Fox re-opens The X-Files!

It's official: After a 13 year absence, Fox has inked a deal with Gillian Anderson, David Duchovny and series creator Chris Carter to bring back The X-Files as a special six episode event series.

“I think of it as a 13-year commercial break,” said Carter. "The good news is the world has only gotten that much stranger, a perfect time to tell these six stories.”

Exciting news! Production of The X-Files is scheduled to begin this summer. Calling Mitch Pileggi!

Firefly & Serenity: Quantum vs. Dark Horse

If you're like me, you're pretty dang excited at the prospect of nabbing the new Firefly figures that Funko is releasing as part of their Legacy figure line.

My friend Jon Palmer asked, "Which Serenity should we display them with? The ornament?" Which one, indeed!

As luck would have it, the new Serenity maquette from Quantum Mechanix had just touched down here in my corner of the 'Verse, so a little comparative analysis seemed like a good idea. That's the Dark Horse ornament on the left (2006) at about 6 inches, with Quantum on the right, measuring at 8 inches. Insert inappropriate remark here. 

The Dark Horse model comes with its own display base and is a lovely ornament that I display on my Sci-Fi Christmas Tree every year. But these new figures seemed to cry out for something special, and as part of their Little Damn Heroes line, Quantum has delivered.

Serenity does not have a similar cartoonish iteration that the figures in the Little Damn line possess. It's accurate and has a nice heft. The details and individual parts are highly detailed. Inara's Shuttle is a separate tiny model and you get two of them - wings out and in - to display with the main ship, either resting next to the docking hatch or in flight thanks to a canny little wire display stand. It's an extremely nice addition.

Quantum's ship also comes with a very solid display stand. Mine came very well packed, but use caution when removing as those reflector panels are very delicate. 

Finally, here's a shot of Serenity on display with another Funko Legacy figure, to give you an idea of how they'll complement each other when Jayne and the others are released this spring.

Hey, I'm sold. Dark Horse and Funko are currently duking it out with their respective lines of Game of Thrones figures, and their ornaments are superb. They did a knockout version of Inara's Shuttle as well as a Reaver ship:

But Quantum had done a splendid job here and their Firefly has won me over. 

Now she just needs her crew to come stand beside her. 

More Luther Underway

Great news out of the UK: series creator Neil Cross and star Idris Elba have begun shooting a new two-part Luther special in London.

The synopsis teases that Luther will face his most chilling adversary yet, haunted by the ghosts of his past, in a case that pushes him closer to the edge than he's ever been. 

Joining the cast are Rose Leslie (Ygritte on Game of Thrones) and  Laura Haddock (Star-Lord's mom in Guardians of the Galaxy). There's still no official word exactly when in 2015 this fourth installment of Luther will air on BBC America, but word is Cross has pulled out all the stops to send Luther on his biggest, most frightening case yet. 

Bugger any American remake! The real Luther is back on the case!

The Heralds of March: Alien, Blade Runner & Thrones!

Can you believe that it’s March?! Spring is right around the corner and Daylight Saving Time is just a week away. There’s been a lot of interesting news lately, but for now let’s focus on three new items:

Neill Blomkamp’s New Alien Film

It’s incredibly exciting that we’re getting a new Alien film, and from a director with a real passion for science fiction who seems ideally suited to chart a new story that feels connected to the first two Alien films and give Sigourney Weaver her desired “proper ending” to Ripley’s journey. How Blomkamp gets around the events of Alien³ and Alien: Resurrection will be fascinating to discover. Will Michael Biehn actually return as Hicks?! It may be a while before we know anything definitive, but I’m thrilled to see this director and this franchise coming together. Something pretty amazing will very probably be the result.

The Blade Runner Sequel

Can you believe it? Harrison Ford is signed and definite to return in a Blade Runner sequel! It now appears that Ridley Scott will likely just produce and not direct, but it sounds like all parties are very high on the script. The latest word has it that Denis Villeneuve (Prisoners) is close to finalizing involvement, which is extremely encouraging, because if Prisoners did two things incredibly well, it was deliver strong performances and make masterful use of cinematography to establish mood and drive the story. It sounds like Scott and Ford are both very high on the script, which is encouraging. For my money the biggest challenge on the table is creating a character that’s as compelling and iconic as Roy Batty. That’s a tough act to follow, but I’m absolutely fascinated by this one.

Game of Thrones Season 5

With one iconic, fell-swoop image, Game of Thrones is letting us know we’re going to be pushing beyond the margins this year. For the first time ever, book readers and “the unsullied” are in the same boat – as while we may have notions, we are moving off the map into uncharted territory story-wise where anything can happen. This image, coming on the heels of the trailer’s “Who said anything about him?” reference, makes it clear beyond a doubt that Tyrion is heading towards a meeting with Daenerys – something we’ve yet to see in the books, despite their relative geographic proximity. 

The idea of these very diverse characters actually meeting and interacting both heightens the sense of anticipation for historic events and escalates a sense of the beginning of a massive conclusion unfolding. 

April 12th can't get here soon enough!