it looks like Barbie is set to get her superhero on again with some rumblings that several characters in the X-Men and Star Wars franchises are to be given the Barbie treatment.
Spain based, family owned toy and pop culture shop “Toys Damaso SL” have listed pre-orders for six brand new dolls that include some surprising additions to the Barbie catalog.
Three characters from X-Men’s upcoming Dark Phoenix have been listed for pre-order – Jean Grey, Storm and Mystique along with three characters from Star Wars – Princess Leia, Darth Vader and strangely enough R2-D2.
It’s a surprising announcement considering FOX’s staunch stance on any kind of toy/action figure merchandise for it’s X-movies.
Each pre-order states the following:
WE DO NOT HAVE PHOTOS. WE DO NOT KNOW THE DATE OF RECEPTION, IT MAY TAKE MONTHS TO RECEIVE
The Star Wars collection are currently listing for $220 AUD while the X-Men collection for $103 AUD
Currently, there is no official word from Mattel on these releases and Toys Damaso SL is the only site online with this information.
While this may be the first time Barbie has gotten her pristine plastic hands on these characters, it’s not the first time they have been immortalized in plastic. Princess Leia and Darth Vader have been produced in doll form numerous times over the years through Hasbro. Storm, back in the late 90’s got the 12″ doll treatment thanks to ToyBiz while Tonner doll company released two version’s of it’s 16″ Jean Grey/Phoenix doll. Mystique is the only character never to have been released in any kind of doll format before.
As stated, no official word as yet on release date, availability worldwide or price point.
She created headlines in the 90’s then left the hugely popular series only to return for its first reboot in 2008 and then faced a massive and brave battle against breast cancer but where was Shannen Doherty when news dropped the original Peach Pitt Pals were once again reuniting?
Her name, along with teen heartthrob, the late Luke Perry were major omissions the news with fans wondering was the blood really that bad between Doherty and the rest of the gang? But no need to worry as Doherty herself dropped the news that she is infact coming back the the iconic 90’s zipcode.
So yes!! Brenda Walsh, 90201’s original bad girl is back!!
Here’s the official synopsis of the reboot is as follows:
Having gone their separate ways since the original series ended 19 years ago, Shannen, Jason, Jennie, Ian, Gabrielle, Brian and Tori reunite when one of them suggests it’s time to get a ‘Beverly Hills, 90210’ reboot up and running. But getting it going may make for an even more delicious soap than the reboot itself. What will happen when first loves, old romances, friends and frenemies come back together, as this iconic cast – whom the whole world watched grow up together – attempts to continue from where they left off?
No word as yet if the show will acknowledge the existence of the 2008 reboot and as it stood, Perry had not signed on for any involvement with the show prior to his death.
The 90210 reboot is slated to air later this year on FOX in the USA
Schitt’s Creek (streaming on Netflix here in Australia and on ABC Comedy) has gradually become one of those word-of-mouth shows that has, rightfully so, over it’s current five season run, found itself holding that rare ‘iconic cult’ status among fans new and old with its quick wit script, stellar cast (including Eugene Levy, Catherine O’Hara, Dan Levy and Annie Murphy) strong character development and meme worthy moments that happen from literally every single episode. FYI, Schitt’s Creek has made my “best of” two years running in 2017 and 2018.
As we near towards the end of Season Five, co-creator and star Dan Levy announced that our beloved Rose family and residents of Schitt’s Creek will be back for a sixth season, but that sixth season will also the shows final one with Levy taking to his socials to make the announcement.
“We are very excited to announce that ‘Schitt’s Creek’ is coming back for a sixth season on CBC and Pop in 2020,” Levy posted. “We also wanted to take this opportunity to let you know that we have decided Season 6 will be our last. We are so grateful to have been given the time and creative freedom to tell this story in its totality, concluding with a final chapter that we had envisioned from the very beginning. It’s not lost on us what a rare privilege it is in this industry to get to decide when your show should take its final bow. We could never have dreamed that our fans would grow to love and care about these characters in the ways that you have.”
The sixth and final season will see the show continue for another fourteen episodes due to premiere in 2020 in Canada and the US while for local Aussie fans, season five is due to hit Netflix sometime after it’s initial run on US and Canadian screens finishes up while the first three seasons are currently available on free-to-air via ABC Comedy
Side note, if Schitt’s Creek does not end with Alexis saying “Eww David!” then we riot! It’s only acceptable way to send off this amazing show!
Project Runway is back for it’s seventeenth season and while the format is mostly the same, the absence of familiar faces brings about big changes in the design competition show that (mostly) bring a freshness to the long running series.
So what’s different? Former host Heidi Klum and mentor favorite Tim Gunn, two names synonymous with Project Runway, have jumped ship to start their own show on Amazon Prime Video. Hosting duties have now been passed over to model Karlie Kloss while mentorship is now with former Project Runway contestant Christian Siriano (who also takes a judges chair) who has built a rather reputable name within the industry since his stint on the show.
Two new judges are also joining the fold, journalist and Teen Vogue editor Elaine Welteroth along with fashion designer Brandon Maxwell. Thankfully, Nina Garcia has stuck around to keep a familiar face on the show though it feels like she keeps looking around hoping Heidi and Tim will pop out and surprise them all.
The work room has also been given a makeover with the familiar white room now replaced with a more industrial NYC loft feel.
Aside from that, Project Runway moves quickly into its rhythm, contestants jumping quickly into their first challenge, a trip to Mood, a tearful breakdown and designers shining while others fail to micro manage their time well enough to put a garment down the runway. The models, like more recent seasons, are of all shapes, colors and sizes and includes the shows first ever trans model Mimi who has a touching moment with her designer Kovid.
The new workroom and new faces help freshen up Project Runway but the first episode really does suffer from any lack of chemistry between the the judges. That spark between Heidi and Tim just isn’t there with Karlie and Christian, but then again, this is something that could develop over time.
Arena are fast tracking episodes from the USA with express screenings on Fridays at 1:35pm and then again at 8:30pm. Episode one (which has already aired) is available on repeats with episode two hitting our screens this coming Friday, March 22nd.
The magazine may be a slowly dwindling media format thanks to the internet and its ability to provide up-to-the-minute breaking news easily shared through various social media channels, but throwback to pre-world wide web, where prime time television shows like Friends and Melrose Place were bringing in 20 million viewers weekly and magazines were selling just as many copies of issues where exclusive interviews with A-listers would be accompanied by ‘that’ magazine cover photo.
Whether it be scandalous, beautiful or emotive, magazines in the 90’s provided some of the most iconic covers that still could go toe-to-toe with the likes of Kim K on Paper Magazine or Caitlin Jenner on Vanity Fair. Take a look below at some of the most iconic magazine covers from the 90’s.
Such uproar occurred from this photo of a 28 year old Demi Moore, naked and heavily pregnant on the cover of Vanity Fair’s August 1991 issue that some supermarket’s pulled it from shelves while others hid it, treating it like an issue of Playboy. The pose however would be later recreated by such stars as Natalie Portman, Britney Spears and Serena Williams
It was a mere twelves months later when Demi Moore returned to create another iconic cover for Vanity Fair, once again shot by Annie Leibovitz, once again naked, this time however, covered in a painted on three piece suit.
Magazine: Vanity Fair | Date: August 1993 Issue | Cover Star: K.D Lang and Cindy Crawford.
Vanity Fair cover for August shows model Cindy Crawford giving a shave to singer K.D. Lang. (Photo by PA Images via Getty Images)
Cindy Crawford clad in a tight black swimsuit shaving a suited up K.D Lang who is happily nuzzled into the cleavage of the supermodel. In 1993, the controversy writes itself with the two women, photographed by Herb Ritz, causing a stir with the gender bending image of Lang who had recently come out as a Lesbian.
Magazine: Rolling Stone | Date: May 19th 1994 Issue | Cover Star: Laura Leighton, Heather Locklear and Josie Bissett
The Melrose Place ‘bod squad’ featuring Laura Leighton, Josie Bissett and Heather Locklear, all clad in night-times whites, tousled hair and alluring stares. The cover was hot but caused a stir when it was revealed the other two stars Daphne Zuniga and Courtney Thorne-Smith were hidden under a flap. This shoot and resulting cover was brought up in the Unofficial Melrose Place Story created by Lifetime that mentioned Leighton contacting her agent with her concern about her co-stars not making the cover.
Magazine: Rolling Stone | Date: May 16th 1996 Issue | Cover Star: David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson
HOT. HOT. HOT. No other words to describe this Rolling Stone magazine cover that sent a million X-Files nerds into boner frenzy. A topless Gillian Anderson offering some side-boob, draped over a topless David Duchovny, arms wrapped tightly around each other. The image played heavily on the public’s want of their on-screen alter ego’s FBI Agents Mulder and Scully to hook up.
Magazine: Rolling Stone | Date: April 15th 1999 Issue | Cover Star: Britney Spears
Coming off the back of her number one hit “Hit Me Baby One More Time”, 17 year old Spears, wound up on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine wearing not much at all. The photos, shot by David LaChapelle caused outrage from the parents of her tween fans while In 2008, the singer’s mother, Lynne, explained how her daughter ended up posing for the controversial photos. “We were in shock at what was going on, and we were in awe. We didn’t have any choice in the pictures. We had no one that could tell us what we were supposed to be doing.”
Magazine: TIME| Date: April 14th 1997 Issue | Cover Star: Ellen Degeneres
42 million people in the USA alone watched Ellen’s alter-ego Ellen Morgan, come out as a lesbian. It was unheard of and the moment became an iconic one in television history. TIME’s magazine cover featuring Degeneres, herself, coming out as a lesbian proved too much for America in 97′ which eventually saw Ellen lose her show and become an unwanted talent in Hollywood.
Magazines were feeding into the public frenzy that was the untimely death of Princess Diana in 1997. Covers showing grainy paparazzi snaps of the crash scene or of Diana pre death were everywhere. People’s tribute issue featured a touching black and white photo of the peoples princess, smiling brightly, allowing us to remember the woman so loved by the public. The issue became the magazine’s highest selling issue (3.1 million) until the 2001 9/11 attacks.
For anyone who was pop-culture loving teenager in the 90’s, the name George Lange might not sound that familiar, but his work as a photographer should be more than burned into your teen psyche as Lange’s photographs graced not only the covers of major magazines world wide but also many a teenage bedroom wall (certainly mine) with his iconic photos with the casts of Seinfeld, Melrose Place, Dawson’s Creek, The X-Files and Buffy the Vampire Slayer – just to name a few.
Those iconic photos featured the cast of Friends all dressed in black and white, perching precariously in white shadow boxes on a red backdrop, the cast of Seinfeld, dressed in their character garb, posing under an umbrella with pigeons, X-Files star Gillian Anderson perched high on co-star David Duchovny’s shoulders and Merlose’s Marcia Cross and Thomas Calabro playing in copious amounts of feathers while Laura Leighton shot out of a television dressed in a slinky silver mini.
While these photos iconic and a flashback to the heights of prime time television that was the mid 90’s, these images slowly faded into fond memories perhaps found years later on a dusty Entertainment Weekly cover found in the attic and as Lange even notes on one of his Instagram posts, they become buried under the weight of history.
For 2019, Lange though, is taking a new positive approach to his archives with a new collection of his classic prints and embracing the work that he was once afraid to look into for fear of being unable to move forward. The collection, titled ‘First Run ReRuns’ offers a look at the never before printed images from some of Lange’s most memorable work. The photos that didn’t make the cover or included in the photo spread.
‘First Run ReRuns’ opens on March 7th at The Dairy for the Arts in Boulder, Los Angeles and runs until April 14th. For those wanting to know more about the images, sessions and Lange’s process can attend an evening with George Lange on March 20th where you can check out scenes from actual photo shoots, hear from those who admire his work and get an inside look at his dynamic process.
For most people, living a life of lies and deceit isn’t a lasting one but for John Meehan, he turns it into a house on the waterfront, access to copious amounts of money and a lifestyle he could only have ever dreamed of.
Taking shockingly brutal and unbelievably incredible tales of true crime and turning them into binge-worthy documentaries really is the flavor of the moment. From Making a Murderer to The Keepers, The Staircase and Evil Genius there seems to be a story for everything. And it’s only been recently where those stories have been glossed over for scripted television and and sometimes it’s good (The People vs OJ Simpson) and sometimes it’s not so good (The Assassination of Gianni Versace – unpopular opinion I know)
The next ‘glossed over for TV’ story is Netflix’s Dirty John (via a full season run on America’s Bravo channel) based off the hugely popular L.A Times Podcast of the same name that follows well-off but unlucky in love interior designer Debra Newell (played by Connie Britton and her fabulous hair) who, with four failed marriages to her name, decides to get back on the online dating train and after a slew of disastrous dates, John Meehan (Eric Bana) with his cargo shorts, sweet demeanor and good looks arrive at the perfect moment in her dwindling love life to sweep her off her feet.
Though red flags begin to appear by the end of the first date, that doesn’t stop Deb and we watch as she dives very quickly into a new relationship with the mysterious John and it’s not long before the people in her life, including her children, start to realize he may not be the perfect man he is making himself out to be resulting in a devastating attack that threatens to destroy the lives of everyone Deb loves.
Netflix, in either a cruel joke (or delight for those who hate the day) are dropping the entire eight episodes of Dirty John for us to binge on Valentine’s Day aka February 14th. Check out the trailer below.
The next installment of the long running (and ever popular) Mortal Kombat series saw a new game play trailer released today for the upcoming Mortal Kombat 11 and it is gorier and more brutal than ever before.
The blood soaked trailer offers glimpses of returning characters such as Sonya Blade (voiced by Ronda Rousey and even has some of Rousey’s signature moves including a rolling armbar with soaked in Motal Kombat gore ), Baraka, Sub-Zero, Raiden and Scorpion along with MK9 DLC fighter Skarlet, as well as new entrant to the series, a character named Geras.
Character Customization returns to the series with players able to collect numerous alternate skins for their characters but no word yet on the ability to create custom characters and play them in the game.
Check out the trailer below.
Mortal Kombat fans won’t have too long to wait to get their hands on this game as MK11 drops April 23rd on all platforms while those who have pre-ordered will get beta access in March.
Another year, another mixed bag of television that saw everything from The Walking Dead and it’s spin-off Fear The Walking Dead kill off some of their main characters, a Bachelor walk away without choosing anyone to love, cooking show My Kitchen Rules run for almost half of the year, A former Olympian win Survivor, the return of classics Roseanne (now re-branded as The Conner‘s) and Murphy Brown in present day reboots, not a single episode of Game of Thrones air on our screens, and a handmaiden give birth solo in the snow.
Check out my list of the shows that I could not get enough of in 2018.
TELEVISION 2018
Fear The Walking Dead – FOXTEL
Time jump! Yay! Nick (Frank Dillane) and Madison (Kim Dickens) killed off! Boo! New survivors! Yay! The June (Jenna Elfman) and John Dorrie (Garret Dillahunt) budding romance! Yay! Morgan! Boo! A lot of ups and downs this year for Fear but this fourth season proved the be the one of the shows best to date.
American Horror Story: Apocalypse – FOXTEL
They literally shoved almost every past AHS season into this single season and yeah, the time jumping between pre and post apocalypse made things hard to follow but getting our witches back, including swamp witch Misty Day (Lily Rabe) AND Jessica Lange returning as Constance Langdon…ahh, it was a good season. Honorable mention goes to the haircuts Evan Peters (as Jeff Pfister) and Billy Eichner (as Mutt Nutter) sported.
Playing for Keeps – Network Ten
So yeah, the ratings for Network 10’s new AFL drama Playing for Keeps were a bit shit but that said, this little Aussie Footballers Wives-esque show was scandalously steamy enough to keep me coming back week after week. A dead football player, cheating, lies, scandals, paparazzi’s and closeted AFL player were just some of the juicy story-lines for Playing’s premiere season.
Sharp Objects – FOXTEL
There’s slow paced television and then there’s HBO’s dark and dreary Sharp Objects that REALLY pushed the limits of just how minimalist with information each episode could be as it propelled itself forward to its conclusion. Thankfully there was ridiculously strong performances from Amy Adams and Patricia Clarkson to make the whole thing work
The X-Files – Network Ten
It took me a while to make my way through all ten episodes of The X-Files‘ eleventh season, not because it was a hard watch, but because there has been just too much to watch this year! That said, season eleven provided some of the best stand alone episodes the show has seen for some time with episodes like Plus One, Rm9sbG93ZXJz and Familiar which showcased the literal best of The X-Files and the unusual and frankly…oddball cases they investigate.
Greys Anatomy – 7Flix
Seriously, season fifteen has been all about Levi Schmitt (Jake Borelli) and his journey of self discovery that is leading him to a sweet romance with ortho doc Nico Kim (Alex Landi). The whole thing, including Borelli is just too cute. Plus, Levi’s sun sword speech in the fall finale was like the one single moment this year in television that caused me to bawl like a baby. Uber feels.
Bodyguard – Netflix
‘Edge of your seat’ is the ONLY way to this fantastic terror-drama that follows police officer David Budd (Richard Madden) as he finds himself delving deeper and deeper into a widening web of political drama where bomb threats and assassination attempts become daily fare. You’ll be hooked within the first ten minutes.
Big Mouth – Netflix
Season one was so wonderfully vulgar and downright crude it wasn’t possible for this very adult animated comedy to go any further, then season two dropped. It was just as brash and ridiculous and even more shockingly funny.
Schitt’s Creek – Netlix
It’s virtually impossible to pick one single standout thing from this years season of the hilariously funny creation from stars Eugene and Dan Levy. From Patrick (Noah Reid) serenading David (Dan Levy) with an acoustic version of Simply the Best to Alexis (Annie Francis) reuniting with former bae Ted (Dustin Mulligan) to the weekly hi-jinks Moira (Catherine O’Hara), Johnny (Eugene Levy) and Stevie (Emily Hampshire) would get get into there is always something to laugh at, feel for and literally love.
Killing Eve – SBS
A beautiful, soulless assassin who travels the globe while being hunted down by Sandra Oh?! Count me in! Killing Eve‘s classic cat and mouse tale re-imagined with female leads offered up powerhouse performances from both Sandra Oh as MI5 security agent Eve Polastri and Jodie Comer as restless assassin Villanelle. While Eve slowed a bit in the middle episodes of the season, the tension between Eve and Villanelle is just too good to look past.
Survivor : Champions Vs Contenders (Network Ten) and David Vs Goliath 9GO!
Our very own version of Survivor pitted every day Aussies against a bunch of *mostly* well known Australians which created another great season of the show that was never short of shocks. Survivor Benji however takes the cake for creating two of the most gasp worthy moments – his blindside of Sharn, convincing her to play her idol for herself, resulting in big player Matt Dyson’s exit and, well I only need to say one word – NACHOS.
Meanwhile American Survivor (currently airing as of writing) has brought forth some unlikely big players such as socially awkward robotics scientist Christian and Kentucky based public defender Nick though it was the tribal council that involved publishing CEO Natalie Cole’s exit that has provided one of the most iconic low-key exists in recent Survivor history. “Natalie….can I have your jacket?”
Black Mirror: Netflix
Technically, Black Mirror’s fourth season dropped in 2017 but like two days prior to the new year so i’m placing it in this 2018 list. And once again, the anthology series put forth a selection of mind bending and truly intriguing episodes including the very very very excellent USS Callister, the highly terrifying Metalhead and this season’s answer to the ultimate episode Black Mirror episode San Junipero – Hang The DJ
Honorable Mentions:
The Handmaids Tale (SBS), Insatiable (Netflix), How to Get Away with Murder (7Flix), 911 (Channel 7), Wentworth (Foxtel)
Lecy Goranson and Sara Gilbert in The Connors. (c)ABC
Can Roseanne survive without Roseanne? That’s the one big question on everyone’s tongues when it comes to the Roseanne rehash titled The Conners. When Roseanne returned to screens earlier this year, it did so with a major political vengeance and brought in millions of viewers. That version of the show retained its original biting humor and comedic look at working class living and offered a touching nod to the original.
Then Roseanne went on a ambien induced twitter tirade that saw her make offence and racist comments about former Obama administration adviser Valerie Jarrett and suddenly ABC cancelled the show and cut all ties with its namesake thus leaving an entire staff of cast and crew suddenly out of a job.
The news also meant that here in Australia, Channel Ten pulled any unaired episodes off its schedule.
So as it goes, that didn’t last very long and show made a quick return to our screens, now titled ‘The Conners’ and did so without Roseanne allowing instead the series to land safely on the shoulders of John Goodman, Laurie Metcalf and Sara Gilbert. Yes, Roseanne is gone and without adding spoilers, how she goes and the ripples it causes, continue throughout the first four episodes. But don’t assume that’s the new tone of the show. Roseanne’s absence causes the first episode to go to some dark places as Dan comes to terms with just what happened, how it happened and who was responsible but the overall tone remains the same blue collar family comedy, just with less political/pro trump propaganda that littered Roseanne’s reboot season.
As noted, Goodman, Metcalf and Gilbert come front and centre to take charge while Lecy Goranson (Becky) continues to improve with each and every episode. It’s just a shame that Michael Fishman’s DJ Connor is kind of tossed to the side like an unwanted salad that came with your parma. As a staple from the original series, he kind of had to be there but aside from his war veteran wife and daughter, Fishman retains the least amount of scenes of the core cast per episode.
So long story short….The Conners works incredibly well without Roseanne. There is an absence though you’re not distracted by it. No beat was missed from Roseanne to The Conners and it’s a testament to the entire returning cast and crew who became unemployed off the back of one single cast member.
Premieres Thursday, 22 November From 7.30pm with a Double Episode on Network TEN
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