by Steven-Elliot Altman (SG Member: Steven_Altman)

Our Fiction Friday serialized novel, The Killswitch Review, is a futuristic murder mystery with killer sociopolitical commentary (and some of the best sex scenes we’ve ever read!). Written by bestselling sci-fi author Steven-Elliot Altman (with Diane DeKelb-Rittenhouse), it offers a terrifying postmodern vision in the tradition of Blade Runner and Brave New World…

By the year 2156, stem cell therapy has triumphed over aging and disease, extending the human lifespan indefinitely. But only for those who have achieved Conscientious Citizen Status. To combat overpopulation, the U.S. has sealed its borders, instituted compulsory contraception and a strict one child per couple policy for those who are permitted to breed, and made technology-assisted suicide readily available. But in a world where the old can remain vital forever, America’s youth have little hope of prosperity.

Jason Haggerty is an investigator for Black Buttons Inc, the government agency responsible for dispensing personal handheld Kevorkian devices, which afford the only legal form of suicide. An armed “Killswitch” monitors and records a citizen’s final moments — up to the point where they press a button and peacefully die. Post-press review agents — “button collectors” — are dispatched to review and judge these final recordings to rule out foul play.

When three teens stage an illegal public suicide, Haggerty suspects their deaths may have been murders. Now his race is on to uncover proof and prevent a nationwide epidemic of copycat suicides. Trouble is, for the first time in history, an entire generation might just decide they’re better off dead.

(Catch up with the previous installments of Killswitch – see links below – then continue reading after the jump…)

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by A.J. Focht

The first clip from The Avengers movie has arrived, and it features Black Widow being a total badass. To go along with the forty second trailer, ten new official wallpapers have been released as well. With the movie less than a month out, some fans have started committing to not watching any of more clips or trailers because they feel they are spoiling too much. If you were looking to save all the excitement for the theatre, you may want refrain from watching this clip or any of the others that come out over the next month.

Joss Whedon’s The Avengers debuts May 4, but first up we have Whedon’s The Cabin in the Woods releasing in just over a week on April 13. A new TV spot for the Whedon’s sci-fi horror thriller has come out. Based on what we’ve seen so far, this movie stretches the limits of the horror genre beyond anything we could expect.

Star Trek 2 production is well under way, and Alex Kurtzman has given an update on how things are coming along. Beyond praising the addition of Benedict Cumberbatch’s new villain role, he also gave us a bit of the story, saying that the crew is still learning to work together and are still on the way to becoming the bridge crew we remember and love from the series.

The Hunger Games destroyed box office records, but there may be trouble ahead for the sequels. While all of the cast has signed on to reprise their roles in the sequels, director Gary Ross has not. Ross has been credited as part of the reason the movie did so well, but his compensation from the movie was less than would be expected for an Oscar-nominated director. There are rumors that his failure to sign is over a financial dispute.

Back in October, the world lost one of its most brilliant minds, Steve Jobs. Now there is a movie in the making called Jobs that will biographically feature his life and times. The big thing everyone is talking about though is that Ashton Kutcher is playing the part of Steve Jobs. Kutcher is most famous for his roles where he plays moronic characters such as Kelso from That 70’s Show. Now he is set to portray one of the greatest innovative minds of the modern world.

Doctor Who fans should set their dials to conspiracy, because it’s rumor time. It started as what many considered an April Fool’s Day prank, but it didn’t die there. Reports of the first female Doctor have flooded the internet, after UK paper the Daily Express made seemingly joke claims. However a mole has since said the Time Lord will regenerate as a female as a big plot twist timed for the show’s 50th anniversary.

On Monday April 2, two different but equally awesome nerd channels premiered on Youtube. Geek & Sundry, a channel founded by Felicia Day, features several shows covering various geeky interests. It is also the new home of The Guild, which has an awesome new promotional music video that calls out nerd posers (see above). Other featured shows include Dark Horse Motion Comics, Wil Wheaton’s TableTop gaming show, Felicia Day’s video blog, and so much more.

The other channel of note is The Nerdist Channel, created by Chris Hardwick a.k.a. the Nerdist. Hardwick hosts a bowling show where he bowls against other celebrity groups for charity. One episode will even feature them facing off against the Geek & Sundry team. There are lots of shows still to premier on the Nerdist channel, including one hosted by Rob Zombie, a show hosted by Neil deGrasse Tyson, and a show with Neil Patrick Harris and Muppets.

Both the Nerdist Channel and Geek & Sundry are pioneering a shift towards quality internet television programming. Unlike cable, you can enjoy all of these shows for free as long as you can get on the internet. In return, all they ask is you hit subscribe to their YouTube channels so they can hopefully keep this kind of programming coming.

by Fred Topel

At the movies, Tarsem Singh is best known for edgy, darkly visual thrillers like The Cell and Immortals. For fans of those movies, the family friendly fairy tale Mirror Mirror seems like a left turn. For Signh it is not.

The director won acclaim for his music videos and industry clout for his commercial work. Notable videos include R.E.M.’s “Losing My Religion.” In his commercials, you wouldn’t know Singh was there because it’s all about the client’s product. Mirror Mirror is a new version of the Snow White fairy tale, the first of two with Snow White and the Huntsman coming this summer. Singh’s version is a traditional costume fantasy, albeit with his own unique visuals and a feminist twist. This Snow White (Lily Collins) saves Prince Charming (Armie Hammer) with HER kiss instead of vice versa. She also becomes a kick ass heroine with the seven dwarves. Snow sings a Bollywood style musical number over the end titles. Julia Roberts plays the evil queen, who actually enters the mirror into an alternate realm where her reflection cautions her against evil magic.

On the press circuit with his stars, Singh has been revealing he did not intend to make four visual movies, and that he had some ideas about stepmothers he could not fit into the movie. So when we had a chance to speak with him privately over the phone, we were able to ask him to elaborate personally on the ideas in his latest film.

Read our exclusive interview with Tarsem Singh on SuicideGirls.com.

by Damon Martin

“Now I can say yes, T-Dog is back!”
– Irone Singleton

Surviving two seasons on AMC’s The Walking Dead is no easy task. But for veteran actor Irone Singleton, it’s a pleasure picking up a script each week, although he admits it’s better once he finds out that his character T-Dog survives.

Singleton has been a part of both seasons of the record breaking cable series, and he recently sat down and talked about the Season 2 finale, what’s coming up for T-Dog in Season 3, and answers the most important question ever about The Walking Dead.

Damon Martin: Let’s start with the very morbid nature of the show in the sense that anybody can go at any time. As an actor, when you get your script every week, are you reading through to check you’re still there? Cause this is a show where there are no guarantees

Irone Singleton: I know right? Kind of like The Sopranos, and somebody else mentioned 24, although I never really watched 24 – I heard it’s a phenomenal show. But we’re always looking over our back like ‘am I the one that’s going to get it today?’ It’s like that. Especially early on it was like that. When I received the script and I read through the part where T-Dog slices his arm, I’m like, ‘how big is this slice?’ He’s bleeding profusely, so I was like, ‘let me jump to the back of the script.’ So I jumped to the back of the script cause I wanted to see if T-Dog was still alive at the end. He was still alive, so I wiped the sweat bubbles from my forehead, and then I jumped back to the beginning so I could read for sheer entertainment value as opposed to reading for my life.

DM: When you work on a show you become close with the people you’re cast with; how tough was it when you read that script or you got that call sheet and found out Jon Bernthal (Shane) was leaving. How tough is that as an actor to see?

IS: I considered them my extended family, my second family away from home and we did get very close. I have special relationships with all of them and it was in it’s own unique way. To see them go, there were very wet eyes. Tearful moments. We had those moments with Jon Bernthal and I, and Jeffrey DeMunn (Dale), and we’d look at each other and be like ‘wow, this is the end of the road for us on this journey right here.’ It was a nice moment, but sad to see them go.

DM: Now you’ve survived through Season 2 and we’re on our way to Season 3 so everybody wants to know are we going to see more of T-Dog?

IS: I’m hoping so. I’m glad that T-Dog survived. Doing interviews before the season finale, I had to keep people wondering whether or not he survived, so now I can say, ‘yes, T-Dog is back!’

DM: So we know that Michael Rooker will be back as Merle Dixon for Season 3. The character interaction you guys had during the first season really kicked things off for this show, so I have to imagine things are going to get interesting when you cross paths again.

IS: It is going to be interesting. Actually T-Dog and Merle did meet up 2 weeks ago in Cherry Hills, New Jersey and there was a bit of a stand off, and Merle got a bit of his edge. We were there with the zombie survival crew at Monster Mania, and he served T-Dog octopus sashimi, and that is something that T-Dog does not like at all, but he forced it to him with chopsticks. You’ll probably stumble across that picture on Twitter or Facebook or something like that, so I think that’s a pre-cursor to what Merle has coming. It may not be good

DM: When you become a part of a series like The Walking Dead, you really become synonymous with that series and with comic book, science fiction and horror fans. If you walked into San Diego Comic Con you’d get mobbed by 50,000 fans. How much has your life changed since doing The Walking Dead? I mean 50 years from now people are still going to remember your performance from this show.

IS: That’s a big statement and it feels good. My life has gone from one extreme to the other. A line I use in my one-man show, I say, ‘I feel my life is going from the abyss to the utopia of the spiritual spectrum.’ I’ve come from an environment where I was spiritually dead, my conscience was for the most part dormant, so I am now at a point in my life where I have acknowledged a responsibility to be a role model. That’s where I am now. God has put me in a position where I have a platform to where many people hear me, and respect my message when I speak it, so that is exactly where I am, from one extreme to the other. It’s such a great feeling to be a part of such a distinguished group.

DM: There’s so much to talk about the Season 2 finale, but I’m a huge fan of The Walking Dead comic book, so I want to talk to you about the dark hooded swordsman that saved Andrea’s life at the end of the episode. For comic book fans, and as Robert Kirkman announced after the show, that is the famous character Michonne, who has now been cast with actress Danai Gurira. What did you think of that appearance; Were you a fan of the comics? Did you see that coming?

IS: I read the comics and I dipped around and read the part with Michonne, but I haven’t gotten through it. I think she may prove to be an excellent choice. (Danai Gurira) is beautiful, and I think this could work out here. I’m looking forward to that experience. I had no idea she was even in the running. They were talking about somebody from True Blood, and a couple of other names came up, but they announced her and I started to do a bit of research, and I was like, ‘wow okay, this might work out!’ I’m happy.

DM: One of the best parts of The Walking Dead is the fact that there are comics out there, and some of the iconic things that happened in the Season 2 finale are already building for Season 3. Michonne showing up, we saw the last shot of the prison to close the episode, we know they cast The Governor already, who is a major character in the comics. Is it cool that they set things up so well to get fans already excited about what’s coming next, and the show doesn’t start again for several months?

IS: I know, I’m excited too. I feel the same way. I think those shots are so epic. My wife and I were trying to figure out which shot was most epic. Was it the one with Michonne at the end with that cloak over her head? Or was it the prison shot, the overhead shot? Was it the barn burning at the end? So many epic shots and all of them kind of just have me waiting on next season. We should just petition for a year round Walking Dead show.

DM: The great thing about The Walking Dead is that while obviously they are living in a zombie apocalypse, the story really revolves around these characters and building their stories. It seems the way the storytelling is done on this show, both in the dramatic dialogue scenes and in the action scenes, it’s just really excellent.

IS: You’re getting me excited, stop it. This thing is so brilliant, it’s brilliantly written and mapped out. The folks at AMC that have to do all of this, they have to walk that tight rope. I mean you have to satisfy at least two demographics; You have to satisfy the one that want the guts and the gore, and then you have the other side, they love the story and the drama. Then you have the group like me, I’m right in the middle. I love them both. I thought it was brilliant, where you’re on the farm, but then you have zombies through there. You want it to count when you have zombies, you don’t want to have zombies on every episode. It gets old. So it’s brilliant.

DM: This is my last question before I let you go. Because you are a big part of The Walking Dead, you’re part of the family there, and I know you know all the inside information. Can you tell me, does Carl ever stay in the house?

IS: [Laughing] Great question. Carl does not, but Chandler does. Chandler Riggs stays in the house. Carl doesn’t. I don’t know what’s going on with Carl.

Related Posts:
Interview with The Walking Dead’s Michael Rooker – Merle Is Back
The Walking Dead Season 2 Finale Recap: And Hell Followed Them

by Carrina Suicide

During the time I’ve known Eric Victorino and Giovanni Giusti, I’ve had some of the best nights of my life. Giovanni is from my hometown – a small suburb a stones throw away from the lively, honest and culture rich city of San Francisco, where we attended the same small town high school. I met him while living in Oakland with an old boyfriend of mine. Both of them studied sound engineering at a local college. Giovanni would endlessly pound away on his beat machine, day in and day out. To this day, he hasn’t changed a bit; I can’t say the same for many people from our small town, which has become seemingly plagued with tragedy and wasted youth, drug addiction, suicide, and reckless destruction in general.

I met Eric, the other essential half of the Limousines at a music video shoot for their song “The Future.” Instantly he fascinated me with his delicate prose, even during a simple conversation. What struck me most was his kind spirit. Eric and Giovanni have an auteur theory if you will, their medium being words and melody. Unlike so many peers in our society of constraint, boundaries and bullshit, they aren’t afraid to say what they think, or communicate simple and empirical observations of the natural world.

Right now Eric and Giovanni are touring Europe with The Sounds, so I jumped at the opportunity to pick their brains and hit on them in the most subtle of ways. This is what transpired…

Read our exclusive interview with Jay and Mark Duplass on SuicideGirls.com.

by Fred Topel

When you hear Jason Segal and Ed Helms star in Jeff, Who Lives At Home, you might think of some wacky screwball comedy. It is a comedy, but not like you’d expect. Segal plays Jeff, and he has yet to move out, but he is a philosophical loser. He has embraced the movie Signs for its message that everything happens for a reason, and he looks for signs to guide him through life. Indeed the events of the movie lead him to a spectacular conclusion.

Jeff is the fourth film written and directed by Jay and Mark Duplass. The indie filmmakers let their actors improvise, and they frequently mix tones. Their Puffy Chair and Cyrus also had family drama like Jeff, while Baghead was a horror movie. Besides Jeff’s spiritual awakening, the film also deals with the breakup of his brother (Helms)’ marriage.

Mark Duplass may have a face you recognize too. He appears in many movies and on TV’s The League. He is also a retired musician. When he heard a reporter from Suicide Girls was interviewing him it reminded him of his rock n’ roll days.

Read our exclusive interview with Jay and Mark Duplass on SuicideGirls.com.

by Blogbot

The first episode of Wil Wheaton’s board game show, TableTop, is now live (see above). The series is part of Felica Day’s newly launched Geek & Sundry premium YouTube channel lineup. In this installment, Wil and guests Sean Plott (Day9TV and Starcraft II), Grant Imahara (Mythbusters), and Jenna Busch (geek writer and host) play Small World – a fantasy race board-based adventure which received the Best New Game Award from Games magazine in 2010.

Read our interview with Wil Wheaton re. TableTop on SuicideGirls.com, and join SG’s Board Game Group to talk about your favorite board games, ask about ones you’re curious about, and find gamers in your area.