RICK AND MORTY COMPLETE SEASON 1 - 7 ON DVD

Fans can travel across the multi-verse with the epic release of the Rick and Morty: The Complete Seasons 1-7 boxed set available now on DVD. Get Schwifty while you binge on one of cable’s most-watched comedies that follows the sci-fi misadventures of genius scientist Rick and his family. Rick and Morty: The Complete Seasons 1-7 includes all 71 episodes from seven seasons of the award-winning series, copious special features, audio commentary, deleted scenes, “Inside the Episode” segments, numerous featurettes, animatic sketches, and more. 

Rick and Morty is the critically acclaimed, half-hour animated hit comedy series on Adult Swim that follows a sociopathic genius scientist who drags his inherently timid grandson on insanely dangerous adventures across the universe. Rick Sanchez is living with his daughter Beth’s family and constantly bringing her, his son-in-law Jerry, granddaughter Summer, and grandson Morty into intergalactic escapades. 

Debuting in 112 countries in 38 languages, Rick and Morty has captured substantial international viewership. The series has ranked as one of the top series for Max, both domestically and globally. Lifetime to date, Rick and Morty has been viewed over 10 billion times globally, across linear, digital, and streaming. 

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POPULAR TABLE TOP GAME INSPIRES ANIMATED TV SHOW

Corvus Belli’s popular table top game Infinity, an intense wargame of counter-espionage set in a sci-fi, high-tech future universe, is the inspiration for a new animated television series courtesy of renowned producer/director Jay Oliva, the animator responsible for nine Warner Bros. films, including the two-part Batman: The Dark Knight Returns. Produced by Lex+Otis Studios and TeamTO, the series – Infinity: Paradise Lost – features the vocal talents of Raffi Barsoumian (DC’s Legends of Tomorrow, Seal Team, The Code), Abubakr Ali (Grendel, Law & Order: Organized Crime), Emily O’Brien (Days of Our Lives, Batman: The Doom That Came to Gotham), Nick E. Tarabay (Spartacus, Star Trek Into Darkness) and Roshelle Simpson (Gather by the Ghost Light). The show will feature an original score composed by Frederik Weidmann (Star Trek: Picard).

Infinity, the game and its animated series, finds mankind nearly 200 years into an alternate future where humanity has departed Earth and colonized multiple star systems. While there is a shared, albeit tense unity among these planetary factions, conflicts still exist as great nations attempt to maintain control of resources in order to further enhance their grip on power. Aliens are believed to have gone extinct in these star systems – until they begin to arrive. This is where Infinity begins.

“Most table top games are either big armies or smaller models, but Infinity is more like a skirmish game with tons of terrain, like you’re playing on a little diorama – and that visual side really drew me to the game and inspired the animation, Oliva communicated to ageekdaddy.com. There’s a cyberpunk aspect, but also a very Ghost in the Shell feel with holograms and futuristic weaponry. The influences include Dune and some classic sci-fi of the past. It all translated very easily to animation.”

Are you geeked to see a table top game being the basis for a new television show? The sci-fi wargame aspect of Infinity: Paradise Lost definitely has my interest piqued. For more interest about this upcoming science fiction tv series and the game sensation that inspired it, head over to infinitytheuniverse.com

RICK AND MORTY COMPLETE SEVENTH SEASON

I was GEEKED to get home from work tonight and find RICK AND MORTY: THE COMPLETE SEVENTH SEASON on Blu-ray had just arrived in the mail courtesy of Warner Bros Discovery Home Entertainment promoting its home video release. You know what I'll be doing this weekend → binge watching the new intergalactic adventures across the multiverse of a mad scientist and his family. The Blu-ray and DVD for RICK AND MORTY: THE COMPLETE SEVENTH SEASON which contains all ten episodes of the Adult Swim animated series seventh season and a number of special features is available now on Amazon.com.

The show nominated for a 2023 Emmy in the Outstanding Animation Program category is back for more adventures with Season 7. The possibilities are endless with this show: what's up with Jerry? EVIL Summer?! And will they ever go back to the high school? Maybe not! But let's find out! 

Special bonus content for the home entertainment Blu-ray and DVD release of RICK AND MORTY: THE COMPLETE SEVENTH SEASON include these featurettes:

• Inside the Episodes -- Take a deeper look into each of the ten episodes from the season;
• Directing Unmortricken -- Jacob Hair walks viewers through the challenges of making one of the most ambitious and action packed episodes in the series history;
• The Characters of Season 7 -- A wide-ranging look at how the character team crafted this season's new designs.
• Inside Season 7 -- A look at the making of the season from the perspective of various members of the crew.

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VENTURE BROS THE COMPLETE SERIES

Available now to add to your home entertainment video collection for the first time ever are all the episodes from Adult Swim's award-winning original animated series THE VENTURE BROS. Warner Bros Discovery Home Entertainment is now making the complete series available on DVD and Digital. You can purchase THE VENTURE BROS: THE COMPLETE SERIES on Amazon.com.

It's the Complete Series Venture Bros Box Set twenty years in the making. Including all the bonus materials that have been created over the years and carefully curated for you now. A spoof of 1960s era Jonny Quest style adventures, the series chronicles the exploits of the Venture family which includes an underachieving super-scientist father Dr. Thaddeus "Rusty" Venture and his well-meaning but incompetent teenage fraternal twin sons Hank and Dean as they tackle the schemes of their arch nemesis Monarch, a butterfly-themed super villain.  From "Dia de los Dangerous" to "The Saphrax Protocol" the Venture Bros adventures are all in one place to binge watch. 

THE VENTURE BROS: THE COMPLETE SERIES is rated TV-Mature (meant for adult audiences) and includes 82 episodes from its seven seasons on Adult Swim. The series features the voice talents of James Urbaniak as Dr. Rusty Venture, Christopher McCulloch as Hank, and Mike Sinterniklaas as Dean. The Venture Bros animated series was created by McCulloch and Doc Hammer premiered August 7, 2004 on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim late night programming block and was named Best Animated TV Series at Cineme 2003, the Chicago International Animated Film Festival.

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DOT JOINS JIM HENSON FAMILY HUB

Dot is about an inquisitive and exuberant 8-year-old who embarks on hilarious adventures and who fearlessly sets about solving problems...problems she most likely created herself. For a girl as energetic as Dot, there’s no better way to spend the day than outside, exploring the world with her best friends, Hal, Ruby, Nev, Dev, and her best dog, Scratch. 

Join her as she conquers each new challenge the same way any 8-year-old would - by messing up a lot and laughing even more. This is an animated series targeted at 4-7 year olds that aims to inspire learning and creative exploration while modeling how technology can be used as a tool to enhance real world experiences. Dot., the award-winning animated children's television series that models positive digital citizenship is now available to view for FREE on Jim Henson's Family Hub on YouTube, the kids-safe channel that showcases The Jim Henson Company's beloved catalog of children's programming. 

A true child of the 21st century, tech-savvy and exuberant Dot sets out on hilarious adventures to satisfy her limitless curiosity about the world around her, following her latest passion with her dog, friends, and any piece of technology that will help enhance their play and exploration. Premiering in 2016, the series won several awards including a Kidscreen Award for Best New Series, a Parents’ Choice Award – Silver Medal, a Common Sense Media 5-star rating, and a Roger’s Prize/BANFF Media Festival Excellence in Canadian Content Award, among others. Jim Henson’s Family Hub on YouTube features full episodes of popular Henson shows like Pajanimals, The Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss, The Hoobs, Mother Goose Stories and more along with weekly clips from iconic Henson titles like Fraggle Rock, Sid the Science Kid, Word Party and Dinosaur Train. And now Dot. joins the Jim Henson's Family Hub on YouTube lineup of edutainment shows.

To highlight this exciting news about Dot. I have some picture books to giveaway courtesy of The Jim Henson Company. This book features the girl who loves technology; but also knows when it is time to unplug. 

 

 

For a chance to get a FREE Dot. book, just complete an entry in the rafflecopter form below before 11:59 pm on May 18, 2023. Must be a United States resident over 18 years old to participate. The Jim Henson Company is responsible for delivery of prizes to the entrants randomly selected by ageekdaddy.com. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

AHSOKA TEASER TRAILER

Dave Filoni's expansion of the animated Star Wars adventures he crafted into live actions shows continues with the August 2023 debut of AHSOKA on the Disney+ streaming service. Originally a key character in the Clone Wars animated series that Filoni directed, Ahsoka evolved from being Anakin Skywalker's Jedi Padawan (apprentice) to being portrayed as an early leader of the Rebel Alliance in the Star Wars: Rebels cartoons. Now in her live-action incarnation played by Rosario Dawson, Ahsoka finds herself in the years following the fall of the Empire occurring after the events of the Return of the Jedi movie.

My kids have grown up with us having family tv nights to watch new episodes of Clone Wars and Rebels when they originally aired. They are actually bigger fans of the tv shows then any of the Star Wars movies. So, we are fans of Filoni's work with the Star Wars galaxy and excited how he has begun coherently meshing together the animated and live action television shows. Really geeked that it has been announced he will be directing a live action movie that brings together the characters and stories from all The Mandalorian era Disney Plus shows into a feature length theatrical released film.

In anticipation of the next stage of Ahsoka's story, a teaser trailer has been released to promote the upcoming show. There is a lot in it that is both exciting and confusing for Star Wars fans. Check it out:

One of my favorite part of the teaser is that it clearly shows the animated characters that were the heroes of Rebels are coming back together to be a big part of the Disney Plus galaxy of Star Wars live action shows. Not only that but the villain from that series, Thrawn, is coming back to lay claim to being heir to the Empire. It will be interesting if there will be tie-ins to the Timothy Zahn book that originally introduced this fan favorite character before he was revamped into the Rebels storyline. These characters are to my kids like Luke, Leia, Han, R2-D2 and Darth Vader are to me in being favorite Star Wars heroes and villains. 

What seems confusing in where the show's timeline is are that there sure seem to be a lot of evil Sith running about. These villains aren't around at Return of the Jedi and don't seem to be around when The Force Awakens takes place. So, what is going on here! I'm intrigued!

While Kathleen Kennedy has been in charge of LucasFilm since the Disney transaction and George Lucas' retirement, it has been Filoni that has kept the franchise alive. Kennedy tore down the magic of the franchise in three poorly executed cash grab movies while Filoni kept the George Lucas style of the franchise alive through his production of Star Wars television shows. There is a whole generation now who relates to Star Wars more through the characters and stories told through Filoni's television series than the movies. Hopefully, Filoni will continue to be able to have more control of steering the franchise's direction and Kennedy will graciously disappear into retirement. 

I have a lot of faith in Filoni being the steward of the Star Wars galaxy. My whole family is looking forward to seeing AHSOKA on Disney+ and Filoni's Star Wars movie that ties these shows all together. This is the way!

DEAD END: PARANORMAL PARK

Coming soon to Netflix → the cartoon series DEAD END: PARANORMAL PARK. This supernatural themed horror-comedy show about a boy and his demon possessed dog debuts on June 16, 2022. The show is rated TV-Y7 so it is aimed for elementary school aged kids and anyone older who appreciates goofy humor. The series promises a special musical episode with songs written by Patrick Stump in its first season. Stump has performed and written music for a variety of television and movie soundtracks including Family Guy, Gnome Alone, The LEGO Batman Movie and Big Hero 6.

Based on Hamish Steele’s horror-comedy graphic novels DeadEndia and web short Dead End, Dead End: Paranormal Park follows the adventures of Barney, Norma and magical-talking-dog Pugsley, as they balance their summer jobs at the local theme park haunted house while battling the totally real supernatural forces that dwell within it. Together with their guide to the underworld multiplane, a sardonic thousand-year-old demon named Courtney, they'll face zombie mascots, demonic game show hosts, sleep-sucking witches and the scariest thing of all: their first crushes! 

IS FUTURE OF STAR WARS IN TELEVISION?

As an '80s kid, Star Wars fanship was all about the movie theater experience of watching the original trilogy of films on the big screen during my youth. That was complimented by playing with Kenner action figures re-enacting your favorite scenes and imagining new adventures for the characters with the toys. All in all being a Star Wars fan was all about the movies back then.

Sharing my passion for Star Wars with my children though hasn't really been about the movies at all though. It has been about enjoying the Star Wars experience on television. They've grown up being excited each week when we spent time watching together as a family a new episode of one of the Star Wars animated series. The kids have gone from youngsters to teens watching The Clone Wars, Rebels and now the Bad Batch. My kids are more invested in the cartoon characters of Anakin Skywalker, Ezra Bridger and Omega than anyone from the movies.

In fact, they've told me they don't even like the three "Disney" movies or any of the characters from those films. My son even describes the adventures of Rey, Finn and Poe as "just a money grab" and "those movies kinda suck."  Yet he is excited whenever a new episode of the live-action Mandalorian or Boba Fett tv show are released. With the success of these Disney Plus shows and future Star Wars movie releases in limbo, you have to wonder did Kathleen Kennedy and J.J. Abrahams kill the future of the franchise when it comes to blockbuster theatrical releases? And if so, does it really matter with Star Wars having moved to new platforms for people to enjoy through streaming and video games?

Star Wars may be as popular as it has ever been based upon its television shows. While George Lucas prequel movies are still dreaded by many, the Clone Wars animated series have redeemed many of the characters from those movies. Darth Maul evolved into one of Star Wars best villains thanks to his role in Clone Wars and Rebels. When I think of Anakin Skywalker it isn't Hayden Christian's performance that comes to mind but rather the Clone Wars character voiced by Matt Lanter. And his padawan in Clone Wars, Ahsoka Tano has become a fan favorite with her own live action tv series on its way. She is more popular with my son and daughter than Princess Leia! 

Clone Wars wasn't just sci fi fluff; it had stories with real plots to them complimented with great action. It was a show that adults could appreciate just as much as kids. My son and daughter loved watching this show just as much as I did. While my Star Wars fanship began with the movie A New Hope, theirs originated through watching Clone Wars with their dad every Saturday for a number of years.

It continued with Star Wars: Rebels which we would always make a special effort to watch together on Thursday evenings when new episodes debuted on Disney XD. This show provided them with new characters to embrace separate from anyone from the movies. Ezra orphaned by the Empire sending his parents to a prison camp discovers he has a connection with The Force. He meets up with a former Padawan orphaned from the Jedi Order by the Empire's purge. Together with other colorful characters they begin a Rebellion. 

For my kids, not the new Disney movies but rather Rebels is the equivalent of what the original trilogy movies where for me. They are more excited about news of another season of the most recent Star Wars animated series, Bad Batch, rather than any announcements of new movies being produced. Bad Batch is further enhancing the cannon of the Star Wars television universe by connecting the time span between Clone Wars and Rebels. This follows a group of elite clone troopers finding their way through a changing galaxy at the end of the Clone Wars and protecting a very valuable and rare asset, Omega, a youthful female version of their kind.

In addition to the animated series, we now have live action shows in the picture. The Mandalorian with Baby Yoda was fantastic! And it is incorporating elements of the animated series creating a television cinematic universe that while related to the movies can essentially stand on its own merits. Seeing Luke Skywalker, R2-D2, Ahsoka Tano, Cad Bane, Din Djarin and Grogu together merging cartoons, live action tv and movies in a chapter of the Book of Boba Fett was so incredible! I have to say Cad Bane is one of my favorite Star Wars characters overall so I was geeked to see him.

With Disney investing millions of dollars into promoting their Star Wars movie characters in The Last Jedi films and new theme park lands, the question is will there be a conflict with the television shows that seem to embrace George Lucas' vision of a galaxy far, far away versus these other films which really don't seem to have been very well liked by mainstream audiences. How will this impact the Star Wars Lands that at Disneyland and Disney World that are branded around the new movies' characters? Do you think we've seen the last of Rey and her Resistance allies? 

Is the future of Star Wars stories now going to be television focused based upon a new generation of fans like my own children who are more invested in them or is there a future filled with new theatrical movie releases? Where do you see the franchise headed when it comes to future Star Wars adventures? 

SUPERMAN THE COMPLETE ANIMATED SERIES

Warner Bros Home Entertainment provided ageekdaddy.com a complimentary Blu-Ray box set of SUPERMAN: THE COMPLETE ANIMATED SERIES.

In honor of the 25th anniversary of SUPERMAN THE ANIMATED SERIES, which originally began airing in 1996, all 54 episodes of the television series have been remastered and are being released in a Blu-Ray box set on October 26, 2021. SUPERMAN THE ANIMATED SERIES provides an imaginative, heartfelt look at the Man of Steel's adventures in Metropolis alongside Lois Lane and opposite the villainous likes of Lex Luthor, Brainiac, Darkseid and more. The television series garnered 11 Emmy Award nominations and two Emmy Award wins, including top honors as the Outstanding Special Class Animated Program of 1998. 

SUPERMAN: THE COMPLETE ANIMATED SERIES box set features nearly 21 hours of entertainment spread over six Blu-Ray discs, which includes not just all the exciting episodes of the tv show but also lots of bonus content including an all-new series-defining featurette entitled Superman: Timeless Icon, a special video commentary episode and three specially selected episodes with audio commentaries by the showrunners.  Plus all 54 episodes have been remastered from the original 35mm Interpositive sources, giving special attention to extensive color correction, dirt and scratch clean up, and adding a grain reduction pass to create a pristine picture, all while making sure not to affect the original lines in the artwork of the animation. The audio was also retransferred from the original audio masters. The remastered episodes though are still presented in the series' original aspect ratio (4x3) to maintain their original look just with cleaner and crisper imagery and sound.

Following a precedent set by Batman: The Animated Series, these Superman cartoons featured numerous guest stars. Notable series guest stars featured Mark Hamill, Ed Asner, Dean Jones, Melissa Joan Hart, Robert Morse, Al Roker, Brian Cox, Jason Priestley, Peter Gallagher, David Warner, Michael Dorn, Christopher McDonald, Bruce Weitz, Andrea Martin, Miguel Ferrer, Ron Perlman, Bud Cort, Gilbert Gottfried, Robert Hays, Dennis Haysbert, Laraine Newman, Nancy Travis, Xander Berkeley, Jonathan Harris, John Glover, Sandra Bernhard, Jack Carter, Ernie Hudson, Henry Silva, and Robert Patrick. The cast and guest stars for SUPERMAN THE ANIMATED SERIES provided for a true A list of talent involved in producing the show whose resumes include one Academy Award and 10 Oscar nominations; 37 Emmy Awards and 186 Emmy nominations; 16 Golden Globe Awards and 54 nominations; five Annie Awards and 38 nominations; four Grammy Awards and 14 nominations; and nine individuals honored with stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. There really was some super talent involved with this animated series!

Tim Daly (Madame Secretary, Private Practice, Wings) led the cast as Clark Kent and Superman alongside Dana Delany (Body of Proof, Desperate Housewives, China Beach) as Lois Lane, David Kaufman (Danny Phantom, Stuart Little) as Jimmy Olsen and Clancy Brown (Dexter, The Shawshank Redemption, SpongeBob SquarePants) as Lex Luthor. The star-studded cast included series regulars – and their characters – Lauren Tom (Angela Chen), Victor Brandt (Professor Hamilton), Corey Burton (Brainiac), Joseph Bologna (Dan Turpin), George Dzundza (Perry White), Brad Garrett (Bibbo Bibbowski), Shelley Fabares (Martha Kent), Joanna Cassidy (Maggie Sawyer), Lisa Edelstein (Mercy Graves), Mike Farrell (Jonathan Kent) and Michael Ironside (Darkseid).

If you buy SUPERMAN: THE COMPLETE ANIMATED SERIES utilizing a Geek Daddy affiliate link this blogger will receive a small commission at no additional expense to your purchase. Commissions are reinvested into this blog to provide non-sponsored content to share with you. Your support of ageekdaddy.com is appreciated!

Warner Bros Home Entertainment provided a complimentary Blu-ray of Genndy Tartakovsky's Primal: The Complete First Season

Nothing beats the bond with man's best friend. Though in Genndy Tartakovsky's animated television series Primal that relationship isn't between a man and his dog but rather a caveman and a dinosaur.  This Adult Swim tv show that received 3 Emmy Awards for achievements in animation in recognition of its successful first season on the cable network is now available on Blu-ray and DVD to add to your home entertainment library.

Genndy Tartakovsky's Primal: The Complete First Season transports audiences to prehistoric times and takes them on edge-of-your seat thrilling adventures. The show follows a caveman at the dawn of evolution and a dinosaur on the brink of extinction. Bonded by tragedy this unlikely friendship becomes the only hope for their survival in a violent, primordial world.

The Blu-ray and DVD include all 10 episodes that originally were broadcast on Adult Swim:

1. Spear and Fang

2. River of Snakes

3.A Cold Death

4. Terror Under the Blood Moon

5. Rage of the Ape-Men

6. Scent of Prey

7. Plague of Madness

8.Coven of the Damned

9. The Night Feeder

10. Slave of the Scorpion

Bonus content for this Warner Bros Home Entertainment release includes behind-the-scenes interviews with the talent that brought Primal to life. Travel back in time by binge watching all 10 episodes of the first season of Primal. FYI to the parents out there reading this → Primal is rated TV-MA so you may not want to watch this along with young children.

Buy Primal: The Complete First Season on Blu-ray or DVD utilizing a Geek Daddy affiliate link and this blog will receive a small commission at no additional expense to your purchase. Commissions are reinvested into the blog to provide non-sponsored content to share with you. Your support of ageekdaddy.com is appreciated!

CAMP CRETACEOUS SEASON THREE

My family loves dinosaur adventures! I mean who doesn't geek out about dinosaurs? But we've gone out of our way to learn about and interact with these amazing prehistoric creatures from trekking around Pittsburgh to exploring the historic Field Museum in Chicago to watching dinosaurs stomp around downtown Detroit we've had a lot of fun experiences.

Unfortunately, like many families, we've been staying close to home lately due to the pandemic. So we've been having our dinosaur adventures by streaming the CAMP CRETACEOUS animated tv series on Netflix. This is a cartoon spin-off of the live action Jurassic World movie follows six teenagers chosen for a once-in-a-lifetime experience at Camp Cretaceous, a new adventure camp on the opposite side of Isla Nublar, who must work together to survive when dinosaurs wreak havoc across the island.

Netflix has released two seasons of episodes of this series produced by DreamWorks Animation, Universal Pictures and Amblin Entertainment that have been an entertaining way to enjoy some escapism from being held captive from normal day to day activities by the coronavirus. Now a third story arc is beginning on May 21 and we are looking forward to a continuation of this exciting dinosaur adventure.

Season 3 of CAMP CRETACEOUS on Netflix will consist of 10 exciting new 22-minute long episodes that will be available to start viewing on May 21, 2021. Still stranded on the island, the campers uncover more details of Dr. Wu’s secret research, and must quickly take their fate into their own hands with a dangerous plan to leave Isla Nublar behind for good. But when a tropical storm delays their departure, a lethal new threat quickly closes in on the campers, placing their escape, as well as their lives, in extreme peril.

We are roaring to go back to Jurassic World and counting down the days to Season 3 of CAMP CRETACEOUS! With quality animation and story telling that makes this series interesting for all ages of the family Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous absolutely gets a Geek Daddy nod of approval. We'll be tuning in for sure on May 21 to see how this dinosaur adventure continues!

RICK AND MORTY BLURAY BOX SET

Warner Bros Home Entertainment provided this dad blogger with a free Blu-ray box set. Opinions expressed are my own.

Cutting our cable television service has left me in the lurch when it comes to watching a number of shows like Rick and Morty. I've missed out on seeing a number of episodes of one of the #1 watched comedies on cable tv. So I'm looking forward to binging the first four seasons of this goofy sc-fi animated series this weekend now that Rick and Morty: Seasons 1 - 4 are available on Blu-ray.

This box set includes four Blu-ray discs featuring all 41 episodes of the award-winning Cartoon Network show in 1080p high definition. Rick and Morty: Seasons 1 - 4 is also full of bonus content including deleted scenes, "Inside the Episodes" segments, featurettes and more. Also included is an exclusive poster featuring the characters from the animated series and a code to allow you to have a digital copy of the shows as well for your home entertainment video library. Wubba-lubba-dub-dub!

From creators Justin Roiland (Adventure Time) and Dan Harmon (Community), The adventures of Rick and Morty are full of intergalactic tomfoolery and multi-verse hijinks. Does mad scientist Rick Sanchez truly care about his grandson Morty or is the boy just a science experiment to his grandpa? Science fiction fans are sure to get some good laughs witnessing the two's madcap exploits as viewers develop their own hypothesis of what actually is the relationship between the boy and old man.

The show begins with Rick suddenly arriving at his daughter Beth's doorstep after being missing for 20 years. Although Beth welcomes Rick into her home with open arms, her husband Jerry isn't as happy about the family reunion. Jerry is concerned about the sociopath scientist who has begun living with them using the garage as his personal laboratory. Within this lab Rick works on numerous gadgets which worry Jerry. Which actually should be cause for alarm as Rick uses them to involve his grandchildren Morty and Summer on a variety of escapades across time and space.

Purchase Rick and Morty: The Complete Seasons 1 - 4 on Blu-ray or DVD from Best Buy. Purchase the box set using a Geek Daddy affiliate link and this dad blogger will receive a small commission at no additional expense to you. Your support of ageekdaddy.com is always appreciated!

Transformers: Robots in Disguise - A New Autobot Mission on DVD

** A Geek Daddy received the featured product for free. Opinions are my own**

I remember a big part of my after-school routine in elementary school was running as fast as I could from the bus stop to get home in time to see the Transformers cartoon series on tv.  With dvds, digital downloads and streaming Internet videos, my kids are shocked to hear that if you missed a cartoon when it originally aired when I was their age you were pretty much out of luck to see it again until the summer reruns began.  I was truly captivated each afternoon taking in the adventures of the heroic Optimus Prime and his band of mechanical Autobots tackling the dastardly exploits of the evil Megatron and his villainous army of Decepticon robots in this animated series that aired in 1985 and 1986.  Hey what young boy wouldn't enjoy a television show about high-tech robots that can turn into cool vehicles who battle each other with laser guns and missiles!!!

Just as my own children are entering their elementary school years themselves, the Transformers are back in an all new animated series on Cartoon Network called Robots In Disguise.  The war for control of the Earth has been over now for decades with the Autobots being victorious and the Transformers have returned to their metallic home planet of Cybatron.  The fan favorite young gun from the original series, Bumblebee is now a veteran law enforcement officer on Cybatron supervising a young beat patrol cadet named StrongArm as they search to arrest a troublesome maverick named SideSwipe.  Just as Bumblebee and StrongArm capture SideSwipe the whole trio gets sent back to Earth through a series of mishaps via a one-way interstellar gateway.

Bumblebee, StrongArm and SideSwipe arrive on Earth to find out that an Autobot spaceship transporting hundreds of the most dangerous Decepticons from Cybatron to a distant prison world has crash landed there.  It's up to Bumblebee and his team to round up all these escaped prisoners and lock them up before they create too much havoc on the planet.  Each episode will feature an encounter with a new Decepticon on the loose.  Oh plus because the only thing cooler than a robot that turns into a cool car is one that turns into a dinosaur during their adventures, the Autobots pick up a Dinobot to join their team.

Don't worry if you missed the first few episodes of this new series as on October 20, 2015 Shout! Factory Kids, in collaboration with Hasbro Studios, released TRANSFORMERS: ROBOTS IN DISGUISE - A NEW AUTOBOT MISSION on DVD which features the first five entertaining episodes of the new tv series and special behind-the-scenes bonus content.  I watched this with my son and he was really thrilled by it.  We've watched the DVD three times now in just the one week we've had it.  You can order the DVD from Amazon and Walmart.

The DVD has a run-time of 110 minutes and features five action-packed TRANSFORMERS: ROBOTS IN DISGUISE adventures:

• Pilot, Part 1
• Pilot, Part 2
• Trust Exercises
• More Than Meets the Eye
• W.W.O.D.?

These cartoons feature a brand new anime inspired animation style that provides more of a focus on presenting human and animal characteristics of the Transfomers versus a focus on a robotic portrayal of them. My kids really liked this new style.  The series also features the voice talents of Will Friedle (Boy Meets World), Darren Criss (Glee), Constance Zommer (Entourage), Khary Payton (Teen Titans Go!), and Mitchell Whitfield (TMNT) plus Peter Cullen, the voice of Optimus Prime in the 1980s Transformers cartoons and the live-action theatrical motion pictures, when the character makes a cameo appearance in this series.

The new mission begins as Bumblebee must step up to be leader in the years after we left the AUTOBOTS in Transformers Prime. Summoned by Optimus Prime to save Earth from a new DECEPTICON threat, Bumblebee puts his light-hearted mettle to the test after assembling a rouge team of Autobots action heroes. Bumblebee must balance his job fighting off evil with being equal parts squad leader and coach to a rascally team that needs constant coaxing to learn how to work together. The results are comical when the cool rebel SIDESWIPE, elite guard cadet STRONGARM, bombastic dinobot GRIMLOCK and overly-excited mini-con FIXIT must balance keeping the team together with chasing and capturing their new enemies in each adventure-filled episode.

The TRANSFORMERS: ROBOTS IN DISGUISE series is currently airing on Cartoon Network in the U.S. and on Teletoon in Canada.  If you're like me and  have kids at home who are really into cool cars, dinosaurs, and high-tech robots you are going to want to roll out into action and pick up the start of this new chapter of the Autobots story on DVD.

Three BILLION cheers for Talking Tom & Friends

3,000,000,000 - wow! that's a lot of zeroes in that number which represents the astronomical amount of downloads worldwide of apps associated with Outfit7 Limited's Talking Tom and Friends franchise reached at the beginning of October.  So 3 billion cheers to these apps which feature interactive talking cats, dogs, kittens, puppies plus a parrot for good measure on reaching such an impressive milestone!

Talking Tom & Friends started out with the original Talking Tom app in 2010 which featured an animated interactive 3D character that users could tickle, poke and play with via the app.  Users could also get Tom to repeat what they say.  5 years later, the success of that original app has evolved and expanded to now to 16 hugely popular apps featuring Tom and his animal friends.  Monthly these apps collectively generate 250 million active users in over 230 countries and territories worldwide.

"It's an amazing accomplishment to reach three billion downloads, but even more of an honor to know Talking Tom and Friends have entertained and delighted so many across the globe," said Samo Login, Outfit7 Limited co-founder and Chief Executive Officer in a press release sent to A Geek Daddy.  "Thanks to our incredible team who work tirelessly to raise the bar in creative content and technology and continually deliver an entertaining and engaging experience, we've been able to reach this significant milestone."

Talking Tom and Friends app download stats are just one part of this franchise's digital whirlwind of success though.  Combined the franchise has also amassed a whopping 3.5 billion views of its various content on YouTube, while Talking Tom and Friends: The Animated Series has accrued close to 100 million views since it launched on YouTube and YouTube Kids last Spring.  Talking Tom and Friends: The Animated Series consists of 52 eleven minute episodes featuring an all-star voice cast led by Golden Globe and Emmy-nominee Colin Hanks (Fargo) and Tom Kenny (SpongeBob SquarePants).  Plus new episodes of this online series will be hitting YouTube this month!  Based upon the success of the apps and web-series, a feature film is also in development and Outfit7 Limited has a flourishing global licensing and merchandising program.

So what should we take from Outfit7 Limited's success?  People LOVE talking cats and make sure your kids learn how to develop, produce, and market apps.  The Talking Tom and Friends apps are FREE to download on all major app stores globally.  For more information, or to download an app, visit outfit7.com/our-work. 

The Fresh Beat Band Hits the Road

 Live National Concert Series & New Animated Television Series in works for

Nickelodeon's The Fresh Beat Band

Normally the though of going to a concert with kids isn't an appealing idea because the show may be too much of an adult oriented atmosphere (The Dave Matthews Band concert where we were enveloped in a haze of marijuana smoke or the Toby Keith show where drunk guys were fighting in the aisles around us come to mind) or even worse catering to a teen audience (Oh the unspeakable horror of having to chaperone your children to see Justin Bieber, Mylie Cyrus, or New Direction).  That being said, one concert that sounds like a fun time to go to with your children to enjoy is THE FRESH BEAT BAND (whose performances are aimed at entertaining preschoolers and their parents) when they go on tour.  The Fresh Beat Band, Nickelodeon's preschool music group and stars of the Emmy Award winning TV series of the same name are hitting the road for a brand-new nationwide concert tour running from November 5th through February 15th to 40 cities including DETROIT, New York, Chicago, Los Angeles. Atlanta and Dallas.

Tickets are on sale now for these live family-oriented shows that will feature Kika (Yvette Gonzalez-Nacer), Marina (Tara Perry), Twist (Jon Beavers), and Shout (Thomas Hobson) performing songs that most people who have watched Nickelodeon or Nick Jr. will be familiar with such as "Bananas", "Here We Go" and "Great Day."   According to Doug Cohn, SVP Music - Nickelodeon, "The Fresh Beat Band is back on the road to give kids a chance to see their favorite rock stars live in concert. This re-imagined high energy production features the band's biggest hits, bever-before-performed songs, and fun surprises that will deliver an unforgettable experience for families."

 Tour dates and locations are as follows:

2014 The Fresh Beat Greatest Hits Live Tour Dates:

Date                 City                             Theater

November 5      Melbourne, FL             King Center for the Performing Arts

November 6      Clearwater, FL              Ruth Eckerd Hall

November 7      Boca Raton, FL            Mizner Park Amphitheatre

November 8      Orlando, FL                  Hard Rock Live

November 9      Atlanta, GA                  Fox Theatre

November 11    North Charleston, SC    North Charleston Performing Arts Center

November 13    Columbus, OH             Palace Theatre

November 14    Akron, OH                   Akron Civic Theatre

November 15    Detroit, MI                   Fox Theatre

November 16    Milwaukee, WI             Riverside Theater

November 18    Minneapolis, MN          Orpheum Theatre

November 19    Kansas City, MO          Midland Theatre

November 20    Park City, KS               Hartman Arena

November 21    Grand Prairie, TX         Verizon Theatre at Grand Prairie

November 22    Baton Rouge, LA          Baton Rouge River Center

November 23    Houston, TX                Bayou Music Center (2 shows)

November 25    San Antonio, TX          Majestic Theatre

November 26    Austin, TX                   Austin City Limits Live

November 28    St. Louis, MO               Peabody Opera House

November 29    Rosemont, IL               Rosemont Theatre (2 shows)

November 30    Indianapolis, IN            Murat Theatre

December 2      Binghamton, NY          Broome County Arena

December 3      Worcester, MA             Hanover Theatre for the Performing Arts

December 4      Providence, RI              Providence Performing Arts Center

December 6      Wallingford, CT            Toyota Presents the Oakdale Theatre

December 7      Upper Darby, PA          Tower Theatre (2 shows)

December 10    Pittsburgh, PA              Benedum Center

December 11    Albany, NY                  Palace Theatre

December 12    Syracuse, NY                Landmark Theater

December 13    Toms River, NJ             Pine Belt Arena (2 shows)

December 14    Westbury, NY              Theatre at Westbury (2 shows)

December 16    Erie, PA                       Warner Theatre

December 19    Baltimore, MD             Meyerhoff Symphony Hall

December 20    Columbia, SC               Township Auditorium

January 17-18   New York, NY              Theater at Madison Square Garden (4 shows)

February 15      Los Angeles, CA           Shrine Auditorium & Expo Center (2 shows)

For those of you who haven't seen The Fresh Beat Band  television show it is a child focused live action sitcom on Nickelodeon and Nick Jr.  Each episode encourages preschoolers to sing and dance along as they help The Fresh Beat Band solve everyday challenges.  Themes of the show include teaching the fundamentals of music (such as melody, rhythm, tempo and performance styles), the importance of friendship, working together, and respecting each other's differences.  Based upon the popularity and ratings of The Fresh Beat Band, a new spin-off animated series will be debuting in 2015.

Fresh Beat Band of Spies will have the bandmates working as undercover spies.  Kiki, Marina, Twist and Shout will use their individual talents and the coolest transforming spy gadgets to outwit a goofy cast of bad guys and solve wild and wacky mysteries.  The new series will focus on teaching problem-solving skills to preschoolers.

For more information about The Fresh Beat Band visit freshbeatbandlive.com or NickJr.com   

Strawberry Shortcake: Fun Under The Sun

I have to admit a lot of the things that I review on the A GEEK DADDY blog really often have a more interesting connection for my son than my daughter based upon their personalities and likes.  So my daughter was thrilled when the newest Strawberry Shortcake DVD movie arrived in the mail from Fox Home Entertainment for our family to review.  STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE: FUN UNDER THE SUN with its tropical themes came at a great time as summer vacation for my kids is just beginning.

The synopsis for the DVD is:
Join Strawberry Shortcake and her berry best pals on some sweet sunshine adventures! Blueberry makes a berry big blunder when she overhears Strawberry and thinks her friend is taking all the pals on a tropical vacation.  After Blueberry makes some very funny attempts to make things right, Orange Blossom tries to build the girls their own fabulous resort.  When they all work together to make it Berry Bitty City-style, it's perfect...so perfect, in fact that TV host Mavis Maraschino decides to do a segment on Cherry Jam right then and there! Will the girls ever get the Fun Under the Sun they've been dreaming of?

The DVD features three separate 22 minute episodes that all have a Fun Under the Sun theme.  In addition to entertaining their audience the shows also have some positive messages incorporated into their stories involving topics such as the importance of honesty and telling the truth, valuing friendship, and promoting imagination and creativity. The DVD also features some special features that include a music video titled "It's a Beautiful Lovely Wonderful Day" and Strawberry Shortcake themed coloring pages that you can download on your computer and print out. Talking about coloring pages, here's one you can have your kids enjoy (click to enlarge):

In the first episode, Blueberry overhears Strawberry talking about a tropical vacation and assumes that Strawberry is taking along all of her friends. The secret gets out and the girls become overly excited and start big getaway.

Blueberry discovers she heard Strawberry talk about the trip as her entry into a contest giveaway and realized it wasn’t an actual vacation. Rather than tell her friends the truth, she continues to make up stories about the trip, trying to discourage the girls from going. Eventually, she tells her friends the truth and all is forgiven.

In the next episode, Strawberry Shortcake and her friends are planning their big vacation before the end of Summer and discover the resort is closed due to bad weather. Orange Blossom comes up with a great idea: to create their own resort. The girls are so busy building the resort that they lost sight of the true meaning of the trip, spending time together.

In the final episode, the Strawberry Shortcake friends are packing their favorite belongings to take on their vacation when TV celebrity Mavis Marichino shows up to film a segment for her new show about the girl's resort.  Mavis drives the girls crazy enough that they come up with a plan on how to get her to leave so they can enjoy their vacation.

One thing I did notice while my children were watching this video was that there has been a significant alteration to the Strawberry Shortcake characters from their previous animated television series incarnation that my kids currently watch on Netflix.  In the previous animated series, the Strawberry Shortcake characters had a more elementary school aged vibe to them and were engaged in stories similar to what you might see in episodes of shows like Nickelodeon's Dora the Explorer or the Disney Channel's Doc McStuffins that were aimed at preschooler to elementary school age audience. My son and daughter both love to watch those shows. The Strawberry Shortcake characters are "grown up" in Fun Under the Sun and aimed at an older girl focused audience compared to the previous television shows.

In Fun Under the Sun, Strawberry Shortcake and her pals are portrayed more as tweens or teens. They are now very focused on being style-conscious and popular, things that are important to tweens and teens but not necessarily to younger children.  These new episodes on the DVD have more of a Barbie or Disney Princess vibe to them than the tom boy portrayal on the Netflix Strawberry Shortcake shows we've seen.  My son is always very interested and enjoys watching the Strawberry Shortcake animated series episodes on Netflix along with his sister, but he left the room a quarter way into the first episode of Fun Under the Sun to go play with some toys and never showed any interest to watch the rest of the DVD.  On the other hand, my daughter giggled throughout all three episodes and asked to watch them again right after the last one concluded.  So if you have daughters age 5 - 12, I'd recommend picking up the DVD to enjoy on a rainy summer day or to watch on a portable DVD player/laptop/tablet (digital version is also available) during a long vacation road trip or flight.  If you are looking for something to entertain a combination of girls and boys or children under the age of 5 this probably wouldn't be your best bet.

STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE: FUN UNDER THE SUN DVD was released on May 13, 2014 and is available to purchase from retailers now.  The DVD also includes a digital download (via UltraViolet) for use on computers, smart phones, laptops and so on.

DISCLAIMER:  I received a complimentary STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE: FUN UNDER THE SUN DVD from 20TH CENTURY/FOX HOME ENTERTAINMENT to review.  The views and opinions expressed are my own.  I was not mandated to write a positive review to receive the product.