Month: December 2018

Here’s what you’ll be watching on Netflix next year in 2019.

Tons of people have Hulu, Amazon Prime, and even Shudder subscriptions nowadays. But Netflix remains the undisputed ruler of all video streaming platforms, thanks mostly to the unholy amount of original programming it now puts out every year. Not all of it is great. OK, a lot of Netflix’s exclusive stuff is terrible. But for now, the streaming giant’s strategy of throwing everything at the wall is working. Some things have managed to stick.

In 2018, we had almost too many great Netflix originals to count. There was the quirky sci-fi instant classic Maniac, the cult horror hit Apostle, the insane action banger The Night Comes For Us, the wonderfully scary Haunting of Hill House, the heartfelt Queer Eye revival, the back-on-top Daredevil Season 3, the hard sci-fi series Lost in Space and Altered Carbon, great new seasons of Ozark, G.L.O.W., Castlevania, American Vandal, Black Mirror, and Big Mouth, and countless more.

And since you’re obviously caught up on all of those, it’s time to start looking to the future. What does Netflix have coming out in 2019 that’s worth getting excited over? Well, how about Stranger Things Season 3? What about the final season of Orange is the New Black, another season of G.L.O.W., and the comic book adaptation Umbrella Academy?

There are many more new shows and movies coming to Netflix in 2019, so click on to find out what we’re most excited about.

1. Stranger Things Season 3

Release date: Sometime in 2019

Netflix has confirmed that Stranger Things Season 3 will arrive in 2019, and bring with it even more special effects. It’s been way too long since Eleven and the gang’s last adventure back in 2017, so we’re extremely excited to get back to Hawkins, Indiana and the Upside-Down.

2. Carmen Sandiego

Release date: Sometime in 2019

From Netflix’s official description, we know that this reimagining of the classic franchise will be “a modern day Robin Hood” in which the titular hero steals from the evil organization V.I.L.E. and gives back to its victims. Carmen is viewed as a master criminal around the globe, but it sounds like the new series might take her to some unexpected places.

3. Umbrella Academy

Release date: February 15 2019

Scheduled to hit Netflix in February, Umbrella Academy is the latest promising comic book adaptation we’re looking forward to on the streaming service. Here’s the official description: “On the same day in 1989, forty-three infants are inexplicably born to random, unconnected women who showed no signs of pregnancy the day before. Seven are adopted by a billionaire who creates The Umbrella Academy and prepares his “children” to save the world. Now, the six surviving members reunite upon the news of their father’s passing and must work together to solve a mystery surrounding his death.” Yeah, sounds awesome.

4. Sex Education

Release date: Sometime in 2019

Gillian Anderson will star in this show about two teenagers who set up an underground sex therapy ring at their high school. Netflix hasn’t release so much as a trailer yet, but we’re looking forward to it based simply on the premise: “Meet Otis Milburn–an inexperienced, socially awkward high school student who lives with his mother, a sex therapist. Surrounded by manuals, videos and tediously open conversations about sex, Otis is a reluctant expert on the subject. When his home life is revealed at school, Otis realizes that he can use his specialist knowledge to gain status. He teams up with Maeve, a whip-smart bad-girl, and together they set up an underground sex therapy clinic to deal with their fellow students’ weird and wonderful problems. Through his analysis of teenage sexuality, Otis realises he may need some therapy of his own.”

5. The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance

Release date: Hopefully in 2019

No confirmation on this one, but we’re hoping that Netflix and The Jim Henson Company’s Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance, a 10-episode prequel series to the 1982 Jim Henson fantasy movie, will hit the streaming service this year. It reportedly began filming back in 2017, so there’s a good chance it will be ready for release in 2019.

6. Russian Doll

Release date: Sometime in 2019

Co-created by Natasha Lyonne, Leslye Headland, and Amy Poehler, Russian Doll has an intriguing official description: “A woman gets caught in a mysterious loop, repeatedly attending the same party and dying at the end of the night, only to awake the next day unharmed.” Combine that Groundhog Day/Happy Death Day concept with an all-female writing and directing team, and we’re excited for this one to arrive.

7. Chilling Adventures of Sabrina Season 2

Release date: Hopefully in 2019

Netflix’s first season of Chilling Adventures of Sabrina was one of the best Halloween surprises this year, and we’re already looking forward to Season 2. Star Kiernan Shipka recently told Bloody Disgusting that the cast and crew went straight into filming Season 2 after wrapping Season 1, so here’s hoping it arrives sometime in 2019.

8. Orange is the New Black Season 7

Release date: Sometime in 2019

It’s confirmed that Orange is the New Black’s seventh season will be its last, and that it will air in 2019. If you think you understand how emotional it’s going to be, just watch this video the cast posted on Twitter and try not to cry.

9. GLOW Season 3

Release date: Hopefully in 2019

GLOW Season 1 hit Netflix on June 23, 2017, while Season 2 arrived June 29, 2018. Now that we know GLOW Season 3 is happening, we’re hoping for another summer release for the excellent wrestling comedy in 2019.

10. Ozark Season 3

Release date: Hopefully in 2019

Ozark star, executive producer, and sometimes director Jason Batemen announced on Twitter that the blue-hued white collar crime drama will return for a third season. “I’m happy for me, but concerned for Marty,” the actor wrote, leaving us a little more concerned than usual for the Byrde family’s well-being. The only question remaining is when, and to that, all we can say is hopefully it arrives in 2019.

11. Our Planet

Release date: April 5 2019

An eight-part series from the creators of Planet Earth? We don’t need to hear anything else to be excited about this Netflix exclusive coming in April.

12. A Series Of Unfortunate Events Season 3

Release date: January 1 2019

These books seemed to last forever when we were kids, but the Netflix adaptation is coming to a close at the start of 2019 when Season 3 hits the streaming service on January 1. That makes this holiday break the perfect time to catch up on the charming Neil Patrick Harris-starring series.

13. The Dragon Prince Season 2

Release date: Sometime in 2019

In our review of Netflix’s Dragon Prince Season 1, we called it “Avatar meets epic fantasy:” “The Dragon Prince succeeds in creating a lush, engaging new world, a mostly likable trio of new heroes, and at least for now, some interest in seeing what happens in Season 2.” The series’ Twitter account recently announced that it would return in 2019 for Season 2, and we’re already looking forward to it.

14. Santa Clarita Diet Season 3

Release date: Sometime in 2019

According to Deadline, Season 3 of Netflix’s Santa Clarita Diet will arrive in 2019. We’re not yet sure exactly when, or what the new season will entail, as Netflix has release little information about it. What we do know is we’re excited for more Drew Barrymore-as-a-zombie fun.

15. The Irishman

Release date: Sometime in 2019

Martin Scorsese’s next big crime drama has quite a cast: Robert De Niro as Frank Sheeran, Al Pacino as Jimmy Hoffa, plus Joe Pesci, Anna Paquin, Bobby Cannavale, Harvey Keitel, and Ray Romano. It marks the first time Pacino has appeared in a film directed by Scorsese, believe it or not. And it’s coming exclusively to Netflix sometime next year. What a world.

16. The Central Park Five

Release date: Sometime in 2019

A Wrinkle in Time may have been an absolute stinker, but we’re very much looking forward to Ava Duvernay’s next project: An expansive look at the plight of the five NYC teenagers who were falsely accused and convicted of rape starting in 1989. The series stars Michael K. Williams, Vera Farmiga, and John Leguizamo, among others, and we’re expecting it to be a grim and gut-wrenching–but necessary–watch.

17. Polar

Release date: Sometime in 2019

“When a retiring assassin realizes he’s the target of a hit, he winds up back in the game going head to head with an army of younger, ruthless killers.” That official Netflix description makes this upcoming comics adaptation sound a lot like John Wick, and we’re OK with that. Add in the fact that Mads Mikkelsen is starring alongside Vanessa Hudgens, Katheryn Winnick, and Matt Lucas and we’re looking forward to this one.

18. Dolemite is My Name

Release date: Sometime in 2019

n Rudy Ray Moore, this upcoming Netflix movie stars Eddie Murphy and Keegan-Michael Key, among many other great actors and comedians. It’s expected out sometime in 2019.

19. Raising Dion

Release date: Hopefully in 2019

Raising Dion is yet another comic book adaptation coming to Netflix hopefully in 2019. It’s the story of a single mom raising a kid who develops magical superpowers. It’s based on a short film and comic book by Dennis Liu.

A strange mutation has made one of the world’s ugliest real animals look like one of the cutest fictional ones. A brushtail possum was brought to a clinic in Melbourne, Australia, with unique golden coloring. The caretakers there affectionately named her Pikachu, after the famous Pokemon.

The Age reports that Pikachu (the possum, not the Pokemon) has low levels of melanin which causes the fur color abnormality. She also happens to have large ears, which helps the comparison. She was found lying on the ground and vets say she probably fell off her mother’s back. Though she’s in good health now, the vets say she probably won’t be released into the wild because her unique coloring makes her an easy target for predators.

The golden possum abnormality isn’t unheard of, but they usually don’t live long due to their vulnerability. Caroline Dazey from Wildlife Victoria says the state has “little pockets” of the critters, but they try to keep their location secret.

The family resemblance makes sense. Pikachu the Pokemon is classified as an “Electric Mouse,” so its design was loosely based on a member of the rodent family. Possums are similarly rodents, so all it takes is a little coloring and a cute complexion to bear some similarity.

Pikachu has been the breakout star and mascot of the Pokemon franchise since the early days. Most recently, he’s getting a starring role voiced by Ryan Reynolds in the upcoming Detective Pikachu film, and was one of the two mascot characters to appear on the cover of Pokemon Let’s Go Pikachu and Let’s Go Eevee.

Video game spending in the US increased in the third quarter of 2018 over the previous year, according to a report by the NPD Group. The sales tracking firm said the games having the biggest impact on the figures were Candy Crush Saga, Fortnite, Madden NFL 19, Spider-Man, and NBA 2K19.

Altogether the firm says that total spending on video games increased 24% from July-September, over the same period in 2017. It reached a total of $9.1 billion. “Video game content” accounted for $7.9 billion, but that broad category includes full games, DLC, and subscriptions. Mobile games and digital content sales had the highest growth.

Hardware grew by 11% to $737 million, while accessories like headsets grew by 44%. Game cards had a particularly sharp increase of 63%, marking the first time they’ve beaten accessories during this period of the year.

This isn’t the first we’ve heard of games like Spider-Man and Fortnite lifting the industry up. Earlier this year NPD announced similarly rising figures on the back of Fortnite and God of War. Similarly, Sony boasted in September that Spider-Man had broken sales records set by God of War, and sales have apparently been so strong that the PlayStation business lifted Sony’s financial forecast as a whole.

“The Video Game market in the U.S. continues to thrive with compelling gaming content expanding the market, driving higher spending of hardware, accessory and software,” said Mat Piscatella, games industry analyst at The NPD Group. “And with the sales strength of recent releases such as Marvel’s Spider-Man and NBA 2K19, combined with cross-platform titles such as Fortnite, there appears to be no slowing down as we head into the final stretch of the holiday shopping season.”

Fallout 76’s open world feels lifeless in the wrong way, especially when you compare it to games that did it well.

There’s a good chance you still have holiday shopping left to do, either for someone else or–ahem–for yourself. If the person you’re buying for is into video games, Star Wars, Marvel, Harry Potter, Game of Thrones, or other things of the sort, here’s a tip: For four hours, today only, between 1 PM – 5 PM ET (10 AM – 3 PM PT), you can get half off anything on Thinkgeek’s online store. All you have to do is visit the site during that time, and you’ll find a promo code you can enter at checkout.

You can peruse Thinkgeek at your leisure to see what you might want to get with this generous discount, but we’ve highlighted some of our suggestions below, along with their prices after the discount.

Pokemon Snorlax Bean Bag Chair

Sure, you can sit on any old chair. But when you could be sitting on this enormous Snorlax bean bag, why would you want to rest your body on anything else? (You wouldn’t.)

• Buy it here — $75

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Harry Potter: Hagrid’s Lantern

This human-sized version of Hagrid’s lamp lights up the room with a low-power LED candle that flickers realistically. Just note that the three AA batteries it requires are sold separately.

• Buy it here — $17.50

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Captain Marvel Crossbody Purse

The Captain Marvel movie is slated to hit theaters on March 8. If the superhero fan in your life is in need of a purse, you can’t go wrong with this stylish one.

• Buy it here — $21

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Game of Thrones Jon Snow Fur Hoodie

For anyone in the northern hemisphere, winter is literally coming. Be prepared with this fur hoodie inspired by Jon Snow’s iconic cloak.

• Buy it here — $35

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Fallout Nuka-Cola Quantum Mood Light

For the Fallout fan in your life, get the only bottle of soda that comes with its own atomic glow. Batteries are included, but you can also power this nuclear nightlight using a USB cable (also included).

• Buy it here — $15

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Star Wars Choose Your Side Cap

Do you want to represent the Empire or the Rebellion? You can pick your side with these simple, stylish caps–or buy one of each so you can switch them out depending on which side of the Force you’re feeling on any given day.

• Buy it here — $12.50