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When Rockstar officially announced Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition it wasn’t too surprising. Rumors had been swirling for months that something like that was in the works and it was cool to finally know we’d be getting some new, potentially modern, versions of the original Grand Theft Auto. However, it did seem a little weird that this game was being made at all with how readily available those three games are on digital stores, as it has rarely been difficult to find any of the PS2-era GTA games.

Rockstar must be aware of how easy it is because it turns out that they’re going to make it very difficult to find the current versions of those games in the near future. With the announcement of a GTA remaster on the way it’s going to lead to the delisting of the current games from digital stores. Via their support page.

With the October 8, 2021 announcement of Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition for PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and the Rockstar Games Launcher, previous versions and bundles featuring these titles will be removed from console and PC digital retailers as of the week of October 11, 2021.

This isn’t necessarily surprising because the new version is being put out on modern consoles, it is kind of a bummer. For one, these remasters are supposed to be a “definitive” version of the original trilogy. Doesn’t that mean that changes will be made? What if someone wants to play the original game in its original state? Well, if they didn’t buy it before it’s delisted then they better hope to find a physical copy, because that option doesn’t seem like it’s going to be available anytime soon.

This decision by Rockstar is leading to some fans discussing the idea of game preservation and if it’s okay for a developer to just release remasters and erase the previous games from existence. While that is a valid point, the counter to it would be that most GTA games sold thousands of copies and are available for relatively cheap. Just as an example, Grand Theft Auto III is currently $20 on Amazon and can also be found used for as low as $2. It might be difficult to play the game, with the need for a working PlayStation 2, but copies of the game are not exactly scarce.

All of that said, it’s still disappointing to see Rockstar choose to make a decision like this. Hopefully, it’s only a temporary one to increase sales of the Remastered Trilogy and eventually those original games will become available again in their original state.

We’re Here (HBO, 9:00pm) — Nope, you’re not looking at a photo of Beyoncé. This ^^ would be the fabulous Shangela (of RuPaul’s Drag Race fame), who’s back with the rest of the Queens (including Bob and Eureka) in Spartanburg, South Carolina after COVID interrupted the first round. In Season 2, the trio will continue to recruit small-town residents (in this case, that would be Noah, Faith, and Olin) and train them for onstage moments that they never dreamed possible.

The Babysitter’s Club: Season 2 (Netflix series) — The updated dramedy series continues to adapt the best-selling Ann M. Martin books to follow friendships that evolve through the opening of a babysitting business. New members arrive, along with new lessons and new journeys, but thank god that they always remember what’s most important.

9-1-1 (FOX, 8:00pm) — A high-school homecoming celebration becomes ground central for truck-bound mayhem, and Harry’s working through his kidnapping’s aftermath with the help of Athena and Michael.

Roswell, New Mexico (CW, 8:00pm) — It’s showdown time for Jones, and Liz is working to save the love of her life, but does she trust herself?

Ordinary Joe (NBC, 10:00pm) — It’s like Sliding Doors but with TV Prince James Wolk (Watchmen, Mad Men, Political Animals, Zoo) and no Gwyneth Paltrow. If that’s not enough to make you climb aboard, consider that Wolk not only plays a rock star (!) but two other Joes in parallel timelines. This week, the Joes must each confront an unfamiliar challenge. Music Joe looks for his son, Cop Joe’s in a shooting aftermath, and Nurse Joe’s looking toward a career opportunity.

Y: The Last Man (FX on Hulu) — The acclaimed graphic novel gets its due as a dystopian TV drama starring Diane Lane as the globe’s de facto president. Her son becomes, as the title suggests, the very last man on Earth following an apocalyptic event that pretty much obliterates the Y chromosome. Although the Y appears to refer to the chromosome, the show takes a nuanced approach and does not operate on a merely gender-binary level.

The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon — Chelsea Handler, Finn Wolfhard, James Blake Ft. Slowthai

Late Night With Seth Meyers — Ron & Clint Howard, Sec. Hillary Clinton, Louise Penny

In case you missed these weekend picks:

Muppets Haunted Mansion (Disney+ special) — After several Muppets-themed Christmas offerings, it’s about time that we’ve received a spooky installment, and let’s face it, more Miss Piggy is always a good thing. Gonzo takes center stage here while attempting to survive the evening in (according to the synopsis) “in the most grim grinning place on Earth.” The special’s actually inspired by all four of the Disney Haunted Mansion attractions that are scattered around the globe, expect original songs, along with plenty of celebrity cameos along with the all-star Muppets cast.

Madame X (Paramount+ movie) — In this concert documentary, Madonna takes viewers on tour with her (from way back in January 2020, so pre-pandemic, obviously) all the way to Lisbon, Portugal. Her set included 48 onstage performers, including other musicians and dancers, and she’s here to share her vision with the rest of the world. Her statement on the film points towards reaching out to fans “at a time when music is so deeply needed to remind us of the sacred bond of our shared humanity.”

Joe Pera is the Paddington of people. He’s kind and polite, and loves bean arches, breakfast, and “Baba O’Riley” by the Who as much as Paddington loves marmalade. On his sweetly funny Adult Swim series, Joe Pera Talks with You, he talks to you, yes, YOU (sorry for yelling, Joe) about mundane topics like the fall season and hiking. A typical episode summary reads, “Joe sits and waits for his Nana to finish her appointment at the hair salon before they both go out to eat fried fish.” It’s riveting.

And it’s returning on November 7, as Pera revealed in a statement on Monday.

Hello,

My name is Joe Pera and I’m writing to let you know that my old basset hound, Gus, and I will be returning for the third season of our relaxing comedy show, Joe Pera Talks With You on Sunday, November 7 at 12:30 a.m. ET/PT on Adult Swim.

The first episode follows me as I help my friend Gene pick out his retirement chair at the furniture store and the season-long search for the perfect place to sit goes from there. Aside from figuring out where to sit, episodes this season cover a lot of other stuff too, such as Great Lakes Ice Breakers, second fridges, cooking fish in the woods, classroom-appropriate movies, and drone warfare.

We put together the video above if you’d like a preview but I hope you’ll consider checking out my slow-paced show.

– Joe Pera

If you don’t watch Joe Pera Talks With You, I’m giving you a hard stare.

Kim Kardashian is one of the most polarizing people in American popular culture. She’s been the queen of reality television since “Keeping Up With the Kardashians” premiered in 2007 and is the 10th most popular social media influencer in the world.

However, for many, she is nothing more than an arrogant, spoiled and greedy reality star whose only talent is an incredible knack for self-promotion.

(Although, she was able to charm former President Trump into letting a grandmother who got busted for pot out of jail and that was pretty awesome.)

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A lot of folks were angry that Kardashian was chosen to host the second episode of the 47th season of “Saturday Night Live” this weekend. How could someone with little comedy or acting experience pull off one of the toughest jobs on television?

Well, she actually pulled it off and a lot of her success came from the ability to make fun of herself and her family.

Kardashian’s monologue played like a roast of her family, O.J. Simpson and herself.

Kim Kardashian West Monologue – SNL

www.youtube.com

Kardashian made fun of her 2007 leaked sex tape.

“When they asked me to host [SNL], I was like, why? I haven’t had a movie premiere in a long time,” she quipped. “I mean actually, I only had that one movie come out, and no one even told me it was premiering … It must’ve slipped my mom’s mind.”

She knows that her soon-to-be ex-husband is obnoxious.

“I married the best rapper of all time,” she began. “Not only that, he’s the richest Black man in America. A talented, legit genius who gave me four incredible kids.

“So, when I divorced him, you have to know it came down to just one thing: his personality,” she joked.

She brought up another subject that’s taboo in the Kardashian house, her father’s relationship with O.J. Simpson.

“It’s because of [my father] that I met my first Black person. Wanna take a stab in the dark at who it was?” she joked. “I know it’s sort of weird to remember the first Black person you met, but O.J. does leave a mark—or several—or none at all, I still don’t know.”

Even the most hardcore Kim haters had to love the shade she threw at her sisters.

“I’m excited to be here tonight to show you guys that I’m so much more than a pretty face … and good hair, and great makeup, and amazing boobs and a perfect butt. Basically, I’m just so much more than that reference photo my sisters showed their plastic surgeons,” she said.

Later in the show, she continued sticking it to her family by playing a perfectly sluggish version of her sister Kourtney in a “People’s Court” parody called “People’s Kourt.” In the sketch, Kourtney is a judge overseeing all of her family’s cases.

“SNL”‘s Heidi Gardner played Kim in the sketch, wearing a body-concealing outfit like the one she debuted at Kanye’s first “Donda” album listening party in July.

The People’s Kourt – SNL

www.youtube.com

Kardashian proved that she learned a little something about hip-hop from Kanye in a musical number featuring Cecily Strong, Ego Nwodim and Punkie Johnson called “Ladies Night Song.”

It’s all about what happens when “grown” women try to party like they did in their 20s.

Ladies Night Song – SNL

www.youtube.com

Regardless of your opinion of Kardashian, she did a great job on the show because she was a good sport and showed everyone that she’s totally self-aware. She knows who she is and why she and her family are such polarizing figures. So maybe that just proves she’s been acting all along?

This past weekend’s Kim Kardashian-hosted episode of Saturday Night Live was eventful. A major part of that was due to references to Kardashian’s famous connections, like when she joked about her Kanye West divorce in the opening monologue. The sketch in which she played her sister Kourtney in a judge TV show called The People’s Kourt was a goldmine for cultural references and connections, even outside of Kardashian’s realm.

For example, there was a scene where Pete Davidson impersonated his good friend (and recent SNL musical guest) Machine Gun Kelly. In the sketch, Davidson and Chloe Fineman (playing Megan Fox) poke fun at Kelly and Fox’s frequent and intense PDA with a tongue-entwining kissing display.

Naturally, Kelly caught wind of the sketch and started plotting his revenge. In a tweet tagging Saturday Night Live, Kelly re-shared a clip of Davidson’s impression and wrote, “i think it’s time for me to come on the show as Pete.”

Meanwhile, a month ago, Davidson revisited a moment from Kelly’s aforementioned SNL appearance, when he and Kelly fell off the stage together during the episode’s closing credits. Davidson explained to Jimmy Fallon on The Tonight Show that Kelly tried to pick him up, which, due to an injury Kelly was going with, didn’t exactly work out.

While everyone was losing their mind about Sora joining Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, another platform fighter was releasing to everyone in hopes of taking the throne from the king of the genre. Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl released on October 5 and right now feelings on it are mixed. It’s not a terrible game, but a usurper to Smash Bros. it is not. However, a handful of people are really enjoying it and see the potential if they continue to update the game.

For those people, there’s a special Xbox Series X out there just for them. Xbox has created Series X’s of both SpongeBob and Leonardo printed on them in celebration of Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl. This means that anyone who’s a huge fan of the game, SpongeBob, Ninja Turtles, or Xbox can enter a contest to try and get one.

Promotions like this are always cool, but it may be a little strange for someone to look at their Xbox and see SpongeBob’s face staring right back at them. This may be one of those ones that are kept in well lit rooms only because it would be terrifying if someone kept one of these in their bedroom and looked up to see Leonardo angrily staring right back at them.

It is cool though to see Xbox doing more promotional work. It is currently in the process of celebrating its 20 year anniversary and released some Xbox-themed shoes from Adidas. It has never been a brand afraid to embrace being weird, such as the time it made an actual Xbox Series X fridge, so seeing SpongeBob’s face planted on an Xbox is actually pretty normal.

Good luck to anyone who chooses to enter! You have until October 24.

During the latest episode of Hollywood Wayz podcast, Entourage creator Doug Ellin launched into a profanity-laced tirade against the producers of Billions who he claims iced him out of the series when it was picked up by Showtime.

According to Ellin, after Entourage fizzled out with a movie that nobody remembers, he went to work developing a show about hedge fund managers with a creative team he only refers to as “the guys behind Rounders.” As Dustin Rowles at Pajiba notes, that would be two of Billions‘ three creators, Brian Koppelman and David Levin. However, HBO passed on the series, which Ellin put on the shelf until two years later when Andrew Ross Sorkin (the third Billions creator) said he wanted to do a show about hedge funds, so Ellin introduced him to Koppelman and Levin.

While that teaming led to Billions becoming a hit for Showtime, Ellin claims that everyone involved essentially ghosted him, and he has some strong feelings about it. Via Pajiba:

“Now, I want everyone to be clear on this. I want nothing about this. I haven’t seen the show — maybe it’s great. I thought those guys were talented so it wouldn’t surprise me,” Ellin said on his podcast in response to this revelation. “But this was like kind of as low rent, lowlife s—t as can possibly be done … I want nothing out of this. I want the universe to take care of itself and burn them in f—-ing hell.”

Griping about getting the cold shoulder is starting to become a theme for Ellin. Back in April, he claimed that Entourage has been unfairly viewed through a “wave of righteous PC culture,” which he feels has negatively impacted his relationship with HBO. The network reportedly passed on a new pilot he made, and his attempt to reboot Entourage for a new generation has gone nowhere, which is probably for the best. The last season of that show made the final season of Game of Thrones Season 8 look like… well, the final season of Game of Thrones, but you get the picture.

(Via Radar, Pajiba)

While we now know a Spider-Man and Venom crossover movie is in the works, here’s one collaboration we didn’t see coming for Eddie Brock and his symbiote pal Venom: a mash-up with The Matrix. Okay okay, so it’s not a crossover in the traditional sense, but fans of these series might find it pretty amusing that because of the two films sharing the same filming locations last February, some scenes from Venom: Let There Be Carnage actually feature set pieces from The Matrix Resurrections — namely some helicopters that appear when Brock (Tom Hardy) and Venom are on the run.

In an interview with ScreenRant, Venom 2: Let There Be Carnage Location Manager Christopher Kusiak revealed the helicopters seen flying near Coit Tower in the film were not part of Venom‘s production but were actually from the set of The Matrix Resurrections. According to Kusiak, “the helicopters were actually on the Matrix movie. The Matrix was filming at the same time so we were catching part of their activity on camera.” Kusiak said the team ultimately decided to keep them in, as they inadvertently helped out Venom: Let There Be Carnage. However, Kusiak also added that the cast and crew of Venom: Let There Be Carnage wasn’t always so lucky to have The Matrix Resurrections nearby.

“Lots of stuff impacted filming,” Kusiak said. “A lot of our driving shots went away because The Matrix controlled all of downtown…We ended up moving a stunt up onto the top of the parking garage because we couldn’t get to the areas we wanted because of The Matrix. But if we would’ve been there first, it probably would’ve gone the other way.”

As The Matrix Resurrections has not yet hit theaters (we’ll have to wait until December 22 for that), it’s unclear what scenes the crew was filming or if Venom: Let There Be Carnage had any impact on their filming schedule. However, seeing as how The Matrix got there first and reportedly paid the San Francisco Police Department $420,371.63 over 21 days of shooting to help manage the public during their stunts (comparatively, Venom 2: Let There Be Carnage paid $192,422.58), it seems likely that they had to deal with a lot fewer inconveniences than Kusiak and the Let There Be Carnage team. However, there’s no denying Venom made the best of a tricky situation and saved some serious cash, making the movie’s wildly impressive opening taste even sweeter.

Carlos Santana’s upcoming album, Blessings And Miracles, has already delivered the err… supernatural… collaboration “Move” (not “Smooth!) with Rob Thomas. Now, “Joy,” the fourth single from the album due out on Friday, features Chris Stapleton and is a happy expression of music carrying us past a dark period.

Stapleton’s vocals are are as crisp as ever and he’s joined by a backing choir on the hook. He’s joined by Santana throughout and can we ever get tired of Carlos Santana sprinkling a song with his uncanny guitar solos? The answer is no.

“We talked on the phone about the COVID situation and how there’s so much fear in the world,” Santana recalled about first speaking to Stapleton. “And I said, ‘We need to create music as a healing force. We must bring hope and courage and disinfect twisted minds infected with darkness.’ That gave him the ammunition to write such incredible words. Somewhere I said, ‘flying on the wings of angels,’ so it’s a collaboration. And what an incredible song it is. The choir in it — it’s like the Staple Singers.”

Listen to “Joy” above and check out the full album tracklist below.

1. “Ghost Of Future Pull / New Light”
2. “Santana Celebration”
3. “Rumbalero” Feat. Salvador Santana & Asdru Sierra
4. “Joy” (Carlos Santana & Chris Stapleton)
5. “Move” (Carlos Santana, Rob Thomas, Zac Barnett, and American Authors)
6. “A Whiter Shade Of Pale” Feat. Steve Winwood
7. “Break” Feat. Ally Brooke
8. “She’s Fire” (Diane Warren, G-Eazy, and Carlos Santana)
9. “Peace Power” Feat. Corey Glover
10. “America for Sale” Feat. Kirk Hammett and Marc Osegueda
11. “Breathing Underwater” Feat. Stella Santana, Avi Snow, and MVCA
12. “Mother Yes”
13. “Song For Cindy”
14. “Angel Choir” Feat. Gayle Moran Corea / “All Together” Feat. Chick Corea
15. “Ghost Of Future Pull II”

Blessings And Miracles is out 10/15 via BMG. Get it here.

With Donald Trump firmly out of office and enjoying(?) his retirement at Mar-a-Lago, the political tell-alls seem to be flocking to the shelves. The latest insider’s account of Trump’s final days in office sheds some light on how his biggest allies — GOP senators Tom Cotton and Mitch McConnell — managed to help derail his last-ditch efforts to hang onto power.

According to journalist David M. Drucker’s new book, In Trump’s Shadow, Trump’s campaign to cast doubt on the 2020 Presidential Election failed thanks in larger part to two of his closest friends in Washington. Though the administration’s efforts to overturn election results in key states like Pennsylvania and Arizona fizzled in court, plenty of Republicans on Capitol Hill were ready to fall in line behind their new conservative messiah, with members like Senator Ted Cruz and Senator Josh Hawley rallying their colleagues to overturn the Electoral College vote on Jan. 6th.

In his book, Drucker explains how rank-and-file members like Cruz and Hawley recruited a dozen or so senators to their cause, and how both McConnell and Cotton, working quietly behind the scenes, ended up derailing their planned political rebellion.

“In mid-December, after the states had certified their results and the Electoral College had voted, Cotton read in McConnell,” Drucker writes, saying the senator had done research into Trump’s claims for months before the vote. “Together, they plotted to countermand Trump’s bid to overturn the election and neutralize interest in objecting to Biden’s victory that was developing in some quarters of the Republican conference.”

Though McConnell was an outspoken opponent of Trump’s voter fraud claims once the Electoral College vote was completed, Cotton was waiting to weigh in until after the run-off elections in Georgia. Drucker says the senator had planned to publish an op-ed after that crucial race, contradicting Trump’s claims. He held off because he was “worried that Republican infighting could tank the party’s chances” in the South.

“Even as he privately counseled colleagues to follow the majority leader’s prompts and ignore Trump’s pleadings, he urged that they all keep their powder dry until January 6 to avoid an intra-party row that might blow up in their faces in Georgia.”

That wait-and-see approach blew up in his face after Sen. Hawley announced he would object to the certification vote just one week before it was scheduled to take place. Shortly after, Sen. Cruz announced he’d recruited 10 GOP members to vote no as well. That’s when Cotton was forced to make public his break with Trump.

“With momentum building, Cotton reevaluated,” Drucker writes. “He hopped on the phone with McConnell, and the two mulled strategic options for undercutting what they feared would be a “bandwagon effect” in favor of objecting. After some discussion, McConnell urged Cotton to speed up his timeline for announcing his opposition. The majority leader had been aggressively whipping the issue. But he believed that Cotton, with his conservative bona fides and reputation as a Trump loyalist, might be more effective at talking teetering Senate Republicans off the ledge by providing cover to those who privately wanted to stand behind the certification of Biden’s victory but feared the consequences back home.”

He published his dissent on Jan. 3rd, just three days before the insurrection — an event that worked to change even more Republicans’ minds about refusing to certify the vote. But, according to insiders Drucker interviewed, it was McConnell and especially Cotton who ended up having the biggest influences on those on-the-fence Congress members.

“Two senior members of McConnell’s leadership team, Senatory John Thune and Senator John Barrasso of Wyoming, emphasized that the whole thing would have gotten completely out of hand if not for the stand taken by Cotton,” Drucker says. “‘Tom played a very important role, especially as people were starting to waver,’ Thune told me on January 8, with the shock of what amounted to an attempted coup, albeit an amateur one, still fresh in the air. ‘He took a risk coming out Sunday rather than waiting quietly until Wednesday; he knew it wouldn’t be popular with the base.’”