Prepare for the ‘Walking Dead’ zombie invasion, coming to a city near you! [Update: video compilation]

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Can you believe it!?  The highly anticipated TV adaptation of Robert Kirkman’s comic book The Walking Dead is set to premiere this weekend!  To promote the upcoming series premiere, AMC and Fox International Channels have teamed up to stage real live “zombie attacks” in 26 cities around the world over a 24-hour period.  Inspired by the show’s makeup artist Greg Nicotero, hundreds of undead extras will begin the invasion tomorrow, October 26 at daybreak in Taipei and Hong Kong.  After speading the outbreak to major landmarks including the Brooklyn Bridge in New York City, the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C., Big Ben in London, the Prado Museum in Madrid, the Bosphorus Bridge in Istanbul, and the Acropolis in Athens, the zombies will end their spree in Los Angeles, just in time for the big LA premiere event.  Look after the break for a full listing of the promotional zombie tour stops.

The Walking Dead premieres this Sunday, October 31 at 9PM on AMC.

Update: Jump after the break to watch an “Invasion Compilation” of the day’s events.  Hundreds of zombies literally roamed cities all around the globe–and they looked very convincing!  Unfortunately no one was harmed in the filming.  Want to see more?  Head over to the FICTheWalkingDead YouTube channel to watch more footage categorized by city and time of day.

[Via THR; IGN] Continue reading Prepare for the ‘Walking Dead’ zombie invasion, coming to a city near you! [Update: video compilation] →

ABC picks up ‘No Ordinary Family’ & ‘Better With You’

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Another network drama and comedy can breathe a sigh of relief.  ABC has decided to grant full season orders to No Ordinary Family and Better With You.  Michael Chiklis, Julie Benz, and the rest of the Powell gang  average 9.5 million viewers per week and Better gets 7.3 million viewers.  The latter show remains the lowest rated comedy in ABC’s comedy Wednesday block (no surprise there with powerhouse Modern Family plus The Middle and Cougar Town drawing in larger audiences).  ABC has picked up five additional scripts for the cop drama Detroit 1-8-7 and four for returning drama Brothers & Sisters (rounding out the episode total to 22).  No word on the fate of The Whole Truth, starring Rob Morrow and Maura Tierney; the freshman legal drama is receiving a dismal average of 5.3 million viewers per week.  Truth will likely join ABC’s ill-fated My Generation in the cancellation bucket.

Update: Well that was quick.  Shortly after announcing the back nine for Ordinary and Better, ABC axed The Whole Truth.  A producer shared the somber news via Twitter and reports that they will only produce 13 episodes and then close up shop.

[Via EW, here & here; THR]

The CW wants more ‘Hellcats’ & ‘Nikita’

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The CW is following in its sister network’s footsteps (that’s CBS) by ordering full seasons of all their freshman series.  All two of them: Hellcats and Nikita.  The cheerleading drama averages 2.5 million viewers per week, and the Maggie Q-starrer sees 3.6 million viewers.  Also veteran One Tree Hill, which started its eighth season this year, has also been given the back nine.  No word on a Life Unexpected pickup, though two additional scripts have been ordered.

Michalka fans–this is a time of celebration, is it not?

[Via Deadline]

All 5 CBS freshman series get the full season order treatment

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Today CBS followed direct competitor NBC in announcing which of their new fall shows will tack on an additional nine episodes.  Spilling the news was easy and why?  CBS has granted all five CBS freshman series a full season order.  Hawaii Five-O, The Defenders, Blue Bloods, Mike and Molly, and $#*! My Dad Says are safe and won’t have to worry about cancellation for the remainder of the ’10-’11 TV season.  Deadline reports some fascinating figures.  These five shows are the five most watched new shows on TV right now and Hawaii, Mike & Molly and $#*! claim to be the top three new series in the adults 18-49 demographic.  And here’s some hard data for ya.  Hawaii averages 14.2 million viewers per episode and happens to be DVR king raking in an additional 3.4 million viewers in recordings.  Defenders averages 11.3 million viewers;  Blue Bloods 12.7 million; Mike & Molly 12.3 million; and $#*! 11.3 million.  CBS is America’s most watched network and now you know why.  Crime prodedurals draw huge audiences and people are really digging all this new programming.  Hawaii Five-O is my favorite new fall series, just sayin’.

Says CBS Entertainment prez Nina Tassler: “Everything has clicked so far this year–from development in January, to scheduling in May, to production over the summer, to marketing and publicity in the fall.  It’s all testimony to the executives in our halls who remain restless for more success, and the amazing creative talent on our sets who continue to deliver the goods.”

[Via Deadline]

Trailer: Scream 4

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He’s baaaack.  Ten years has passed since the last Scream movie from Wes Craven, and Ghostface is ready for some vengence on the Woodsboro gang.  Neve Campbell, Courtney Cox, and David Arquette return as Sidney Prescott, Gale Weathers, and Sheriff Dewey Riley, respectively, and they are joined by Emma Roberts, Hayden Panettiere, Nico Tortorella, Rory Culkin, Alison Brie, and Adam Brody in this reboot of the late ’90s horrorfest.  The trailer is chillingly fun, so go on and mash play.

Scream 4 hits theatres April 15, 2011.

HP gives in, officially unveils Windows 7 powered HP Slate priced at $799

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After almost an entire year of teases, demos, random resurfaces, and handlings on YouTube, the once mysterious HP Slate has been formally announced and detailed.  What was originally intended for the consumer market has been tailored and made destined for “business, enterprise and vertical customers.”  (You can thank HP’s aquisition of Palm and their current plans of designing webOS tablets for this slight shakeup in marketing.)  By now you should know the Slate’s specs by heart, but let’s run through them anyway, you know, for fun.  Weighing in at 1.5 pounds, the Slate features a 8.9-inch (1024×600) capacitive multitouch display, 1.86GHz Intel Atom Z540 processor, 2GB of RAM, 64GB SSD, 802.11n WiFi, rear-facing 5 megapixel camera (for taking still images and video), front-facing VGA camera (for video chat), and a Broadcom Crystal HD Enhanced Video accelerator to help provide 1080p video playback.  Ports-wise there’s 1 USB, a headphone jack, an SD card slot, and a mic.  A myriad of buttons surround the bezel; there’s a home button, a keyboard button that brings up and hides the on-screen keyboard, volume up/down buttons, and a Ctrl-Alt-Delete key.

The Slate 500 runs a clean version of Windows 7 Professional; you won’t find any kind of HP skin here, which can be a good or bad thing depending on your preferences.  Unlike Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android Froyo platform, Windows 7 was not designed from the ground up for touch input.  A capacitive screen and a fairly speedy Intel processor will get the job done, but just barely.  If you are willing to learn how to navigate a made for mouse-and-keyboard OS using your fat fingers, go for it.  All I’m saying is that it might be hard to justify dropping $799 for a tablet of this kind.  A worthy iPad contender this is not.  If you’re anti-Apple, I’d recommend purchasing the Samsung Galaxy Tab over the Slate any day.

But enough of my gripes.  Let’s talk Slate accessories and release details.  It ships with a Wacom active digital pen to use for note taking and writing emails.  It also comes with a dock fitted with an HDMI port for video out and a “portfolio” case.  Again the Slate will ship for $799 and it’s coming to the U.S. first (at an undisclosed date) and will then be “evaluated for further market expansion.”

Look in the gallery below for stills and after the break for official PR.

[Via Engadget]

Sony ships 1 million Move controllers in first month of availability

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The suits at Sony have something to smile about.  Today the company reported having shipped 1 million PlayStation Move controllers in North and Latin America in the first 30 days of availability.  SCEA CEO Jack Tretton is enthused to say the least.  “Retail demand is incredibly strong and we’re working hard to keep the product in stock”, he said.  “We believe consumers have already shown their preference for a precise, interactive game experience.  We are on target to meet our end of year goals and expect sales to increase as our publishers and developers continue to update popular titles and introduce new games.”  This is certainly great news for Sony, but Joystiq makes a solid point when they say this announcement does not help you figure the precise install base of the new motion controller.  Many PS3 owners likely purchased more than one Move for two-hand and multiplayer functionality.  Still, this does not take away the fact that Sony has something powerful in their (er, our) hands.  Right now there’s 24 Move-supported titles out, with 17 more promised before the year runs out.  I gotta get my Move on.  Full PR after the break.

[Via Joystiq] Continue reading Sony ships 1 million Move controllers in first month of availability →

Nintendo Wii Remote Plus comes stateside for $39.99, bundled inside celebratory red Wii console

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We knew it was coming, but Nintendo has made it official.  The Wii Remote Plus (or the newly designed Wii-mote with the MotionPlus accessory built inside) is coming to U.S. Wii players for an exciting low price of $39.99.  Ninty confirms the Wii Remote Plus will become the new standard Wii-mote to come stuffed inside all Wii packages and bundles when it releases November 7.  It will come in the following tints: white, pink, blue, and black.

To celebrate the 25th anniversary of the original Super Mario Bros. game, Nintendo decided to deck out the Wii in a red coat of paint for Japanese gamers.  Today I am happy to announce that the company who invented Mario is bringing the celebratory console to the States.  In addition to the red Wii console, the limited edition bundle includes a red Wii Remote Plus and matching Nunchuck, Wii Sports, and a copy of New Super Mario Bros. Wii.  The bundle costs $199.99 and ships November 7.

But the fun doesn’t stop there!  A special-edition Nintendo DSi XL bundle lands November 7, too.  The red DSi XL features three iconic Super Mario Bros.-themed graphics and comes bundled with a copy of Mario Kart DS and preloaded with Brain Age games and a Photo Clock.  It’s priced at 179.99.

Let’s hear it for the most iconic video game characher ever–happy birthday Mario!

[Via Joystiq]

Kinect TV ads: YOU are the controller.

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Here we go!  Microsoft has officially begun the marketing blitz for Kinect.  At the center of all these commercials is the philosophy that you don’t have to have any previous knowledge of playing video games; you are the controller, so it all comes naturally.  Look after the break for two more ads featuring flailing children in large, brightly lit living spaces plus an extended commercial highlighting Xbox Live with Kinect functionality.

[Via Joystiq] Continue reading Kinect TV ads: YOU are the controller. →

Network TV says HALT! to Google TV

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Didcha get yourself a new Sony Internet TV or Blu-ray player or are you thinking about impulse buying the Logitech Revue powered by Google TV?  If you’re contemplating such a purchase did you think you’d have the ability to watch network TV content off their respective websites using the built-in Chrome browser?  Well you thought wrong, unfortunately.  Today the Wall Street Journal confirms that CBS, NBC, and ABC have blocked TV programming on their websites from being accessed on the Google TV platform.  NBC and ABC are allowing select promotional content to be viewed, but if you attempt to stream a full episode of The Office you will fail miserably.  And to top all this off, Hulu is blocked too; and not because it’s Flash-based–Chrome runs Flash content just fine–it’s the networks’ fault.  So what’s Google going to do about this?  In a word, nothing.  In more words: “Google TV enables access to all the Web content you already get today on your phone and PC, but it is ultimately the content owners’ choice to restrict their fans from accessing their content on the platform,” said a Google spokeswoman.  News Corp., for the time being, has not opted to block FOX content.

Why is this happening, you ask?  Well in the end it all comes down to making money.  And networks know TV ads bring in a whole lot more cashola than Internet-based ads.  Right now we’re stuck in this weird transition state where TV has snuck into bed with the Internet and just doesn’t know what to do next.  Here’s to hoping that something is figured out real soon.  Because I want my on-demand teevee streaming content this very second.  Boxee, good luck.

[Via WSJ]

24 Hour Coco Cam is LIVE right now!

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On October 20th at 1PM EST/10AM PST Conan’s HQ in Los Angeles started broadcasting LIVE to the Internet!  They shoved a camera in the stairwell of their “comedy bunker” and you don’t want to miss all the crazy shenanigans that’s going down right now.  The camera will remain on for a whole 24 hours.  So far you’ve missed dancing tacos and a dude in a dog suit playing poker and drinking a water bottle through his eye hole.  Watching the live stream is quite mesmerizing in the strangest way possible.  Click here to access the stream.  And if you’re on Twitter, go on and request the production crew/interns that pass by to do something crazy; don’t forget to hashtag your tweet with #LiveCocoCam.  Right now it’s 4:30AM EST on the 21st, and there’s a late-night party going down, so whatcha waitin’ for?

Update: It’s over, folks.  Head over to Team Coco to watch highlights from the 24 hour cam.  Every wonderful shenanigan has been saved for posterity in video and still image formats.  Fun fact: according to early estimates, some 660,000 people tuned into the live stream at some point during the 24 hour period.  As Deadline so emphatically points out, that is the average audience TBS gets in the 11PM hour with George Lopez!  Get ready America, Coco is coming.

[Via TeamCoco]