Mainstream finally believes fantasy fans
When you think of a stereotypical fantasy fan, what image comes to mind for you? A white male, overweight, long hair (possibly braided)?
Is he running through a wooded area, battle axe in hand, participating in a live-action role playing game? Or maybe you see him sitting around a table, a can of Mountain Dew in one hand and a 20-sided die in the other, playing Dungeons & Dragons with a group of friends?
Twenty-five years ago you may not have been far off the mark, but fantasy fans no longer fit into exaggerated stereotypes so easily. Over the last decade, fantasy has moved past the outermost fringe of pop-culture. Today's fantasy fan isn't betrayed by their looks.
And after this weekend, you may be hard pressed to find someone who isn't a fan of some form of epic fantasy.
Season two of HBO’s epic fantasy drama "Game of Thrones," the television adaptation of George RR Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire book series, debuts this Sunday. Watching along with the die-hard fans that helped make the book series popular will be a hoard of new, not-necessarily-nerdy fans. Poised to become a crossover hit before the first episode even aired, the show was buoyed by passionate fans of the books who evangelized this particular epic to non-believers for years.
That dedication is finally paying off. FULL POST
Japanese live action adaptations are always awesome
When it comes to classic stories in manga, it's almost a sure bet that you'll eventually see your favorite Japanese actors and actresses take to the screen to adapt them to live action.
That's why fans of the Shonen Jump martial arts manga "Rurouni Kenshin" are excited about an upcoming live action adaption of the series. It's slated to come out in October 2012 and stars up-and-coming actor Takeru Satoh, whose face you'll remember if you're up to speed on your J-dramas.
This adaption is hardly setting a trend, though - in Japan, if a manga becomes popular, it's likely to pop up in various other adaptations. It's not unusual to see anime, video games, light novels and even theatrical stage productions of popular franchises spawn after an audience proves they love a manga story.
One example is the popular science fiction manga "Gantz," which tells the story of two friends who die in a train accident and become involved in a cutting-edge game in the afterlife in which they are forced to hunt aliens. "Gantz" quickly became a bestseller and was published in English by Dark Horse in 2007. It has also seen adaptations of every type, the latest being two live action films starring popular Japanese actors Kazunari Ninomiya (also a member of boy band Arashi) and Ken'ichi Matsuyama (best known for his role as "L" in the live action adaption of "Death Note"). FULL POST
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