The 1997 Warner Bros. movie Cats Don’t Dance is coming to Blu-ray for the first time on Tuesday, September 26th. This will be the first time this animated feature has had the Blu-ray treatment, with the last DVD version released in 2016. Although it bombed at the box office in the U.S. and Canada, grossing about $3.5 million on the $32 million production budget, the movie became the first non-Disney animated film to win the Best Animated Feature at the Annie Awards.
Here is the original full-screen trailer for Cats Don’t Dance
The description for the Blu-ray: Talent, ambition and drive count for everything in Hollywood—unless you’re a cool cat with dreams of dancing. Because everyone knows that pigs don’t fly, cows don’t sing and definitely, Cats Don’t Dance. Scott Bakula and Jasmine Guy lend their impressive talents to star in this musical, animated, rags-to-riches feature as the voices of Danny, a way-cool hep cat with toes that yearn to tap, and Sawyer, the sexy, cynical chanteuse for whom Danny swoons. But twirl, tap and leap as he might—in dances choreographed by legendary human dancer Gene Kelly—Danny can’t even get an audition. People always get the good parts; animals only bark, moo or meow. With songs by Randy Newman and vocals sung by the great Natalie Cole, Danny and the animals struggle through harrowing and hilarious escapades—each doing what they do best, regardless of species. And in the end, Danny and Sawyer, realizing they are a match made in cat heaven, follow their dreams—and shuffle off past everyone who says that Cats Don’t Dance!
The Extras and technical specs on the Blu-ray set includes:
A new 4K restoration of the film from the original camera negative (2023)
Warner Bros. classic cartoons:
Curtain Razor
Daffy Duck in Hollywood
Show Biz Bugs
What’s Up, Doc?
Original Theatrical Trailer
Optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature
You can pre-order it now or buy it when it comes out on the 26th on Amazon or wherever you prefer to buy your Blu-rays.
Did you ever see the movie when you were younger? Will you be getting this or sharing it with others? Let us know in the comments below!
After the well-received first animated movie Nimona, Annapurna Animation has announced their next project as being a movie based on the successful 2022 indie video game Stray. The movie is said to be in active development. The game is about a stray cat who travels around an underground cyberpunk city populated by robots and mutant bacteria, as the player playing the cat solves puzzles and avoids danger with the help of a friendly drone named B-12.
Trailer of the Stray indie game:
Since the closure of Blue Sky in April 2021, Annapurna created their own animation division last year with the animation division being led by former Disney animation and Blue Sky executives Robert Baird and Andrew Millstein. Their first feature was Nimona, which was previously lost under Blue Sky Studios.
In speaking with EW, Robert Baird talked about the thought process surrounding the upcoming Stray feature by saying, “This is a game that’s all about what makes us human, and there are no humans in it. It’s a buddy comedy about a cat and a robot, and there’s such a hilarious dynamic. So, there’s comedy inherent in this, but there’s not one human being in this movie. I think it’s one of the reasons why the game was incredibly popular, that you are seeing the world through the point of view of an adorable cat. How did they pull that off, and how are we going to pull that off in the movie? We will, even though sometimes it feels impossible, but we know that’s the essence of the game and the key to telling the story.”
Baird added that there is “something so emotional” that the creators are trying to capture when adapting the game to film. Bluetwelve, a French company that had developed Stray, described the game as having a “sort of hopepunk vibe”, a narrative concept that optimism is a form of resistance.
“I love that term, hopepunk. I think, if we are going to do this adaptation justice, this is going to be the first and greatest hopepunk movie that’s ever been made,” said Baird.
What do you think about seeing a movie based on the indie game Stray? Are you looking forward to it? Let us know what you think!
When we saw that the Steam Deck was having a saleand GameStop was offering refurbished versions at a decent discount, I thought this was a sign that a new tech announcement was coming. Looks like I was wrong.
Pierre-Loup Griffais, a Valve developer, recently spoke with The Verge. It turns out that the next Steam Deck may not materialize for years.
The reason for the large gap between releases is due to battery tech. Valve wants to create a Steam Deck successor, but that follow-up device needs better battery life. Griffais explained:
“It’s important to us that the Deck offers a fixed performance target for developers, and that the message to customers is simple, where every Deck can play the same games. As such, changing the performance level is not something we are taking lightly, and we only want to do so when there is a significant enough increase to be had. We also don’t want more performance to come at a significant cost to power efficiency and battery life. I don’t anticipate such a leap to be possible in the next couple of years, but we’re still closely monitoring innovations in architectures and fabrication processes to see where things are going there.“
While speaking with CNBC at the Tokyo Game Show, Griffais also emphasized that the Steam OS updates and retail possibilities were being considered in order to be competitive with recent additions to the mobile PC market, such as the ASUS ROG Ally.
The Steam Deck was released in 2022 and has done pretty well. However, the competition is heating up, with ASUS and Lenovo joining the mix. The competing mobile PC makers are adding better tech and features, but the biggest hurdle is battery life.
Do you think this issue can be solved within a couple of years? Or more? Let us know below.
We got good news and bad news from Pulse Con. The good news is it’s finally time for more Dreadnoks to join Hasbro’s 6″ G.I. Joe Classified Series!
The bad news? They’re still in windowless packaging! Six months ago, Hasbro said that collector-friendly boxes were returning. Based on all the figures announced at Pulse Con, that doesn’t appear true. Every G.I. Joe Classified Series revealed is interred in the same type of box we’ve complained about for over a year.
Sigh.
Oh, well. At least Valaverse is still putting its action figures in display-worthy boxes.
Anyway, you’d better act fast because these figures are selling out quickly! In fact, most of them are already gone. If you’re lucky enough to snag one, they’ll ship out in December. Here’s all the Joes and Dreadnoks that were announced:
The latest G.I. Joe Classified Series entries range between $24.99 and $34.99, depending on the number of accessories. Tripwire, being the most expensive of the batch, does come with the M.A.C.L.E.O.D. robot and a healthy amount of tactical gear. He’s worth that price tag, probably.
I will give credit to Hasbro. The company stopped overdesigning the figures a while ago and has stuck to what we loved about the classic figures. The first few waves tried to update some characters too much, especially Gung-Ho and Cobra Commander. Keep it simple!
The Baroness, Tomax, and Xamot are also getting reissued in a three-pack. The figures now sport the Crimson Strike Team colors, and the Baroness has a faceplate. This will set you back $89.99. Or head over to Amazon and pick up the original version of the twins for under $20. Yeah. For whatever reason, those two have been on sale for $14.99 for a while.
If there’s one thing that can be said about the Mortal Kombat series, it’s that the franchise continues to be one of the pillars of the fighting game genre. Not only has Mortal Kombat reinvented itself multiple times over the decades, but continues to remain relevant among many kinds of gamers. The latest entry of the series on PlayStation 5, Mortal Kombat 1, once again reboots what we know about Mortal Kombat. The game gives a fresh take on familiar ideas and characters that we have loved watching battle it out since the beginning. But while the majority of Mortal Kombat 1 is successful, there are a few stumbles that prevent it from becoming a flawless new entry in the legendary series.
The plot of Mortal Kombat 1 picks up right after the events of Mortal Kombat 11. Fire God Liu Kang has restarted the universe, bringing about a brand new timeline that is different than before, but has some parallels to what we know from previous games. As we see various fighters we know come together for a great tournament, things are very noticeably altered and unfold in new and exciting ways. But something dark lurks behind questionable events that will force Liu Kang and the rest of his champions to face a greater threat. One that may bring about Armageddon to more than just Earthrealm and Outworld.
Again, NetherRealm Studios proves that they know how to put together a narrative for a fighting game very well. Not only is the story of MK1 interesting, but it manages to incorporate the entire roster of fighters into its plot. Every character gets some time to shine coming face-to-face with rivals, great threats, and playing their part in the much larger story related to Fire God Liu Kang and the timelines. Luckily, not much background knowledge about the previous game or the rest of the Mortal Kombat series is necessary to follow along, but anyone who has played the series up to now will get so much more out of this story. There are many echoes and nods to aspects of the 3D Mortal Kombat games from the PS2/Xbox era. This includes big references to games like Deadly Alliance, MK Deception, and Armageddon.
But does the gameplay as well as its predecessors? Mortal Kombat 1 definitely has many of the same aspects that MK11 had with its gameplay. The roster is pretty big with 23 playable fighters. Everyone has an assortment of special moves, combos, and spectacular finishing moves. It will take time to learn how to play a character well offline and online, mainly because a lot of the tools many characters had in the previous game have been tweaked or altered in various ways. But the roster of playable fighters is complimented by a new layer to the fighting in Mortal Kombat, and that’s the addition of Kameo fighters.
There are 15 Kameo fighters you can pick from, which act like an assist character that can help you out during a match. Depending on the direction you hit and button press, you can call in a Kameo fighter and they’ll do a different move against your opponent. What’s neat is that Kameo fighters get their own finishers as well, including both Fatalities and Brutalities. They are a really clever way of mixing up the flow of combat in a different way that previous MK games have yet to approach. Some will be quick to compare this to games like Marvel vs. Capcom or Street Fighter X Tekken, but Mortal Kombat 1 manages to make Kameo fighters feel different.
There’s no tagging them in to take over, nor are they able to be overly used in a fight. The balance that Kameo fighters have will allow you to experiment with combos and break away from bad situations, while also still keeping the focus on traditional 1 vs. 1 style battles. The variety of Kameo fighters is also pulled from throughout the series, ranging from the original three arcade games through the 3D era. Mirror matches between characters will never feel the same each time depending on the Kameo fighters selected between both combatants.
The fighting in any Mortal Kombat often ends up being fun and exciting, but the series has also been known to have interesting game modes and extras outside of the traditional fights. For Mortal Kombat 1, players can go through Story Mode and Arcade Towers to get all of the details about this new era in the MK universe. Finishing any of the Towers opens up a character ending which is not always canon to the main story, while Story Mode itself gives you the full plot for what is happening in Mortal Kombat 1. You’ll definitely want to play through Story Mode first before anything else, mainly because you’ll get the most out of it more than any other mode. Not to mention some of the goodies you’ll unlock just for completing it.
Speaking of goodies, MK1 also has a new Invasion Mode. This lets you play through a game board-like series of maps full of challenges, where you can unlock new cosmetics for fighters and more. Unfortunately, Invasion can be very repetitive for most people and will take a while to complete. Although it will get updated with new seasonal content that changes up rewards and challenges, most people will not enjoy how routine it will become. There are some light story elements in it that are not canon to the game’s main Story Mode, but it’s a nice touch to string you along. It would’ve been better however if there was an entirely original story that offered more than the quick art cutscenes from time to time.
Playing Invasion mode can let you unlock gear and cosmetics for everyone on the roster, including Kameo fighters. This level of customization is not as deep or vast as what was in Mortal Kombat 11 but still has enough layers to make fighters look unique. Much of the deep tinkering with special moves and more from MK11 is gone in favor of more simple equipment and color schemes. You can still unlock new finishers like Fatalities and Brutalities, but there are multiple ways to do so now.
Every character has a Fighter Mastery level that goes up the more you play matches with them, with each level yielding a new reward. It is very similar to a battle pass found in other games but is only focused on how much you use a character in any mode. The more you play with a given character or Kameo fighter, the more XP you’ll gain to their Fighter Mastery. Unfortunately, it takes a while to get to higher levels and unlock alternate finishers and cosmetics, which can mildly be made faster with some items within Invasion Mode. But if you want everything for a character, you’re going to need to grind.
One other aspect that Mortal Kombat 1 stumbles on is its Practice Mode. While there are multiple trials that help teach you the basic and advanced aspects of gameplay, the mode itself is missing some features. Helpful things like pinning a specific move on the screen to view while in Practice Mode are not available. You also cannot have matchmaking working in the background for online play while you’re in training mode, which is something that more and more new fighting games are adding. Other quality-of-life features that would make things easier also appear to missing at launch, such as spending more than 1,000 koins in the game’s Shrine area to purchase unlockables. Things like these can be addressed in updates and future patches, but they should’ve definitely been considered from the start.
But what about the online modes? Are they good enough to hop online and battle against others? Mortal Kombat 1 does have casual and ranked matchmaking online, which can open up other rewards the more you play. Getting into a matchup is easy and can work out well depending on your internet connection. However, some players may experience a few bugs and hiccups while in matchmaking.
You can get stuck matching up to the same player multiple times despite finishing a set with them, which will require you to wait a bit before starting up matchmaking again. At the same time, a black screen bug can happen after trying to do a rematch with someone. When this happens, you’ll have to restart your console and enter matching again, which can be very annoying. Again, stuff like this can be addressed with patches as they pop up spontaneously, but they are still an issue for those who want to spend a lot of time playing online.
Mortal Kombat 1 is a solid new entry in the series that continues the legacy of the franchise into new territory. While not a flawless sequel because of the issues that pop up, it still manages to be a lot of fun to play. If you’re someone who has been with the series since the beginning, there is a ton to love that will reward how much you’ve seen from Mortal Kombat throughout the ages. But even if you’re a newcomer to the series, the fighting and universe is definitely welcoming enough to get you into this new era of a legendary franchise. Scrapes and all, Mortal Kombat still manages to show why is still one of the biggest franchises in the genre.
What do you think of Mortal Kombat 1? Are you playing the game on any specific platform? Who is your main in any Mortal Kombat game? Tell us about it in the comments below!
Valverse has something for the ladies as more of Action Force Series 3 arrives! The 1:12 scale action figure line introduces several new upgrades and gear packs, many female-specific. You can soon deck out your favorite warrior woman with new tactical gear and guns!
The weapon upgrade packs look to come with some new additions, including bigger effects parts (for your 50cal) and sidearms with locked slides. Since the G.I. Joe Classified Series rarely gives us these sorts of options, I will scoop up a few to finish my diorama.
Series 3 also features three female figures, including Gemini, a Desert Trooper, and a Riot Trooper. The last two are bare bones as far as gear is concerned, which makes them great for customization. They’re only $21.99, while Gemini is $31.99.
Image Credit: Valaverse
Image Credit: Valaverse
Image Credit: Valaverse
If you’ve been collecting the series previously, then you’ll probably want to scoop up the three character-specific upgrade kits for Eclipse, Kill-Switch, and Pandora. One in every three Pnadora upgrade gear packs comes with a variant bloody portrait.
The various weapons packs and upgrades are $12.99 each. Check out our review of multiple accessories and Action Force figures here. It’s incredible how many options this toy line gives you. Best of all, the parts and pieces can be used with the 6″ tall G.I. Joe Classified figures.
Image Credit: Valaverse
Weapons Pack Golfcomes with a belt-fed M16 Vulcan and a spent casing ejection effects piece. This one is going to be in my collection as soon as it is available!
Image Credit: Valaverse
In other Valaverse news, check out the upcoming figures for Legend of the White Dragon, featuring the late Jason David Frank.
Remember not being able to go anywhere without seeing one of those large cigarette vending machines? We had them in arcades, restaurants, high schools, and hospitals. In the 1970s and 1980s, they were everywhere. Then Joe Camel ruined it all with its enticing advertising that made smoking appeal to us kids. Now we can relive all that second-hand-smoke glory with New Wave Toys’ newest 1:6 scale replica!
The company offers two USB chargers in the same old-school cigarette dispensers, complete with little packs of smokes and retro theming. Put them right next to your Replicade 1:6 scale arcade machinesfor the genuine ’80s experience!
COOL machine or the slightly less cigarette-themed Art-O-Matversion. Regardless of which one you prefer, they’re $69.99 each. However, the devices have vastly different features. Check out the stats below the image gallery.
Photo Credit: New Wave Toys
Photo Credit: New Wave Toys
Photo Credit: New Wave Toys
Photo Credit: New Wave Toys
Photo Credit: New Wave Toys
Photo Credit: New Wave Toys
COOL Machine:
2x COOL Cigarettes Face Plates
1x Exclusive Black Light Face Plate by Dirty Donny
2x Cigarettes props
2x Packs of COOL Cigarettes props
1x Lighter prop
1x Ashtray prop
1x AC Cable
1x Manual
1/6 scale replica National Vendors Series 800 Classic Cigarette Vending Machine
Charge up to six devices at the same time (2x USB-C + 4x USB-A)
Premium cabinet constructed from metal, acrylic & plastic
Interchangeable Face Plates
Classic Light Up Mode
Black Light Up Mode
Bonus! Smoking Kit
Lab tested & UL certified
Advanced safety features
Input: AC 100-240V,50/60Hz, 1.5A
Output: USBA1-4 Single port 2.1A Total 20W
TYPE-C 1-2: DC5/9/12V, 40W
Total: 60W
Surge protection
Over/Even charging protection
Overheating protection
Short Circuit protection
Lab tested & UL certified
Art-O-Matic:
1x Limited Edition Puscifer USB Art-o-Mat Machine
2x Art-o-Mat Face Plates
1x Exclusive Black Light Face Plate by Dirty Donny
Mezco’s cast of oddballs is expanding! The big bad bruiser, Slugfest, has joined the Rumble Society as the latest One:12 Collective member!
Slugfest may be one of the most unique figures in the 6″ tall collection. The brawler has two head portraits that light up and several swappable hands. Although he’s not packing as many accessories as we typically see, the inclusion of his pet mech known as B3GO— the Arachnidoodle makes up for that.
No pre-orders are necessary because Slugfest is available right now! He’ll set you back only $100.
Photo Credit: Mezco
Photo Credit: Mezco
Photo Credit: Mezco
Photo Credit: Mezco
Photo Credit: Mezco
Photo Credit: Mezco
Photo Credit: Mezco
Photo Credit: Mezco
Photo Credit: Mezco
Photo Credit: Mezco
Photo Credit: Mezco
“Former pit-fighter and 6-time, undisputed champ of the Rumble Arena – Kill Fighter Contest , Slugfest left all that behind for reasons unknown. He now lives a relatively secluded life with his companion, B3GO, tending to Pete’s Discardatory, where he runs his Emporium of Badassery and “resolves” situations for the right price. When you need something fixed, ya call in Slugfest!”
Slugfest, like all One:12 Collective figures, comes with loads of accessories and interchangeable parts:
One:12 Collective body with over 28 points of articulation
Two (2) interchangeable light-up heads
Hand painted authentic detailing
Approximately 19 cm tall
Seven (6) interchangeable robot hands
Two (2) posing hands (L)
One (1) pulverizing hand with three (3) rotating spiked wheels (L)
One (1) holding hand (L&R)
One (1) devil horns hand (R)
Pete’s Discardatory standard-issue jumpsuit with functional zipper
Work boots
One (1) jug of diesel-based moonshine with removable cork
One (1) removable leash
One (1) Hodgepodge hatchet
One (1) anvil on a chain
One (1) B3GO Arachnidoodle mech pet with 6 points of articulation and a hinged jaw
Mezco has really been hitting it out of the park with their original characters and some criminally underutilized IPs, like The Shadow.
We have no idea what has been happening at Twitter (X) since Elon Musk took over. For a while, things looked like they were improving. Then word spread that the block button was going away. Now, we know for sure that another function of the social media platform is getting the boot. Circles are officially getting shut down.
Circles was a tool that enabled Twitter users to create posts visible only to people on a custom list. It was an easy way to post to a select number of people without having to use DMs.
The announcement was hidden away in X’s Help Center. Elon Musk’s platform didn’t explain why the posting option was being discontinued, but we know it will be extinct come October 31st. Musk had previously said that DMs and Communities would upgraded, possibly making Circles obsolete.
Image Credit: X
“X is deprecating Circles as of October 31st, 2023. After this date, you will not be able to create new posts that are limited to your Circle, nor will you be able to add people to your Circle. You will, however, be able to remove people from your Circle …”
The Help Center post continues with step-by-step instructions regarding removing users from your Circles. I haven’t been able to see who is in my Circles for months. Considering the private post-creation option had been screwed up for a while, does this really matter now?
Odds are, the limited-reaching post tool is being deleted to ensure that as many posts as possible are open to advertisers. Maybe Musk will let Neuralink patients continue to use the feature as part of the treatment.
What do you think about Circles and the option’s impending doom? Let us know in the comments section below. Or create a Circles post and include us in it!
Sentai Filmworks announced a slate of Blu-ray releases for October 2023. The DVDs will feature fantasy, action, comedy, isekai, and drama anime series. Some feature an English dub and others will be released in their original Japanese with English subtitles.
The subtitled anime shows are announced on their website:
Immoral Guild (10/3/2023)
Protecting the land from monsters is a noble profession, but Kikuru wants to retire from the Guild and explore other options while he’s still young. Before he can ride off into the sunset, however, he’ll have to find acceptable replacements to care for the Guild in his absence. Lucky for him, four new recruits just turned in their applications! The catch? They’re all young women, and the local monster population has been developing some VERY disturbing new appetites when it comes to female adventurers. Now Kikuru must guide Hitamuki, Maidena, Toxico and Hanabata through one sticky situation after another as he tries to leave the IMMORAL GUILD!
Blade And Soul (10/24/2023)
She was trained to be the Clan of the Sword’s ultimate assassin, but the Clan is destroyed and only she remains. Now, even though there is a price on her own head, Alka must honor the Code by which she was raised. Her clan will be avenged. No matter how mighty the armies of the Param Empire and the demonic powers of their battle leader Jin Valel may seem, no matter how many assassins and bounty hunters they send to vanquish her, nothing will stop the emotionless killing machine they have unleashed upon themselves. For this is her final mission and she will cut that path of wrath through their screaming flesh in BLADE & SOUL!
The dubbed anime series was also revealed on their website:
The Eminence in Shadow Season 1 (10/10/2023)
Cid doesn’t want to be a flashy hero or a dastardly villain. He wants to operate in the shadows and pull the strings of society through wit and cleverness. So, when he’s isekai’d to another world armed with magic powers (and an overactive imagination), he forms Shadow Garden, an underground organization that fights an evil cult he totally made up. But while Cid happily roleplays his favorite antihero tropes, little does he know Shadow Garden’s recruits treat his every lie as gospel, and worse yet? That “fake” cult is actually real, and they’re not happy his power fantasy just impeded their plan to gain ultimate power in THE EMINENCE IN SHADOW!
Love, Chunibyo, and Other Delusions (10/10/2023)
Some people hate standing out from the crowd. Others are desperate to, sometimes even living inside a fantasy of their own making where they have secret knowledge and hidden powers. This is “chunibyo”, a condition that Yuta Togashi lived with for several years. But he’s done with that now and would be looking forward to his first year in high school… Except the girl who lives above him is still a chuni and believes that Yuta’s her soul mate! And when Yuta’s previous “one true soul mate” comes back into his life with her own chuni version of reality, Yuta may just have to surrender to the inevitable in the complete mind-twisting, multi-series collection of LOVE, CHUNIBYO, AND OTHER DELUSIONS!
Chihayafuru Season 3 (10/17/2023)
Chihaya Ayase’s obsession with the card game Karuta has already begun to bear fruit, and the fledgling Mizusawa High School competitive team that she helped form has stunned the karuta playing community by winning the national high school team tournament. That’s just the beginning for Chihaya, however, and now the young card mistress has set her sights on an even more impossible task: taking on grand master Wakamiya Shinobu and wresting the title of Queen away for herself. As difficult as everything has been before, it will seem easy compared to the task now ahead of her, and her teammates look to be equally challenged, especially Taichi Mashima, who’s finally made it to Class A. Has he finally learned enough to challenge Arata Wataya? Only the cards know the future as Chihaya and Crew hit the decks in CHIHAYAFURU 3!
The final release, ‘Phantom of the Idol,’ will be released on Halloween night.
