Emahlstadt

In pretty much every conceivable way, Jaws is the perfect example of a franchise getting worse with each new installment, with the devolution from the original classic to 1987’s Jaws: The Revenge being one of the most depressing in franchise history. Of particular note, the series’ shark effects devolved greatly between 1975 and 1987… oddly enough.

The practical effects, though they are indeed admirably practical, in Jaws: The Revenge aren’t so hot, and the team at CKVfx just set out to essentially give the film a visual effects makeover to see if they couldn’t improve upon the fourth installment’s 30-year-old practical work. For now, they’ve merely redone one shark sequence from the film, just uploaded on YouTube.

Horror fans may continue to hate on CGI, but movies like The Shallows prove that CG sharks can be just as terrifying as practical ones. In this case, better looking as well…

There's a new Halo game out this summer and you don't need an Xbox to play it. Instead, all you have to do is roll up to any Dave & Buster's and start popping quarters into it. Halo: Fireteam Raven is a four-player co-op on-rails arcade shooter developed by Raw Thrills and Play Mechanix, set during the events of the first (and best) game. Fireteam Raven plays out across a 130-inch wide 4K screen.

Source: Xbox Wire

Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes is a clever application of VR, as only one headset is required (for the bomb defuser) while everyone else explains how to deactivate the device. Now, you'll be able to play the game on consoles without a headset, as it is coming to PS4, Xbox One and Nintendo's Switch. Pre-orders start today at noon ET, with an official release date of August 16th.

Source: PlayStation Blog

using Google’s AutoML Vision and a creepy robot doll hand to find Waldo

What does $50 million get you in the brewing world? A lot. Guinness’ first brewery on America soil since 1954 (the 1954 brewery was a quickly shuttered facility in Long Island City, New York) just opened this week ten miles from Baltimore in Halethorpe, Maryland. It’s touted as one of only two “experimental” Guinness…

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Get your burnt-orange kool-aid ready for the 2018 season, folks.

CBS Sports released its preseason College Football Playoff and bowl game predictions for the 2018 season on Thursday, and there are now high hopes for the ‘Horns.

CBS Sports Senior Writer Jerry Palm projected the 2018-19 bowl landscape, and he anticipates another notable step forward from the Texas Longhorns, projecting them to the Sugar Bowl. Palm has Texas facing off against last year’s national championship runner-up, the Georgia Bulldogs.

If this proved true, it would be about as enticing as it gets for a New Years Six bowl game with second year head coach Tom Herman and third year head coach Kirby Smart leading rebuilt programs into the same arena.

The Sugar Bowl will be played on Jan. 1 at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans.

A New Years Six bowl appearance in year two of the Herman era would be a major success, indicating the program has turned the corner and is headed towards being among the nation’s elite programs, once again.

Palm has the Oklahoma Sooners making the College Football Playoff for the second consecutive season, playing Alabama in the No. 1 vs. No. 4 semifinal. He has a 2016 CFP semifinal rematch with Clemson taking on Ohio State in the No. 2 vs. No. 3 semifinal.

First things first, let’s take care of Maryland.

When these 3/4-sized Arcade1Up arcade cabinets first went on preorder for $299, we thought it was a mistake, since they were supposed to cost $399. At this point though, it seems clear that $299 is in fact what they now cost, but inventory is still limited, since they were out of stock for awhile.

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There have been plenty of arguments over the years about the relative merits of the various Star Trek captains—Does Kathryn Janeway get a bad rap? Does Kirk’s blend of machismo and heart stand up? Why didn’t they let Sisko shave sooner?—but you’d be hard pressed to find a modern Trek fan without at least some…

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There are three states of being. Awake. Asleep. And somewhere in between.

The other week, we shared with you the first trailer for Clive Tonge’s Mara, wherein Javier Botet (Mama, [REC], Insidious: The Last Key, IT) plays the title character alongside Mitch Eakins (Glory Road, Evil Bong) and Olga Kurylenko (The Death of Stalin, Oblivion, Vampire Academy, Quantum Solice, Hitman). Now, Bloody Disgusting has the full image gallery that puts Botet’s creepy performance on full display!

From a producer of Paranormal Activity and Insidious comes this “shock-filled descent into fear”:

“After a man is seemingly strangled in his bed, criminal psychologist Kate Fuller (Kurylenko) interviews the sole witness, the victim’s eight-year-old daughter, Sophie. When asked to identify the killer, Sophie says, “Mara.” As Kate digs into the case, she unearths a community of people who claim to be tormented by a shadowy menace, a centuries-old demon who kills her victims as they sleep.”

Mara will be in theaters and available on Digital HD and VOD September 7, 2018.

BreckBeck had some thoughts after Saturday’s shorts football simulation.

2018 Texas Longhorn Football Preview: The 6th Annual Thinking Texas Football

Read it now on:

SMASHWORDS

AMAZON

APPLE

BARNES & NOBLE

Here’s what’s happening in the world of television for Wednesday, August 1. All times are Eastern.

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When you think about DC Comics, you think about Batman fighting the Joker or Superman fighting Lex Luthor. However, when you're a kid, playing with all your action figures, sometimes Batman ends up fighting Starscream from Transformers and Superman ends up fighting Mumm-Ra from Thundercats. DC has taken that sandbox mentality into its comics over the past few years, with miniseries like Batman/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtlesand the publisher's newest book Injustice Vs. Masters of the Universe. What would happen if Superman, from Injustice: Gods Among Us, fought He-Man?

The six-issue miniseries, which saw its first issue's release on July 18, has these two vastly different universes crossing over. "After basically the end of the Injustice 2 video game, Superman has taken over, again," explains writer Tim Seeley. "It's the alt-ending, it's the dark ending. Superman has taken over and he's using the powers that he gets from Brainiac, and Batman has to go find someone to defeat Superman, and he picks He-Man.

Gallery

"For reasons in the story which is basically, He-Man is like the good version of the evil Superman. He's a guy with all this power, but he wants the people to have freedom and to be able to determine their own destiny. In Injustice, Superman doesn't want that, at all; he wants control. So, it's basically, He-Man gets recruited to go to Earth and kick the crap out of bad Superman."

Both the DC and MOTU worlds are filled with characters, so of course, there are going to be some lesser-known characters included in the comic for the hardcore fans. This includes adding the MOTU villain Scare Glow to the book, which artist Freddie Williams II explained was not a joke. However, from there, the two creators went deep into He-Man lore. "Tim has put in so many cool Easter Egg characters, deep holes of all this Masters of the Universe continuity, it is a pleasure to draw," Williams explains. "It's the coolest stuff, I'm getting to have all the toys I never had as a kid. Like, the whole army of every Masters of the Universe. It's awesome."

While both Eternia and the DC Universe are vastly different worlds, they fit together perfectly for this story. "Tim has such a great deep understanding of Masters of The Universe that he immediately connected it well, like as a contrast," explained Williams. "Sort of like a brightness in Eternia, which is the home planet of Prince Adam. That's their universe, with this dark dystopian-esque sort of alternate reality of the Injustice world. Just reading his initial outline and his initial thoughts. It connected in a way that I didn't see coming, but made total sense. I can't picture a better way to basically make these properties interact and connect."

This isn't the first time DC Comics has worked on something with the MOTU property. "I think an interesting sort of evolution in the Masters of The Universe it domes from DC Comics, because when Mattel came up with this toy line and had a story for it," Seeley said. "They said 'Oh, we're gonna have a mini-comic' and DC Produced that initial stuff. Also basically came up with the Prince Adam story and all that sort of stuff. It's basically Captain Marvel. It's a kid that turns into a superhero with a magic word. And that comes from DC. It all comes back together."

You can check out this series for yourself as issue #1 of Injustice Vs. Masters of the Universe is on sale now, and issue #2 comes out on August 15.

Before the rights to the franchise were hung up in a complicated legal battle that is still leaving its future hanging in the balance, Paramount was *this* close to getting another Friday the 13th film off the ground. Breck Eisner (The Crazies) was all set to direct a brand new Paramount/Platinum Dunes reboot from a script penned by Aaron Guzikowski, but the project was indefinitely shut down in February 2017. The story at the time was that the box office under-performance of Rings gave Paramount cold feet about reviving another long dormant horror franchise, but as it turns out, that’s not the *whole* story.

As hardcore fans are aware, the rights to the Friday the 13th franchise reverted back to Warner Bros./New Line early this year (a separate issue from the more problematic lawsuit that’s unfolding as I sit here typing this article up), and Platinum Dunes producer Brad Fuller explains in a new chat with Syfy Wire that the impending loss of franchise rights played heavily into Paramount’s decision to scrap the Eisner-directed film last year.

“There was a couple of things. I think there was concern about the rights looming at that point,” Fuller explained. “Paramount was concerned if they made that movie and the rights were not available… if you are going to make that movie, you want to be able to ride it for more than one or two movies. That didn’t exist in this rights structure. We were going down the road to make the movie, but, at the end of the day, economically and/or creatively, they didn’t want to make it.”

He continued, “There’s this clause in the rights that the rights revert back to New Line. As that date became closer and closer, Paramount would have made one Friday the 13th movie and then New Line would have benefited if the movie was great. Then, New Line could have followed it up with subsequent movies. It put Paramount in a very tough position to go ahead and actually make the movie, and then us to reap the benefits if it was successful beyond that particular film.”

In addition to the rights issues, Fuller confirms that Rings played a role as well.

“That was also a time when sequels were not doing as well,” he explained. “We’re all kind of reactionary when you are making something. You are looking for evidence that tells you that what you are making is right on the cutting edge of where society is going, and you certainly don’t want to make something that feels like the timing is wrong. I wouldn’t say the whole thing fell apart because of [Rings]. I certainly think that played into it. But, I also think the rights and now the litigation about the rights for Friday the 13th played into it in a much more substantial way than just how the Rings sequel did.”

[Related] Here’s Everything You Would’ve Seen in the New ‘Friday the 13th’ Reboot

At this time, literally *nothing* is going on with the franchise. And as nice as it would’ve been to get one more film before the legal issues became a full-blown (temporary) franchise killer, it’s completely understandable that Paramount didn’t want to bring Jason Voorhees back only to lose him shortly thereafter. You can’t blame them, even if the decision was a total bummer.

We’ll be waiting for you, Jason. We’ll never stop waiting.

Castle Rock is part of the recent wave of excellent Stephen King adaptations that includes last year’s cinematic takes on It and Gerald’s Game. What sets Castle Rock apart, and what might generally push viewers over the love-hate divide, comes down to how distracted they’ll be with picking up on the plethora of Easter…

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Nintendo's books are healthy, but the company still has work to do. The house of Mario sold 1.88 million Switch consoles last quarter, bringing total sales up to 19.67 million. These figures, while decent, pale in comparison to the 2.93 million and 7.23 million sales reported in its previous two earnings. The slowdown can be attributed to the time of year -- it's no longer the holiday season -- and the limited software Nintendo has released in 2018. Beyond Octopath Traveler, Fortnite and Mario Tennis Aces, there have been few tentpole titles. Instead, the company has relied on Hollow Knight, Semblance and other indies to keep the Switch fresh.

Source: Nintendo IR

All hail Cthulhu, who can soon be worshiped at the breakfast table!

Funko just launched a brand new line of cereals, with Freddy Krueger and Jason Voorhees being two of the first pop culture characters to get their own. Both cereals are now up for grabs exclusively through FYE, both in store and through FYE’s website.

Next month’s Wave 2, as we learned last week, will include Pennywise and Beetlejuice cereals, and now we know that green Cthulhu cereal is also being released in August. Cthulhu’s cereal will be exclusive to Books-a-Million, and it includes a mini POP! toy as a prize!

Funko recently detailed the cereal line…

“Funko, purveyors of pop culture and all things awesome, is committed to helping you start the day off right by putting the fun back in breakfast with FunkO’s. And as we all know from Saturday morning commercials; every breakfast starts with a bowl of brightly colored cereal that comes out of a box with a really cool mascot on the front and a prize inside!

Funko is kicking off this summer with six new FunkO’s cereals, each guaranteed to turn your milk a different amazing color. Funko has no shortage of beloved mascots that already feature largely in the Funkoverse as Pop! vinyl figures and other collectibles. Now these pop culture icons will join you for breakfast!

In July, Mega Man FunkO’s will be available at GameStop, Cuphead & Mugman FunkO’s will be available at Hot Topic, Freddy FunkO’s will be available through Funko,Nightmare On Elm Street’s Freddy Krueger FunkO’s and Friday the 13^th’s Jason FunkO’s will be available at FYE, and The Lord of the Rings FunkO’s featuring Gollum will be available at BoxLunch. Additional cereals will continue to be added throughout the year for your snacking pleasure.

And of course, to put the fun back in breakfast, each box contains a collectible prize, making the boxes as much fun to collect as they are to eat! You’ll find a collectible figure inside every box of FunkO’s, so you’re going to want two boxes – one to taste, and one to display on your shelf with your Pop! collection.”

The boldest and correctest opinions about the Longhorns anywhere.

Texas Longhorns football is a little more than one month away, but with the calendar turning from July to August, it’s time for the annual Texas tradition of hyping up this Longhorns team into playoff contention before mid-September when the ‘Horns miss a game-tying PAT and lose to Tulsa.

But that was then. This is now.

Now is the time for extreme optimism — if for no other reason than this team has yet to give us a reason to be down. Is that because they haven’t taken the field yet? Quite possibly. But the unknown is much better than the known when the known just gave up 50 points at home against Maryland.

Texas is a new team this season. We say this every season, but this season we mean it. Why? Because this is Texas — and at any given moment, with the right coaching, Texas can field a 10-win team. The question is: Will they do it this year? My answer, as it always is in the preseason SMO, is yes.

The SMO does not deal in logic or reason. We do not care for your facts and figures, your analysis or your pivot tables. The SMO runs entirely on moxie.

This is the Case McCoy of Texas football columns. I have no idea why they let me keep doing it and it’s usually not very good but occasionally it’s great and also my dad is constantly yelling at the editors.

10 bold predictions for 2018 Texas football

No. 1: Texas wins at least 10 games in 2018

That’s right. Neutral readers here for balanced perspectives be gone. I am immediately introducing bias into this column by stating that I unequivocally believe that this Texas team will win at least 10 games in 2018 and that belief is based on little more than I really want them to win at least 10 games.

Texas is set up for 2018 the same way it was set up for success in years past — with legitimate NFL talent on the roster and a huge question mark at quarterback.

The difference maker this year is Texas head coach Tom Herman. What can he do after two full years of coaching with his system entirely in place, a quarterback room he’s familiar with, and even adding some of the most talented true freshmen Texas has ever had?

His coaching history shows he knows how to win. This team has enough talent to win. There are no guaranteed losses on a favorable schedule with the toughest games being played at home or on a neutral field. The Horns can play with everyone on it.

No. 2: Sam Ehlinger wins the job and doesn’t look back

The questions at quarterback are no different than they were last season. The difference is, this season Texas football has full room of scholarship quarterbacks instead of two guys and a wide receiver. That’s a huge deal for competitive balance and development — and also because fans don’t have to cringe every time the quarterback takes a hit.

Still, a room full of scholarship quarterbacks with the oldest being a true junior doesn’t mean Texas has the experience it needs at the position. That being said, I think Sam Ehlinger takes the reins this year. It’s his team to lose.

No. 3: Tim Beck doesn’t lose his job this season, but might leave on his own if he wants

Texas fans love firing coaches almost as much as they love winning games. This year, Texas sees the benefits of coaching continuity pay dividends on the field. Because of that, after this season we see the least amount of coaching attrition since the golden age of Mack Brown, except with guys (Orlando) who (Orlando) might (Orlando) be (Orlando) ready (Orlando) for (Orlando) head-coaching (Orlando) opportunities, depending on who that might be.

No. 4: Texas beats Oklahoma in Dallas because the Horns win every Red River Rivalry I can’t attend and lose every game I can make

Take this one to the bank, folks. The last time Texas beat Oklahoma I was moving my fiancé from Minneapolis to Chicago and missed essentially every play because I couldn’t get a good radio signal in the U-Haul.

This year, when Texas and Oklahoma kick off in Dallas, I’ll be at a wedding somewhere in the Caribbean. Hammer the Texas money-line in this game, but double the bet if I can’t get service to watch it. Because that means it’s going to be an all-time classic Texas win, the likes of which you’ll see on LHN for years to come.

No. 5: Texas gets College Gameday for the first time in a decade against Texas-USC

All Texas needs to do to secure ESPN’s College Gameday (the best show in the history of television) in Austin is beat Maryland and Tulsa. If the Horns make it to week three undefeated, there is no doubt that College Gameday is coming to Austin.

If you think this doesn’t matter, fine. But every 16-year-old high school football recruit thinks it does. And that’s who matters in this game.

No 6: The best home game of the year will be in early November against West Virginia

Yeah, Texas has the big USC game in Austin in September. I get that. But Texas hasn’t played relevant college football in November in the last ten years. Most Texas fans are so apathetic after October that you can essentially waltz into DKR for free and pick where you want to sit.

Not this year. With Texas in the hunt for a title (Big 12 or national, who knows?) and West Virginia sporting some of the best talent its ever had, this November game will be similar in atmosphere to the Geno Smith game in 2012.

This time, Texas wins.

No 7. Tre Watson becomes your favorite Longhorn with a bachelor’s degree from Cal-Berkeley since Bill Powers

The running game for Texas was embarrassing last season. This is disputed by absolutely no one.

With the addition of Tre Watson as a versatile, speedy running back with great hands, Texas now has a proven weapon in the backfield. Will it work? Please God.

Texas needs a playmaker in the backfield to take the pressure off these young quarterbacks. If Tre Watson is the guy they can dump it off to for a big gain, the Horns are going to be in good shape.

No 8: Kyle Porter breaks a tackle in 2018

In a game this season, I boldly predict that Kyle Porter will be handed the football at some point and will NOT go down on first contact. When this happens, fire the cannon. Call a timeout. Carry him off the field.

If Kyle Porter breaks multiple tackles in 2018, then maybe Texas fans will finally see what this staff has seen in him for the last two years.

No 9: BJ Foster will be a household name before the season is over

BJ Foster, the talented true freshman five-star safety, is ready to turn heads in college football. He isn’t a household name yet, but he’s going to become one.

Enjoy him while he’s here.

No 10: Texas will be ranked in every game this season

The boldest prediction of them all. Texas will not drop out of the rankings in 2018. Instead, we will see a Texas squad unlike any we have seen since the late 2000s. Texas will not be as good as those Colt McCoy teams, but they will be good enough to win every single game.

No more embarrassingly stupid game-losing PATs. No more blocked field goals getting returned. No more 500-yard rushing games to kickstart Heisman campaigns for 35-year-old BYU quarterbacks. No more kicking off in both halves because no one knows how the coin toss works.

In 2018, Texas turns the page. I firmly believe that.

Thanks to Bloody reader Devon O., we have our hands on the first trailer for RLJE Films’ Puppet Master: The Littlest Reich, arriving in limited theaters and on Digital HD and VOD platforms August 17, 2018. The trailer is camp-filled fun and mayhem that will bring out all of that Full Moon nostalgia that’s been building up over the years.

Meagan reviewed the film out of the Overlook Film Festival and called it “unapologetic,” explaining that it “delivers bonkers gore and offensive humor!”

In the new film, directed by Sonny Laguna (We Are Monsters) and Tommy Wiklund (Wither), and written by S. Craig Zahler (Bone Tomahawk)…

“Recently divorced and reeling, Edgar (Lennon) returns to his childhood home to regroup his life. When Edgar finds a nefarious looking puppet in his deceased brother’s room, he decides to sell the doll for some quick cash at a small-town convention celebrating the 30th Anniversary of the infamous Toulon Murders.

Girl-next-door Ashley (Pellicer) and his comic book shop boss, Markowitz (Franklin), join Edgar for the doomed road trip. All hell breaks loose when a strange force animates the puppets at the convention, setting them on a bloody killing spree that’s motivated by an evil as old as time.”

The reimagining of the Full Moon Features cult classic stars Udo Kier (Suspiria, Blade, Brawl in Cell Block 99), Thomas Lennon (TV’s “Reno 911!”), Jenny Pellicer (TV’s “Cocaine Godmother”), Nelson Franklin (TV’s “Veep”), Charlyne Yi (This is 40), Michael Pare (Eddie and the Cruisers), and Barbara Crampton (Re-Animator).

Almost exactly one year ago, we had heard that an early cut of Luca Guadagnino’s Suspiria ran 2 hours, 50 minutes long, which certainly took us by surprise. Naturally, we assumed that the final cut would be significantly shorter, but it’s actually not all that much shorter.

It’s been confirmed that the remake’s runtime is 152 minutes. That’s 2 hours, 32 minutes!

Suspiria arrives in theaters on November 2.

In Suspiria, which stars Dakota Johnson as Susie Bannion, “As a darkness builds at the center of a world-renown dance company, its artistic director (Swinton), a young American new to the troupe (Johnson), and a grieving psychotherapist (Ebersdorf) become entangled in a bloody, sighing nightmare.”

The cast also includes Chloe Grace-Moretz, Tilda Swinton, Mia Goth, Sylvie Testud, Angela Winkler, Małgosia Bela and Lutz Ebersdorf.

Radiohead’s Thom Yorke composed the score. David Kajganich wrote the film, co-financed by Amazon Studios and K Period Media.

FYI, if you search for "Last Jedi shirt" it will autofill to "Last Jedi shirtless."

— Brandon Bird (@Brandon_Bird) July 25, 2018

Difficult to miss the HQ of the Sudanese Air Force and Navy pic.twitter.com/Uk6QXhFJc6

— Missile Manyak (@missile_manyak) July 25, 2018

Absolute respect to the guy who jackhammered Trump's star into oblivion, not least because he paid homage to Ghostbusters 2 by setting up barricades and pretending to be a construction worker. pic.twitter.com/g0Li9EAskD

— Nick de Semlyen (@NickdeSemlyen) July 25, 2018

Spotted on the C train lmfao pic.twitter.com/qwCBZsNEMb

— Jia Tolentino (@jiatolentino) July 25, 2018

No wonder Teen Titans Go To The Movies currently has 100% on Rotten Tomatoes. WHAT THE HELL DID I WATCH?! WHAT EVEN IS THIS MOVIE?! pic.twitter.com/PB0VvEjSMR

— Crimson Mayhem (@mayhem_crimson) July 24, 2018

IMPORTANT: Steven Bochco fired the lead actor from MURDER ONE because his morning dump made him an hour late to set every single day. Please RT! pic.twitter.com/xLHorB33KL

— Max Silvestri (@maxsilvestri) July 26, 2018

HANG ON pic.twitter.com/3aeWQn3rab

— Fancymans Mustachio (@EelsofWood) July 27, 2018

These are strange times. pic.twitter.com/SKmX8en8IK

— Mark Watson (@watsoncomedian) July 27, 2018

I KNOW SOMEONE WHO CATERED BETSY DEVOS'S NIECE'S WEDDING AND HE TOLD ME THERE WERE *****RANCH DRESSING FOUNTAINS*****

— John Early (@bejohnce) July 27, 2018

i abandoned my fanfiction account at 16, after i introduced a massive plot twist to a 50,000 word fic & then had no idea how to go on. i still get anguished emails once in a while when people reach the end and i feel really bad about it

— Katie Chironis (@kchironis) July 27, 2018

Killer whale slaps the shit out of an oblivious stingray pic.twitter.com/SbpD5D8t2z

— Nature is Scary (@TheScaryNature) June 16, 2018

This is what next level movie posters look like.

Kicking off the weekend proper, Alternative Movie Posters just put up for grabs a limited number of new Pet Sematary posters from artist Dan Mumford, which are awesome enough before you even realize that there’s an insanely cool UV element to the artwork.

Every purchase of the poster’s special variant edition includes a UV torch, you see, which reveals a hidden UV layer to the artwork that depicts the film’s iconic cat, Church!

The variant edition, an officially licensed, limited edition 5 colour screen print, is selling for £45.00, while the standard edition (without the UV layer) can be yours for £35.00.

Both prints measure 18″ x 24″ and surely won’t last long. Act fast.

In case you missed it, Microsoft is running some of the best deals ever on Xbox Live Gold and Xbox Game Pass, its increasingly excellent Netflix for video games. Both deals expire at the end of the month.

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As Jemaine Clement teased at the very beginning of the year, Flight Of The Conchords really is returning to HBO later this year for an hour-long special with him and Bret McKenzie. The duo confirmed the return in a predictably low-key and jokey teaser video, which features the two of them deciding which of them is…

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