Energizer is best known as the battery maker that isn't Duracell. Few, however, are aware of the Energizer phone brand, which today announced its latest effort the KaiOS-powered Hard Case H280S.

Although the Hard Case H280S sounds like it could be a cyborg Millwall supporter, it's actually a rugged handset resembling a beefed-up feature phone with a 2.8-inch QVGA display. KaiOS a fork of Firefox OS, Mozilla's abortive attempt at a mobile operating system comes with a fleshed-out app store and an active developer ecosystem.

Under the hood, it uses a Unisoc SC9820E platform, which packs two Arm Cortex-A53 cores, as well as a Mali T820 GPU. There's 512MB of storage, and a generous (given the context) 4GB of storage. It also supports microSD cards up to 64GB.

On the connectivity front, the Hard Case H280S ships with a 4G VoLTE-capable modem, as well as Bluetooth (albeit the older 3.0 standard), Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g/n), and GPS.

And while KaiOS supports the usual social media time-sinks, you probably won't want to upload any footage or pics from the Hard Case as it ships with a puny 2MP rear shooter and a VGA selfie camera. That in itself isn't surprising, given that the Unisoc chip used only supports sensors up to 5MP.

The Energizer marque conveys a sense of battery longevity, and the Hard Case H280S lives up to that with a 2,000mAh battery that lasts up to five days on standby.

While that doesn't sound much (most Android phones nowadays have between 4,000mAh and 5,000mAh), it's not bad considering the average user won't be using this phone for any juice-draining tasks like gaming.

Energizer's phones are manufactured by French firm Avenir Telecom ("avenir" being the French word for "future"), which has somewhat of a reputation for designing interesting if not slightly impractical phones.

A personal favourite is the Energizer Power Max P18K Pop. This blower was unusual for a host of reasons chiefly because it came with a 18,000mAh battery, which resulted in the phone having a thickness of 18mm.

Making the phone even weirder was the fact that it came with a nearly borderless display, as well as a pop-up selfie camera. Because if you're carrying around a phone thicker than a paperback copy of Pride and Prejudice, the last thing you want is to be distracted by bezels, right?

Predictably, the phone-buying public wasn't enthusiastic. Avenir decided to test the waters by listing the Power Max P18K Pop on Indiegogo, where it only reached 1 per cent of its $1.2m funding goal.

Fortunately, the Energizer Hard Case H280S is a bit more sensible. There's an appetite for rugged devices, largely from those working in rougher industries, like energy and construction. And not all of those will want a phone running the full Android OS, or something as wide as a standard touchscreen blower.

Distributors can order the Hard Case H280S now although consumer pricing and availability is yet to be announced.

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Energizer Hard Case H280S: A KaiOS-powered blower that can withstand a few knocks - The Register

The DC universe contains a lot of amazing superheroes who have faced multiple threats of both alien and Earth origin and managed to defeat them. But what would happen if our planet got torn apart by a zombie apocalypse?

RELATED: The 25 Strongest DC Superheroes, Officially Ranked

Films and TV shows have been working with this scenario for years, but there's one thing they hadn't really shown us yet - and that's how would our beloved superheroes react to the apocalypse and whether they'd focus on fighting zombies or protecting civilians. While they all have their strengths, there are some heroes you'd do well to have on your team in a zombie apocalypse... and some you could do without.

When he's not struggling with his new identity, abilities, and body, Victor Stone aka Cyborg is one of the most talented and dangerous young superheroes of the whole DC universe.

Not only does he possess great, inhuman strength, excellent for tearing zombies apart, he also has an impressive set of weaponry available and can, therefore, excel both at hand to hand combat and at fighting from a longer distance. Plus, his body is mostly machine so if the zombies tried to feast on Cyborg, they probably wouldn't be able to do it. And finally, if something unsavory happens, Cyborg is fast enough to get you out of immediate danger.

Speaking of young impressive superheroes... Dick Grayson started out as the first Robin and when he grew up, he formed his own superhero identity. He's highly skilled at hand to hand combat since Batman taught him pretty much everything he knew. That said, the biggest disadvantage of having Nightwing on your team is that he's still only human and has no actual superpowers he could use against the zombies.

Of course, there are other non-powered superheroes in the DC universe, but unlike them, Dick hasn't been a superhero all that long, so in this case, he's going to have to sit the fight out.

Arthur Curry aka Aquaman may not seem like the most obvious choice for your team in the case of a zombie apocalypse but his presence would have one great advantage. Unless you're facing special, or mutated kinds of zombies, it's highly likely that the zombies can't swim. And since Aquaman can control water and communicate with the living creatures in it, he could send the zombies to the afterworld with one strong wave.

You also shouldn't forget that Aquaman also possesses super strength, can swim really fast, and was even able to send the Superman himself flying with one punch, which is definitely impressive.

Poor Atom. He simply can't seem to catch a break. While this case was a tie, he's not going to make it into your superheroes vs. zombies team after all. Why? Well, Ray Palmer is a super-intelligent scientist and inventor whose greatest power lies in his powerful brain and the fact that he has a super-suit that allows him to shrink and become really, really small (but he doesn't drive on ants).

RELATED: DC: The 10 Strongest Characters In All Of The Multiverses

His powers might be good for reconnaissance but there are other heroes in your team who can take care of that, and if Ray lost his suit, he'd be without any actual powers.

Originally known as Captain Marvel, in his real form, Billy Batson is just a young kid. But unlike most children, he has the ability to transform into one of the strongest DC superheroes by just saying the word: "Shazam!" Talk about a neat trick.

Shazam is fast, strong, intelligent, resilient, courageous, simply powerful, similarly to Superman. Plus, he also has a wicked sense of humor which could definitely be useful in a zombie apocalypse to help you cheer up when the situation seems grim. And if anything bad happens, Shazam can pick you up and fly you to safety, just like other superheroes on this list.

You simply have to love superheroes whose names directly suggest what they can do best. In Green Arrow's case, it's shooting arrows. And while he's really good at that, it's doubtful whether arrows would be much help in the fight against zombies.

To get rid of the zombies, you might need bigger guns than mere arrows. Not to mention that arrows also have the unfortunate tendency of running out in the middle of a fight. And finally, Oliver Queen is once again only human, who's well-trained but doesn't have real superpowers, so it'd be better if he sat this one out, just like Nightwing.

As her name itself suggests, Diana Prince aka Wonder Woman is simply... well, wonderful. Another magic user on your team, alongside Shazam, could definitely turn the fight against zombies around. Also known as the strongest of Amazons, Wonder Woman is not only beautiful but also highly intelligent, good at strategy, fast and strong.

RELATED: Every DC Movie Superhero, Ranked From Weakest To Strongest

She's also naturally kind so she's the most likely person on your team to talk to you like a friend. She's trained in combat since her childhood and was able to hold her own even in a fight against Superman. Not to mention that she defeated Batman pretty easily.

There's no doubt that Supergirl is a capable hero. After all, she does come from Krypton and has the same basic powers as her more famous cousin Superman. But in some versions of the comics, she's still a young woman, almost a teenager, and it'd probably be for the best to leave the kids out of the fight.

Plus, Supergirl still sometimes struggles with her powers, which could potentially present a problem in a battle. She's been known to accidentally destroy her surroundings, and you don't really want a loose rocket when you're facing zombies. Finally, there are other Kryptonians you could use in the fight.

Has someone mentioned Superman? This one is a no-brainer, really. Superman is not only the oldest DC superhero, the one who started the whole ride, but also one of the most powerful ones. Unless the zombies can manage to get their rotting hands on some kryptonite, they're pretty much done for.

Superman probably doesn't need much introduction, but just to summarize: He's strong, fast, has the heat vision, super hearing, and other super senses, and, most importantly, he genuinely cares about human lives. And even if all that fails, he can always turn back time by moving really fast and then he can fix whatever happened.

You might not consider Mera a genuine superhero at a first glance but she did fight against multiple villains, so she deserves a spot on this list... but not in your team.

Mera is strong, fast and powerful, but she has a set of skills similar to Aquaman, and just like in the case of Supergirl and Superman, one Atlantean on your team is more than enough to cover the waters. Mera also doesn't seem so keen on the entire human race, at least at first, and she mostly helps to humor her king and later boyfriend Arthur when he wants to assist humanity and be a part of the Justice League.

NEXT: 15 On-Screen Versions Of Superman Ranked From Weakest To Most Powerful

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DC: 5 Superheroes We'd Want On Our Team In The Zombie Apocalypse (& 5 We Wouldn't) - CBR - Comic Book Resources

Posted: Mar 3, 2020 / 10:37 PM MST / Updated: Mar 3, 2020 / 10:38 PM MST

SAN FRANSICO (AP)- iPhone owners could get $25 from Apple after the company agreed to pay up to $500 million to settle claims over intentionally slowing down older phones to preserve older batteries.

Apple and lawyers representing iPhone consumers agreed to a deal stemming from Apples2017 admissionthat it was slowing down phone performance in older models to avoid unexpected shutdowns related to battery fatigue.

That admission led to Apple offering discounted battery replacements at $29, but many people claimed they had already spent hundreds of dollars to buy new phones because Apple didnt reveal the cause of the problem. If they had known they could just buy new batteries, they might not have bought new phones, some consumers in the case said.

Apple did not admit wrongdoing. As part of the settlement, the company will pay $310 million to $500 million, including about $93 million to lawyers representing consumers.

iPhone users who were named in the class-action lawsuit will get up to $3,500 each. The rest of the settlement money will be distributed to owners of iPhone 6, 6S, 7 and SE models who meet eligibility requirements related to the operating system they had running. They must file claims to get the award. If too many people file, the $25 amount could shrink.

A federal judge in San Jose, California, still needs to approve the settlement.

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Apple to pay up to $500M over battery-related phone slowdown - ABC 4

It kind of sucked to lose, she told UFC.com. At first, people were saying, Congratulations. It was amazing. And Im like, Wait, thats not the right word to use. But it just kept coming, honestly. There was a lot of support coming in. It was definitely nice to see.

Watch UFC Norfolk this Saturday on ESPN+|Prelims begin at 2pm ET, Main Card at 5pm ET

That bout turned out to be the final one for Cyborg under the UFC banner, extinguishing the possibility of a rematch between her and Amanda Nunes for the featherweight title. That reality, along with the fact that Nunes hasnt defended the 145-pound crown since taking it from Cyborg more than a year ago, has the womens featherweight division in an odd spot.

For Spencer, however, theres no question as to what her intention is heading into her fight with Zarah Fairn in this weekends UFC Fight Night co-main event in Norfolk.

I want to make a statement that Im going to get a title shot, Spencer said. I want to make a statement to myself. I want to show myself that Im able to be myself in the cage again and be clear and execute when I want to. And for the rest of the world, I want to show that the rest of my skills are real, and Im not just good at taking punches. I can give them, also.

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Felicia Spencer Aiming For A Title Shot - The Official Website of the Ultimate Fighting Championship

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Modified 27 Feb 2020, 10:00 IST

Felicia "The FeeNom" Spencer is a true 145er for the UFC. That's as rare as Halley's Comet. This Saturday night the 29-year-old co-mains the UFC Fight Night 169 in Norfolk Virginia card. While her future is still bright, her future in the UFC is still a question. As is the "make-believe" female featherweight division. While the company has always been coy with the men's Flyweight division, there's been radio silence for the women. The division came into existence due to them wanting to be in the Cris Cyborg business. Having a long term living breathing division for the bigger women was never on their to-do list.

For the men's 125 lb division; while it's a mere shell of what it was, they at least rank who's left. The same cannot be said for the women which makes you wonder since there's no Cyborg, when will they finally cut ties with this charade. Felicia Spencer, Megan Anderson, whatever 135ers they "blow up" deserve much better. They had a The Ultimate Fighter season to try to build from the ground up and they fumbled it away like Joe Pisarcik fumbling a handoff.

Spencer lost her first-ever fight. Since then she rolled 12 straight wins (5 as an amateur, then 6 as a pro), en route to winning gold in INVICTA. Then came her shot vs Cris Cyborg. The heart she showed staying in there against a focused Cyborg for the distance, shows just how talented the Florida native is. While losing a unanimous decision, she was taught many lessons in that fight. The fact that she has the looks, and aura that can make her a household name is even more of an indictment that the organization is missing out, big time.

She faces Zarah Fairn Dos Santos on the card. The head-hunting 33-year-old is a danger on the feet and on the ground. Four of her six wins are finishes. Those four all come in the first round as well. However; if Felicia is able to get back on the winning side of the ledger, there arem't many other options. Germaine de Randamie said she's not going back to 145 again. They could ask Holly Holm to blow back up to 145 again.

Her submission win over Megan doesn't have the "we need a rematch" storyline. Or they can give her a crack at Amanda Nunes who's the lone champ-champ left in the company. But that might not end too well for her as Amanda is on such a devastating roll right now. The other female featherweights just can't be too happy with the situation at the moment, and there's only so much someone can take before they move on.

Who knows? We might see her go up 10 pounds and head to PFL. Or she could join Cyborg in Bellator MMA; possibly for a rematch. For now, we will have to stay tuned to find out.

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Felicia 'The FeeNom' Spencer's future could be of vital importance to the UFC after Cris Cyborg fight - Sportskeeda

In 2017,the first season ofMade in Abyss set the anime world on fire. While it isn't the "be-all and end-all" of indicators,Made in Abyssbeat out Season 2 ofMy Hero Academia at the Crunchyroll Awards that year, which is essentially Krillin beating Goku in a fistfight.

RELATED: Every Winner Of The 2020 Anime Awards On Crunchyroll (& What They Won)

It's beenover two years since season one ended, and 2020 looks especially bright for fans of the series. If theater listings are to be trusted, the sequel movie,Dawn of the Deep Soul,willpremiere stateside on April 13.Additionally, there's an outside chance the second season could drop at the end of the year. Withso much to look forward to, it's worth getting a quick refresher on what made the first season so compelling. Hopefully,the upcoming sequels will be able to shine the light on the following questions.

Reg is pretty much one-of-a-kind and uniquely suited for the Abyss because he's a cyborg. But because of his amnesia, we know very little about him. While his memories have been flooding in slowly, there's hope the show will uncover more in these sequels.

Honestly, this question leads to six or seven others. So far, the show has not explained who Reg was and how he became a cyborg. How did he get so far into the Abyss? Was he made in the Abyss and who made him? Is he somehow one of Lyza's children?

Nanachi has proven to be an invaluable ally for Riko and Reg during their short time together. Nanachi is extremely wise and it begs a question of how they acquired that knowledge. For instance, Nanachi knows that Orb Piercers are able to see the future, knows how to defeat them by grabbing the organ on their face, and knows that grabbing it hinders the Orb Piercer's abilities.

Nanachi also knows exactly how the Curse of the Abyss works and appears to be able to manipulate it thanks to an old relic they found. A bit of backstory next season would help bring these answers to light.

The question on the minds of Made in Abyss fans since the end of the first season is the same one Alexandre Dumas posed in 1847who is the man in the iron mask? What little we do know is that his name is Bondrewd, and he's the stranger your parents warned you about as a child. What is unknown is his backstory and what turned him into such an evil person.

RELATED: Why Fans Can't Wait For Made In Abyss: Dawn Of The Deep Soul

The trailer for Dawn of the Deep Soul appears to have him at the main antagonist. And if you remember what he did to Nanachi and Mitty (and scores of other children), we can only hope a very, very painful death is coming his way.

While searching for the source of whatever saved her from the CrimsonSplitjaw in Episode 1, Riko stumbles across the Star Compassa relic that always points down, or as Riko believes, to the bottom of the Abyss. But in the fourth episode, Riko loses it over a waterfall while testing its magnetic properties.

The Star Compass seems like too important of an object to just disappear and never be seen again. If it is not to return in the show, then what was the point of Riko finding it shortly before finding Reg?

While Riko was unconscious and healing from the Orb Piercer attack, she and Mitty appeared to have some psychic link allowing Riko to see Mittya creature she had never seen before. Not only did she see Mitty, but she also saw her clearly in human form.

Regposits a guess about Riko being connected to the Abyss since she once died as a baby and was brought back with a relic. While that could be the explanation, it would be nice to hear how Riko was able to see Mitty.

Reg was apparentlyfoundby Lyza all the way in the seventh layer of the Abyss (15,501+ meters down). And we know that the very least that Lyza's pickaxe found it's way up to the Garden of Flowers of Resilience on the 4th layer (9,000 meters down). But what made Reg continue climbing when he has seemingly no reason to do so?

It's possible that Reg was meant to deliver a message to Riko for Lyza, but we'll have to hope this question is addressed in one of the upcoming sequels.

As Riko and Reg have descended each layer of the Abyss, the worlds they've uncovered have been beautiful and terrifying. At the moment, they're only four levels deep and the creatures have only become more dangerous as they've journeyed downwards. What monsters lie below the fourth level and what threats do they impose?

RELATED: 5 Isekai Worlds We Want To Lie In (& Five That We Don't)

But putting the creatures aside, the 7th layer should be certain death according to the Seeker's records. Is the atmosphere going to be habitable and what is the ring people claim to have seen while looking down from the 6th layer?

There's another question that will be asked soon, but this needs also needs addressing. Everyone saw what happened to Nanachi and Mitty when they were forced to ascend the 6th layer. Lyza was all the way in the 7th layer when she found Reg.If she ascended at any point, there's a chance that she's undergone a serious mutation and is no longer a person.

Plus, the effects of the 7th layer and below are completely unknown. There's no telling what kind of effects the Abyss has on the human body that far down.

It's the question that led everyone on this journey into the Abyss. Riko is traveling deep into the Abyss because of the note her mom sent to her. And it's known due to a flashback that Reg saw what appeared to be a gravestone for Lyza, but it's not 100% that the grave indicates that she's dead.

Considering the stakes of this trip, one can only hope for a happy reunion when this is all said and done.

But ifthis question isn't answered by the end of season two...

Even late last year, a second season seemed preposterous, and the announcement ofa sequel shocked the voice actors of the show to the point of tears. So, if the story doesn't conclude with the second season, what should fans expect?

As readers of the Made in Abysscan tell you,the manga is still ongoing.Dawn of the Deep Soul reportedlytakes fansthrough the end of Chapter 38out of the 53available manga chapters.One would hope that if the manga continues past the end of the second season, then the series will follow. Only time can tell, but let's take that journey together!

NEXT: The 10 Most Anticipated Supernatural Anime Yet To Come In 2020

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Made In Abyss: 10 Burning Questions About Season One That The Sequel Could Finally Answer - CBR - Comic Book Resources

Teamfight Tactics' next update promises to completely upend the meta with all-new character origins and some fun new rules. It's called Galaxies and is planned for release in mid-March, alongside TFT's mobile version. When it releases, TFT's roster of champions will transform into far-future versions of themselves while adopting whole new abilities and synergies based on their new origins as Star Guardians, Cybernetics, or Mech-Pilots.

Though Galaxies was officially announced last week, Riot Games released a new blog post today further detailing how these new origins will work while giving some examples of potential team compositions players can look for. Like Rise of the Elements before it, Galaxies is kind of like a clean slate for TFT. You might recognize certain characters, but they'll sometimes have entirely new abilities and how they contribute to your overall team will change too.

Take Star Guardians, for example. Based off of one of my favorite League of Legends skin sets, Star Guardians have a trait that restores mana to all other Star Guardians whenever one of them casts a spell. As Riot explains, that naturally makes them a good fit with Sorcerers (one of the returning origin archetypes), since they're mages that use mana to deal big damage.

Another new origin is Cybernetic, which now includes characters like Yasuo and Leona. Whenever a Cybernetic champion has an item equipped, they get bonus health and attack damage depending on how many Cybernetic characters are on your team. Lastly, there's Mech-Pilot. It's easily the coolest-sounding origin because when you have three of them, they combine to form a super mech until it dies. I haven't seen the ability in action yet, but it sounds wild.

The new origins are cool, but I'm just as interested in seeing Galaxies new 'set mechanic' in play. Each time you jump into a match, you're taken to a different galaxy with slightly different rules that'll change your strategy. One galaxy, for example, gives you two items you can redeem to create certain champions to help your team. Since everyone has the same items, you'll have to take a gamble on when and how to use them. Another galaxy stocks the champion shop with powerful 4-cost champions right at the start, tempting you to spend a lot of gold for an early advantage or save it for a late game comeback.

Overall it sounds like a pretty neat update. I haven't played much TFT since the initial wave of excitement wore off in December, but Galaxies feels like the right time to jump back in and check it out. Though Riot hasn't set a specific date yet, Galaxies is expected mid-March alongside TFT's mobile version.

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Teamfight Tactics' next update turns everyone into cyborgs and Sailor Moon - PC Gamer

Warning: SPOILERS for Star Trek: Picardseason 1, episode 6.

Star Trek: Picard episode 6 finally fixed the biggest problem with Star Trek: First Contact: Jean-Luc Picard's (Patrick Stewart) ruthlessness toward the Borg. After spending half of Star Trek: Picard season 1 gathering his crew and filling in backstory, the Starfleet legend finally came face-to-face with Soji Asha (Isa Briones), the late Commander Data's (Brent Spiner) synthetic daughter, aboard the Romulan's Borg Cube Artifact. Picard also had a heartwarming reunion with Hugh (Jonathan Del Arco) from Star Trek: The Next Generation. Most importantly, Jean-Luc gained a new perspective on the reclaimed Borg that addressed how his sheer hatred of them colored Picard's behavior in Star Trek: First Contact.

Star Trek: First Contact was the second (and best) TNG movie and it was a sequel to "The Best of Both Worlds" two-parter where Picard was assimilated and turned into Locutus of Borg. Although the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise-D rescued Picard and restored him back to his human self, Jean-Luc never fully recovered from the trauma of becoming a Borg. In Star Trek: First Contact, Picard faced the Borg once again when theytime-traveled to assimilate the Earth in the 21st century; Picard and the U.S.S. Enterprise-E followed them to 2063 where Jean-Luc encountered the Borg Queen (Alice Krige), who tried to turn Data into her new cyborg counterpart. But as Picard led his crew to battle the Borg, who tried to assimilate the Enterprise, he displayed a terrifying and violent new side against his cyborg nemeses - something Lily (Alfre Woodard), a 21st-century stowaway Picard was protecting, directly confronted him about. Picard eventually regained his stately composure but he still didn't deal with his lingering trauma.

Related: Picard Nostalgia Risks Holding Star Trek Fans Back

In Star Trek: Picard episode 6, "The Impossible Box", Picard's hatred for the Borg flared up again before he set foot on a Borg Cube for the first time since he was Locutus. The retired Starfleet Admiral was terrified andovercome by his old trauma until the friendly face of Hugh met Jean-Luc and guided him through the Borg Reclamation Project. There, Picard saw the positive impact the work Hugh and the Romulans were doing to reclaim the Artifact's Borg drones and these scenes finally finished what Star Trek: First Contact started, showing Jean-Luc that he was wrong about the Borg and their potential to be redeemed after all.

Jean-Luc Picard displayed a frightening side of his personality in Star Trek: First Contact that was totally at odds with the wise and philosophical way Patrick Stewart played the Captain for seven seasons of TNG. First Contact's version of Picard revamped him into a literal shoot-first-ask-questions-later action hero. This ideally suited the film's sci-fi/action/horror tone and the Moby-Dick-inspired theme that the Captain had turned into Ahab obsessed with his white whale, the Borg - but it was also jarringly out of sync with the Picard Trekkers had come to know. This was especially true of how violent and ruthless Picard was, even to members of his own crew who were victimized by the Borg the way he once was.

Star Trek: First Contact's Picard was disturbingly unhinged; faced with the enemy who violated his body, mind, and soul, the Captain was hellbent onvengeance and he didn't care who he was exactinghis revenge on. At one point, Picard ordered his Starfleet Officers to kill their fellow crew members who were assimilated by the Borg, remarking, "Believe me, you'd be doing them a favor," which didn't make sense since Picard himself was a reclaimed Borg his crew risked everything to save. To prove his insane point, when an assimilated ensign begged Picard to save him, the Captain coldly killed him with a phaser blast instead. In the holodeck, Picard annihilated a Borg with a Tommy gun despite knowing the drone used to be Ensign Lynch, which left Lily aghast.

To be fair, Star Trek: First Contact's action hero incarnation of Picard was a key reason why the film was so entertaining. Picard delivered immensely quotable dialogue, especially, "The line must be drawn here! This far, no further! And I will make them pay for what they've done!" - which Patrick Stewart delivered with unforgettably intense ferocity. In that pivotal scene where Lily was able to get Picard to see past his anger and obsession, Jean-Luc finally regained his composure and realized he'd gone too far - to the point where he nearly came to blows with Worf (Michael Dorn). But while a rejuvenated Picard was able to team up with Data to beat the Borg Queen, he never processed the trauma that unhinged him in the first place. When the Borg were defeated, Picard just moved on like it never happened - until Jean-Luc had to face the Borg again in Star Trek: Picard and hefinally dealt with his lingering issues from First Contact.

Related: Star Trek: Picard Confirms Data's Daughters' Mission

One of the best moments in Star Trek: Picard so far was the meeting between Jean-Luc and Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan) in episode 5, "Stardust City Rag". Since both are reclaimed Borg, no other main Star Trek characterscould possibly understand the trauma Picard and Seven share and the episode brilliantly touched upon it. As Picard bid goodbye to Seven, who planned to beam back down to Freecloud to take her revenge on her enemy Bjayzl (Necar Zadigan), they had a touching conversation about how they both lost their humanity when they were assimilated. When Seven asked Picard if he truly feels he regained all of his humanity, Jean-Luc replied with startling honesty: "No. But we're both working on it."

So, 30 years after Star Trek: First Contact and his personaltriumphagainst the Borg Queen, Picard admitted he still doesn't feel like a complete person. Besides being a heartwarming moment between Picard and Seven, Star Trek: Picard retroactively addressed Jean-Luc's behavior in Star Trek: First Contact, recontextualizing his violent obsession to reflecthis deepest fears about his lost humanity. Even better, Star Trek: Picard episode 6, "The Impossible Box", finally gave Jean-Luc the crucial understanding about the Borg (and about himself) that he longed for but hadeluded him for decades.

While Picard finally meeting Soji is a pivotal moment for Star Trek: Picard's main story, in the macro sense, the scenes where Hugh tours Picard through the Romulan Reclamation Project are even more pivotal for Jean-Luc. Picard, the same man who believed in Star Trek: First Contact that the Borg were beyond saving, marveled at the work Hugh's project accomplished. The former Locutus even remarked in awe that he never dreamed the Borg could be reclaimed at the level Hugh and the Romulans were accomplishing. For the first time, Picard finally understood that what his Enterprise crewmates were able to do for him and for Hugh wasn't a rare occurrence; the Borg could be restored to their original selves pre-assimilation, just as he was. More importantly, Picard was able to reconcile his overall hatred for the Borg and saw that, like him, the Borg were actually victims.

It's curious that Jean-Luc was never able to achieve this realization about the Borg being capable (and worthy) of being reclaimed before - especially when it happened to him - but this is a breakthrough event in Picard's life. If only Jean-Luc could haveunderstood this during the crisis aboard the Enterprise-E in Star Trek: First Contact; the Captain could have made a real effort to try to save the assimilated Starfleet Officers under his command. But to Star Trek: Picard's credit, the series forced Jean-Luc to face his trauma about the Borg at last and completed his redemption from Star Trek: First Contact.

Next: Star Trek: Picard Reverses One Of Jean-Luc's Famous Personality Traits

Star Trek: Picard streams Thursdays on CBS All-Access and Fridays internationally on Amazon Prime Video.

Better Call Saul Proves Jimmy (Accidentally) Turns Walter White Into Heisenberg

John has been writing about what he likes - movies, TV, comics, etc. - for over a decade. He's worked in movies and rubbed shoulders with big names but somehow forgot to ask for money a lot of the time - hence, he is happy to be with Screen Rant. John can be found @BackoftheHead, counts a Black Canary and an Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. among his friends, believes (correctly) that Superman is stronger than the Hulk, and he is a friend to all talking gorillas.

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Star Trek: Picard Fixes The Biggest Problem With First Contact - Screen Rant

What does it take to defeat the Cybermen?

Back in the original canon of Doctor Who, these emotionless cyborg zombies had a few specific fatal flaws, beyond the fact that they tended to walk very slowly and had a vocabulary dominated by the words "upgrade" and "delete." But now, in the penultimate episode of Doctor Who Season 12, "The Ascension of the Cybermen," some of the old ways of dealing with the Cybermen appear obsolete, and in one case downright mythical. By the very end of "Ascension of the Cybermen," it seems like everything we know about this group of cyborgs is about to be changed, which, in true Who fashion, has repercussions not only for the future but also the past.

**Spoilers ahead for Doctor Who Season 12, Episode 9, "Ascension of the Cybermen."**

Every Doctor Whofan can easily recite David Tennant's "wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey" speech from the 10th Doctor episode "Blink," but let's talk for a second about what that means, at least from a practical standpoint. Basically, in a lot of Doctor Who storylines (especially recent ones) events in one time period can have a direct impact on another time period, even if none of those time periods occur in any kind of linear order. For example, in the previous episode, we met "the lone Cyberman" who had somehow time-traveled from the far future back to the year 1816, in search of the Cyberium, a kind of A.I. message-in-a-bottle containing everything the Cybermen needed to reboot completely.

This lone Cyberman was messing with the mind of famous poet Percy Shelley as well as harassing Mary Shelley, Lord Byron, John William Polidori, and Claire Clairmont. After getting the Cyberium from the Doctor, this lone Cyberman went back to the future, where he's started to rebuild the Cybermen, who, apparently, were all defeated by a group of far-future humans, which also resulted in most of humanity being destroyed, too.

So, to recap, because a cyborg stole a thing from Lord Byron's house in 1816, the future of the human race is now in peril, even though most of humanity has apparently been destroyed anyway.

If the backstory for "Ascension of the Cybermen," seems confusing, don't worry: It definitely is confusing. Make no mistake, when the Doctor tells Graham, Yaz, and Ryan that the eventual outcome of the Great CyberWar is the near-total annihilation of humanity, this is new information not just for them, but even for longtime Doctor Who fans. As we learned last week, the future history of the CyberWars spans the canon of the 4th Doctor, the 11th Doctor, and, in a very obscure supplemental video from Captain Jack Harkness, Jack himself says he "knows what happens" in the future CyberWars.

But, even though there have been numerous versions of the CyberWars mentioned, we never really got the sense that they ended up this dire. And, if you're wondering how normal-looking humans could be fighting Cybermen in the far future when this season's Episode 3 established that future-humans on Earth will turn into pollution monsters called the Dregs, look at it this way: Most future-humans glimpsed in Doctor Who from "The Ark in Space" to "The Beast Below" are the ones who evacuated Earth before things got bad.

So, yes, the remnants of humanity who are fighting the Cybermen in the far future (we're assuming this is well past the events of "Nightmare in Silver") are really the remnants of humanity. As such, this version of the Cybermen are, by the end of the episode, apparently completely different in two ways; one crucial to the definition of what the Cybermen are, and other a slightly silly throwaway retcon. Let's start with that one.

The Cybermen used to be allergic to gold

Early in the episode, Yaz sets up a weapon that will shoot gold particles into the air, because Cybermen are known to be allergic to gold. This slightly silly Achilles' heel was revealed in the 4th Doctor episode "The Revenge of the Cybermen," and the tech itself is a specific modification something called a "glitter gun," which is one way aliens called the Vogans (different from the Vogons from Hitchhiker's Guide!) were able to destroy a ton of Cybermen.

Gold was also how the 5th Doctor used to defeat the Cybermen, notably in the episode "Earthshock," in which he used a gold badge worn by young Adric to kill some Cyber-baddies. Are the Cybermen still allergic to gold? Seems unlikely. One of the human refugees tells Yaz, "I heard Cybermen were allergic to gold," but you get the sense she doesn't really buy it. In essence, this episode is trying to convince us these are not the Cybermen of the 1970s.

Retro-Cybermen

Well, okay. Maybe this episode does want us to think about the Cybermen of the 1970s, and that's because when a huge group of Cybertroops is discovered on board the Cybercarrier, all of them have robot-heads that evoke the style of Cybermen from those 4th and 5th Doctor episodes. Their bodies are a little more modern, but their heads are very specifically retro, referencing the design from both "Revenge of the Cybermen," "Earthshock," among others. The last time we saw a retro Cybermen in the contemporary Who canon was in the 9th Doctor episode "Dalek" and in the 12th Doctor two-parter, "World Enough and Time" and "The Doctor Falls."

The Cybermen have ... feelings now?

Without a doubt, the biggest change in this episode is the notion that the lone Cyberman is totally aware of the contradiction of being motivated not by cold, computer cyborg logic, but instead by human feelings of vanity and glory. When the Doctor calls him out of this fact, he admits it outright, which baffles her. Later, when the lone Cyberman is rallying the army of retro-headed Cybermen, he seems to use an electric shock on one of them, which freaks everyone out. Why would a Cybermen make other Cybermen scream?

The biggest advantage the Cybermen have as a race of wicked cyborgs is the fact that during the "upgrade" process their feelings are repressed. Because they can't feel pain and have no actual desire the defining trait of the Cybermen is that they don't have feelings. Obviously, there have been notable exceptions to this: Danny Pink fought his Cyber-programming in "Death in Heaven," Yvonne Hartman fought back as a parallel-universe Cyberman after she was converted in "Doomsday," and even Bill Potts retained her humanity in "The Doctor Falls."

But in all those cases, a converted human regaining their feelings while trapped in a Cyber-body ran against the wishes of the Cybermen. Now, it seems like the Cybermen are trying to have feelings and retain some kind of individuality on purpose.

What this means for the future of the series is unclear. A surprise appearance from the Master in the last 30 seconds of the episode could imply he specifically caused all this Cyber-time traveling, but then again, he could just be taking advantage of some Cyber-chaos to further his own plans. Which is something the Master has done before in two very recent season finales; in Season 8Missy (Michelle Gomez) raised an army of Cybermen, and in Season 10 both Missy and a previous version of the Master (John Simm) actively used early versions of the Cybermen to try and defeat the Doctor. So just because the Master is here doesn't mean he made the Cybermen do all of this stuff. Then again, Master+Cybermen action is certainly becoming a pattern in the last few years.

Either way, by the time everything is wrapped up in the final episode of Doctor Who Season 12, we'll probably get some answers about the Timeless Child and the Master's secrets about Gallifrey. But if Who is serious about the new changes for the Cybermen, it could mean that the next time we slap the word "Cyber" in front of something, it won't automatically imply cold, soulless unfeeling death robots. If the Cybermen are getting down with emotions on purpose, then Doctor Who has made its most logical and reasonable villains into psychopathic murders.

The final episode of Doctor Who Season 12, "The Timeless Children," airs next Sunday on BBC America.

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Doctor Who is clearly rewriting the history and future of an iconic villain - SYFY WIRE

With all the developments in biological tech, prosthetic arms and legs are advanced products that are truly helping people around the world to walk without a natural leg or hold things without a natural arm. With a prosthetic arm since he was 3 months old, Bertolt Meyer, 42 now, has taken the prosthetic tech to a whole new level. He was born with a physical disability, but also with dreams of becoming a musician.

The current prosthetic arm that he wears is the high-tech i-Limb arm which is a myoelectric prosthesis that uses the electrical signals from his muscles to control the prosthetic hand. Now, Bertolt is a musician producing techno music using his modular synthesizer. Although he could grab and hold anything using the prosthetic arm, turning the tiny knobs of the synth fast and with precision is a thing that he cannot perform with that large artificial hand.

So to play his modular synth with the help of his prosthesis, he went ahead with a DIY project. This involved converting his prosthetic arm to a device that can connect to his synth and control the music with the help of the electrical signals from his muscles. Guess what? He converted his i-Limb into the SynLimb.

Now, developing a device like that is not as easy as it sounds. The first challenge that Meyer faced was understanding that the electrical signals that his muscles transmit are way too weak for the modular synth to pick up. To solve this problem, he needed a circuit that would amplify the signals from his muscles to a range which the modular synth can catch. He was no engineer or a circuit board designer who could make the necessary design. Then he realised that he already had a circuit board of that sort inside an analogue audio workstation the Koma Electronik Field Kit. There was a section in that device that could take a voltage between 0-5 volts and can convert it into a signal that the synth can understand.

So, after telling Koma Electronik about his plan, Chrisi, who works with the company, designed him a custom circuit board that can be connected to the modular synthesizer. Bertolts husband made a 3D printed adapter that can attach to the prosthetic arm, in the place of the hand. So now, with the circuit board on top of the adapter and the adapter attached to Meyers prosthesis, he could connect his modular synth directly to his prosthetic arm.

Now the musician could play his modular synthesizer with the electrical signals that his residual muscles transmit. So, now he can play music just by thinking about it! How extraordinary is that?

Describing his experience, the mind musician said, the thing is, like for me, it is such a natural thing to do that I really dont have to think about it. I just do it. It is zero effort because I am so used to producing this muscle signal.

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This Cyborg Man Devised a Way to Play Music with His Mind - Beebom

The Alita: Battle Angel live-action movie was one of the most highly-praised films of 2019. The cyberpunk theme and futuristic visual effects gave life to the humanoid cyborg Alita played by Rosa Salazar. The popular franchise was originally published as a manga series in 1990 and was created by Yukio Kishiru.

RELATED:Alita: Battle Angel: Movie Vs. Manga

The Japanese manga was adapted to the big screen in 2019 with James Cameron (director of Avatar) spearheading the production. Just like other movie adaptations, Alita: Battle Angel also went through major changes that are quite far from the source material. Below is a list of five things that the movie perfectly captured and another five that the anime did better.

In a dark and grim place like Iron City, its common for a lot of baddies to roam around. The antagonists in Alita: Battle Angel perfectly made the movie interesting and thrilling. Ed Skrein, Jackie Earle Haley, and Eiza Gonzalez provided such embodiment of vicious villains wed love to hate.

Also, Mahershala Ali delivered some powerful characterization and all-around range as Vector. For someone whos playing a lot of kick-ass roles (and wearing the same kind of all-black ensemble), we know this role is a piece of cake for him.

In Alita: Battle Angel, the protagonists backstory differs from that of the anime. There was no mention of her previous battles in Mars or the long-forgotten martial arts of Panzer Kunst or her Berserker body being discovered in a shipwreck.

The anime version though was given spin-offs that revealed Alitas real name, which is Yoko, and her engagement during the Terraforming Wars hundreds of years before the present time. Also found in the manga were Alitas two separate blades attached to her arms which she used during the Motorball game.

When watching a James Cameron-produced film, never expect anything less than the best visual effects. Avatar did not top the list of highest-grossing movies for several years for nothing. The stunning special effects and monstrous sceneries inside Iron City are the lifeblood of the movie.

RELATED: 10 Cyberpunk Anime You've Completely Forgotten About

As for the characters, Alita is the perfect face of a hybrid human and cyborg. Cameron reportedly lent his Avatar visual effects team to the movies production crew to create an ambitious work of art. It is indeed a mesmerizing feast for the eyes.

Although Christoph Waltzs Dr. Ido in the movie mostly resembles the character in the anime as Alitas surrogate father, there are a few minor alterations with their relationship. In the movie, Ido had a daughter named Alita who was killed by a scoundrel cyborg, which is why he named Alita as such. This is not entirely true with the anime version.

Another dissimilarity from the anime is Alitas body being recovered from a downed ship. In the anime, Alitas Berserker body is her first and original flesh. Its origin, though, is unknown.

Motorball is a physical sport found both in the movie and anime. It's a futuristic contact sport which Alita joined in later in the film. In the Alita: Battle Angel movie, she joined after Hugo convinced her. In the anime, on the other hand, she joined after Hugo passed away.

Joining Motorball has been Alitas dream since its a step closer to becoming a Hunter Warrior while winning in it serves as Hugos greatest plan because it could get him a pass to enter Zalem. The movie placed more importance on the game than in the anime.

In the anime version, Grewcica is a three-fold giant cyborg. He is a composite of two similar antagonists and was later renamed Grewishka in the Alita: Battle Angel movie where he was played by Jackie Earle Haley. Here, he was folded with the third villain.

RELATED: 10 Best Cyberpunk Anime of All Time, Ranked

After his first encounter in the anime series, he became Chirens victor. In the movie, he was seen with a clawed hand that came from a Motorball player instead of something Chiren gave to him. The iconic scene where Alita wiped the blood on her face is from a stray dog that Grewishka slaughtered from the anime.

Nova was introduced in the Alita: Battle Angel film in a series of flashbacks while in the anime, he was not present at all. In those few glimpses from Alitas past, we see Nova taking control of Vector and other villains.

Desty Nova, in the manga, was a scientist who specializes in the field of nanotechnology. He conducted several inhuman experiments, making him initially an antagonist. He also developed a complicated relationship with Alita which will set him up for a much deeper role, probably as the major villain, in the next movie.

Vector in the anime was originally a top broker from Iron City. He was seen as the superficial villain, rather than a major antagonist. Mahershala Ali played the role in the movie, the man who misled Chiran and Hugo that working for him will get them to Zalem.

In the anime, Dr. Ido confronted Vector, fought with his bodyguard and died at the claws of Zahriki. In the manga, Alita and Hugo fought Vector in his office but eventually let him live. Finally, in the movie, Alita stabbed Vector while master puppet Nova was still controlling his body.

Zapan is a vicious Hunter-Killer played by Ed Skrein who became Alitas foe and worst nightmare. The movie character stayed faithful to the source material as he was seen as the arrogant hunter who humiliated Alita in a bar fight before eventually losing to her.

In revenge, he framed Hugo for murder instead of confronting Alita, forcing the girl to kill her boyfriend for a bounty. She managed to keep him alive though by connecting his head to her life support system. When Zapan noticed it, Alitasliced hisface off.

The movie showed less violence than the anime. In the original material, it was made for a mature adult readership. When Alita contends with her opponents, a serious amount of blood spurts out. Ichor sprays and spills everywhere, leaving the life drained out of her enemies.

In the Alita: Battle Angel film, flesh parts were not always displayed on the screen. When Alita slices parts of her enemies, the mechanical chunk of their bodies usually fall off and scatter, instead of human blood. As a rated PG-13 move, it practically needs to be more conservative than gruesome.

NEXT: 10 Manga to Read If You Liked Alita: Battle Angel

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Alita: Battle Angel - 5 Things The Live-Action Movies Got Right (& 5 Things That The Anime Did Better) - CBR - Comic Book Resources

The Bad Batch proves to be a deadly squad.

Long have we waited. After seven years off the air, Star Wars: The Clone Wars returned Friday. Episode 1, entitled The Bad Batch, kicked off the seventh and final season by focusing on one of the CGI animated series' most beloved elements: the clone troopers (all played by Dee Bradley Baker).

Shortly before the galaxy-altering events of Revenge of the Sith, Republic forces are struggling against Separtist Admiral Trench on the planet Anaxes. Clone Captain Rex tells Jedi generals Mace Windu (T.C. Carson) and Anakin Skywalker (Matt Lanter) that he thinks the enemy's droid forces have worked out his strategies. Rex and Cody want to take a small force of their clone brethren behind enemy lines to figure out why, and it turns out that force will include the titular Bad Batch.

This episode and the other three in the arc were released as unfinished story reels back in 2015. Now it's been completed and looks a whole lot better. If you haven't watched previous seasons of The Clone Wars, rest assured that this episode works in isolation, and I'll fill in some of the background. Let's dive into spoiler territory.

"Embrace others for their differences, for that makes you whole." As is Clone Wars tradition, each episode opens with a pearl of wisdom linked to the events that follow. This one ties into initial friction between Rex, Cody, Kix and Jesse and the atypical clones they team up with.

After meeting the Jedi, Rex expresses his feelings of remorse over the loss of some fellow clones. Hevy sacrificed himself so his brothers could escape droid forces in season 1 episode Rookies, and Fives was killed while trying to expose Chancellor Palpatine's Order 66 conspiracy to the Jedi in season 6's Orders.

Echo was seemingly killed by a deadly commando droid in season 3 episode Counterattack, but Rex suspects he's alive due to the nature of Separatists' counterattacks.

Cody introduces his brothers in Clone Force 99 (aka the Bad Batch), a group of "defective clones with desirable mutations" (aka a bunch of badasses). They're named after maintenance worker 99, a genetically defective clone who died helping Fives and Echo during the Battle of Kamino in season 3 episode ARC Troopers.

The Bad Batch consists of Hunter, who has heightened senses like Marvel's Daredevil, the superhumanly strong Wrecker, the incredibly knowledgeable Tech and deadly sniper Crosshair. This lot absolutely needs to star in a four-player co-op shooting game, it's been way too long.

They also refer to Rex and company as "regs" -- regular clones. The term is an extension of "shinies," which is what battle-hardened clones call their less experienced brethren due to their shiny, unblemished armor. I kinda like a set of sparkling new clone armor... does that make me an Imperial?

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In the scene where the clones plan their next move around a campfire, you might spot some yellow eyes shining in the darkness behind them. These belong to fyrnocks -- predators that will attack (and ultimately aid) the Ghost crew when they visit years later in season 1 of followup show Rebels.

By that point in the timeline, Anaxes has suffered some kind of cataclysm and the abandoned Republic base is on one of the asteroids that the planet has been reduced to, as noted in the official site's trivia guide for the episode.

Separatist Admiral Trench isn't happy when he learns the clones have discovered his secret of Skako Minor.

The villain ordering the droids around behind the scenes is Admiral Trench (also voiced by Dee Bradley Baker) , a member of the arachnid Harch species. He became a cyborg (because spider-cyborgs are extra creepy) after Anakin blew up his ship in season 2's Cat and Mouse.

Cody, Kix, Rex and Jesse learn to get along with their Bad Batch allies.

After Tech hacks a Separatist cyber center's computers, he intercepts a signal from Skako Minor. It turns out to be a human voice uttering "CT-1409" -- Echo's birth code. It seems Rex's theory that he survived was right on the money.

I guess it's clear where the second episode of The Clone Wars' seventh season will bring us. That'll hit Disney Plus next Friday, Feb. 28, and I'll have another recap up that day.

First published Feb. 21.Updated Feb. 25, 4:45 a.m. PT: Adds section about fyrnocks and Clone Wars Download video.

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Star Wars: The Clone Wars episode 1 recap: The Bad Batch blazes into action on Disney Plus - CNET

There are neither enough Black superheroes or Black creators in comics. Thats mindboggling considering the popularity of characters like Black Panther, Storm, Luke Cage, Cyborg, Jon Stewart, and Black Lightning. And we have creators like Christopher Priest, Kevin Grievoux, Karl Bollers, Amanda Stenberg, Reginald Hudlin, Mildred Louis, and Bryan Hill. But two of the best Black creators in comics or any medium is Ta-Nehisi Coates and Roxane Gay, and in 2016, they worked together on the great but short-lived World of Wakanda.

Coates has been writing Black Panther since 2016, and is now also writing Captain America. He also penned brilliant social commentary books such as Between the World and Me. Gay is pretty new to comics, but has some fantastic works like Hunger and Bad Feminist. Shortly after Coates started his Black Panther run, he and Gay teamed up with poet Yona Harvey, and artists Alitha E. Martinez and Afua Richardson for Black Panther: World of Wakanda.

(Image: World of Wakanda #2, by Roxane Gay, et. al., Marvel Comics)

Before Roxane Gay and Yona Harvey started writing World of Wakanda with Ta-Nehisi Coates, there were precisely zero Marvel comics written by a Black woman. After 70+ years, they were the first. Marvel Comics has a complicated history with diversity and representation. In their comics, writers and editors always promoted equality and diversity. In fact, Marvel has recently been reprinting Stans Soap Boxes from his days as editor-in-chief, some of which are shockingly political, considering comics really were for children at the time. But as liberal as Stan and the many writers, artists, and editors that came after him were and are, the Marvel bullpen was verywhite. Not just white, but white men. The first Black creator at Marvel was inker Billy Graham, who worked on Hero for Hire in the 1970s, Luke Cages original title.

There is some debate, however, if Gay and Harvey were the first Black women to write for Marvel, or if Nilah Magruder, who wrote a digital one-shot about Rocket Raccoon counts first. The answerwho cares? Depending on the announcements, when they were contracted, how long it took to create the comic, and a dozen other factors, the fact remains that before 2016, not a single Black woman had ever written a Marvel Comic. And there still arent enough. Sure, Nnedi Okorafor is writing Shuri, but it would be great to see writers like Tomi Adeyemi, Temi Oh, and Nalo Hopkinson write for Marvel too. Or hire other Black women in comics, like Concrete Parks Erika Alexander, or (H) afrocentrics Juliana Smith.

(Image: World of Wakanda #4, by Roxane Gay, et al., Marvel Comics)

At the heart of World of Wakanda, Roxane Gay tells a story of love vs. duty. But since this is a superhero comic set in Wakanda by a brilliant LGBTQ writer, its a little more than that. Two of the most interesting characters that came out of Coates Black Panther run are the Midnight Angels. Here, we see them before they leave the Dora Milaje. Ayo and Aneka love their country, but they also love each other dearly.

However, the rules of the Dora Milaje makes this a problem. Every woman who serves in this elite force not only protects the King, but they have to be available to him as potential wives. If that feels a little skeevy, thats because it is. Ayo has no problem breaking tradition, but for Aneka, its harder to go back on her pledge, even if she doesnt want to be with any man.

World of Wakanda is also about questioning our leaders, and what isnt more American than that? The series takes place through a span of events that profoundly impacted Wakanda. Most notably, Avengers Vs. X-Men, when Namor, an X-Man at the time, flooded the Golden City. Many of the Dora Milaje held King TChalla responsible since Namor attacked the city because the Avengers were using Wakanda as a base.

Then the events of Infinity nearly destroyed them again, and TChalla was nowhere to be foundbut he was working with Namor, which did not sit well with his personal guard. As the country spins further into chaos and Queen Shuri dies at the hand of Thanos Black Order, the Dora Milaje are forced to question if they serve a King who lost his way, or the country itself.

(Image: World of Wakanda #1, by Roxane Gay, et al., Marvel Comics)

Just as Gay and Coates introduce us to the Midnight Angels, Yona Harveys story in World of Wakanda introduces us to Zenzi. Zenzi is the survivor of experimental treatments, and can amplify the emotions of people around her. Shed later become the leader of The People, but here, shes just a lost woman looking for direction. She finds this by helping the people of Wakanda after Namors attack, learning that instead of relying on King TChalla, they need to rely on themselves. This short story drives the point that Gay makes in World of Wakandacommunity above a figurehead. I wish we had several issues in this volume focusing on Zenzi. Shes an incredible character, and Harvey writes her wonderfully.

(Image: World of Wakanda #6, by Rembert Browne, et al., Marvel Comics)

Though Kevin Kasper Cole might not be the most recognizable superhero in comics, he played a vital role in Black Panther lore, using the Black Panther mantle to take down organized crime in New York City. This was after he lost his job as an NYPD officer. When Black Panther returned, Kasper became the White Tiger, using an alternate Black Panther suit. But he has a lot going on in his life. Hes back on the force, but behind a desk and not making enough money to support his familyand then TChalla asks him for a favor. The mutant villain Vanisher is smuggling raw Vibranium into New York.

While Roxane Gay and Yona Harveys stories in World of Wakanda are in Wakanda, Brownes takes place in NYC. This gives a much broader definition of World. Its a reminder that Black Panther has an impact all over the world. The character spent a lot of time in New York City, after all, so a piece of Wakanda will always be in NYC. Browne widened the scope to show Wakandas influence beyond its borders.

However, we still get a character-driven story. Kasper doesnt want to be the White Tiger anymore. He literally cant afford it. But even though Wakanda isnt his home, Kasper still wants to help. He might not be the most famous superhero, but White Tiger exemplifies what makes the best kind of superherothe ones who are there, in the background, or as a side character, and yet still as heroic as the A-Listers.

(Image: World of Wakanda #5, by Roxane Gay, et al., Marvel Comics)

Though Roxane Gay is featured in the recent Marvel Voices, World of Wakanda is her only series at Marvel. Marvel canceled this series far too quickly. They needed the movie to create buzz, giving Black Panther series get momentum. Another victim to lousy planning on Marvels end was Coatess Black Panther and the Crew. But beyond the World of Wakanda characters, there are dozens of characters Roxane Gay could write wonderfully. Her take on Kamal Khan would be fascinating. And any mutant living on Krakoatheyre bringing back some obscure favorites, but Storm and Rogue? Definitely. Or Gamora and the Guardians of the Galaxy. Seriously, she has the wit and character depth to take these characters to places we havent seen before. For now, well just have to enjoy her new graphic novel from TKO, The Banks.

(Featured Image:World of Wakanda #1, by Roxane Gay et al., Marvel Comics)

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Roxane Gay World of Wakanda Was a Short-lived but Brilliant Series - Comic Years

Biomedical engineers from Washington University in St Louis have implanted electrodes into the brains of grasshoppers, allowing them to exploit the jumping insects excellent sense of smell.

The engineers selected the American grasshopper as the subject of their experimentation on account of its sophisticated olfactory (scent detection) system. The grasshopper's antennae contain olfactory receptors which are used to sniff for food and predators. Information from these receptors are transmitted to 50,000 neurons in a part of their brain called the antennal lobe.

According to Professor Barani Raman, who has been working on insect-based sensory systems at the universitys biomedical engineering department for years, these qualities could make grasshoppers better at detecting explosives than any device in existence.

In order to exploit the grasshoppers sense of smell, Raman and his colleagues implanted electrodes into the olfactory centres of their brains.

They puffed vapours of different explosive materials at the grasshoppers: dynamite (TNT) and 2,4-Dinitrotoluene (DNT), with benzaldehyde and hot air as controls. They measured the neural activity triggered by each of the compounds and found that with some practice they were able to distinguish between the different vapours within a second, simply by observing the grasshoppers neural activity.

Finally, Raman and his colleagues fitted the grasshoppers with a lightweight sensor 'backpack'. This device records and wirelessly transmits their neural activity to a computer, which interprets this data in real time.

The enhanced grasshoppers could detect and distinguish between explosive compounds correctly for up to several hours after the electrodes were implanted. A single grasshopper could detect explosives with an accuracy of 60 per cent, while a seven-grasshopper team had an average accuracy of 80 per cent.

Our study provides the first demonstration of how biological olfactory systems (sensors and computations) can be hijacked to develop a cyborg chemical sensing approach, the engineers wrote in their study.

Sadly for the grasshoppers, the mechanisation procedure comes at the cost of their mobility, resulting in the researchers pushing their unfortunate subjects around on a wheeled, remote-controlled platform to test them in different locations and orientations. The grasshoppers also died of fatigue after about seven hours of work.

The study, which was funded by the US Office of Naval Research, could eventually lead to the deployment of cyborg grasshoppers for homeland security purposes. For instance, a swarm of upgraded insects could be deployed to the scene of bomb threats in the future as an alternative to valuable working dogs.

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'Cyborg' grasshopper engineered to sniff explosives - E&T Magazine

By Donna Lu

Baranidharan Raman/Washington University in St. Louis

Move over, sniffer dogs: now there are explosive-sensing grasshoppers. Barani Raman and his colleagues at Washington University in Missouri have tapped into the olfactory senses of the American grasshopper, Schistocerca americana, to create biological bomb sniffers.

In insects, olfactory receptor neurons in their antennae detect chemical odours in the air. In turn, these neurons send electrical signals to a part of the insect brain known as the antennal lobe. Each grasshopper antenna has approximately 50,000 of these neurons.

To test bomb-sniffing ability, the team puffed vapours of different explosive materials onto grasshopper antennae, including vapours of trinitrotoluene (TNT) and its precursor 2,4-dinitrotoluene (DNT). As controls, they used non-explosives such as hot air and benzaldehyde, the primary component in the oil of bitter almonds.

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By implanting electrodes into the antennal lobes of grasshoppers, the researchers found that different groups of neurons were activated upon exposure to the explosives. They analysed the electrical signals and were able to tell the explosive vapours apart from non-explosives, as well as from each other.

The team fitted grasshoppers with tiny, lightweight sensor backpacks that were able to record and wirelessly transmit the electrical activity of their antennal lobes almost instantaneously to a computer.

The grasshoppers continued to successfully detect explosives up to seven hours after the researchers implanted the electrodes, before they became fatigued and ultimately died.

The process immobilised the grasshoppers, so the researchers put them on a wheeled, remote-controlled platform to test their ability to sense explosives at different locations. The grasshoppers were able to detect where the highest concentration of explosives was when the team moved the platform to different locations.

The team also tested the effect of combining sensory information from multiple grasshoppers, given that in the real world chemicals might be dispersed by environmental factors, including wind.

Taking neural activity from seven grasshoppers yielded an average accuracy of detection of 80 per cent, compared with 60 per cent for a single grasshopper.

The project was funded by the US Office of Naval Research and the researchers believe the grasshoppers could be used for homeland security purposes.

A limitation of the study was that it didnt test the grasshoppers explosives-detecting ability when multiple odours were present at the same time.

Reference: https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.02.10.940866v1

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Cyborg grasshoppers have been engineered to sniff out explosives - New Scientist News

Carleton University grad student Tamara Banbury went from studying to being a part of the voluntary cyborg culture.

Its funny where life can lead us sometimes. Just ask Carleton PhD candidate Tamara Banbury.

A former long-haul trucker, dockyard operator and logistics office manager, shes now making headlines for her study of voluntary cyborgs, a nascent subculture of people, including herself, who willingly insert gadgets into their bodies to enhance or augment physical or cognitive performance.

I get one of two reactions from people when I explain or demonstrate the concept of implanted tech: oh cool! or ew! says Ms. Banbury, who has a glass-encased, rice-grain-sized microchip implanted in each hand.

She uses the one in her right hand, which can be read by a smart phone, to perform a digital-age parlor trick: sending people who scan the chip to her favorite music video on YouTube. The other chip has RFID (radio frequency identification) technology of the type used in contactless smart cards, which Ms. Banbury believes has the most practical potential.

Tamara Banbury. Photo by Bryan Gagnon/Carleton University.

We now have tap-and-pay on cards and on our cellphones, which are always in peoples hands, she says. Imagine the ease, convenience and security of having that technology under your skin. She adds that people who might be weirded out by the idea now might feel differently when it becomes more common. Society accepts technology when convenience overcomes the perceived risk.

Ms. Banburys improbable journey to voluntary cyborg both as an academic pursuit and a way of life started in 2010 when, at age 37, she enrolled as a part-time student in computer information systems at Calgarys Mount Royal University. I did it to upgrade my skill set for the job market, says Ms. Banbury. She also decided to volunteer at the nearby Military Museums, which is notably staffed with active-duty soldiers, some of whom have lost limbs in overseas combat missions.

Some had really interesting prosthetics, Ms. Banbury recalls. I talked with them a lot about how they integrate their new limbs into their perceptions of themselves. It really got me interested in the issue of how people deal with technology externally and internally.

After switching to anthropology as a full-time student (she graduated in 2014), Ms. Banbury found her academic calling in 2016 at the BDYHAX Conference, a now-defunct annual conference exploring human enhancement through body hacking, gene therapy, body modification and wearable technology.

A light went on, said Ms. Banbury, who subsequently enrolled in Carletons masters program in law and legal studies. My goal became understanding how technology influences people and vice versa.

Last August, she successfully defended her thesis, entitled Wheres My Jetpack? Online Communication Practices and Media Frames of the Emergent Voluntary Cyborg Subculture. She is now enrolled in a PhD program at Carleton in communication and media studies.

At its most prosaic, voluntary cyborgs can be considered to include people with pacemakers, cochlear implants or any other implanted mechanical device that keeps them alive or enhances their lives. In recent years, however, many voluntary cyborgs have undergone risky and high-profile procedures and self-experimentations or DIY biology that go far beyond medical and prosthetic applications, pushing the boundaries of human science, law, sports, entertainment and ethics.

According to Ms. Banbury, voluntary cyborgs grinders in body hack parlance generally identify with transhumanist and biopunk ideologies. But, were not like the punks of the 1970s with the readily recognizable hairstyles and clothes, she says. We are hidden in plain sight.

She adds, however, that the small but growing online community of voluntary cyborgs is eager for mainstream acceptance and widespread adoption of their practices. It all boils down to body integrity and body autonomy and being able to do what we choose with our bodies, says Ms. Banbury. If I want to plant something in my hand, how does that affect anyone else?

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The life of a voluntary cyborg - University Affairs

The Harley Quinn animated series has proven time and again that there exists competition between the domestic franchises housed under the D.C. Universe. The characters of the DCEU have been portrayed in the animated series under the comic book houses banner and have lived up to fans expectations. A debate went down recently when The Harley Quinn animated series introduced its version of the Cyborg.

In a quest to rescue Poison Ivy from the clutches of Scarecrow, Harley Quinn introduces her landlord to the team. Sy Borgman is a retired U.S. agent who uses a wheelchair with some cybernetic enhancements. His name was the giveaway for the fans that there has to be a story behind the character and reason why the character is an ally to Quinn. It is later revealed that the old retired agent was a part of the special cyborg program.

Vic Stone has shown the audience that he is the one who is suited to play the Cyborg. Be it the kid-friendly one in Teen Titans Go! Or the badass half-human and half-god in Justice League, Stone has always proven to be the most worthy. Currently, he is a hybrid New God and one-person wrecking ball with tech made from the Mother Box.

In the animated series, when Harley Quinn and gang break into Ivys psyche and rescue her from Scarecrow, they realize that they do not have a transport chase him down.

Though he repeatedly falls asleep due to narcolepsy, we are sure is coming back time and again! He is now probably a permanent member of the Quinn gang, and he may show up sometime in the DCEU as well!

Source: CBR

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Sy Borgman: The new Cyborg in town! - Animated Times

Along with the premiere of the first teaser forDoom Patrol,DC Universe also debuted a collection of character posters for each of the members of perhaps the strangest team of characters to be adapted in live-action form for DC Comics.

In particular, these new character posters highlight Timothy Dalton's The Chief, Diane Guerrero's Crazy Jane, Joivan Wade's Cyborg, April Bowlby's Elasti-Woman, Matt Bomer's Negative Man and Brendan Fraser's Robotman. These posters each follow unique designs that reflect the nature of each character and tease unique personalities amongst the group as well.

You can start the gallery of new posters by clicking "Next".

Which of theseDoom Patrolposters is your favorite? Are you excited to see what the cast brings to these roles? Sound off in the comments below, and be sure to continue following Heroic Hollywood for all the latest news in the DC Universe.

Doom Patrol is a reimagining of one of DCs strangest group of outcast Super Heroes which includes: Matt Bomer as Larry Trainor/Negative Man, Brendan Fraser as Cliff Steele/Robotman, April Bowlby as Elasti-Woman, Diane Guerrero as Crazy Jane, Joivan Wade as Victor Stone/Cyborg and Timothy Dalton as Dr. Niles Caulder/The Chief.

Here is the synopsis for the show:

Doom Patrolwill find the reluctant heroes in a place they never expected to be, called to action by Cyborg, who comes to them with a mission hard to refuse, but with a warning that is hard to ignore: their lives will never, ever be the same.

Doom Patrolwill premiere on February 15, 2019 exclusively on DC Universe.

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See Henry Cavill With Black Superman Costume & Beard In New Image - Heroic Hollywood

WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Harley Quinn Season 1, streaming now on DC Universe.

In the Harley Quinn animated series, the title character has had a topsy-turvy relationship with her crew of vagabonds as she tries to get over Joker. However, this relationship soured after they figured out Harley saw them as nothing more than pawnsto get into the Legion of Doom, and comrades she'd part with at the drop of a hat to reunite with the Joker.

But as they all work together to retrieve a kidnapped Poison Ivy, we discover Harley has her very own Cyborg in the shape of her landlord, Sy Borgman. What's especially interesting is that this Cyborg might even be better than the Justice League's.

RELATED:Harley Quinn's Dark Origin Began With... An Olympic Sport?!

Vic Stone's shown us time and time again, whether it's with the kid-friendlyTeen Titansor in theJustice League as a badass half-human, half-robot how powerful he is as a hero. He's currently a hybrid New God, and with Apokoliptian tech driving the new version of the character, he really is a one-man wrecking crew, made from Mother Box tech. However, due to him interfacing with machinesall around the Multiverse, he's had viruses infect him and can turn on the heroes at any time. Darkseid has currently weaponized him in this way in Justice League Odyssey, laying bare hisflaws and vulnerabilities.

In Harley Quinn,Sy Borgman's last name says it all -- matching up with his disposition from the comics in the "Harley Quinn Highway" episode. He's a retired wheelchair-bound U.S. agent with some cybernetic enhancements and an ally of Harley Quinn who first appeared in 2014's Harley Quinn #2. Here, though, he's way cruder anda bit of a pervert whoconstantly harasses Harley for rent. He even tried to burn her crew alive when their psyches were locked in a battle to free Harley in her own Inception episode. Little did we know the power he held within.

RELATED:Harley Quinn: Poison Ivy's Deepest Secret Could Hint At Their Romance

When they break into Ivy's psyche and rescue her from Scarecrow's clutches after his experiments to create a new fear toxin, they sadly don't have a transport to chase him down. He's going to attack Gotham but Harley's car has been towed for parking illegally outside Scarecrow's lab. This is where Sy comes into play, transforming into a war machine. He's a tank you'd expect from a Batman story, revealing he was a spy in the CIA who enrolled in a special cyborg program which turned him into a "Transchanger" aka a Cyborg-man, ergo his name.

In other words, he's a mix of a Transformer and Cyborg, and becomes the vessel that charges down the Harley highway to save Gotham. He's got an array of weapons for the job as well, such as missile launchers, and with his military experience, he holds his own and provides more-than-able support for the gang. He doesn't take time to adjust like Vic did as Cyborg and because he's totally disconnected and off the grid, Sy's incorruptible.

Of course, he falls asleep a couple of times due to his narcolepsy, but he eventually helps Harley cause Scarecrow to crash. Unfortunately, the villain ends uppolluting Gotham's water reserve which causes mass chaos as monster-trees begin ravaging the population. But the kicker is, when the crew looks to Sy for another trip, he's out cold. We'reprettysure he isn't dead, though --whichthe episode didn't clear up -- because, as he repeatedly told his tenant, "you can't keep a good Sy Borgman down!"

DC Universe's Harley Quinn stars Kaley Cuoco, Lake Bell, Diedrich Bader, Alan Tudyk, Rahul Kohli, Christopher Meloni, Tony Hale, Ron Funches, Wanda Sykes, Natalie Morales, Jim Rash, Giancarlo Esposito, Jason Alexander and J.B. Smoove. New episodes are released on Fridays.

KEEP READING:Harley Quinn's Bloody Family Reunion Reveals Her Deadliest Enemy

DCeased: Gordon Admits He Knew Batman's Secret - and It's HEARTBREAKING

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Harley Quinn's Cyborg Might Be Better Than the Justice League's - CBR - Comic Book Resources

After the death of Count Dooku, General Grievous began to suspect his time in this master plan was coming to an end. The Star Wars villain didnt have much time to turn things around in his favor.

Narrowly escaping the Invisible hand in an escape pod, General Grievous speaks via hologram with Darth Sidious. Sidious tells him the end of the war is in sight.

But the loss of Count Dooku?responds Grievous.

His death was a necessary loss. Soon I will have a new apprentice, one far younger and more powerful , boasts Sidious.

Sidious then instructs the Separatists to move to Mustafar. The droid general heads to Utapau to rendezvous with the droid army sanctioned there. Grievous knows something is up. Sidious was not not even upset about the death of Dooku.

Dooku: apprentice of Sidious, mentor to Grievous and Leader of the Seperatist Droid army.

With Dooku gone, what was planned for Grievous? Was the cyborg still valuable? How long until it was time for him to be removed from this master plan? Grievous begins to realize this Dark Lord of the Sith is willing and able to cut out anybody no longer valuable in his quest for power. Use them up and then toss them away.

Grievous arrives on Utapau and instructs the Separatists to move to Mustafar. With reluctance, they abide. Kenobi, emerges and faces Grievous in a fierce duel, before Grievous flees in his wheel bike. A wild pursuit ensues until Kenobi is able climb aboard the bike and crash.

The two come to blows. An all out brawl, cheap shots and all. Kicking, hitting, punching, pulling and throwing. Kenobi manages to rip open Grievous armor plates, revealing Grievous gut-sack. Grievous angrily tosses Kenobi off a ledge. The Jedi manages just barely to utilize the force and hold on for dear life.

The force is with him, as he calls the Generals blaster to him and fires shot after shot as the cyborg menaces toward him. Grievous is aflame, literally on fire. Burning up inside.

The flames explode Grievous and the cyborg collapses.

So uncivilized, Kenobi comments.

That comment could describe the whole conflict known as the Clone Wars and the galactic Civil War to come.

What if things could have been different for Grievous? Why did the cyborg not flee, as was typical of Grievous?GeneralGrievous will runand hide ashe always does:Hesa coward. as stated by Mace Windu in ROTS. What made this time any different? General Grievous may have thought that Darth Sidious would find him anywhere and anyhow, anyway. Which he probably would have; certainly Vader would have been sent to take care of any leftovers from the Confederacy after finishing off the rest of the Separatists. Or maybe Grievous had doubts about whether the Dark Lord would actually cut him out completely. He could have assumed that a commanding spot would still await him once the war had ended.

Whether he realized what was in store for him or not, it was far too late. General Grievous became backed into a corner. It was in fact Sidious acting as Chancellor Palpatine who gave Anakin the whereabouts so that the Jedi council could send troops to Utapau to pursue Grievous. In addition to the Republic hunting him, Sidious no longer needed him. When a Sith Lord wants you gone, your gone.But alas, the one time General Grievous chooses fight instead of flight, it costs him his life. So uncivilized indeed.

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Grievous began to realize far too late - Dork Side of the Force