Awesome Doctorama picture is awesome

If you've watched Futurama at all, then you'll get the joke. For those who haven't, the show has a running gag involving the heads of famous people - ranging from Jonathan Frakes to Richard Nixon - are kept preserved and alive in jars like the above.

I like how they put Dr. Horrible and Doogie Howser right next to each other. I think they used too many Doctors from Doctor Who, though. Still, it's super cool and also available as a shirt.

(via The Laughing Squid)

General Acts of Nerdery: Making the USS Enterprise out of Christmas lights

imgur

I'm waiting for someone to recreate Starbase 1 or Terok Nor with Christmas lights now.

(h/t reddit, Nerd Approved)

A comic about SOPA, a message against fascism

Surviving the World: Lesson #1267 - Where The Power Lies (A Comic About SOPA)

SOPA, for those who those who haven't been paying attention to tech and news websites (because it certainly hasn't been on the news networks), stands for Stop Online Piracy Act. It's a bill currently sitting in the House of Representatives' Judiciary Committee and possibly heading to the House floor for a vote soon that would - if passed by both the House, the Senate, and signed into law by President Obama - give the government the power to shutdown websites, any websites, that even so much as linked to a torrent or an illegal file on a file hosting website. When I say the government can shutdown a website that violates this potential law, I don't just mean a blog on Blogger or a Tumblr. The text of the bill is so vague, that the government would have the power to shutdown Blogger or Tumblr or the site's host itself. SOPA is actually so extreme, even Republicans on the Judiciary Committee have been vocal against it, which is both telling and kind of screwed up, considering the kind of authoritarian bullshit they've supported in the past.

Not surprisingly, the culprits behind this are the usual suspects: the movie and music industries. Yes, the MPAA and RIAA are so desperate to keep people from downloading the latest Lady Gaga or Lil Wayne album (despite the fact that it's been shown that a lot of people who pirate music end up buying the same music legally) or whatever crappy comedy they stick Michael Cera in, that they're willing to basically kill the internet. This isn't about net neutrality, this is about protecting the greatest achievement in communications since Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone.

The larger problem is that like I said before, the bill's text in vague and while I don't like to dip my cup in the same Kool-Aid the tinfoil hat conspiracy theorists are drinking, it could easily be used to squash dissent, especially of the Occupy variety. Obviously, the chances of that happening are as likely as Justin Beiber being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but it still lingers there.

If you want to try and help stop this bill, the best thing you can do is write your Congressmen. It sounds cliched, sure, but what other option is there? Check this thread on reddit to find out who your Congressman is and how to contact them.

I'm not even a computer geek and this picture gave me a nerd boner

I'm not even going to lie, I would gladly give up modern tech and gadgets if I could go back and live in the late 70s and the 80s for a while. It would be an interesting experience. I'd love to hang out with the Homebrew Computer Club, and build and program my own computer the way geeks did back then. Of course, I would probably likely go stir crazy without internet access or cable.

(Picture via This Day In Tech)

The Force is strong in the Czech Republic

According to a recent census, 15,000 Czechs listed themselves as "Jedi Knights". I just hope no one put down "Sith Lord". All it takes is one of those guys to ruin things, just ask the Jedi Order and the Old Republic as a whole.

(h/t Gamma Squad)

Things I didn't know existed: Atari's Mario Bros.

I saw this on The Retroist and was genuinely surprised; I never knew that there was a pre-NES Mario Bros. game. Sure, I knew Mario and Luigi were in Donkey Kong, but always assumed that Super Mario Bros. was their first solo title. In addition to this ad, The Retroist also has screencaps of the three versions of the game - arcade, Atari 2600, and Commodore 64 - and I have to say, the game didn't look all that great on the 2600. It's understandable, the 2600 was several years old by then, arcade cabinets had more power than consoles, and the Commodore was simply newer.

I noticed something else just now, the ad has a copyright of 1983 - the same year the American video game market collapsed, which actually paved the way for Nintendo and other Japanese game companies to enter the market.

Looks like they're rebuilding the Gundam after all

So sayeth Anime News Network via Japanator via Topless Robot. All three have videos detailing the reconstruction. Hooray! I totally forgot to mention in the previous article about this giant Gundam, it's a full scale model. That...that actually makes Japan scarier, because they can build a life size version of a mecha.

Now how about a VF-1 Valkyrie and maybe a Gigantor? I'd be cool with the Dragonzord.

RIP Joe Simon

Sadly, Joe Simon passed away yesterday at the age of 98. Simon was most famous for creating Captain America alongside Jack Kirby back in the 40s. Cap wasn't their only collaboration and  together they also created Manhunter, the Newsboy Legion, and Boy Commandos for DC Comics, as well as Fighting American (Prize Comics) and Fly (Red Circle Comics).

This is indeed a sad day for comics.

Gundam! It's a Gundam!

Some countries build statues to freedom and liberty. Japan builds statues of giant robots.

So funny story, back in 2009 Bandai decided to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Gundam franchise in the most Japanese way possible - by building a 60 foot tall Gundam! Granted, it's just a statue...or so they say. Clearly, Japan was sending a message to the rest of the world: We can build giant mecha, so don't fuck with us.

Batteries not included.

Unfortunately, Japan no longer has its stalwart protector. Well, it does, but its parts are scattered all over an artificial island and Bandai's charging six and a half bucks to visit the site. According to Engadget, the mighty mecha from one of the greatest anime franchises to ever come out of Japan was disassembled and returned to the island where it originally stood, but I guess Bandai has no plans to reassemble it.

They should reassemble it though, Gundam is iconic and deserves the recognition that statue brings. In fact, I think there should be statues for other mecha anime, like Tetsujin 28-Go (Gigantor in the U.S.), Mazinger Z, Macross/Robotech, and others. Maybe even an Ultraman statue. The reason behind this opinion is simply because Japan has a massive influence on popular culture, worldwide in general and the United States in particular and they should embrace that influence and give recognize it. Plus, think of the revenue generated from the increase tourism; because if you build giant mecha, the otaku will come¹.

This is what passes as a normal day in Japan.

Images via TechCrunch, Pink Tenticle, and Punyari. Hat tip to Geekspective.

¹. And cum too, probably.

The Last Bat Supper

The last thanksgiving batfam supper by Glasmond via Popped Culture.