Lauren Beukes's outstanding Zoo City is $1.99 right now at Amazon.

If you're intrigued by the super fancy new Threezero Aphrodite A figure, there's a new much cheaper option available for preorder that looks good.

Here's a good conspiracy theory--crisis actors.

Lego red-eyed tree frog by Matt De Lanoy.

Superfriends commission by Dustin Harbin. (What, no horse?)

A bit of beauty by Dave OReilly?

"Bomb" by OReilly for Adult Swim.

Looks like Telltale's Game of Thrones game will focus on the obscure House Forrester.

(I'm not sure what to expect.  The Wolf Among Us started so great, but was lackluster at best after the first episode.  And I don't like The Walking Dead, but blame that on not liking the general concept of the tv show, either.)

The $15 iOS version of Bioshock:

2K China has sacrificed immersion and playability.

"Angry Birds CEO Resigns Because Who the Hell Still Plays That?"

(Big mistake for them to think the birds were what mattered.)

NECA's glow in the dark Jason replica mask is available for preorder.

Amazon has preorder links for a dozen of the upcoming Skylander/Dinsey Infinity-esque new Nintendo Amiibo figurines.

New Blade Runner tee at Last Exit to Nowhere.

The hunt to find those 99 packs of beer in Austin.

Imagine if Gravity ended with Sandra Bullock having to fend off wolves for two days.

How can you find out if a musician is really indie or backed by a record company? Upload the song to Youtube and wait to see which major company claims copyright.

From Luc Besson's AMA, regarding writing The Fifth Element:

At 16, i wrote 200 pages and threw them in the garbage because it was bad. I then wrote 200 more which also finished in the garbage. Then I wrote 400 pages that i kept, waited for 15 years, and wrote a first draft. I have done 16 drafts for the fifth element, and finished the script with 300 pages in two parts. The producers refused to part the film in two parts because it was too expensive and forced me to rewrite everything in one film. I guess at the time filming in two parts wasn't popular yet.

Compared to writing Leon:

Regarding Leon, i had to wait 2 weeks to get an answer from a studio to know if they were going to make the fifth element or not. The wait was horrible. So i wrote Leon in 15 days and nights to stop me from thinking about the wait.

"Ants working in harmony create a daisy chain to pull dinner home."

I enjoyed making this fake video game fireworks packaging. pic.twitter.com/cb7mPl3P7j
— Olly Moss (@ollymoss) August 28, 2014

Tim Tebow really is wearing a lavender jacket (h/t @edsbs) pic.twitter.com/qYdTu2QKKb
— CJ Fogler (@cjzero) August 28, 2014

Really interesting article by a young man of average physical skills deciding he would commit himself to becoming a professional soccer player.

I know what I'm requesting next time I want a commission...

Make Baymax your team logo on the @ESPNFantasy Football App today: http://t.co/JHZmBuVNzp pic.twitter.com/a2sQDtKXtC
— Disney Animation (@DisneyAnimation) August 28, 2014

Strange bit of cross-promotion.

Plush Inquisitor. Here's a look at the figures in packaging, btw:

Just found some #StarWarsRebels action figures. pic.twitter.com/vxEBAjGMy9
— Dave Filoni (@dave_filoni) August 27, 2014

Last Exit to Nowhere's latest tee is based on Dawn of the Dead.

Monica Seles is a romance novelist now

You can buy The Academy: Game On at Amazon:

The Academy is an International Sports Mecca for teen athletes. There are only two ways in. Deep pockets or enough talent to score a scholarship.

Young tennis star Maya's dreams have finally come true when she earns a scholarship to The Academy. Plucked from her small town, Maya moves to the sports training facility/boarding school to (hopefully) start the beginning of her pro career. But Maya's fantasy of The Academy doesn't quite match the reality. Because where there are hot, talented teens, there's a lot of drama. Meet the players: 

Nicole: A tennis star who feels threatened by Maya (but she'd never admit it).
Cleo: Maya's rebel/punk roommate who is nearing the top of the golf world.
Renee: The gorgeous swimmer with enough money to buy her way into The Academy.
Travis: The son of The Academy owner--perfectly groomed to be the next NFL star.
Jake: Travis' younger brother--the bad boy to his brother's good.

(Bolding from the official description.)  Via.

Great deals on video games right now

I'm picking up:

Injustice: Gods Among Us Ultimate Edition for $7.50 at Amazon(the iOS version is my favorite time waster)

and

Castle of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse for iOS on sale for 99 cents instead of the usual $10.

Also available:

The first three Arkham games as a $23 bundle

Titanfall for $20

and

Lego Batman 2 for $5

Ever wanted to see what's in a baseball? RT @MillerStrib Project complete, just as game begins. pic.twitter.com/EhXhtmICpE
— CJ Fogler (@cjzero) August 28, 2014

Protest biased gaming journalism while wearing a Social Justice Warrior tee designed by Olly Moss.

"USC senior cornerback Josh Shaw has admitted to lying about how he suffered his ankle injuries last weekend and has been suspended indefinitely, the school said in a statement Wednesday."

"Viral" just means "a fictional story portrayed as true," right?

3D-printed monkey selfie sculpture available at Shapeways.

Clearance sale at the BBTS--lots of Marvel Legends, NECA, Revoltech, and Play Arts Kai figures at the link.

Maybe all the fan theories are wrong and Game of Thrones will end with Natalie Dormer riding all three dragons...

The Monterey Bay Aquarium has posted some nice wallpapers (although few are of modern resolution). Via.

The Entertainment Earth summer clearance has started. Items with steep markdowns include:

ThreeA Portal bots.

Twilight Zone Nightmare at 20,000 Feet dioarama.

Lego Star Wars Advent Calendar.

Nightmare Before Xmas Kubrick set.

Adventure Time figure set, including Fionna.

From an old article--when Avengers and Breaking Bad were filming next to each other, Sam Jackson wanted to do a brief cameo as Nick Fury by ordering chicken at Pollos Hermanos.

The president of NBC News is married to married to a former director of communications for Britain’s security and intelligence.

Submit Your Designs to SuperFanArt! Create + sell 3D designs based on Hasbro’s iconic brands: http://t.co/pkM0Z2v50Q pic.twitter.com/8yxszgaxvy
— Shapeways (@shapeways) August 25, 2014

If, like me, you hated Skyfall, you'll enjoy this extensive list of its plot holes.

(The only things I liked about it were the jellyfish and the initial conversation between Bond and Silva.)

Creme brulee-filled strawberries and other gorgeous dessert ideas by Sprinkle Bakes.

Kamala Khan and Carol Danvers custom action figures by raybot on sale at ebay.

Poster and trailer for The Pyramid.

If you haven't seen Anita Sarkeesian's latest video, you should watch it now (NSFW)--it's an overview of how frequently major video games feature violence against sexualized women.

I haven't played the God of War games.  The example from GoW III is stunningly loathsome.

Meanwhile, today I sat down to read the first volume of Locke and Key (which I'd never read before) and decided after page 12's indication that a rape had occurred that I wasn't interested in reading any more. I don't think I've bought anything by Mark Millar since reading Kick-Ass 2, either.  And I never enjoyed Telltale's Fables game again after the second episode.

(Since The Strain is topical right now, I was disgusted by the ending of that book, too.)

"This LifeAlert Ad Is Creepier Than American Horror Story."

Seriously. Creepier than P.T.

Swell faux-lighting on these Warhammer 40k miniatures painted by Tim Davis as a commission.

*Buy painted miniatures at eBay.

If you thought that heroic story didn't sound right...

Part of Kotaku's response to the recent complaints over biased coverage (not by me) is writers can't participate in Patreons.  (Which I don't.)

Proposed cover design for the must have Fables Covers: The Art of James Jean (New Edition).

"If you are a designer or illustrator, I would advise against working with Tumblr." (An artists says good luck collecting on money owed.)

Reuters:

Walt Disney Co has filed for three drone-related patents that it says could lead to an era of aerial movie screens and larger-than-life puppets flying through the sky. 

The company's Disney Enterprises Inc subsidiary suggests its proposed drone-powered air shows could serve as an alternative to spectacles such as fireworks and large-scale light shows, according to its patent applications.

Tumblr devoted to bands' day jobs. Via.

40% markdowns on Bioshock Infinite items, including the Skyhook and Evil Robot George Washington figure.

New ThreeA robot.

Monster by Diana Esperanza for a game jam game called Onryo's Legend.

"Pain is only temporary. Film is forever."

Devin Graham's latest extreme stunts montage. And the blooper reel showing how much work goes into pulling off even the simplest stunt:

Shadow over Downtown Los Angeles.

"Malaysia Airlines Is Burning $2 Million Every Day as Flights Go Empty."

Threezero's Aphrodite figure.

Funko's Dancing Groot toy is available for preorder.

Blast from the past.

I would call this a bizarre resurgence, but I don't know that there was a ever a time when he was popular? (Meanwhile, Marvel isn't going to support Big Hero 6 at all.)

Bloomberg:

Sadly, and predictably, political forces are fighting back. In response to the Navy’s possible sales ban, Representative Duncan Hunter, a California Republican, has inserted language in the defense authorization bill that would require military commissaries to keep selling tobacco products. Little wonder the military has a smoking problem.

Latest Star Wars Rebels footage has a strong Raiders of the Lost Ark feel

Modified Raiders of the Lost Ark chase music + a fistfight by a fighter.

Medicom's fancy Stormtrooper action figure is available for preorder for $55.

The closest Sony got to building a Walkman for vinyl

This is Sony's PS-F5 battery-powered portable record player with headphone jacks:



There was one at ebay when I checked.

The Seattle Reign, Hope Solo's team, has a great logo.

Per TMZ, former Death Row Records CEO Suge Knight was shot six times at a Chris Brown-hosted party in Hollywood for the VMAs. (Expected to recover.)

Wes Welker suffered his third (official) concussion since November 17.

Link roundup

Posted at Screenburn:

1. When Google's augmented reality mobile game intrudes into your real life:

That afternoon, someone attacked the portal I’d been maintaining outside my office. “Sorry,” I blurted, jumping up from my desk. “Someone is attacking my triangles.” 

I rushed outside and around the corner and stood beside the portal. It was a bike rack shaped like a pennyfarthing bicycle. Someone was hitting it with XMP blasts. Every time they destroyed my low-level resonators, I’d put up another one. It was giving me a lot of XP. The attacker was probably getting annoyed. 

Suddenly, a tiny middle-aged woman burst from an alley and started hurrying toward me, eyes locked on her phone. I limped away as fast as I could and hid behind a tree. I stood behind that tree for three minutes, tapping away at my own phone. I fought her off. Then I went back inside my office and informed everyone there that I had just scared off the enemy.

2. Momoa as Aquaman.

3. 80's sysadmin warning posters look like dystopian parodies.

4. Can you beat my score on Ken Jennings' Slate news quiz this week?

BART ebooks

pic.twitter.com/RdFWWkA5si
— BART ebooks (@BART_ebooks) August 23, 2014

pic.twitter.com/VXOPTasass
— BART ebooks (@BART_ebooks) August 22, 2014

Custom The Dark Knight Returns armored Batman figure by DjXavo13.

If your money was on Funko putting out the first (spoiler) Groot toy, you were right.

New t-shirt based on Spike Jonze's Her

OS1 is the newest t-shirt available at Last Exit to Nowhere.

Heavy rain in Winnipeg

LMFAO WINNIPEG!!!! pic.twitter.com/KGo9B02FJw
— Quinn Baskin (@QuinnB9) August 22, 2014

Whyte Ridge neighborhood in Winnipeg. #mbstorm pic.twitter.com/bcx6re2RIv
— Samantha Amaral (@SamanthaNAmaral) August 22, 2014

Thunderstorm deluge hits Winnipeg, parts of southern Manitoba: A thunderstorm tore through Winnipeg and parts ... http://t.co/LyId5c5tTy
— CTV Winnipeg (@ctvwinnipeg) August 22, 2014

Alternative movie poster for Argentine movie Relatos Salvajes ("Wild Tales").

Shane (Iron Man 3) Black is making new movies based on Predator, Doc Savage, and Remo Williams.

Here's another #Nebula design I did for @Guardians Too much fun to work on! She's a #badass #marvel #conceptart pic.twitter.com/01ccjU9la3
— Andy Park (@andyparkart) August 21, 2014

#Nebula design I painted for @Guardians focused less on sexy & more on "can kick your a$$" #GuardiansOfTheGalaxy pic.twitter.com/BEaay6W2cs
— Andy Park (@andyparkart) August 21, 2014

Hitman Go is on sale for $2 at itunes.

Redditor describes a truly bizarre one night stand, and another Redditor chimes in to say he had a similar experience.  (The best short stories you'll read today.)

Holy cow, the ugly shirt from William Gibson's outstanding Zero History is real:

In their malware demonstration, the researchers used a distinctive image to signal to their software that the scanner should replace a certain person’s image with an innocuous one.

Gozer by Tara McPherson for Gallery 1988.

Weta sculpture of Harry Knowles as Jabba.

New bookcut illustrations by Thomas Allen for Nautilus.

Whoopi Goldberg's forgotten buddy cop/dinosaur movie Theodore Rex

We're living in the future--Gabe Krahulik's riveting account of trying to discover who was bombing his son's Minecraft creations.

Trees #7 cover by Jason Howard.

I posted my favorite November 2014 Marvel and DC comic book covers at Screenburn.

Nightmare fuel. Seriously.

I assume this is a tease of Threezero's upcoming Aphrodite A.

More on ThreeA's Marvel and Valve toys

ThreeA:

Q: Will we see female figs from the Marvel line? Really hoping for Rogue and Jean Grey! 

A: First up will be Black Widow, also have Madam Hydra and Spider Woman in the works. Speaking of Marvel, Doom will up for grabs next month and shipping this year! Which reminds you should have your Ironman soon, the boxes were just approved! 

... 

Q: Do you have any VALVe project/figures news which you can share with us? 

A: We are working on DOG from HL, an updated version! that will come in a two pack with Alyx, also making a Gordon Freeman! Also if all goes well we will offer the Halloween TF2 ghost premade for well..Halloween! We are massive fans of Valve here at 3A!

Dustin Harbin is looking for commissions.

Lego mecha crab by rongYIREN.