Merry Christmas!!

I hope everyone had a great Christmas holiday and that Santa brought them everything that they wanted. I had a fantastic time with my family and feel blessed to be with them each and every day. If you are going to be on vacation for the next several days, be sure to stop back on the blog as I'll still be posting plenty of content including my countdown of the films I'm most anticipating in seeing in 2014.

Snarknado

When Bill Hader left SNL this past spring we lost all of his great characters, including Stefon, whose presence always made for a great Weekend Update. It appears that the void left by him has for the time being been filled by Jebidiah Atkinson, played by Taran Killam. Atkinson is 19th century critic who panned the Gettysburg address and apparently hates everything else he sees as well. The character has already made two great appearances this season. If you haven't seen them yet, check them out below.

Running on Diesel power

From JustJared.com:

Vin Diesel has officially landed the voice role of Groot in the upcoming Marvel film Guardians of the Galaxy!

The 46-year-old actor confirmed the news by posting the image of himself and the detailed character bust on his Facebook page. Director James Gunn also tweeted the news, saying he “is a super awesome dude. I can’t tell you how much I like this guy.”

Guardians of the Galaxy follows an unlikely cast of characters including Peter Quill (Chris Pratt), Gamora (Zoe Saldana), Drax (Dave Bautista), Groot (Diesel), and Rocket Raccoon (Bradley Cooper) who must join forces to defeat a cosmic force of epic proportions.

Fore play

As most network TV shows shift to reruns over the holiday season, you may be in need of some decent to watch. Might I recommend Netflix's first foray into documentary films. The Short Game chronicles the lives of several young children as they compete for a national golf tournament. In the vein of films like Spellbound, this seems like it could be a compelling story worth a look. Here's the trailer to see if it's for you.

RBR: 2 Guns

You would never hear anyone note similarities in the acting styles of Denzel Washington and Mark Wahlberg and yet teaming them together has produced quite the charismatic pair in 2 Guns, an action thriller from earlier this year. Washington is a DEA agent and Wahlberg is a Marine who have teamed up to take down a Mexican drug lord (played by Edward James Olmos) without fully revealing to the other who they really are or their motivations. The banter between them provides the film with a nice spark that resembles some of the pairing of great 80s buddy cop movies like Lethal Weapon or 48 Hours. Because these two keep their plans from each other, it sets up a number of other characters in the film who also have their own agendas. While it makes the story a bit preposterous, it is also exciting because you cannot immediately tell how things will turn out. Paula Patton fills the sex appeal role playing a fellow agent working with Washington. I would have actually like to see a bit more development in her character, but she's at least easy on the eyes. Given the breezy chemistry that the two leads had it is disappointing that the film opted to have the action portrayed in such a violent manner. The film's title is quite the misnomer given that way more than two guns are used. The violence shown here suggests a grittier film than the way Washington and Wahlberg play things. A more consistent film would have produced something great. As it is, this merely settles for being a solidly entertaining film and makes me interested in seeing these two leads team up again either in a sequel or in an unrelated project. Rating: ****

Yesterday's news

I've become somewhat cynical to the "found footage" genre of filmmaking, but I must admit that this trailer for Welcome to Yesterday about a group of teenagers who discover the ability to time travel has caught my eye. If it is as fresh and innovative as Chronicle then this may have a chance of being a mainstream hit.

Paquin some, lose some

From comingsoon.net:

There will be one less mutant in this summer’s highly anticipated X-Men: Days of Future Past, which combines the casts of the original X-Men trilogy with those of 2011′s First Class. Director Bryan Singer (The Usual Suspects) has revealed to EW exclusively that a rescue sequence — shot early in the film’s production and featuring Magneto (Ian McKellen), Professor X (Patrick Stewart), Rogue (Anna Paquin), and Iceman (Shawn Ashmore) — has been cut from the final film. Sadly, this means that Rogue’s screen time has been significantly chopped down as well.

“Through the editing process, the sequence became extraneous,” explains Singer. “It’s a really good sequence and it will probably end up on the DVD so people can see it. But like many things in the editing process, it was an embarrassment of riches and it was just one of the things that had to go. Unfortunately, it was the one and only sequence Anna Paquin was in, the Rogue character was in. Even though she’s in the materials and part of the process of making the film, she won’t appear in it.”

Singer emphasizes that the decision had nothing to do with the Oscar-winning True Blood star, who was on set for only week of Days of Future Past, or with her performance. “She did a fantastic job,” says the director. “She was awesome in the sequence. She’s a brilliant actress. I would work with her in a heartbeat.”

Singer, who is still editing the film in advance of its release on May 23, 2014, has already broken the news to Paquin. “She completely understood,” he says. “It’s very disappointing, but she’s very professional and she knows that stuff happens, particularly with material you shoot early on in production. Films evolve.”

Depp recesses of the mind

It shouldn't be newsworthy when Johnny Depp plays a normal human being that isn't caked in ghoulish makeup in a movie, but it is. Here is a teaser trailer for his newest movie, a sci-fi thriller called Transcendence that is being directed by Wally Pfister who is a first time director but long time cinematographer for Christopher Nolan.

Ant hardly wait

From comingsoon.net:

Rumored for the role since earlier this year, Paul Rudd is Marvel Studios' choice to headline Ant-Man! The Wrap reports that the Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues star will play Hank Pym in the July 31, 2015 release.

Set to begin production early next year in Georgia, Ant-Man will be directed by Edgar Wright, who co-wrote the script with Joe Cornish (Attack the Block).

Although there's no assurance yet that it remains the case, Wright's original plans for the film called for both Pym and the later Ant-Man of the comics, Scott Lang, to appear in the feature.

"The idea that we have for the adaptation is to actually involve both... Henry Pym and Scott Lang," Wright told SuperHeroHype some years ago. "So you actually do a prologue where you see Pym as Ant-Man in action in the 60's, in sort of 'Tales to Astonish' mode basically, and then the contemporary, sort of flash-forward, is Scott Lang's story, and how he comes to acquire the suit, how he crosses paths with Henry Pym, and then, in an interesting sort of Machiavellian way, teams up with him."

The film, which is supposed to launch "Phase Three" of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, will follow Avengers: Age of Ultron's May 1, 2015 release.

O Christmas Fern

Get in the Christmas spirit with a special holiday edition of Between Two Ferns where Zach welcomes special guests Tobey Maguire, Samuel L. Jackson, and Arcade Fire.

Between Two Ferns with Zach Galifianakis: Happy Holidays Edition from Between Two Ferns

Stubbs out, Outman in

From Indians.com

The Indians were tasked this offseason with rebuilding a bullpen that began to come apart at the seams last summer. Even before the winter arrived, and a group of Tribe relievers entered free agency, multiple roles in the bullpen were in flux.

Two areas in need of attention this offseason were strengthening the left-handed relief options and finding a new closer. Cleveland addressed the former issue Wednesday by acquiring lefty Josh Outman from the Rockies in exchange for outfielder Drew Stubbs. As for the latter, a solution is in the works, with free-agent closer John Axford having agreed to a one-year contract with the Indians.

Axford was scheduled to undergo a physical on Wednesday to complete the signing process.

"Our job is trying to piece together the best bullpen we can, and we feel we've had some progress," Indians general manager Chris Antonetti said. "We'll continue to look to improve if we can. I feel good about the group that we have and I feel as though we're improved from where we were at the start of the offseason.

"But, again, there's a lot of time left between now and Spring Training and we'll do what we can to try to improve."

Antonetti was not willing to address the addition of Axford, who will earn $4.5 million in 2014 with another $1.75 million possible through incentives, according to multiple sources. Once the signing of Axford is made official, he will assume the ninth-inning role vacated by Chris Perez, who lost his job as the closer in September and was released by Cleveland in October.

Joining Perez in free agency this winter were setup man Joe Smith (three years, $15.75 million with Angels), ground-ball specialist Matt Albers (one year, $2.25 million with Astros) and lefty Rich Hill. Antonetti noted that the Indians have kept in contact with Hill, though Outman is poised to assume the left-on-left role that the veteran held last year with Cleveland.

"We haven't closed the door on Rich," Antonetti said. "But Josh could fill that role."

The 29-year-old Outman -- eligible for arbitration for the second time this winter and under contractual control through 2015 -- joins Marc Rzepczynski as the Indians' top two lefties out of the bullpen now. Cleveland also has young left-hander Nick Hagadone in the fold, but he has one Minor League option and has battled inconsistency over the past two seasons.

Stubbs became expendable for the Tribe after the signing of veteran outfielder David Murphy to a two-year, $12 million contract in November. With Murphy, Cleveland had three players for right field (Ryan Raburn being the third) and Stubbs became the odd-man out. The Indians acquired Stubbs from the Reds as part of a three-team, nine-player trade last offseason with the idea that he could thrive as a full-time right fielder.

In 146 games for Cleveland, Stubbs hit .233 with 10 home runs and 45 RBIs, but his defense took a step back after shifting out of center field, and he did not run nearly as much as in the past. Stubbs ended with 17 stolen bases after swiping 100 in the previous three seasons with Cincinnati. Down the stretch, the Indians limited Stubbs' role, using him mainly against left-handed pitching.

It became increasingly clear that Cleveland could use Stubbs as potential trade bait to address a need on the pitching staff.

The Indians actually had interest in Outman at last season's July 31 Trade Deadline, but could not align on a deal with Colorado, and then reeled in Rzepczynski in a trade with St. Louis. Excluding Rzepczynski, Cleveland's lefty relievers posted a combined 6.24 ERA in 83 2/3 innings last season, making that an area in need of upgrading.

Rzepczynski helped solidify that aspect of the bullpen down the stretch, turning in a 0.89 ERA while holding lefties to a .128 (5-for-39) average in his time with the Tribe last year. By adding Outman, the Indians hope they now have two proven left-handed specialists within their relief corps.

"One of our focuses this offseason was to really try to improve our pitching," Antonetti said. "[Outman] is a left-handed pitcher with really good arm strength that's had a lot of success against left-handers at the Major League level. So we feel he'll fit into the bullpen and be a meaningful contributor for us this year."

After working as a long man and spot starter in parts of the 2008-12 seasons with the A's and Rockies, Outman finally served as a full-time reliever in '13. In 61 appearances, the left-hander turned in a 4.33 ERA with 53 strikeouts against 23 walks in 54 innings. Across five big league seasons, Outman has a 4.61 ERA, 2.02 strikeout-to-walk ratio and 1.43 WHIP.

Outman's area of expertise is facing lefties, who combined for a .198/.278/.261 slash line against the southpaw last season. Righties, however, feasted off the pitcher, posting a .347/.423/.459 line against him in 2013. For his career, Outman has limited left-handed batters to a .189 average (.523 OPS), compared to a .303 average (.844) for right-handed hitters.

Outman features primarily a three-pitch mix consisting of a fastball (92.4 mph on average in 2013, according to fangraphs.com), slider (83.1 mph) and changeup (80.8 mph).

"We'll try to leverage him as best we can to allow him to be successful," Antonetti said, "and allow our team to win as many games as possible. The role will still be determined, but I would envision him pitching more against left-handed hitters than right-handed hitters."

African union

Here the first trailer for Blended, starring Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore. Adam and Drew always have nice chemistry together, but this feels like another excuse for a paid vacation for Sandler.

You want new titles? Wii got them!

Nintendo released some news and updates on several games that are in the pipeline for the Wii U system. Several of which are games which involve some of your favorite Nintendo characters including Zelda, Donkey Kong, and the entire Mario gang. The article, which contains some game videos and trailers, is too long to republish here, so I'll just post the link below and you can check it out for yourself over at comingsoon.net.

Nintendo reveals Zelda game Hyrule Warriros, More on Mario Kart 8 and Super Smash Bros.

Monkey business

As the trailers keep rolling in, we now get our first look at Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, the sequel to 2011's surprise hit Rise of the Planet of the Apes.

Tub time

From EW.com:

The sequel to the 2010 comedy Hot Tub Time Machine is heating up. MGM and Paramount announced last night that the follow-up, which does not include John Cusack, will arrive sometime in 2014, with Paramount distributing in the U.S. and MGM handling the movie internationally. A press release confirms that the plot for the movie will emphasize the character played by Rob Corddry. “When Lou (Corddry) finds himself in trouble, Nick (Craig Robinson) and Jacob (Clark Duke) fire up the hot tub time machine in an attempt to get back to the past. But they inadvertently land in the future. Now they have to alter the future in order to save the past… which is really the present.”

Replacing Cusack, if not in character than at least in stature, is Adam Scott.

Pranks for the memories

Whenever Paul Rudd visits Conan O'Brien's talk show, you can expect that he will show a clip from the hilariously bad 1980s film, Mac and Me instead of a scene from his own film. The beauty is that the joke never gets old. At least one other person agrees and has created a compilation of the various times he has done this to Conan over the past 10 years. I no doubt look for him to do it once again if he visits Conan in the next couple of weeks to plug Anchorman 2

RBR: We're the Millers

This comedy about a small time drug dealer who pretends to have a family so he can smuggle a large quantity of marijuana across the border turned out to be a surprise hit earlier this year. Now having seen it on DVD, its success is that much more surprising to me. For one, movies that come in August typically are not poised to be blockbusters. But the bigger reason is that the film's humor and subject matter do not seem like they would lend themselves to a mainstream hit. Credit the likeable cast for driving this creaky premise into a film that does enough to get by. SNL's Jason Sudekis plays the drug dealer who rounds up Jennifer Aniston, Emma Roberts, and Will Poulter to play his family members. The film also features appearances from comedians including Ed Helms, Nick Offerman, and Kathryn Hahn. The humor here is very hit and miss. I found too many of the gags had decent setups with weak payoffs. The bigger issue though was poor character development. Almost everyone here is inconsistent and behaves in a manner that suits the joke and the role they play in it. Unfortunately, I found there to be very few surprises offered here. Given that this is a film that is relying on half of its jokes to work based on shock value, that's a problem. I also found the film to be a bit too cynical at times regarding the American dream and suburban family life. It feels like they want the characters to take a jaded attitude toward that lifestyle, but the actors seem to be good representatives of it. I did not find myself actively hating this film like other pathetic comedies I have seen this year, but I also was left confused as to what was offered here that struck a nerve with so many viewers to cause it to earn as much as it did at the box office. To me this is the epitome of an average film that gets by with its pleasant actors engaging in some occasionally humorous antics. Rating: ** 1/2

Tomorrow never dies

Somehow I forgot to add this one in my posting bonanza last weekend. Here's the first trailer for Tom Cruise's new sci-fi thriller, Edge of Tomorrow, which is set to come out next summer.

Welcome Marcum

Looks like the Indians have another low risk project that they're hoping will pay off...

The Indians have found another reclamation project for pitching coach Mickey Callaway.

Cleveland reached an agreement with free-agent starter Shaun Marcum on Monday on a Minor League contract that includes an invitation to attend Spring Training with the Indians. The veteran right-hander will be thrown into the mix for a rotation job and will have the right to opt out of the deal if he does not make the Opening Day roster.

According to a source, Marcum's deal with the Indians is worth a $1 million base salary, plus another $3 million attainable through incentives, if he is in the Major Leagues next season.

This past season, the Indians took on a comeback candidate in lefty Scott Kazmir, who went from pitching in independent ball the previous season to capturing a job in Cleveland's rotation as a non-roster invitee last spring. Marcum will be given a similar opportunity, going up against Carlos Carrasco, Josh Tomlin and Trevor Bauer for a spot on the starting staff.

As things currently stand, Justin Masterson, Corey Kluber, Danny Salazar and Zach McAllister are the leading candidates for the first four jobs in the rotation.

Kazmir came back from an assortment of minor health woes that led to problems throughout his pitching mechanics. Callaway helped the lefty get back on track last season and that led to the A's signing the pitcher to a two-year, $22 million contract this offseason.

Marcum's comeback is decidedly different.

This spring, Marcum will be continuing his return from an uncommon injury. The 32-year-old right-hander had surgery to alleviate the thoracic outlet syndrome that plagued him in his lone tour with the Mets. It is an issue that stems from compression of the space between the collarbone and first rib, which can create pain in the shoulder and neck, along with numbness in the hand.

Marcum went 1-10 with a 5.29 ERA in 14 games for New York before having the operation in July.

Prior to last season, Marcum turned in a string of solid seasons for both the Blue Jays and Brewers. Toronto selected the right-hander in the third round of the 2003 First-Year Player Draft and he became a staple in the team's rotation. From 2007-12, which includes two years in Milwaukee, Marcum posted a 3.67 ERA with a 1.19 WHIP and 2.82 strikeout-to-walk ratio across 830 1/3 innings.

Marcum missed the 2009 season while recovering from Tommy John surgery on his right elbow, but returned strong by going 26-15 with a 3.59 ERA in 64 starts (396 innings) in the 2010-11 campaigns. The Brewers acquired Marcum from the Blue Jays on Dec. 6, 2010, in exchange for infielder Brett Lawrie, and Milwaukee made the postseason in '11 with Marcum on the staff.

In parts of eight Major League seasons, Marcum has gone 58-46 with a 3.88 ERA and 1.23 WHIP in 188 games (161 starts).

Getting a Jump start on the new year

More trailers keep rolling in previewing the 2014 slate. This time it's the sequel to surprise reboot of 21 Jump Street, this time named 22 Jump Street. I'll let the awesome Nick Offerman explain why.

Ax man

Have the Indians found their new closer?

The Indians have been searching for an answer for their closer role since the final week of the regular season. Cleveland is taking a chance on John Axford with the hope that he can rekindle his career as one of the game's elite stoppers.

According to multiple sources, the Indians have reached an agreement with free-agent Axford on a one-year contract worth $4.5 million for the 2014 season, pending the completion of a physical on Wednesday. The pact would include another $1.75 million in incentives based on games finished.

The Indians have not made any official comment about the deal.

The Indians were in talks with Axford, along with a handful of other experienced late-inning arms, during the Winter Meetings last week. A former closer for the Brewers, the 30-year-old Axford lost his role in Milwaukee and was traded to St. Louis in August, finishing the season strong out of the Cardinals' bullpen.

With Cleveland, Axford is expected to step into the ninth-inning role after the Indians released their former closer, Chris Perez, on Oct. 31. The Indians have expressed confidence in having either Cody Allen or Bryan Shaw assume the closing duties, but manager Terry Francona indicated during the Winter Meetings that his preference was to keep the pair of right-handers in setup roles.

"I think [Allen] could handle it with very little hiccups," Francona said last week. "Saying that, I'm not sure that that puts our ballclub in the best position to win. At an early age, we used him in so many high-leverage situations. From the sixth inning on, bases loaded, snuff out a rally, we basically went to Cody. Right- or left-handed didn't matter. He was so good at it, and I would think he'll only continue to get better. It's hard to lose that guy.

"That one guy can make your whole bullpen so much better. So many times you get a save situation, it could be a three-run game with nobody on and the game's already been lost in the seventh or eighth. Same thing [with Shaw]. He could do it in the ninth, no doubt. But, what he does earlier is valuable."

The Indians have also been in contact with free-agent closers such as Joaquin Benoit, Grant Balfour and Fernando Rodney, among others. Cleveland also extended an offer to Edward Mujica, but he ultimately signed a two-year contract with the Red Sox.

A one-year deal for Axford makes sense for both sides, considering he has two more years of arbitration eligibility following next season.

Perez was eligible for arbitration this offseason, but he lost his job as Cleveland's closer in the final week of the regular season. In 54 games, Perez posted career worsts in ERA (4.33) and WHIP (1.43), making his expected salary (anticipated to be over $9 million) too inflated for his diminished role. The Indians opted to cut ties with Perez, who had an 88-percent save rate (123-for-140) over the past four seasons.

Last season, Axford posted a 4.02 ERA in 75 games (65 innings) between stints with the Brewers and Cardinals, piling up 65 strikeouts against 26 walks. The righty had a 4.45 ERA and was 0-for-6 in save chances in 62 games for Milwaukee, which dealt him to St. Louis on Aug. 30. Down the stretch, Axford posted a 1.74 ERA with 11 strikeouts and three walks in 10 1/3 innings.

Axford's best season came in 2011, when he fashioned a 1.95 ERA and saved 46 games during the Brewers' run to the postseason. Across the 2010-11 campaigns, he had a 2.19 ERA in 124 games (131 2/3 innings) and a stellar 93-percent save rate (70-for-75). Over the past two years, though, Axford has posted a 4.35 ERA in 150 games (134 1/3 innings) with a 69-percent conversion rate (35-for-51).

Even with his recent struggles, Axford offers more ninth-inning experience than Cleveland's current crop of relievers. Besides releasing Perez, the Indians also lost setup man Joe Smith to the Angels (three years, $15.75 million) in free agency. Vinnie Pestano, who endured his own mound woes last season, leads the current Tribe bullpen (on the 40-man roster) in big league saves with 11 in his career. Shaw is next on that list with three saves.

Drumming up interest

We go from talking about this year's highly touted space adventure to previewing what could likely be next year's highly touted space adventure. Here's your first look at Christopher Nolan's Interstellar. It doesn't tell us much and yet I am already hooked.

The great space coaster

Every day seems to bring new awards nominations or critics top ten lists, which is a sign that I need to start watching some of these movies so I can tell whether or not I agree with everyone else. First up is a film that is generating quite a lot of Oscar buzz, Alfonso Cuaron's space thriller, Gravity.

There have been a lot of movies that focus on a main character having a "very bad day", but few could rival the one that astronaut Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock) experiences in this movie. Stone is a medical engineer, but because of her knowledge and expertise in her field has been asked to go on a mission in space. One of her fellow astronauts is Matt Kowalski (George Clooney), who is veteran space traveler. He's done so many trips that he has to humor himself by retelling the same stories to mission control as he floats around. While on a routine spacewalk, the crew learns that debris from a damaged satellite is floating in their direction. Before they can get back inside the ship the debris hurtles towards them causing damage to their ship and severing Stone's tether.

From there we spend the next 90 minutes or so in a state of sustained tension as we watch whether or not Stone will be able to survive this perilous predicament. So may argue that the plot is too simplistic, but this is a case of less is more. The trials and tribulations that this character encounters are simply enthralling. We are presented with a "worst case scenario" of events for this character, yet all of it remains grounded and plausible. Even though most of us will never have the opportunity to experience what it is like to go up in space, you feel as if you are right there besides Stone as she struggles to find her way back to her ship.

The primary reason for such a shared sense of experience while watching this film comes from its amazing visual artistry. Cuaron has simply created a wonderfully looking film. I was thankful to have the opportunity to see this film in 3D and it's the first movie since Avatar to feel like it's worth the upgrade in price. Cuaron does not just have the look of space correct, he creates these long tracking shots to really make you feel where you are. This has been a hallmark of his filmmaking in the past, but it has never been better than it is here.

This is also a director who is more than someone who has fallen in love with his location. He knows how to shoot his actors. There is a beautiful looking shot midway through the film where he depicts Stone as if she was an infant still in the womb. This adventure puts her into a whole new world for sure and it is captivating to watch her try and catch her bearings in such a foreign environment.

While Bullock will likely get the majority of attention for her tour de force performance here, I do not want to slight George Clooney in any way (not that he's struggling without my endorsement, but that's neither here nor there). Although his time on screen is brief, he holds your attention like few other actors today can for the time that he is there. The interplay between him and Bullock ranges from light-hearted to deeply philosophical and all of it is interesting.

Simply put, this movie works on all levels. It's a visual wonder, a captivating thriller, and a display of everyone involved working at their highest level. Without having seen enough of the other potential contenders, I cannot say for certainty that this should win, but I have no qualms about it if it is bestowed that highest honor. Cuaron and company have reached for the stars and somehow managed to soar even above those lofty expectations. Grade: A

Ya nerd?

It's yet another trailer for a returning midseason TV series. This time it's the season 2 trailer for the TBS reality series King of the Nerds. Season 1 was fun, but flawed. Let's hope some of those issues will be worked out and we can revel once again in all that is nerdly.

Game of foes

From EW.com

Sony is expanding its Spider-Man franchise with spinoffs devoted to the web-slinger’s greatest arch-enemies. The studio stealthily announced plans for a Venom movie, as well as one about the Sinister Six, the Marvel Comics team of rouges that included, at one time, Doctor Octopus, Electro, Sandman, Vulture, Hobgoblin, and Mysterio.
The movies, combined with The Amazing Spider-Man 3, which will open June 10, 2016, will be continuous collaborative creations from a “franchise brain trust” that includes producers Avi Arad and Matt Tolmach, director Marc Webb, and writers Alex Kurtzman, Roberto Orci, Jeff Pinkner, Ed Solomon, and Drew Goddard.

“This collaboration was born out of the great experience we and Marc had working with Alex, Bob, and Jeff on The Amazing Spider-Man 2,” Arad and Tolmach jointly said, in a statement. “With more than 50 years’ wealth of stories in the comic books to draw upon for inspiration, the Spider-Man universe is truly boundless; in addition, the Spider-Man comics have the greatest rogues gallery of any series, and to have the chance to explore that on film is truly thrilling. Until now, we have approached each film as a separate, self-contained entity, but with this move, we have the opportunity to grow the franchise by looking to the future as we develop a continuous arc for the story. That is what Alex, Bob, Jeff, Ed, and Drew will do in this unprecedented collaboration, and we’re excited about the directions they are taking the character and the world.”

Kurtzman, Orci, and Pinkner, who together co-wrote the script for next year’s Spider-Man sequel, are also writing the screenplay for The Amazing Spider-Man 3, which Sony is optimistic that Webb will direct. Kurtzman and Orci, writing partners who’ve penned Star Trek and Transformers movies, will also pair with Solomon (Men in Black) on a script for Venom, with plans for Kurtzman to direct. (Kurtzman directed the 2012 drama, People Like Us, with Chris Pine and Elizabeth Banks.) Meanwhile, Cabin in the Woods director Goddard will write and likely direct The Sinister Six. (Goddard is also attached to Marvel’s planned Daredevil series for Netflix, so stay tuned on how that unfolds…)

“The Spider-Man film franchise is one of our studio’s greatest assets,” said Doug Belgrad, president of Columbia Pictures, in a statement. “We are thrilled with the creative team we have assembled to delve more deeply into the world that Marc, Avi and Matt have begun to explore in The Amazing Spider-Man and The Amazing Spider-Man 2. We believe that Marc, Alex, and Drew have uniquely exciting visions for how to expand the Spider-Man universe in each of these upcoming films.”

Not mentioned in the release is Andrew Garfield’s long-range involvement in the spinoffs. He recently confirmed he’s under contract through Spider-Man 3 — a fourth Spidey film and presumable the spinoffs were “all news” to him.

I've got a spy on you

I never discussed it much on here, but the FX series The Americans was one of my favorite new shows of 2013. Set in the 1980s, the show focused on two Russian spies who live in America and pose as a married family. The show featured some high drama and excellent cat-and-mouse thrills. If you're a fan of the show, you are anxious for Season 2 to arrive just like me. Well here's your first look at the new season set to premiere next Feburary.

Preparing for War

It appears that the cast for The Avengers sequel is set to get even bigger.

Seems like The Avengers will have to make room for one more in their upcoming film as it appears Don Cheadle could be reprising his role of Colonel James Rhodes, AKA War Machine, in Avengers: Age of Ultron. Originally mentioned in passing at USA Today, Bleeding Cool reported the story as a rumor followed by a "confirmation" from HitFix on the actor's return for the film.

In addition, Bleeding Cool reports that British actor Simon McBurney is in line for a role in the film that they are hearing will be the "new Jarvis," which isn't a replacement computer but the actual butler named Jarvis.

This all remains unconfirmed by Marvel Studios, but check back here for official confirmation on the matter as we learn it.

Avengers: Age of Ultron will bring the Marvel Universe's biggest heroes together again to face one of their biggest villains, with Marvel's The Avengers director Joss Whedon returning to write and direct the sequel. The film is set to open May 1, 2015.

Shuffle up and deal

Get ready for more political machinations from Frank Underwood (Kevin Spacey). Here's the first trailer for Season 2 of House of Cards set to be released on Netflix on February 14.

Naked ambition

This has bad idea written all over it. Let's hope someone shoots this Gun remake down before it ever has a chance of making it to theaters.

Paramount Pictures has brought Ed Helms ("The Hangover" films, We're the Millers) on board to star in a reboot of "The Naked Gun" comedy franchise, reports Variety.

The return of Detective Frank Drebin, played by Leslie Nielsen in the original films, will be written by Thomas Lennon and Robert Ben Garant, best known for the "Night at the Museum" and "Reno 911!" franchises.

Based on the earlier short-lived ABC TV series "Police Squad!" (which also starred Nielsen), three films were released including The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! (1988), The Naked Gun 2 1/2: The Smell of Fear (1991) and The Naked Gun 33 /3: The Final Insult (1994).

Jim Abrahams, David Zucker and Jerry Zucker created the series. Here's a video of some of the funnier moments from the films

Living on a Winger and a prayer

Speaking of midseason returns, Community is back (somehow). The promise of "six seasons and a movie" is becoming closer to actually being a reality. In the meantime, here's a trailer for the upcoming fifth season of the show.

Midseason madness

If you are like me, then you have begun to notice that TV has become a vast wasteland of reruns and Christmas specials. But fear not, all of your favorite shows will be returning soon enough. If you need to start figuring out when to set your DVRs, then I suggest you click on the link below which will provide you the return date for all major TV shows in a convenient calendar form. Now let's just hope January comes faster than normal.

http://tvline.com/2013/12/02/tv-calendar-2014-midseason-premiere-dates-finales/

He's got a spell on you

Jason Bateman plus spelling bees plus foul language equals me being very interested in Bad Words. Here's the red band trailer for the new film which not only stars Bateman but was directed by him as well.

Expanding their Reach-er

So after the announcement that they were adapting one of Lee Child's Jack Reacher novels into a feature film, I began reading the books. I decided I would not see the movie until I read the book that the film was based on. Considering that they chose to adapt the 9th one in the series, it has taken me quite a while. Now that I have finally begun reading the book that the Jack Reacher film was based on, news comes out that they are moving forward with a sequel. This one will be based on Child's latest book, the 18th. Looks like I've got some more work to do. Here's some more details on the sequel from Deadline.com:

Paramount Pictures and Skydance Productions are moving ahead with a sequel to Jack Reacher, the 2012 film that starred Tom Cruise and is based on Lee Child’s bestselling novel series. A rumor went around that the studio might be trying to squeeze in a Reacher film before Mission: Impossible 5. Paramount has denied that, but I’ve learned it’s trying to fast track another installment. This one will be based on Never Go Back, which was published earlier this fall. In it, Reacher heads back to his old military base in Virginia to take a woman to dinner who is now the commanding officer. By the time he gets there, she has been arrested, and Reacher finds himself being charged with pummeling one guy and fathering a child with a woman. He can’t remember either transgression but gets to the bottom of it with cunning and sometimes brute force.

The studio is out to writers; Jack Reacher director Christopher McQuarrie adapted the first one, but is too busy prepping MI5 for a summer production start. Cruise and the studio hope McQuarrie will direct the sequel. Why are they making a sequel? The original cost around $57 million in production costs, grossed $218 million worldwide and has done well in ancillaries. Before studios got tentpole crazy, trying to launch franchises with massive-budget originals, that was exactly the kind of numbers that made studios go back for more and try to grow a franchise, particularly when there is popular source material like the Child novels.

Cruise’s new film, Edge Of Tomorrow, will get its first trailer this week, one that will play this Friday on all prints of the Peter Jackson-directed The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug. While Cruise most certainly won’t do the Reacher film before MI5, it is possible he might squeeze in one of the other films he has percolating, including Go Like Hell. He’s going to play Mustang designer Carroll Shelby in a film about the battle between Ford and Ferrari for sports car supremacy at Le Mans in the 1960s in what shapes up as The Right Stuff for sports cars. Oblivion helmer Joseph Kosinski is prepping to reteam with Cruise in that film.

Web of guys

The first trailer for The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is here. Most will most likely notice the large number of villains seen or hinted at in the trailer (Electro! Rhino! Goblin!). What I noticed is that it seems like someone finally turned the lights on. I wasn't overwhelmed with the 2012 reboot largely in part because it felt so dark. Here's hoping this sequel uses its winning cast more effectively.

Valentine's Day Cards

From EW.com:

Netflix announced today that the second season of House of Cards will bow Friday, Feb. 14. All 13-episodes of the season that stars Kevin Spacey and Robin Wright will be available for viewers to watch instantly on Netflix.

The political series is from director David Fincher and screenwriters Beau Willimon and Eric Roth. This is what Netflix says is in store for the second season: Francis (Spacey) and Claire (Wright) Underwood continue their ruthless rise to power as threats mount on all fronts. Zoe Barnes (Kate Mara), an up-and-coming reporter and Francis’s former paramour, is inching closer to the truth about his crimes. President Walker’s (Michel Gill) billionaire confidante Raymond Tusk (Gerald McRaney) demands that Francis reciprocate political favors or face retribution. And Claire must confront the increasing glare of the spotlight as it eats away at her and Francis’s once private existence. The Underwood’s must overcome these dangers — past and present — to avoid losing everything, regardless of collateral damage they leave in their wake.

Netflix does not receive streaming data on its original fare. The service reports that it has over 40 million members in more than 40 countries, who apparently enjoy more than one billion hours of TV shows and movies per month, including original series.

We did the mash, the trailer mash

As we hit December again, it's time to start looking back. In this case, it's a look back at the iconic images seen in all of the trailers for this year's films. I've posted videos like this before and they are quite impressive with the ways they cultivate the clips into some distinct themes. Watch below and get nostalgic all over again.

Superman's new Gal pal

From EW.com:

After decades of waiting in the wings while the boys had all the fun — a frustrating exile best epitomized by a failed television pilot — Wonder Woman is finally set to return in the biggest way imaginable. Gal Gadot, the Israeli model and actress who appeared as Gisele Harrabo in the Fast and Furious franchise, will star as the iconic Amazon in Batman Vs. Superman.

“Wonder Woman is arguably one of the most powerful female characters of all time and a fan favorite in the DC Universe,” said director Zack Snyder, in a statement. “Not only is Gal an amazing actress, but she also has that magical quality that makes her perfect for the role. We look forward to audiences discovering Gal in the first feature film incarnation of this beloved character.”

Gadot, 28, competed in the 2004 Miss Universe pageant as Miss Israel before becoming a professional model/actress. What better qualifies her to play a superhero, though, might be the two years she spent in the Israeli army.

Ronning the show

The Anchorman 2 media blitz continues. This time Will Ferrell as Ron Burgundy helps anchor an actual newscast in North Dakota. Check out some of the highlights from his appearance below.

The World is not enough

Even though I saw it on opening weekend, I am once again behind the times when it comes to my movie reviews. In this case, it's for the latest entry in the Marvel film universe, Thor: The Dark World. This is the second solo film for the man with the mighty hammer, although he of course played an integral role in last summer's The Avengers as well.

While Thor's focus has been mainly on helping Earth in his previous adventures, this latest film sees him back in his home of Asgard. With his brother, the evil manipulative Loki (Tom Hiddleston) safely locked away in prison, Thor is enjoying peace among the worlds and poised to take over the throne from his father, Odin (played by Anthony Hopkins). Of course, peace and quiet does not last for very long as an dangerous army of dark elves, led by Malekith (Christopher Eccleston) is awakened and has set their sights on destroying Asgard and all of the other worlds in order to bring darkness across the entire universe.

The dark elves were reawakened thanks to Thor's Earth-bound love interest Jane Foster (played once again by Natalie Portman). While conducting some scientific research, Jane discovers the mysterious Aether, a substance that is the key to the dark elves' existence and their plan to bring darkness to the universe.

If all of this sounds a bit murky, shall we say, and confusing, then you're not alone. Once again Marvel has struggled to come up with a compelling villain to square off against one of its primary superheroes. The structure of the Marvel universe and the way these films are presented has certainly yielded big business but is also creatively putting them into a bind. The writers of these films are stuck with trying to find a villain that's compelling enough to be the focus of the film, yet not strong enough to make it reasonable that they can be dealt with by simply one hero as opposed to the entire Avenger team. Coupled with that is a lack of endgame to these films. As a result, each one is feeling procedural and perfunctory.

That is not to say that this film is not without its merits. Chris Hemsworth has embodied this larger than life character so smoothly that it makes you struggle to see anyone else but him in this role. And despite being imprisoned at the beginning of the film, there is still plenty of Loki found in this movie. He plays of Hemsworth and the cast very well to bring add some humor and malevolence to the scenes he is in. It is a shame that the Marvel films cannot develop additional villains that are as compelling as him. Let's hope that changes soon because they will be unable to keep going back to the Loki well every time.

Those who are fans of the fantasy genre will likely get more mileage out of this film than I did. Director Alan Taylor, who has worked in the past on shows like Game of Thrones knows how to stage the action nicely. He probably would have been better severed with having a film that remained exclusively in Asgard. The split time between Asgard and Earth presents some limitations. For one, too many characters from each world gets introduced without proper development. The Earth scenes are also problematic for the sake that they feel obligatory. It was as if the producers felt viewers would be turned off if the film wasn't at least partially rooted in our own world.

Too me, the Thor character works best as a team member rather than a solo star. This is certainly no knock on Hemworth. I just find myself caring less about Asgardian politics and more about seeing Thor just smash things with his hammer. As a weekend afternoon diversion, Thor: The Dark World is perfectly acceptable theater. But if you're looking for something truly epic, you'll have to keep waiting. This is a case of a lot of thunder, but the storm is still far off in the distance. Grade: B-

RBR: The To Do List

After last year's quirky Safety Not Guaranteed, it became apparent that Parks and Recreations's Aubrey Plaza has the potential to be a leading lady in films. In The To Do List she tries her hand at the R-rated comedy genre. She plays Brandy Klark, an over-achieving high school grad who realizes that for all she knows, she's uninformed when it comes to sex. She sets out to learn everything that there is to know before she heads off to college and treats it in the same organized fashion that she would studying for chemistry or history. Surrounding her is a cast of funny regulars in films like these including Alia Shawkat, Donald Glover, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, and Andy Samberg. Working as a lifeguard for the summer Brandy encounters several guys who are more than willing to help her check off her list items. The movie plays out in a similar fashion as other "high schooler wants to get laid before college" movies, but this one just doesn't work like it should. Part of the problem is the disconnect between what the central character should be and what she really is. For as talented as Plaza is, she makes Brandy too poised and mature for a character that has supposedly had her nose in a book her entire life. She achieves her tasks too easily and hardly shows any awkwardness. Even though it's a natural setting for this type of film, I also question why he character would want to be a lifeguard. The bigger problem with the film is that too many of the jokes simply don't land. Some of the fault here lies with writer/director Maggie Carey. She's working with a solid idea but does not seem to know exactly how to mine it for the most value. The one exception of this is with Bill Hader, who runs the swimming pool that Brandy works at. He manages to produce laughs in every scene that he's in. This may be due to the fact that Hader is married to Carey. Given their relationship, she probably just let him loose and have his natural comedic talent shine. The rest of the cast though needed a bit more direction in order to make the material work. This is not a bad film, just one that did not live up to its potential. Hopefully 'make a better film' will be on Carey's to do list. Rating: *** 1/2

Bullet theory

In an interesting (and timely) bit of viral marketing, the people behind X-Men: Days of Future Past has created this video which reveals that Magneto was actually responsible for the Kennedy assassination. Check out the perplexing, yet well made video for yourself below.

RBR: The Hangover Part III

A lot of people spent a lot of time griping over The Hangover Part II, knocking it for being basically a carbon copy of the first film. While I felt the criticism was a bit overblown, I understood it given how much people loved the first film. Despite the complaints, the fervor for the series was still there to encourage everyone to make a third film. So it was to my surprise that Part III came and went with hardly any discussion at all. There was no anger, yet no proclamations of the series returning back to form. It seemed odd until I finally had a chance to watch the film for myself and see that this was basically a Hangover movie in name only. Sure the members of the Wolfpack are all back but there is no blackout drunkenness nor the hilarity that goes along with it. This plays more like a straight forward action thriller than it does a comedy. I almost wonder if director Todd Phillips made this film out of spite. As if to say that if people didn't want a repeat of the first movie then he would give them the complete opposite. The plot centers around Doug getting kidnapped by a drug dealer (John Goodman) who won't release him unless the rest of the Wolfpack brings him Mr. Chow, who has stolen a large amount of money from him. In their quest to find and capture Chow, the film attempts to provide some closure to the events of the first two films, but none of it yields very many laughs. In fact the biggest laughs come from the post credits scene which most closely resembles something you would have seen in one of the first two films (perhaps lending more credence to my spite theory). At this point, it seems that the book has finally closed the Wolfpack. It is a shame that they chose to do so in a way that leaves the audience feeling wounded and hurt rather than howling with laughter. Rating: ** 1/2

Murphy's law

From indians.com

CLEVELAND -- The Indians headed into the offseason with right field identified as an area to potentially upgrade. Cleveland believes it may have found a solution in veteran David Murphy.

According to multiple sources, the Indians have reached an agreement with Murphy on a two-year, $12 million contract that includes a club option for 2016. Murphy completed a physical with Cleveland on Thursday, but there are still steps to finalize in the signing process.

The Indians will likely make an official announcement on Monday.

The left-handed-hitting Murphy would project to be the primary right fielder for the Indians, who used Drew Stubbs in the starting role last season. Stubbs' offensive struggles, especially against right-handed pitching, combined with the fact that he is eligible for arbitration, make him a candidate to either be traded or non-tendered.

Should Cleveland choose to keep Stubbs in the fold, he could serve as a fourth outfielder, taking starts in right field against left-handed pitchers. Ryan Raburn, who filled that type of backup role last season, is also under contract for 2014 for the Indians. Left and center field are currently occupied by Michael Brantley and Michael Bourn, respectively.

The 32-year-old Murphy has spent parts of eight season in the Major Leagues between stints with the Red Sox and Rangers. He suited up for the Red Sox in the 2006 and '07 seasons, when Indians manager Terry Francona was the manager in Boston.

Last season, Murphy posted a .220/.282/.374 slash line with 13 home runs, 26 doubles and 45 RBIs in 142 games (476 plate appearances) for Texas, which used him as a part-time outfielder and pinch-hitter as the season progressed. It was a disappointing dropoff from Murphy's showing in 2012, when he hit .304 with 15 homers, 61 RBIs and an .859 OPS for the Rangers.

Murphy, who earned $5.775 million last season, has spent the majority of his career in left field, but he has experience at all three outfield spots. Over the course of his eight seasons, he has also posted a .280 average and an .816 OPS against left-handed pitchers, compared to a .249 average and .657 OPS against righties.

Interestingly, the signing was initially reported by Texas sportswriter Jamie Kelly, who was told by one of her followers on Twitter that Murphy's daughter was spreading the word at daycare. When Murphy arrived to pick her up, he confirmed the news to the teachers.

Stubbs -- acquired from the Reds in a three-team, nine-player trade last winter -- moved from center field to right for the Indians and hit .233 with 10 homers, 45 RBIs and a .665 OPS in 146 games. Stubbs hit just .216 (.637 OPS) against right-handed pitching on the season and slumped to a .192 average (.572 OPS) in September.

Through arbitration, the 29-year-old Stubbs earned $2.825 million last season and would be scheduled for a raise this offseason.

Raburn, who signed a two-year extension with the Indians in August, hit .272 with 16 home runs, 55 RBIs and a .902 OPS in 87 games as a role player last season. The right-handed-hitting utility man made 46 starts in right field and ended the season batting .308 with a 1.020 OPS against left-handed pitchers.

RBR: World War Z

I put the blame for how horrible Quantum of Solace was squarely on director Marc Forster. As a result, I had decided that I would not watch or support any future film he would do. But with enough time having passed and with a lack of better options at the time at Redbox, I decided to check out his latest film, the zombie apocalypse thriller, World War Z. This is not necessarily a genre I am particularly fond of, but when it offers something interesting, like the comedic take in Zombieland, I take somewhat of an interest. This is an adaptation from a popular book, but from what I understand it takes some significant liberties with the story. Brad Pitt stars as a former UN worker who gets roped back in to help find a way to solve this zombie problem. I give the film a lot of credit in that it does not waste any time in getting into the action and frenzy. Once it starts, it really doesn't stop until the end credits roll. Along the way we get a number of decent set pieces, but nothing really revelatory about zombies or why they've suddenly started attacking the planet. The end result is probably the most mainstream version of a zombie film that you will ever see. For those who loves these films, this will likely come off as a disappointment, but for those who know nothing of the 'walking dead', this is probably a good entry point. Forster's work does nothing to make me reconsider my stance of what he did on Solace, but I am certainly more open to seeing other films from him in the future. Rating: *** 1/2

The host with the Most

Kermit and the gang are heading back to the big screen and this time they are taking their adventures overseas. Here's the newest trailer for Muppets Most Wanted.

RBR: Identity Thief

Perhaps we shouldn't be surprise that a film with a premise all about stealing the identity of someone would so liberally steal elements from other movies. That's what happens though in Identity Thief, a movie with a ton of promise thanks to the casting of two extremely funny people and saddling them with a tired, rehashed plot that has been done so much better in the past. There are elements of Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, Midnight Run, and Taking Care of Business seen here but this movie strips away the humor, intelligence, and heart found in those films. Instead, this film focuses on car chases, action scenes, and a physical brand of humor that yields very few laughs. It is a shame that a film that features two comedic actors who I enjoy produced only one actual laugh from me. I quickly became disinterested in seeing how everything would get resolved. Not surprisingly the central story ends on a predictable note while other subplots get ignored or are paid off in an unsatisfactory manner. Given how successful the film was, I know that I am now one of the last people to actually see this movie, but if you have managed to hold out longer than I have, continue doing so because there's nothing here worth your time. Rating: **

James Bond's greatest victory

From comingsoon.net:

The long-running battle between Kevin McClory and his estate with MGM and Danjaq, who own the rights to James Bond and related characters, is finally over after fifty years with MGM able to acquire the rights to the 007 franchise that had been held by McClory, who helped come up with the story for Thunderball with creator Ian Fleming. In the process of doing so, McClory has claimed that he created many of the iconic characters from the world of James Bond, presumably Blofeld and SPECTRE, who would appear in successive movies following that.

The lawsuits started flying in 1961 when McClory sued Fleming and received partial copyright to Thunderball that allowed him to remake it with Sean Connery in 1983 under the title Never Say Never Again. Neither MGM nor EON Productions have ever included that movie in any of the many James Bond box sets, considering it to take place outside of canon. Sony tried buying the rights from McClory and were promptly sued by MGM and McClory and his estate continued to be a problem for MGM and Danjaq over the years.

What could this mean for the future of the James Bond franchise? Well, for one thing, Danjaq's production division EON Productions could now theoretically introduce a new Ernst Stavro Blofeld or reintroduce SPECTRE after having created the crime organization "Quantum" for the Daniel Craig reboot Casino Royale.

No details of the settlement or the amount paid have been released.

RBR: Monsters University

We have long known that Pixar spoiled movie goers with the quality of the movies that they put out for over a decade. Audiences and critics began to realize that producing classic after classic is not a given based on Pixar's recent streak of underwhelming efforts. It was not only taken for granted that each film they made would be great, but that even their sequels would be just as good as their original films. When you look at both of the Toy Story sequels, it is remarkable how they were able to maintain such excellence. A large part of that was likely due to them having a clear vision for what the stories should be for each of those films. We saw actual character development and a defined story arc related to life and mortality. The same cannot be said for Monsters University, a prequel to 2001's Monsters Inc.. Unlike with Woody and the gang, it seems as if the Pixar crew has no idea what to do with Mike and Sully. The concept of taking a look at them in college is intriguing, although a bit odd for a movie aimed at such a young audience. The fact that they essentially do a Revenge of the Nerds ripoff is disappointing. There are plenty of colorful characters and jokes that work regardless of how old you are, but none of this feels innovative or fresh. If this were merely a Saturday morning cartoon extension of the franchise, I probably would not be as hard on them. But for them to revisit these characters nearly a decade later, I expected something more worthwhile. From a technical standpoint, there's nothing wrong here. However, this film is more representative of a student who coasts through school on decent grades rather than the valedictorian who puts everything they've got into making sure they are the best. Rating: ***

Block busted

News hit earlier today that the remaining Blockbuster video stores will be closed, essentially ending its reign as the primary method of renting movies. While the writing has been on the wall for some time, the news is still sad as I feel a piece of my childhood has been taken away from me now. To mark this occasion, I am posting an article written today on Entertainment Weekly's website which nicely encapsulates the great things and not so great things about this former major corporation.

It was the McDonald’s of video rental chains. The company that squashed countless local mom-and-pop video stores; its ubiquitous blue-and-yellow signs blanketing the country, cities and suburbs alike, with the promise of a largely efficient, largely impersonal, sometimes painless video rental experience.

By 2004, Blockbuster Video had 9,000 remarkably similar-looking locations. By every retail business standard, Blockbuster Video had won. Then, slowly, as The New York Times put it earlier today, “Internet killed the video store.” Blockbuster eventually adapted to changing technology and consumer habits, but not fast enough. There were struggles. Netflix. Policy changes. No late fees! Store closures. Late fees are back again! Ownership change. And in January, the chain will be gone, shuttering its remaining stores and DVD mail service.

Some are posting fond remembrances of Blockbuster. You can’t spend that many hours of your life somewhere, especially if it was during your youth, and not have some emotional attachment to the place. But let’s face it: Blockbuster was never cool. It was never really the good guy, or a company you cheered for.

So let’s tell it like it really was. Here’s 10 things we won’t miss about Blockbuster Video:

1. The wrong movie is in the box. These first few entries listed could be said about video stores in general. But once Blockbuster Video conquered the known video rental world, Blockbuster Video was “the video store.” The company became synonymous with what a video store is, and its downfall is largely because it kept being just a video store. So these are fair game. So: You get home from Blockbuster. You have your overpriced 2-liter soda and movie-theater-sized box of Skittles and your movie. You go to the DVD player and open the box. And then: “WHERE IS STARSHIP TROOPERS? THIS IS FLATLINERS!”

2. The scavenger hunt. The clerk’s computer says there’s one copy of Office Space in the store. But its not where it should be on the shelf. Maybe it’s behind another movie? Maybe its stacked in the wrong category? It couldn’t be under “Drama” could it? “Where is it? You said you had a copy in stock. Where is it!?” So you go on a scavenger hunt around the store with the clerk trying to find that missing copy of Office Space because you’re really in the mood for Office Space and your heart was set on watching it. The best part of this is when the poor schlub clerk gets on his hands and knees and goes through the return bin to see if it’s buried under copies of Titanic. Then he finally says maybe Office Space was stolen. STOLEN. You know, like your time.

3. The unkind. Now we’re going way back: Blockbuster was normally pretty decent about staying on top of this, but we can’t do a post on video store gripes without mentioning those VCR tapes that were not rewound. “Be Kind, Rewind.” Also: Scratched /unplayable rentals.

4. The New Releases mirage. Blockbuster-specific gripes now: You think you’re not too late to get a copy of The Fellowship of the Ring even though its Friday night and it just came out this week, because there’s a whole section of the New Releases wall filled with copies of the film. But remember: The movie artwork boxes are hollow. The boxes with the actual discs are in the Blockbuster boxes behind the artwork boxes. None of the false-front boxes have movies behind them. It’s a trick! The display wall is a total mirage. Blockbuster succeeded in looking fully stocked with the latest movies, even when there’s not one copy in the store. Fooled you! Now go see if a copy of Legend is in, loser!

5. Late fees. Of course. Late fees. Once you rented a Blockbuster video, the clock was ticking. You better watch it the first night, especially if it was a coveted New Release. Those dollar-a-day fees stack up quick. And there’s an unholy checking-account-crippling $60-80 full replacement fee lurking if you ever actually lost one of those boxes. For all their brightly lit stores, Blockbuster Video operated like the grim gang in Goodfellas: “Oh you forgot to return a DVD by midnight? F–k you, pay me! You returned it with the wrong disc? F–k you, pay me!”

6. Prudishness. You had to get your porn elsewhere. Okay. But even NC-17 films of some artistic/entertainment merit were banned by the chain in the 1990s, which was yet another blow against studios looking for a way to distribute NC-17 films. In other words: If you really wanted to appreciate Elizabeth Berkley causing a minor tsunami in a swimming pool in Showgirls, you couldn’t get it at Blockbuster.

7. Indie/foreign film? Ha! It’s called Blockbuster Video for a reason, film geek. You want an art film, or something with something nutty like subtitles, you best go someplace else. But Blockbuster will have 71 copies of Enemy of the State.

8. Those uniforms. During its heyday, Blockbuster had Disney-style clean-cut rules for its employees, who also had to wear pretty dorky uniforms (rather than dress like, you know, normal people, like at indie video and record stores). A group of male employees actually sued Blockbuster for a 1994 policy that banned male employees from having long hair. Check out this Blockbuster employee training video. A creepily omniscient training manager who calls himself a “professional opportunist” gets rather inappropriate with a teenage clerk and prods her to date a customer’s son while harassing her for apparently committing the unspeakable sin of accepting Bon Jovi tickets. (If you find yourself obsessing about this amazing video, which is totally understandable, you’ll find a breakdown of it from an ex-employee here).

9. Stagnation. When it comes to resisting change, Blockbuster critics point to the company being too slow to react to the rise of DVD-by-mail services and online streaming (Netflix was operating for six years before Blockbuster got in the movie-by-mail service game — which is astounding). But the company was slow to embrace other changes too that made even its core business pretty lousy. From shifting from VCR tapes to DVD. From pan-and-scan format videos to widescreen/letterbox. From DVD to Blu-ray. Being a Blockbuster customer who actually loved movies, and therefore loved improvements in the way movies were formatted or displayed, meant always being frustrated or disappointed because the company seemed reluctant to stock titles and formats until most of their customers were demanding the new versions. You never really got the feeling Blockbuster, as a company, loved, or even understood, movies. It’s like the way rental discs were given to customers in generic Blockbuster boxes stripped of their original packaging — you felt like you were renting a product unit, not a piece of commercial art.

10. Then everything fell apart. First standards were allowed to slip a little. Remember how Blockbuster went from having every video displayed with the box cover facing toward you? And then all of a sudden stores starting stacking DVDs like library books to pile more in? And there was also the surge of video games, which was understandable. But then, during the final recent years of Blockbuster, the stores began to stock all sort of random items, whether they had something to do with movies or games or not. Posters, stuffed animals, T-shirts, toys. The stores went from creepily anti-septic and strictly regimented environments to random flea markets peddling anything to survive.

Now here’s the really odd part. The twist ending. I walked through a Blockbuster about a year ago. I was surprised how far the chain had drifted from its original concept … the videos and games stacked crazily everywhere, the dirty carpets, the random products all over the place, angry miserable employees who looked like they wandered in off the street. And I found myself … actually missing the old Blockbuster Video. Missing it a little, even with all these gripes still firmly recalled.

Nostalgia is funny like that. For years you go to a place. For years you don’t like it much. Then it’s gone. Then you miss it.

Hammer envy

Check out what happens when Loki tries to do some market research to find out who the better superhero is.

RBR: Grown Ups 2

I am developing quite the cognitive dissonance when it comes to Adam Sandler's films these days. As I watch more films and learn more about what it takes to make a great film, I increasingly notice the flaws that are found in his movies. And yet one fact remains (mostly) true whenever I watch him on screen - he finds a way to make me laugh. Given the sophomoric nature of the humor, I don't always take pride in the fact that I laugh, but what can I say? In this follow up to the successful film from 2010, we find Sandler and all of his buddies (Kevin James, Chris Rock, and David Spade) and their families all living the sweet life in suburbia. If you are looking for a plot here, do not bother. While story has never been a strength in the Sandler library, this one is particularly startling in how flimsy of a premise there is to string along these scenes. This is moreso a collection of scenes with Sandler riffing with his friends, as well as more tertiary friends (Tim Meadows, Colin Quinn, Nick Swardson, etc.). The sad thing is that among this collection of scenes you see some morsels of goodness that make you believe a better film could have been delivered by this cast if anyone was interested in putting in some effort. Both the adults and the kids (all of whom are back from the first film) have some nice moments. Ultimately, this is the perfect type of movie to watch on cable. You can turn it on in the middle, leave at various parts and come back again and watch some more later and never really miss a beat. During the times you watch, you're likely to find at least a few jokes you'll like but you also won't feel like you're missing out if you do not see every frame. For all of their weaknesses, this is a group of guys that I enjoy watching and hanging out with. This one won't be winning any awards (save for a few Razzies perhaps), but I'm ok with that. A steady diet of this would be too much, but there's nothing wrong with an occasional low-brow indulgence. Rating: ** 1/2

Breaking Halloween news!

I've been trying my hardest to avoid most previews and trailers for Anchorman 2, but I think I can make an exception for this special message from Ron Burgundy.

Special Edna

From EW.com

Fox and The Simpsons producers are making some changes to Sunday’s programming to pay tribute to the passing of longtime Simpsons actress Marcia Wallace.

First, the network is replacing a repeat of American Dad with a classic Simpsons episode that focused on Wallace’s beloved character Edna Krabappel.

The network will re-air the 16th episode of the show’s third season, “Bart the Lover,” which offered a sympathetic take on Bart’s cynical, lonely teacher. In the episode, Bart discovers Krabappel has posted a personal ad, so he begins writing her bogus love letters. After setting her up on a fake date, he spies her sitting by herself in the restaurant. When she’s still there hours later, he’s no longer amused by his prank and sets about trying to make things right. The episode won Wallace an Emmy Award in 1992.

“Bart the Lover” will air as the 7:30 p.m. lead-in to an all-new Simpsons, titled “4 Regrettings and a Funeral.” The new episode will then conclude with a tribute card from the producers honoring Wallace. Also, the episode opens with an epic-length couch-gag spoof of The Hobbit.

Wallace died at age 70. “I was tremendously saddened to learn this morning of the passing of the brilliant and gracious Marcia Wallace,” producer Al Jean said in a statement earlier this week. “She was beloved by all at The Simpsons and we intend to retire her irreplaceable character.”

Come back on down!

From TVGuide.com:

One lucky (and unsuspecting) audience attending an upcoming taping of The Price is Right will be treated to an appearance by the game show's longtime host Bob Barker, as the Emmy Award-winning legend returns to his old CBS Television City studio to celebrate his 90th birthday.

"We've had Bob on just one other time since Drew Carey took over the show," says executive producer Mike Richards. "It was when Bob's book, Priceless Memories, came out and it was a priceless moment for fans. I was looking for the perfect reason to bring Bob back again and this TV legend turning 90 is the perfect reason."

Barker's pre-taped, one-day appearance will air on his birthday, Dec. 12, during a weeklong tribute (Dec. 9-13) to the animal rights crusader. "Monday through Friday we're going to be doing pet adoptions, which is something Bob did on the show for years," explains Richards.

During his appearance, Barker will help place a pup for adoption and take part in a special Showcase presentation featuring prizes that honor the benefits of reaching 90. Such as? "Being treated well," Richards says. "'And you'll be treated incredibly well on this trip to wherever... It's intended to show off just how hilarious Bob is and let him have a little fun. We couldn't be more excited!"

With both Barker and The Price is Right — daytime's No. 1 show — still going strong, Richards feels confident making one more announcement: "I'm officially extending an invitation to Bob to come back for his 100th birthday!"

Bob Barker, come on down!

Counting down the Days

Worlds are about to collide as the casts from the two X-Men franchises are about to come together in one epic movie. While the film, titled X-Men: Days of Future Past, won't come out until next year, we already have a first trailer. Check it out below.

Back into the Shadows

After news earlier this week about George Clooney's The Monuments Men getting pushed back to 2014, we get news today that another film has abandoned its December release date. Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit will now also move to early 2014. Here's the full story from EW.com.

EW has confirmed that Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit has dropped off the Christmas release schedule and will now open Jan. 17, 2014

The Paramount Pictures’ action movie is based on characters from late author Tom Clancy and stars Chris Pine (Star Trek) as a young CIA analysis who uncovers a Russian plot to crash the U.S. economy with a terrorist attack. Kenneth Branagh (Valkyrie), Kevin Costner (Man of Steel), and Kiera Knightly (Anna Karenina) will also star alongside Pine in the upcoming action thriller directed by Kenneth Branagh.

Could a Christmas Day release date announcement for Martin Scorsese’s The Wolf of Wall Street be just around the corner? The speculation remains high that Jack Ryan’s move could be a strategic effort by Paramount to announce a Dec. 25 release date for Martin Scorsese’s highly anticipated The Wolf of Wall Street, starring Leonardo DiCaprio (The Great Gatsby) and Matthew McConaughey (Mud).

Moving Wolf Of Wall Street into Jack Ryan’s old release date of Christmas Day would effectively keep the film in the running for the Oscars but as of yet, Paramount has not commented on whether they will release the Scorsese film before the end of the year not.

Winter is coming

As we count down the days until the Thor sequel hits theaters, the first trailer for a sequel to a different Avenger has hit the Internet. Here's your first look at Captain America: The Winter Soldier

Moving Monuments

From EW.com

George Clooney told the Los Angeles Times Tuesday that his World War II drama The Monuments Men would not meet its scheduled Dec. 18 opening and will instead hit theaters in early 2014. A representative from Sony Pictures, who is distributing the film, confirmed the news to EW and stated that the film would be released sometime in the first quarter of 2014, but no release date has been set.

“We just didn’t have enough time,” Clooney told the paper. The movie, which Clooney directed, produced, and stars in, boasts an all-star cast including Matt Damon, Bill Murray, John Goodman, and Cate Blanchett and was considered an awards hopeful. According to the report, when Clooney arrived in London to work with composer Alexandre Desplat on the score, he and producing partner Grant Heslov realized they were in trouble.

“If any of the effects looked cheesy, the whole movie would look cheesy,” Clooney told the Times. “We simply don’t have enough people to work enough hours to finish it.” He added: ”All we’ve ever said, from the very beginning, is that we wanted to make a commercial, non-cynical piece of entertainment.”

The Monuments Men isn’t the first film to drop out of the late 2013 release schedule — others have included Sony’s Foxcatcher and The Weinstein Company’s Grace of Monaco, both of which have been pushed to early 2014 as well.

This is rather disappointing news for me considering this was in my Top 5 most anticipated films for this year. Then again, Clooney's current film, Gravity, was originally supposed to come out in 2012 and it's done all right with its delay. So I guess we just have to now play the waiting game.

Non the wiser

What is it about Liam Neeson that he keeps finding himself getting disturbing phone calls that result in him having to go into kick-ass mode? I'm not sure, but as a movie fan, I'm sure glad it keeps happening. Here's a trailer for his latest thriller, Non-Stop (directed by Jaume Collet-Serra, who also directed Neeson in Unknown) that has him busting out his specific set of skills on an airplane.

Playing the race card

As usual, I'm way late on getting to one of my reviews, but at least this one will be a full one and not a quick hit, so take what you can get.

When you think of some of the greatest athletes in their respective sports, it could be argued that they would not have achieved their greatness had it not been for a rival who equaled them in skill and forced them to be even better. That is certainly true for the two men at the center of Rush, a film about the real-life rivalry of Formula 1 racers James Hunt and Niki Lauda. Directed by Ron Howard, this film gives us one of the best stories about rivalry that I have ever seen.

Hunt (played by Chris Hemsworth) is a blond-haired playboy who has seen success in every venture of his life. Before moving up to Formula 1, he relishes as the big fish in the small pond. His first true taste of competition comes from Lauda (played by Daniel Bruhl). His calculated efforts to be the fastest on the track rub Hunt the wrong way. After establishing these characters, the film focuses on the 1976 season as both men risk everything in order to be champion.

What makes their story interesting is how these two were true opposites. Hunt had his dashing good looks and carefree attitude. Lauda was more the intellectual, using his brains to gain a competitive. Hunt was a people person, while Lauda was stand-offish and brusk. Having a rival be your polar opposite is not a new storytelling device. Yet what makes Rush stand out is that neither man is portrayed negatively or as the villain here. Each man has their strengths and their weaknesses. Howard lets history dictate how we feel about these individuals rather than telling us who we should root for.

Howard should also be commended for the way he is able to depict the racing scenes themselves. You gain the thrill and exhilaration of watching the races just as if you were at the speedway yourself. Howard does not shy away from the dangerous nature of the sport. Scenes involves crashes and wrecks are realistically shown, neither sugar-coating the scares nor exploiting the violence. If you are at all familiar with the rivalry between the two, you know that Lauda is involved in a life-threatening crash midway through the season. We watch in shocked amazement as he refuses to let the accident deter his motivation to be the best

While the focus is on the events on the track, we do get glimpses into the personal lives of these two and the roles they played on their ability to win. Each man has varying levels of success when it comes to their love life. Hunt, for instance, sees his marriage (his wife is played by Olivia Wilde) fall apart in the midst of the season. Although Howard is right to focus on the racing, I would have liked to see him flesh out the women in these guys' lives more fully

Given that Howard does not take as many creative liberties with their story as some directors do when telling the real life stories of other notable people, there are not a lot of surprises here if you are at familiar with the outcome of the '76 season. I personally did not know the end result so I was fully engrossed in how things would play out. However, others may feel cheated that the film does not offer more than a summary of their competitive season.

Credit goes to both Hemsworth and Bruhl for their performances here. Both are outstanding in fully fleshing out who these men were and showing their complexities. I would imagine many will come to the film simply for the racing scenes and will leave surprise as to how good both of these men are in their respective roles. In a different year, I could see either one earn some awards buzz, but I have a feeling this year will have too crowded of a field for their work to be recognized.

I cannot say that I am a huge fan of car racing, but the competitive nature of athletes does capture my attention. For that reason, this movie is excellent. Its story transcends the featured sport and focuses more on the will to win. That is a theme that anyone can relate to. When it comes to athlete biopics, this one is able to rush ahead of the pack. Grade: A-

It's been surreal

It's been way too long since we've been able to see the adventures of U.S. Marshal Chris Monsanto (Chris Elliott). Well wait no more. Here's your first look at Season 3 of Eagleheart which you can see on Comedy Central's Adult Swim starting on November 14th.

RBR: RED 2 (Quick hits)

This one is not available on home movie yet, but it is long gone from the theaters, so we'll just stick it here and be done with it. Those who were fans of the first RED film, will get another dose of the same here. Thankfully I enjoyed the first one and found enough to like here as well. It mostly comes from seeing this group of aging stars have a lot of fun blowing stuff up real good. Could they have done something more interesting from a storytelling perspective? Absolutely. But this is the type of film that matinee theaters were built for. It's harmless entertainment that keeps you engaged for a few hours but then you'll likely quickly forget about a few days after you watched it. There's no need to do a third film in this series, but if they opted to do so, I wouldn't be totally against it. This was certainly better than most of Bruce Willis' efforts (A Good Day to Die Hard, G.I. Joe: Retaliation) this year. Rating: *** 1/2

RBR: The Croods (Quick hits)

Technically this one isn't available at Redbox yet, but it is available on home video and will be at Redbox next month. This animated caveman picture does have some charm. The voice cast including Nicholas Cage and Emma Stone attempts to bring some energy to the characters. It also creates some memorable animal characters that the kids will adore. The biggest problem with the film is its story that plays more like a TV pilot than a self contained film narrative. There is a sense of desperation on the filmmakers part to setup each character and have you like them so that you can see more wacky adventures from this crew. If this had been on Nickelodeon or Disney, I would rate it higher. However, there have been way better animated films that were actually worth your money as opposed to this prehistoric dud. Rating: ***

RBR: Broken City (Quick hits)

Talk about a dreadfully dull film. You would think that a film starring Russell Crowe, Mark Wahlberg, and Catherine Zeta Jones would crackle with life, but this nearly put me to sleep. About the only thing keeping me awake was trying to wrap my head around the numerous plot holes and mistakes that are found in the story. Like Admission, we see a lot of characters doing dumb things that make no sense to anyone with half a brain. I was hoping for some decent police/political thriller but this material isn't even worth doing on a fourth rate Law & Order spinoff. Rating: **

RBR: Admission (Quick hits version)

So there have been a lot of films that I have seen over the past few months that I never got around to reviewing for one reason or another. I am going to try and knock them all out in a row right now. Given that most of these films aren't in theaters any more, I won't do lengthy reviews. But at least you get to hear my thoughts on them anyways. So here goes nothing...

Tina Fey has earned fame and acclaim for her brand of smart comedy. Whether it was being on SNL or 30 Rock, making films like Mean Girls, or writing one of her successful books, she has managed to find the funny in an intelligent manner. For that reason, I am dumbfounded to see her associate herself with such dumb material like this film. What's even more baffling is that her character works for one of the most prestigious universities in the country. Fey plays an admissions counselor for Princeton. For someone responsible for evaluating the lives and merits of others, the decisions she makes in her own life are highly questionable. After breaking up with her boyfriend (Michael Sheen, doing a rather unfunny running gag of always showing up at inopportune times) she learns that she may have found a son that she gave up for adoption at birth thanks to Paul Rudd who teaches the boy at a progressive charter school. Fey's actions dealing with this potential son do not yield much laughs nor warmth. You just sit there wondering why anyone thought this material was good. Even character actors like Wallace Shaw and Lily Tomlin get wasted here. Now that 30 Rock is over, there were high hopes that Fey would make a successful transition to film, but if she continues to do projects like this she better hope to get a new job in TV real soon. Rating: ** 1/2

New Fall TV Review: The Blacklist

After his disastrous run on The Office, I wasn't sure I was ready to see James Spader on TV again, but he is singlehandedly making this new spy drama must-see. He plays mastermind criminal Raymond Reddington who has willingly turned himself in to the F.B.I. with the promise of sharing information on all the criminals he has worked with over the years. He also requests that he work exclusively with a young female agent. The show has procedural elements as each week deals with Reddington and the female agent working on capturing a criminal on Reddington's "blacklist" each week. However, there are also some perplexing mythological questions that have been established already. One is why Reddington chose to specifically work with this young agent. The one that interests me more is what is going on with the agent's husband who may not be all that he seems. There are some Jason Bourne elements to his storyline that certainly has me intrigued. Right now it is balancing that line to appease fans of both types of shows. But as I mentioned at the top, Spader is the reason to watch. His smarmy, sneaky Reddington captures your interest every time he is on the screen. Even when the "case of the week" doesn't provide something of interest, he keeps you invested in watching. I look forward to seeing how each of these storylines play out as the season unfolds. Verdict: Earns a season pass on the DVR

If you aint Ryan, you aint trying

The release of the first trailer for the new film Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit takes on a more somber tone with the news this week of the passing of author Tom Clancy, who was the creator of the Jack Ryan character. While this film is based on an original story, it seems to still be very much rooted in the themes of geopolitics that Clancy was known for in his books. You can check out the trailer for yourself below.

New Fall TV Review: Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

This was probably the show I most anticipated coming in to this fall season and thus far it has no disappointed. Thus far, they've done a nice job of scaling back the story and production to be able to bring the Marvel universe to the small screen. The Marvel name is also not just being slapped on here to draw in viewers. I am loving all of the references to previous Marvel films that have been used within just the first two episodes. This show, however, cannot succeed if it merely makes references to other popular work. It has to be able to stand on its own. While there are some solid components here, I am not fully sold on everyone in the cast. Clark Gregg is great in the role of Agent Coulson and provides some excellent stability. I also like Ming Na Wen as the reluctant enforcer. The two British tech agents known collectively as Fitzsimmons are also a lot of fun. The actors playing Skye and Agent Ward are the weak links thus far, but hopefully they will improve over time. I like that they are already establishing some mysteries that will likely unfold as the season progresses. Already here are the key questions that they are teasing us with:
1)How did Agent Coulson survive and why does he not know what actually happened to him? 2)What happened to Melinda May that made her reluctant to go back out into the field? 3)Can Skye be trusted or is she using SHIELD in order to help her Rising Tide cause? 4)Who is responsible for Project Centipede?

This seems like it should be a very fun show that I am highly looking forward to watching each week. Verdict: Earns a season pass on the DVR

24 prepares for a bloody good time

From comingsoon.net

Twentieth Century Fox Television, Imagine Television and Fox are sending the production of "24: Live Another Day" across the Atlantic to London for a thrilling international adventure, as the new tent-pole event series restarts the clock on the groundbreaking and Emmy Award-winning drama franchise starring Kiefer Sutherland. As previously announced, "24: Live Another Day" will make its debut in the summer of 2014 on Fox.

"'24' has always had such a global sensibility," said Sutherland, who also serves as an executive producer on the event series. "But to be able to tell this intense '24'-style story with the beauty of Europe's history and architecture as the backdrop is going to be fascinating. Hopefully, by the time you're finished watching an episode, you'll feel like you've been there...on the edge of your seat."

Co-showrunner and executive producer Evan Katz added, "We wanted the show's return to be an event, and part of that was putting Jack in a very different context. Four years ago, we left Jack a fugitive from justice and we're going to pick him up four years later in London."

Co-showrunner and executive producer Manny Coto continued, "Jack is soon back on the run and it takes us into the streets of London and in places that break new ground for the show. We've shot in New York, Washington, Los Angeles and Cape Town -- but now we're in London and Jack's loose on the streets of Europe, hunted by and hunting bad guys."

Originally premiering November 6, 2001, "24" was nominated for a total of 73 Emmy Awards, winning for Outstanding Drama Series in 2006. Over the course of eight seasons, and a two-hour telefilm, Sutherland garnered seven Emmy Award nominations and one win for Outstanding Lead Actor - Drama Series.

"24: Live Another Day" is a production of 20th Century Fox Television and Imagine Television in association with Teakwood Lane Productions. Howard Gordon, Brian Grazer and Kiefer Sutherland will executive produce, along with an additional team to be announced. The original series, which had its last American broadcast on May 24, 2010, was created by Joel Surnow and Robert Cochran.

Tribe Watch '13 (Final Report)

So the Indians season finally came to an end last night after they lost the 1-game Wild Card Playoff to the Tampa Bay Rays. It was a tough loss to watch, but I'm overall still extremely proud of this team for their season and excited for what is to come. Last night was a reflection of what this team currently is - a decent team with a great manager that still has to address some issues before they can be a legitimate contender. As we turn to the offseason, there will be some good dilemmas to deal with. One will be determining if we can re-sign Ubaldo Jimenez, Scott Kazmir, or both. Both guys seemingly got better as the season went on but it seems unlikely that we'll be able to afford both, so the question becomes will be able to keep either here next year. We then will have to look at offering some extensions to players who we will want to lock up for the long term future, like Justin Masterson and Jason Kipnis. There are also some players that I would like to see gone from the team like Chris Perez and Asdrubal Cabrera. These guys do nothing to enhance our team, but hopefully that are seen to still have some talent so that we will be able to trade them. Lastly you have to wonder about Jason Giambi. While the stats do not indicate it, you could potentially argue he was an MVP on this team because of the contributions he made. I don't know whether he's ready to retire or still wants to play. I would like to see him remain with us in some capacity, however.

In general, this was an amazing season that was so entertaining from beginning to end. I love this core group of guys that we have and I truly believe we are moving in the right direction. Last night's loss stings, but that will fade soon enough. The good news is that we are now just four months away from pitchers and catchers reporting for Spring Training. No matter what the calendar says, I will always say Go Tribe!!