We’ll be covering as much of the San Diego Comic Con news as we can across our many blogs, so stick with the Starstore blogs for a unique British perspective on the latest developments from SDCC 2009!

We swear one day we’ll make it there and report to you live from the event itself, but until then, we’ll be scouring the net for the best news and announcements so that you don’t have to!

This year’s event runs from the 23rd to the 26th of July, with a preview night on the 22nd before the shenanigans commence for real. There are some suitably awesome panels, previews and product unveilings going on this year, and we’ll cover as many of the big ones as we can.

There are some fantastic workshops and signings right across the event, but the big ones for many fans will be the TV previews, movie previews and merchandise previews. We’re personally really looking forward to finding out what Sideshow Collectibles have on offer this year in the way of new products.

Other panels and stuff of note throughout the SDCC weekend? Summit’s Astro Boy preview, the reveal of details on the next Tetsuo movie, a preview of The Twilight Saga: New Moon, a look at the groundbreaking new James Cameron science fiction epic Avatar, the next developments in the Halo franchise, a presentation of material from Terry Gilliam’s Imaginarium of Dr Parnassuss, a Doctor Who panel with Russell T Davies and David Tennant, a panel on the Kick Ass movie, a talk with fantasy legend Terry Brooks, the premier of the animated Green Lantern movie, The Guild, Farscape’s 10th Anniversary, a look at the new version of The Prisoner, Star Wars Day, Sideshow Collectibles‘ panel, Dr. Horrible The Totally Rad Show Live, Ray Bradbury… gah, so much!!!

We’ll be covering as much as we can right here! It may not be as cool as actually being there, but we’ll be bringing you as much of the AWESOME as we can.

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Have a look and see some sneak previews of the greatest movie collectibles from Sideshow - Visit now!

The highly respected McFarlane Toys will be unleashing many more Halo figures this year, which is great news for fans of the all-action video games phenomenon. There are more regular action figures, more box sets, more helmets and a brand new ‘Stylized’ range. Let’s take a look at the merchandise to come…

July 2009 will see the release of more mini figures in the HALO WARS range. Supplied in packs of three, the new wave includes the following packs: UNSC Troops (Blue), UNSC Troops (Green), Alpha Base Pack, Covenant Troops (Silver and Bronze) and Covenant Troops (yellow). There is also the fifth wave of ‘Equipment’ edition figures coming. This is to include: Master Chief – Active Camo, Sgt. Avery Johnson, UNSC, Jump Pack Brute, Elite Assault – Silver, Spartan Soldier Scout – Cyan, Halo Wars Weapons Pack, Spartan Soldier Hayabusa.

A new addition to the Halo action figure range is the first wave of ‘Stylized’ figures, bringing a whole new look to the Halo merchandise scene. This awesome range will include: Master Chief, Brute Chieftain, Spartan Soldier EVA, Spartan Soldier EOD. A new line of box sets is coming too, with the ‘Team Slayer’ and ‘Deluxe Armour’ sets first in line for release.

Small replica Halo helmets will be released in September 2009, in packs of 3. There will initially be four box sets available. October will see the arrival of the 3rd wave of Halo Wars heroic scale mini figure packs, with another five packs to choose from and collect. That month will also see the release of wave 6 in the regular sized Halo action figures, and that wave is said to include: ODST Soldier , Brute Bodyguard, Spartan Soldier Recon, Grunt, Rtas ‘Vadum, Flood Pure Form.

Also on the agenda is a second batch of stylized figures, box sets and a deluxe boxed Mongoose vehicle with Spartan Soldier figure. In December, McFarlane will release the fourth wave of helmet replicas, with another four packs added to the line. It is an exciting time for Halo fans, and there will be more merchandise and halo news announced soon. Big things are coming, so watch this space!

Film has had a surprisingly strong year despite the global economic downturn. Audiences have flocked  to cinemas to take in a selection of blockbusters that have been something different to the usual empty spectacle. The biggest, naturally, is The Dark Knight, the second film in the revived Batman franchise. That film left countless records smashed to pieces in its wake. While the film ran to a rather bloated running time, it captivated millions with its gritty, urban take on the first struggles between Batman and the Joker, and proved that comic book movies can be more than just set pieces and effects.

That said, the two major Marvel movies out this year had greatv effects and set pieces as well as fantastic stories, acting and direction. The Incredible Hulk was vastly superior to the 2003 film, and Iron Man may well be THE definitive Marvel movie thus far made.

Other big genre movies this year have included the superb new take on the monster movie idea, Cloverfield, as well as the fifth film in the SAW franchise and the long-awaited new X-Files movie. The X-Files sequel, I want To Believe, turned out to be a low budget and very small scale piece which disappointed many fans despite being a strong standalone story. Other fun flicks this year have included Death Race, Hellboy 2: The Golden Army, Transporter 3 and Rocknrolla, but the end of the year has been dominated by one film- Twilight. The adaptation of Stephanie Meyer’s bestselling teen vampire novel may be leaving many people shaking their heads in bemusement at it’s popularity, but the fans have been lapping it up. There was the movie release of Star Wars: the Clone Wars, which kicked off the TV series too. That film wasn’t quite the hit many had expected, but the series is going from strength to strength.

US imports Battlestar Galactica, LOST and Heroes have continued to thrill TV fans across the world, and fans have seen the end of Stargate Atlantis come and go. Stargate fans needn’t worry too much though, as Stargate Universe is on the way, helmed by respected actor Robert Carlyle, of all people! UK fans were also treated to new series of Doctor Who, Torchwood, The Sarah Jane Chronicles, Merlin and Primeval. The year’s UK genre delights were rounded off by the stupendous Doctor Who Christmas Special, The Next Doctor.

The comics scene in 2008 has again been dominated by Marvel and DC, who wheeled out two hugely popular crossovers, namely Marvel’s Secret Invasion and DC’s Final Crisis. DC’s entry was walked all over by Marvel’s massively superior story and creators. The comics world was rocked by the sad death of Michael Turner, art supremo and creator of the Fathom character.

Games have continued to dominate the entertainment industry throughout the year, with Halo 3, Gears of War 2, Dead Space, Fallout 3 and the like all battling for supremacy. The Wii really came into its own this year, and games such as Guitar Hero proved that everyone can join in. Another Tomb raider game, Underworld, also proved that Lara Croft still has what it takes to get fans parting with their cash.

On the merchandise front, the big sellers this year have been video games action figures. Figures from Halo 3 and the Gears of War games have been flying off the hooks at a surprising speed, as well as figures from Metal Gear Solid, Resident Evil, Call of Duty, Guitar Hero, Street Fighter and more.

Sales of the Twilight novels went through the roof this year, with the latest installment being released and the movie doing huge business, here’s hoping that this means more genre projects will get off the ground and show people just what fantasy and science fiction is capable of.

What’s ahead The big names for next year are JJ Abram’s STAR TREK recreation, the second Transformers movie- Revenge of the Fallen, and of course the highly anticipated WATCHMEN, adapted from Alan Moore and Dave Gibbon’s legendary graphic novel. Doctor Who and Torchwood will return for shorter runs in 2009, and Sarah Jane will also return for a 3rd series. Primeval is back too, as are a multitude of US series to enjoy.

2008 has been a hell of a ride, and 2009 is going to be very interesting indeed for everyone on planet geek. There has been more than enough for geeks to get into some serious flame wars over, and that’s how we like it, really. From everyone here at Starstore.com and The Last Picture Show, thanks for a great year, and we look forward to meeting more of you in 2009!

The Spartan holds two Spiker weapons, or you can switch to the bonus arms and have him holding the M90 Shotgun. When not using the shotgun this can be stored on his back. Additional hands are also included in the Red Spartan statue’s package.

Cast in sturdy PVC, the statue is fully assembled and ready to display out of the box. Alongside the previous ArtFX Halo releases, this is an excellent addition to any Halo 3 fan’s collection.

BATTLESTAR GALACTICA SERIES 4 ACTION FIGURES
Action figures from the fourth series of BATTLESTAR GALACTICA’s triumphant rebirth will be released in February 2009! These latest Battlestar Galactica action figures include Admiral Adama, President Roslin, and the limited President Lee Adama. Each figure stands approximately 7″ tall and includes articulation and accessories.

HALO 3 HELMET REPLICAS
Triple packs of replica HALO 3 helmets will be made available by McFarlane Toys in February 2009. In scale with the 12″ Halo figures, these excellent pieces of Halo merchandise each include a custom display stand which interlocks with the others in the set! The helmets will include:

SET 1: Mark VI (Red), EOD (Red) CQB (Red)
SET 2: Hayabusa (White), EVA (Olive), Rogue (Tan)
SET 3: Master Chief, Rogue (Silver), CQB (Orange)
SET 4: EOD (Blue), Hayabusa (Red), EVA (Teal)

AME COMI DONNA TROY VINYL FIGURE (The latest in the range of anime-style DC
character figures), ANITA BLAKE VAMPIRE HUNTER:  LAUGHING CORPSE #1 (first
in the new mini series adapting the second Anita Blake novel), BLEEDING EDGE GOTHS
12-INCH FIGURES SERIES 7 (Always awesome to get these infamous figures back in for
a new set), DARK TOWER LONG ROAD HOME HARDCOVER (gorgeous hardcover
edition of the hit Stephen King adaptation), HALO 3 MASTER CHIEF BOBBLE HEAD
(Master Chief in headknocker form! How can any Halo fan resist?), HOUSE OF MYSTERY
#6 (the latest issue of the best thing Vertigo have had out in years), INDIANA JONES
 FIGURES (another chance to get hold of the classic Indiana Jones Figures), MARVEL
APES #3 (the monkey business continues with the penultimate issue of Marvel's Simian
capers), OYSTER BOY AND VOODOO GIRL FIGURE BOXED SET (the classic Tim Burton
items-back in stock), STAR TREK TOS BRONZE PHASER (Excellent bronze effect version
of the classic replica weapon), STAR WARS A-WING VEHICLE (classic Star wars vehicle
 in toy form), STAR WARS IMPERIAL SHUTTLE EASYKIT MODEL (easy to assemble
edition of the iconic spaceship) TIM BURTON OYSTER BOY PVC SET (another classic
Burton set in again), TIM BURTON STAIN BOY PVC SET (and another trio of characters
from his oddball stories), WOMEN OF THE DC UNIVERSE HUNTRESS BUST (A great
bust of the sultry DC character).

Of course, there’s lots more new stuff too. Remember, you can visit our store for the latest releases at The Last Picture Show, 38-39 The Lanes, Meadowhall Centre, Sheffield S9 1EP or our movie/comics memorabilia-stuffed website.

We now have a new internet Monkey colleague in the form of Jon, who out-geeks most of the rest of us by being an avid WoW player. Thankfully he isn’t quite so knowledgeable on comics and movies, so the balance is steady, for now at least. Anyway, the nerdometer is about ready to explode as it is right now, thanks to me frothing at the mouth with glee at the current series of Doctor Who (See our regular TARDISWATCH and TORCHWATCH features for proof of that), so my crown is still residing safely upon my shiny head. Anyway, welcome Jon!

The hot merchandise of late has been the Gears of War action figures, the new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles figures, the Halo 3 range. The AVPR range is still proving to be popular, so as long as you guys want the Hybrids, Aliens and Predators, we’ll do our utmost to get them in.

Everyone’s getting stoked for the imminent release of the new Batman film THE DARK KNIGHT, and quite rightly so. The posters and some of the merchandise has started to arrive, and we’re proud to have it on our shelves as we all love what Christopher Nolan has been doing with Batman. Its been quite a year for superheroes so far, what with Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk and Batman getting people excited about superhero cinema again. The direction the Marvel movies are taking is really quite brilliant, and things are coming together nicely for a coherent Marvel screen universe, which if course will lead nicely into the AVENGERS movie.

There’s been some shifting around of stock and shelves and the layout of the shop is mutating into something much cooler. The shop layout is something that never really stays still for long- like your home, there’s always something that would look ‘better over there’. We’re trying to get everything displayed nicely and keep the store fully accessible for visitors.

We’ve been trying to figure out which crossover event we’re more into at the moment- Secret Invasion or Dreamwar. It looks like Dreamwar is edging ahead in the Starstore popularity stakes as stuff actually happens in it. Secret Invasion is cool as hell but the pace has been a bit too slow in picking up to keep us guessing. Elsewhere on our comics racks, the new Tank Girl series has been picking up a bunch of new readers and keeping the iconic, foul-mouthed anti-heroine in the public consciousness, so that’s a good thing. On the graphic novels front, the reissue of Batman: The Killing Joke has been flying out, and there’s also the first collected volume of THE UMBRELLA ACADEMY out now for all of those My Chemical Romance fans who suddenly found themselves reading comics and discovering they’re actually rather good. My advice to those new comics fans? Get hold of WATCHMEN so you can be like the rest of us here and know all about the greatest comic series ever released, before the movie comes out next year. That way you get to say ‘I TOLD you it was brilliant’ once Zack Snyder’s adaptation hits the screens.

Anyways, I gotta get back to sorting out the new layout and mocking Greg’s scene kid hair.

HALO 3 FIGURES- SERIES ONE

Yeah, they arrived at long last, and have flown off the shelves in suitably heroic fashion. These figures, while smaller than those made for previous Halo games, are fantastically detailed and a marvellous addition to your Spartan army. Naturally, the Master Chief figure has been the biggest hit (don’t forget there’s a 12 inch version on the way later this year), and the whole range of Halo 3 action figures is attracting a lot of attention from gamers and action figure fans alike. Supplied in clamshell packaging and with all the relevant accessories, these are a long-awaited must have series.

ALIENS VS PREDATOR: REQUIEM- THE PREDATOR FIGURES ARE HERE!

Something we’ve had to answer literally hundreds of questions about is the range of Predator figures from NECA’s selection of AVP:R movie figures. Released on the 4th of February in the US, they took their sweet time getting over to these shores, but now they’re here they are being snapped up almost as fast as we can get them in. There’s masked and unmasked versions of the AVPR Predator figures available, in the same clamshell packaging as the Alien Warrior and Predalien Hybrid figures that came out around last Christmas. These figures are superbly made, even if their facial features show a slightly different colour palette to any Predators onscreen, or indeed any previous figures.

HELLBOY ANIMATED FIGURES

A curious addition to our recent stock has been this trio of Hellboy figures- two of which are in a fantastic animated style in keeping with his recent DVD adventures. The third depicts Hellboy as he was portrayed in the feature film (and forthcoming sequel) by Ron Perlman. Both
Hellboy figures and the Abe Sapein figure are supplied in individual clamshell packages and look fantastic.

McFARLANE DRAGONS: THE EIGHTH WONDER OF ACTION FIGURES

The long awaited eighth set of the phenomenonally popular McFarlane’s Dragons action figures are here, and they are carrying on the range in fine style. Again they are on a smaller scale to the earlier monstrosities (however they do still stretch to 8 inches tall once assembled and out of the packaging), but they are every bit as impressive. This is apparently to be the final set of Dragons from the company, so fans are urged to complete their collections quickly. This set carries the title McFarlanes Dragons: The Rise of Man, and follows the era between the time of the Dragons and their descent into myth. A fitting climax to a superb range.

The second wave of McFarlane’s HALO 3 figures are on their way too, and are due over here after their US release in July. The series one figures are a big time hit right now, and these look set to repeat the popularity of the initial wave, with detailed sculpts, weapons and clamshell packaging.

It has taken people far, far too long to get Halo 3 merchandise out onto the shelves. Believe me, we’ve been trying for ages and the figures are only just turning up now. This is both good and bad. On the one hand, people are finally able to get hold of the figures they’ve wanted or ages, but on the other hand they would have loved them a hell of a lot more a few months ago. That aside, the stuff coming out now and coming later in the year is looking pretty special, and that’s what counts, after all.