2021 Toy Hall of Fame announced 12 finalists

The National Toy Hall of Fame, at The Strong Museum of Play in Rochester, said the finalists for induction this year also include billiards, Cabbage Patch Kids, Fisher-Price Corn Popper, Mahjong, Masters of the Universe, pinata, Risk, sand, The Settlers of Catan and a toy fire engine.

“These 12 toys represent the wide scope of playthings — from one of the most universal playthings in the world, like sand, to a game-changing board game like Risk to the popular adult game of billiards,” Christopher Bensch, vice president for collections at The Strong, said in a news release.

“Whether old or new, for kids or adults, all 12 of these toy finalists greatly influenced the world of play.” The inductees will be announced November 4.

Helen Mirren to host Harry Potter TV competition

WarnerMedia announced that Helen Mirren will host Harry Potter: Hogwarts Tournament of Houses, a four-part competition series based on the J.K. Rowling books and movies, to premiere on Cartoon Network and TBS.

Details of the competition are not released, however, fans know Hogwarts divides its school into four houses: Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin.

2021 marks the 20th anniversary of the first film adaptation, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone and HBO Max will celebrate the anniversary with a televised special, to air on Cartoon Network’s ACME Night and TBS, then stream on HBO Max.

The Matrix 4: trailer released

Remember Neo from the mindboggling sci-fi thriller movie, Matrix? Well, the sci-fi had the fourth instalment in works and the time has come for the world to witness it.

In the original Matrix films, hacker Thomas Anderson (Reeves) learns about the existence of the digital landscape known as The Matrix — and his role as the chosen one, Neo — though he seems to have had some amnesia in the opening moments of the trailer for Resurrections, directed by Lana Wachowski.

Resurrections immerses Reeves’ persona and takes back the audience back into all things Matrix, including gravity-defying martial arts, shapeshifting villains in sunglasses. However, not much is known about the plot yet.

The Matrix Resurrections will be released in cinemas and on the HBO Max streaming service in December.

Published in Dawn, Young World, September 25th, 2021