Your Evening Linc: Return of Return of the Jedi, OUAT in Wonderland News, Fresh Prince Back In Style, and More!

It's a beautiful evening here in New York. The air is calm, the sky is clear, and the cicadas are buzzing louder than a TIE's ion engines. Don't know what a cicada is? Well, once, every 17 years, the denizens of the East Coast are visited by a plague of giant, blind insects who burrow up from the depths of the Earth to mate, drop from trees, bump into bystanders, and then die after laying their eggs back in the ground. Then their offspring wait for their turn to terrorize the populace. Luckily, we have the internet to keep us inside and safe!

1. "Return of Return of the Jedi" Celebrates 30 Years of Ewoks, Emperors, and Endor

30 years ago this month audiences witnessed what was then the final tale in the Star Wars saga. Episode VI: Return of the Jedi, my absolute favorite of the series, brings Luke Skywalker face to face with his destiny, hoping to redeem his father and thwart the utter evil of the Emperor. Our heroes battled Jabba the Hutt's minions and destroyed the second Death Star, finally restoring peace and freedom to the galaxy. This movie represented the ultimate battle between good and evil and perfectly ended the trilogy that had inspired a generation. And...of course....it gave us the gold bikini.

God bless you, George Lucas.                   

Now, filmmakers Kyle Newman (Fanboys) and my friend, J.C. Reifenberg (Hughes the Force), along with David Collins and Jeff Yorkes,  have brought together the geek elite (such as  Kevin Smith, Seth Green, Chris Hardwick, Jaime King, Topher Grace, Fall Out Boy, Eli Roth, and Jason Mewes) to share their stories and memories of Return of the Jedi in....The Return of Return of the Jedi: 30 Years and Counting.

Sadly, I can't embed it here, but you can check it out here!

2. Once Upon A Time IN Wonderland


That title is going to make a lot more sense once I tell you that the new series from the creators of Once Upon A Time will, ever so slightly, cross over with its predecessor. Once Upon A Time In Wonderland follows Alice as she leaves the real world behind to find her lost love in the crazy world of Wonderland. And, according to Entertainment Weekly, it will all start in Storybrooke!

  "Get this: The first episode of Wonderland currently starts in Storybrooke. We’re sworn to secrecy on details beyond that. But let’s just say that while the two shows will maintain clear and separate identities (it’s important to ABC and the showrunners that Wonderland can stand-alone with its own easily accessible story) this won’t be the last time the world Once Upon mingles over to Thursdays at 8 p.m."

I think this is a really smart approach: give just enough of a link to OUAT to make the show feel as if it's in the same universe, but then let it stand on its own and follow its own path. We'll be travelling down the rabbit hole this fall on ABC.

3. Now This Is A Story All About How...

Brits and Anglophiles alike will know "chat show" host Graham Norton for his quirky and entertaining show, suitably titled "The Graham Norton Show" where I'm not even quite sure he knows what will happen. Sitting alongside Bradley Cooper and Heather Graham (hello!) Will Smith and his son Jaden were discussing their upcoming movie After Earth. Graham asks the father-son duo if they ever recorded an album together...and then that's when it all went down!



Not only did Will provide a sick beat for Jaden's rap (a different kind of sick), but then the Fresh Prince brought back his partner in crime, DJ Jazzy Jeff. After treating the crowd to a rendition of the Bel-Air theme, the music changed to something more classic, more dignified, more suited for a member of the Banks family! As Alfono Ribeiro danced to his own quasi-theme song "It's Not Unusual" by Tom Jones, the beat changed again and the three men, along with Graham, did the "Jump On It" routine, with Bradley and Heather clapping along in the background. It was actually really touching to watch the old friends hug and high-five, as if no time had passed at all.

DJ Jazzy Jeff, however, left by traditional means.

4. Coming Soon....The World's End

Previously I posted the teaser trailer to Simon Pegg's latest homage film The World's End. A bunch of old friends reunite for the ultimate pub crawl, but making it to The World's End soon become the least of their worries. Check out the full trailer below.

The World's End hits theaters August 23.    

Well, I think that should keep the cicadas at bay! Keep on reading for more geekery here at The Missing Linc!

Til' next time.

- Joe

Your Morning Linc: S.H.I.E.L.D., Once Upon A Time In Wonderland, Harry Potter and Star Wars Theme Parks, Star Wars Returns to the UK, Doctor Who Leak

Congratulations, everyone! We've made it to the middle of the week, which means it's time for me to catch up on what's going on in the land of geekery.

1. Two New Shows For the Geek-Minded

I have a feeling that, starting this fall, this blog will be seeing a lot more recaps and reviews. ABC is delivering not one, but two enticing new shows for lovers of action, adventure, and fantasy. First up is a show about a group of friends who like to spend time together doing what all of us like to do with our friends: Save the world from super-powered, extraterrestrial, dangerous threats. Led by everyone's favorite resurrected agent,  this is Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Also on ABC, the folks behind everyone's favorite fairy tale drama are travelling down the rabbit hole to explore a world we've only seen glimpses of, and in a way that we've never seen before. Alice is not the doe-eyed, sweet youngster we've seen in the cartoon. She has lost her true love in a land where anything is possible. Forced to endure "treatments" at a mental facility, Alice doesn't think Wonderland never existed, but she no longer believes in it. When she is rescued by the White Rabbit and a new ally, they travel back to the mystical place to search for the one whose heart is intertwined with hers. And it all begins Once Upon A Time In Wonderland:



2. Booking My Flights in Advance: Harry Potter World Extension and Possible Star Wars Theme Park

It looks like the folks at Disney and Universal will be quite busy in the next few years. According to Universal Creative president Mark Woodbury, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter will be getting an extension...you just have to know which brick to push. That's right, visitors to the park will finally be able to walk the streets of Diagon Alley

Starting in the summer of 2014, not only will they be building this new attraction, but they will be building it in the main Universal Studios Park. How, then, will people be able to get from there to Hogsmeade and Hogwarts at Islands of Adventure? Why, the Hogwarts Express of course! As Woodbury explains:

 "After people climb aboard the Hogwarts Express at Universal Orlando Resort next year, as they exit that train, they're going to find themselves in an entirely different environment, in a completely different place. Whether they've journeyed from London to Hogsmeade or visa versa. And we've made sure that even your train trip aboard the Hogwarts Express will be part of the ambitious immersive storytelling experience that we're trying to create for our Guests with this Potter expansion."

If you need me, I'll be waiting on line for the next year or so. And, not to be outdone, Disney CEO Bob Iger has hinted at a possible Star Wars theme park in the future. According to the head of the House of Mouse:

"In addition to the Star Wars feature films that we’ve already talked about, we’re also working on opportunities for television and our parks...It’s still very early in the process. We’ll announce details as these developments evolve."

When the park is operational, it will be the ultimate attraction in the universe. I suggest we visit it.

3. Star Wars Returns to the U.K.

According to an announcement on the official site, it looks like filming and production of Star Wars will return to its ancestral homeland. Leaving behind the Land Down Under, Episode VII will be filmed in the United Kingdom. This continues a long tradition of Star Wars being produced in historic studios such as Elstree, Shepperton, Leavesden, Ealing and Pinewood Studios. Representatives of Lucasfilm met with George Osborne, the Chancellor of the Exchequer (which just sounds like something out of Star Wars) to make the proper arrangements.

"We've devoted serious time and attention to revisiting the origins of Star Wars as inspiration for our process on the new movie, and I'm thrilled that returning to the UK for production and utilizing the incredible talent there can be a part of that," said Kathleen Kennedy, President of Lucasfilm. "Speaking from my own longstanding connection to the UK with films like Raiders of the Lost Ark, Empire of the Sun and recently War Horse, it's very exciting to be heading back."

Shooting is set to begin sometime next year.

4. Doctor Whoops: Season 7B DVD Set Released Early in the U.S.

If ever there was a need for time travel, you can bet the people at the BBC are feeling it now. The DVD box set for Series 7B has been released early in the United States, which would be fine except that the season finale hasn't aired yet. You know, the one that promises to reveal the Doctor's greatest secret and solve the mystery of Clara Oswin Oswald?

Yep, that would be the one.

The BBC has pleaded with fans to keep spoilers off the Internet (and, in a joint statement, asked fish not to live in water) and showrunner Steven Moffat has stated if the finale remains unspoiled, that he will release a special clip from the 50th Anniversary Special featuring Matt Smith and David Tennant the night of the finale. Let's just hope this works, or else we're going to have to figure out how to grow a TARDIS. Speaking of the finale, here's a tantalizing (and spoiler-free) preview:

As well as the goosebump-inducing prequel: "He Said, She Said":

So we'll finally get to see the fields of Trenzalore...but what about the Fall of the Eleventh, the Question, and the Silence? Is the Great Intelligence behind all of this? And just WHO are the Doctor and Clara? Take a peak at the BBC-approved pictures here for more tiny bits of information (and note the appearance of a familiar, colorfully-clad person roaming the halls behind Clara).

Well, we certainly have a lot to expect in the coming weeks, months, and years. And all of it will be covered right here, at the Missing Linc!

Til' Next Time,

- Joe