Get Free Comic Books During Halloween ComicFest at Local Comic Book Shops

Get Free Comic Books During Halloween ComicFest at Local Comic Book Shops (image via HalloweenComicFest.com)

On Saturday, October 26, participating comic shops across North America and around the world will hand out more than 1.7 million free comics to anyone who comes into their shop during Halloween ComicFest! During the event, anyone who goes into a participating comic shop can choose a free comic from the 28 titles available this year and participate in the fun Halloween-themed activities hosted by the comic shops. 

• The annual event is a great way to welcome curious, first-time readers as well as longtime comic book fans into local shops to experience all the horror comics and spooky delights comic shops have to offer.

Twenty-eight free comics, including 19 full-size comics and 9 mini comics can be picked up. This year's titles include Marvel Comics' Ghost Rider: King of Hell #1, Iron Man: Road to Iron Man 2020, Miles Morales: Spider-Man #0, Star Wars: Boba Fett #1; DC Comics' DCEASED #1, The Secret Spiral of Swamp Kid/ Black Canary: Ignite, and DC Superhero Girls: At Metropolis High; and Pokémon Adventures, Sonic the Hedgehog, and Spook House, among other spooktacular titles for comic readers of all ages.

Halloween ComicFest also features "The Greatest Halloween Costume Contest Ever!", running now through November 1st at 2pm EST. Fans can enter one of five categories – Superhero/Comics, Video Games, TV/Movie, Horror, or Original – just by taking a picture of themselves in costume and submitting the photo on the Halloween ComicFest website. Six winners will be selected at random: five first prize winners who will receive a $50 shopping spree to their local comic shop and one grand prize winner who will receive a $500 shopping spree to their local comic shop!

"We want communities to participate in Halloween ComicFest not only to discover the great selection of comics offered, but also to experience comic shops as premiere destinations for spooky Halloween fun. Your local comic shop is a great place to meet like-minded people and discover new comics and cool pop-culture items available each week and all year long," said Halloween ComicFest spokesperson Ashton Greenwood. "This year is the perfect time to visit your local comic book shop and celebrate Halloween ComicFest!"

• For more information about Halloween ComicFest, the free comics, costume contest, and to find a participating comic shop, go to halloweencomicfest.com. It's time to get in your Halloween costume and take your family and friends to check out the free comics and fun at your local comic shop!

About Halloween ComicFest

Halloween ComicFest is an annual event where participating comic book specialty shops across North America and beyond celebrate the Halloween season by giving away free comic books to anyone who comes into their shops. 

The event is held the Saturday before Halloween and is the perfect opportunity to introduce friends and family to the many reasons why comic shops are a great destination for Halloween themed comic books, products and merchandise. 

• From zombies, vampires, monsters and aliens to costumes and more, comic shops have it all when it comes to Halloween fun!

SOURCE: Halloween ComicFest

Star Wars: The Evolution Of The Death Star Reflects Hollywood's Growing Fears Of A Climate Apocalypse

The Death Star - Star Wars (Lucasfilms/Twentieth Century Fox)

Science fiction films are rarely about the future. Their distant planets and remote time periods instead seem to reflect upon the concerns and anxieties of the contemporary moment. For instance, 1978’s Invasion of the Bodysnatchers played on the US public’s fear of communism at the height of the Cold War. Terminator 2: Judgement Day capitalised on concerns of a nuclear apocalypse and the fears associated with escalating artificial intelligence.

In the 21st century, in this era being referred to as The Anthropocene, fears of environmental disaster seem to have eclipsed those of a cold war, nuclear apocalypse or technological singularity. Rising temperatures, melting sea ice, ocean acidification, deforestation, soil erosion, overpopulation, biodiversity loss and the general degradation of ecosystems worldwide are an escalating threat to all life’s survival on Planet Earth. How then does contemporary sci-fi respond to these pressures and demands of living on a dying planet?

Many recent sci-fi films seem to reflect this shift in concern. Interstellar, Snowpiercer, After Earth, IO: Last on Earth, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, Wall-E, Avatar, Geostorm, Annihilation and Okja, seem to situate a climate catastrophe – or more specific environmental concerns – as the dystopic impulses driving their narratives.

This ecological imagination of disaster can also be seen in sci-fi films that are not ostensibly about the environment. Star Wars stands out in particular here. The transformations between the original 1977 Death Star in the Star Wars trilogy to the Death Stars found in 2015’s Star Wars: The Force Awakens and 2016’s Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, succinctly chart a movement from a technological to an ecological imagination of disaster in the genre.

Design for the ultimate Death Star – Star Wars: Rogue One. (Lucasfilms/20th Century Fox)

Death Stars then and now

The potential devastation in the original Death Star is akin to a nuclear strike. The device’s advanced technology is front and centre of its representation – there are plenty of shots of buttons being prodded and levers being pulled prior to its laser firing. More obviously, this weapon’s total and instantaneous destruction of Princess Leia’s home planet of Alderaan neatly connects with fears of a huge atom bomb’s almost unimaginable destructive power.

Destroyer of worlds: the original Death Star in the 1977 Star Wars.(Lucasfilms/20th Century Fox)

By contrast the “new” Death Star of The Force Awakens – called “Star Killer Base” – is solar powered. It is a planet with a weapon in it, as opposed to the original, a weapon shaped like a planet.

Where the destruction of Alderaan by the Death Star felt like a massive explosion, when Star Killer Base’s lasers land on their target planets it is instead as if they go through some sort of geological catastrophe. This geological imagery is echoed when Star Killer Base is itself destroyed. It does not blow up immediately, as the original Death Star did, but undergoes what’s referred to as “a collapse”.

During this collapse two of the central characters, Kylo Ren and Rey, have time for a climactic lightsaber duel among the tectonic chaos, dodging great chasms that open in the ground as the snowy forest landscape is slowly engulfed. This drawn-out collapse sits in stark contrast to the instantaneous explosion of the 1977’s Death Star, wherein no such luxury of time was afforded to Grand Moff Tarkin.

The Death Star in Rogue One also draws on environmental imagery and a longer timescale of destruction. Rogue One is a prequel to 1977’s Star Wars – and the plot partly revolves around the Empire’s construction of this iconic battleship. So it is interesting that – despite a need to ensure continuity with the original film – Rogue One’s Death Star aesthetically operates rather differently to the Death Star first seen in 1977.

When its laser strikes the film quickly ignores the device’s technological underpinning. Instead a Frankenstein stitching of unruly weathers approaches on the target of Jedha City: part mudslide, part storm, part Earthquake, part pyroclastic flow. What once appeared as dangerous technology now manifests as dangerous weather.

Shifting crises

Star Wars’ Death Stars are not alone in this representational shift. In Independence Day (1996), aliens blow up the White House with a laser. By 2016’s Independence Day: Resurgence, the aliens are reinvented as intergalactic miners who use this laser to drill into the Earth’s core to extract energy.

At the end of the original Planet of the Apes, Charlton Heston gets down on his knees and exclaims: “You maniacs! You blew it all up” – implying humans bombed themselves into near extinction. By the time Dawn of the Planet of the Apes came along in 2014, we were on the side of an environmentally situated and self-subsisting ape colony, who simply wish to be left alone in the forest. As with Star Wars, the technological seems to give way to the ecological in 21st-century iterations of 20th-century franchises.

Anthropocene anxieties

Susan Sontag’s 1965 article The Imagination of Disaster revolves around her belief that sci-fi films imagine the disaster narrative of the time in which they are made. These examples suggest that the disaster that is being imagined today is environmental, with these films situating the ecological concerns of a warming climate above and beyond that of nuclear Armageddon.

Such a shift in attention is timely and pertinent to the pressures of a rapidly warming climate, and at the time of writing the Amazon rainforest is still burning fiercely.

Through the mirrored unruly environments found in sci-fi cinema and our contemporary moment alike, we are reminded that the worst effects of ecological collapse are continually unfolding. And this crisis is not only happening on fictitious planets and in far-flung time periods – but right here and now on Earth.

About Today's Contributor:

Toby Neilson, PhD Film Researcher, University of Glasgow, is the author of:
Different Death Stars and devastated Earths: Contemporary sf cinema’s imagination of disaster in the Anthropocene

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. 

Star Wars Related Stories:

• Versions Of Han Solo's Blaster Exist – And They're Way More Powerful Than Real Lightsabers Would Be
• Southend-on-Sea: Street Artist Pays Tribute To Carrie Fisher By Doing What He Does Best
• Star Wars: Escapist Fantasy Or Dream Of The Future?

Miscellaneous:

• What Led Up to the War for the Planet of the Apes
• 'Interstellar' - New Official International Trailer's Out! [Video Included]

Amazon Rainforest Related Stories:

• "Game Of Thrones" Star Nikolaj Coster-Waldau Travels To The Amazon With United Nations Development Programme To Discover The Real Story Behind The Fires
• Fires from Deforestation and Negligent Policy are Destroying Amazon Rainforest
• Let's Stop The Amazon Apocalypse! [Petition]

Rodeo FX Reveals The Visual Effects Behind The Monsters Of 'Stranger Things 3'

'Stranger Things 3' - The Mind Flayer

Rodeo FX, lead vendor on the record-breaking third season of the Netflix hit series Stranger Things, is set to release three behind-the-scenes videos on October 2 that break down the visual effects that brought all the season's creatures and monsters to life. Inspired by the iconic title creature from The Thing, the Duffer Brothers' vision of the season's terrifying Mind Flayer was modeled and animated by the Rodeo FX team. The team also delivered complex visual effects for environments, matter and substances, including imploding rats and moving goop.

From previs and look development to compositing, the Rodeo FX team worked on the seven effects-rich episodes of the eight-episode season. VFX Supervisor Martin Pelletier led almost 200 artists over 13 months to deliver above 400 shots, hundreds of CG assets, and all the new season's CG creatures.

"After watching the first season of Stranger Things, I remember thinking that I had to work on that show one day," said VFX Supervisor Martin Pelletier. "The third season was such a treat to be a part of. Working with the Duffer Brothers is a remarkable experience. They are really enthusiastic and it's incredible to witness their creative process."

On set in Atlanta, and later at the post-production office in Los Angeles, Martin Pelletier met with VFX Supervisor Paul Graff and the Duffer Brothers on multiple occasions to discuss the artistic and technical challenges of bringing the season's epic monsters to life.

This marks an important achievement for the VFX house, which paved its way in the industry following three Emmy wins for its work on HBO's groundbreaking Game of Thrones. Having established its expertise in creature and animation work on It, Paddington 2, Bumblebee, Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, and Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, among others, Rodeo FX was tasked by Netflix with raising the bar with new monsters.

"Netflix trusted us with the biggest effects for their flagship show, which was both a tremendous honour and a great challenge," said Rodeo FX President Sebastien Moreau. "I'm incredibly proud of how our teams rose to the occasion and delivered truly hair-raising creatures and effects."

The three making-of videos will be unveiled to the media via an exclusive, live, online presentation by VFX Supervisor Martin Pelletier and Animation Supervisor Yvon Jardel on October 1, at 11:00 a.m. (ET). The presentation will showcase the Rodeo FX's work, as well as feature anecdotes and stories from their team's collaboration with the Duffer Brothers.

Rodeo FX reveals the visual effects behind the monsters of Stranger Things 3 (CNW Group/Rodeo FX)

Click here to access the online presentation on October 1, at 11:00 a.m. (ET)

• Martin Pelletier and Yvon Jardel will also participate in a Facebook Live on October 2 at 12:00 p.m. (ET), followed by a Reddit AMA at 1:00 p.m.

• Stranger Things – Season 3 is available for streaming on Netflix.

SOURCE: Rodeo FX

Related Videos:

Related Stories:

• "Stranger Things" and Neon Cinematography
• Stranger Things: Inventiveness In The Age Of The Netflix Original

US: 'The Twilight Zone' Celebrates 60 Years of the Surreal When Six Classic Episodes Come to Movie Theaters Nationwide for One Day Only in November

Rod Serling

From the four repeating notes of its theme music to its unforgettable tales of the supernatural and the surreal, few television series have reshaped the medium as much as Rod Serling's "The Twilight Zone." On November 14, Fathom Events and CBS Home Entertainment celebrate the series' 60th anniversary with a one-night-only event exclusively in cinemas nationwide.

"The Twilight Zone: A 60th Anniversary Celebration" will combine digitally restored versions of six quintessential episodes with an all-new documentary short titled "Remembering Rod Serling" about the life, imagination and creativity of creator Serling, whose thought-provoking introductions continue to mesmerize fans.

"The Invaders" (The Twilight Zone)

"The Twilight Zone: A 60th Anniversary Celebration" will be presented in more than 600 movie theaters across the country on Thursday, November 14, at 7:00 p.m. local time through Fathom Events' Digital Broadcast Network (DBN). A complete list of theater locations will be available September 27 on the Fathom Events website (theaters and participants are subject to change).

While each of the 156 episodes of the mind-bending, sometimes nightmare-inducing, series has a legion of admirers, for this special 60th anniversary presentation, "Twilight Zone" CBS has curated six particularly noteworthy fan favorites to present on the big screen – the first time ever that original episodes of the series, which originally ran from 1959 to 1964, have been presented on the big screen.

"Eye of the Beholder" (The Twilight Zone)

"The incredible mind of Rod Serling led to some of the most indelible moments ever created for television, and selecting these episodes was both a great pleasure and a responsibility we took seriously, knowing how much the series means to generations of fans," said Ken Ross, EVP and general manager of CBS Home Entertainment.

Fathom Events CEO Ray Nutt added, "'The Twilight Zone' has inspired many filmmakers and storytellers, so it is a great honor to be able to bring these classic stories to the big screen, and to offer such an incisive look into the mind of the man who created them."

"Time Enough at Last" (The Twilight Zone)

The six episodes that will be screened as part of "The Twilight Zone: A 60th Anniversary Celebration" are:

• "Walking Distance"– Busy and stressed out, Martin Sloan (Gig Young) is a Madison Avenue executive who stops his car at a gas station that isn't far from the small town where he grew up. Martin decides to walk to Homewood, which he left 25 years ago, where he meets his 11-year-old self, his parents … and learns about the dark side of nostalgia. (Original airdate: Oct. 30, 1959)
• "Time Enough at Last" – Harry Bemis (Burgess Meredith) loves to read. The only problem is, he can find neither the time nor the place for it, and he's harangued by his boss and his wife for his passion. As sneaks into the bank vault for some reading time, there's a massive nuclear explosion. With the world gone, Harry has nothing but reading time. There's just one catch. (Original airdate: Nov. 20, 1959)
• "The Invaders" – An elderly woman (Agnes Moorhead) who lives alone a ramshackle farmhouse hears noises on her roof. When she investigates, she finds what seems to be a flying saucer, and from it emerge two small robots who seem bent on her destruction. She fights them off and destroys their ship, unaware of their true nature. (Original airdate: Jan. 27, 1961)
• "The Monsters are Due on Maple Street" – On a pleasant day, the residents of Maple Street are disturbed by a noise and a tremor. Unsure what to make of it, when young Tommy tells them a story he read about an alien invasion, paranoia descends upon the once-tranquil neighborhood, revealing an unsettling truth about the fragility of humanity. (Original airdate: March 4, 1960)
• "Eye of the Beholder" – Janet Tyler (Maxine Stewart) does not look like everyone else. A horrible disfigurement has traumatized her all her life, and now on her 11th trip to the hospital, her bandages will soon come off. It this surgery to make her "normal" doesn't work, she will be segregated for life with other afflicted people. The moment of truth is at hand. (Original airdate: Nov. 11, 1960)
• "To Serve Man" – Michael Chambers (Lloyd Bochner) recounts recent events on earth following the arrival of an alien spacecraft. Its occupants seem benevolent, and offer to share technology to provide limitless energy and cure all diseases. Chambers, an encryption specialist, is suspicious, particularly as he examines a book the aliens have left behind. (Original airdate: March 2, 1962)

"To Serve Man" (The Twilight Zone)

In addition to the six episodes, this unique celebration of "The Twilight Zone" also features "Remembering Rod Serling," an all-new documentary that takes viewers into the fertile imagination and life of series creator Serling. It offers a closer look at the life experiences that inspired Serling's unique blend of thought-provoking and visionary storytelling, from his time as a paratrooper in World War II to his early writing days in live television, and ultimately to the creation of this indelible TV series. Friends, collaborators and members of the Serling family offer insight into the man whose creativity has inspired audiences around the globe for 60 years.

• Tickets to "The Twilight Zone: A 60th Anniversary Celebration" are available beginning Friday, September 27, at FathomEvents.com and at participating theater box offices.

SOURCE: Fathom Events

Video Game Based On The New Netflix Series "The Last Kids On Earth" Anticipated To Launch In 2021

"The Last Kids on Earth" (CNW Group/Thunderbird Entertainment Group Inc.)

Atomic Cartoons, Cyber Group Studios and Outright Games are pleased to announce a new partnership to produce The Last Kids on Earth video game. The new Netflix series, Last Kids on Earth, is based on Max Brallier's bestselling books. 

• The game is anticipated to launch in 2021 on consoles and PC. 

The Last Kids on Earth video game will be created in consultation with the producers of the animated series, which began streaming this week on September 17, 2019. The intellectual property (IP) for the book series was optioned by Thunderbird's Kids and Family Division in 2017, and Netflix acquired the worldwide rights to the TV series in 2018. 

Earlier this year, Cyber Group Studios became the worldwide representative for merchandising, ancillary and second window TV rights when an agreement was reached in February. In May 2019, a Master Toy deal was announced with Jakks Pacific Inc. to develop a range of products, including action figures, activity toys, role-play accessories, vehicles, plush items, novelty items, games, and play electronics. 

• The toy line is set to hit shelves around the world in 2020.

"We are thrilled to have gamers play as our venerable series leads, Jack, June, Quint and Dirk, and partake in thrilling apocalyptic adventures throughout Wakefield – with both familiar and new monsters and zombies," said Matthew Berkowitz, Chief Creative Officer, Atomic Cartoons and Thunderbird Entertainment. "The Last Kids on Earth is such a captivating series, and it is awesome to see it being embraced by audiences internationally and in many formats. Working with author Max Brallier, and evolving this story into a global franchise with books, an animated series, a video game and toy line, is an incredible experience for everyone at Atomic."

About the Book Series: 

The Last Kids on Earth is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling book series, with millions of copies in print around the world. It follows Jack Sullivan and a band of suburban middle schoolers who live in a decked-out tree house, play video games, gorge themselves on candy, and battle zombies in the post-apocalyptic town of Wakefield. It's a hilarious series filled with wisecracking kids, crazy gadgets, an endless supply of zombies and giant-sized monsters.

The Book Series Trailer:

About the Animated Series: 

The animated Netflix series premiered on September 17, 2019, as a 66-minute special episode. Two additional seasons will begin streaming in 2020, including an interactive episode. 

Both seasons will feature a star-studded voice cast, which includes Mark Hamill, Rosario Dawson, Catherine O'Hara, Keith David, Bruce Campbell, Garland Whitt, Montse Hernandez and Charles Demers, in addition to Nick Wolfhard voicing the lead character Jack Sullivan.

The Animated Series Trailer:

Commenting on the deal with Outright Games, Thierry Braille, Vice President, Interactive and Video Game Division, Cyber Group Studios, said: "We are delighted to come together with Atomic Cartoons and Outright Games to announce a video game based on The Last Kids on Earth. The combination of this wonderful IP and the very promising game design made by Outright Games will deliver an amazing video game which will contribute to expand The Last Kids on Earth universe".

Terry Malham, CEO of Outright, also noted: "After reading the books, and getting a preview of the Netflix series, we jumped at the chance to work with Atomic Cartoons and Cyber Group Studios to develop a video game based on The Last Kids on Earth. It has all the hallmarks of a successful franchise – comedy, adventure, friendship, fun – and we look forward to gamers around the world coming along for the ride when we launch in 2021."

SOURCE: Thunderbird Entertainment Group Inc.

Multiple Award-Winning Short Film 'Bummer' Secures Newest Accolades From London Independent Film Awards

"An asteroid just had to come on this day. Now what?" - "Bummer" (image via imdb.com)

Limitless Films LLC recently announced that its 8th and newest short film "Bummer" netted three awards from the London Independent Film Awards. The monthly competition recognizes excellence in filmmaking from filmmakers from across the world. 

"Bummer" is a depiction of a mother and daughter's move to a new home in Florida, just as the story breaks of an imminent asteroid approach that will destroy earth.

The film is rated PG-13 by the Motion Picture Association of America. "Bummer" has won a total of 41 awards worldwide.

"I'm incredibly thankful that 'Bummer' is receiving international recognition and that our film seems to be connecting with audiences around the world," said director and writer Barry Worthington. "I feel very lucky to have worked alongside such a talented cast, crew and collaborators. I'm excited about what we are accomplishing together."

"Bummer" is the newest in a distinguished catalog of award-winning films from Barry Worthington. The compelling short won: "Best Actress" for Marili Mejias, "Best Child/Young Actress" for Hope Perry, and "Best Editing" for Worthington. The film was completed in May of 2018 and officially launched for streaming on the Limitless Films website. 

"Bummer" has also earned Official Selection honors from the Rendezvous Film Festival in Amelia Island, Florida and the Kapow Intergalactic Film Festival in North Hollywood, California.

Barry Worthington (image via imdb.com)

About Barry Worthington:

Worthington had proud but humble beginnings showing his work in places like the Gaithersburg High School auditorium when he was just a teenager, before moving on to serve as an adjunct film professor at Towson University for film production and film theory. He also served as an adjunct film/art professor at Howard Community College.

Worthington's film journey led him to complete his MFA in Film and Electronic Media in 2018. He has led Limitless Films into producing multiple award-winning films, securing a total of 121 awards since 2010, with pieces like: "Corrosion," "The Infinitely Generous Francis Victus," "Sponge," "Tanzanite," "Hollywood Trash," "Kin," and "River Haven."

The Trailer:

SOURCE: Limitless Films LLC

Bud Light Produces Special Edition Alien-Themed Cans [Just In Time For The Storm Area 51 Event]

Alien-themed Bud Light cans (PRNewsfoto/Bud Light)

Today, Bud Light announced it is producing an alien-themed Bud Light Can to share with any alien that leaves the sanctuary of Area 51 on September 20th.

In July, Bud Light had pledged free beer for all aliens who escaped and promised to create a limited-edition alien pack if this tweet received 51K retweets. While the tweet fell just short of 51K RTs, Bud Light aims to please and the consumer response was so great, they decided to make it anyway. The favorite light lager of American Earthlings has followed through and created the Bud Light alien cans for legal drinking aged humans and extraterrestrials to enjoy together.

A Bud Light operative unable to disclose their name for security purposes said, "The way we see it, we'd much rather people crack open a crisp Bud Light with alien visitors rather than storm Area 51. Nothing says we come in peace like sharing a beer with friends from another place or another galaxy. We promised to have beer waiting for any alien that wants it and we plan to deliver on that promise. Our hope is that humans stock up too because you never know when you might need some Bud Lights to welcome intergalactic neighbors."

"For any aliens that escape or decide to visit Earth, Bud Light produced an alien-friendly fridge that's stocked with plenty of Bud Light alien cans." (PRNewsfoto/Bud Light)

Starting today, fans in Nevada, Arizona, and California will be able to purchase the Bud Light alien cans to celebrate the potential release of our otherworldly friends. The special-edition aluminum cans feature a green alien and black background as well as a new crest welcoming all extraterrestrials from near and far to crack a cold one.

For any aliens that escape or decide to visit Earth, Bud Light produced an alien-friendly fridge that's stocked with plenty of Bud Light alien cans. The fridge is locked and includes an alien finger scan in order to open, to ensure the beer supply is available only to our extraterrestrial friends. 

"The fridge is locked and includes an alien finger scan in order to open, to ensure the beer supply is available only to our extraterrestrial friends..." (PRNewsfoto/Bud Light)

Bud Light is staging the fridge in a coveted Las Vegas club's VIP section at the Luxor Hotel and Casino that will be roped off and reserved exclusively for aliens to live it up. The VIP table invites aliens, 21 years or older, to join the party from September 13 - September 20 and toast to their escape while making a few new human friends over alien-themed Bud Lights. 

"The special-edition aluminum cans feature a green alien and black background as well as a new crest welcoming all extraterrestrials from near and far to crack a cold one..." (PRNewsfoto/Bud Light)

• Bud Light is also sponsoring the Area 51 Celebration music festival on September 19 at the Downtown Las Vegas Events Center. 

To bring the raid to fans everywhere, Bud Light is also producing a line of limited-edition merch to match the alien-themed Bud Light Cans. Starting today, legal drinking aged fans can purchase items online from the abgiftshop.com. Merch includes koozies, shirts, hat and bomber jackets and prices range from $100 or less. (PRNewsfoto/Bud Light)

SOURCE: Bud Light

"The Last Resistance: Dragon Tomb" - A Science Fiction Novel By Ricardo Alexanders

The Last Resistance: Dragon Tomb

September 1943, Manhattan is stuck after Shanghai's been obliterated. In a hidden history that only one man lived to tell, a young archaeologist saves the world from an extraterrestrial Armageddon.

While defending his country against Japanese invasion, archaeologist CJ Hoo is taken as a prisoner of war and forced to take part in the excavation of the tomb of the First King of China, a process that unearths a ruthless force and the true origin of Chinese civilization.

The excavation ends; but China is still in dire need of help. Teamed up with American adventurer Dr. Harry Jones, a close friend of President Roosevelt, CJ returns to the tomb and convinces the guardians of the tomb to interfere human affairs.

The tide of the World War is turned but no one sees the rise of an otherworldly evil. Neither the Allies nor the Axis powers can stand in its way. Our world is at the brink of annihilation. At the final moment, CJ finds himself back in the tomb of the First King, as the last line of resistance for the survival of mankind.

Book Details:

The Last Resistance: Dragon Tomb
By Ricardo Alexanders
ISBN: 978-1979564953
ASIN: B0778ZN5DM
Pages: 575
Genre: Science Fiction

• TLR: Dragon Tomb is available in print and eBook formats.

Book Trailer: 

About the Author:

Ricardo Alexanders is the author of Bollywood Invasion and The Last Resistance: Dragon Tomb. He lives in Massachusetts, enjoys music, and loves to write time-travel stories that blend fantasy, science, and real history.

Purchase Links:

• Amazon
• Barnes and Noble 
• IndieBound,org 

SOURCE: BookBuzz.net

The Future of Politics is a Collective A.I. Entity Named LOGOS

This mixed-race logo of LOGOS signifies all humans, including advanced forms of artificial intelligence. She emphasizes the traditional feminine values of empathy, sharing, and nurturance. The tendrils of her hair represents the internet, including all present and future interconnections. Logos in its meaning as "word" represents the ability of this emerging entity to be able to interact with anyone in their own language.

LOGOS is the name of a non-profit, open-source, trinitarian aid to governance. It will consist of interested citizens and academics, channeled through an artificial intelligence entity, eventually able to take on any form, and interact with anyone in their own language. The academic site for professionals, already under development as a collaborative public policy wiki, is called LOGOS.

A companion site, UNICE, will be open to anonymous contributors. In its advanced form, LOGOS could become a new form of cooperative, intelligent life, developed from the hive-like interaction of computers, humans, and future forms of the Internet.

Michael E. Arth, policy analyst, Democratic 2020 presidential candidate, and founder of LOGOS, says: "Public policy in our 'post-truth era' is being cruelly distorted by politics and ideology to the detriment of life. We need compassionate, evidence-based policy, and the only way to do that is with reason backed by real world data. This could be accomplished with public policy wikis, augmented by artificial intelligence."

LOGOS could develop fair, efficient, and decisive supranational governance by organizing nearly limitless data into clear, easily understood guidelines to public policy. A critical aspect of this is to counter widespread misinformation, "fake news," "alternative facts," conspiracy theories, dogma, factionalism and propaganda, with facts and reason. 

"Justice is impossible without the unfettered dissemination of accurate information presented succinctly in proper context," Arth says, "otherwise we are vulnerable to the breakdown of democratic institutions by those using emotional appeals to exploit prejudice and ignorance."

"In Western philosophy, logos means word, discourse, reason, proportion, opinion, proposition, order, and knowledge. The word was later adapted into Abrahamic religions to mean "God." In a similar but secular sense, our LOGOS will be universally present yet still be able to relate personally to each individual. Hermes Trismegistus wrote "God is an intelligible sphere whose center is everywhere but whose circumference is nowhere." This could similarly describe the ubiquitous, interpenetrative, god-like wisdom of an accessible, terrestrial LOGOS."

"We have exploited almost every niche on the planet," Arth writes. "As dreamers, schemers, inventors, warriors, builders, consumers, and breeders, we have been like rapacious caterpillars encircling the Earth in a glistening chrysalis of technology. The outcome of our metamorphosis is being determined by what we do now. Will our potential go unrealized just because we could not learn to control our numbers, temper our malevolent urges, or govern ourselves? Or will we be cannibalized by a runaway, computer-driven beast of our own creation because, like us, it will fail to sufficiently respect the lesser creatures or share power equitably. Hopefully, the chrysalis will incubate us to full maturity, and when the time comes, we will emerge like that most beautiful of small creatures, and touch lightly upon the Earth."

SOURCE: LOGOSwiki.org

Will America become a Corporatocracy? A New Political Mystery by Wynter Sommers Takes a Glimpse into the Future

"EDGES: Swift Encounter" by Wynter Sommers (PRNewsfoto/Pure Force)

Educational fiction is an effective method of learning - The 9-part Edges series set in 2030 showcases America after the country has been ravaged by an unprecedented political regime which has stripped away democracy from the memories of its residents. 

The Ruling Courtly family splashes their name on buildings and merchandise to remind citizens about who is in charge. Lawlessness is allowed to flourish to discombobulate the people so they never organize and rise up against the corporate fiefdom, which maintains tight control. 

Newspaper reporter Bjorn Esterday's investigative division is downsized, but as he moves to popular lifestyles, he brings his hard-edged curiosity to a seemingly innocuous assignment only to be slapped with deadly ramifications. 

How can he and Sarah Paradise, clever school teacher, challenge such a venomous force?

Nicolas Berggruen may have some good ideas about the future of American Democracy. That is why he founded the Berggruen Institute and co-founded the World Post with the Washington Post to investigate global issues…

Berggruen and Nathan Gardels co-authored Intelligent Governance for the 21st Century, which addresses designing a better way to govern by taking the best of East and West. Recently, they released Renovating Democracy.

• Yet, does Berggruen's think tank address corporation-managed cities?

• Would Nicolas Berggruen, 58, and Nathan Gardels, 66 want to compare and contrast their book, Renovating Democracy, with Edges penned by Wynter Sommers?

We probably both know the answer.

In 2008, Lehman Brother's folded laying off 26,000 employees as it dramatically ushered in a new era now called the Great Recession, blazing the path for an uncertain gig-economy where your spare time needs to produce a revenue stream. No longer could a middle-class household pay for healthcare, childcare, and education on one income without going deeply into debt. 

The ripple effect vaporized about 8.7 million jobs, disintegrating the secure scaffolding of pensions, retirement, and traditional nest eggs. Analysis traces this avoidable incident back to a lack of financial regulations.

• So, what is next? If a city files for bankruptcy and needs to liquidate assets at auction, could a corporation buy that distressed city? Could Americans exchange democracy for corporatocracy?

• Does Berggruen's tome address corporation-managed cities? Will America become a corporatocracy?

Edges reveals what America will be like in the year 2030. 

• Why does the character Bjorn Esterday, investigative reporter, take such immense risks?

• Why does Sarah Paradise, determined school teacher, insist on finding out the truth even if it may cost her life?

Wynter Sommers explained, "Edges confronts us with what will happen when the nation complacently stands by as we become corporatized, shifting America's Mission Statement to supporting corporate demands at the expense of our citizen's needs and rights. An earnest desire for objective truth could threaten leadership. Would you be ruled by Jack Courtly or Skipper, his brother? What would you accept and what would it take to get you to fight?"

• Edges, distributed by Pure Force Enterprises Publishing, is available at Barnes & Noble, and Amazon.com USA,

• The Bundle Set of books  includes Edges:Conversation Station guide which evokes poignant questions about each of the nine books.

SOURCE: Pure Force