Pop Culture Safari!

DC Direct JLA Classified Action Figures

Click to order.

JLA Classified Action Figures--Aquaman

--Aquaman

--Flash

--Green Lantern

--Martian Manhunter

--Wonder Woman

DC Direct Alex Ross JLA action figures

Click to order.

JLA Alex Ross Action Figures

--Black Adam

--Hawkman

--Shazam

--Solomon Grundy

--Zatanna

--Bizarro

--Cheetah

--Sinestro

--Superman

--Flash

--Aquaman

--Batman

--Black Canary

--Black Manta

--Parasite

--Green Lantern

--Plastic Man

--Poison Ivy

--Joker

--Wonder Woman

DC Direct JLA Action Figures

Click to order.

JLA Action Figures

--Adam Strange

--Aquaman

--Green Lantern

--Wonder Woman

--Superman

--Flash

--Elongated Man

--Firestorm

--Gift Set

--Atom

Pop Artifact! Flintstones push puppets

Lost Season 2 DVD art, pre-order

"Lost: The Complete Second Season" is set for Oct. 5 release and is available for pre-order from Amazon now. No info yet on extras, but the DVD's subtitle indicates there'll be plenty.

Prisoner TV series set for revival

Recent "Doctor Who" actor Christopher Eccleston is set to appear as the mysterious Number 6 in remake of Patrick McGoohan's surreal "The Prisoner" TV series, The London Times reports.

The new version, made by Granada for Sky One, will incorporate the paranoia, conspiracy theories and hi-tech action sequences of modern-day spy dramas 24 and Spooks.

...However, the Welsh tourist “village” of Portmeirion, where the original ATV show was filmed, will be replaced by a more exotic foreign location, probably outraging fans of the original.

Indeed.

Original Star Wars films set for DVD release

The original cuts of the first three "Star Wars" movies are set for release on Sept. 15. Director George Lucas originally said the digitally tweaked versions that came out in the late 90s would be the only versions available on DVD but... he wised up!

Here are details direct from Lucasfilm:

In response to overwhelming demand, Lucasfilm Ltd. and Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment will release attractively priced individual two-disc releases of Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. Each release includes the 2004 digitally remastered version of the movie and, as bonus material, the theatrical edition of the film. That means you'll be able to enjoy Star Wars as it first appeared in 1977, Empire in 1980, and Jedi in 1983.

This release will only be available for a limited time: from September 12th to December 31st. International release will follow on or about the same day. Each original theatrical version will feature Dolby 2.0 Surround sound, close-captioning, and subtitles in English, French and Spanish for their U.S. release. International sound and subtitling vary by territory.

"Over the years, a truly countless number of fans have told us that they would love to see and own the original version that they remember experiencing in theaters," said Jim Ward, President of LucasArts and Senior Vice President of Lucasfilm Ltd. "We returned to the Lucasfilm Archives to search exhaustively for source material that could be presented on DVD. This is something that we're very excited to be able to give to fans in response to their continuing enthusiasm for Star Wars. Topping it off with a new interactive adventure makes September 12 a red-letter day for Star Wars fans."

That's also the day fans will be able to experience the LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy video game, the action-packed sequel -- filled with tongue-in-cheek humor -- to one of the best selling video games of 2005. To see the trailer to the new game from LucasArts and TT Gam

Pop Culture Roundup May 5, 2006

Melanie McFarland, TV critic from the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, does a post-mortem on "Justice League Unlimited," the Cartoon Network series now winding up it's final season.

-----------------------

Dial B for Blog stomps DC's "Infinite Crisis" series into the ground while doing a merry little jig.

Don't forget Free Comic Book Day

It's tomorrow. Visit yer local shop, pick up some freebies and, for God's sake, buy something too. More info.

Lost Clues Season 2, episode 20: "Two for the Road"

Delayed a day due to moving this site/blog. Sorry!

Offical recap from ABC:

Two For The Road
Air Date: 05/03/2006
Jack and Kate stumble across an unconscious Michael deep in the jungle. And while Jack is primed and ready for a confrontation with the Others, it is Kate who forces him to deal with the task at hand: Michael needs medical attention and he needs it back at the Hatch.

Speaking of the Hatch, Ana Lucia receives a nasty surprise when she goes into the armory to deliver a bowl of food to a dejected Henry. Only Locke's last-minute intervention is enough to save her life. And while Locke is desperate for answers to his questions, he knows that time with Henry is running out fast.

In FLASHBACK, we see Ana Lucia confronted by her mother -- who's also her captain -- upon returning to the station after a shift. It seems a body has been found in a parking lot. And it just happens to be the same guy who confessed to shooting Ana Lucia. But when Captain Cortez tries to offer her daughter her help, Ana Lucia quits the force and runs away… all the way to Australia.

Turns out she met a guy at the airport; a guy who was running away from his own problems and the two of them forged a dysfunctional partnership. She agreed to go to Australia to "protect him" and he agreed not to ask too many questions. Hard to believe it didn't last long…

Michael is being cared for in the Hatch. He's regained consciousness and the information he presents is startling. He knows where Walt is. And the Others have been lying about their strength. As soon as he is strong enough, Michael is going to return to their camp in force. And he is going to take his son back. The entire camp is activated, caught somewhere between hopeful and terrified at what this all means.

In light of her recent troubles, Ana Lucia is desperate to get her hands on a gun. And when she barters with Sawyer we learn just how far she is willing to go to get what she wants.

Hurley attempts to move his relationship with Libby to the next step and asks her on an honest-to-goodness date. And we can't help feeling happy to see that, even here, good things can happen.

But it's just not that simple now, is it? And this wouldn't be LOST if things ended up happy and hopeful. So, as the episode draws to a close we are taught yet another lesson about the dark side of mankind..and what we are capable of doing when there appears to be no other choice.

Observations/speculation:

* Are Ana Lucia and Libby dead or wounded? (Answers to this question are readily available in the real world, I realize, but let's try to preserve a little suspense about the show).

* Was Michael brainwashed or forced by the Others into freeing Henry Gale? Perhaps the Others promised him he'd have Walt back, or threatened to kill Walt if he didn't do what they wanted.

* Why don't the Others just kill off all the crash survivors and have done with it? They certainly have the resources, it seems, to do whatever they want. In an earlier episode Zeke says the only reason the survivors are allowed to live on the Island is that the Others "let" them.

* Did Ana Lucia put together that fact she was working for Jack's dad? We may never know for sure.

* Jack's dad, Christian, chooses to call Ana "Sarah," the name of Jack's wife. Christian adopts the name "Tom," the same as Kate's childhood boyfriend

* The woman Christian went to visit--the mother of his estranged child--looks a heckuva lot like she could be Claire's mom? Are Jack and Claire half-siblings?

* Why did Christian believe he'd be facing danger in Australia and feel he needed to hire Ana as a bodyguard?

* Are we to believe Michael's story about the Others' camp and hatch? Will he lead the crash survivors into a trap? Or will they get wise to him?

* What is the Others' definition of a "good" person? They supposedly snatched all the good ones from Ana Lucia's party and Henry (whether we can believe him or not) told Locke that Locke is a good one, too, and the Others want him.

Other stuff:

* A thread here contains many spoily details from the "Lost" tie-in novel "Bad Twin," which is available as a paperback. On the show, Sawyer is seen reading a manuscript of the book, which was supposedly written by a Oceanic 815 passenger who didn't survive the crash. There's a video "interview" with said passenter/author Gary Troup here.

* An ad for the Hanso Foundation aired during the episode, with phone number to call: 1-877-hansorg. The Hanso Foundation Website, operated by ABC, also has been significantly updated with all sorts of "clues." It's all part of the multi-media Lost Experience promotion/game now underway. There are good roundups of game clues here and here.

Listen to the most recent offical "Lost" podcast.

See screen captures from the latest episode and promo shots for the next one.

Watch a preview for the next new show.

See the Best Lost Sites on the Web.