As strange as it was to think that Darren Aronofsky””director behind indie hits like Requiem For A Dream, The Wrestler, and Black Swan“”was going to direct a sequel to X–Men Origins: Wolverine, it was still pretty intriguing to think about. But alas, Aronofsky eventually had to drop out of the project due to personal reasons, leaving the job open for another…but would they be similar to the departing Aronofsky or someone more suited to the comic book/action genre a Wolverine movie would play in?

Enter James Mangold, the new director chosen by 20th Century Fox to direct the sequel, titled The Wolverine. Mangold’s résumé does include an action flick””the recent Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz feature Knight & Day“”but the rest of his works are mostly drama–based with titles like Cop Land, Kate & Leopold, Identity, 3:10 to Yuma, and Academy Award winners Girl, Interrupted and Walk the Line under his belt.

Game Of Thrones
Season One, Episode Nine – Baelor
Directed by: Alan Taylor
Written by: David Beinoff and D.B. Weiss
Starring: Mark Addy, Alfie Allen, Sean Bean, Emilia Clarke, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Peter Dinklage, Michelle Fairley, Aidan Gillen, Jack Gleeson, Iain Glen, Kit Harington, Lena Headey, Issac Hempstead-Wright, Harry Lloyd, Richard Madden, Rory McCann, Sophie Turner, Maisie Williams, Conleth Hill

Game of Thrones has been a slow burn.

There’s nothing wrong with that. In fact, I much prefer shows that have a tendency to draw things out and build on previous episodes. All the best television series (The Wire, Mad Men, Breaking Bad) do this and when done properly, the results can be astonishing. The latest episode, “Baelor,” was no exception to this rule. The stakes have slowly been rising over the past couple of weeks and it was time for the dominoes to begin to fall.

And boy do they fall.

The mid-series finale for Series 6 of Doctor Who is here, and while Amy Pond (Karen Gillan) and her baby are being held captive by Madame Kovarian (Frances Barber) and the Cleric Military, the Doctor (Matt Smith) and Rory Williams (Arthur Darvill) call upon old debts from a variety of unlikely allies to form an “army,” as A Good Man Goes To War.

The Doctor will rise higher than ever before, and fall so much further – and the true identity of the enigmatic River Song (Alex Kingston) will finally be revealed…

During TARDISblend 29, we review the events of A Good Man Goes To War, the conclusion to the first half of the current season. We discuss the final revelation of who River Song truly is, and the band of companions the Doctor unites for his army to find Amy Pond. We look at the consequences of the Doctor being seen and feared as a great warrior, and speculate on what to expect for the second part of Series 6.

We also discuss the recent news about Series 7 – which now looks like it will be split across the end of 2012 and the beginning of 2013. We recommend some Classic Doctor Who, and reveal a spoiler for Torchwood: Miracle Day. All this and more on the latest TARDISblend!

The $10 t-shirt deal of the day over at RIPT Apparel is the Superman-inspired “Kent” by artist r0gue.

The sale at RIPT began today, Thursday, June 16, 2011, at midnight CST, and will continue for 24 hours from then, and once it’s over, it will not be sold on the site anymore.

Hurry everyone, Batman: Arkham Asylum: Game Of The Year Edition video game for Xbox 360 or Playstation 3 is currently being featured in a Gold Box Lightning Deal at Amazon today, Thursday, June 16, 2011, from 6am – 9am PST while supplies last. The Gold Box discounted price is $16.99 (down from $29.99).

This video game is available at a discounted price today ONLY for those 3 hours while supplies last. And since this is a Lightning Deal, that means that it can (and most likely will) run out in minutes, so if you want it, grab it immediately before it’s gone. You can watch the Today’s Deals page (on the right-hand side) to see how this item is selling.