This Friday, October 30, sees the return of the hit Star Wars series The Mandalorian for a second season. Set five years after Return of the Jedi and the fall of
the Galactic Empire, the incredibly popular first season starred Pedro
Pascal as the titular bounty hunter as he came across “the Child”
(popularly known as “Baby Yoda”) and took him under his protection. The
star-studded first season included Carl
Weathers, Gina
Carano, Giancarlo
Esposito, Werner
Herzog, and Nick
Nolte as a variety of allies and adversaries, with direction from show
creator Jon
Favreau, Bryce
Dallas Howard, and Taika
Waititi, among others. The music (available on hoopla)
earned an Emmy Award for composer Ludwig
Göransson.
Everyone knows about the Star Wars movies, of course, with
six of them appearing in the top 20 grossing films of all time. Recently,
though, the saga has taken to the small screen to expand its universe,
primarily through animation. Starting in 2008, The
Clone Wars showed the Jedi and other heroes as they fought to defend
the Old Republic. Rebels
took over in 2014 and followed a ragtag band of friends as they struggled to
put together a coalition that could take a stand against the Empire’s tyranny. Resistance
began in 2018 and ran for two seasons alongside the sequel trilogy. The Mandalorian is the first live-action
Star Wars series, but there are plenty more on the horizon. Diego
Luna is returning to reprise his role as Cassian Andor from Rogue One in an
upcoming show, and Ewan
McGregor is once again donning the Jedi robes of Obi-Wan Kenobi for a new
limited series as well.
Star Wars is
always popular with fans and library patrons, and the return of The Mandalorian
is likely to bring renewed interest. Click the links above for the movies and
TV shows, and be sure to visit our website for soundtracks, audiobooks, and
plenty more related content.
Written by Jon Williams
The entertainment world was stunned last weekend by the
passing of actor Chadwick Boseman after a long private battle with colon cancer.
He was 43.
Boseman got an early start on a career in film and
television. He got a degree in directing from Howard University, where Phylicia
Rashad was one of his teachers and Denzel Washington was a benefactor. He began
on the small screen with bit parts in shows like Law & Order, CSI:NY, and ER. In 2008 he appeared in his first big-screen role in The Express. However, he stayed mostly on television for the
next few years, landing recurring and regular roles on the shows Lincoln Heights and Persons Unknown (both currently unavailable), one more one-shots on
shows like Castle and Justified (Season 2 unavailable).
His star rocketed to the top for good with his first
starring role. In 2013, he played Jackie Robinson, the first African-American
player in Major League Baseball, in 42. (Coincidentally, the day he passed, August 28, was the date
MLB celebrated Jackie Robinson Day this year.) He then went on to play other
Black icons: James Brown in 2014’s Get on Up, and Thurgood Marshall, the first Black justice on
the U.S. Supreme Court, in 2017’s Marshall.
While Boseman achieved praise for portraying each of those
larger-than-life, real figures from American history, the greatest portion of
his fame came from his role as a fictional king. T’Challa, the superhero Black
Panther, was created by Marvel Comics in 1966; Boseman brought him to the
silver screen in 2016’s Captain America: Civil War. The
character got his own standalone adventure in 2018’s Black Panther, detailing T’Challa’s coronation as King of
Wakanda and the first threat to his rule. Boseman played him again in Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame. Black
Panther (#4), Infinity War (#5),
and Endgame (#2) are currently three
of the top five grossing films of all time at the domestic box office.
Chadwick Boseman’s final film role was in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, based on a
play detailing a recording session for blues musician Ma Rainey; release plans
for the movie are still up in the air. In the meantime, make sure to have his
work available for patrons who want to celebrate this phenomenally talented
actor. Click on the links above, or SmartBrowse his name on our website to find
more.
Written by Jon Williams
Terminator: Dark Fate is in theatres
now, and is available for pre-order on DVD
and Blu-ray.
This big-budget blockbuster is a blast from the past, a unique entry in a
franchise that has been entertaining audiences for 35 years.
The
Terminator, the first film in the series, was a sensation from the
moment in hit theatres in 1984. It starred Arnold
Schwarzenegger in the titular role of an emotionless cyborg mercenary sent
from the future to assassinate Sarah Connor before she can have a son who will
grow up to lead the human resistance against their machine overlords. Hailed by
fans and critics alike, it spawned a 1991 sequel, Terminator
2: Judgment Day, in which Schwarzenegger’s cyborg is once again sent
back in time, this time reprogrammed to protect Sarah and her young son against
a more advanced Terminator model capable of shifting its shape. Another
smashing success, this is the highest-grossing movie of Schwarzenegger’s career
to date.
These first
two Terminator films were written and
directed by James
Cameron, who has had quite a career in the film industry, to say the least.
After the success of The Terminator,
he helped Sylvester Stallone write the screenplay for Rambo:
First Blood Part II, then went on to write and direct the sci-fi hits Aliens
and The Abyss. He followed up T2 with True Lies, an action thriller starring Schwarzenegger and Jamie
Lee Curtis. Then in 1997 came Titanic,
the tale of doomed romance aboard the doomed ship starring Leonard
DiCaprio and Kate
Winslet. That film won 14 Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best
Director, and it held the record for highest-grossing film of all time until
2010, when it was overtaken by Avatar—another
Cameron film.
While
Cameron may have turned his attention to these other acclaimed projects after T2, the franchise did not wither in his absence.
In 2003, Terminator
3: Rise of the Machines showed how Skynet, the artificial intelligence
ruling the machines, managed to rise to power despite the events of the first
two movies. Then the series came to the small screen with The
Sarah Connor Chronicles, a show that ran for two seasons with Lena
Headey starring as Sarah Connor as she protects and trains her son John for
his role in the future. Terminator
Salvation brought the franchise back into theatres, showing the
struggles of John Connor ( Christian
Bale) as the leader of the human resistance. Then in 2015, Terminator
Genisys brought Emilia
Clarke into the series as Sarah Connor in a past that has been fractured by
time travel.
Genisys was planned to be the new
direction for the franchise until James Cameron returned to the fold. He
provided the story for Dark Fate,
which reunites Schwarzenegger’s Terminator and Linda
Hamilton’s Sarah Connor in a movie that serves as a direct sequel to T2. The films and TV show produced in
the interim are now considered to be part of an alternate timeline. At present,
future films are planned to follow on from Dark
Fate.
James
Cameron has made some of the most groundbreaking and popular cinema of all
time. Keep his movies on your shelves using the links above, or SmartBrowse on
our website for more. Also, make sure your comics-loving patrons know there is
plenty of Terminator content for them to enjoy on hoopla digital as well!
Written by Jon Williams
Batman is
one of the oldest and most beloved superheroes, having now been around for 80
years. Now, though, his most famous nemesis is stepping into the spotlight. Joker launches into theatres this
weekend with plenty of buzz, looking to thrill audiences and break box office
records. Here is a look at how the character has evolved throughout its various
iterations over the years.
The Joker is
nearly as old as the Caped Crusader himself. He made his first appearance in
the premiere issue of Batman early in
1940, and the two have been fighting ever since. The original origin story
holds that he fell into a vat of chemical waste, altering his appearance and
driving him insane. This has changed often, due ostensibly to the mercurial
nature of the character. In the comics he has been by turns a vicious murderer
and a mischievous prankster. Patrons interested in these exploits will find a
wide range of classic and contemporary comics from DC on hoopla
digital.
Being aimed
more or less at kids, those iterations of the Joker were generally lighthearted
in nature. Things began taking a darker turn with Tim Burton’s 1989 take on Batman,
which saw Jack
Nicholson portray the Joker as a twisted gangster intent on taking out the
population of Gotham City. Mark
Hamill provided what many consider the definitive voice of the animated
Joker beginning in 1992 with Batman:
The Animated Series and continuing for years through several animated
projects and video games, including the movies Mask
of the Phantasm (1993) and Return
of the Joker (2000), and even up through recent outings like The
Killing Joke.
After
Nicholson’s incredible performance and with Hamill holding down the fort on the
animated side, the Joker wasn’t seen again in live-action form until 2008. In The
Dark Knight, the middle film of Christopher Nolan’s acclaimed Batman
trilogy, Heath
Ledger made it worth the wait with a powerhouse performance that earned him
an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. Unfortunately, it was a posthumous
award, as the actor tragically passed away shortly before the film’s release.
Since then,
however, focus has returned to the Joker, with a variety of big names playing
him. He was portrayed by Jared
Leto in 2016’s Suicide
Squad along a team of super villains, with Harley Quinn and Deadshot
among them. This movie has a sequel in development as well as several planned
spinoffs, so fans will be seeing this version of the Joker again. In 2017’s
animated Lego
Batman Movie, he was voiced by comic actor Zach
Galifianakis. And now, in Joker,
he’s played by Joaquin Phoenix in an unhinged performance that is already
drawing raves.
Batman vs.
the Joker is a rivalry that has stood the test of time. Visit our website for
plenty of Batman media across all our formats, and point your patrons toward hoopla
for comics and more they can enjoy immediately on all their devices.
Written by Jon Williams
The music
world is in mourning this week after the recent passing of two popular figures:
singer-songwriter Eddie Money and multitalented musician Ric Ocasek, best known
as a member of the band the Cars.
Edward
Mahoney took the stage name Eddie Money in 1968 when he moved from New York to
California to pursue a career in music following a short stint as a trainee
with the NYPD. Performing in clubs around San Francisco allowed him to steadily
grow a fanbase and eventually secure a recording contract. He started with a
bang; his self-titled debut album, released in 1977, contained “Baby Hold On”
and “Two Tickets to Paradise,” two big hits that are still in frequent rotation
on classic rock stations. After a second album, Life for the Taking, in 1979, he hit his stride in the 1980s, releasing
five albums that spawned hits like “Think I’m in Love,” “Take Me Home Tonight,”
“I Wanna Go Back,” and “Walk on Water.” His album production dipped after that,
with just three released in the 1990s, followed by Wanna Go Back, an album covering hits from the 1960s, in 2007. A
new album release was planned for July of this year, but was put on hold due to
Money’s health issues.
Unfortunately,
most of Money’s individual albums are currently out of print on CD, with the
exceptions of Playing
for Keeps (1980) and Where’s
the Party? (1983). However, SmartBrowsing his name on our website will give
you a choice of two greatest hits compilations and a live album. In addition,
his 2007 covers album, Wanna Go Back, is
available for patrons to borrow from hoopla digital.
Like Money,
Ric Ocasek began his musical journey in the 1960s but saw his greatest success
in the 1970s and ‘80s. He was one of the founding members of the Cars, who
released their debut album in 1978. In their ten initial years together, they
would release six albums and such timeless hits as “Just What I Needed,” “My
Best Friend’s Girl,” “Shake It Up,” and “Drive.” After a 23-year breakup, the
band reunited for a final album, Move
Like This, in 2011, and they were inducted into the Rock
and Roll Hall of Fame in 2018. Ocasek also released seven albums as a solo
artist. He was also a noted musical producer, both for the Cars and his own
solo work in addition to bands like Weezer, No Doubt, and Bad Religion, among
others.
Of the Cars’
albums, only Panorama
(1980) and Heartbeat
City (1984) are currently available on CD, but a SmartBrowse will show
a number of compilations and soundtracks their music appears on. Luckily, all of their albums (and
more) are available on hoopla digital for patrons to explore and enjoy, as are
four of Ocasek’s solo
albums.
Written by Jon Williams
Last week,
the annual event that is Comic-Con International took place in San Diego,
California. The four-day extravaganza allows fans, celebrities, and creators to
come together in a celebration that generally centres on science fiction and
fantasy but branches out to encompass all aspects of pop culture. As happens
each year, there was plenty of news and buzz to come out of the many panels and
presentations that made up this year’s convention.
Marvel is
the biggest name in movies right now, and coming off the success of the blockbusters
Avengers:
Endgame and Spider-Man:
Far from Home, there wasn’t much of a blueprint for where the franchise
would go for “Phase Four” of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. That is no longer
the case, as Marvel used Comic-Con as a platform to announce its slate for 2020
– 2021. In theatres, first up is the previously announced Black Widow, starring Scarlett
Johansson along with David
Harbour and Rachel
Weisz. Then fans can look forward to The
Eternals, a superhero ensemble that will include stars such as Angelina
Jolie, Salma
Hayek, and Richard
Madden, in 2020. The following year will kick off with Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, featuring a martial arts
hero that has been a part of Marvel Comics since 1973 but has not yet made it
onto the screen. Then comes Doctor
Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, with Benedict
Cumberbatch reprising his role from the 2017
film in what is being teased as Marvel’s first horror movie. Finally, there
will be Thor: Love and Thunder,
directed by Ragnarok’s Taika
Waititi and with Natalie
Portman returning to the franchise to become the goddess of thunder. And for
television, there’s even more Marvel news. Familiar Avengers characters will come to the small screen in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier ( Anthony
Mackie and Sebastian
Stan), WandaVision ( Elizabeth
Olsen and Paul
Bettany), Loki ( Tom
Hiddleston), and Hawkeye ( Jeremy
Renner), while What If…? will be
an animated series that featuring Jeffrey
Wright and a number of familiar voices as it explores alternate realities.
Marvel wasn’t
the only beloved franchise to make waves at Comic-Con. Patrick
Stewart’s return as the beloved character Jean-Luc Picard from Star
Trek: The Next Generation was announced last year, but a new trailer provided
the first extended look at the new series (simply titled Picard). The trailer contained some surprises, such as the return
of other fan-favourite characters Data (played by Brent
Spiner) and Seven of Nine ( Jeri
Ryan), while the panel revealed that Jonathan
Frakes and Marina
Sirtis would also be appearing in the show in their familiar roles from The Next Generation. While that was the
biggest news, the panel also covered the upcoming third season of the acclaimed
Star
Trek: Discovery, as well as the upcoming series Lower Decks. Expected to premiere in 2020, the show will focus on
lower-ranking officers on a non-vital starship, and will be the first Star Trek in animated form since The Animated Series furthered the
adventures of the original crew from 1973 – 1975.
Horror had
quite a presence at this year’s SDCC. The biggest release was probably the new
trailer for It: Chapter 2, which
comes to theatres on September 6. It’s the sequel to the 2017
blockbuster that became the highest-grossing horror movie of all time, and it
picks up (more or less) 27 years after the first film left off. Both movies are
based on the Stephen
King novel of the same name, which is frequently cited as one of his best.
Staying in the King family, it was announced that the show NOS4A2 (based on a
novel by Joe Hill, King’s son) had been renewed for a second season. Hill
also discussed the upcoming shows Locke
& Key, adapted from a series
of comics he created with artist Gabriel Rodriguez, and Creepshow,
which is based on the 1982 movie written by King and directed by George
Romero. That show will be produced by Greg Nicotero, who is most famous for
The
Walking Dead, which offered plenty of details for the original show and
the spinoff Fear
the Walking Dead, as well as a new show yet to come. There was also an
interactive exhibit promoting the new season of American
Horror Story and a trailer for Guillermo
del Toro’s adaptation of Scary
Stories to Tell in the Dark.
And still
there’s more. Tom Cruise showed up to surprise the crowd with a trailer for Top Gun: Maverick, the long-awaited
sequel to the high-flying
1986 hit. There was also a trailer for Cats,
the upcoming movie version of the Andrew
Lloyd Webster musical that will star Taylor
Swift, Idris
Elba, and Judi
Dench, to name just a few. There was also a look at Terminator: Dark Fate, which will welcome James
Cameron and Edward
Furlong back to the franchise and pick up following Terminator
2, with the intervening installments being considered part of a
different timeline. For TV, there was plenty of info on new shows The
Dark Crystal, His
Dark Materials, and Snowpiercer,
as well as new seasons of Westworld,
The
Expanse, Rick
and Morty, Preacher,
and more.
Those are
just the highlights of the shows, movies, and more that presented at this year’s
Comic-Con International in San Diego, and you can bet your patrons will be
looking for all of these titles and their related media. Let us know what you’re
looking forward to, and stay tuned to Midwest Tape for news on these and other
exciting releases as they approach.
Written by Jon Williams
There are
certain media franchises that become so popular that they transcend just the
world of entertainment and become cultural touchstones. For three such
franchises, 2019 is they year in which they will come to an end—or at least
wind down their current iterations. Let’s take a look at them.
On April 26,
Avengers:
Endgame was released into theatres in North America. It debuted with a
bang, taking in the largest opening-weekend box office gross of all time with
more than $350 million. It has steadily added to that total and now stands as
the second on the list of highest-grossing films of all time. While it seems
unlikely to take over the top spot, it’s still in theatres and will definitely
add to its total, currently over $825 million. Endgame is the culmination of 22 films in the Marvel Cinematic
Universe that started with Iron
Man in 2008. While this movie may have brought the story of the
Avengers to a close, the same certainly can’t be said for the MCU as a whole.
On the immediate horizon is Spider-Man:
Far from Home, the sequel to 2017’s Homecoming,
with Tom Holland starring as the titular webslinger. This will mark the formal
end to “Phase Three” of the MCU, but future plans include a Black Widow movie
featuring Scarlett Johansson’s character, a Black
Panther sequel, a third Guardians
of the Galaxy installment, and plenty more on screens both big and
small. There is definitely plenty to look forward to from Marvel in the future,
although whether it continues to work together toward one cohesive story
remains to be seen.
The eighth
and final season of Game
of Thrones premiered before that, on April 14, and came to its
conclusion on May 19. Before the season began, we
examined the likelihood of broken ratings records, particularly for the
series finale. Those predictions came true, as the season’s sixth episode, the
show’s last, drew more than 19.3 million viewers, making it the most-watched
series finale in history for a show on cable. While the final season drew mixed
reviews from fans and critics, viewership numbers remained strong throughout,
and hunger for related content has kept author George R.R. Martin’s Fire
& Blood, a tale that begins centuries before the events of the
show, on the bestseller list since its publication last November. With the show
in the rearview mirror, fans will have to be content with Fire & Blood to hold them over for now, but there are more
stories to come. For one thing, Martin still has two books left in his Song
of Ice & Fire, the novel series that inspired the show. It has been
eight years since the last, A
Dance with Dragons, was published, and while no date has yet been
announced for the arrival of the next, The
Winds of Winter, recent updates from Martin have fans optimistic that it
will be finished in the not-too-distant future. HBO also has plans for a number
of companion shows, with at least one currently going forward with Naomi Watts
set to star.
Then, later
this year, the Star Wars sequel
trilogy will come to a close when Episode
IX: The Rise of Skywalker comes out on December 20. Of course, this echoes
1983, when Return of the Jedi
concluded the original
trilogy, and 2005, when Revenge of
the Sith did the same for the prequel
trilogy; however, it’s actually a culmination of all three, as The Rise of Skywalker will drop the
curtain on the saga of Anakin Skywalker and his offspring. The current trilogy
began in 2015 with The
Force Awakens, the one film that Avengers:
Endgame trails on the all-time box office list, and continued with The
Last Jedi in 2017. After this film there will be a short hiatus for Star Wars on the big screen, but it
definitely will be back—a new film series, set in a different era from the
Skywalker films, is set to begin in December 2022 with Game of Thrones
showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss at the helm. In the meantime, Pedro
Pascal will star in the upcoming TV show The
Mandalorian, to premiere November 12 of this year, and Diego Luna will
reprise his role from the standalone blockbuster Rogue
One in another, as-yet-unnamed TV series.
So while
these beloved franchises may be coming to a close, each in its own way, fans can
take comfort in the fact that there are still plenty of stories to come in the
respective universes. And patrons will always be eager to revisit these favourites
or immerse themselves for the first time. Use the links above to put these
great movies and TV shows on your shelves, and SmartBrowse on our website for a
plethora of related content.
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