Cyborg Security has developed an integration with Elastic Security to deliver contextualized threat intelligence from its HUNTER platform. This threat intelligence enables security teams to respond more quickly to threats, like ransomware operations, without having to waste valuable time filling in the blanks using traditional indicators of compromise.

Ransomware operations continue to grow in scope and complexity, enabling adversaries to target even the most secured organizations. Additionally, with increasingly complex supply chains and integrations, adversaries can now affect thousands of companies simultaneously. These attacks not only disrupt critical infrastructure and business operations, but also result in data theft, leakage, and eroding investor confidence and customer trust.

Ransomware has become one of the most successful forms of cybercrime and is on the top of every security executives list of priority concerns, said Shimon Modi, Director of Product, Security at Elastic. The Cyborg Security HUNTER platform integration with Elastic gives security practitioners the tools they need to proactively detect and remediate ransomware threats.

Cyborg Securitys integration with Elastic Security will enable users of the HUNTER platform to integrate contextualized threat intelligence into Elastic Security natively, using the new Filebeat threat intelligence module. This ensures organizations can disrupt ransomware operators before they accomplish their objective, without the need for additional agents or appliances.

Cyborg Securitys HUNTER platform delivers contextualized threat intelligence. Analysts can determine MITRE ATT&CK tactics and techniques, malware types and capabilities, actors, targeting data, and observed behaviors within their existing tool stack.

Contextualized threat intelligence means that analysts are able to react more confidently to threat detection alerts across organizations environments, without having to do time-consuming and inconsistent research.

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Cyborg Security integrates with Elastic to deliver contextualized threat intelligence - Help Net Security

On a high summer afternoon we were swimming at a state campground beach. A family of campers, a couple with a young son perhaps 5 or 6 years old splashed in the shallows, laughing and chattering, apparently enjoying themselves on a sweet afternoon. But my spouse overheard the following exchange between mother and son:

Boy: "I want to go home and be on the internet."

Mom: "We can't do that out here."

Boy: "I know. That's why I want to go home, to play games and watch a movie."

Mom, teasingly: "What would you do if you couldn't ever be on the internet again?"

Boy: "I'd go underwater and hold my breath until I died!"

As an aging boomer, whose household didn't own a temperamental black-and-white cathode ray tube television until I was that boy's age, I'm careful what I make of his comments. First, of course, he's a child and likely doesn't fully comprehend the nature and implications of death and suicide. Words spill out easily (though it would be reckless to discount them). Second, given the same tech he has, I might also have preferred cyberspace to the beach.

But the point is, I don't. That's not to imply the internet and technological infrastructure driving it doesn't have value certainly it does. Nevertheless, I was disturbed by the conversation and suspect that many of my peers would also find it cringeworthy. Was it about values or merely taste? Worldview or fashionable entertainment? Childhood toys or tidal wave of the future? I thought about the rollicking, uber-gamer novel "Ready Player One." The scraps tossed to conventional reality seemed forced and obligatory like, we'd rather live in cyberspace, but I suppose flesh-and-blood must be served. At least for now. I do believe that ultimately we only truly value what we cherish, and only protect what we value. I value the beach, the lake and the old white pines on the shore. What do that boy and his generation value? Now, and as adults? They are the inheritors of what current society bequeaths them, and our primary gift has been information technology in all its glory and squalor.

At the end of our rural driveway in northeastern Minnesota there is now a junction box for fiber optic cable. At a reasonable price we could have that line extended to our log house. We haven't. It's not a Luddite impulse. If we had a home business that demanded the speed and bandwidth fiber optics provides, it would be a boon. As it is, the cable would merely allow us to watch more movies and play elaborate online games. Maybe that will seem important someday. Many consider the cable a blessing, but I'm not sure. What is the ultimate impact of a technology that makes it easier to spend more passive and captive hours in front of screens watching other peoples' fantasies not only purposely fictional entertainment, but social and political propaganda presented as truth? Is that passivity inevitable?

The dystopian arguments have been made for 70 years. Ray Bradbury published a short story in 1951 entitled "The Pedestrian," about an American society in 2052 where a man is arrested for going on an after-dark walk in his residential neighborhood instead of being inside watching television. A robotic police car delivers him to the Psychiatric Center for Research on Regressive Tendencies.

In his 2019 book "Novacene: The Coming Age of Hyperintelligence," scientist and inventor James Lovelock, a creator of the Gaia hypothesis, and 100 years of age in '19, lays out the semi-immediate future. He cogently argues that after three centuries the Anthropocene the age of human-made, planet-altering technology is already ending. It's been driven by the exploitation of fossil fuels, that is, stored solar energy. In the Novacene Age, our machines he terms them "cyborgs" will attain ascendancy and independence "when [direct] solar energy is converted into information." Our function, or more specifically, the function of our scientists, engineers and coders is clear: "We can be almost certain that an electronic lifeform such as a cyborg could never emerge by chance from the inorganic compounds of the earth the emergence of cyborgs cannot be envisioned without us humans playing a god-like, parent-like role."

So we're responsible for the initiation of the Novacene, and Lovelock considers that the redeeming feature of Homo sapiens because the cyborgs require the same planetary temperature range to survive as do we and they will therefore stem/reverse global warming. He assumes their main tools will be the biological processes already extant, those that the Anthropocene has compromised to the brink of catastrophe. The cyborgs will accomplish this because given Moore's Law (exponential increases in computing power), they'll be processing information 10,000 times faster than we can. With that disparity, how will they view us? Lovelock theorizes the cyborgs will consider us in the manner we regard house plants, or maybe pets.

Thus out of the dangerous transformations of our Anthropocene is provided the remedy: Our evolutionary descendants, electronic life-forms as Lovelock insists they'll be will clean up our mess in their self-interest. What happens to us is unclear, but it's hard to imagine a relatively rapid wholesale revamping of the Anthropocene without human casualties.

Far-fetched? Maybe. But how many of our devices, appliances and tools are already connected to the "internet of Things," and when was the last time you heard or read a news item or advertisement about tech that didn't mention AI artificial intelligence? What Lovelock is saying is that there's nothing artificial about it that a machine age is the inevitable result of our digital technology, and we'll be eclipsed by it.

Vantage point is important. A half-century ago when we saw the first photographs of our planet from space, we were collectively stunned by the beauty, but it was science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke who noted that the images indicated we were in error to call our world Earth. It obviously should be called Ocean. So when we glibly talk about "tech" or "IT" or "AI," perhaps it would be more appropriate to speak of metamorphosis. Or paradigm shift. Or salvation. Or apocalypse. Too early to tell.

As Bradbury's protagonist in "The Pedestrian" savors his nighttime stroll, he regards the houses of his neighbors as, "The tombs, ill-lit by television light, where the people sat like the dead, the gray or multicolored lights touching their faces, but never really touching them."

That's probably too harsh an assessment of the typical screen enthusiast of 2021, but we know those faces fixated on glass, and the youngster at the beach longing to return to his portal into an alternate reality. Perhaps he'll welcome the cyborgs, or maybe the transition to the Novacene Age will be seamless for his generation just one more app to a tipping point where online presence is barely distinguishable from the outdoor world. Only old fogies or malcontents will be sent to the Psychiatric Center for Research on Regressive Tendencies, though it'll probably be cleaner for the cyborgs to simply uproot plants that aren't doing well, and euthanize pets who make a mess in the house.

Lovelock's Novacene represents the authoritarian view that we'll significantly respond to anthropogenic climate disruption only if we're forced to, or if someone else does it for us cyborgs being the epitome of deus ex machina. Political observers have noted a global trend toward more autocratic governments, and one critique of democratic societies is that they are slow and cumbersome in responding to challenges like the pandemic and climate change.

An alternative to denial or dictatorship, and the path celebrated by the Biden administration, is crisis-as-opportunity. In short, mitigating climate change can generate new businesses and jobs while giving us a healthier environment and a more prosperous economy. We don't deny or coerce, but rather encourage, assist and nurture. Of course we must also convince, cajole and ultimately vote not only with ballots, but with our wallets and our time. It is the rockier route, but it offers us more control. Something big will happen on the climate change front, and it might be best if most of us were driving events. It could be another inheritance we leave to the kid on the beach.

Peter M. Leschak, of Side Lake, Minn., is the author of "Ghosts of the Fireground" and other books.

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OPINION EXCHANGE | Technology in all its glory and squalor - Minneapolis Star Tribune

We rank the UFCs featherweight champions, men and women, from worst to best.

The featherweight division has hosted some of the greatest fighters to ever grace the sport. From the phenom that is Cris Cyborg Justino to all-out superstar Conor McGregor, the division has always produced the goods for fight fans over the years. After a dominant five-year stint as champion, will Jose Aldos legacy see him claim the top spot, or has Amanda Nunes complete and utter supremacy see her inch her way to No. 1? We look at the best fighters from the UFCs featherweight division, from worst to best.

With a 46-0 kickboxing record (30 TKOs), Germaine De Randamie is no joke. There is no avoiding the fact that she was subject to mass scrutiny after refusing to defend her title against Justino in 2017. The overwhelming criticism that she was not fulfilling her duties as champion was followed by the promotion stripping her of the belt. Although this undoubtedly tainted her legacy after claiming the belt from Holly Holm at UFC 208 (a controversy in itself), De Randamie still stands as a top contender in the bantamweight division. Going 3-1 since the incidents of 2017, De Randamie is still widely considered as one of the best female fighters on the planet.

The current champion has limitless potential, lets get that straight. However, his run as champion so far has been somewhat overlooked by fans. Wins over Mendes, Aldo and Holloway back to back to back? How can he be so low on the list? Well, its the way the previous two fights played out. Although the majority of folks would argue that Volkanovski won the first meeting pretty clearly, his second clash with former champion Max Holloway left a bad taste in everyones mouth. A razor close decision saw Volkanovski retain his title back at UFC 251. With a resume like his, its unquestionable that he is currently the best featherweight in the world. However, as tensions rise in the lead up the clash with Brian Ortega, that could all change in the blink of an eye.

The hype around Justino in the lead up to her debut was real. The UFC essentially made the womens 145 pound division around her, and it paid off. Headlining multiple cards, Justino snatched the gold belt just three fights into her UFC career. In a one-sided affair against Tonya Evinger at UFC 214, Justino made it 12 KO/TKO stoppages in a row. Her first defense came against Holly Holm, a decisive victory which further cemented Justino as one of the best women to ever do it. However, the question on everyones mind was this: who isthe best? With Nunes tearing through challenger after challenger at bantamweight, an all-Brazilian clash was the fight to make. After clocking in one more title defense, Justino and Nunes met in a frantic, minute-long flurry which seen Nunes send Justino off her feet with an overhand right. A fight years in the making, over in 51 seconds. Worth the wait? Absolutely.

McGregors 2013-2015 sweep of the featherweight division will go down in history. As if witnessing a spectacle, fans tuned in eagerly every time the Irishman fought. Will Mystic Mac deliver? Yes, he will. Racking up five wins in a row, McGregor challenged for the interim belt against Chad Mendes at UFC 189. In a bloody, scrappy main-event, McGregor found Mendes chin with a straight left and closed the show in the second round. The stage was then set, McGregor vs. Aldo was scheduled. Regarded as the most anticipated fight in UFC featherweight history, McGregor ended things in a flash, scoring a 13 second knockout over the champion. Previously undefeated for a decade, Aldo was distraught. McGregor then decided to scrap the featherweight division for good, and spent his later years bouncing between lightweight and welterweight. With no defenses, one may argue that his spot is undeserving. However, the manner he won the belt and the magnitude of fans and hype he brought to the sport must be taken into account.

Holloway is beloved by fight fans around the world. The former champion looked unstoppable during his streak of 13 wins, breaking his opponents down with output statistics never seen before. After winning the belt from Jose Aldo and defending it, Holloways massacre of Brian Ortega led fans to believe he was unstoppable. After losing a close decision to Dustin Poirier at 155 for the interim belt, Holloway again defended his featherweight strap against veteran Frankie Edgar. Volkanovski stepped up when all hope for the division seemed lost, and took the champion to a decision, edging out Holloway and claiming gold. After a decisive rematch, its hard to argue against the prospect that Max Holloway will be champion again at some point in the future, and his recent dissection of top contender Calvin Kattar is leading fans to believe he has reached his peak. An awful, awful prospect for the rest of the division.

After the aforementioned clash with Justino, there was no longer doubt in fans minds regarding who the best female fighter on the planet was. Nunes absolute domination of her opposition is unmatched. In a bloody beat down of MieshaTate at UFC 200, Nunes compiled eight championship victory wins, with her most recent coming against Megan Anderson in just two minutes of the first round. It is a rarity to come across a fighter with no weaknesses, no holes in their game to target and execute upon. Nunes is that fighter. Flawless Jiu Jitsu, powerful striking and ferocious clinch work have allowed Nunes to climb the ladder of greatness, where she sit alone as the greatest female fighter in the world.

When we think featherweight, we think Jose Aldo. For years the Brazilian dominated the WEC and UFC rosters. 5 round thrillers with Mendes and one-sided beatdowns against greats such as Urijah Faber and Jeremy Stephens have cemented Aldo as the greatest champion in featherweight history. He is divisional royalty, and it doesnt stop at 145. Aldo has now made the cut to bantamweight, coming up short in a title fight against Petr Yan last year, but managing to re-establish himself as a top contender with recent wins over Marlon Vera and Pedro Munhoz.

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Ranking every UFC featherweight champion through history - FanSided

As he appeared in Iain McCaigs Phantom Menance concept art, Darth Maul is now an SDCC exclusive statue from Gentle Giant. The statue stands at 11 tall and is limited to only 750 pieces. The Sith apprentice can be pre-ordered now for $120.

Mauls concept appears quite similar to how he was portrayed in 1999 by martial artist Ray Park. Darth Maul, though very enigmatic, became a Star Wars icon, much like Boba Fett.

Before there was Darth Maul, there was the idea of Darth Maul, and this bust is based on that amazing idea! Inspired by Iain McCaigs concept sketches of the famous Sith Lord, this 1/6 scale Bust shows Maul in his high-collared outfit, and stands approximately 7 inches tall. Limited to only 750 pieces, it comes packaged with a limited-edition certificate of authenticity in a full-color box. Sculpted by Rocco Tartamella.

McCaigs concept art hints at something more sinister than what we got in Episode 1. Maul was no doubt intimidating, mainly because of his appearance, unique lightsaber, and silent demeanor. However, he lacked any defining character. This artwork gives us a glimpse at something lurking under the tattoos.

Darth Maul didnt have much character in The Phantom Menace, but he was the face of the films marketing campaign. Everywhere, and I do mean everywhere, Mauls mug was plastered on everything. KFC? Yup! Candy? Yup! Marital aids? Probably! Even if you didnt know anything about Star Wars, you knew Darth Maul in 1999.

Thankfully the expanded universe fleshed out the Zabraks journey after he somehow survived being sliced in two by Obi-Wan. Though he would live the rest of his life until just before A New Hope as an outcast and half-cyborg, his story is an interesting one to follow.

What are your opinions on the Sith apprentice? Should he have been more talkative in Episode 1? Has he been redeemed throughout The Clone Wars? Let us know in the comments.

[Source: Gentle Giant]

Pirates & Princesses (PNP) is an independent, opinionated fan-powered news blog that covers Disney and Universal Theme Parks, Themed Entertainment and related Pop Culture from a consumer's point of view. Opinions expressed by our contributors do not necessarily reflect the views of PNP, its editors, affiliates, sponsors or advertisers. PNP is an unofficial news source and has no connection to The Walt Disney Company, NBCUniversal or any other company that we may cover.

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Darth Maul In His Conceptual Form Is Now A SDCC Exclusive Statue - Pirates and Princesses

*individual results will vary

What draws you into a story? What makes a tale a page-turner, going from just an interesting read to a journey across another world? Well, individual results may vary, but for me, its a riveting story, nuanced characters, and deep world-building, packaged in a genre that is at once sombre and darkly-toned, and also technological and gritty. Its one of those rare diamonds in the rough, a story that speaks to your soul while it feeds your mind and piques your imagination.

And no other story has done this for me like the manga Gunnm/Battle Angel Alita.

Admittedly, this manga is a niche title. A post-apocalyptic, sci-fi/cyberpunk epic, known as Gunnm (Gun Dream) in Japan and other manga-saturated countries (France, Germany, Italy, Russia etc), and Battle Angel Alita for English-speaking audiences. A 23-year-old manga artist (or mangaka as they are known in Japan) by the name of Yukito Kishiro began drawing Gunnm in 1990. The main character, known as Gally in the original, was actually a reworked cyborg police officer character in an unpublished manga called Reimeika. Gunnm was Kishiros first big break, and he had trouble believing it was real until he saw his work in the pages of Shonen Business Jump, a trade magazine for serialised manga comics in Japan in November 1990.

The original series (OS) of Battle Angel Alita ran from Dec 15, 1990 to April 1, 1995 (9 volumes), and spawned two sequels, Battle Angel Alita: Last Order (20002014 with 19 volumes) and the ongoing Battle Angel Alita: Mars Chronicle (2014 to present, the 7th volume only recently released in English). Thats 36 volumes (and still growing) of top quality manga to discover!

Just What is This Manga Stuff, Anyway?*

*For those that are well versed in manga, you can skip ahead to the next section.

Just in case youve never had the opportunity or good fortune to read a great manga before, Ill start at the beginning. Manga is the name for Japanese adult comics. Yes, adult. Definitely NOT for kids. As such, they can cover all the usual adult-orientated themes such as love, hate, infatuation, anger, desire, crisis, emotional anguish, war and gruesome deaths. Theres usually a good helping of that last one. They are very popular in Japan, and monthly, serialized mangas have been produced for years, and in some cases decades.

So what, you might think, Ive been reading [insert your favourite, long-running superhero epic here] for literally years. Im not afraid of an ingrained franchise. Well, where western superhero epics change artists, writers and sometimes even publishers and flex with the ideologies of the times, mangas can be one writer/artist affairs, and it can be their lifes work. Thats dedication, folks. As such, they can be a deep dive into the psyche of the mangaka (as they are called), and explore topics that will bounce around in your head for years!

Also, manga can be slightly problematic for the new, western reader. This is mainly due to the lens of Japanese culture through which the story is told. This can be confusing for a reader lacking context, but if you are aware of it, there are a host of rich, and fascinating stories to discover and enjoy.

Wait, Ive Seen the Movie. Isnt it the Same? Wont Reading the Manga Ruin a Sequel?

Like most movies, 2019s Alita: Battle Angel, while being faithful to the source material, is not the exact same story. It changes the order that things happen, has a character that appeared in the OVA (short anime from the 90s) that isnt in the manga, and ends around the first third of volume 3 of the 9 volume original manga run. Also, reading forward will not spoil future movies. While its expected that future instalments will borrow beats from the source, it will still be its own telling, and will vary enough from the original work to keep you surprised and entertained, so no worries there.

And while the movie is fantastic (the best western adaptation of a manga to date), there is so much more in the manga. You are really missing out if you dont give it a shot.

But What Makes Battle Angel Alita So Good?

Battle Angel Alita (BAA), at its core, asks the reader some very deep questions. Its heavily influenced by the cyberpunk genre of the 1990s, and so asks the classic cyberpunk question of what makes us human? But beyond that, it delves into the questions of what is fate, can we overcome our own karma, and even in the depths of despair, can we persevere? All good, interesting stuff.

Then theres the world-building. Post-apocalyptic? Check. Stratified society, where the haves live above and isolated from the have-nots who toil below? Check. Wasteland outside the city walls with roving bands of killers? Check. Dangerous, gritty, grinding existence within the walls, where those with the will to survive replace their flesh with machines in an effort to survive? Check. Violent combat sports displayed on every screen? Check. Police replaced with bounty hunters who collect heads for pay? Check. Check. Check.

And yet there is kindness in this future dystopia.

This sky city, known by various names in the various editions, including Zalem, Salem, and Typharies, dumps its waste out a chute in the bottom which lands in a big scrap pile that the dirt-siders scavenge through for resources. One such denizen of The Scrapyard is Daisuke Ido, a cyberdoctor who helps out the downtrodden cyborgs of The Scrapyard, is picking through the trash pile looking for useful parts one day when he discovers the torso of a deactivated cyborg. It is female, and hes surprised to discover that her brain is still alive (the only part of her that is biological). He takes her back to his surgery and rebuilds her over months. Shes lost her memory, through some traumatic experience that may have been the reason she was there in the first place.

Cyberphysician Daisuke Ido finds a deactivated cyborg torso in the scrap pile under the floating city, but the brain within is miraculously alive!

Ido gives her a name, Gally in the original Gunnm, or Alita in the English translation. This young woman has to relearn her context within her new surroundings and then begins a journey in search of self, and she has a lot of self to rediscover.

Alita, Her Friends and Her Foes

Alita, at her core, is a force for change. Whether it is those that ally with her, recognising her strength and perseverance, or those that fall before it, BAA has a long list of side characters, many of whom really grow on you, and some of which die horribly. This gives Alitas actions real consequences, which she surely struggles with at times. At her core, Alita is a character you can relate to. Shes no Mary Sue. Alita is in fact a true, struggling example of ourselves. Youll find something in her attitudes, choices and growth throughout the story that resonates with you.

The supporting characters are many and varied, from her love interests (this isnt a romance manga, so there are only a few), those who are attracted to her, and those that choose to help her on her path as they see the value and strength of her convictions. From the shallow teen Hugo (or Yugo in some translations), obsessed with getting to Zalem, who is Alitas first love, to the rebel radio operator Radio Kaos, with the power of psychometry (able to extract memories and skills of the previous owner of objects), the supporting cast is strong, varied and have their own arcs running in the background.

The foils on Alitas journey are many and varied, from the massively-framed endorphin addict Mukaku, who kills for pleasure and to feed his need for brain tissue, to the amoral mad scientist Desty Nova, to the chief of the Ground Investigation Bureau (GIB) of Tipharies (Zalem) Bigott Eisenburg, Alitas adversaries keep her on her toes. And yet they are not all bad.

All the major characters in the first 2 Alita Chronicles the Original Series and Last Order.

All is Grey, and Thats OK

Just like life, Alitas interactions with the other characters during this amazing tale are not all cut and dried. Nova ends up helping Alita on almost as many occasions as he puts roadblocks in her path, for example. Yokito Kishiro has said in interviews that, just like in life, most people in his epic story act in a manner they believe to be correct. In this same vein, Alita discovers the flawed, yet all too human side of quite a few of her foes, and comes to understand their motivations, even while she is besting them. This gives the story a solid grounding, with characters that feel like they could really exist.

Another facet of this terrific manga that really draws you into the story is the art. Kishiro-kun is both writer and artist, and his style, while subtly morphing over 30 years of working on this epic title, has strong detail, great characterisation, and a fluid sense of high-speed movement. This all comes together to draw you through the story, and if post apocalyptic cyberpunk is your jam, will have you staying up late, not wanting to stop reading!

Alitas fighting style, Panzer Kunst, involved training in zero g, which allows her to move through the air in a fight like a parkour master.

Battle Angel Alita wastes no time in getting stuck into the story. There is little filler. Its like a rollercoaster ride that hits top gear and just keeps right on going. Its a favourite of mine, and it might just become one of yours, too.

Give it a shot. Available on Kindle, Bookwalker, comiXolgoy, Google Play, iBooks, Kobo, nook, and in dead tree format from Amazon and most reputable booksellers. Also, as of August 2021, a new, small format softcover version has been released to English audiences.

Gunnm, aka Battle Angel Alita the Greatest Manga Youve Probably Never Read!*

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Gunnm, aka Battle Angel Alita - the Greatest Manga You've Probably Never Read!* - Comic Watch

Any filmmaker attached to a DC Films project that wants to use Cyborg will find themselves in a tricky position, and thats putting it lightly. After all, Ray Fisher has gathered widespread support from both his peers and the online community after refusing to back down when it comes to calling out Joss Whedon and the Warner Bros. top brass for their behavior and subsequent lack of accountability in regards to the Justice League reshoots.

The actor already lost out on a solo film when the DCEU was reshuffled several years back, and he was also set to return and play a significant supporting role in The Flash, with producer Barbara Muschietti confirming Fisher was involved, before he eventually exiled himself from the shared universe entirely by stating that he wouldnt play Victor Stone again until Walter Hamada was out of the picture.

Theres been talk on more than one occasion that the studio would simply recast the role and move on, but you can guarantee thered be massive backlash from all sides if WB were to hire somebody else as Cyborg when Fisher shows no signs of giving up his crusade anytime soon. However, a recent leak which admittedly hails from Reddit but does come from a source with a decent track record for inside scoops offers that Matt Reeves wants a new version of the character in The Batman universe.

Its not a guarantee by any stretch of the imagination, but how to handle Cyborg presents a unique and tricky scenario for any creative mind, as well as their paymasters. Ignore Fisher and theres going to be uproar, but the fact remains that hes not planning on coming back until drastic changes have been made, so something will have to give eventually.

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The Batman Universe Will Reportedly Introduce A New Cyborg - We Got This Covered

Ray Fishers Cyborg was supposed to be a major player in the DCEU, but it obviously didnt work out that way. The unproven and untested actor must have thought hed landed the role of a lifetime when he made his feature film debut in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, before being announced as a principal part of the Justice League cast, and he was even set to headline his own solo outing.

Instead, reports of Joss Whedons behavior and misconduct at the helm of the Justice League reshoots snowballed into Fisher mounting a one-man crusade against the entire DC Films and Warner Bros. hierarchy, and hes got no intentions of giving up the fight. Hes happy to continue demanding that the boardroom and executives take accountability for their actions or lack thereof, and hes stuck to his guns so rigidly that hes essentially exiled himself from the DCEU until Walter Hamada is out of the picture.

As the beating heart of Zack Snyders Justice League, who declined the opportunity to play a substantial role in The Flash despite having been involved in almost every draft of the script, something drastic would have to change for Fisher to return to the fold. However, a new rumor claims that Cyborg is being recast with a younger actor, although thats about the full breadth of the information made available.

Given the dearth of details on when or where this is supposed to happen, its best not to read too far into the speculation for now, but you can guarantee thered be a huge online backlash if Warner Bros. were to hire a new Cyborg and shunt Fisher to the sidelines after his string of very public revelations.

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Cyborg Reportedly Being Recast In DCEU With A Younger Actor - We Got This Covered

You can't buy a new graphics card for love nor money these days. When the RTX 3070 Ti went on sale last week, it followed in the footsteps of all new GPU launches this year and disappeared in a puff of smoke in 23 seconds flat. It's a real shame, as some of these new GPUs would be pretty decent upgrades if your current PC's starting to struggle a bit.

However, I put it to you that the real crime of 2021 is the current state of graphics card box art. It's just so... bland and sensible these days. Not like the good old days, when Palit's robo frog was giving you the evils from on high with a menacing grin, PNY's purple Verto face could turn you to stone with their piercing, cybernetic snake eyes, or... whatever the hell's going on with that goblin up there. Seriously, is that a glowing bagel on a stick? And what is with that terrible haircut? Oh no. Today's graphics cards don't know they're even born. So here's to you, GPUs of yore and their terrible box art. We miss ya.

As Alice0 mentioned the other day, it's this sort of graphics card heritage that would make a great addition to Colorful's just-announced GPU Museum. That said, I'm not gonna lie. A quick image search of old graphics card box art reveals a lot of scantily clad ladies in often preposterous combinations of fishnet tights, camo gear and terrible face paint. I mean, how else where graphics card companies going to make their latest silicon board look sexy to prospective buyers? Honestly, I'm glad we've moved on from all that now, but there are plenty of characters I'd love to see more of, like Palit's robo frog.

Just look at that good boy. Sure, the way he's somehow looking down on you and grinning manically is a teensy bit menacing in hindsight, but Palit have given this little green dude another lease of life with his new cyborg bod. Just imagine the power he can wield rendering all those watery pools of 1995. Glorious. More of him, please.

One of the aforementioned scantily clad ladies clad in the classic gamer colours of red and black, but honestly, what else says "GOTTA GO FAST" than a cool cyber bike from the late noughties? Sporting key selling points such as a massive 1GB of VRAM and HDMI with an optional dongle, this box art has it all. If someone would give the lady a nice cardy, I'd be happy to see her return.

PNY's terrifying human snake cyborg hybrid graced the box of many a GPU back in the day, and for my money, I think thet GeForce FX 5900 SE (bottom right) is probably his most terrifying incarnation. His giant purple head, backed by flames mirroring his golden yellow snake eye... It's unnerving stuff - even if it's an expert deployment of some good old fashioned complementary colour design. His eyes... they stare into my soul. No more of him, please.

Gosh, I love a graphics card with a hood that matches the box. I'm not entirely sure what the heck this second rate Poison Ivy-alike is doing with her stringy green, red petal... thing, or whether that glowing green orifice is part of her own shoulder or something else entirely. All I know is that it probably, maybe, looked achingly cool back in 2010 (yes, 2010) where everyone was still caught in the passionate throes of having watched The Dark Knight for the fifteenth time on DVD. If there was one thing you wanted to see in Nvidia's 3D Vision gubbins, it was probably this lady. Maybe.

Back in the heady days when XFX still made Nvidia cards, their GPU hero was this mean looking masked dog boy. I have a feeling he'd put up a pretty good fight against Palit's robo frog, because my word, just look at those rippling muscles. If buff guard dog wasn't enough of a loss to the GPU box art world, though, just get a load of that weird, cross-shaped box! As if it's been crushed by the paws of buff guard dog himself. More of that, please, XFX.

As yes, the Croft that even Lara's ashamed to admit she's related to, Sapphire's 'Prepare To Dominate' lady adorned the box of many a GPU back in the day. Was there ever a time when she wore actual shorts? Who can say. Such information is lost to the annals of time now, but I do like the idea that she still feels the need to mask her identity with a little eye mask all the same. Still, I'm glad this one's hung up her pistols and entered retirement now. Someone's got to watch the Croft mansion while Lara's doing her disaster tourism, after all...

The other Croft often shared graphics card box art duties with her best friend Camo Girl. No one knows her true identity, though, thanks to her expert camo mask. In fact, most of her other GPU stable mates just plain ignored her most of the time because she was so carefully camouflaged against her surroundings. Except when someone put a whacking great red and black backdrop behind her, though. Then she stood out like a sore thumb. I'd imagine she had pretty sore shoulders from carrying around that big ring of bullets all day, too. Poor lass. You deserve a nice rest love. Just let me lead you down into this bunker here, where you'll feel most comfortable. Yes, that's it. You lie down while I seal the door forever behind me. What's that? Nothing dear, you go sleep now. It will all be over soon.

Holy, flying whale cakes, now that's what I call an incredible bit of graphics card box art. Who needs sexy army ladies when you can have a cool, massively over the top samurai orc boy riding a majestic horned demon horse that looks like they've just cantered in as part of an elaborate Final Fantasy summon? Asus' Radeon HD 7750 ticks a lot of boxes here (sorry). Not only have you got an incredibly powerful mascot on the front, but there's fire, there's lightning, an ominous gothic castle in the background and, most importantly of all, it's got SUPER ALLOY POWER. And of course the final graphics card looks just as formidable as well. None of that Fishcer Price plastic nonsense that makes it look like a knock-off Bop-it or anything here, no sir. Where's Yuna when you need her, eh? I want this GPU summoned back into existence, STAT.

Another cracking box and GPU hood matching combo, Zotac's eerie golden Midas man is just as terrifying as PNY's Verto borg in my eyes. Even XFX's Buff Guard Dog would have a hard time piercing that shiny gold bod, I reckon. I mean, just look at him. This guy is smugness personified. He knows his 512MB of GDDR3 memory is the bees knees, just as much as he loves raving about his HDTV, HDCP, PCI Express 2.0 and Low Noise Cooling features. He looks down on you, Mr Midas does. And there's nothing you can do but grovel under his piercing white gaze and submit to his furious might.

Honestly, there's such a wealth of bad graphics card box art out there that it's hard to know where to go next. Do we celebrate monochrome bondage lady? Or pink robo lady? What about sneaky gremlin boy with the green bagels? he must be a relation to the moob goblin from the header, surely. There's also Wannabe Thief Fan, and perhaps my favourite, Chrome Alien Lad. He's much better than all the other quasi-winged folks on these boxes. Bring back that guy, ATI. If anyone deserves a second chance at box art stardom, it's our mate in chrome. I mean, just think how good he'd look with ray tracing these days. That boy would SHINE.

Read the original post:

The best and worst graphics card box art of all time - Rock Paper Shotgun

Israel Adesanya is back on track. Three months after suffering his first loss in a bid to add the UFC light heavyweight championship to the middleweight title he already owned, Adesanya successfully defended his 185-pound belt against Marvin Vettori over the weekend.

It was a dominant performance. The champ won all five rounds on the scorecards of all three judges. He successfully fended off 10 of his challenger's takedown attempts. And when he got taken to the canvas, Adesanya was able to quickly get back to standing or reverse position on the mat. Vettori was unable to do anything against him.

Monday through Friday, host Pablo Torre brings you an inside look at the most interesting stories at ESPN, as told by the top reporters and insiders on the planet. Listen

Despite all of that, Adesanya does not rise in the latest ESPN men's pound-for-pound rankings. It's tough being stuck behind Kamaru Usman and Jon Jones. Adesanya remains at No. 3.

Both the men's and women's rankings do have new faces down at No. 10.

In the case of the men's top 10, the new entry is actually a familiar face. Former featherweight champion Max Holloway, who had a masterful performance against Calvin Kattar in January, moved back into the rankings after Deiveson Figueiredo -- who lost his flyweight belt on Saturday -- vacated his spot in the top 10. New 125-pound champ Brandon Moreno did receive voters from a couple of panelists but not enough to crack the top 10.

The new women's rankings also added a former champion: Carla Esparza, who in 2014 became the inaugural UFC strawwweight champ. Esparza has won five in a row, most recently a second-round TKO of Yan Xiaonan in May.

Note: Results are current; rankings as of June 15.

1. Kamaru Usman

UFC welterweight championRecord: 19-1Last: W (KO2) Jorge Masvidal, April 24, 2021Next: TBD vs. Colby Covington

2. Jon Jones

UFC light heavyweight/announced move to heavyweightRecord: 26-1, 1 NCLast: W (UD) Dominick Reyes, Feb. 8, 2020Next: TBD

3. Israel Adesanya

UFC middleweight championRecord: 21-1Last: W (UD) Marvin Vettori, June 12, 2021Next: TBD

4. Francis Ngannou

UFC heavyweight championRecord: 16-3Last: W (KO2) Stipe Miocic, March 27, 2021Next: TBD vs. Derrick Lewis

5. Alexander Volkanovski

UFC featherweight championRecord: 22-1Last: W (SD) Max Holloway, July 11, 2020Next: TBD vs. Brian Ortega

T-6. Jan Blachowicz

UFC light heavyweight championRecord: 28-8Last: W (UD) Israel Adesanya, March 6, 2021Next: Sept. 4 vs. Glover Teixeira

T-6. Dustin Poirier

UFC lightweightRecord: 27-6, 1 NCLast: W (TKO2) Conor McGregor, Jan. 23, 2021Next: July 10 vs. Conor McGregor

8. Stipe Miocic

UFC heavyweightPrevious ranking: 9Record: 20-4Last: L (KO2) Francis Ngannou, March 27, 2021Next: TBD

9. Charles Oliveira

UFC lightweight championPrevious ranking: 10Record: 31-8, 1 NCLast: W (TKO2) Michael Chandler, May 15, 2021Next: TBD

10. Max Holloway

UFC featherweightPrevious ranking: UnrankedRecord: 22-6Last: W (UD) Calvin Kattar, Jan. 16, 2021Next: TBD

Other fighters receiving votes: Brandon Moreno, Robert Whittaker and Petr Yan

Ariel Helwani1. Kamaru Usman2. Jon Jones3. Israel Adesanya4. Alexander Volkanovski5. Francis Ngannou6. Charles Oliveira7. Dustin Poirier8. Max Holloway9. Jan Blachowicz10. Brandon Moreno

Brett Okamoto1. Kamaru Usman2. Jon Jones3. Israel Adesanya4. Alexander Volkanovski5. Jan Blachowicz6. Dustin Poirier7. Max Holloway8. Francis Ngannou9. Petr Yan10. Charles Oliveira

Marc Raimondi1. Kamaru Usman2. Jon Jones3. Israel Adesanya4. Francis Ngannou5. Stipe Miocic6. Alexander Volkanovski7. Dustin Poirier8. Jan Blachowicz9. Charles Oliveira10. Robert Whittaker

Jeff Wagenheim1. Jon Jones2. Francis Ngannou3. Kamaru Usman4. Israel Adesanya5. Stipe Miocic6. Jan Blachowicz7. Alexander Volkanovski8. Dustin Poirier9. Charles Oliveira10. Brandon Moreno

1. Amanda Nunes

UFC bantamweight/featherweight championRecord: 21-4Last: W (Sub1) Megan Anderson, March 6, 2021Next: Aug. 7 vs. Julianna Pea

2. Valentina Shevchenko

UFC flyweight championRecord: 21-3Last: W (TKO2) Jessica Andrade, April 24, 2021Next: TBD

3. Cris Cyborg

Bellator featherweight championRecord: 24-2, 1 NCLast: W (TKO5) Leslie Smith, May 21, 2021Next: TBD

4. Rose Namajunas

UFC strawweight championRecord: 10-4Last: W (KO1) Zhang Weili, April 24, 2021Next: TBD

5. Zhang Weili

UFC strawweightRecord: 21-2Last: L (KO1) Rose Namajunas, April 24, 2020Next: TBD

6. Joanna Jedrzejczyk

UFC strawweightRecord: 16-4Last: L (SD) Zhang Weili, March 7, 2020Next: TBD

7. Jessica Andrade

UFC flyweightRecord: 21-9Last: L (TKO2) Valentina Shevchenko, April 24, 2021Next: TBD

8. Germaine de Randamie

UFC bantamweightRecord: 10-4Last: W (TechSub3) Julianna Pea, Oct. 3, 2020Next: TBD

9. Holly Holm

UFC bantamweightRecord: 14-5Last: W (UD) Irene Aldana, Oct. 3, 2020Next: TBD

10. Carla Esparza

UFC strawweightPrevious ranking: UnrankedRecord: 18-6Last: W (TKO2) Yan Xiaonan, May 22, 2021Next: TBD

Other fighter receiving votes: Katlyn Chookagian

Ariel Helwani1. Amanda Nunes2. Valentina Shevchenko3. Cris Cyborg4. Rose Namajunas5. Zhang Weili6. Joanna Jedrzejczyk7. Jessica Andrade8. Germaine de Randamie9. Holly Holm10. Katlyn Chookagian

Brett Okamoto1. Amanda Nunes2. Valentina Shevchenko3. Rose Namajunas4. Cris Cyborg5. Zhang Weili6. Joanna Jedrzejczyk7. Germaine de Randamie8. Jessica Andrade9. Carla Esparza10. Katlyn Chookagian

Marc Raimondi1. Amanda Nunes2. Valentina Shevchenko3. Cris Cyborg4. Rose Namajunas5. Zhang Weili6. Joanna Jedrzejczyk7. Jessica Andrade8. Germaine de Randamie9. Holly Holm10. Carla Esparza

Jeff Wagenheim1. Amanda Nunes2. Valentina Shevchenko3. Cris Cyborg4. Rose Namajunas5. Zhang Weili6. Joanna Jedrzejczyk7. Jessica Andrade8. Germaine de Randamie9. Holly Holm10. Carla Esparza

More here:

MMA pound-for-pound rankings - Two ex-champs stake their places in men's and women's top 10 - ESPN

Just to remind you of some of the basics, "Rick and Morty" is set on a version of Earth where Rick Sanchez (Roiland) lives with his daughter Beth (Sarah Chalke), son-in-law Jerry (Chris Parnell), grand-daughter Summer (Spencer Grammer) and of course his grandson Morty (also Roiland). All four family members appear in most episodes, and they all have their issues.

Beth and Jerry are often a toxic couple (once getting a divorce before reuniting), often due to Jerry's incompetence and spinelessness while Beth, like her father, struggles with alcoholism and fears being too attached to others. Summer is usually the most well-adjusted, although she also has her issues with self-image and friction with other family members. Morty is often traumatized by the adventures he and Rick go on and struggles with fitting in at school as well as his constant crush on his classmate, Jessica (Kari Wahlgren).

When not at home, Rick and Morty (and occasionally the other family members) go on adventures across planets and dimensions with the use of Rick's portal gun and space cruiser. Each dimension has its own version of each family member, with the main duo living in a nearly identical dimension and taking the place of its Rick and Morty after an episode in Season 1 effectively ruined the Earth. This means that no characters aside from Rick and Morty are the "original" characters, but although this is sometimes brought up, they try not to think about it too much.

More:

What You Need To Remember Before Watching Rick And Morty Season 5 - Looper

This is a battle thats seemingly been going on since the dawn of time (its only been a few months in reality). However, Ray Fisher has now taken to Twitter to demand that Warner Bros. Pictures restores the SnyderVerse.

Ray Fisher played Cyborg in Justice League and Zack Snyders Justice League and it probably wasnt the best experience for the actor.

Hes revealed what it was like working on the movie when Joss Whedon took over the production.

Since revealing how it was for him working with Joss Whedon and certain executives at Warner Bros. Pictures, there have been a number of other actors whove also come out in support of Fisher.

A number of actors have also revealed what Joss Whedon was like to work with and it doesnt make for good reading.

However, then the Snyder Cut was released and people saw a much-improved film from Whedons 2017 theatrical release.

Yet, even though the film was a pretty big success, Warner Bros. Pictures still refused to carry on the SnyderVerse.

That said, theres been a huge outcry online for the SnyderVerse to be restored, and Ray Fisher has added his voice to the millions.

Fisher took to Twitter recently to share the hashtag #RestoreTheSnyderVerse, and people loved him for it.

Read more: Jared Leto Calls For WarnerMedia To Restore The SnyderVerse

The tweet went viral, with over 16,000 people liking it and over 5,000 people retweeting it.

#RestoreTheSnyderVerse also ended up trending on Twitter the other day, again.

I think #RestoreTheSnyderVerse must be one of Twitters best-performing hashtags over the past few months.

Will this convince Warner Bros. Pictures to do what the fans and Ray Fisher are asking them to do?

Only time will tell.

However, this new WarnerMedia/Discovery merger has given the fans hope, and for good reason

Discovery must see how popular the SnyderVerse is and might be convinced to keep it going over on streaming.

We will have to wait and see what happens.

What do you make of this news?

Are you hoping that Warner Bros. Pictures will go ahead and restore the SnyderVerse?

Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

What do you make of this story? Let us know in the comments below or on ourFacebook, Twitter or Instagrampages! And if you enjoy listening to film podcasts, why not check out our podcasts,Small Screen StoriesandSmall Screen Film Clubwherever you get your podcasts!

See the rest here:

Ray Fisher Demands WB To Restore The SnyderVerse - Small Screen

The biggest upgrade for a character from the 2017 version of Justice League to Zack Snyder's Justice League was regarding Victor Stone aka Cyborg, played by Ray Fisher. At one point, Cyborg was set to play a major role in the upcoming solo Flash movie, but the very public fallout between Fisher and Warner Bros. during which he accused the studio of racially motivated actions against his onscreen character led to Cyborg getting dropped from The Flash. Now, during the Justice Con event that is raising money for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, Fisher weighed in on what it would take for him to return as Cyborg to the DCEU.

The theatrical version of Justice League drastically reduced Cyborg's backstory, which the "Snyder Cut" restored. Fisher has also stated in past interviews that he was forced to say Cyborg's catchphrase "Booyah" despite being uncomfortable being the only character in the film with a catchphrase. A variety of other accusations were also leveled by Fisher against the management at Warner, and the actor has been calling for an apology since last year. According to Ray Fisher, while he knows getting an apology is a long shot, he will continue to ask for an acknowledgment from the studio regarding their wrongs.

Zack Snyder's Justice League stars Ben Affleck as Batman, Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman, Henry Cavill as Superman, Amy Adams as Lois Lane, Jason Momoa as Aquaman, Ezra Miller as The Flash, Ray Fisher as Cyborg, Jeremy Irons as Alfred Pennyworth, Diane Lane as Martha Kent, Ray Porter as Darkseid, Ciarn Hinds as Steppenwolf, Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor and J.K. Simmons as Commissioner Gordon. The film is currently available on HBO Max.

Topics: Cyborg, Flashpoint, Flash

Link:

Ray Fisher Thinks Cyborg Could Return in The Flash Movie If Warner Bros. Apologizes - MovieWeb

Julia Budd must get through Dayana Silva before chance to reclaim gold, possible rematch with Cris Cyborg

Julia Budd is on a quest to get back the Bellator womens featherweight championship, and her next step comes at Bellator 257 on April 16, as she welcomes Dayana Silva to the Bellator cage for the first time.

Budd was successful in her last outing, defeatingJessica Miele by unanimous decision at Bellator 244 in August. It was a fairly dominant performance and a needed bounce-back for Budd after losing the title to Cristiane Justino (aka Cris Cyborg) at the start of 2020.

But Budd told FanSided MMA in an exclusive interview that it wasnt the performance she had hoped for against Miele, even though she was thankful to get back in the cage especially with how wild the year 2020 was.

It was great to get back in there and get a win, but obviously I was really looking for the finish in that fight, Budd told FanSided MMA. And so it was like a mix of emotions, but at the same time, I was just so happy to be able to get in there, get a win after losing in January and having the chance to fight twice in 2020.

The loss to Justino was just Budds third loss in professional MMA. Budd started off her career 2-2 in Strikeforce, but two losses came to some of the greatest names womens MMA has ever known: Ronda Rousey and Amanda Nunes.

In fact, between those two losses, Budd scored a victory over Germaine de Randamie.

Budd then went over to Invicta for a spill before ending up in Bellator, and she went on an 11-fight win streak, which included capturing Bellators female 145-pound championship.

But even with her only losses coming against some of female MMAs best of all time, it doesnt provide solace to the feeling of defeat, let alone losing a championship.

Ive been a competitor my entire life and a champion, and so it was definitely hard losing, Budd said. But after kind of watching the fight, correcting a lot of it, getting back in the gym, Im feeling like I am still evolving and getting better as a mixed martial artist. The goal is still there and I feel like Im right there. So it was definitely hard, but Im still here and Im still motivated to get the belt back.

It was mostly technical stuff from my striking and little stuff in my wrestling, ground [game], so it was these little techniques that basically now, being as long as Ive been in the sport, we can look as a team and make the adjustments and correct them. So that feels good to be able to do, but at the same time, Im looking to go out there on April 16 and have an amazing performance and show why I deserve that title shot again.

Before Budd can think of another title shot, and potentially getting revenge on Justino, she must first get through Silva, wholl be making her Bellator debut.

Silva won seven of her first 10 bouts before competing on season two of Dana Whites Contender Series, losing a split decision toGisele Moreira. Silva then went 2-1 in Shooto Brasil, most recently defeatingTayna Lamounier at Shooto Brasil 100 in August.

[I] studied all of her fights. I really respect the team shes coming from, Budd said. Shes a tough girl and I look forward to it. I think we match up great and I look forward to welcoming her.

Getting thrown right away into a fight with the former longtime champ in a promotional debut might be quite the start for Silva, but Budd is certain shell be getting a Silva who performs at her full potential, nerves or not.

I always expect my opponents to be having their best night, Budd said. I never kind of look too far into that becauseI remember when I first got to fight on Strikeforce or Bellator; I was excited more than nervous.

Im just expecting it to be here last night, and Im expecting to have my best night.

And it should be quite the memorable night either way for Budd, as the new Bellator deal with Showtime gives her the chance to compete on the TV platform for the first time since her days with Strikeforce.

Showtime and Strikeforce, which was run by current Bellator CEO Scott Coker, were pivotal players in the early role of womens MMA. At a time where women werent in the UFC and MMA didnt have the mainstream attention its able to get today, the promotion placed a focus and spotlight on womens MMA that no one else was giving.

Now with MMA back on Showtime, Budd feels it can lead to more women giving martial arts, whether MMA or the more traditional martial arts, a try.

I think it just increases basically everything, Budd said. Its just another step in the right direction for women to explore martial arts or mixed martial arts, and its an awesome platform to be fighting on.

The Bellator womens featherweight title will be next on the line at Bellator 259, as Justino defends against Leslie Smith.

Budd is not looking past Silva but is confident shell put out the win and Justino will beat Smith. And Budd would love to get the title back and get revenge on Justino at the same time.

Im fully focused on this fight ahead; never looking past my opponent, Budd said. But yeah, I expect that I go there and make an amazing statement and show why I deserve that spot. Then my performance will do the talking for me.

Read the original post:

Bellator 257: Julia Budd expects win over Dayana Silva will lead to rematch with Cris Cyborg - FanSided

CINCINNATI LSU star wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase impressed NFL teams and scouts at LSU's Pro Day last month. The 21-year-old has been training for months to prepare for life in the pros.

The NFL's "Play Football" YouTube channel took an in-depth look at his training regimen before and after his pro day. Watch it below.

The Bengals are eyeing Chase with the fifth overall pick. If they don't take the star receiver, then they'll likely draft Oregon tackle Penei Sewell at No. 5.

Videos like this and the summer of 10,000 catches bodes well for Chase's chances of going in the top seven, even if the Bengals don't take him with the fifth pick.

Related: Penei Sewell Goes Through Four Stage Work Out

For the latest free agency news and NFL Draft coverage, bookmark AllBengals and check out some of our other articles below.

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Read the original here:

Watch: Ja'Marr Chase is Training Like a Cyborg to Prepare for Life in the NFL - Sports Illustrated

Two recent stories from The Hollywood Reporter examine the toxic work environment in Hollywood.

In one, actor Ray Fisher spoke out about being mistreated while working on Justice League with Joss Whedon. Fisher was excited about portraying Cyborg, the first Black superhero in the DC Comics film universe. The films original director, Zack Snyder, had to leave mid-production because of a family tragedy, and Fisher clashed with Whedon, the new director who cut Cyborgs part and insisted Fisher say a catchphrase he felt was not appropriate.

Fisher said other actors also had issues with Whedon, but that Warner Bros. seemed more interested in protecting top executives than hearing their concerns.

In the new version of the film, Zack Snyders Justice League, Fisher has a larger part.

In another piece from The Hollywood Reporter, ex-staffers of famous producer Scott Rudin went on the record about his abusive behavior.

Rudins reputation as a toxic bully has long been documented in the industry, but this may be a tipping point as more people step forward to call out his abuses, which include sending an assistant to the hospital after Rudin smashed a laptop monitor on the assistants hand.

Rudin is also a producer on Broadway, and at least one performer in one of his shows says shes not going back to work for him. Karen Olivo (Broadways Moulin Rouge!) said in an Instagram video, The silence about Scott Rudin? Unacceptable. Unacceptable. That's the easy one, y'all. That's a monster. That should be a no-brainer. Those of you who say you're scared, what are you afraid of?

With the Oscars coming up, Rudin collaborators may be asked about him at press events. Rudin has worked on multiple projects with Aaron Sorkin, director of the Oscar-nominated film The Trial of the Chicago 7. Rudin is also slated to have an upcoming project with Frances McDormand, who is nominated for Best Actress.

Rudin is not an employee of a company, so he cant be fired, but hell be out of luck if talent refuses to work with him.

More:

Will Hollywood take a stand on workplace bullying? Ray Fisher and others speak out - KCRW

There is never a dull moment with Elon Musk. At a recent Clubhouse interaction, the world's richest man revealed that his Neuralink start-up has monkeys with brain implants that allow them to play video games with one another.

Subsequently, his tweet revealed the long-term plans of the start-up: Human-AI symbiosis that is touted as species-level important.

Read on for more craziness that transpired today.

If there was ever a case against brain implants, WhatsApp's latest attempt to brainwash its users into conceding to its privacy policy trap makes a good one.

The messaging service has been sending story-like in-app messages reminding users that Facebook isn't an evil corporation that harvests and sells their private data to achieve everything ranging from manipulating your mood to manipulating elections.

Even as Big Tech has managed to de-platform who was once the most powerful person in the world and kill off competitors with zero consequences, the upside-down land of Australia isn't having any of it.

Australian premier Scott Morrison called out Google's bluff to pull its search engine from the country. Now, Microsoft has offered to fill the void with its Bing search engine.

Australia isn't the only one sticking it to the powers that be.

Reddit's WallStreetBets saga is an unprecedented case of how the internet facilitated people's burning desire to wrest the levers of economic power away from the clutches of a few chosen elites.

This silent revolution didn't involve peasants with pitchforks, but the working class weaponizing their stimulus checks to break Wall Street's back.

Now back to more boring stuff.

If you have bought the new M1-powered MacBooks this Christmas, you are in for a treat with NVIDIA bringing native M1 support to its GeForce NOW cloud gaming service.

What's more, Apple's next M1 chips are rumored to include a 128-core GPU. It looks like proper gaming on the Mac might be an actual possibility in the future.

Don't you hate it when tech companies take a break from subverting democracy and sowing seeds of civil war to come up with products squarely targeted at the sort of people who answer Nigerian email scams?

Well, Xiaomi's latest patent seems to be an attempt to top yesterday's snake oil campaign featuring an improbable wireless charging system that was thoroughly debunked by EEVBlog.

View original post here:

NewsBytes Briefing: Musk's army of gamer cyborg monkeys, and more | NewsBytes - NewsBytes

According to a source close to FightLine, reigning Bellator champion Cris Cyborg is scared of a potential showdown with Kayla HarrisonPFL Champion Kayla Harrison Returns To Action Once More.

At the end of 2020, Harrison stepped into the Invicta FC cage and moved up in weight to find a new challenge. Her readiness at any moment to compete continued before another planned fight was scrapped.

The reigning Professional Fighters League lightweight champion and Olympic gold medalist will return to the PFL cage in early 2021 when the new season begins.

However, she remained interested in a potential mega-bout with Cyborg if things could be worked out.

The source has indicated that Cyborg prefers to remain strictly in Bellator MMA and continue her dominance there instead of testing herself against Harrison.

Harrison has been willing to move from lightweight to featherweight to make things happen for herself in continued the climb to being the top female fighter the sport has to offer.

She is 8-0 including a recent finish of Courtney King. Harrison has won all seven of her fights under the PFL banner including a 2019 decision vs. Larissa Pacheco in the tournament final.

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Prior to embarking on her career in MMA, Harrison compiled a record of 45-7 in judo including gold at the 2016 Summer Olympic Games and 2012 Summer Olympic Games.

PFL officials allowed Harrison to step into the Invicta FC cage in November and were willing to do the same for a December match in Titan FC.

Cyborg signed with Bellator and made her promotional debut in 2020 with a finish of Julia Budd to win the featherweight title. She defended it last October over Arlene Blencowe.

Along with winning gold in Bellator, the Brazilian is also a former UFC and Strikeforce champion, sporting a career record of 23-2 overall with 18 wins by knockout.

Any showdown between Harrison and Cyborg now appears off the table as both move forward with their respective careers. We will continue to monitor and follow this situation on TheMix.

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Cris Cyborg Scared To Face Kayla Harrison Inside The Cage - The MIX

Pilou Asbk as Victor Koval (left) and Anthony Mackie as Capt. Leo in the Netflix film Outside the Wire.

Over his career, the Swedish filmmaker Mikael Hfstrm has worked with some of Hollywood's biggest stars, like Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone, Jennifer Aniston, John Cusack and Anthony Hopkins. It's hard to imagine that he got his start as a writer for Swedish television shows. In 2004, his film Evil received an Academy Award nomination for Best Foreign Language Film, and that's when he went from directing films in Sweden to helming movies in Hollywood.

Hfstrm's newest film is Outside the Wire, on Netflix. It stars Anthony Mackie as a top secret android army officer who recruits a drone pilot, played by Damson Idris, to stop a nuclear attack. The sci-fi thriller delves into philosophical questions about humans and morality. The relationship between Mackie and Idris echoes the relationship Denzel Washington's and Ethan Hawke's characters had in the film Training Day.

Subscribe to CNET Now for the day's most interesting reviews, news stories and videos.

On CNET's I'm So Obsessed podcast, Hfstrm explains the challenge of finding the perfect look on screen for Mackie's cyborg character, Captain Leo.

"He is a bio technical prototype. He looks like you and me," said Hfstrm. "One of the biggest jobs, obviously, was to try to figure out exactly what he looked like. What his interior looked like. I don't know how many versions we went through to find something that didn't feel overdone, but was also visually interesting. And hopefully it's something that we haven't seen in other movies."

During our conversation, we discussed the parallels between the way nuclear weapons are shown in popular culture and the way they are secretly present in all of our lives. Hfstrm also shares what it was like working with both Schwarzenegger and Stallone in the film Escape Plan.

"It was a good thing that they were both in the movie, because they were sort of competing at being the nicest guy on set," said Hfstrm with a laugh. "They were older, and their rivalry had passed. And now they were old friends sitting on set smoking cigars, telling war stories and it was just a good time."

You can listen to my entire conversation with Hfstrm on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. You can watch Outside the Wire on Netflix. Also, you can subscribe to I'm So Obsessed on your favorite podcast app. In each episode, Connie Guglielmo or I catch up with an artist, actor or creator to learn about work, career and current obsessions.

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Outside the Wire director explains how Anthony Mackie was turned into a cyborg - CNET

Pilou Asbk as Victor Koval (left) and Anthony Mackie as Capt. Leo in the Netflix film Outside the Wire.

Netflix

Over his career, the Swedish filmmaker Mikael Hfstrm has worked with some of Hollywoods biggest stars, like Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone, Jennifer Aniston, John Cusack and Anthony Hopkins. Its hard to imagine that he got his start as a writer for Swedish television shows. In 2004, his film Evil received an Academy Award nomination for Best Foreign Language Film, and thats when he went from directing films in Sweden to helming movies in Hollywood.

Hfstrms newest film is Outside the Wire, on Netflix. It stars Anthony Mackie as a top secret android army officer who recruits a drone pilot, played by Damson Idris, to stop a nuclear attack. The sci-fi thriller delves into philosophical questions about humans and morality. The relationship between Mackie and Idris echoes the relationship Denzel Washingtons and Ethan Hawkes characters had in the film Training Day.

Subscribe to CNET Now for the days most interesting reviews, news stories and videos.

On CNETs Im So Obsessed podcast, Hfstrm explains the challenge of finding the perfect look on screen for Mackies cyborg character, Captain Leo.

He is a bio technical prototype. He looks like you and me, said Hfstrm. One of the biggest jobs, obviously, was to try to figure out exactly what he looked like. What his interior looked like. I dont know how many versions we went through to find something that didnt feel overdone, but was also visually interesting. And hopefully its something that we havent seen in other movies.

During our conversation, we discussed the parallels between the way nuclear weapons are shown in popular culture and the way they are secretly present in all of our lives. Hfstrm also shares what it was like working with both Schwarzenegger and Stallone in the film Escape Plan.

It was a good thing that they were both in the movie, because they were sort of competing at being the nicest guy on set, said Hfstrm with a laugh. They were older, and their rivalry had passed. And now they were old friends sitting on set smoking cigars, telling war stories and it was just a good time.

You can listen to my entire conversation with Hfstrm on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. You can watch Outside the Wire on Netflix. Also, you can subscribe to Im So Obsessed on your favorite podcast app. In each episode, Connie Guglielmo or I catch up with an artist, actor or creator to learn about work, career and current obsessions.

Read the original:

Exterior the Wire director explains how Anthony Mackie was became a cyborg - The Shepherd of the Hills Gazette

Cyborg actor Ray Fisher asked why some fans are taking anissue as to why his character does not say the catchphrase, Booyah, in Zack Snyders Justice League. The actor asked fans on Twitter. This question isnt all too innocent if the basis will be producer Jon Berg who revealed that the actor didnt want to say the catchphrase when asked to do so.

On Twitter, Fisher asked fans with a serious reflective question to fans who are taking issue with Cyborg not saying the word booyah in Snyders cut. He added that are those fans just as upset when none of the other characters use their catchphrases.

He ended the question that if the fans are not bothered with the other characters not saying their catchphrases, why are they taking issue if Cyborg doesnt say it.

The actors fans flocked to the tweet to show support for him not wanting to say the catchphrase. However, his question might be loaded. In July 2020, Fisher accused Joss Whedon of engaging with gross, abusive, unprofessional, and completely unacceptable behavior during the reshoots for Justice League.

The actor added that producers Jon Berg and Geoff Johns enabled Whedons behavior. Berg responded that Fishers accusations were categorically untrue. The producer added that he remembered a time that Fisher was upset because they wanted him to say Booyaa.

The producer said that it was a famous catchphrase of Cyborg in the animated series. Berg said, "I remember [Fisher] being upset that we wanted him to say Booyaa, which is a well-known saying of Cyborg in the animated series."

Warner Bros launched an investigation into the allegations but was later followed by a third-party investigation due to Fishers request. In December 2020, Warner Media announced the investigation was completed and remedial action was done based on the investigations findings.

Fisher, later on, said that he will not take part in any projects on Warner Bros. if its overseen by DC Films Walter Hamada, calling him a dangerous enabler. Despite the fiasco, the actor said that he will promote Zack Snyders Justice League. The actor said, "There's no way you can stop me from doing press for Zack Snyder's Justice League."

Zack Snyders Justice League will be released on HBO Max on March 18, 2021.

Related:Ray Fisher Insists on Promoting Justice League Snyder Cut Despite Ongoing WB Drama

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Producer Accused By Ray Fisher Revealed That the Actor Was Upset Because They Wanted Him to Say Cyborg's Catchphrase - Epicstream