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Pop Culture

Heartwarming Illustrations of Famed Pop Culture Rivals

By Caroline Stanley on

If you were a fan of Ingrid Aspöck’s sugary drawings of pop culture’s most legendary rivals burying the hatchet and hugging it out, then we bet that you’ll also enjoy Versus/Hearts, a new Tumblr project that got its start with a “Ninja … Read More

Film

Rare Behind the Scenes Photos of ‘Star Wars’

By Alison Nastasi on

Many moviegoers count Star Wars as the first feature film they ever saw that truly captured the magic of cinema and made them a bona fide film geek. Lucas and his team pioneered never before seen special effects, leaving audiences in awe of his epic fantasy world in space where creatures walked and talked alongside humans, and brave characters made you believe they could conquer an entire galaxy. Would a peek behind the scenes of Lucas’ universe make you appreciate the movie even more? Website Theager put our question to the test, by sharing a set of candid images taken on set of the 1977 film. The photos reveal how Lucas and his special effects team created several iconic scenes in the movie, who the faces were behind the famous costumes, and a few funny moments (see: Jabba’s Gamorrean guard picking its nose) — and a few unintentionally funny ones (like pics of Rebel X-wing fighter pilots that resemble a bunch of construction workers chowing down on lunch). Check out the rare, silly, and magical images in our gallery below. … Read More

Art

Pop Heroes and Villains Transformed in Vintage Family Photos

By Alison Nastasi on

Blog thaeger tipped us off to the Marvellini brothers — artists in Milan who have been creating their own geeky origin story by transforming pop heroes and villains with the help of vintage family photos. If you’ve ever wondered what Darth Vader’s great aunt looked like, the answer is within the brothers’ clever, seamless collages. Ornate, antique frames complete the picture. The old-timey costuming in each image, combined with the iconic costumes and masks of superheroes and pop baddies, elevates what could have been a quickie cut and paste job into something pretty fashion-savvy and fun. Check them out past the break. … Read More

Film

Pic of the Day: Mathematical Equations by Film Villains

By Emily Temple on

How exactly do super villains figure out the details of their dastardly deeds? Well, they conceive of them via complex mathematical equations scrawled out on their blackboards, of course! This methodology is perfect for figuring out everything from the best method of California’s destruction to the proper way to cook a human brain. Now the… Read More

Pop Culture

Darth Vader Wants to Dock His Ship in the Ukraine

By Emily Temple on

Recently, the city of Odessa enacted a plan to grant plots of land along the coast to citizens for free, supporting Ukrainian legislation which stipulates that every citizen should have the right to own 1,000 square metres of land. Obviously, Darth Vader showed up to claim his rightful bit of earth. As Reuters reports, a man in full Darth Vader gear showed up at the mayor’s office this week, announcing “I am Darth Vader, the right hand of Emperor Palpatine… Knowing that many (local legislature) deputies and the mayor have switched to the dark side… I have come for a land plot… for my space cruiser.” He was allowed to submit his application, but only after removing his helmet and showing his passport. Apparently it will be considered with the other applications, though a spokeswoman for the mayor’s office assured reporters that “We are not on the dark side, we are light-side people.” Click through to watch the video, mostly notable for the concealed amusement of the guards, and let us know if you’d let Darth Vader dock his ship in your country. … Read More

Web

What’s On at Flavorpill: The Links That Made the Rounds in Our Office

By Caroline Stanley on

Today at Flavorpill, we jotted down a few of The Huffington Post’s summer reading suggestions. We were surprised by how much this “screaming” tree looked like the famous Munch painting. We felt like The Awl’s ranking of bar food really gave nachos the shaft. We discovered The… Read More

Design

Wanted: The Dark Side of Typography

By Caroline Stanley on

So, this is rather clever: Evan Travelstead — who we’re assuming must be a die-hard Star Wars fan — created a poster of Darth Vader using typography and a selection of the character’s most famous quotes. From the looks of it, this was just a personal project for the Orlando-based designer, but we want it on a t-shirt, stat. Click through to get a better look. … Read More

Photography

Pic of the Day: Darth Vader Visits Snowed-In Hipsters

By Caroline Stanley on

Here’s one way to spend your snow day: Williamsburg-based photographer Henry Hargreaves took photos around the neighborhood and dropped some Star Wars characters into them; this one featuring Darth Vader is our favorite. Check out more images over on Gothamist.

News

The Morning’s Top 5 Pop Culture Stories

By Caroline Stanley on

1. The judges for the Guggenheim‘s YouTube contest have just been announced and will include Animal Collective, Darren Aronofsky, and Takashi Murakami. [via Vulture]
2. Someone robbed a Chase bank on Long Island Wednesday while wearing a Darth Vader costume. [via Daily Intel]
3. So this is kind of… Read More

Comedy

Darth Vader: The Universe’s Most Revered Prankster

By Paul Hiebert on

A few days ago, Darth Vader was seen in New York City’s subway system making fellow commuters laugh. While most people know Lord Vader as an evil tyrant determined to crush the Rebel Alliance, fewer acknowledge his ability to pull off a humorous practical joke. Since we’re all about giving people a chance to show their positive side, we gathered five of the greatest Darth Vader gags out there that put Jar Jar Binks’s comedic antics to shame. (Not that that’s hard or anything, but we just thought it was still worth mentioning, even after all these years. The Dark Side runs deep.) … Read More