There were a lot of questions left unanswered by the final chapter of Star Wars’ Skywalker saga.

The Rise of Skywalker came out a little over 3 months ago, and it’s probably not a great sign that no one really seems to be talking about it much anymore. It did well at the box office but not exactly Star Wars well, it was less divisive for fans than Rian Johnson’s controversial The Last Jedi, but the overall reaction seems to have settled into a shrug of the shoulders. Not really what you want from the end of a 9-movie cycle.

Questions of taste aside, there was one lingering question with the movie that begs an answer: how exactly was Emperor Palpatine alive?

Rumor has it that it will be explored, or at least referenced, in season two of Disney+’s The Mandalorian, but it seems a new Star Wars property will beat Jon Favreau and company to it.

According to Screen Rant, Rae Carson’s upcoming novelization of The Rise of Skywalker will explain the Emperor’s return. Apparently Star Wars often uses novelizations to tie-up loose ends from their movies, and this one is no different.

So what’s the deal? The book doesn’t come out until March 17, but it was on sale at last weekend’s C2E2 conference in Chicago, and readers have since discovered the following passage:

“All the vials were empty of liquid save one, which was nearly depleted. Kylo peered closer. He’d seen this apparatus before, too, when he’d studied the Clone Wars as a boy. The liquid flowing into the living nightmare before him was fighting a losing battle to sustain the Emperor’s putrid flesh.

“What could you give me?” Kylo asked. Emperor Palpatine lived, after a fashion, and Kylo could feel in his very bones that this clone body sheltered the Emperor’s actual spirit. It was an imperfect vessel, though, unable to contain his immense power. It couldn’t last much longer.”

So the Emperor wasn’t actually resurrected, as Darth Sidious hinted at as a possibility in Revenge of the Sith, but was instead cloned, which was the other best guess. Now we know!

That doesn’t explain how he was able to help create thousands of star destroyers on a hidden planet in like 15 years, or why Rey gives a shit about Tattooine, or why you’d cast Keri Russell in a movie and never show her face, but hey, maybe the next novelization will cover those!

Being out in nature is one of the most freeing, exhilarating experiences imaginable. That is unless you have one kid who has to pee, another who’s hungry (he ate 4 granola bars in the car?), and a sunburn so bad you may as well just get new skin. Or, in Cambry’s case, if most paths out in nature are inaccessible because of your wheelchair.

Fortunately for Cambry, she happens to be married to YouTuber Zack Nelson, who calls his channel “Jerry Rig Everything”. This guy is all about technology – he builds things, takes things apart, and tests the durability of different tech products. Very few people have the resources or the ability to do what Zack did when he decided to give his then-girlfriend the gift of a lifetime. He wanted to help Cambry access parts of the world that she had, until this point, only been able to dream of seeing in person.

Zack did exactly what any tech-savvy guy with two spare electric bikes would do – he fused them together and stuck a seat in the middle (I assume there was a lot more to it than that, but that’s the gist). This innovative wheelchair-like contraption allowed Cambry to experience things she had only ever dreamed of experiencing. It operates as an electric wheelchair, but it’s far more capable of handling off-road terrain than nearly any wheelchair on the market. The wheelchair operates so quietly that the sound doesn’t at all detract from the peacefulness of being out in nature.

Now, Cambry and Zack have started selling their off-road “Not-A-Wheelchair” AKA “The Rig” to allow others to experience the same level of freedom. The Not-A-Wheelchair costs $4,750, which is more affordable than any other wheelchair branded for “off-road” terrain. It is also faster, quieter, and can last from 10-20 miles on a single battery.

The Not-A-Wheelchair website explains, “Shopping for an off road wheelchair can be frustrating. There are a few different options out there, but they can cost as much as a car or are super slow. Cambry and I decided to put our heads together, and build our own off road wheelchair. Something that’s quick and light with a super long range. And we finally have it! We’d like to introduce ‘Not-a-Wheelchair’ a fully electric, super quiet, accessible bike that can go 12mph with a range of about 10-20 miles. Our whole goal is to provide something that is capable and affordable. We hope you enjoy! Be safe! Wear a helmet.”

Thanks, Zack and Cambry, we’d love to roll with you any day.

Hollywood may still be largely shut down as the pandemic continues to rage across the country, but that hasn’t stopped the superhero machine from chugging along. Black Widow’s release was delayed, so it will be a few months before we get the next phase of the MCU, and despite the fact that Wonder Woman 84 was pushed to fall and production on Matt Reeves’s The Batman, starring Robert Pattinson, has been delayed, DC has been making news behind the scenes.

First, HBO Max announced their plans to release the Snydercut next year, and then details emerged about the long-awaited Flash movie. The most interesting nugget? That Michael Keaton will be reprising his role as Batman in a co-starring part as a mentor to the speedy superhero. And now there are whispers that DC has plans to bring another former Batman back into the fold.

The rumors, which Cosmic Book News reports first appeared on 4chan but have since been supported by leaks in other places, like The Cultured Nerd, suggest that Ben Affleck has already signed a deal with HBO Max to re-appear as Bruce Wayne and his vigilante alter-ego in future films related to Zack Snyder’s Justice League.

“Ben has indeed signed a new contract and he is coming back,” claims Taylor Murphy of The Cultured Nerd. “The official announcement is expected to happen either at DC FanDome or during JusticeCon. One of the two, we’re going to get that announcement but it’s going to happen before September. We’re going to get the official announcement and we are going to get the Snyderverse Batman is going to be returning.”

Murphy suggests that Affleck is returning because he is fully on-board with Zack Snyder’s vision, and now that Snyder’s Batman is back, so is Ben. Apparently, DC doesn’t see a conflict between the three Batmans – Affleck’s, Keaton’s, and Pattinson’s – and that part of the idea is for multiple Batmans to exist within a broader DC multiverse.

“They are bringing everybody back,” says Murphy. “This is planned… This is a design because of Zack. This is a plan that they’re moving forward with. I mean, I keep saying it is a great time to be a DC fan.”

It’s certainly might be if any of this is true. It’s hard to know, and until – and unless – an official announcement is made, it’s probably best to take this all with a grain of salt. After all, Affleck has spoken about the difficult time he had portraying Batman in Justice League, and he may not have any interest in revisiting the role.

But with the Snydercut on the way, and Keaton and Pattinson already on-board, it’s not that difficult to imagine DC bringing in a third Batman, and differentiating themselves from the MCU with a Batman triple-play. Hopefully Hollywood gets back to business soon so we can find out.

At the very least, three Batmans would give fans a lot to argue about!

“My dad worked third-shift his whole life. He was exhausted most of the time and we didn’t have a lot of money, but he literally gave me everything I needed, and a lot of what I wanted.

In 2011, he passed away unexpectedly. When I reflect back, it’s not the material things he gave me that I remember most.

It’s wanting to hang out with him after his 12-hour night shifts. It’s him unselfishly taking me to the park after buying me a kite, even though he hadn’t slept in almost 24 hours. It’s the times he sacrificed sleep to watch my basketball games and support me during his small window of rest on Saturday mornings.

It’s the times his last dollar bought me back-to-school clothes and an old car that I could drive on my own to school. It’s his constant reassurances that he was fine, despite his health problems, just so I wouldn’t worry about him when I knew he was in pain.

It’s him preparing me for the day that he wouldn’t be here.

And it’s knowing he was there with me, long after he’d passed, as I nervously welcomed my son into the world in 2019. His presence reassured me that we would be okay.

He was the best dad, and the dad I someday hope to be.”

– Aaron Chandler

Want to share a story about fatherhood? Email [email protected]

Check out the previous editions of Father Figures here.

For the uninitiated, “pop art” was a movement that emerged in the 1950s in which artists created bold, colorful, vivid depictions of familiar subjects, from celebrities to comic books to the everyday mundane. You probably know the style best from the time Andy Warhol painted 32 cans of Campbell’s tomato soup.

Now LEGO, who recently announced upcoming sets based on Home Alone and Seinfeld, is launching a line of LEGO Art products that will allow you to create stunning works of pop art. Each set costs $120, and includes a canvas, build guide booklet, and all the bead-like pieces you’ll need to assemble such iconic subjects as…

Marilyn Monroe

Build the iconic Andy Warhol print of Marilyn Monroe. This is LEGO ART. 🔥 https://t.co/SFoHdnp62o pic.twitter.com/HhNbCuzzV6

— LEGO (@LEGO_Group) July 1, 2020

Darth Vader

The Beatles

and Iron Man!

Some sets allow you to make multiple pieces of art. For example, you can make various versions of Iron Man’s suit, while the Sith kit shows you how to make Darth Vader, Darth Maul, and Kylo Ren.

And it gets better! Also included in each set is a unique QR code that, when scanned, provides you with a soundtrack you can listen to while you build. You can also combine canvasses to make even bigger, beadier, more badass pieces pop art to hang in your living space. The sets are expected to hit toy shelves on August 1st internationally and September 1st in the United States.

Your move, Mega Bloks!

Beer: It’s what’s for breakfast. We’ve already showcased Lucky Charms beer and one with Fruity Pebbles in it. Well, the hits keep on coming. Remember that episode of The Simpsons where Homer asks Apu for some Skittlebrau, a fake beer he imagined with candy floating in it?

Well, Homer’s dream has finally been actualized some twenty-odd years later. This month, the Pontoon Brewery in Sandy Springs, Georgia is bringing back its sweetest concoction: Rainbow Smiggles, a Berliner Weisse made with both Trix and Skittles, as well as strawberries, pineapple, vanilla. Also lactose, the sugar found in milk, to really nail down the illusion you’re getting loaded on cereal.

Pontoon Brewery has teamed up with The Sprayberry Bottle Shop to bring us this German sour which, once in the mixer, is infused with 500 pounds of Skittles and more than 100 boxes of Trix cereal.

We’ve seen more than our fair share of novelty beer labels in the last year. DuClaw Brewing Company released one based on the dad bod. More recently, Sheetz, a popular Pennsylvanian restaurant/convenience store, knocked it out of the park with their craft brew made from hot dogs. But, we gotta say, these Rainbow Smiggles are truly something to behold.

Head brewer Chris Baratz told Thrillist that Pontoon Brewing is committed to bringing craft beer enthusiasts exciting new flavors month after month. “We like to push the limits and go to extremes to keep the brewers and customers excited about each new sour.”

The last round sold out within 45 minutes at a small, in-brewery launch, so they made way more Rainbow Smiggles this summer. It is now available for pre-order right here on CraftCellr! Drink responsibly, silly rabbit.

When Jason Hartanov’s daughter sent him a picture of their house after it had been TP’d, she apologized and offered to help him clean it up. He had a different feeling…a giant THANK YOU to the kids responsible.

In a Facebook post that has since gone viral and been shared more than 1,000 times, the dad of four thanked the kids for restoring his hope in the youth. “Thank you for making me smile and reminding me of the best days of my childhood,” he wrote. “Thank you for giving us all a break from the issues in this world and thank you for finding a great use of the excess toilet paper people bought during COVID.”

He also thanked the kids for being kids and embracing that life is short, so we should all have fun. However, he had some pretty steep complaints about their parents.

“This is shoddy TP-ing work,” he wrote. “We should be ashamed. We need to teach out youth about doing things with excellence, and focusing on the details.”

He then gave some advice for the kids who did the job, advising them to use more TP because “the roof has little to no paper, the trees are too bare and you left half-rolls sitting on the ground.”

And, well, wouldn’t you know it, his house got his again later that week. Jason was still a bit unimpressed, so he mocked up a visual to help the perps do better on their next try.

He did say he loved the kids because of “their desire to improve” because they “are doing adventures instead of watching adventures.”

He said he has hope for this generation, but that they need to learn a thing or two from their parents.

“We would have been embarrassed to leave such a clean mess,” he wrote. “More TP. More people. BURY THE HOUSE IN TP! Ask your parents, we took pride in EPIC TP battles.”

Nothing is more dad than laughing at your own jokes. Here are our 12 personal favorites from last month. (Actually as voted by you, based on Facebook engagement.)

1. Dad Tax

2. Dad Rocks

3. Grilled

4. Getting Serious

5. Vengeance 

6. Freedom

7. Proper

8. Reboot

9. Dark Ages

10. Not a Lot to Ask

11. Summer Dadding

12. Junior Millionaire 

Check out last month’s top memes here.

Another week of the pandemic in the books, another fingernail ravaged. These are tense, uncertain times we live, and it’s of the utmost importance we’re doing routine maintenance on our mental and emotional well-being. That’s why each week, we like to round up all the good news, comforting facts, and pink puppy bellies we can find to offer as a reminder that there’s so much in life worth hanging around for.

Consider it your weekly brain reset. Clearing your brain’s recent browser history. An emotional palate cleanser, if you will.

Here… we… go…

Did you see the Reddit thread where everyone shared the most comforting fact they knew? Some of the most comforting include the fact that crows and ravens LOVE playing in the snow…

…blood donors in Sweden and Australia get text alerts when their blood is used to help someone…

…and all the sweaters Mr. Roger’s wore on camera were knitted by his dear mother!

Did you see this dad who’s been writing eye roll-worthy dad jokes on a white board for everyone to see? Thank goodness for dudes like him!

Hey! Did you see this Twitter thread of precious baby animals? Because I’ve already went back for seconds!

The world is a bit chaotic so here is a thread of cute baby animals 🥰 pic.twitter.com/eOnaqPd8gH

— Clowning 🤡 23rd July (@watergoldensuga) June 27, 2020

Did you hear we’re getting an 11th season of Curb Your Enthusiasm! Prett-ay, prett-ay, prett-ay good!

Oh, and Beavis & Butt-head is coming back also! And they’re dads! Which means they finally scored! 

Need even more stuff to look forward to? Try this on for size: a Transformer made out of the DeLorean from Back to the Future. And they named it GIGAWATT. I know what I want for my next birthday!

And just for good measure, one more comforting fact from Reddit!

Aaaaaaand done. How do you feel? Re-calibrated? Hopefully, that was a nice breather from your regularly scheduled line graph-induced worry sesh. It’s healthy to periodically clean out the anxiety gunk and depression residue from your brain, so we hope this gave you a few reasons to smile and a few things to look forward to.

Stay safe and healthy, and remember: eight glasses of water means eight glasses of water!

There are but three certainties in life: death, taxes, and Marvel acquiring.

The media powerhouse, which itself was acquired by Disney in 2009, recently made a new acquisition with the Alien and Predator franchises, gearing up for a series of comic books based on the iconic sci-fi villains.

That’s right: going forward, the Xenomorph from Alien is effectively a Disney princess.

Today we were teased with a couple of pieces of concept artwork from David Finch, whose previous work can be seen in Batman comics.

“Alien and Predator are the two of the most identifiable, iconic characters of all time,” Finch told IGN. “I love them for that. But mostly, it’s being fortunate enough to be a kid when they were new. I’ve seen every movie they’ve ever been in, and I cannot wait to see them wreaking havoc in the Marvel Universe. I drew my pictures of them with a massive smile on my face.”

Here we see the Predator holding what’s either Iron Man’s mask or Tony Stark’s severed head. While this is insanely gnarly, it should be noted these characters won’t fully integrate with the Marvel Universe in this capacity, so don’t expect to see the Predator use its wrist blades on Hulk anytime soon.

And here we have Finch’s dope rendition of the Xenomorph from Alien, crouched, at the ready, fixing to bleed acid on anyone who dares cross her path.

“I can clearly remember where I was when I saw each of these modern masterpieces for the first time,” says Marvel Editor-in-Chief C.B. Cebulski. “Reveling in how both masterfully weave extraterrestrial dread and drama into some of the most iconic scenes we’ve ever seen on film. And it’s that legacy that we’re going to live up to!”

The Alien/Predator rivalry can be traced all the way back to 1989 when Dark Horse Comics released a series of crossovers.

The comics found a small but devoted audience, who we can only imagine were furious about the squandered potential of 2004’s Alien vs. Predator. In the right hands, that movie could’ve been a cinematic work of art. Instead we got… pyramids? Something to do with pyramids. Pretty tedious, in retrospect. Oh, and Antarctica. They were in Antarctica. Also a total missed opportunity to give us Alien vs. Predator vs. The Thing.

Maybe with Marvel Studios at the helm, fans of the franchises will get the AVP they deserve, but until then we’re very excited to see what they’re able to do with these beloved characters in the pages of their comic books.