After the success of Smallville and the warm reception Arrow has gotten thus far, it isn’t a shock to see the DC Universe expanded in the second season of Arrow. This season, Arrow will add Barry Allen to the cast of characters and though he is referred to as Barry Allen and not the Flash, it looks as though his powers will emerge before the end of the season.

Grant Gustin of Glee fame will be tapped for the 8th, 9th and 20th episode of season two of Arrow. Episode 20 specifically with focus on Barry’s origin story which may be a back door attempt at testing the interest in a Flash spinoff series.

One thing of interest, first pointed out by IGN.com, is a 23 year old being slated as a police forensic investigator. Shy of being someone who skipped a few years of school, getting a Masters in Forensic Science and then being passed around to other cities for investigations probably isn’t the most realistic of situations. Although, the same could be said about someone hit by lightening which allows them to tap into the Speed Force.

Once a little-known subculture of the collegiate world, with rites and names as arcane as any secret society (Whiffenpoofs, anyone?), a capella is enjoying a bright moment in the spotlight, thanks in large part to the popularity of Glee and reality TV competitions like The Sing-Off. And now in Pitch Perfect, it has made it to the romantic comedy big time, starring Anna Kendrick, best known for her Oscar-nominated portrayal of the uptight young executive opposite George Clooney in Up In The Air. Here she’s still sulky, playing Becca, a mildly goth college freshman who yearns to leave college and pursue a career in music production.

Based on a nonfiction book by GQ editor Mickey Rapkin about the competitive collegiate a capella scene, the messy screenplay by Kay Cannon (Emmy-nominated 30 Rock writer/producer) suffers flat notes, sour chords and predictable harmonies, but thanks to a tight cast and fresh, energetic performances, delivers an enjoyable concert experience just the same.

Even if you’re a fan of Apple or the iPhone and iPad, that doesn’t mean everyone is. In fact, Google’s Android OS is also very popular and powers many devices people use every day.

One thing that’s been a bit lacking on the Android front is the amount of movie and TV content available from Google’s Play store. Well, thanks to a deal Google just finalized with 20th Century Fox, that’s about to get a lot better.

That’s right, Google Play will start selling and/or renting 600 titles from 20th Century Fox including Family Guy, Glee, Modern Family, Black Swan, X-Men and Ice Age. In addition, to help get the deal started off on the right virtual foot, Google Play will offer Ridley Scottt’s Prometheus 3 weeks ahead of its Blu-ray, DVD and video-on-demand release. In other words, today.

The rest of the content will be releasing during the coming weeks. Pretty cool. It’s always nice to have alternatives, especially if you’re already invested in the Android ecosystem as many are.

Fox announced the renewal of three more of their series for next season.  The three series are freshman comedy New Girl, musical comedy Glee and family comedy Raising Hope.

These renewals mean a second season for New Girl, a third season for Raising Hope, and that Glee will get a fourth season. The three comedies join recently renewed Fox drama Bones.

“Over the past season, New Girl has become the hottest new appointment series for young adults; Raising Hope has established itself as one of the smartest and most unique offbeat comedies on television; and Glee has continued its success as a genre-defying, global cultural phenomenon,” said Fox’s entertainment president Kevin Reilly. “All three of these comedies add a fresh and distinctive flavor to our Tuesday nights, and I’m really happy to bring them back to our air next season.”

The Screen Actors Guild annually awards excellence in screen acting, and has quickly become one of the more prestigious year end awards. The SAG awards are usually a solid indicator for Oscar glory in the acting categories, so seeing a few these names on this nominations list is a little surprising.

Chief among the unexpected nominees is the cast of Bridesmaids and Jonah Hill for Moneyball. Well deserved nominations, but certainly a tad shocking considering the strong year for acting all around. On the more expected front Modern Family takes in five acting nominations in just three categories.

I also appreciate that the awards honor stunt workers as well, this allows the Screen Actors Guild to broaden the scope of films they salute, and shines a light on a very important aspect of film making. The awards will be handed out Sunday, January 29th.

The full list of nominees after the jump: