"Sontar-Ha!"

Did you enjoy Saturday's Sontaran yarn? It was good fun, and most humorous to see the diminutive potato-headed clones back in full force! The tech noir trappings of The Sontaran Stratagem were most becoming!

Can't wait for the action figures!

Super Glau

Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles is to be renewed!

The Sarah Connor Chronicles mines the rich seams of Terminator and Terminator 2: Judgment Day (eschewing Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, which is notable for its brave Planet of the Apes ending).

Although the series, currently airing on Virgin 1 in the UK, has yet to truly capitivate me in the manner of Lost or The Big Bang Theory. The ever-enigmatic Summer Glau (best known as River from Firefly/Serenity) is a revelation as a Terminator! Her otherworldy performance, as Cameron, is pitch perfect and scene stealing! The fight scenes are more than a match for the franchises big screen origins!

The intrinsic potential is there, but in the absence of James Cameron and Linda Hamilton...

Doctor Who "Welcome Aboard" Airfix Model Kit

The first of the Airfix products to feature the latest Doctor.

This set is wonderfully detailed and includes models of the Doctor, Martha and "light and sound" TARDIS that is over 24cm tall! This kit also comes with a tub of Humbrol Precision Poly, two brushes and all the required Humbrol Acrylic paints required to complete the model.

Model Scale 1:12. Requires painting.

Knight Rider

This post was guest blogged by Nick Smith of The Scratching Post.

I was looking forward to seeing the revamp of Knight Rider on NBC last night. I love driving my Ford Mustang, so I was quite happy with the make and model being used for the Knight Industries Three Thousand car (“KITT”). I was even willing to give Val Kilmer a go as the voice of KITT, and I thought a cameo by David Hasselhoff (from the original series) would be fun. The director had worked on Rome and Deadwood – he had to be a smart cookie.

I must confess, the hairs on the back of my neck prickled when the old Knight Rider theme began to play. But it was replaced within seconds by generic rock and from then on, the TV movie resembled a 2 hour car commercial: lots of shots of the tires, the windshield, the grille etc. No amount of fast cutting allowed for the fact that the director Steve Shill had forgotten to make the car chases exciting.

Worse, the storyline was dull, formulaic American TV stuff; the leads were bland, with no interesting lines to test their acting chops; and the dialogue was often drowned out by the rock music.

It’s a shame that executive producer Glen A. Larson couldn’t have taken a cue from a revamp of another of his shows, Battlestar Galactica, and added some more engaging, believable characters. The new Knight Rider was so vacuous that I didn’t stick around long enough for the Hasselhoff cameo, and Steve Shill should stay away from car porn in future...

NICK SMITH BIO
www.nicksmithbooks.com
Nick Smith is a filmmaker, writer and actor. He has written screenplays (The Terror Game, Cold Soldiers); dramas and documentaries for the BBC, Sky and all other major UK networks. He wrote a year's full content for "The Property Channel" on cable and contributed to "The Medical Channel" on satellite.

Other work includes novels (the bestselling Milk Treading, The Kitty Killer Cult and Undead on Arrival), stage plays (Crime School, Foodfellas), comedy sketches, articles (The Scotsman, Charleston Magazine), radio plays and comic books. He founded and ran a production company and The Film School Scotland before moving to Charleston, South Carolina where he’s currently directing feature film and teaching writing, acting and filmmaking. He charts it all in his blog, The Scratching Post.

Toy Fair 2008 - Transformers Crossovers

When Hasbro announced Marvel Transformers, I was sceptical, due, in part, to the scattergun success of Star Wars Transformers! Well, I'll be eating my own words, it seems, if these official images, from Toy Fair 2008, are anything to go by!

Iron Man and The Hulk have transitioned well into Hasbro's new Transformers Crossovers line (incorporating Marvel & Star Wars)!



G.I. Joe can't be too far behind!

Marvel Transformers

It was inevitable! In the wake of Star Wars Transformers, two great tastes that don't taste entirely great together, Hasbro has announced Marvel Transformers!

*Venom/Jeep
*Hulk/Tank
*Iron Man/Jet

Could be interesting. What say you dear reader?

UK Toyfare Transformers Press Release

2007 was a hugely successful year for Transformers, with a blockbuster movie supporting an ever popular toy range. 2008 is set to be just as exciting with the release of the new Transformers: Animated series. Hitting TV screens from march, it's a great twist to the classic story of the "robots in disguise"

Transformers will be exploding into living rooms across the country with the all-new Transformers: Animated series set to launch this Easter. featuring on Nickleodeon, fans everywhere will be treated with the next generation of the popular struggle between the Autobots and the Decepticons. The series will be supported by a whole new range of action figures in the style of the new cartoon with some familiar faces such as Optimus Prime, Bumblebee and Megatron. The full toy line will be available mid year.

Transformers: Animated is a high-octane, animated action-adventure series based on the beloved 1980s 'robots in disguise' of toy and cartoon fame. The Autobots continue their battle against the Decepticons on Earth and this time they have human friends to help them in the search for the AllSpark, such as their energetic 8-year-old guide, Suri Sumdac.

Also launching this Autumn / Winter is the Universe Toy Range which is set to capture the classic Transformers styling, going back to Generation 1 and the Beast Wars, bringing back your favourite characters to excite and inspire a new generation of Transformer fans.

2008 is going to be another big year for the 'robots in disguise' and fans are going to be with them every step of the way!

New Products Include:
Transformers AllSpark Blasters - £19.99
Movie Screen battles - £19.99
Legends AllSpark Battle Packs £5.99
Animated Range - £4.99 - £49.99
Universe Range - £2.99 - £39.99

Hasbro Masterpiece Starscream needed!

This is a request to my readers!

If you can help me procure Hasbro’s G1 version of the amazing Masterpiece Starscream (a Wal-mart exclusive), for review, please use the contact form (right hand sidebar). You will, of course, receive a credit/link.



Transformers Masterpiece Action Figure:
Starscream
Amazingly detailed Decepticon robot-to-vehicle figure
Exact replica of the character featured in the 80s hit cartoons and comics
Features interchangeable heads, hidden missile pods, an opening canopy and more
Comes with display stand

Thank you in advance.

LEGO Skywalker

This link was sent in by Dave (blogger and owner of BrickPlayer)! As someone who grew up playing with LEGO and Star Wars toys, I'd have done Dave a disservice by not giving props:

Luke Skywalker LEGO Sculpture

Dave's goal in creating BrickPlayer.com is to share information about: LEGO building projects, building tips/tricks, LEGO product/company news, and whatever other LEGO related topics come to mind. I wish him all the best with this endeavor and look forward to seeing more Star Wars characters and vehicles in the future!

If you have an interesting blog post/link, that is relevant, to share with my readers, please e-mail me via the contact form (right hand sidebar).

A Doctor Who Christmas

This is my final post of 2007! May I take this opportunity to thank all my readers and sponsors for their continued support. Don't miss Doctor Who: The Voyage Of The Damned on Christmas Day!

I'll be back in the New Year...