There is no doubt this weekend is going to be a massive draw for the overall box office. Between Warner Brothers’ Inception, and Disney’s The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, there will be plenty of things for adults and kids alike to check out in theaters.

The latter of the two films is quite intriguing because it’s a feature script based on the short from Fantasia of the same name. Only instead of Mickey Mouse, we get Jay Baruchel and instead of the silent wizard, we get Nic Cage. One of those trades sounds worthwhile.

The film is also supposed to incorporate some of the elements of Harry Potter, while staying as contemporary as a film like Jumper. Also, expect plenty of high-tension CG fight scenes taking place in downtown Manhattan.

We’ve got four new clips from the film you can check out, including one with one of our favorite film baddies, Alfred Molina. Take a look at them after the jump. Catch Disney’s The Sorcerer’s Apprentice in theaters this Friday.

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With Comic-Con only days away, one of the bigger events during the show will be the world premiere of the DC Universe’s next animated film: Batman: Under The Red Hood. This film will be taking a far more serious approach to the source material and includes the death and trauma of a former Boy Wonder.

We’ll be bringing you plenty of coverage of the film straight from the show next week and we’ve had a few clips for you already to whet your appetite. The first was a few weeks ago when Batman finally confronts his titular enemy. Now the Red Hood is back in a new clip as he confronts Gotham’s top mob bosses.

The movie features an all-star cast with Bruce Greenwood stepping in as the Dark Knight, Jensen Ackles (Supernatural) as The Red Hood, Neil Patrick Harris as Dick Grayson, and John DiMaggio as The Joker. Check out the new clip after the jump. Catch Batman: Under The Red Hood on DVD and Blu-Ray on July 27th.

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ABC may have given the axe to a few big shows this past season, and lost (no pun intended) one of their biggest draws, but it seems that a sparkle can still be seen on the network, in the form of the police cadet drama Rookie Blue. ABC recently renewed the series for a second season, after it scored the network’s highest-scripted debut ratings in six years only three episodes in.

From Variety:

It now ranks second in its Thursday timeslot behind “So You Think You Can Dance,” among adults 18-49 and 18-34.”We’re very pleased that the show has connected with viewers, especially considering the challenge of finding an audience in the summer,” said Quinn Taylor, ABC Entertainment Group’s senior VP of movies, minis and acquisitions.

While the premise is the same, the show is somewhat different than the first of the Police Academy films, sans Guttenberg. Peregrym leads the charge alongside Gregory Smith, Charlotte Sullivan, Enuka Okuma and Travis Milne as rookie cops who work through their freshman year as cops. One could consider this show to be the police version of the networks already-popular Grey’s Anatomy.

The show also marks the star Missy Peregrym’s first show since Reaper to get a second season, but we all know how that ended before. Let’s hope history doesn’t repeat itself.

The fourth episode in the season, entitled “Signals Crossed”, involves Andy (Peregrym) going undercover as a prostitute to impress the Sergeant and airs tomorrow night at 9/8C on ABC.

With Comic-Con in San Diego coming up next week our minds are on all things comics. Plus, movies, tv, games and everything else the Con has to offer. But hey, this particular post is about comics and Marvel comics in particular so let’s get on with it.

Our friends at Marvel are releasing a bunch of new books this week but we’re pretty sure they will be saving the bigger announcements and releases for next week during the Con. Still, of the books this week we’re interested in X-Force: Sex and Violence #1, X-Men Origins: Deadpool #1, Avengers Academy #2 and World War Hulks: Spider-Man vs. Thor #1.

Comics come out on Wednesday so be sure to head on over to your favorite comics store early for best selection. Don’t know where your nearest comic store is? Use this handy guide to find one.

Comics On-Sale:
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #637
ASTONISHING SPIDER-MAN & WOLVERINE #1 2ND PRINTING VARIANT
ASTONISHING SPIDER-MAN & WOLVERINE #2
AVENGERS ACADEMY #2
AVENGERS ACADEMY #2 MCKONE VARIANT
CAPTAIN AMERICA/BLACK PANTHER: FLAGS OF OUR FATHERS #4
DAREDEVIL #508 (SHL)
DEADPOOL CORPS #4

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The iPhone 4 antenna “controversy” seems to evolve on almost a daily basis. Of course, when a company is on top, as Apple is with the iPhone, it’s easier to take shots at them. That’s not to say actual issues shouldn’t be fixed, they should.

But we need to keep in mind that most new products have some issues and even though it seems these issues are plaguing a large number of iPhone 4 units, the percentage with an actual problem is probably rather small given the total number of iPhone 4′s sold.

Still, we can’t ignore Consumer Reports who has just published a report on the iPhone 4 that refutes Apple’s claim that the iPhone 4 signal issues are a software error that will be fixed with a pending update. According to the report:

“Our findings call into question the recent claim by Apple that the iPhone 4’s signal-strength issues were largely an optical illusion caused by faulty software that “mistakenly displays 2 more bars than it should for a given signal strength.”

“The tests also indicate that AT&T’s network might not be the primary suspect in the iPhone 4’s much-reported signal woes.”

The report goes on to say the magazine cannot recommend the iPhone 4 due to the antenna/signal issues.  Click through to check out a video of the full report.

In a related story, Apple has apparently removed some discussion threads in its support forums that reference the Consumer Reports story. If true, that doesn’t make you look very good Apple.

Have you had any issues with your iPhone 4?

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Joss Whedon fans (or “Whedonites) may be loyal, but their loyalty is nothing compared to their originality when it comes to their idol’s creations. They’ve given us some cool art, and plenty of fan vids to swoon over, and now it’s Firefly’s turn, as it gets a classic 80′s makeover. Well, at least the intro titles do.

The original intro was good, and just about every fan knows the lyrics, but it didn’t do much for the typical sci-fi fan. The cool cats over at io9 put together this little 80′s rendition of the Firefly intro, in all of it’s Western/Deep Space glory. Think of Quantum Leap meets Brisco County Jr., all squeezed into about 90 seconds.

Check out the intro video after the jump, and if you’re asking yourself “What about Simon Tam??”, it seems that he deserved his own personal show.

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Early yesterday we reported that Marvel Studios had decided to replace actor Edward Norton as Bruce Banner/The Hulk in any future movies where the character appears. At that time Norton’s agent responded, as they often do, and we never expected Norton himself to offer any kind of opinion — at least in public.

Well, we were wrong about that last bit as Norton has already responded to his replacement via his official Facebook page. In the response, Norton thanked his fans for their support but doesn’t offer any further details on why he won’t be coming back.

It is clear from his message that he isn’t exactly happy about the situation but is dealing with it as best he can. His final comment that “Hulk is bigger than us all” seems to indicate he will, reluctantly, put the role behind him.

Click through for Norton’s complete statement. Now that Norton is out, who should take on the role of Bruce banner/The Hulk? How about the rumored Joaquin Phoenix? Sound off in the comments.

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When you are publishing one of the XBox’s largest exclusive franchises, it is inevitable that eventually some things will leak out to the public. To get ahead of this, Bungie has “leaked” to the information about the achievements to their upcoming blockbuster Halo: Reach. Taking control of the five man Spartan squad known as Noble Team, players experience a prequel to Halo: Combat Evolved in which the military installation planet known as Reach is devastated by Covenant forces.

Halo: Reach will feature a total of 49 achievements. The way they break down will be 23 Campaign, 7 Firefight, 4 Multiplayer, 6 Training and 9 Player Experience. Bungie has noted that some of the Training goals can be met in both Campaign or Firefight modes.

So far, Bungie has revealed the names of 7 of these achievements along with the requirements for 7 of them. Below is what we know so far:

A Monument to All Your Sins – Complete each Campaign Mission on Legendary – alone.

Banshees, Fast and Low – Hijack a Banshee during the Reach Campaign.

Yes, Sensei – Earn a First Strike Medal in a Matchmaking game.

A New Challenger – Complete all of the Daily Challenges in a given day.

Make It Rain – Purchase an item from the Armory that requires the rank of Lt. Colonel.

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This week’s pick goes behind the lines of World War II France with the 1967 release of Robert Aldrich’s The Dirty Dozen. The film stars the legendary Lee Marvin as Major John Reisman, an American OSS (pre C.I.A.) operative chosen by Allied command to recruit, train, and drop twelve convicted American military prisoners into France before the Normandy invasion to wipe out a chateau full of German brass. Aldrich adapts E.M. Nathanson’s novel to bring one of the 1960s most successful war movies to the screen.

The cast is a who’s who of some of Hollywood’s best talent. Ernest Borgnine (Maj. Gen. Worden), Charles Bronson (Joseph Wladislaw), Jim Brown (Robert T. Jefferson), John Cassavetes (Victor R. Franko), Richard Jaeckel (Sgt. Clyde Bowren), George Kennedy (Maj. Max Armbruster), Ralph Meeker (Capt. Stuart Kinder), Robert Ryan (Col. Everett Dasher Breed), Telly Savalas (Archer J. Maggott), Donald Sutherland (Vernon L. Pinkley), Clint Walker (Samson Posey), and Robert Webber (Brig. Gen. Denton).

Major Reisman is selected for this mission due to his illustrious reputation for behind the lines action, but he is also well known for exceeding his orders and showing borderline insubordination for his superiors. Both General Worden and Denton tell Reisman that the twelve men have a temporary stay of their sentences for the mission.

Reisman knows fully well that it’s a suicide mission and asks the Generals to reconsider and that the only way for these men to go along with such a deal, is to pardon them for their crimes and that they be returned to active duty at their former ranks. It’s a tough sell, but Gen. Worden agrees and Reisman has just a few short months to train these convicts and turn them into an elite commando unit.

Most of the twelve men are serving long prison sentences, but five (Franko, Jefferson, Maggott, Posey and Wladislaw) are to be hung for murder. Reisman sells the promise of amnesty to these five, because they are the ones with the most to lose. Reisman tells them all that they are dependent of one another and that if any try to escape, fail to add up, or quit, they will all be sent back to prison.

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Even though San Diego Comic-Con seems to be dominated by movies and tv programs these days, it was originally all about the comics. This should be obvious by the fact that ‘Comics’ is right in the name.

To help keep that alive we wanted to make sure people knew about the comics companies that will be attending the show this year. To keep that going we bring you the Top Cow schedule of events for the Con, direct from their official press release.

TOP COW AT COMIC-CON INTERNATIONAL 2010

Top Cow Productions, Inc.’s race to Artifacts will include a stop at this year’s Comic-Con International in San Diego, California, the world’s biggest and most exciting popular convention, from July 22nd – 25th.

Top Cow will once again storm into the convention and set up shop at booth #2629. Among the goods to prepare attendees of CCI 2010 for the race to Artifacts will be exclusives, preview books, free goodies, variant comics and trade paperbacks, including free copies of Artifacts #0 as well as other comics, posters and bookmarks (while supplies last).

Attendees are invited to join Marc Silvestri (Dark Avengers/Uncanny X-Men: Utopia), President Matt Hawkins, and Publisher Filip Sablik for an exciting and lively multimedia presentation about Top Cow’s plans for 2010 and 2011 in comics, film, television and much more. Be the first to hear announcements and updates on film projects including Witchblade, Magdalena, Alibi, Wanted, and The A-Team.

Plus announcements on new comic projects with creators including Ron Marz (Artifacts), Jeff Katz (American Original, Freddy vs. Jason), Phil Hester (The Darkness) plus surprise guest directors, screenwriters, producers and more! The panel will be featured in room 9 from 1:30-2:30pm under the title Top Cow: “We Create” Multimedia, on Saturday, July 24th.

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The LEGO games have always been known for taking popular franchises and turning them into enjoyable, family-friendly videogames. In the case of LEGO Harry Potter, they manage to achieve this and more. With an already beloved story and characters behind it, this game is certainly one of the summer’s greatest, but also quite possibly the best LEGO game to date.

LEGO Harry Potter starts at the very beginning of Harry Potter’s tale and progresses all the way through the fourth story in the series. While most games had a central home base where you could do everything (The Batcave in LEGO Batman, the Mos Eisley Cantina in LEGO Star Wars, etc.), LEGO Harry Potter uses The Leaky Cauldron and Diagon Alley as sort of a starting point, but also utilizes Hogwarts Castle as a sort of “mission center.” This does away with the “rinse and repeat” feeling of the previous games, as you’d always access everything from the same area.

This also allows for an almost completely explorable Hogwarts, including Hagrid’s cabin, the Great Hall, and the Quidditch Pitch. While there are always missions available, including all the previous ones, it’s nice to have the option to just go run around, explore, and maybe do some shopping in Diagon Alley or ride a broomstick around in between getting the missions done. The game also includes the memorable film score by John Williams, adding to the experience and atmosphere of the game.

The typical gameplay of most of the LEGO games of building objects to overcome obstacles and move through the game is changed somewhat, as characters cast specific spells instead of building. This is a welcome change, as the task of choosing the right spells to complete each task is never as boring or tedious as just holding down a button and watching your character build something.

Instead, you’re using Lumos to chase away plant monsters and Wingardium Leviosa to move rocks out of the way or reassemble a suit of armor to progress in the game. And whereas LEGO Batman made you pick up the suit upgrades one at a time in Story Mode, LEGO Harry Potter’s spells are always available for easy access on the controller.

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After many years of happily reading John Romita Jr.’s work on Wolverine’s “Enemy of the State” Arc, Spider-Man and Kick-Ass, I was thrilled to be able to interview John Romita, Jr. (or JR. Jr.) for Marvel’s return to a bright, new day with the “Heroic Age.”

I caught up with the delightful John while he was working hard on the Avengers.  It seems this is one man who can draw and answer in-depth questions at the same time.

As always he was humorous, insightful, and well…in need of a nap.  Read on, true believers, and enjoy the latest from the desk of the modest legend himself.

The Flickcast: Marvel takes the entire Avengers line of titles into “The Heroic Age.” You’ve been paired up with Brian Michael Bendis on the core “Avengers” title; is your opening run contained to the first arc or two, or do you plan on being involved for the foreseeable future?

John Romita, Jr: In the first year I’m doing it [Avengers] for a minimum of 2 arcs and I’m enjoying myself.  If the book is still doing well, I’ll do it for a second year.  It’s so difficult, though, that I may not survive the first year— it’s intense work.

I have to finish 25 pages in the next 17 days.  So, after doing Avengers, I may want to sleep for a year.  But doing the Avengers with Bendis is an amazing experience.  If I get through the year and I’m still healthy enough, I will do another one.

TF: What are the benefits and challenges of drawing iconic characters like Thor, Spidey, Iron Man, Wolverine, and Captain America vs. drawing characters you create?

JR: Oh, that’s on a strictly selfish scale, it’s much more fun to do a character you create because you create them and there’s a lot of gratification for that, but working on iconic characters is like driving your father’s classic car, it’s spectacular and fantastic, but it’s better off when it’s your own.

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