The next few years promise a lot of blockbuster releases for fantasy enjoyers of all kinds. For those looking for a mythical epic, Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey is the event of this summer to look forward to, bringing the director back to theaters to bring to life one of the most famous literary adventures from across history, with Matt Damon in the lead role. Laika is finally releasing their latest effort after over a decade of development, too, in the form of the gorgeous stop-motion film Wildwood in October. Next year, meanwhile, will see the return of two classic series with Greta Gerwig's much-anticipated Narnia: The Witch's Nephew bowing in theaters in February and The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum arriving on December 17, 2027. For those looking to return to a certain long-dormant fantasy video game world this year, however, the wait just got a bit longer.
After over a year of silence, Solo Leveling just received an exciting update. The highly acclaimed fantasy action anime based on a South Korean Webtoon finished airing its first two seasons last year, won numerous awards, and became one of Crunchyroll's most successful shows. For a while, there was uncertainty about its future and whether Sung Jin-woo's story would continue on screen. Based on the latest update, it seems more of this popular web novel will continue to find new life through its anime adaptation.
Tokyo’s new video game/anime eatery has a lot to love (and eat).
June 12 is the grand opening of the brand-new Square Enix Cafe in downtown Tokyo’s Shinjuku neighborhood, and the eatery has released a sneak peek at what’s going to be on the menu. As you might expect, food and beverages inspired by the Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest franchises will be on offer, but there’s one other dark-horse candidate for your dining and drinking attention, and an anime/manga mega-hit too.
Beginning with Final Fantasy, the entrée options are the Chocobo and Moogle Spice Curry, milder Moogle Kids Curry…
…Chocobo and Friends Burger Plate (with a special appearance by Cactuar on one of its mini buns), and Chocobo Balanced Salad, designed as a for-humans equivalent of the Gysahl Greens so loved by the avian steeds.
And for dessert, Final Fantasy fans can look forward to the FF Version Purin Parfait, a Japanese-style custard pudding served in a classy cocktail glass with toppings including a marshmallow Chocobo and ice cream.
The “FF Version” part of the name suggests the existence of other pudding parfaits as well, and the DQ Version, of course, stars Dragon Quest’s adorable Slime.
The DQ mascot monster also appears in the Slimes Draw Near Jiggly Sweets Plate…
…and there are savory Slime plates too, such as the Healslime Burger Basket, in which the restorative creature’s tentacles are represented by a sliced sausage, and the Taco Rice-Style Hamburger Plate with Bubble Slime On Top.
Getting back to that third video game inspiration we mentioned, it’s none other than Nier: Automata, whose version of the purin parfait gives you a triple dose of Emil marshmallows…
…and his smiling (?) face is also present in the Lunar Tear Milk Tea Float plate.
Things get a little abstract with the 2B YoRHa Skirt-style Crepe Salad (with edible bamboo charcoal the most likely ingredient giving it its color), and things get really abstract with the On-Site Procurement Bullet Hell Pasta, meant to evoke memories of the enemy bullet barrages in the game’s shooting segments.
Now we come to the anime/manga part of the menu, which is saluting Fullmetal Alchemist.
Though Square Enix is most famous for video games, the company is also a major manga publisher, and within Japan handles the tale of brothers Al and Ed Elric, who are featured in a purin parfait, plus steamed buns with sweet custard and savory stew fillings. Fellow alchemist Roy Mustang also contributes to the menu with a Flame Alchemist shrimp pasta topped with shredded chili for extra heat.
Drinks come in two tiers, with the fancier ones consisting of a Final Fantasy Potion, Dragon Quest Traveler’s Healing Herb Set, and Fullmetal Alchemist Dwarf in the Flask.
The lower drink tier is made up of standard soft drinks such as coffee, tea, cola, orange juice, and melon soda. The cold drinks come with your choice of illustrated cup sleeve…
…while hot drinks let you pick one of two latte art designs per series.
The Square Enix Cafe has a service charge of 1,200 yen (US$7.60) per person, but that price does include one lower-tier drink of your choice, plus an illustrated placemat (you can pick which title you want, but the exact design is random).
▼ In keeping with Nier’s unabashed weirdness, its placemats are vertically oriented.
And as anyone who’s been to one knows, you can’t have a proper themed cafe in Japan without art coasters, and you’ll receive one at random when ordering any of a series’ associated food items or premium drinks.
Prices for the premium drinks and desserts are generally in the 1,000-1,500 yen range, with most of the main dishes priced between 1,500 and 2,200 yen (though the Fullmetal Alchemist steamed buns are just 770 yen each).
Again, the Square Enix Cafe’s grand opening takes place on June 12, and while walk-ins are allowed if space is available, reservations can be made through the restaurant’s website.
Summer camp season is almost here, and Netflix is about to make the journey to Camp Half-Blood a lot easier. Beginning June 15, both Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief and Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters will be available to stream on the platform, giving fans a chance to revisit one of the most imaginative fantasy worlds of the 2010s. The Percy Jackson movies have always occupied a somewhat unusual place in fantasy fandom. Readers of Rick Riordan's beloved novels have spent years debating the movies' changes to the source material, while the recent Disney+ adaptation has introduced a new generation of viewers to the son of Poseidon and his fellow demigods with a more faithful take on the books.
Never far from a box office blockbuster, John Wick himself, Keanu Reeves, is part of a project sure to become one of the highest-grossing films of this summer. Joining the returning Woody (Tom Hanks), Buzz (Tim Allen), Jessie (Joan Cusack), and more, Reeves reprises his role as Duke Caboom in Toy Story 5, which is set to hit theaters later this month on June 19. Expect plenty of joy, laughter, and a few tears (as is customary for a Pixar movie), with Hanks himself even admitting the sequel features one of the franchise's "most heartbreaking scenes."
Before Netflix had Wednesday Addams (Jenna Ortega) going viral for her dark, gothic dance in Wednesday, Archie Comics had already given the world a character with the same vibes, and Netflix’s live-action took her to the next level. Although that series got cancelled on Netflix, the character is now making a fresh return with a new release this year.
Spirits were running high at this year’s Summer Game Fest amid the gaming industry’s excitement for the upcoming release of “Grand Theft Auto VI” — despite the fact the Rockstar Games title had no presence during the four-day event. No, “GTA 6” wasn’t formally part of host Geoff Keighley’s Summer Game Fest Live presentation or […]
Echoes of the 1940s Circus: Steam Trains, Big Top Lights and Forgotten Wonders
Description
A cinematic journey through a fictional vintage circus world inspired by the atmosphere of the 1940s: steam trains arriving through clouds of smoke, crowded railway platforms, canvas tents rising at dawn, performers preparing behind the scenes, glowing fairground lights, brass bands, trapeze artists, ringmasters, clowns, fortune tellers, animal acts, travelling caravans and the quiet moments hidden between spectacle and exhaustion.
This collection evokes the golden age of travelling circuses as if seen through the lens of an old documentary photographer, but with the visual richness of modern cinematic photography. Warm amber lights, deep shadows, smoky interiors, velvet costumes, weathered wood, worn posters, dusty roads and dramatic faces create a world suspended between memory, theatre and dream. Each image suggests a fragment of a larger story: the arrival of the circus by train, the construction of the tent, the anticipation of the crowd, the tension before the performance, the intimacy of backstage rituals and the melancholy beauty of a show that exists only for one night before disappearing again.
The series blends realism and fantasy, presenting the circus not only as entertainment but as a temporary city of artists, workers, animals, music, mystery and human emotion. It captures both the grand spectacle and the fragile backstage humanity of a travelling world built from canvas, light, discipline and illusion.
All images have been generated by Artificial Intelligence.
Echoes of the 1940s Circus: Steam Trains, Big Top Lights and Forgotten Wonders
Description
A cinematic journey through a fictional vintage circus world inspired by the atmosphere of the 1940s: steam trains arriving through clouds of smoke, crowded railway platforms, canvas tents rising at dawn, performers preparing behind the scenes, glowing fairground lights, brass bands, trapeze artists, ringmasters, clowns, fortune tellers, animal acts, travelling caravans and the quiet moments hidden between spectacle and exhaustion.
This collection evokes the golden age of travelling circuses as if seen through the lens of an old documentary photographer, but with the visual richness of modern cinematic photography. Warm amber lights, deep shadows, smoky interiors, velvet costumes, weathered wood, worn posters, dusty roads and dramatic faces create a world suspended between memory, theatre and dream. Each image suggests a fragment of a larger story: the arrival of the circus by train, the construction of the tent, the anticipation of the crowd, the tension before the performance, the intimacy of backstage rituals and the melancholy beauty of a show that exists only for one night before disappearing again.
The series blends realism and fantasy, presenting the circus not only as entertainment but as a temporary city of artists, workers, animals, music, mystery and human emotion. It captures both the grand spectacle and the fragile backstage humanity of a travelling world built from canvas, light, discipline and illusion.
All images have been generated by Artificial Intelligence.
Disney has been trying to find animated shows that can travel the way anime travels, and this new soccer-fantasy series is an obvious swing. Soccer already gives the story a global language, while the magical power system gives it the kind of exaggerated sports energy fans usually associate with anime rather than traditional Disney Channel animation. However, as per ComicBook, that same series was reportedly canceled in the Middle East.
Dark fantasy is a genre that incorporates elements of both fantasy and horror and is not exclusive to any age range; it can be made for kids while still incorporating things that are eerie, uncanny, or disturbing (think Coraline). It's sort of a fringe genre, not quite horror, but also kind of horror at the same time. It's important not to confuse the genre with grimdark fantasy, which is about moral ambiguity, cynicism, and brutal violence (think Game of Thrones), although there is often plenty of overlap.
Now that he's back, Keanu Reeves' difficult decade between 2004 and 2014 seems like a distant memory. He broke the dry spell with John Wick, which has spawned a massively successful franchise that's set to continue with a fifth installment. A decade earlier, Reeves was, of course, best known for starring in the Matrix trilogy. However, after the landmark sci-fi series concluded in 2003, he entered a rather uncertain period during which he mostly starred in small-scale projects, but also headlined a couple of tent poles, and made his feature directorial debut. The big-budget movies he did during this time — The Day the Earth Stood Still and Constantine — underperformed at the box office. His directorial debut, The Man of Tai Chi, performed poorly as well.
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