Weird Mind News Room Episode 82: Sept 16th - 22nd
*making a business needs some music*
Hello you beautiful people to the 82nd weekly edition of my everything media discussion of Weird Mind News Room, where of course every week I will be delving into talking about all of the New Releases from the Week, All of the trailers and all of the variety of news stories from the week. So without too much of a delay with a bit of introductions, let us delve into this weeks topics of all things media
Walking the road of New releases
TV Shows
Agatha All Along
We start off the new releases of the week with one of the most known big 2 releases in media and television where the spooky season is really starting to make its presence known and its bringing the return of a familiar face after a long time for a bit of Witchcraft, as the witch of Westview is back with her own spin off series of Agatha All Along. This new spin off and sequel to Wandavision will follow Agatha Harkness who has escaped from the spell imposed on her by Wanda and discovered she has lost her own powers. In order to restore her back to her former self, she must gather a rag tag group of other sorcerers to form their own unique coven and take a journey along the dangerous path of the Witches road in order for them to obtain great powers while evading dangerous adversaries and also dealing with each other in the process. Reception to the series so far has garnered a fairly decent to good reception with praise to the unique more darker tone, the concept of the plot and the performances of the leads (particularly with Kathryn Hahn, Aubrey Plaza and Joe Locke) with some critiques on some slow starts and bits of dialogue (and some catholic conservative group against the themes of LGBTQ+ but its not that massive of an issue). Now myself I have watched the first 2 and I enjoyed them, they are not perfect and are a little slow in points and a little confusing but I guess its all in the mystery and return of the theorizing every week, but if you watch this new spooky tale then you can catch the first 2 episodes now on Disney+.
The Penguin
The 2nd of the big new releases is bring us back to a world of corruption, power imbalance and a city protected by a dark knight where a certain figure working for the payload in the past is rising the ranks to become the true power control to the city as Matt Reeves has returned to his world of The Batman with his new limited series of The Penguin. The series is set a week after the events of The Batman and will follow Os Cobb, a gangster who was a high ranking member of the crime syndicate in Gotham who is looking to take the control into his own hands while dealing with the remanant of the Falcone family and all other crime syndicates looking to clips this birds wings by any means necessary. Reception to the series has been very highly praised with praise to the performances, story and building on the world first crafted from The Batman film and has been labelled as this generations Sopranos (which is a big deal) and if you are up for a new thriller story of high quality television, then you catch this new series now on HBO in the US and on Sky Atlantic or Now tv in the UK.
Monsters: The Lyle and Eric Menendez story
The next of the tv shows for this week is taking a follow up as a one off concept about a well known or unknown serial killer and giving an elaborate tale of their crimes and what happened to them when they were caught, has now followed on with a new tale in this now anthology series with the next duo of killers with the new limited series of Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez story. This season of stories will focus on the titular brothers who back in 1989, murdered their parents in cold blood as the concept for the reason as to why is speculative or neglect and abuse from the parent or from the likes of possible way to inherit the massive fortune from the family for themselves and how they would be caught for their crimes. The reception to this new limited series has gotten a little better reception then Dahmer with praise to the cast and the more less darker tone of the previous season (though that will change as the next season is being based on the killer that made furniture out of human skin and body parts) though it feels a bit too safe (and also Erik himself has come out and said that it is inaccurate to how it is shown in this series) but if you want to check it out for himself, you can watch the full limited series now on Netflix.
Twilight of the Gods
The last of the tv shows for this week was actually for nearly a good bit of time was nearly skipped over until it popped up when researching for this week of a new animated series created by the man that loves to talk on legends, gods and use a lot of Slow Motion as Zack Snyder has brought along an all new animated mythology series with the new show of Twilight of the Gods. The series is based on Norse Mythology and follow Sigrid, an iron-wiled warrior, saves Leif, a mortal king who will soon fall in love with her. Upon both surviving the wrath of terror by the god of thunder, both of them and a crew of crusaders will soon embark on a merciless mission for an act of vengeance, no matter the odds against them. reception to the series is a little bit of a mixed to decent reception with praise to the mythology concept and the animation, though the plot and shock and action is a little underwhelming when it seemed to have a lot of potential and if you want to check this out for yourself then you can watch this new series now on Netflix.
Video Games
Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster
The last of the new releases for this week and the only game release for the week is taking us back nearly 2 decades to where taking a trip for a bit of shopping for all different things takes a turn of the undead form as a classic from the past gets an all new fresh coat of paint an on more new consoles as we have the all new remaster of Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster. This new rework of the classic game in the series will have you play as Frank West, a journalist who has covered wars you know, has found himself stuck in the Parkview Mall in Colorado with the town overrun with a sudden zombie outbreak and you must survive as long as you can, helping other survivors from the endless horde and uncovering the conspiracy as to how all of this happened while hacking and slashing away at the undead. Reception to the remasters has been very well recieved with praise to the updated visuals, new features and the respect and restoration of the classic Zombie title from almost 20 years ago and if you are up for capturing the perfect image and plowing through the undead, then you play this new title now on PS5, Xbox Series X/S and PC.
Trailers of many twists and turns
Woman of the Hour
The first of trailers for this week was actually a trailer that initially I planned to have in one from a previous week but was unclear if it was getting a release but that changed this week as we have the trailer for the directorial debut of actress Anna Kendrick with Woman of the Hour. The film will tell the story of Cheryl Bradshaw, a young woman who back in 1978 ended up as a contestant on an episode of the popular Dating Game show where she would end up with a match and on a date with one of the contestant suitors of Rodney Alcala, where unbeknownst to her while getting some odd vibes off of the game, will soon learn that the person she ended up matched with became a notorious name back then as he would later become known as The Dating Game Killer. So the likes of this is that I had heard of this story of Kendrick directing her first feature film and thought this seemed like a good fit for her role and initally I got a bit of the vibe of another film she starred in called Alice, Darling and from what I have heard from previous film festivals is that it has garnered some very strong positive reception and I feel it will be worth a watch when the new film will be released onto Netflix from October 18th.
Transformers One
So I know this next trailer (and the one following this) may be confusing to some possible US viewers given that this one is literally released this week (plus there was a special screening of it yesterday near where I was and wonder why on a Thursday of all days, make more sense for a weekend day) but its a different release here and it will be time to roll out as we have the final trailer for the upcoming release of the animated prequel of Transformers One. The new film will tell the story of a young Orion Pax and D-16, two worker bots on the Planet of Cybertron who along with B-127 and Elita-1, discover a secret about a deep conspiracy that will lead to a war and betrayal that will soon lead to the endless war between former brother like bond to sworn enemies and how they will become Optimus Prime and Megatron. So the likes of Transformers has been the case that they have been a massive presence in pop culture for the last 20 years since the live action films and all the games, merch and shows and this one seems to be the one with the most mass appeal. While I am excited to check it out and have heard a lot of good praise (and some other weird critiques for said film) something about them having human faces still looks a little odd and weird but if I look past it I am sure it will be worth a watch and you do not need to wait long as this will soon roll out into cinemas on October 11th.
Joker Folie a Deux?
The 2nd trailer that I also bring up that it may be in that window that will go against my rule for trailers but it came out just before my deadline cut off as we are taking a trip to the madhouse and will soon be time to put on a happy face as we have the official final trailer for the upcoming sequel of Joker Folie a Deux. The film is set 2 years after the events of the original film and will find Arthur Fleck locked up in Arkham awaiting trail for the Murray show killing and the murders on the subway where everything seems grim and sad soon sees a ray of hope when Arthur soon meets fellow inmate of Lee Quinzel that will soon lead to them experiencing musical madness together through the linked insanity and soon would help a massive movement of followers in the process. it is a case with this sequel is that their is still a little bit of doubt that I feel this should've stayed as a one off film but after seeing more and more appeal from the trailers and interest in how they will work the approach of the musical aesthetic, I am genuinely excited to see how it turns out and from some of the appeal from some mixed reception helps it a little but we will see how it turns out when the film releases into cinemas in just 2 weeks time on October 4th.
Dog Man (Dreamworks)
For the 2nd animated film trailer to talk on for this week, while the studio is gearing up to drop probably one of the best animated films for 2024, the studio of dreamworks is looking ahead into the future with their next project and is based on another film adaptation they made 7 years ago that deserves more love and am still waiting for a sequel to that film as the creative minds of George and Harold are back again with their next comic film project with the trailer for the upcoming adaptation of the captain underpants spin off of Dog Man. The film will see an officer named Knight and his dog named Greg end up in a bad injury while out on a job and through a life changing operation will change the course of history whrn Dog Man is born. Soon he must protect and serve as he doggedly pursues the dasterdly feline of Petey the Cat, but the unexpect arrival of Li'l Petey changes their dynamic. So I have heard of this spin off that this is collectively in the book series the spiritual sequel to the Captain Underpants Books (and possibly Super Diaper Baby) and I did like the original novels as a kid (granted I never finished the series as it went on hiatus for a bit but for respectful reasons) but I think from what I have seen of the books it has the look and charm of the series and it will be worth a watch and you can check it out for yourself when it releases into cinemas on February 7th next year.
Mickey 17
The final trailer for the week is delving into a project that was supposed to come out almost 6 months ago but due to some messy drama caused by the company distributing it, there was a dumb reason why but after a bit of a delay Bong Joon-Ho is back with a new tale with a trailer to his anticipated sci-fi film of Mickey 17. The film follows Mickey, a disposable employee that is sent on a human expedition to colonize the ice world of Niflheim and where if one iteration dies, a new body is regenerated with most of his memories intact, but when one of his multiples survive from dying it soon becomes head to head with a new multiple of Mickey 18 and deal with the messy outcome from the massive company running this program. So the reason this film was delayed was that Warner Bros, the company that keeps telling you they are the only pure storyteller studios left (but more of we will shelved completed films for tax write offs and lose way more money) tried to mess with the final vision of the director but hopefully the director will stand his ground and be mad if this misses the award season if this is a critically acclaimed film from a multi Oscar winner cause this looks like a really strong adaptation of the book it is based on with a fun gimmick and I am sure it will be worth a watch when the film generates into cinemas on January 31st next year.
News stories to keep us in business
Something for tv Lovers and something for the Geeks
We start this week of stories with a little bit of a round up of all of the entertainment news that focuses on the aspect of the realm of series, streaming and entertainment as it was this week that saw 2 different events be given a little bit of a focus with a slight variation on what was being presented and that was with the 76th annual emmy awards on Sunday Night and just later this week with a round up of the announcements from Geeked Week with Netflix and I felt given they have a form of event pieces, I felt it was best to place them together as they are easy to rundown and give a idea of all that was announced and winners at the events, so lets get to the unveilings.
in other game adaptation news, while no new look at season 4 of the live action series, we did get a new clip for the upcoming animated film or series on the Witcher with Sirens of the deep to get a bit of an idea of the new quest that Geralt will be heading out on when this new take on the saga hits the streamer from February 11th.
Now while there was some set visit and a few possible character introductions for the 2nd season of the Live action One Piece series, we did get a confirmation of the casting to the characters of Mr O and Mrs All Sunday which will be played by Joe Manganiello and Lera Abova respectfully. Now in all case I have watched or read the original Manga but I think it looks like a decent cast for this performance and I feel likely this will release sometime in 2025.
After much speculation and teasing with trailers, a new clip for the upcoming 2nd and final season of Arcane was unveiled and also the confirmation that we now have a release date with the season being split into 3 acts with part 1 dropping November 9th, Part 2, November 16th and the final part on November 23rd so its good to see this run its course and be all prepped for the final season.
A new special teaser for the upcoming 2nd season for Squid Game was unveiled which gave us the first look footage for the new season after simple cryptic teaser for the last few weeks. While it is not a full trailer and doesn't delve too much into the major plot for this season, the likes of the massive conspiracy and survivors of the last games looking to take it all down will be worth a watch when it drops on December 26th this year.
some of the last stories was that you think I was done with Game announcements into series, well you be wrong (as well as new games for the Netflix Game section which included some new Squid game and Rebel Moon games but you get the gist) as it was unveiled with 2 other adaptations coming out from the event which include the first look at the new anime based on Devil May Cry which has a release window of April 2025 and also the announcement of a new anime based on the popular series of Splinter Cell which I guess will see Sam Fisher make a return but both sound and look really stylish and flashy and will be worth a look into when they release in the future.
and to wrap up all of the announcements of interest from the Netflix event, there was a simple short cryptic tease that it looks like we are heading back to Night City in the future as a new series based on CyberPunk 2077 and a possible spiritual sequel to Edgerunners is on the way in the future, nothing was shown besides a corrupted logo but if its anything like the previous series then we are in for something good once again.
but that covers about everything from the 2 events which all have a nice variety of choice and outcomes for possible award contenders for the new year and other surprises which is giving a strong future of entertainment coming out way very soon. But I wanna know your thoughts on this, do you think the right shows won big this year at the Emmy's or who do you think should've won and what announcement from Geeked Week are you most excited for? Let me know your thoughts on it all down below and lets discuss your choices there.
Directors on tales of French heroes and Atomic Bombs (feels like deja Vu)
The Next story on the list is with a round up on some stories that will focus on the concepts and ideas in mind from some of the big named directors in the industry and will be focusing on 2 stories from this week of different genre focus but also sounds like near de ja vu to 2 big name films from 2 big directors from last year, but lets not focus on that and lets talk on said projects.
So the first of the directors in focus for this story is with the man who has the highest grossing film of all time (when not adjusted for Inflation) and that is of course James Cameron. Most know at the moment the man himself is busy tinkering away at the next few multiple sequels to big Box office and 3D visual spectacles of the Avatar films and many have wondered if he is done with them all after directing the next 2 or will he continue until he passes from this life but it may be the case that he looks like he has another project in mind and it is looking to be a form of a biographical story. According to Deadline, it seems that Cameron has purchased the rights to the novel of Last train to Hiroshima which is the story of a true legend about a Japanese Man who has luckily survived the Hiroshima Atomic Bomb and then took a train to Nagasaki and somehow also survived that Atomic bomb as well as one of the most luckiest coincidences to happen to a person. The story is quite a unique story and seems like something that will be worth seeing in the form of the visuals that Cameron will bring for this project (or maybe could be a lot like the practical form that Nolan did for Oppenheimer but who knows), it will be worth seeing how this project comes along but I will say the likes of this project is a few years out but will update on any progress if something changes.
As for the 2nd director for the discussion of a new project for this week, we are talking about another award winning director who's films have the varied appeal from romances, musical and bio films about famous musicians and that is of course Baz Luhrmann who has made films based on Romeo and Juliet, Moulin Rogue, Great Gatsby and his most recent film was the bio film based on Elvis and it seems to be the case that he is keeping it in the biographical form but not in the form of music but rather with conflict as according to sources, his next film with the company of Warner Bros is looking to give a new take on the story of Joan of Arc. Now the likes of this figure has not seen as many adaptations or telling's of the story that are known with the most recognized version was the version starring Milla Jovovich known as the Messenger in 1999 by Luc Besson (and I feel the closest to the type of similar story is with the film of Mulan but in a different period setting and location) and while there has been a few adaptations of her tale since then, it has mainly been made from French filmmakers since it is a French legend and has not seen much in the realm of a western take on the character. SO far the film is currently undergoing casting for the film and from what I know is that there is one actress that has hoped to play this character and that is rising superstar of Jenna Ortega but I guess we will see how the casting goes along. This will also bring into the likes of the historical accuracy outcome of the figure because it could end up like another Napoleon situation where there was a lot of historical inaccuracies and caused a mixed opinion on the film (and recently released extended cut) but I guess we will see if they will keep it faithful or get the unreliable narrator aspect again.
But what are your thoughts on these 2 new projects, will you watch that new Cameron adaptation and who would you cast in the role of Joan of Arc? Lets discuss it all down below in the comments.
funny speaking people heading to a screen near you
The next story is going to be a little bit of a quick one as it has been brought up about a new adaptation of a popular series making its way into a new medium of entertainment and that is with a video game to film or tv. We have had a lot of different film types from fighting games like Mortal Kombat and Street fighter, platformers like Mario and Sonic films and horror games like Silent hill and Five Nights at Freddy's and you feel you may have seen it all, but this next project is taking a new form that has an anything and everything method to work with but also the case if we can understand the roles in the film as it was announced that we will be getting a full length feature film based on the popular game series of The Sims. Now it was not just the news about the film is in the works (this has been a story rumoured for a good long while) but it has some talent involved with the development of said project as it was announced the film is being produced by Margot Robbie and her company of Heyday films and the project is being directed and co-written by Kate Herron who helmed the acclaimed Marvel tv series of LOKI and will write the project alongside Briony Redman. It is intriguing to see that the likes of a film based on a life sim is happening and I wonder if this will have a little bit of a Barbie or a Free Guy aesthetic to it where a character in the game universe becomes self aware that they are in a video game and questioning why are they trapped in a window and doorless room or can't leave a pool cause the ladders are gone but I guess we will have to find out as this project comes along. I also have to wonder if the film will be in English or if the entire movie will be done in the games language of Simlish for the more authentic take on the project or if it will be too confusing for the general audience.
But what do you think of this, would you be interested in a film based on the sims and who do you think will be cast in said project in particular. Let me know what you think down below.
Pokémon clones: gotta catch em all
the 2nd last story to come from this week is providing a bit of news in the realm of video games and a concept that I was expecting to see come along eventually but was surprised it has taken this long to do so. We have had a lot of games come out over the course of this year so bear with me if the likes of the game that we will be talking on seems like a weird fever dream to any or has been a continuous play for many but one of the most well regarded games to come out of this year was a title known as Palworld which was this new open world title where you travelled across a vast land and finding and catching Pals in order to be trained, do tasks, provide food and also be strapped with firearms and battle it out with up to 32 other players to come out on top and has been a hit on PC and Xbox consoles since early access release back in Mid January. Now the likes of this game has seen the sense of people comparing it to a more mature version of the multi-billion dollar franchise of Pokémon in its concept and some creature designs and many wondered if the big company of Nintendo and the Pokémon company would respond to some regard. While there was some discussion earlier this year, it has now made their presence known and they have arrived on Thursday of this week with the announcement of a Lawsuit being sent to the Palworld creative studio of Pocketpair due to possible infringement of Patent Rights mainly on some of the designs being similar to certain Pokémon characters. Now I can see it with some of the designs of the characters in some form do look similar but I think it is a very small amount compared to the 1,164 current Pokémon creations over its 20+ year run So I feel that it could be a small lawsuit that could see certain pals being either removed or redesigned or the furthest that it will go is joining the likes of well made fan project, emulations for games that get no recognition and other forms of fan games getting shut down by the company when it is doing no harm and would bring more appeal if they supported fan creations and even hire some for proper game development but Nintendo does what it should Nintendon't and we will have to see how this overall lawsuit plays out as it heads to the possible courts.
But what do you think of all of this, do you see Palworld as a massive Pokémon rip off or is Nintendo overreacting to a game that is likely inspired by their massive franchise? Let me know your opinions on this down below.
The emotional strain at Pixar caused by the Disney giant
The final story that has come from this week is a bit of some investigative journalism into a studio that has been making the big bucks this year at the box office but the road there has been paved with issues, crunch and likely the pulling of the strings from the company that owns them for many years and that is with talking about one of my all time favourite animation studio of Pixar. So we are all aware that the highest grossing film of 2024 is with Pixar's well beloved sequel to 2015's Inside Out (one that I have already given my thoughts, opinions and deep insight into my own personal struggles here or in video form) and it seemed like a big success story for the company after it was undermined and had some tumbles with the box office since the pandemic, but it seems like not all of it was smooth sailing and in fact a lot of issues has come up. According to some discussions with IGN, the company interviewed 10 former members of Pixar (who wished to stay anonymous) who were let go back in May alongside another 165 employees (or about 14% of the Staff) and it did not help in the process that in the last few weeks before release, it had seen some really bad form of the dreaded crunch time that saw many workers in 7 days a week for around 2 months to complete the full film on time which included being put in jobs they have never done before and other stressors and even in the case of the films success those that were let go would not receive the big form bonus from the films success. This has also been the case it was affected with the likes of the 2 strikes from last year, voice changes and other issues with the 2nd project that was projected for this year which was with Elio, which has had its own problems but they are working to sort it out. Now personally I think this is really rough and I feel for those that were let go and it is a case even through all of this I do not blame the higher ups of Pixar (as I have heard they were really trying their best to help out everyone who had to be let go as well as providing better compensation, healthcare and making sure the studio head got their hands dirty with helping in the creation process) and in more blame the bigger studio of Disney for causing all of this and it makes me really annoyed about another thing they said.
According to those interviewed, it has seen a bit of some creative aspect and some inclusivity to be more stumped out with them being a bit against having themes of LGBTQ content as someone from Disney stated the reason they believe that the first film from Pixar back in cinemas from the Pandemic of Lightyear disappointed at the box office was because of the inclusion of a Same Sex Kiss (a scene that is literally less then 2 seconds in the film and was greatly protested to be put back in the film after Disney Removed it at first) which I think is total bullshit (don't even get me started on the supposed butchering they did to Turning Red with those concepts). This did evolve to the studio heads having to try and work it that they make the main girl Riley seem "less gay" when there is clear signs of her having some form of affection towards the character of Val when I think it is a thing that should be more explored about finding ones self and being open to learning who you like and your sexuality, but then again this is Disney we are talking about, the company who has been massively queer baiting since the release of the Live action Beauty and the Beast (or longer I cannot tell). Its in all sense it is really a damn shame that Disney is really picking on Pixar and belittling them from the likes of the whole straight to Disney+ at no extra charge for Soul, Luca and Turning Red (with all 3 of them deserved to be seen on the biggest screen possible) and them undermining it when all of their other project from the other departments underperforming over the last little while both in box office and revenue when Pixar has been garnering strong acclaim (while some have a mixed of reception, in the 28 features films released by Pixar, only 1 has been panned by most critics and audiences) and is usually the company that wins them the big awards every year (if the likes of a Studio Ghibli or a film like spider-verse is not out and nominated that same year) so I do hope that they will bounce back from all of this with more creative originals and follow ups that will actually work in the context and I feel it should be supportive of the work of this studio of creativity that can appeal to the story for all ages and provide heart, humor and emotion to their projects and hopefully those let go get some hopeful success in the future real quick and even some be brought back to the company and Disney can work on themselves instead of blaming it on other departments.
Now with that rant out of the way (I apologise, I just have a lot of love and respect for that studio) what are your thoughts on all of this, do you see this affect Pixar in a major way, or do you see them as being belittled and it is the bigger company of Disney in the wrong for all the troubles? Let me know what you think down below and lets chat on them there.
And now with all of that, this shall bring us to the end of the 82nd edition of Weird Mind News Room and I do hope you have enjoyed my dive into all things media for this week. Let me know your thoughts and opinions on all that was discussed this week if you have seen any, watched or have opinions on the topics from this week down below and as always I hope you all stay being wonderful people and have a great day every day doing many great things and I will see you all in the next roundup :)
Take Care, Keep being you, Signing off :)
Sam H
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