Hollywood Reporter is, well, reporting that Guillermo Del Toro is in talks to direct the two Hobbit movies produced by Peter Jackson. In my opinion, this could turn out to be the best possible choice. Not only did Del Toro deliver “Hellboy” and “Pan’s Labyrinth,” but he’s a dead ringer for Peter Jackson during his Lord of the Rings days!

If you’ve seen “Pan’s Labyrinth,” you know Guillermo Del Toro has an amazing understanding of fantasy storytelling. The tone of his movies are a perfect fit for Middle Earth, and his use of visual effects is innovative and unique. Peter Jackson is still involved as the Executive Producer, and I’m sure that will help create a continuity between this and the Rings trilogy. But I love the idea of a new director coming in to put his spin on “The Hobbit,” to give it a fresh look.

What do you think? Del Toro, good choice? Or did you want Sam “I Hate Venom” Raimi? As excited as I was when the movies were first announced, I’m now officially out of my mind! Let’s settle this writer’s strike so this thing can get moving!!

Hollywood Reporter is, well, reporting that Guillermo Del Toro is in talks to direct the two Hobbit movies produced by Peter Jackson. In my opinion, this could turn out to be the best possible choice. Not only did Del Toro deliver “Hellboy” and “Pan’s Labyrinth,” but he’s a dead ringer for Peter Jackson during his Lord of the Rings days!

If you’ve seen “Pan’s Labyrinth,” you know Guillermo Del Toro has an amazing understanding of fantasy storytelling. The tone of his movies are a perfect fit for Middle Earth, and his use of visual effects is innovative and unique. Peter Jackson is still involved as the Executive Producer, and I’m sure that will help create a continuity between this and the Rings trilogy. But I love the idea of a new director coming in to put his spin on “The Hobbit,” to give it a fresh look.

What do you think? Del Toro, good choice? Or did you want Sam “I Hate Venom” Raimi? As excited as I was when the movies were first announced, I’m now officially out of my mind! Let’s settle this writer’s strike so this thing can get moving!!

In true nerd fashion, I received a text message from a friend of mine a few days ago that said “check out spidey controversy peterandMJ done.” I had to follow up on this cryptic, and clearly distress-driven message. I mean, he couldn’t even bring himself to separate peterandmj with spaces, indicating his desire for them to remain together (Or maybe it’s just hard to text while you’re driving). The bottom line is this: Peter Parker and Mary Jane are no longer, at least in the comic book world. Let’s discuss!

Spidey’s main book, “The Amazing Spider-Man” started a new arc titled “Brand New Day” which comes out three times a month (Three times?? That requires dedication, even from a nerd). In it, Aunt May is on her death bed, but Peter and Mary Jane are visited by Mephisto, a dude who wears a cape but no shirt underneath. A superhero who can’t properly dress himself clearly has priority issues, so he makes a bizarre offer to save Aunt May in exchange for Peter and Mary Jane’s marriage vows. Oh, and he also made everyone in the world forget that Peter Parker revealed himself as Spider-Man. So we’re basically looking at pre-1987 Spider-Man (before he married MJ).

Every year, it seems like two or three big events occur to shake up the comic world. Last year it was Civil War, which revealed Peter Parker’s identity to the world. Marvel said this would open up Spider-Man to an entirely new batch of stories, but they must have run out of those pretty quickly if they’re already resorting to another major change in his life. These types of events are good press for comics, as they always get national coverage. Everyone knows Captain America died last year. But ultimately, these attention-grabbing storylines run out of steam because the writers don’t plan far enough ahead. That makes it hard to invest in this new twist, because fans have been burned before. I bought Civil War and all the Amazing Spider-Man issues that coincided with it, and now I feel like I wasted my time because that entire story is erased.

I could demonstrate another level of nerdiness by continuing, but I don’t want to bore the casual readers out there. Just know that Peter Parker and MJ have split up, and they’ll probably be back together in a year.

In true nerd fashion, I received a text message from a friend of mine a few days ago that said “check out spidey controversy peterandMJ done.” I had to follow up on this cryptic, and clearly distress-driven message. I mean, he couldn’t even bring himself to separate peterandmj with spaces, indicating his desire for them to remain together (Or maybe it’s just hard to text while you’re driving). The bottom line is this: Peter Parker and Mary Jane are no longer, at least in the comic book world. Let’s discuss!

Spidey’s main book, “The Amazing Spider-Man” started a new arc titled “Brand New Day” which comes out three times a month (Three times?? That requires dedication, even from a nerd). In it, Aunt May is on her death bed, but Peter and Mary Jane are visited by Mephisto, a dude who wears a cape but no shirt underneath. A superhero who can’t properly dress himself clearly has priority issues, so he makes a bizarre offer to save Aunt May in exchange for Peter and Mary Jane’s marriage vows. Oh, and he also made everyone in the world forget that Peter Parker revealed himself as Spider-Man. So we’re basically looking at pre-1987 Spider-Man (before he married MJ).

Every year, it seems like two or three big events occur to shake up the comic world. Last year it was Civil War, which revealed Peter Parker’s identity to the world. Marvel said this would open up Spider-Man to an entirely new batch of stories, but they must have run out of those pretty quickly if they’re already resorting to another major change in his life. These types of events are good press for comics, as they always get national coverage. Everyone knows Captain America died last year. But ultimately, these attention-grabbing storylines run out of steam because the writers don’t plan far enough ahead. That makes it hard to invest in this new twist, because fans have been burned before. I bought Civil War and all the Amazing Spider-Man issues that coincided with it, and now I feel like I wasted my time because that entire story is erased.

I could demonstrate another level of nerdiness by continuing, but I don’t want to bore the casual readers out there. Just know that Peter Parker and MJ have split up, and they’ll probably be back together in a year.

Variety is reporting that the new Justice League movie just had a block of kryptonite jammed up its ass. Warner Bros. has decided to delay the project, pointing to possibly summer or late fall as a start. This is most likely because the script requires some tweaking, and that’s impossible due to the writer’s strike.

In addition, Warner didn’t exercise cast options, meaning all those names that have been announced in the past few weeks (Adam Brody as The Flash, Megan Gale as Wonder Woman, etc) could be relegated to Bizarro World status.

At least we’ll still have a new Batman movie.

Today was MacWorld 2008, the day when Apple announces a bunch of cool stuff and nerds all over the world mess their pants (in the front AND back). So what geeky goodies came out of this year’s Expo? First off is MacBook Air, the world’s thinnest notebook computer. It’s literally thinner than a notebook. For only $1,799, this modern marvel can be yours. It looks pretty sweet, but without a built-in CD/DVD drive, is it worth it? Well, for that, you’ve got two options. You can shell out another 100 bucks for an external drive, or you can run the Remote Disc feature, which basically hijacks the drive of a nearby computer and uses it wirelessly. That’s pretty sweet and also a little scary, especially after my Terminator recap.

Speaking of Terminator, next up is the Time Capsule, which works with the Time Machine feature from that Mac commercial with a bunch of Justin Longs. Basically, it continually backs up your computer and dumps it to the Time Capsule. You can restore your system if it goes down and access lost files from archives, inciting a new fear in ladies who thought their ex-boyfriends deleted those scandalous pictures of them.

Apple TV has received a revamp, making it a standalone device that doesn’t require a computer. Just hook it up to your TV and the internet, and you’ll be buying and renting movies from iTunes in no time.

Oh by the way, iTunes has gotten into the Netflix business. Starting today, you can rent movies straight from iTunes and play them for 24 hours. You don’t even have to leave your computer chair to go to the mailbox! Laziness rules! Although, if you don’t have Apple TV, you’re still stuck watching a movie on your computer. Not exactly ideal for gathering friends around, but it’s great for long plane rides.

Those were the big announcements. Are these as cool as the iPhone announcement from last year? Of course not! The very tiny MacBook is awesome but not as revolutionary, and the Time Capsule is basically an external hard drive with constant backup capability. Regardless, Apple proved why they are a nerdworthy company. They make products we don’t really need, but present them in such a cool way that you feel like a loser for not owning it. I’d say see you in line, but I’ll be at home renting movies.

Welcome to Nerd With Words! This site covers everything pop culture, from a nerd’s perspective. It’s a combination of written blogs and videos, giving me a chance to talk about what’s happening in movies, TV, Video Games, Books, Technology, and Music. I am a Certified Nerd (I had to send in 12 proofs of purchase from Star Wars toys to get my plaque), and I have mountains of useless knowledge for you to climb. Check back tomorrow for Sticky Floor Friday, where I preview the movies coming out and tell you what’s worth seeing!

– Nerd With Words

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