This week’s episode of Fringe, “A Better Human Being,” was fast-paced an intense. Old Olivia returned (sort of), and Walter bonded with a mental patient (Of course!). Read my review at Badass Digest.

I love everything about this shirt, including the exclusion of Dawn. (However, I do think the artist missed a great opportunity to depict Andrew as an adorable, bubble-headed cartoon backup singer.) I’m looking forward to the Illyria “Blue Meanie” T-shirt next. Make. It. Happen. Internets.

(Via Teefury)

So this is where we’re at, huh? I have mixed feelings. It’s hard not to feel at least a little excited about the upcoming release of IDW’s Doctor Who/Star Trek: The Next Generation crossover comic book series (available in May). I like the idea of seeing The Doctor trade barbs with Captain Picard or Riker hitting on Amy Pond (or on Rory, because you know that Riker will bang anything vaguely humanoid looking), but I’m having trouble mustering much enthusiasm for this thing. It feels less like a celebration of the franchises or a gift to the fans and more like another example of convenient corporate synergy. IDW owns the comic rights to both of these giant properties, so why the hell wouldn’t they want to maximize their profit potential and nab some of that sweet norm (non comic book nerd) cash with a lazy fan-baiting crossover?

OK, maybe it won’t be that bad. Scott and David Tipton, the scribes behind IDW’s monthly Trek series, and Who comic writer Tony Lee are penning the eight-issue series. That’s good news, right? Right? OK, I’ll stop being so McCoy about this. It could be fun. It could even be good if the writers play to the strengths of both series and somehow manage to merge their different tones into something unique and clever. But if Shinzon shows up I’m fucking out!

Check out a description of the plot after the jump.

Launching in May, STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION/DOCTOR WHO: ASSIMILATION2 will feature fan-favorite villains the Borg and the Cybermen as they create an unholy alliance resulting in potential disaster for all humanity. Captain Jean-Luc Picard and the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise find themselves joining forces with the Doctor and his companions, with the fate of the galaxy hanging in the balance.

Lots of wonderful, crazy shit went down on last Friday’s episode of Fringe. It was one of the best hours of genre TV I’ve seen all year. Head on over to Badass Digest to read my review of the ep, “Welcome to Westfield.”

The nice folks at Austinist have published a feature profiling Austin’s Kiyanna Project, the online video series I joined late last year. My pal Manny Benavides, who co-created Kiyanna Project, was quoted in the piece explaining part of what makes the project special:

At the crux of the project is what makes Kiyanna different – the story. Benavides explains, “From the very beginning, the story element was vital to this project. We wanted to get a sense of the artist’s personality and discover a little more about the song itself.” The group is passionate about the endeavor and seeks to show off more than just the band’s music through the different locations and story-telling aspect. They are also open to more artists, venues, and volunteer staff, so be sure to get in touch if you’re intrigued by the idea.

I was excited when Manny brought me on to do PR for Kiyanna Project, and I’m looking forward to watching and writing about their upcoming video sessions. Stay tuned.

The fifth season of Joss Whedon’s Angel is awesome. It’s one of best and most satisfying seasons of genre TV I’ve ever seen. Not every episode is a winner, and the show sometimes buckles under the burden of trying to reinvent itself yet again, but most of Season 5’s ideas, concepts, and character arcs are rewarding, challenging, and endless fun to watch. And there’s puppets! That’s my kind of TV.

There’s so much wonderful, crazy shit that happens this season — I’ve been looking forward to revisiting it for a long, long time. And now, thanks to the magic of the Internets, I get to rewatch it all on Netflix (and sometimes Hulu) and share my poorly articulated thoughts and opinions about Angel’s final season with you (All two of ya. Hi, Mom.)!

I’ll start digging into Angel when Fringe goes on break on March. I’m not gonna cover every Season 5 episode. I figure I’ll stick to the ones I really enjoy, like “A Whole in the World,” “Smile Time,” and “Why We Fight,” and I’m sure I’ll have a few things to say about the season premiere and the finale as well as fan favorites like “You’re Welcome” and “Lineage.” (Geez, so many good episodes this season.) I’ll cover my chosen episodes in chronological order. We’ll see how long it takes to get to the  end (and the dragon). Until then, enjoy this:

Alt-Astrid hopped universes and came face-to-face with her double on this week’s episode of Fringe. Check out my review of the episode at Badass Digest and dig on the awesome Astrid fan art above from the talented artist Natalie Nourigat.

Welcome to The Glorious ’90s, in which I take a quick look at the music, movies, TV shows and pop culture that helped make the ’90s, well, glorious.

The Velvet Goldmine soundtrack delivers a booming dose of fey-pop sweetness ready to candy-coat your earholes. The audio companion to director Todd Haynes’ strange and glittery 1998 indie drama features a string of classic ’70s glam rock standards from heroes of the era like Brian Eno, T. Rex, and Lou Reed. Glam giant David Bowie’s name is missing from the track list, but it’s clear the Starman’s spirit and swagger influenced almost every song choice here, including original compositions and covers by Shudder to Think, Teenage Fanclub, Pulp, and Placebo. The album is a love letter to the ’70s glam era, but it’s full of ’90s artists sounding all breathy and dramatic.

The film is loosely based on Bowie’s rise to fame in the ‘70s and his influence on the UK’s gender-bending glam kids. Jonathan Rhys Meyers plays Bowie clone Maxwell Demon as a talented, ambitious waif, and Ewan McGregor plays Kurt Wilde – a rabid but sentimental punk rocker who sounds like Iggy Pop and looks like Kurt Cobain. (McGregor even recorded vocals for a solid version of The Stooges’ “TV Eye,” track number five on the soundtrack.) Bruce Wayne himself, Christian Bale, is stoic and subtle as a journalist who grew up worshipping at the altar of his guitar-licking, bisexual rock gods. The movie – an uncompromising, visually electrifying and challenging work of cinema — received mixed reactions (I’ve seen it about 10 times, so it’s probably safe to say I like it), but most critics agreed – the best thing about Velvet Goldmine is the music.

Standout tracks performed by ’90s artists include the gorgeous, melancholy ballad “2HB” by Venus in Furs (aka Radiohead’s Thom Yorke and Johnny Greenwood with David Gray, Bernard Butler and Andy Mackay from Roxy Music) Grant Lee Buffalo’s rollicking “The Whole Shebang,” and “Hot One,” a slow-building, irresistible come-on from Shudder to Think. The newer tracks mix well with the old school, like Reed’s immortal “Satellite of Love” and Eno’s “Needle in the Camel’s Eye.” Check out a few clips below.

“Hot One” by Shudder to Think:

“2HB” by The Venus in Furs (Thom Yorke vocals)

“The Whole Shebang” by Grant Lee Buffalo

Hey there, Fellow Fringies! Still watching the show? Of course you are! I thought last week’s episode, “Forced Perspective,” was just … OK. I loved watching Peter and Walter work together again, but Olivia’s reclusiveness is kinda getting tiresome, and the case-of-the-week felt a little too by-the-numbers. Want to read more of my unsolicited and poorly articulated opinions about the show? Check out my latest Fringe episode review at Badass Digest.

I’ll admit it — my introduction to Paul Westerberg came with the Singles soundtrack. I heard the glorious na na na na’s of “Dyslexic Heart” and instantly fell in love. I later delved into the greatness of The Replacements (How could I not?), but one of my favorite Westerberg records is 1996′s Eventually.

I haven’t followed Westerberg’s career as closely as I should have post-Eventually, but I still go back to this album time and time again. It’s heartfelt, sad, and brutally earnest, but it makes room for bursts of pure joy and hard, loud grinding guitar riffs. The constant is Westerberg’s voice. He sounds damaged, raspy, romantic, and totally punk rock. It’s great. I highly recommend giving this one a spin. Sadly, people have decided to make it difficult to find a quality music video from Eventually to post here, so we’ll have to settle for an audio-only clip of “Angels Walk” below …