Hey everyone! 

Like The Sims, aka Will Wright’s Architecture and Design Simulator ™?  Or have you deliberately ignored this franchise due to its crazy expense? 

Either way, you can now get The Sims 2, arguable the best(?) in the series, and ALL of its expansion packs, for free this month! That’s right: ALL of the expansion packs. Hope your computer is ready to load that mess. 

To partake in this great offer: load up Origin (don’t have Origin? Go ahead and get it. It’s free, and EA is really big on free giveaways in general) and redeem the code I-LOVE-THE-SIMS. The deal ends July 31 so get it while it’s hot!

The free Sims 2 Ultimate Collection includes: 
University 
Nightlife 
Open For Business 
Pets 
Seasons 
Bon Voyage 
FreeTime 
Apartment Life 
Holiday Party Pack 
Family Fun Pack 
Glamour Life Pack 
Happy Holiday Stuff Celebration! Stuff 
H&M Fashion Stuff 
Teen Style Stuff 
Kitchen & Bath Interior Design Stuff 
IKEA Home Stuff Mansion 
Garden Stuff 


Please post in the comments how long it takes to load all of that once you install the game. Go on, I’ll wait.

In season 3 of CW's Arrow, we will finally see Roy Harper in full vigelanty-mode! Ahead of the big reveals at tomorrow night's SDCC panel in Hall H this recently released image shows Colton Haynes in his full leather regalia! Cosplayers get to work!

If you’ve never tried a visual novel game, you might be pleasantly surprised-- they’re way more fun than the dull-sounding name implies. Since all you need for a visual novel is a bunch of text and some fun choices to make (and usually a sugar-coating of anime) this genre can go all sorts of interesting and bizarre directions.

It’s free to play, so what are you waiting for? Stop reading this and give it a try if you haven’t! Plus, Christine Love, the creator of the game, has since made several sequel-ish games if you’re really digging the style of gameplay.

Beep-beep-boop- EEEEE khkshhhh
-The Dungeon Dame

It’s not just another supernatural love story, though she is a witch and he a vampire; it’s an exploration of supernatural subcultures (witch, daemon, and vampire) and traditions throughout human history. Harkness doesn’t just delve into the past of her “creatures”; she uses science, from alchemy in the Middle Ages to modern technological advancements, to explain what sets each type of creature apart from humanity.

Shortly after I finished Discovery, I realized it was just the first in a trilogy…and the other two books hadn’t been published yet. (I think my friend just wanted me to share in her misery as she waited for the future installments.) The second book, Shadow of Night, was released in July 2012 – and even though it was a completely different animal than the first book, I loved it just as much and couldn’t wait to get my hands on the third and final volume. Every time Ms. Harkness posted anything on her Facebook page, I wanted to scream, “Stop wasting time on social media and finish writing this amazing story!”

The Book of Life was (finally!) released last Tuesday, and it is an understatement to say it was worth the wait! I was fully engrossed in the book from the time I downloaded it on my Kindle that morning til I finished it shortly after lunch the next day. I’d like to take this opportunity to apologize to my family for basically disappearing during the middle of our vacation at the beach, but it had to be done. I don’t want to give away too much to anyone who hasn’t read the series, but this book continued to deliver surprises on emotional and intellectual levels, and the denouement was (for me at least) deeply satisfying without being perfunctory or superficial.

If you haven’t read these books, now is a good time to start - I’m willing to bet The Discovery of Witches will soon have you under its thrall, and you won’t have the pain of waiting for years for the remainder of the trilogy to make its appearance!

The Critic's Association press weekend is when the channels all get together and have a series of con-style panels and previews for TV critics to get buzz going about ongoing and new series. Here are some geeky highlights from Fox and The CW:

Sleepy Hollow actors and producers promise more of the 'batshit crazy' stories that make us love the show so darn much. The amazing John Noble has been upgraded to a series regular, and Timothy Busfield has been tapped to play Benjamin Franklin! New clothes and driving lessons are also in Ichabod's future, but not a romance with Abbey - they will remain "unconditional friends." They gave away more, but we don't want to spoil the crazy fun!

Fox's Gotham will be a crime drama rather than a superhero series. Producer Bruno Heller says, "[It's a story of] how do you deal with crime of this level when there are no superheroes? When ordinary men and women are dealing with the struggle waiting for a savior. It's about men and women and not about superheroes and that's the more interesting story."  They will introduce many Batman characters - both future heroes and villains -  but plans are to only 'fully realize' the Penguin as a major threat in season 1. 

We already reported this weekend that Supernatural's 200th episode will be a 'musical-ish' meta-episode that is a "loveletter to the fans." Other good news? The diabolically lovable Mark Sheppard has been promoted to series regular for season 10!

Previews of the pilot of the CW's The Flash has seemed to please the critics, I guess we will see how it fairs at the DC panel with fans this weekend in Hall H at SDCC! Also, in case you hadn't heard Wentworth Miller will be playing Captain Cold, and Robbie Amell will be playing Firestorm on the series, which promises to be "the most faithful comic book series to date."

Guardians of the Galaxy stars, Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Vin Diesel, Dave Bautista and Bradley Cooper will all be appearing on Jimmy Kimmel Live tonight as part of the media blitz for the movie's opening July 31st - Set your DVRs!

At the 2014 Summer TCA Press Tour Jensen, Jared and showrunner, Jeremy Carver, have said that the 200th episode of CW's Supernatural will be "musical-ish," very meta and a love letter to the fans. Now, theoretically they could be pulling our legs, but let's think about this for a minute...

Going into its 10th season, some people say the show has already jumped the shark (more than once - BTW) but the stars, network and show runners see no end in sight.

Personally, I still really love this show and would be sad to see it go - but a musical episode?

It sounds ridiculous, but it has had its share of ridiculously hilarious episodes in the past, is this so different? The wackiness usually ensues at the hand of Loki/Gabriel, played by Richard Speight Jr. on and-off since Season 2. These are actually some of my favorite episodes - the Groundhogs Day send up of The Mystery Spot and Changing Channels - the TV homage that brought us 'Dr. Sexy MD'!


****Read More After the Jump*****

by Lauren

This Hugo and Locus award winning science fiction novel came out back in June of 2012. I'm more of an urban fantasy book junky, so I missed it. 

However, my friends know me well (and have excellent taste) so I received a copy of this book for my birthday this year. (Thanks Emily!)

You might ask, "Redshirts? Is is a Star Trek book?"

Well, no... and yes. And therein lies the humor.

Think Galaxy Quest meets Stranger Than Fiction.

So, this book takes place on the flagship of the Universal Union, exploring other worlds, studying alien life, and arbitrating galactic conflicts. Problem is, the Intrepid suffers from a ridiculously high fatality rate on away missions - that is, unless you are part of the command crew...

New to the ship is Ensign Dahl, excited to be on this prestigious starship and ready for action - and his other crew mates seem more than willing to let him take their spots on away missions. After narrowly escaping death his first time out and witnessing the improbable survival of the senior officers, he begins to get suspicious. Once he and his friends begin to investigate, they begin to unravel a mystery that goes to the core of their very existence.

Just when you think you know where the story is going, it takes a sharp left turn into hilariously new territory. 

A quick, light-hearted book that makes an for an excellent beach day read. A must for any Star Trek or other TV space drama fan.

Oh, and if your are interested, the audio book is narrated by Wil Wheaton.

Even as a Lego, the 10th Doctor is still the cutest! (Lauren's opinion)