Another week is in the books, and this is a brief wrap up of some of the things that have happened this week.
Robin Williams Passes Away on Monday, August 11
In shocking news on Monday, we learned that Robin Williams had passed away. He was an incredible talent who had the ability to make us feel the whole range of human emotion through his performances. Yes, he was hilarious and probably best known for being funny, but he could act in any role, as evidenced by his winning the Oscar for best Supporting Actor for his role in Good Will Hunting. Looking at his career, it is hard to find anything he couldn’t do on screen and it’s hard to find a time when he wasn’t relevant since bursting on the scene with Mork and Mindy. One of the most important things I hope will come out of all of this is the awareness that depression is a real thing, and it’s very serious. If you have loved ones who suffer from it, don’t judge, but love and be there to help and support them. I have known people in my life who struggle with this disease, and it is debilitating and hard and very real. All the news outlets have reported that Robin Williams took his own life, but the reality is that he finally lost his battle with a disease and the disease claimed his life.
Hopefully, we can all look back at Williams’ career and remember all the good times we had watching him perform. On elf my favorite Robin Williams films is Dead Poets Society. It inspired me when I was younger to want to be a teacher when I grew up and to want to make a difference in people’s lives. It also taught me that sometimes that means stepping outside the norms. In any case, here is one of my favorite scenes from the movie:
The Doctor Lands in NYC
The Doctor Who World Tour stopped in New York City this week, Peter Capaldi and Jenna Coleman taking the Big Apple by storm. The tour is a series of visits to cities around the globe, all leading up to the August 23 premier of “Deep Breath”, the opening episode of season 8 of the relaunched Doctor Who series. This season will be Peter Capaldi’s first as everyone’s favorite Time Lord, and Whovians everywhere are anxious to see it. This event consisted of a viewing of “Deep Breath” as well as a Q&A session with Peter Capaldi, Jenna Coleman, and Steven Moffat, moderated in New York by Chris Hardwick, who is a noted Doctor Who fan. Similar events have already happened in London and South Korea. The final stop will be August 19, just less than a week before the episode airs on the TV. The success of this event leaves me with 2 questions: 1. Will the expand it next time, maybe do just a a tour of the US, because sadly, I was not able to make it to New York? 2. When is the Sherlock world tour?
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Dominates Box Office, Sequel Officially Announced
Despite critics everywhere warning audiences to avoid this movie at all costs, Michael Bay’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles smashed it at the box office. It brought in $65 million and beat out Guardians of the Galaxy for the number 1 spot. On the heels of this success, Paramount officially announced that the Turtles would be getting a sequel. For a lot of nostalgic reasons, this is pretty cool for me. I loved Ninja Turtles as a kid, and the success of this movie means there is plenty of toys and things in the store for my son to obsess over now. TMNT looks to do very well at the box office going forward as the summer blockbuster season is coming to a close, and there will be no major competition for them.
Han Solo Character Sketches Leak Online
In news that just makes every Star Wars geek happy, images were leaked on the internet this week that look to be character sketches for Han Solo for Episode VII. One looks like it could be right at home on Hoth, but there are other cold planets in the Star Wars Galaxy, I’m sure. The other, I think, totally fits a space cowboy kind of look. Both of them look like classic Han Solo, and makes me excited that maybe, just maybe we have a new Star Wars movie that is on track to match the originals. One can only hope, or dream maybe. In Any case, it always cool to see things “leaked” from the new movie.
Salt Lake Comic Con Promises 2 Major Marvel Announcements; One is Revealed, One is Yet to Come
Toward the beginning of the week, Salt Lake Comic Con announced that there were two major Marvel related guest announcements coming up. The first one was revealed on Thursday, when SLCC announced that comic book legend, Stan Lee would be returning to Salt Lake City. This time it appears that he will be spending more time here, two days instead of one. They have also announced that he will be participating in a panel that will be open to all guests of the comic con. This means there is one more major Marvel announcement coming in the next few days. Also, as the con is drawing nearer, expect to see a slew of announcements from SLCC as more major guests are confirmed. I am still keeping my fingers crossed for David Tenant or Matt Smith. (SLCC, if you’re reading this, notice that people go crazy for a Doctor-the second part of this post- and you haven’t had one yet. FantasyCon had one, but not you yet, just saying’)
That’s it for This Week in Geek. Come back next week for more news stories from the world of Geek. Also, check back in with the blog on a daily basis for more Doctor Who, more Adventures of a Geeky Dad, and more just general geekery.
