPIES #3 Preview

Punk rock in the afterlife.

via The Nerd Machine

http://www.newsarama.com/34453-pinmaggedon-finale-draws-near-in-coady-the-creepies-3-preview.html

Movie Review: Snatched

By: Justin Jasso (@jjasso007)

So I think it’s safe to say that we were all born at one time, and that we all have a mother. And, with that being said, I want to wish every mother out there a Happy Mother’s Day. Maybe you’ll take mom out for a Mother’s Day brunch, or on a small weekend getaway. Maybe you won’t be in town due to other engagements, so you’ll send her flowers and give her a personal call. Or, just maybe, you’ll go take an exotic vacation with her south of the border. Such is the basic foundation for Jonathan Levine’s latest film, Snatched, starring Amy Schumer and the oft-forgot, but still classic, Goldie Hawn. Just for clarification, Snatched does not involve Mother’s Day.

Emily (Amy Schumer) is having a bad week. First, she’s fired from her clothing store job. Then her rising music-star boyfriend Michael (Randall Park) dumps her because, when’s he’s touring, there will be so much p*#$y, that he can’t be in a relationship. Am I allowed to make that reference? Too late. Anyways, even worse, she previously bought two, nonrefundable tickets to Ecuador and now has no one to go with. Last resort: take her mom, Linda (Goldie Hawn). Linda is divorced and set in her ways, and her ways do not involve gallivanting to Ecuador, drinking alcohol, dancing, making out with hot Latino men, or shenanigans. It involves romantic novels, being in bed by 8 PM, and cats. But, being a good mother, she accompanies her daughter. Everything seems fine until a cute fling for Emily, James (Tom Bateman), pretty much leads them to be captured by criminals. Now it’s up to the mother/daughter duo to find their way out and make it back home, preferably alive.



If you know anything about Amy Schumer, then you know what this film will be like. Now, I must warn you, this movie is nothing like Trainwreck, which was comedic genius. This is nowhere near the level of that film, so make sure you tame your expectations before entering the theater. While Snatched has a solid skeleton for a story, and plenty of opportunities to thrive, it misses more than it hits with comedic concepts. Too often it goes more for the slapstick approach and underutilizes aspects and characters that could lead to comic gold. For instance, the relationship between Emily’s agoraphobic brother, Jeffrey (Ike Barinholtz,) and state department official Morgan (Bashir Salahuddin), which is hilarious, is put on the back burner. Or that of Wanda Sykes and Joan Cusack, two travelers who happen to be in Ecuador as well, one of whom with former covert military experience. So much could have been developed with these characters, who added much needed flavor, yet were minimized. To some extent, we get it, this is a film about Schumer and Hawn, yet the formula feels repeated and our ability to push disbelief can only go so far with this kind of comedy. It’s definitely no Tropic Thunder, which could get away with a little more comedy of this sort due to its creativity and great performances. What we have is a feeling that Levine kind of sat back and allowed Schumer and Hawn to do their thing. Given the success of Trainwreck, I get it, but Judd Apatow was helming that one and we know his track record and pedigree. Levine should have taken a little more control of the reins on this one.



We’ve seen this character from Schumer before: the girl who is irresponsible, foul-mouthed, sloppy, and sexually unapologetic (but always fun – that tramp stamp joke was classic!). It’s what we’ve come to expect and it works for her. Yet I feel, over time, if she keeps playing this same character over and over, we’re going to get a little tired of it. Hawn, after a near 15-year hiatus, makes her return to film and fits right into the role she’s given. Barinholtz is a scene-stealer when he gets the opportunity, and is pretty damn hilarious throughout. Christopher Meloni is fun as an Indiana Jones-type character who – this is debatable – is out of his mind. And Oscar Jaenada plays the film’s bad guy in all his stereotypical glory!

I’m not going to lie, I had much higher hopes for Snatched because of the success of Trainwreck, and maybe that was my downfall. Yet I can’t help but think that because Schumer and Levine maybe tried too hard to be funny, so many scenes ended up being more of a chuckle than an LMAO. There are a couple of good scenes, and some great dialogue here and there, and a bizarre scene involving a tapeworm (reminiscent of Alien to some extent) that adds a little something extra, yet overall, one can’t help but feel let down with this film. Snatched isn’t a bad film in that it is still entertaining and will make you laugh here and there, it just misses out on so many opportunities and goes for the physical comedy gold, reminding me of older comedic film of yesteryear.

Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars

admin
via The Nerd Machine

http://www.nerdhq.com/movie-review-snatched/