Wishing a fond farewell to beloved genre actor Rutger Hauer who passed away on July 19 at age 75. Hauer’s extensive appearances in sci-fi, fantasy, and horror films & TV series including Blade Runner, Ladyhawke, The Hitcher, Blind Fury, Split Second, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Smallville, Sin City, Batman Begins, Hobo with a Shotgun, True Blood, and Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets.

Star Wars: The Last Jedi spoilers follow.

I’ve been thinking a bit about Luke in Last Jedi. Contrary to the seeming predominant perspective, I still do like Luke’s story arc in the film (as well as most of the film). The standard criticism appears to be based in outrage over the possibility that Luke would ever succumb to murderous impulse, if even temporarily, and that he would subsequently become so jaded and dejected. But Luke’s response is actually completely logical and appropriate to his personality, and Yoda even points it out. Luke has always been emotionally impetuous, leading to errors in judgement. When Ben Kenobi died, Luke couldn’t contain his emotions and drew the attention of the stormtroopers. In Empire Luke takes his lightsaber into the Force cave even after Yoda warns him not to. Then Luke chooses to leave Dagobah for Bespin even after Yoda warns him that he’s not fit for the challenge. Even in Return of the Jedi Luke allows the Emperor’s provocation to tempt him. Then Luke again turns enraged and avenges himself on Vader after being provoked by an implied threat against his sister. So not only does Luke have a history of allowing his emotions to control his actions, Yoda in Last Jedi specifically scolds Luke for always having his head in the stars instead of being more grounded and responsible. I’m completely convinced that the Yoda scene in Last Jedi is one of the most important and pivotal moments in all of Star Wars because in contrast to commonplace fan assumption that Luke became a responsible, dependable Jedi Knight following the destruction of the second Death Star, the Yoda ghost scene in Last Jedi proves that Luke never truly grew up and overcame his impulsiveness until he heard Yoda’s final lesson. After that point is when Luke, now truly a Jedi Master, visits Crait to face responsibility for, not redeem, Kylo Ren.

Furthermore, the argument that Luke Skywalker would never turn jaded and withdrawn and cloister himself away also doesn’t hold water with me. During his recovery from the wampa attack, Luke was sullen. During the victory celebration on Endor, Luke detached himself from his companions. Moreover, Yoda, who was the assertive leader of the Jedi Council and an aggressive warrior, who instigated duels against both Count Dooku & Darth Sidious, exiled himself to the remote planet Dagobah following the Clone Wars and the execution of the Jedi. His personality also changed from being emphatic to being distracted, jaded, and nearly senile. So Luke Skywalker’s personality in The Last Jedi absolutely has prior precedent. Yoda exiled himself and became a grumpy old man after the Jedi he was responsible for were executed. Luke behaves exactly the same way.

And if I’m being provocative, I’ll go one step further. The common assumption is that Luke died at the end of the film, abandoning his corporeal form to join the Force. However, the film previously demonstrated that teleporting matter with the Force is possible. Droplets of water transferred across space from Rey on Ahch-To to Kylo Ren on Snoke’s star destroyer. So viewers can’t entirely dismiss the possibility that Luke Skywalker actually bodily teleported himself off Ahch-To at the end of The Last Jedi so that he may re-appear alive and well in the forthcoming Episode IX.

A close friend and member of my now long defunct local anime fan club, along with his business partner, have now opened their new tabletop gaming/collectable toys store in Palm Harbor, Florida.
Warehouse 51 is located in the Connell Square shopping plaza directly across the street from the Tarpon Springs campus of St. Petersburg College. Merchandise is still going up on the shelves (which are themselves still going up), including brand new release CCGs, tabletop game miniatures, board games, vintage “new old stock” gaming merchandise, domestic & import Transformers toys, and a small selection of import mecha anime toys (that will grow in the coming weeks). If you’re in the area or want somewhere to visit during these lazy summer days, please do drop by!

Beloved actor Adam West passed away yesterday, June 10, 2017, after battling leukemia. West is best known for starring as Batman in the 1966-1968 television series and for providing the voice of “Mayor Adam West” in 111 episodes of the ongoing Family Guy animated television comedy. West was 88.

“‘Our dad always saw himself as The Bright Knight and aspired to make a positive impact on his fans’ lives. He was and always will be our hero,'” his family said in a statement.”

Source: The Los Angeles Times & MSN Entertainment

Alden Thomas, AnimeNation’s former graphic designer, and the designer behind AN Entertainment’s Risky/Safety, Miami Guns, and Haré+Guu DVDs, has published his first illustrated children’s book, along with writer JoAnn R. Goldrich. The beautiful labor of love The House Ate It is available in digital & paperback editions from Amazon now.

British actor Kenny Baker, best known as the actor behind the Star Wars franchise’s robot character R2-D2, passed away today at the age of 81 following a lengthy illness. Baker also appeared in films including Time Bandits (1981), Amadeus (1984), and Labyrinth (1986). May the Force be with him always.

Regrettably, I don’t live in the UK, so I won’t be able to see this theatrical re-release, although I did see the film theatrically in 1986. I’m pretty certain that I’ve watched this movie more times than I’ve seen Star Wars.

53-year-old Eisner award winning comic artist Darwyn Cooke passed away this morning due to cancer. Donations in memoriam may be made to the Canadian Cancer Society and Hero Initiative.

Can any kind soul please tell me the title and/or author of this book? Any supplemental information about it would be appreciated as well. It’s a Japanese paperback that appears to date from 1936. This particular copy was printed during or before 1944. It appears to be some sort of historical or philosophical non-fiction text.

Thai director and cinematic fight choreographer Panna Ritthikrai passed away due to liver disease on July 20. The 53-year-old martial artist got his start in the movie business in 1979. Ritthikrai co-starred with Tony Jaa in 1994’s Spirited Killer and served as Jaa’s mentor and occasional co-director. Ritthikrai directed acclaimed Thai action films including Born to Fight (2004), Ong-bak 2 (2008), and Ong-bak 3 (2010).

Source: The Nation

A teaser trailer for The Secret of Kells creator/director Tomm Moore’s sophmore feature has surfaced. Song of the Sea looks every bit as charming as Moore’s first feature.

Source: Twitch

74-year-old acclaimed Swiss painter H. R. Giger passed away this morning in a hospital due to injuries he sustained yesterday from a fall. Giger is best known as the visual designer of the creature featured in the 1979 sci-fi horror film Alien.

During a conference call last week, Time Warner CEO Jeff Bewkes stated, “If you go around the world, I think you’re right, that Game of Thrones is the most pirated show in the world.” The unauthorized private distribution is, “a tremendous word-of-mouth thing… that’s better than an Emmy.”

Certainly studios and distributors would prefer to see distribution of their programming be exclusively via profitable authorized channels, but Bewkes here acknowledges that unauthorized, underground file-sharing creates a tremendous self-perpetuating consumer demand that drives advertising and sales interest.

Source: The Verge

So, the first trailer for 47 Ronin, director Carl Rinsch and star Keanu Reeves’ 175-million-dollar re-envisioning of the historical 1703 Ako incident, now commonly known as “Chushingura,” bears almost no similarity to the original story whatsoever.

A friend turned us on to this one today, the Inside HBO’s Game of Thrones book. While we wait impatiently for the next season, I’ve got one of these ordered and on the way (And while we’re shilling for Amazon, here’s the complete First &  Second seasons on DVD)