Blog Archives - GEEK GIRLS, INC.

WTF Wednesday - Where are all the stories?

8/27/2014

So why have there been so few posts on Geek Girls, Inc. lately?

What have those slackers been up to?!

Well, we are an Atlanta-based group and it is almost Labor Day weekend, which means one thing...

DRAGON CON!!!

We have been furiously thrifting, crafting, sewing, shopping and packing up our cosplays in preparation for the biggest geek event in the Southeast!

We will be blogging, interviewing and Instagram-ing our way through DCon this year, so be on the lookout for the inside scoop all weekend long - and special recaps next week!

New Tuesdays - 8/26/2014

8/26/2014

DVD/Blu-ray movies, books and games debut on Tuesdays, so here's a list of the new geeky items for your media binging pleasure!

This week's feature is :
Lock In by John Scalzi

John Scalzi is a favorite among the GG, Inc. readers. Books like Redshirts and the Old Man's War series are Hugo award winning modern scifi classics. With wit and genre bending twist, Scalzi's books deliver time and again.

With Lock In, Scalzi take the reader into the near future where after 1% of the population contracts a disease which leaves the victims' minds trapped in their own useless bodies.

When these lock-ins begin taking walk-abouts in other people's bodies - it makes for interesting challenges in this future society - especially when murder is involved.

****See this week's major new movies, books and games after the jump!****

Monday Mourning - Korra Season 3

8/26/2014

This week we 'mourn' the passing of the third season of The Legend of Korra, which had a pretty spectacular 2-part finale on Friday.

And, before we get started, let me just let everyone know there will be a Season 4 of Korra.

Despite the debacle that was the transition to a web-based series, this season of The Legend of Korra has been the best so far - and dare I say it, even rivals (and surpasses in some cases) the original series in storytelling and epic bending battles.

Many people gave up on the show early, with its steampunk cityscapes and teen angst hook-ups that were so different from the beloved Avatar: The Last Airbender series.

The characters had a lot of growing up to do - mastering their emotions, relationships, families and bending - but Book 3: Change is the culmination of all that growth.

Now a fully-realized Avatar, Korra and friends leave Republic City and return to familiar places, like Ba Sing Se, in search of newly emerged airbenders - and meet familiar old friends, like FIRE LORD ZUKO! Also, we learn a lot about Toph's daughters and see the glorious metal-bending city she founded - before she disappeared (is Toph still alive out there somewhere?!)

Most importantly, this season brings us the biggest bad guys since Fire Lord Ozai, himself. The Red Lotus super villians, Za'heer (new airbending anarchist zealot mastermind), P'Li (the third-eye blasting combustion master), Ming-Hua (the waterbender who makes up for being armless with nasty water whips and tentacles) and Ghazan (the lava bender). This fearsome foursome of adult master benders are fanatics who were imprisoned by the White Lotus for trying to kill Korra when she was a baby. Freshly escaped years later, and their plan to end the Avatar line is as strong as ever.

The many bending battles are gloriously animated and brutal as they are beautiful. The jeopardy to the main characters feels real and totally pulls you in.

I won't spoil the season for those of you who haven't caught up yet - but heroes rise and fall and, in the end, the path ahead for Korra is left uncertain.

Hopefully we won't have to mourn for long, as rumors have already surfaced that Book 4 will begin airing on-line on Nick.com in January 2015!

Fan Girl Friday - Simon Pegg

8/22/2014

by Jen

How do I love thee, Simon Pegg? Let me count the ways!

Firstly, there is the Blood & Ice Cream trilogy (also known as the Cornetto trilogy). Shaun of the Dead will forever be my all-time favorite zombie movie, and the hilarity that is Hot Fuzz always makes me laugh. And just when you thought Pegg and Nick Frost had done all they could in their stereotypical hero/dumb friend roles, they switched things up in The World’s End and made us laugh at yet another end-of-the-world scenario.

Recent news has them teaming back up with Edgar Wright for a new trilogy. YEAH!

Secondly, there are too many guest appearances to name -but I’ll name a few: Doctor Who, Robot Chicken, Phineas and Ferb… I could go on and on, but every time I see Pegg’s name in the credits, I know without a doubt that I will enjoy whatever I am watching even more.

Thirdly, there is Twitter. I don’t follow many people on Twitter (125 characters is just not my thing), but Simon Pegg makes it worth my while. How often do you see celebs post things like, “Imagine if you got to Hogwarts but then the sorting hat said you were divergent!”?

If you follow just one person on Twitter, let that person be Simon Pegg. Trust me.

Finally, Pegg is an unashamed geek himself, and he encourages all of us to embrace our inner geekiness.

There are more than just these four ways (Spaced? Star Trek reboot, anyone?!), but I’d like to toss it to the audience now – what is your favorite Simon Pegg moment?

Do share, and let’s discuss it in the comments!

New Tuesdays - August 19, 2014

8/20/2014

DVD/Blu-ray movies, books and games debut on Tuesdays, so here's a list of the new geeky items for your media binging pleasure!

This week's feature is :
Only Lovers Left Alive

Why?
Tom Hiddleston.
That is all.

****See this week's major new movies, books and games after the jump!****

Monday Mashup - ALS Ice Bucket Videos

8/18/2014

Here are a few of our favorite geeky celebs doing the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge.

But remember folks, you don't need to dunk yourself in icy water to donate to a good cause....

Fangirl Friday - Dame Maggie Smith

8/15/2014

By Brooke

Dame Maggie Smith is a champion of theater, film and comedy. The British Lady is turning 80 this year, and she is still rocking our socks off with her grace, talent and bone-dry wit.

Maggie Smith’s career on the stage goes back to the 1950s, and she won two Academy Awards and her first Golden Globe Award before many of us were born. As children of the 80s, we fell in love with her in some our childhood classics - Clash of the Titans, Hook, The Secret Garden and Sister Act.

To the younger audiences, Maggie Smith is most recognized as Professor Minerva McGonagall in the Harry Potter movies. The no-nonsense Professor is one of the most beloved characters of the series. Who else shed a tear of joy when she jumped in and faced Snape, one-on-one, and sent that whippersnapper flying through the window?

No doubt, Maggie Smith’s most famous characters are strong women, and so is the actress herself. Did you know that during the filming of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, she was undergoing chemotherapy for breast cancer? At the time, she questioned whether she would be able to go back to the theater, and expressed how difficult making further movies would be for her.

Yet the formidable Dame fought her way through the final Harry Potter movies and went on to portray the most standout role (in our opinion) of the Downton Abbey series, the Dowager Countess of Grantham.

Don’t mess with the Countess. Her zingers are so devilish that someone has devoted a Facebook page to them.

“It’s true, I don’t tolerate fools. But then, they don’t tolerate me, so I am spiky. Maybe that’s why I’m quite good at playing spiky elderly ladies.”

We heart Maggie Smith!

Sources:
IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001749/
The Telegraph, Oct 5 2009: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/harry-potter/6260564/Dame-Maggie-Smith-reveals-Harry-Potter-breast-cancer-treatment-struggle.html

Throwback Thursday - Robin Williams

8/14/2014

By Jen

When my sister lived in Europe in the 1980s, no one believed her when she said Robin Williams got his start playing a goofy alien on a television sitcom. Apparently the show that introduced so many of us to Williams’ comedic genius didn’t get much airplay on the Continent - but from 1978 to 1982, it brightened the television screens of countless American homes and lives.

Those are my earliest memories of Robin Williams - playing Mork from Ork, the silly alien banished to our planet under the guise of studying humanity because his sense of humor was not appreciated in his native culture. I think I even had a set of rainbow suspenders back then - or possibly I stole them from one of my teenage siblings, because I wanted to be like Mork.

As I grew and matured, I learned to appreciate the many facets of Williams’ talent – he wasn’t just funny, though the 1978 HBO special Off the Wall will always be one of my all-time favorite stand-up performances. Dead Poets Society, which came out in 1989, was enthralling to me because its teen star (Robert Sean Leonard) was the doppelganger of the love of my teenage life - but even my pheromone-fogged brain could recognize that the true centerpiece of the film was Williams’ performance as John Keating. And that was just one of many stunning dramatic performances - too many to list here - though I would want to be sure that Awakenings, Good Will Hunting, What Dreams May Come, and Good Morning Vietnam, were included the list - not to mention darker flicks like One Hour Photo and Insomnia.

He made us laugh and cry, sometimes in the same movie. From The Birdcage to Jumanji, Hook to Mrs. Doubtfire, Williams had a gift for making characters that might otherwise seem shallow or insincere come to life with a depth that must have made writers and directors weep with joy.

Even movies that never got much love from critics or fans (Toys comes to mind) were better than they might have been because of Williams’ performances.

And then there was his voice work – the astonishing genius that was the Genie in Disney’s Aladdin is entirely unforgettable, but let’s also not forget Robots and Happy Feet! Williams didn’t have to appear on screen to mesmerize audiences with his humor and flawless timing; his voice alone was more than enough.

A light was extinguished this week, one that touched countless lives in countless different ways. There has been talk in my social circle of having a Robin Williams movie marathon this weekend in remembrance of this man, who was one of a kind - but honestly, we’d need more than a weekend to even begin to do justice to his body of work. For me, getting to know and appreciate Robin Williams has taken the better part of my lifetime, and I will never forget him - and never stop letting his work move me to laughter, or tears, or both.

Binge Watch Wednesdays - The Clone Wars

8/13/2014

by Lauren

Did the Star Wars prequels make you loose your faith in humanity? Do you now say the name of George Lucas like Jerry Seinfeld says "Newman," or Kirk says "Khan" - when you used to say it with reverence? Are you looking for a reason to be excited by Star Wars again? Well, have I got a cure for you!

Netflix has all of the seasons of Star Wars: The Clone Wars for your streaming pleasure - including the final season that was made but never aired by the Cartoon Network when rival Disney bought the rights.

This show is a balm for your force-weary souls. Taking place between the second and third prequels, the story brings you closer to the inner workings of the Jedi, the Senate and the clone troopers. It gives you the emotional and dramatic arc in the story that makes the fall of the Jedi, the Rise of the emperor and the turning of Anakin to the dark side actually meaningful, equally sad and inspiring, and most importantly purposeful.

In the films 'things happen' then we should 'care it all goes wrong.' This animated series is WHY you should care. Love these characters and hate these characters as you did in the original trilogy - maybe even a little more.

A storm trooper isn't a mindless drone just for blaster fodder. Rex, Cody, Fives, Heavy, Hardcase, 99 - they are all real characters you care about and root for. What happens to them and the other troopers is the tragedy you see in the eyes of Old Ben Kenobi when he talks of the Clone Wars in A New Hope. Its not in the movies - it is this show.

Seriously, watch it you guys. If you've seen it, watch it again. It holds up to repeat views. We don't know what the future holds for the new Disney animated series, Star Wars Rebels or the new movies, but I know for sure that the true fans have a gift for their long-time loyalty in this series.

Oh, and Ahsoka Tano kicks ass. And Ventress is everything. And you don't want to punch Anakin in the face. And Han shot first... oops, wrong 'episode'...

New Tuesdays - August 12th 2014

8/12/2014

DVD/Blu-ray movies, books and games debut on Tuesdays, so here's a list of the new geeky items for your media binging pleasure!

This week's feature is :
Batman: Assault on Arkham

DC's animated features and series have been stronger (IMO) that Marvel's and this new Batman title looks to be holding the trend.

In this one we have the Dark Knight (again voiced by the Kevin Conroy) and the Suicide Squad, including our girl, Harley, so what really more do you need! See the trailer - take my money.

****See this week's major new movies, books and games after the jump!****