Looking to write the next big alien thriller but need a few ideas to get you going? Then you won't want to miss this plot generator Wired created using two James Gunn films and two Ridley Scott creations. Of course, you could always use it like a Mad Libs game and insert your own ideas for plucky adventurers and terrifying boss aliens.
Via Wired
Jeffrey Tambor is an award-winning veteran of stage and screen who has appeared in about five dozen movies and nearly as many TV shows since he started acting in the early 70s, but to his young kids he's just daddy.
So to promote his new book Are You Anybody? Jeffrey sat down with four of his kids to answer their questions about his storied career in showbiz, in this first and last episode of The Tambor Family Show.
I'm glad Hugo told us that he's his mom's son too, because I was totally wondering about that!
-Via Laughing Squid
The Witcher franchise has been setting the bar ridiculously high for fantasy RPGs since the first Witcher game came out in 2007, just like The Witcher novels by Andrzej Sapkowski did when they first came out in the mid-80s.
Faithfully translating the look of Geralt of Rivia, the fearsome creatures he fights and the colorful cast of characters that populate the world around him rests on the shoulders of the talented artists from CD PROJEKT RED.
Since 2007 Polish video game developers CD PROJEKT RED have been working on The Witcher games and giving them their signature look, their artistic efforts culminating in The Witcher 3, the final game in the series.
This stunning concept art represents the hard work their team put in to the game before it ever reached the 3D modeling stage, and the illustrations are so fantastic even non-gamers will appreciate their beauty.
See more Stunning Concept Art From The Witcher 3 By CD Projekt Red here
The Doritos Guardians Of The Galaxy Awesome Mix Vol. 2 promotional MP3 bag came out and people paid $30 a pop to get their hands on this collectible gimmick and brag about it online.
But Engadget wasn't very respectful with the bag they bought- because they immediately tore it apart to see what was inside.
Here's what they found:
Getting the music files out of the bag is a bit of a chore, and tearing it apart to get at the electronics doesn't yield much of a reward -- the Doritos MP3 player is little more than a cheap, exposed circuit board sandwiched between two pieces of foam. Without the snack bag, its buttons are too tall and awkward, the audio port is exposed and flimsy and it has no visible user interface to speak of. It's not even worth pillaging for the player's microSD card, which holds a paltry 256MB of data. Looks like we destroyed the eBay value of this season's most ridiculous collector's item for nothing.
-Via Engadget
Rancors are native to the planet Dathomir, grow to be five meters tall or more, and see most humanoids as nothing more than snack food. So how did Jabba's Rancor end up in that pit beneath his palace?
It was given to Jabba as a gift from his henchmen when it was but a wee Rancy Wancy, and the Rancor's keeper Malakili learned to love that big nasty beastie like one of his own...until Luke smashed its head in.
But don't worry, according to this comic by Chris Gugliotti the story of Malakili and the Rancor has a happy ending, and despite the large dent in Rancy's head he's doing fine and eating solid foods again!
-Via Geeks Are Sexy
Many new cars have electronic locks that unlock the door with a push of a button, and because many people don't really understand how these locks work they've become the subject of many myths.
And people love to post content online that adds to these myths, like this video from ten years back that still has people believing they can unlock their car doors with a tennis ball.
It seems too ridiculous to work, and yet every time the myth makes the rounds online again a bunch of people admit they believe the myth, often claiming they know someone who did it.
So let's put this myth to rest by sharing this clip from an old episode of Mythbusters featuring Kari Byron, Grant Imahara and Tory Belleci busting the myth with 100 psi of shop air.
-Via Discovery
What do you do with the loose hairs that come out while you're showering? I usually stick them on the wall or wash them down the drain, but from now on I'm going to rip off "Show Hair Master" Lucy Gafford's idea and use them to make little drawings.
Lucy's shower hair drawings are surprisingly detailed considering they're just wet strands of hair stuck to the shower wall, but she really earns her "Shower Master" title with her cool choice of subject matter.
See Artist Makes Drawings With Hair Falling In The Bath here
Batman has many skills and physical abilities that give him a reputation for being a formidable hero, but one of his most important abilities never gets any press- his amazing math skills.
Bruce uses math to build awesome devices, calculate the perfect trajectory for his Batarang and predict his enemy's next move, so his math skills are what make him the mightiest human on Earth.
This oldie but goodie clearly explains why Batman will forever be > Superman and Iron Man, although Tony Stark might win if he and Bruce have a math off!
-Via Geeks Are Sexy
Most illustrators use some sort of photo reference for their drawings, and the internet is a treasure trove of reference material for amateurs and pros alike.
Photo reference is especially useful when drawing people, because as you can see in these portraits by illustrator and character designer Julio Cesar photo reference comes complete with props and personality.
Julio chooses random pics of people he finds online then gives their portraits the toon treatment, with minimal exaggeration so the subjects remain recognizable.
See Artist Finds Photos Of Random People, Transforms Them Into Illustrated Characters here
Few sci-fi TV show subgenres are more beloved than Time Travel shows- the shows that capture our imaginations about the future and bring out our inner history nerd in a major way.
1. It's About Time (1966-67)-
Astronauts Mac McKenzie and Hector Canfield find themselves transported back to the days of cavemen and dinosaurs in the definitely not based on real science comedy It's About Time, which lasted for 26 episodes in 1967.
This good natured romp created by Sherwood Schwartz is technically a time travel TV show because Mac and Hector travel back in time and back to the present, bringing an entire cave-family with them.
2. Seven Days (1998-2001)-
In Seven Days the NSA creates a time machine using alien technology scavenged from Roswell to send "chrononauts" seven days into the past to prevent the destruction of the White House and the death of POTUS and the VP.
The Chronosphere can only send a chrononaut back seven days due to "limitations imposed by the fuel source and its reactor", so chrononauts are only allowed to deal with matters of national security.
Even though Seven Days managed to stay under the radar in terms of ratings the show was extremely popular with fans, who totally dug the X-Files-inspired vibe of the show.
Geeky home furnishings have never been hotter than they are today, and as pop culture trends continue to be profitable companies will keep coming out with cool stuff to clutter up our homes.
But after seeing this amazing yet uncomfortable looking Custom Dewback Loveseat made by Regal Robot Custom Studio I've come to realize the world needs more geeky yet functional furniture.
We should be lounging around on all kinds of fantasy and sci-fi creatures, sitting in office chairs shaped like our favorite thrones, vehicles or captain's chairs, and watching TV out of a Titan's mouth.
But for now Star Wars fans will have to pony up $10k for this Custom Dewback Loveseat and start their geeky furniture collection before the trend begins.
-Via GeekTyrant
Doritos has come up with a strange way to tie their Nacho Cheese chips in with Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2- they're including a music player loaded with the Awesome Mix Vol. 2 in limited edition bags.
All you have to do is plug your headphones into the jack in the front of the bag and you'll have some music to munch by courtesy of Doritos, which raises a galaxy's worth of questions.
How much will this bag of gimmicks cost? Is it Big Gulp and Slurpee proof? The built-in player is rechargeable, so you can listen to the Vol. 2 Mix over and over again, but does anyone really want that, or will the bag become another unwanted piece of e-waste?
The bag comes out sometime today (April 28th) on Amazon so we'll know more soon, but one thing's for certain- someone will be trying to sell one for a fortune on eBay by next week!
-Via Thrillist
Some aspects of life on the Starship Enterprise would appeal to all sci-fi fans- meeting aliens from all over the galaxy, having all of your needs met by machines, the cool clothes, the tech and the holodeck, just to name a few.
But life aboard the Enterprise would have been an absolute nightmare for both the crew and the hundreds of civilians living on board, as they try to get through their day without being phased or blown up.
This fun video by Grunge discusses the main reasons why living on a Star Trek starship would be a nightmare, including horrifying transporter malfunctions, malfunctioning crew members and the scariest reason of all- you live at your job.
It's doubtful Arnold Schwarzenegger knew how iconic his "Hasta la vista, baby" line from Terminator 2: Judgment Day would become, but now we can't say "see you later" in Spanish without hearing Arnie's voice in our heads.
But curious and geeky minds want to know- what does Arnie say in the Spanish language version of T2?
Apparently he says "Sayonara, baby", which is hilarious enough, but in the Japanese language version he says "Cheerio then, love". WTF is that all about?!
-Via Boing Boing
When we start adulting we're told to leave the trappings of our youth behind, but for some of us our inner child grows stronger instead of weaker as we strive to make our childhood dreams come true.
But comic artist Hugo Tamzarian seems hell bent on wounding, if not outright destroying, our inner children with his series Gone Into Rapture, and no silly willy nilly symbol of our childhood is safe.
Gone Into Rapture deals with controversial subjects like dinosaurs, animals, Disney characters, social politics and cats- those sneaky little furballs who have infiltrated our homes and now run the show.
