AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D. Casts Edward James Olmos as Robert Gonzales

Director Gonzales?  So say we all.

Marvel has announced that the ABC series Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. has cast none other than Edward James Olmos in a "major recurring role" as a new character named Robert Gonzales that "will have major repercussions for Director Coulson and his team."

"Edward James Olmos brings an amazing gravitas to any role he inhabits, something we knew we needed for Robert Gonzales," said Executive Producer and Marvel’s Head of Marvel Television, Jeph Loeb.  "When Olmos first appears on our series, everyone will have to take notice -- including our favorite agents."

Olmos, of course, is best known as Admiral William Adama on the recent version of Battlestar Galactica.  The 67-year-old actor has appeared in a considerable number of films and television series, including Blade Runner, Selena, Miami Vice, The West Wing, Dexter, Eureka and Portlandia.  His role as Jamie Escalante in the 1988 film Stand and Deliver earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor.

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. returns on Tuesday, March 3rd on ABC at 9:00 p.m. EST.

All of Netflix's Marvel Shows Eligible for Multiple Seasons

Looks like we might get to see Bullseye after all.

Zap2it has posted news from Netflix's winter 2015 press tour, which features some new details on their upcoming shows Daredevil, A.K.A. Jessica Jones, Luke Cage and Iron Fist, all of which will culminate in a Defenders team-up series.

The biggest news, of course, was the long-anticipated revelation that Daredevil will premiere on April 10, 2015. 

Netflix's chief content officer, Ted Sarandos, said that viewers can expect the Marvel shows to come out "roughly a year" apart, with anywhere from eight to fifteen months between premiere dates.  This means that the earliest we could see A.K.A. Jessica Jones would be sometime this December.  "We're not trying to hit a fall programming schedule or hit a grid number," Sarandos explained.  "We want to give them enough room and enough time to make a great show.  I don't want to set up a rigid time table."

And despite concerns that the shows would run for only one season of thirteen episodes, Sarandos said that fans can expect a sort of sequel structure when it comes to second seasons.  "They're all eligible to go into multiple seasons for sure, and contemplate that they will," he remarked.

As for what factors go into the decision for further seasons, Sarandos said, "Definitely in how well we are addressing both the Marvel fanbase but also the broader fanbase who may or may not ever get into one of these series because of their own preconceived notions.  One thing we have a really great history of is probably a combination of the personalized merchandising and the subscription model that allows people to be a little more adventurous about what they watch.  We may find that an audience way broader than the typical Marvel audience will try and fall in love with these shows and with the Marvel brand, and it will be universe-expanding for Marvel too."

THE FLASH Casts Liam McIntyre as Weather Wizard

 

Longtime Flash fans probably saw this coming after watching the pilot episode of The CW's The Flash, but it looks like the true Weather Wizard will finally arrive in Central City.  According to PUNKD Images, Liam McIntyre has been spotted on set as DC Comics character Mark Mardon.

SPOILER #TheFlash new villian Mark Mardon/Weather Wizard @liam_j_mcintyre arriving at YVR @SpoilerTV #YVRShoots @olv http://t.co/v3piGzUESg
— PUNKD Images (@PUNKD_Images) January 6, 2015

McIntyre is best known for playing the lead role on the Starz series Spartacus.  In addition, he's appeared in the film The Legend of Hercules and on the HBO miniseries The Pacific.

Previously, Chad Rook played Mark Mardon's Clyde in The Flash's pilot episode, where the Mardon brothers were bank robbers that were struck mid-air in a plane when the S.T.A.R. Labs particle accelerator wave blanketed Central City.  Clyde gained the ability to create and control the weather until he was shot and killed by Detective Joe West, so most likely, Mark has acquired the same ability.

Created in 1959 by John Broome and Carmine Infantino, the Weather Wizard was originally an escaped prisoner named Mark Mardon who fled to his brother Clyde's house, only to find him dead.  As a scientist, Clyde had discovered a way to control the weather, so Mark took his brother's notes and used them to create a wand that allowed him to generate weather.  He battled The Flash a number of times, eventually joining forces with The Rogues.

In the current New 52 continuity, the Weather Wizard is now called Marco Mardon and is Latino.  As one of the heads of a mafia family, Mardon was called back after his brother Claudio's murder and later finds that his brother's widow, Elsa, was Claudio's murderer.  He continues serving with the current version of the Rogues.

The Flash airs Tuesday nights on The CW at 8 p.m. EST.

CONSTANTINE Casts Mark Margolis as Felix Faust

After some initial rumbings late last year, Seriable has confirmed that the NBC series Constantine has cast Mark Margolis as DC Comics supervillain Felix Faust.  Faust will appear in the show's tenth episode, "Quid Pro Quo," and here's the episode's official plot...

CONSTANTINE “QUID PRO QUO” — 01/23/2015 (08:00PM – 09:00PM) (Friday) : CHAS FACES A PARENT’S WORST NIGHTMARE — MARK MARGOLIS GUEST STARS AS ‘FELIX FAUST’

Thousands of people across Brooklyn have slipped into a mysterious coma, including Chas’ (Charles Halford) daughter. John (Matt Ryan) must find and defeat the evil behind it before it consumes the city. Angélica Celaya also stars.

The 75-year-old Margolis is best known for this Emmy-nominated performance as Héctor "Tio" Salamanca on AMC's Breaking Bad and has appeared in numerous film and television roles, including Scarface, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Oz, The Thomas Crown Affair (1999), Hannibal (2001), Daredevil (2003), The Wrestler, Black Swan, Person of Interest and American Horror Story: Asylum.

Created in 1962 by Gardner Fox and Mike Sekowsky, Felix Faust first appeared in Justice League of America (vol.1) #10 as a master sorcerer who tried to gain some of his lost magical abilities by contacting the Demons Three, three fictional demons in the DC Universe.  Faust battled the Justice League several times over the years and was partially responsible for the death of Ralph Dibny, the Elongated Man.

In the current New 52 continuity, Felix Faust has a much more emaciated appearance and is a recurring enemy of the Justice League Dark, the group of strange and supernatural heroes led by John Constantine.

This will be the character's first depiction in live action, although he's appeared in various animated projects, including The Super Powers Team: Galactic Guardians (voiced by Peter Cullen), Justice League (voiced by Robert Englund), and the series Batman: The Brave and the Bold and Young Justice (both voiced by Dee Bradley Baker).

"Quid Pro Quo" will air on NBC Friday, January 23rd at 8 p.m. EST.

DAMN Good Movies -- My Top 10 Movies of 2014

Another year is officially history, so I thought I'd pass along a few random thoughts about my personal favorite films of 2014. For those not familiar with my typical disclaimer, this list only contains films I actually managed to see in theaters or on home video, so if you don't see your favorite here, that's probably why.

1.  Interstellar -- Yes, I'm an admitted fan of Christopher Nolan's films, so this shouldn't surprise too many people to see this one on top.  And while this tribute to Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey certainly isn't perfect, I give major props for being an actual science fiction story of exploration instead of pew-pew-pew-laserz-are-totes-cool.  After his killer performance on HBO's True Detective earlier in the year, Matthew McConaughey keeps raising the bar with desperately-needed reminders of how America once reached for the stars instead of having a conspiracy agenda lie to the next generation about never landing on the Moon.

2.  The Imitation Game -- Speaking of reminders, if you need one more reason to appreciate Benedict Cumberbatch still wanting to make more episodes of Sherlock, here's this practically certain lock of a Best Actor Oscar nomination.  Set in England during World War II, this story of Professor Alan Turing shows his important role in bringing the war to an end as well as his impact on the world of computers to come.

3.  The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies -- Peter Jackson's final J.R.R. Tolkien adaptation (at least until the inevtiable Silmarillion trilogy) proves to be the best of The Hobbit films, if only for having more action, better pacing, and a mercifully shorter finale than The Return of the King.  Okay, we all know The Hobbit should've been kept to at least two films, but at least we get one more movie of Evangeline Lilly kicking all kinds of Orc ass as Tauriel.

4.  Captain America: The Winter Soldier -- In a solid summer of comic book films, Anthony and Joe Russo's Captain America sequel beats them all.  Chris Evans' Steve Rogers keeps trying to adjust to life in the 21st Century, picking up a new best friend and partner in Anthony Mackie's Falcon and teasing the idea of a relationship with Scarlett Johansson's Black Widow.  The added intrigue gives the film far more depth than you would expect from a Marvel movie, with a game changer powerful enough to help ABC's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. finally realizes its potential.

5.  Guardians of the Galaxy -- And on the other end of the Marvel spectrum, we have James Gunn's immensely fun throwback to '70s and '80s sci-fi movies.  Armed with an unusual '70s classic rock and pop soundtrack, Guardians puts a ton of eye-candy on the screen and makes household names out of Chris Pratt, Rocket Raccoon and Groot.  Now, let's see Marvel do the same for Ant-Man...

6.  Snowpiercer -- Okay, technically, this is a 2013 film, but it wasn't released in the States until June 2014, so I'm counting it.  Chris Evans (He's having a good year, isn't he?) heads up this South Korean science fiction action film based on the French graphic novel Le Transperceneige.  This all-out class warfare aboard a massive, perpetually moving train could get Tilda Swinton a Best Supporting Actress Oscar nom and has some great performances by Sir John Hurt, Ed Harris and Octavia Spencer.  

7.  X-Men: Days of Future Past -- While the latest X-Men movie to come from director Bryan Singer is a good one, it's still another his convoluted adaptations with too many X-Men wearing dull black and grey Matrix uniforms.  Thankfully, Singer embraces the different '70s setting due to the story's wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey nature, and uses it to correct some of his past mistakes, setting the X-franchise up for another fresh reboot.

8.  How to Train Your Dragon 2 -- The second film in the series by Dean DeBlois is hands down the best animated movie of the year, even though it's slightly weaker than the original.  With the addition of Cate Blanchett as Hiccup's long-long monster Valka and Game of Thrones' Kit Harington as Eret, this new tale set five years later is as emotionally moving as it is gorgeous to look at.  Don't worry though, Toothless still manages to steal the entire movie.

9.  The Grand Budapest Hotel -- Wes Anderson's latest comedic quirkfest is an absolute must to watch on cable, even if you're not quite sure what it's supposed to be about.  Ralph Fiennes is absolutely brilliant as Monsieur Gustav H., which says a lot considering he's surrounded by Jeff Goldblum, Adrien Brody, Willem Dafoe, Bill Murray, Edward Norton, Harvey Keitel, Owen Wilson, and Tilda Swinton (Yep, her again).  If nothing else, watch it so your hipster friends will respect you for about five minutes.

10.  The LEGO Movie -- Better than any film called The LEGO Movie has any right in being, Phil Lord and Christopher Miller's saga of an ordinary minifigure destined to save the universe from Lord Business exemplifies the joy of using your imagination to create fantastic things from little plastic blocks that hurt like hell when you step on them accidentally.  Will Arnett steals the film as Batman, but Chris Pratt (Yep, him again), Elizabeth Banks, Will Ferrell, Liam Neeson (!), Alison Brie, and BIlly Dee Williams (!!!) bring the laughs as well.

All in all, a much more creative and interesting year at the movies. Bring on 2015!

Your 2015 Geek Movie and TV Calendar

Once again, the new year brings us closer to The Films and TV Shows You've Been Dying to See for Like Forever.  If you enjoy sci-fi, fantasy and comic book based entertainment as I do, you already have several must-see flicks and television programs in the pipeline for 2015.  With that in mind, I thought I'd go ahead and give a helpful chronological rundown of which geek movie and TV goodness arrives when.  Some of these films will be worth the long wait, others you wouldn't watch even if they were on Netflix, but each have their audiences and key target demographics.  Start planning your work vacation/sick/personal days accordingly.

JANUARY

4 - The Simpsons, Downtown Abbey (TV)
5 - Gotham (TV)
6 - Agent Carter (TV)
7 - American Horror Story: Freak Show (TV)
8 - Archer (TV)
16 - Constantine, 12 Monkeys (TV)
17 - The Musketeers (TV)
19 - The Venture Bros. (TV)
20 - The Flash (TV)
21 - Arrow (TV)
28 - The Americans (TV)

FEBRUARY

February 2015 -- Hannibal, iZombie (TV)
6 - Jupiter Ascending (Movie)
8 - Better Call Saul, The Walking Dead (TV)
13 - Kingsman: The Secret Service (Movie)
27 - House of Cards (TV)

MARCH

March 2015 -- Mad Men (TV)
3 - Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
4 - Broadchurch (TV)
6 - Chappie (Movie)
20 - Insurgent (Movie)

APRIL

April 2015 - Game of Thrones (TV)
18 - Orphan Black (TV)

MAY

May 2015 - Daredevil, Penny Dreadful (TV)
1 - Avengers: Age of Ultron (Movie)
15 - Mad Max: Fury Road (Movie)
22 - Tomorrowland (Movie)

JUNE

June 2015 - Defiance, Heroes: Reborn (TV)
12 - Jurassic World (Movie)
19 - Inside Out (Movie)

JULY

July 2015 -- The Strain (TV)
1 - Terminator Genisys (Movie)
10 - Minions (Movie)
17 - Ant-Man (Movie)

AUGUST

August 2015 -- Doctor Who (TV)
14 - The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (Movie)
28 - Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: The Green Destiny (Movie, TV)

SEPTEMBER

September 2014 - Gotham, Once Upon a Time, The Simpsons, South Park (TV)

OCTOBER

October 2014 - American Horror Story, Arrow, Elementary, The Flash, Preacher, Supergirl, The Walking Dead (TV)

NOVEMBER

6 - Spectre (Movie)
20 - The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2 (Movie)

DECEMBER

18 - Star Wars: The Force Awakens (Movie)
25 - Doctor Who 2015 Christmas Special, Sherlock 2015 Christmas Special (TV), Mission: Impossible 5 (Movie)

NEXT STOP EVERYWHERE Episode 15: "Pyramids of Mars" is Up!

"I'm not a human being.  I walk in eternity..."

Happy New Year!  My good friend and co-host Jesse Jackson and I are back with another episode of Next Stop Everywhere: The Doctor Who Podcast!  Ah, but this time, we have everyone's favorite podcast crush, Karen Lindsay, along for the ride as we reverse the polarity back to the Tom Baker classic, "Pyramids of Mars"!

Exploring this 1975 classic from Season 13 of the original series of Doctor Who, Jesse, Karen and I discuss things like the webcam debut of Karen, the acerbic and mopey Tom Baker, the Stephen Harris pseudonym, Robert Holmes' fondness for hunters/poachers, the Fourth Doctor ending his relationship with UNIT, the Doctor's preoccupation with the planet Earth, comparing the Fourth and Twelfth Doctors, whether the story holds up after 39 years, remembering the great Elisabeth Sladen, Karen's love of Tom Baker's voice, bringing back other Doctors thanks to "The Day of the Doctor," the Doctor's respiratory bypass system, why does Sutekh want to destroy everything but himself, early fez appearances, kneeling before General Zod, and Jesse's Reversing of Reverse the Polarity segment.

And for those who still aren't aware of this yet, we're available on iTunes RIGHT HERE as well as Stitcher RIGHT HERE, so please subscribe and tell your friends about us. If you're looking for direct MP3 downloads, you can find them RIGHT HERE as well. Oh, and don't forget we have an officially official Next Stop Everywhere Facebook page and Twitter account, so be sure to Like and/or Follow us, okay?

Be sure to come on back for our review of the Peter Davison classic, "Earthshock," and look for more of Next Stop Everywhere on iTunes, Libsyn, Stitcher and the Southgate Media Group website!