Well, we tried. Tried to have one episode right after the other. Sadly, it didn’t work — at least not this past week.

But never fear, we’re back now and we’ve got a brand new episode of The Flickcast for you. And heck, it’s even pretty good.

This week Chris and Joe take on some new topics and some old ones. What are these topics? Well, you’ll just have to listen to find out. But rest assured, they’re pretty cool. No, you can take our word for it. Why would we lie?

This week’s picks include Chris’ pick of the book Of Dice and Men: The Story of Dungeons & Dragons and The People Who Play Itby David M. Ewalt and Joe’s pick of the podcast Children of Tendu by Javier Grillo-Marxuach and Jose Molina.

And no, that pic of Darth Maul has little to do with this week’s episode. We just think he’s a badass.

As always, if you have comments, questions, critiques, offers of sponsorship, or whatever, feel free to hit us up in the comments, on Twitter, at Facebook, Google+ or via email.

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Even though we don’t really care all that much who or what wins an Academy Award, the rest of Hollywood does. It’s also likley many of you care as well.

So, in that spirit, here’s a list of the nominations that were announced this morning. There’s a lot of them and, to put it bluntly, not that many surprises. The movies and performances that seem “Oscar-worthy” were nominated. It was kinda a no-brainier year.

Of course, there’s also a few regulars who made the cut, like Meryl Streep, you would expect to see on the list. One notable exception is Tom Hanks, who seemed to be a shoe-in for a nomination for his role as Captain Phillips. He got nothing.

I guess every Oscar nominations list needs at least one surprise, just to try and keep it interesting and prove the Oscar voters don’t just vote for whomever or whatever wins a Golden Globe. Of course, Hanks didn’t win the Golden Globe either, but I’m sure it was just a pleasure to be nominated.

Anyway, here’s the nominations list (stolen from the folks at Deadline):

Reports have been trickling in from the Telluride Film Festival about Darren Aronofsky’s psychological drama Black Swan, and word on the street is that the film is good, very good. Star Natalie Portman is receiving early Oscar buzz for her portrayal of a Ballerina with a very unhealthy obsession.

This is one of the most highly anticipated movies of the late fall film season.  If the movie is as good as early buzz indicates, Portman will certainly be a hot commodity.

Now, Deadline is reporting that Portman has been offered the lead role in the 3D adventure Gravity, after Angelina Jolie reportedly declined the role.

Gravity began its development journey at Universal, but is now being backed by Warner Brothers, who have extended the offer to Portman. When Jolie declined the role, many feared the project was dead.  With a budget of around $80M, Warner Brothers needed to find someone who could carry the movie.  Portman may be the perfect choice.

Her most well-known roles to date are in the movies V for Vendetta,  Star Wars Episodes II and III, Beautiful Girls, Cold Mountain, and The Professional, which was her stunning acting debut.  She has also amassed several indie films on her resume, including Closer and Garden State.

Gravity will be directed by Alfonso Cuarón, notable for Children of Men, Y tu mamá también, and Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.

Robert Downey Jr. will co-star, though the female role will be of primary importance in the movie, as it tells the story of a lone survivor of a space mission and her fight to get back to earth and her daughter.

Black Swan is scheduled for a US release on December 1st.

There hasn’t been a genuine outer space sci-fi drama flick on the horizon since last year’s Pandorum, which is why I’m really excited about Alfonso Cuaron’s Gravity. With films like Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban and Children of Men under his belt, Cuaron has certainly proved to be an excellent director and one to keep an eye on. While Gravity, his latest venture, was on the back burner for some time, it looks like the project is full-steam ahead.

Gravity will be about a woman fighting to return to Earth after being separated from the Hubble. While casting for the lead role is unknown, Blake Lively and Scarlett Johansson are rumored to be fighting for the part. Though his role is currently unknown, Robert Downey Jr. is a confirmed cast member in the film.

The film is planned to be released in 3D, and will feature one of Cuaron’s amazing long takes, with a rumored 20-minute opening shot similar to the amazing scene at the end of Children of Men. The movie will also be almost entirely CGI, as it sounds like it’ll take place almost exclusively in outer space.

After Azkaban it’s clear that Cuaron can handle a film with a lot of CGI and imagined landscapes, and Children of Men proved him to be a master of taking a futuristic premise and creating a very realistic film. I think he’s the best person to undertake this project, and it’ll be exciting to see what the film becomes as casting is decided and production begins.

For any fans of the sci-fi genre or any kind of survival dramas, this certainly sounds like a film for you. We’ll keep you posted on Gravity and any other exciting flicks on the horizon.

As we’ve been reporting, Marvel has been steadily releasing free comics for their native iPad app. Mostly, these releases have been one-shots or first issues, designed to lure you into buying the next issues in the series for $1.99 a pop. But still, in this economy, free is good.

Having compared Marvel’s freebies with the ones DC is offering up via their new iPad app, I can tell you, Marvel definitely has the better content. And yet, the DC app is brand new and recently-released, so it remains to be seen whether they will step up their game or not.

Without further ado, let’s check out the new free content for this week, shall we?

X-Men: Curse of the Mutants Saga As the X-Men recover from the stunning conclusion of Second Coming and prepare to enter the Heroic Age, they’ll first have to survive The Curse of the Mutants!
Ultimate Iron Man (2005) #1 Brace yourself for the most imaginative, groundbreaking comic of 2005. International bestseller, four-time Hugo award, two-time Nebula award and World Fantasy Award winner Orson Scott Card (author of Ender’s Game, Speaker for the Dead, Shadow Puppets) comes to the Ultimate Universe. He’s joined by industry legend Andy Kubert (Ultimate X-Men, 1602, Origin) to show the shocking beginning of Ultimate Iron Man! If you thought The Ultimates told you everything you needed to know about Ultimate Iron Man, think again. It all starts here!
Amazing Spider Man (1999) #552 ‘Brand New Day’ continues with two new web-slingin’ creators: Oscar-nominated screenwriter Bob (Back to the Future) Gale and artist extraordinaire Phil (New X-Men, Infinite Crisis) Jimenez! What starts as a petty theft from a local soup kitchen, turns into a chase that results in the birth of a brand-freaking-new Spidey villain; and we mean “Freak” literally!
Gravity (2005) #1 You’ve made your way through high school and moved out of your parents’ house. You’re finally ready to get a job, pick a major, and meet the girl of your dreams. You’ve got it all figured out… right? Right?!Meet freshman Greg Willis, NYC newbie from the rural Midwest hoping to realize his dream of becoming a big-city super hero. But will the realities of city life, college and saving the day prove to be too much for him? Let Sean McKeever and Mike Norton, the creative team responsible for the acclaimed indie drama, The Waiting Place, introduce to you the next great Marvel hero!
Captain America (2004) #31 The winter soldier held prisoner by the Red Skull! While Sharon and the Falcon race to his rescue, about to cross paths with the Mighty Avenger that Tony Stark has sent hunting our rogue hero, The Black Widow!Will the Red Skull kill both Cap and Bucky? It’s anyone’s guess, as the second arc of the epic ‘Death of Captain America’ storyline opens with a bang!

And there you have it. To grab these and other previously-released freebies, simply launch the Marvel app, tap ‘Store’ and then tap ‘Free.’