Here are my favourite comic-tweet-picks-of-the-week (who knows it might become a regular feature).

If you like any of these comic images tell them, I’ve embedded their tweets to make it easier for you to show your appreciation.

1.

This comic is trying to explain to us the absurdity of loving some animals and eating others. Although now I’m just thinking what would my cat taste like? No, seriously, why don’t we eat cat?

RT @michellevegan: Why love one but eat the other? http://t.co/7hXCkh69 #comic #vegan #animalrights

May 16, 2012 8:51 pm via Sprout SocialReplyRetweetFavorite

@peta

PETA

2.

I feel this comic is a post-modern masterpiece, it inspires, but in the end it is up to the spectator to speculate what “stuff happens”

RT @whoajordie: Since @ekubli and @burtdurand will never leave me alone about my horror comic I started two years ago. Here it is. http: …

May 11, 2012 6:03 pm via webReplyRetweetFavorite

@declanshalvey

declanshalvey

3.

What a terribly sexist world your great grandfather lived in. If you want to see this image more clearly click on it.

Comic of the Day: “Husbands Scared Into Protecting Themselves When Suffragettes Win Out”-by Rube Goldberg, May 14, 1912 http://t.co/09kFwQWc

May 14, 2012 11:50 pm via webReplyRetweetFavorite

@CenturyAgoToday

100 Years Ago Today

4.

A nice topical one.

I can never tell y’all ‘what Jesus said about homosexuality’ enough. So this time it is in comic book form. http://t.co/0HTiFdYd

May 6, 2012 5:56 am via TwitpicReplyRetweetFavorite

@tylergleason

Tyler Gleason

5.

I really don’t know what’s happened to you James, but I am worried. “Hitler, Cancer, Chocolate” what an opener!

My comic Chocolate & Me is still available at these comic shops @orbitalcomics @PlanBBooks @OKComics @goodgriefshop http://t.co/BMh7Qvn6

May 15, 2012 10:37 am via tGadgetReplyRetweetFavorite

@themooks

James Howard

What is your favourite image? let us know in the comments below. Would you like to see us do this again?

Cannes Film Festival

Cannes Festival, after 65 years, is still a mecca for film lovers and critics because of the high calibre of films chosen. In addition to the high quality films chosen, it another event for celebrities to get glammed up to attend the screenings.

With previous attendees including Grace Kelly to Pamela Anderson it is a chance for actresses to get out their glitzy dresses, best jewellery and fabulous hair accessories to wow the paparazzi. But I’m sure our friends over at Gossip Fever will cover all the glitz and glamour at the event! So enough of them, what about the film choices?

Here is a full list of all the contenders in this years awards:

Opening Night

Moonrise Kingdom, Wes Anderson

In Competition

Amour, Michael Haneke
The Angels’ Share, Ken Loach
Baad el mawkeaa, Yousry Nasrallah
Beyond the Hills, Cristian Mungiu
Cosmopolis, David Cronenberg
Holy Motors, Leos Carax
The Hunt, Thomas Vinterberg
Killing Them Softly, Andrew Dominik
In Another Country, Hong Sang-soo
In the Fog, Sergei Loznitsa
Lawless, John Hillcoat
Like Someone in Love, Abbas Kiarostami
Mud, Jeff Nichols
On the Road, Walter Salles
The Paperboy, Lee Daniels
Paradies: Liebe, Ulrich Seidl
Post tenebras lux, Carlos Reygadas
Reality, Matteo Garrone
Rust and Bone, Jacques Audiard
Taste of Money, Im Sang-soo
You Haven’t Seen Anything Yet, Alain Resnais

Out of Competition

Hemingway & Gellhorn, Philip Kaufman
Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted, Eric Darnell, Tom McGrath, Conrad Vernon
Me and You, Bernardo Bertolucci

Un Certain Regard

7 Days in Havana, Benicio del Toro, Pablo Trapero, Julio Medem, Elia Suleiman, Juan Carlos Tabio, Gaspar Noe, Laurent Cantet
11.25 The Day He Chose His Own Fate, Koji Wakamatsu
Antiviral, Brandon Cronenberg
Beasts of the Southern Wild, Benh Zeitlin
Confession of a Child of the Century, Sylvie Verheyde
Despues de Lucia, Michel Franco
La Pirogue, Moussa Toure
La Playa, Juan Andres Arango
Laurence Anyways, Xavier Dolan
Le grand soir, Benoit Delepine, Gustave Kervern
Les Chevaux de Dieu, Nabil Ayouch
Loving Without Reason, Joachim Lafosse
Miss Lovely, Ashim Ahluwalia
Mystery, Lou Ye
Student, Darezhan Omirbayev
Trois mondes, Catherine Corsini
White Elephant, Pablo Trapero

Midnight Screenings

Dario Argento’s Dracula, Dario Argento
The Legend of Love & Sincerity, Japan, Takashi Miike

Special Screenings

A musica segundo, Tom Jobim, Nelson Pereira Dos Santos
The Central Park Five, Ken Burns, Sarah Burns, David McMahon
Der Mull im Garten Eden, Fatih Akin
Journal de France, Claudine Nougaret, Raymond Depardon
Les Invisibles, Sebastien Lifshitz
Mekong Hotel, Apichatpong Weerasethakul
Roman Polanski: A Film Memoir, Laurent Bouzereau
Villegas, Gonzalo Tobal

Closing Night Film

Therese D, Claude Miller

This year has come under some scrutiny by feminist group Le Barbe because of the lack of female directors. They are so passionate about it that they have written an article for Le Monde and created a petition to increase the awareness of women in the film industry and that their voices matter. The discussions continue…

The 2012 Cannes Film Festival begins May 16 and will run through May 27 along the French Riviera.

Who would you like to see win? Which films have you seen or want to see? Let us know…

So without futher ado, let’s see what the theatre has in store:

The Dictator

I remember seeing the trailer for this at the cinema a couple of weeks ago, and audibly wincing at how close to the bone the jokes were. With the downfall of Gaddafi still fresh in everyone’s mind, I don’t know if many people will find this offensive and/or badly timed.

However, the critics seem to like it (well most of them, anyway. I’m looking at you, UltraCulture). The film is quite funny, even though you might feel really guilty for laughing. But let’s face it, if you’re easily offended, you surely should know to stay away from the works of Baren Cohen by now.

The Raid: Redemption

This bad boy made quite a splash at the Imagine Film festival in Amsterdam a few weeks back, and is now about to go mainstream.

So what’s the deal? Well, 20 elite cops have to battle their way through 30 floors of horrors and henchmen in order to bring down a ruthless drug lord. The film comes from the same people who brought you Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and Kung Fu Hustle, so you can be guaranteed a action-packed feast if you trust these guy’s track record.

2 Days in New York

However, if you prefer witty romantic comedies, then you should definitely consider seeing 2 Days in New York. The sequel to 2 Days in Paris, French photographer Marion (played by filmwriter Julie Delpy) is now living in New York with her current boyfriend Mingus (Chris Rock). However, chaos and hilarity ensues when her French family descends for a visit.

The trailer looks pretty funny and the reception has been pretty good. To be honest, it will probably be the film that I will be going to see this weekend.

What movies to you fancy seeing in the coming week? Give us a shout out in the comments section below!

There are literally thousands of ads on our TVs which just coast along fulfilling their marketing function while adding very little to our TV watching experience. However, every now and then an ad pops up which really captures the public’s attention, goes viral and generates a huge amount of buzz. In great advertising the product doesn’t really matter, it could be an ad for credit cards or salmon; the ads which really set themselves apart tend to be those where the producers are more concerned with entertaining the audience or creating a miniature work of televisual art.

While ads which focus heavily on the product can be very effective in fulfilling their primary function, but they tend to be extremely forgettable. The unforgettable ones are usually born in a situation where the producers are allowed to break out of the box, showcase their creative talent and give the audience something of value. These ads tend to use humour, drama, art and insight to say something about the brand rather than directly extolling the virtues of a product.

For me, the key idea behind building a brand through advertising is to give the audience something of value. I’m a great believer that audiences can build up goodwill towards brands if their advertising enhances the TV viewing experience rather than hindering it.

That feeling of goodwill can be a powerful factor when it comes to making a purchase decision and can also heavily influence things like a consumer’s level of loyalty to a brand. In essence, this type of advertising can help a brand to be likeable and emotion plays a stronger part in decision making than most consumers would like to believe.

Keeping this concept of enriching the TV watching experience in mind, I’ve pulled together a little playlist of some of my favourite ads of the past few years. From my perspective these ads have transcended their basic function; they’ve made me laugh, inspired me, sparked my imagination or had me marvelling at their beauty. And without exception they’ve had a strong positive impact on my attitude towards their respective brands.

What have been your favourite ads of the last few years? Let us know in the comments section below.

Zack Morris – Saved By the Bell

Not only was Zack Morris the star of his basketball team, but he also played lead guitar and sang lead vocals in his band Zack Attack! And remember when he would look at the camera, say ‘Time Out’ and talk directly to you – as if you were the only two people in the universe? What a dreamboat.

Image via Nineties-Nickelodeon.tumblr.com

Shawn Hunter – Boy Meets World

A rebel without a cause, Shawn Hunter was the perfect yin to clean-cut Cory Matthews’ yang. He was a bad boy with a dark past and a winning smile. Shawn was such a badass that he even lived in a trailer park – edgy stuff for a teen sitcom on network TV!

Image via Pattygopez-WhateverHappenedTo.buzznet.com

Jordan Catalano – My So-Called Life

Oh Jordan. So distant and mysterious. Despite not being able to read, Jordan was wise beyond his years. After all, he did so eloquently coin the phrase ‘whatever happens, happens‘. Do you remember the name of his band? Give yourself a point if you guessed ‘Frozen Embryos’ and give yourself an extra point if you knew that they later changed the name to ‘Residue.’

Image via Amparo-Ortiz.blogspot.co.uk

Theo Huxtable – The Cosby Show

OK, so the Cosby Show primarily aired in the 80s, but it had a few seasons in the early 90s and therefore Theo Huxtable qualifies as a 90s hunk. I mean, that sweatshirt says everything you need to know about how cutting-edge and cool Theo was.

Image via FuturetheArtist.tumblr.com

Randy Taylor – Home Improvement

For a brief time in the mid/late 90s, JTT ruled the world. He was the voice of lion king, he starred opposite Rachel Leigh Cook in ‘Tom and Huck’ and his role as Randy Taylor in Home Improvement  was embraced by tweens everywhere.

Image via ReggieRiley.tumblr.com

Harvey Kinkle – Sabrina the Teenage Witch

I’m so jealous that Melissa Joan ‘lazy eye’ Hart got to wrap her arms around this lovable doofus. Harvey was always so reliable and refreshingly straightforward. Despite witnessing all kinds of craziness (notably, Salem the talking cat) it still took him FOREVER to realise his girlfriend was a witch.

Image by: Bob D'Amico/ABC via SitcomsOnline.com

 Cody Lambert- Step by Step

…or as he’s most commonly known, ‘the Code-man’. The nephew of Frank (the Dad in the show), Cody lived in the driveway in his van . He also said ‘Ch-yeah’ whenever he was really agreeing with you. He was goofy and a bit thick at times, but you just couldn’t help loving the guy.

Image via QuarterlifeWellness.wordpress.com

Steve Hale – Full House

Donna Jo Tanner’s BF Steve loved football and sandwiches- talk about the all-American hunk. He was such a reliable chap- so strong and brave. Kind of like Indiana Jones…

P.S. Did I mention that the actor who played Steve was also the voice of Disney’s Aladdin? Crazy!

Image via PopCultureLoveSong.tumblr.com

Joey Russo – Blossum

Woah! Nobody rocks the sweatshirt-tied-around-the-waist look quite like Joey Russo of Blossum fame. Joey was a bit of a ladies man, but let’s not hate the playa. With those pouty lips and that lion-like mane, he couldn’t help it that the ladies flocked to him.

Image via TenThingsILike.com

Who’s your favourite of these 90s TV hunks? Is there anyone we missed? Tell us about your 90s crush in the comments section below. Or if you need some inspiration, check out this brilliant post at TenThingsILike.com.

Beverly Hills, 90210

A classic, watch Brandon pretending he’s gonna hit Dylan while he follows the rythm of the theme.

Baywatch

If you were born in the 80s, I’m sure you’ve recreated one of they Baywatch scenes while on holiday on the beach.

 Blossom

When I read that the actress who played Blossom left the show to study a PhD in Neuroscience I was even more fascinated by this TV intro.

California Dreams

When I was 9 I told my parents that I was gonna move to L.A., it’s true, all because of this show (and Baywatch).

Clueless

Although I prefer the movie, this tune was catchy as hell!

Dawson’s Creek

I grew up with Dawson’s Creek, watching it on the summer weekend mornings.

Fresh Prince of Bel Air

The good thing about watching 90s TV shows in Spain was that some of the theme songs were also translated, so I’m proud to say that I can rap this in Spanish.

Heartbreak High

Everyone in my school was obsessed with this TV show to the point that some people got their first piercings because of it.

Melrose Place

According to my parents I was too young for Melrose Place but I remember sneaking in to watch it.

Moesha

I couldn’t help but dance everytime this intro came up on my TV

What were your favourite TV series intros? Let us know in the comments section below!

Image via assassincreed.ubi.com

We have a new protagonist in the shape of Connor Kenway. It’s the first time the game has moved into the ‘new world’ and is set between 1753 and 1783 – the American Revolution. So if you were tired of Renaissance Italy (the setting of the past three games), then this is probably music to your ears.

If, like me, you aren’t up to scratch on the American Revolution, it involved 13 colonies in North America joining together to break free from the British Empire. The British weren’t too happy about them expelling all royal officials, so they sent out combat troops to regain control – war ensued.

Kenway is a bit of an outcast however, being half British and half Native American. He’s been tasked with the challenge of fighting for freedom by joining the assassins as he sees his village destroyed. The weapons in which you have to do so are rather interesting. There’s the usual throwing knives, but tomahawks and rope darts also make an entrance!

Ubisoft claim the settings are pretty realistic, so there’s appearances from a certain General George Washington and Benjamin Franklin. There’s even a gigantic fight scene based on Bunker Hill too. Not only do you have to kill every person you see, you’re also confronted by a bear!

Ubisoft have also been praising the new engine called Anvil Next. It took the team three years to develop from scratch which improves AI, animation and motion capture. Even the weather has been enhanced, so when fog looms large, you can stealth kill to your hearts desire.

From the trailer we can see that parts of the gameplay will feature in the wild. This means having to remain stealthy amongst the woods. I’m not talking about camouflage of course, more like climbing trees and jumping from branch to branch. It’s not an entirely new premise from the game’s predecessors; just replacing rooftops with branches.

It’s not just the wilderness though you’ll be contending with, the cities of Boston and New York are prevalent in game play too. Blending has never been more important. Kenway dresses differently and has a bow and a bunch of arrows; he’s going to have to be pretty good! As Paola once said to Ezio:

Discretion is a paramount in my profession. We must walk the streets freely: seen, but unseen. You too must learn to blend like us and become one with the city’s crowds.

The free running aspect of Assassin’s Creed has picked up a notch when out of the wild. It seems now you can open windows, jump through them and run out the other side. So if you ever get boered of the killing spree, try some parkour instead!

The battlefield scene impresses me; it looks loud, violent and bloody. I think my favourite part of the whole trailer has to be the flying attack on the Redcoat riding horseback – I look forward to replicating that myself. It’s only two minutes of goodness, but already gamers have been raving about what they’ve seen in the trailer.

So often are we duped into amazing trailers to be confronted with the dreaded ‘Not actual game footage’ at the end of the video. If Ubisoft stay true to their word and we get exactly what we see in this trailer, this won’t just exceed previous Assassin’s Creed installments, but possibly any other game released this year.

Assassin’s Creed 3 is set to be released on the 30th October in the US and 31st October in the UK.

What do you think of the trailer? What’s your favourite part of the trailer? Tell us in the comments section below.

Image by Chvad SB

So what’s the deal?

In its third year, the Las Vegas Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist Contest sets out to find the best Elvis impersonator in Nevada. The participants will fight it our for a chance to proceed to the Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist semi-finals during Elvis Week 2012 in Memphis.

However, if you reckon you can give the competitors a run for their money, you can join in with the Elvis karaoke that opens up to punters after the main performances have finished.

To give to a taster of what is in store, here is a clip from the first contest back in 2010:

If you’re not already in sin city, then you might be a bit late for catching this year’s contest. But now is the time think about booking a trip if you’re wanting to get in on next year’s action. Kuoni do great package Las Vegas holidays and are definitely worth a look if you want to travel stateside in search of the king!

Reckon you could cut it as an Elvis impersonator? Give us your best “uh-huh-huh” in the comments section below!

Dodge Challenger

CC 'house_of_ddd' (Flickr)

Most recently Dodge Challenger (specifically the 1970 vintage) had a staring role in the brutal and exhilarating Death Proof. Director Quentin Tarantino included the car partly as a reference to the cult classic Vanishing Point.

In Vanishing Point a delivery driver is taking a 1970 Dodge Challenger to San Francisco. In order to stay awake he stops by his drug dealer to purchase some illegal stimulants, and then makes a bet with him that he can make it to SF in record time.

The film is very popular among petrol heads – it is basically just one long car chase. Scottish psychedelic rockers Primal Scream were also fans of Vanishing Point, with their album of the same name being a themed tribute.

DeLorean

CC 'Collector Car Ads' (Flickr)

In the original script for Back to the Future the time machine was going to be a refrigerator. The film makers became worried by this plan however, fearful that it could lead children to emulate the on screen action, become trapped in the ubiquitous domestic appliances. A re-write changed the time machine to something less common, and even cooler, a DMC DeLorean.

The original DeLorean was built in Northern Ireland. It was notorious for issues with build quality and performance. Nevertheless the  Back to the Future franchise led to it being one of the most iconic vehicles ever produced. Now there is even a state of the art electric vehicle based on it (flux capacitor not included).

Plymouth Fury

CC 'Hugo90' (Flickr)

An adaptation of the book by horror legend Stephen King Christine is a spine chilling story about a haunted car. The car quite literally has a mind of its own, and it is very jealous. Unable to tolerate any rivals to her owners affections, the titular tyrant murders his girlfriends.

Lincoln Continental Mark III

CC 'DVS1mn' (Flickr)

Another film where a possessed automobile wreaks havoc is The Car. The 1977 movie is not especially well remembered today – but it was taken off in a brilliant episode of Futurama. In the episode the foul mouthed and drunken robot, Bender, is bitten by a ‘were-car’ and transforms into a car resembling the Mark III Continental.

Trans Am

CC 'me and the sysop' (Flickr)

Yet another car with a ‘personality’, Kit the Trans Am from Knight Rider could actually talk. In this case the car itself had a computerised artificial intelligence. And some weird red lights on the front.

VW Beetle

CC 'exxodus' (Flickr)

A slightly less terrifying possessed car, Herby was a VW Beetle. Although his wilfulness could cause trouble the ‘love bug’ always muddled through in the end.

Mini

CC 'The Pug Father' (Flickr)

A small car, the Mini has never let that stand in the way. Whether it was success on the rally circuit or the screen, the unique looks and excellent manoeuvrability of the Mini always showed star quality.

Perhaps the most famous, but certainly not the most flattering, outing for a Mini on film was as the ride of choice for the bumbling and inept Mr Bean. A more generous portrayal of Mini owners was painted in The Italian Job where the compact hatchbacks were instrumental in pulling off an audacious heist. In the remake the action was inexplicably transposed to Los Angeles, but the Mini remained. In this case it was the new, larger, BMW produced Mini that was shown, similar to that shown in the picture below (courtesy of Windmill  Car Leasing).

Dodge Charger

CC 'dave_7' (Flickr)

Famous amongst other things for being the ‘General Lee’ out of Dukes of Hazard the Dodge Charger is one of the all time top muscle cars. Welding the doors shut and entering and exiting exclusively through the windows will likely lead to an MOT fail though, if you choose to drive one of these yourself.

Ford Mustang Mach 1

CC 'Joost J. Bakker IJmuiden' (Flickr)

No list of great cars would be complete without at least one Ford. In both the original and the remake of Gone In 60 Seconds a Ford Mustang Mach 1 is the ultimate vehicle. A beast that must be tamed, a lady that must be wooed. A lady named ‘Eleanor’.

Image via tvseries-in-a-box.blogspot.co.uk

TV shows often face a period of uncertainty when they first air. They put a pilot together and put it out into the TV universe for the audience to judge, hate or love and producers to decipher whether that reaction means they should invest significant amounts of money into the project or not.

Once the TV show makes it past the pilot, it then has to deliver a stellar first season- establishing characters that will captivate the audience and develop over time. The longest-standing shows know the importance of keeping the audience on their toes, creating major plot twists and if necessary, reviving the cast with a death of a major character or the introduction of a new one.

Whatever the reason, the following list of shows made it work for their target audiences. Sadly for loyal fans, these shows are facing their final episode this season. (Warning: these videos may contain spoilers!)

Chuck
Chuck was a quick hit among young adults who loved/believed this dorky, awkward young man could somehow be embedded with CIA secrets and just as miraculously, keep them safe. The show faced cancellation after its second season ended, but a fan-fuelled campaign to keep the show on the air was ultimately the reason behind the next three seasons. The show ended in the US in January 2012.

One Tree Hill
One Tree Hill premièred in 2003 and was an instant hit for the teenage-young adult (mostly female) demographic. The dreamy male co-stars definitely had something to do with this. The show is still touted as the first to do the “One Tree Hill Jump” where they ended a season with the main cast in high school and picked up the season in the fall with the cast having just finished university. The jump was pretty appropriate seeing as how most of the cast were at least 5 years older then their characters anyway. Fans have grown to love the characters beyond their good looks and are sad to say goodbye to the show this season.

House
I have to admit, I’m a sucker for a mostly unrealistic medical show where they have to figure out what is wrong with the patient before they die, and House delivers. The main title character, though, has always been a bit of a handful and for the last few seasons he’s been outright absurd in his behaviour. While we know the show is unrealistic already, it goes far beyond any real medical ethics. House has been arrested, addicted to painkillers AND drove his car into his ex-girlfriend/boss’s house and still was allowed special privileges to practice medicine. The medical mysteries are interesting, but it’s about time this show acknowledged its absurdity and ended it.

Desperate Housewives
How many life-altering, earth-shattering, heart-breaking things can happen to a group of 4 friends on one street in 8 years? If you watched every season of Desperate Housewives, you’d know the answer is: a lot. I have a secret/not-so-secret affection for Desperate Housewives and am sad/happy to see the series end. Sad that the drama won’t continue to unfold and happy that they are ending the series on their own terms. The show wasn’t cancelled or rejected; writer/producer Marc Cherry and his team just decided it was time to close the show before it jumped the shark.

This final season has had a series of twists, turns and tying up of loose ends, leaving just enough to get their whole fan base watching the final, 2-hour episode (airing Sunday night, 13 May in the US). Rumour (and spoilers) have it that old/dead characters will make an appearance in some way  and people will be watching to see if Nicolette Sheridan will appear following her in-court feud with producer Marc Cherry over her unfair dismissal when she was killed off the show at the end of the 5th season. (Seeing as how the series finale was filmed before the court appearance and the relationship between the two has been damaged for a few years, I don’t foresee Edie Britt (Sheridan) making an appearance on Wisteria Lane.

Which shows have ended this year that you will miss the most? Let us know in the comments below.