Friday LinkFrogging – 4/22/11

 

Good Friday to you all.

We’re back to once again take a trip to the corners of the internet, both sacred and profane. Why?  Because its what we do.  We’re digital explorers.  We bring ‘em back alive and let you view from behind the glass.

Earlier this week, I was lamenting to the missus that I hadn’t come up with a suitable cheesecake selection for this week.  We haven’t hit the summer movie season which makes my life SO much easier and nobody has done anything new and/or mock worthy.

My wife, who gets the feature, said, “you know, this weekend is associated with rabbits. Why don’t you use someone who’s been a Playboy bunny?”

Or words to that affect.

Smart woman my wife.

Say hello to Jenny McCarthy won’t you?

Ms. McCarthy first rose to fame as the 1993 Playmate of the Year.  From there she moved into television, most notably as the co-host of MTV’s Singled Out.  It was there that she honed her brassy broad persona.  Since then she’s acted steadily in the movies and on television.  It hasn’t all been rosy.  Her 2006 movie Dirty Love was eviscerated by the critics and took home a wagon full of Razzies.

In recent years, Ms. McCarthy has become an outspoken autism advocate.

On to the links.

Summer Movies 2011

Verily!

Every year about this time, we start to get more and more visuals about the upcoming summer movie season.

I love summer movie season.  I don’t have to think or worry about Oscar consideration.  I can just sit back, eat my popcorn, laugh and watch stuff blow up.

And, really, isn’t that what you want in a summer movie?

After reviewing my list for last summer, I can only hope this year’s batch is better (I’m looking at you Jonah Hex).  There are lots of spandex types and some good old fashioned raunchy comedies.

And monkeys in revolt.

Its gonna be a great summer.

Let’s take a look at my highlights, in chronological order.

Friday LinkFrogging – 12/17/10

Christmas is in the air kids.

Its also in my car, my house, my wallet and my kids.

Its been another fun year for us here at the ‘Geek.  We’ve seen our little site blossom and we’re on the verge of taking another big step next year.  Stay tuned.

In any event, this will be our final LinkFrogging of the year.  We’ll take next week off to celebrate Christmas and then, on New Year’s Eve, we’ll revisit our top ten posts of the year.

But before we sign off, I want to give you a little gift in the person of this week’s cheesecake.

Say hello to Liv Tyler.

The love child of Aerosmith‘s Steven Tyler and former Playmate, Bebe Buell.  Ms. Tyler spent the first nine years of her life believing Todd Rundgren was her father and, presumably, banging on the drums all day.

Since then she has gone on to become an acclaimed actress, appearing in such geek approved fare as The Lord of the Rings trilogy, Armageddon, Empire Records, That Thing You Do! and The Incredible Hulk (the non-Ang Lee one).

She even took the time to continue the family tradition of spawning with a musician during her relationship with Royston Langdon of 90s one hit wonders Spacehog (make your own Oneder joke here).

In a recent interview, Ms. Tyler stated that she wasn’t very good at dating so there is hope for you yet dear reader(s).  Just don’t bore her with trivial chat about your LOTR Special Edition DVD set or Aerosmith ephemera.

On to the links.

Thor – the video game

Whosoever holds this hammer…if he be worthy…

When I was a kid the two things I loved more than anything else were superheroes and mythology.

I know.  I know.  They’re pretty much the same thing.

Excuse me for not having read Joseph Campbell by age 7.

So, you can imagine my joy when I discovered Marvel’s Thor. 

Wait!  He’s a superhero FROM mythology?

My tiny head nearly exploded.

In my teens,  it was Walt Simonson’s definitive run on the title that really sealed my loyalty to the Thunder God.  Come on!  He created Beta Ray Bill!

To say that I’m looking forward to the next year’s Thor movie is an understatement.  I think I was more excited about the appearance of Mjolnir at the end of Iron Man 2 than just about anything else in the movie.

Now, the fine folks at Sega are bringing the Son of Odin and his mystical Uru hammer to your home gaming console.  Beat up Frost Giants, evil half-brothers and maybe even the Fenris Wolf without every getting out of your gaming chair.

From the press release:

Coming next year to the Xbox 360, PlayStation3, PSP system, Wii and Nintendo DS, this 3rd person action adventure boasts an original storyline exclusive to the videogame, for which Matt Fraction, lead Thor comic book author, served as story consultant.

Verily, methinks tis good.

The first official trailer for the game is after the jump.  Enjoy!

Friday LinkFrogging – 7/16/10

Freaky Geeky

  

Boys and girls, the dog days of summer are upon us.  

Its been a rough week in the world of Geek.  

First we lost Harvey Pekar.  The next day it was “The Boss,” George Steinbrenner.  Note to all you celebrities out there, the rule of 3′s is currently in play.  

The National League won an All-Star Game for the first time since 1996.  

And I discovered that IFC is rerunning Freaks and Geeks on Friday nights.  

That’s good news kids.  

The much lauded cult show never really got a fair shake a decade ago when it was on NBC, but it served as the career launching pad for Judd Apatow, James Franco, Seth Rogen and Jason Segel among others.  

If you haven’t seen the show, or want to see it again, tune in tonight for the episode entitled “Tricks and Treats.”  Its my personal favorite.  

And speaking of Freaks and Geeks, that brings us to this week’s cheesecake.  

Say hello to Linda Cardellini.  

She played the geek trying to become freak, Lindsey Weir, on Freaks and Geeks.  Watching her mathlete try to rebel against suburban Michigan (I’m looking at you Chris) norms formed the core of the series.  She went on to play Nurse Taggert on ER and Velma in the Scooby-Doo movies.  

You always knew Velma was a freak didn’t you?  

On to the links.

Friday LinkFrogging – 6/4/10

KILLER!

Back in the saddle again!

With all apologies to Gene Autry, I’m glad to be here once again to bring you our weekly linkfest.

Before I get too far along, I want to give a big thanks to Chris for covering for me last week.  I loved the coining of FOGG.  Well done sir.  Well done.

While I was unable to find any actual chupacabra, I did have a celebrity sighting of the 80s variety.  It seems the Bangles were staying at the same hotel I was and they ended up in the dining room with me and the rest of the expedition last Friday night.  Susanna Hoffs is holding up well true believers.

Before we give you the links, we have to give you a slice of cheesecake.  Don’t worry, I didn’t forget.

Say hello to Katherine Heigl.  Formerly of Grey’s Anatomy, Ms. Heigl returns to the big screen this weekend starring opposite Ashton Kutcher in Killers.  It will be interesting to see if she turns on Kutcher the way she turned on Judd Apatow after the success of Knocked Up.  Stay tuned, and in the meantime, on to the links.

Summer Movies 2010

Its that time of year again.

Time for the studios to roll out the big blockbusters full of explosions and other enjoyable types of gratuity.  This is the time of year when we get to enjoy movies rather than films.

Last year, The Hangover was the big surprise and Land of the Lost was the big stinker.  After looking through the week by week list on IMDB, I see a lot of stinker potential.  Too much in fact.  Still, there are movies to been seen, popcorn to be eaten and fun to be had.

Let’s take a look at the summer movies I’m most intrigued by, in no particular order.

Friday LinkFrogging – 4/30/10

L.A.M.B.

 Happy Friday to everyone.

I hope you’ve had a good week.  I hope you’re ready to peruse this week’s offerings.

I also hope you’re in the mood for cheesecake, because I have an excellent slice for you today.

Say hello to Gwen Stefani.

Lead singer of No Doubt.  Founder of L.A.M.B.  Husband of Gavin Rossdale.

Gwen has come a long way since Spiderwebs kids.  She rode that mid-90s ska revival to superstardom and never looked back.

On to the links.

The Orson Randall Project – Update 2

Well, its been about four months since I announced my intentions to craft a custom Orson Randall Iron Fist in the Super Hero Squad style.    

Why the delay in update 2?    

Research.    

Planning.    

Development.    

Acquisition.    

What?    

Okay, okay.  I’m having a bitch of a time finding a right hand.    

Happy now?    

Let me explain.

The Super Hero Squad Show

I love the Super Hero Squad toys from Hasbro.

The tiny little good guys and bad guys make nice desk decor.

They’re so popular that everyone from DC to Dark Horse has gotten into the act.

Green Arrow, Thor and Hellboy

So it came as no surprise that Marvel would spin these little moneymakers off into a cartoon series.  What better way to sell the toys.  Its a time honored tradition.

My kids were jacked up about the debut of the cartoon, so I set the DVR.

I told Stephe, who had already seen an episode.  His response?