Had to title it differently this week. A little bit of variety in the titling of these pop culture week in review posts does some good, I think. Speaking of change, some shifts in the world of TV, movies, and celebrity this week. So let’s dig in!

1 – Marvel Announced Phase 3 Plans

At a big press event in Los Angeles this week, the bigwigs over at Marvel Studios announced a bunch of new projects in that series of films you’ve been seeing for the last 6 years. Spoiler alert: you’ll keep seeing more of their films for the next 6 years, and no one will blame you if you feel like maaaaaybe Marvel is over-saturating the market. The quick hits of what’s on tap:

• Captain America 3 – May 6, 2016 – Chris Evans will be joined by Iron Man in this movie
• Doctor Strange – November 4, 2016 – See my next topic for details about the deal that Marvel chose NOT to announce about this highly-anticipated movie
• Guardians of the Galaxy 2 – May 5, 2017 – No surprise at all that 2014’s biggest summer hit will be getting another installment in the next few years
• Black Panther – November 3, 2017 – You’ve seen Chadwick Boseman as Jackie Robinson (42) and James Brown (Get On Up), and now you’ll see him as that super-hero you hadn’t heard of.
• Captain Marvel – July 6, 2018 – This superhero will be female. Bechdel Test fans rejoice.
• Inhumans – November 2, 2018 – Okay, Marvel, now you’re just making stuff up
• Avengers: Infinity War Part One – May 2018 – Sounds pretty intense. But wait, you said part o-
• Avengers: Infinity War Part Two – May 2019 – So, just to be clear, you’re breaking Avengers 3 into Avengers 3A and 3B? Is this how you convinced Downey to stick around? And how are you not giving me a specific release date? For all you know, I have plans 4 and a half years from now!

2 – Benedict Cumberbatch Is Joining Marvel, Even If They Didn’t Announce It Officially

Just a day before the Marvel event, news broke that Benedict Cumberbatch – Sherlock, Kahn, Smaug, that guy my roommates have huge crushes on – will be playing Sorcerer Supreme Doctor Strange in that movie coming out in two years. It’s not SUPER-confirmed, but it’s pretty much a done deal. This will open Marvel up to the world of the mystical. Quick question: is it Dr. Strange, or Doctor Strange, like how you’re not allowed to abbreviate Doctor Who?

3 – McDonalds Now Has the Dumbest Slogan of All Time

I’ll be brief. You know how McDonalds had that slogan “I’m Lovin’ It?” And how we all agreed to roll our eyes and pretend that was a respectable slogan for a giant multinational corporation? They just went beyond the threshold of acceptable. The new McDonalds slogan: “Lovin’ Beats Hatin'”

That sounds like the title to a straight-to-DVD sequel to the “Step Up” movies, not something that makes me want to buy a re-heated cheeseburger.

4 – Honey Boo Boo Was Canceled

Don’t want to be too funny here. Mama June, the matriarch of that TLC show, has been secretly dating, car-shopping, house-hunting, and generally associating with a guy who was convicted of child molestation 10 years ago after he molested June’s own daughter. The fact that she’s now welcomed him into her life – spending time with her 9 year old daughter known to the world as Honey Boo Boo – is clearly a problem on a very human scale, regardless of TV deals or public relations.

Clearly, that very scary parenting choice also has implications for the people who work on and have watched “Here Comes Honey Boo Boo” on TLC. The network, motivated by some combination of decency, legal concern, and public relations ass-covering, pulled the plug on the show this week. Anyone who ever cared about this show can, in my opinion, get their fill of watching exploitative shows showcasing people who don’t know any better by tuning in to any other reality show currently on the air as you read this.

5 – Boardwalk Empire Ended Its Run

I didn’t watch the Prohibition-Era drama on HBO while it was on, though people have always told me good things about it. I just wanted to include this because we should all pay tribute to any show that is so good that it makes a respected and Golden Globe-winning actor out of Steve Buscemi, a guy who once played this role:

6 – Mitch Hurwitz Announced He’ll Be Releasing a Chronological Re-Edit of “Arrested Development” Season 4

Were you disappointed by the Netflix-exclusive 4th season of “Arrested Development,” one of TV’s greatest comedies of all time? Mitch Hurwitz (the show’s creator and source of creative lifeblood) knows why. The disjointed, non-linear, one-character-per-episode aspect of the 4th season left a bad taste in many people’s mouths, and honestly it was hard to follow, even for a show that caters to smart audiences.

Hurwitz announced this week he’s working on a re-edit of the entire 4th season that tells the tale of the Bluth family in chronological order. No more going “OOOOOH THAT’S why Michael heard the noise upstairs” several episodes after the first time you saw this scene – it’ll actually play as a situational comedy, for better or worse.

Sign me up.

7 – Seth Rogen Will Be Portraying Steve Wozniak in the New Steve Job Biopic

If you’re thinking, “but hey, Andrew, they already made a Steve Jobs biopic, where Ashton Kutcher was Steve Jobs…” then I say HARK! Unto thee I bring good news: Sony is making a DIFFERENT Steve Jobs biopic that has the potential to be pretty good.Christian Bale has already been announced as Steve Jobs. Jessica Chastain (Zero Dark Thirty) is also being pursued for a role.

But Seth Rogen! In a presumably pretty serious, dramatic role! I liked Rogen in 50/50, and he fits the role of Wozniak from a physical viewpoint, and the role will not put ALL the dramatic weight on Seth’s shoulders; having Christian Bale as a leading man must give any actor a bit of breathing room.

8 – The “Game of Thrones” Cast Got Raises

I guess now that “Boardwalk Empire” is off the air, HBO has a bit more money to throw around to its actors. I’m not seeing exact numbers, but it seems that the actors who play big roles like Tyrion, Jamie, Cersei, Jon Snow, and Daenerys will be getting BIG raises (we’re talking BIG money-per-episode salaries). Raises of a somewhat smaller nature to Arya, Sansa, and Margaery.

My apologies to the actors for using your characters’ names instead of your own. Dry your tears on your millions of dollars. And while you’re at it, tell George R.R. Martin to write some gosh-darn books.

9 – Taylor Swift Released a New Album

Taylor Swift is the proverbial Third Rail in pop culture. I am not stating an opinion. Next.

10 – Amy Poehler’s Book Is Out

None of my words are as valuable as this lady’s. Stop reading and buy this.