The Battlestar Galactica prequel, Caprica, met its end far too soon despite being a very well-made show. For one reason or another, fans of BSG simply decided not to follow the show as religiously, leading to its untimely fate.

As we were waiting to hear the fate of Caprica from the executives at Syfy, they announced the plans for another spinoff series called Battlestar Galactica: Blood and Chrome. The show was to be another prequel, set in between the storylines of BSG and Caprica when William Adama was still a young pilot. We saw a glimpse of this younger Adama in the direct-to-DVD movie (which they should make more of immediately — we miss the real cast), Razor, and fans wondered if the actor that played the youthful future Admiral, Nico Cortez, would be returning for Blood and Chrome. Now we have that answer.

It’s been announced that Cortez will NOT be returning, and that instead an actor by the name of Luke Pasqualino has been cast. In addition to that, it was announced that Ben Cotton has been cast to play the young Adama’s commanding officer. Pasqualino is a 20-year-old actor from England who appeared on the U.K. version of Skins. [...]

Almost everyone who made their way through an American elementary school system since the ’70s has gotten their hands on a game of Oregon Trail, which teaches kids how to plan, make choices, and be efficient while trying to get you and your companions through a 2,000 mile trek safe and healthy.

The game has always been popular, and as time has gone on newer versions continue to be made for everything from schools to cell phones and just good old online time wasting fun. Ahh, nostalgia. It can’t be beat.

For everyone who’s played a round of Oregon Trail, some exciting news has arrived. A brand new version of the game has been developed exclusively for Facebook, and will be arriving on the site February 2. It’s also been announced that a special Facebook version of another popular game is on the way as well: Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?, which arrives on February 9. Still can’t even think of that title without the Rockapella theme song for the old Carmen Sandiego game show ringing through my head.

You can see preview videos for both games by heading down below now! [...]

If you’re the cufflinks type, here’s the perfect pair for all you superhero fans — POW! Crime Fighter Cufflinks.

For $50, you can snag this newly available red and yellow enamel set.

This is from the same company — Cufflinks, Inc. — that put out those awesome Superman and Batman cufflinks [...]

Will Smith is ready to produce yet another Hollywood remake through his company, Overbrook Entertainment, in which he is a co-owner along with his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, Sony Pictures, and recording artist/music mogul Jay-Z.

The team is set to remake Annie, the hit Broadway music based on the 1920s comic strip, Little Orphan Annie. Annie has also been turned into a feature film before by Columbia Pictures in 1982 and Disney in 1999.

In this new take on the story, Smith’s daughter, Willow Smith, is set to star in the lead role of Annie, the young orphan left in the care of an evil woman after her parents perish in a fire. Eventually, a very rich man decides to bring an orphan to his home for a week to improve his image; Annie is chosen and soon wins his heart.

Just last year Smith and company delivered The Karate Kid, a remake of the 1984 movie of the same name starring Smith’s son, Jaden. [...]

I thought that for this Australia Day (which is celebrated every January 26 down under), I’d link up with our recent Geeks of Doom theme of celebrating the 25th anniversary of some of the music and albums released during 1986. That year was a big one for Australian artists, with some key releases stamping their mark on the history of the Aussie music industry and the rock scene down under.

From Metal to Pop, from Traditional Alternative to Post-Punk, join me in a look back at some of the biggest and more memorable music releases from Australia 25 years ago in 1986 [...]

New retro-style posters will adorn the entryway of Blue Sky Cellar, the Imagineers preview center which is scheduled to reopen on January 28, 2011 at Disney’s California Adventure theme park.

The posters feature the attractions from the Paradise Pier boardwalk at California Adventure, including California Screamin’, Silly Symphony Swings, and Mickey’s Fun Wheel.

These posters will also be available for purchase at retail locations throughout the park on January. 28, 2011 [...]

Earlier this week, it was teased that The Big 4 tour — comprised of top thrash metal acts Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth, and Anthrax — would be coming to America. When the announcement was made yesterday, it turned out to be only one U.S. concert date in Indio, California on April 23, 2011 [read: WTF? The Big 4 To Play A Small 1: Only One U.S. Show Announced], much to the dismay of metalheads across the nation.

We’ve all been left wondering WHY there’s only one U.S. concert being offered when it’s obvious there’s a demand for this bill in America. Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich gave an explanation for this in a Los Angeles radio station interview.

On yesterday’s “The Kevin & Bean Show” on KROQ-FM (106.7), Ulrich said, “Let’s take baby steps here.” [...]

The t-shirt deal of the day over at RIPT Apparel is the Star Wars Starbucks mash-up “Darth Roast Coffee.”

The tee, by artist J Christian Reed, went on sale at RIPT today, Wednesday, January 26, 2011, at midnight CST, and will continue for 24 hours from then, and once it’s over, it will not be sold on the site anymore.

The design takes Star Wars villain Darth Vader and puts him in the center of a Starbucks-like logo for his own brand of coffee. The Imperial logo is also incorporated into the design [...]

As far as incredible videos go, the man behind the YouTube channel whoiseyevan, Ivan Guerrero, has to be credited and praised for a few of them.

Ivan is a filmmaker looking to score a gig in the industry, and to prove his talents he likes to take popular films and create what have been dubbed “premakes” — remakes that are done as if they were made years before the actual films ever existed.

You might remember seeing one he did for the Star Wars sequel, The Empire Strikes Back, right here at Geeks of Doom last year, and now there’s another new one for the wonderful Disney/Pixar animated feature, Up. The video presents Up as a live-action Disney movie from decades ago in 1965, and it’s absolutely brilliant work.

You can see Ivan’s new Up premake by clicking on over to the other side now, and be sure to visit his YouTube page, where you can find many more premakes. [...]

It’s been announced by Lionsgate Films that they’ve set a release date for The Hunger Games, the adaptation of the popular young-adult novel of the same name by author Suzanne Collins.

The movie is set to be released on March 23, 2012, and tells the story of a post apocalyptic future where North America is now known as the country of Panem, where twelve districts are controlled by the government in a city called Capitol. As a punishment, an annual event called the Hunger Games is held, where kids — one boy and one girl from each district within the ages of 12 to 18 — are forced to fight to the death to show that in these brutal times, the controlling government is in power and not even the younger civilians are safe.

The Hunger Games is set to be directed by Gary Ross, who previously helmed Seabiscuit and Pleasantville. Ross has also written Big, Dave, and The Tale of Despereaux along with the two titles mentioned above. Writer Billy Ray (Breach, State of Play) penned the screenplay, but it’s unclear whether his draft will be the one used for filming. [...]

Brian Michael Bendis is easily one of the most talented writers in the comics industry these days. His dialogue for Spider-Man in New Avengers is the best web head in comics currently. Sure, some of you like what happened to Spider-Man post Straczynski, but that’s another discussion. Bendis is also one of the most spread thin in the industry and as good as he is, his stories often suffer from bloat and padding in order to allow him to keep up his projects. Some of that padding may be due to the work he’s been quietly doing with artist Michael Avon Oeming on his first all-ages graphic novel titled Takio.

The graphic novel follows the multiracial sisters in an adoptive family who are set on driving each other to the brink of insanity. After a “once in a lifetime accident” the two sisters develop super powers bringing them together as the world’s first super heroes.

Check out a preview of Takio here below [...]

A new poster has been released for director Joe Wright‘s upcoming title, Hanna, which tells the story of a young girl who’s raised in the wilderness by her father to become a deadly assassin.

The movie stars Saoirse Ronan, Eric Bana, Cate Blanchett, Tom Hollander, Olivia Williams, and Jason Flemyng, and will be released in theaters come April 8, 2011. You can keep up with all things Hanna by liking and following the movie’s official Facebook and Twitter pages, as well.

Click on over to the other side now, where you can read the full synopsis, check out the new poster, and also watch the trailer if you missed it the first time around.

SYNOPSIS:
Award-winning director Joe Wright creates a boldly original suspense thriller with HANNA, starring Academy Award nominee Saoirse Ronan (The Lovely Bones, Atonement) in the title role.

Raised by her father (Eric Bana of Star Trek), an ex-CIA man, in the wilds of Finland, Hanna’s upbringing and training have been one and the same, all geared to making her the perfect assassin. [...]

As we mentioned in our coverage of director Kevin Smith’s decision to purchase the rights to his own movie, Red State, at the Sundance Film Festival auction he held and distribute the movie himself, this man knows how to play the game…and he’s playing it intently.

A new video has made its way to the web of Smith joining some of his favorite people on the planet (second only to film press, perhaps): the protesters! If you’ve ever seen An Evening with Kevin Smith then you know he tells many hilarious stories from his career, including one about the vicious protesters that showed up to boycott his not-so-serious religious comedy, Dogma. So when Smith sets out to make a horror movie inspired by the truly evil Westboro Baptist Church’s infamous leader, Fred Phelps, you can expect that these people known for protesting the funerals of respected public figures and fallen U.S. soldiers would be out in force, signs in hands.

Instead of let this happen, Smith showed up with some hilarious signs of his own to protest the protesters and play their game. You can see the video by clicking on over to the other side now! [...]

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader will soon be coming to 2-Disc DVD and Blu-ray and is available for pre-order right now.

Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment has released the cover art for the DVD & Blu-ray; you can see the Blu-ray cover art here above.

No details yet on the special features or the exact release date [...]

Metal fans and followers will remember that yesterday we posted news that The Big 4 (meaning Anthrax, Megadeth, Metallica, and Slayer) would be making a major announcement today via their Facebook page regarding a U.S. tour dates. Everybody assumed, justifiably so, that it would be the announcement of a major Big 4 U.S. tour. Boy, were we way off, and the resulting rampage of fury and anger from metalheads across the country should make the so-called Big 4 hang their heads in shame!

It turns out that the “major” announcement was that the 4 bands would be playing a show. That’s “a” show. As in one. Singular. Uno.

The Big 4 will be playing their one show in Indio, California on April 23, 2011, at the Empire Polo Club and…

Wait, what? A club? The Empire Polo Club doesn’t seem to have seating charts in many places in the short Google search I did, but one report I found mentioned a capacity of no more than 1,000. I cannot vouch for the reliability and accuracy of that information, but if there is any validity to it, why choose such a lame venue for one show?

New images have been released for Scream 4, the upcoming sequel in the popular horror franchise from Wes Craven.

The images show returning stars Courteney Cox and David Arquette together, with another photo of Emma Roberts, who’s new to the series.

Also, the new full-length trailer was recently released, so you can watch that here below.

Scream 4 hits theaters on April 15, 2011 [...]

The nominations for the 83rd Annual Academy Awards were announced this morning, with The Kings Speech leading the list with 12 nominations, including Best Picture and acting nods for stars Colin Firth, Helena Bonham Carter, and Geoffrey Rush.

True Grit came in second with 10 nominations, while The Social Network and Inception tied for third place with 8 nods each.

The Disney/Pixar animated sequel Toy Story 3 is up for 5 awards, including both Animated Feature Film and Best Picture.

See the full list of nominees here below.

The 83rd Annual Academy Awards will be broadcast live on ABC from Hollywood’s Kodak Theatre on February 23, 2011, and will be hosted by actors James Franco and Anne Hathaway [...]

The video game deal of the day over at Amazon today is Guitar Hero Warriors of Rock for only $29.99 (that’s 40% off the list price of $49.99).

The sale is for the standalone game for Xbox 360, Playstation 3, or Nintendo Wii.

Also on sale today for 50% off is Tony Hawk: Shred (game only) for $24.99 (down from $49.99) for Xbox 360, Playstation 3, or Nintendo Wii.

Note, these deals are valid only for today, Tuesday, January 25, 2011, until midnight PST while supplies last [...]

For those of you who do not read comic books and do not follow Marvel Comics’ Fantastic Four, it’s been known for a while now that the series — which debuted in 1961 and has spawned two Hollywood movies — would be ending at issue #588, and that one of the elite four members would die before it was all said and done.

Who exactly would perish, however, has been a guarded secret, and only now is it being revealed whose story ends right before the Fantastic Four comic series ends.

Obviously if you do read these comics, you don’t want to know the answer to this question, so DO NOT continue reading. For the rest of you, click on over to the other side to find out if it’s Mr. Fantastic, Invisible Woman, The Human Torch, or The Thing whose fate has been sealed. [...]

I, like many, many others, am a huge fan of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. This has been the case for most (including myself) since the first time they saw the original live-action movie in theaters back in 1990, and for some others who go back as far as the original comic book they were born in.

Over the years, the superhero mutant reptiles have always remained popular and don’t seem to be going anywhere anytime soon with another new movie said to be in the making. One thing life-long fans –especially the ones now in their late-20s and 30s — have wanted to see a less silly and more realistic, darker Ninja Turtles movie hit the screen. It’s unclear whether this darker movie will ever be made, but one fan is doing their part to give us an idea what it might look like if it did.

This fan made a short video of his own TMNT action called Fight the Foot. It’s quite brief, but a must-see for fans. You can see it now by clicking on over to the other side. [...]