Back to the Future Day Checklist - UPDATED!

This article has been updated with all the reveals and festivities!

The 30th Anniversary of Back to the Future has been in full-swing all this year, but (for good reason) many of the releases and events have been fixated on the date that Doc takes Marty into 2015 - just two days from now: October 21, 2015. 

With so many product releases, events, videos, and announcements coming in one week, and in some cases one day, I wanted to accumulate a list of all the things that have caught my eye that I'll have to be quick on the draw to either purchase or investigate and absorb. So here's all the stuff I'll be watching when the clock strikes midnight on Back to the Future Day.

IDW

UPDATE: My goodness, where is my head - before I published this the first time I completely forgot one of the most exciting things releasing! The new IDW Comic! Said to take place in between the cracks of the films, telling the side-stories and points of view that you didn't see on screen, the new comic book is going to be fantastic. And it doesn't hurt that it's the same creative team as IDW's Ghostbusters comic which is always top-notch. - 2nd UPDATE: Demand for the comic has been so high that it's already been announced that it's heading to a second printing.

Pepsi Perfect

The Pepsi in super-cool futuristic bottle deemed Pepsi Perfect will be going on sale for a limited run on the 20th. Details on where and when it'll be on sale are still a bit sketchy and everyone has been told to stay tuned to Pepsi's various social media outlets. / Twitter - UPDATE: The Pepsi Perfect bottles flew off the "shelves" of Amazon and Wal-Mart within a matter of 20 minutes. Unfortunately didn't pick one up.

Toyota

Toyota has been running several promos (including a meticulously easter egg filled Statler Toyota ad) that lead us to believe that the Toyota truck that Marty McFly coveted might also be pined after by modern drivers in 2015. Their preview website shows Michael J. Fox and Christopher Lloyd sitting at a diner discussing what the second Back to the Future film got right about modern 2015 and teases a big announcement on the 21st of October. If only it was an announcement that Toyota had purchased the intellectual property rights to DeLorean and the cars might be readily available again. / Toyota - UPDATE: Toyota is using the below short film to help announce their new hydrogen fuel cell inspired by Back to the Future and Mr. Fusion.

View fullsize

DVDs and Books

A new anniversary set (yes, the fourth or fifth time I will have purchased the Back to the Future trilogy on disc format) is being released this Tuesday that includes a few new bonus features as well as the entire run of the animated series. There will apparently also be a brand-new short film featuring Christopher Lloyd as Doc Brown on the set. A great Ultimate Visual History book is also hitting shelves on Back to the Future Day. Both of which I've pre-ordered and can't wait to receive.

We're Going Back

If I hadn't have just plunked down a ton of cash for VIP tickets at the Cinespia Hollywood Forever cemetery screening of the first two films, I'd absolutely have picked up tickets for the festivities that the crew at We're Going Back have been putting together. Enchantment Under the Sea dances, screenings in Clocktower Square on the Universal Lot, and Hoverboard lessons... it would have been an outstanding four day nerd summer camp (in the fall) that would have been great. If only. / We're Going Back

Puente Hills Mall

To that point, apparently the We're Going Back folks have set up a recreation of the Twin Pines/Lone Pine Mall in the parking lot of the Puente Hills Mall here in Los Angeles. A Doc Brown Enterprises truck has been parked in the lot for a couple weeks and the Twin Pines Mall signage apparently just went up a couple days ago. Hoping to get out there and snap a photo or two in full Marty regalia if at all possible this week.

USA Today

Apparently USA Today has something special planned for their October 21, 2015 release. Perhaps a lenticular cover for an accident at the Clocktower? Perhaps something else? / USA Today - UPDATE: USA Today's website has been redesigned to mirror its counterpart in the film. Do not believe the print edition has any differences.

View fullsize

Nike

For YEARS, Nike has been teasing the "Air Mag" release that will include power laces. For a Team Fox charity event, a select number of display collector copies (without power laces) were released several years ago for the 25th Anniversary and still sell for exorbitant amounts on eBay. There was (yet another) leak earlier this year saying that the company was looking to release real retail power lace versions of the Air Mag later in the year, but those have all but disappeared like Marty's siblings in a photo. Stay tuned, maybe an announcement from Nike is coming on Wednesday? / Nike - UPDATE: Michael J. Fox Tweeted out a drawing/letter that he received (see below) from Nike which leads us to believe that a second wave of Nike Mags are on the way (with power laces) to be used as a fundraiser for Team Fox and their research to fight Parkinson's. Details still forthcoming, but safe bet the shoes will once again seek a pretty high price tag.

View fullsize

View fullsize

Welcome to 2015

In 1989, as an eight-year old Troy emerged from a movie theater in Vail, Colorado after having seen Back to the Future: Part II with his parents, visions of 2015 swam through his head as the idyllic future. Hoverboards, flying cars, a Pizza Hut dehydrator that would make him pizza in mere seconds. That young version of me was more pre-occupied with the gadgets and futurist technology that would be available to me all those years later than where I would end up.

But now, reflecting on the movie as I sit here a little over 24 hours into the real 2015, I find myself identifying more with Marty McFly at the end of the first film. In the final moments of the first Back to the Future film, Marty has saved the day and changed his present: his father is now an accomplished author, his brand new truck is all waxed up and ready to go, and life seems great. Until Doc Brown crashes in on the party and tells him its imperative that Marty and Jennifer accompany him to 2015. "It's your kids, something has to be done about your kids," he tells the couple. He's not concerned about all the cool stuff that he can have in 2015, he's concerned about what he would become.

We have a lot of incredibly cool gadgets in 2015: iPhones, streaming internet movies, a seventh Star Wars movie (instead of a 19th Jaws), and I can at least order my pizza from several of the gadgets even if it isn't quite as sexy as rehydrating one from a Black & Decker oven. But there's no possible way that eight-year old me could have predicted where I would be twenty-six years later. Married, writing, and most definitely not hoverboarding for fun as I originally romantically visualized.

My life is a lot different than the eight-year old me thought it would be like thanks to Back to the Future: Part II, and that's not necessarily a bad thing. I have a feeling 2015 is going to be a good year, and that it's going to bring about a lot of good changes too. 

Funny enough, 2015 also marks the 10th anniversary of Still Playing with Toys. So expect some stuff on the horizon concerning that as well. Hard to believe that it was ten years ago that I was sitting in my then girlfriend's dorm room struck with the idea for the "company." Thanks for being here for those ten years, and hope you'll join me for what's to come this year and in the future. 

Bits & Bobs - 4th Edition

Bits & Bobs collects some of the cool things around the interwebs that I think are noteworthy and worth your time but don't necessarily fill up a full blog post or news item. On with the show...

HEAR THE AMAZING "CLOCKTOWER PART 2" LIVE

View fullsize

As part of the upcoming 30th Anniversary of Back to the Future, Universal is planning a re-release of the film in theaters with a very special difference from the original 1985 film: a live orchestra will be playing in time to the action on screen creating a live concert/viewing experience. Composer Alan Silvestri has composed an additional 15 minutes worth of music to accompany the film. Along the same lines, UK based Secret Cinema has plans to bring its live event to Los Angeles to celebrate the 30th anniversary as well. You can read a recap of my experience at the version in London here.

TRUST THE FUNGUS

View fullsize

Fans of the cult-favorite (but famously unsuccessful) live-action adaptation of Super Mario Bros. with Bob Hoskins and John Leguizamo will be happy to know that Second Sight Films is releasing the film on Blu-ray. A new remaster of the feature is the centerpiece, with exclusive special features including an in-depth behind the scenes documentary that Second Sight created in conjunction with the Super Mario Bros. Movie Archive fan site. The Blu-ray release was originally slated for March of 2014 but looks to hit stores in the UK this November. What does that mean for folks in the US? Unfortunately the disc is region locked to the UK (Region 2), so you'll need a region-free player in order to view it (much like the recent release of Joe Dante's The Burbs from Arrow Films, which has an abundance of cool special features and a new HD master, but is UK only). Hopefully Disney will capitalize on bonus features already being in the can and release the disc in the US soon.

GET A GOOD DOSE OF OXYGEN TO GET THROUGH THE WEEK

View fullsize

Rebel Force Radio has an amazing podcast program called Star Wars Oxygen, which is essentially a masters class on the John Williams orchestral score throughout all the films. Hosted by Jimmy Mac and Former LucasArts Sound Designer David W. Collins, each episode focuses on a particular section within one of the Star Wars films on a granular level. This week, Episode 11 was just released focusing on the source music of Return of the Jedi (all of the "in-world" music as heard by the characters in the film sourced from an element seen on screen like a certain Rebo band). But if you have the time, or the ridiculous commute like I do, definitely start back at Episode 1 where the team dissects A New Hope, then Empire Strikes Back and helps you hear the score of Star Wars in a whole new light. The show is available on iTunes by searching Rebel Force Radio or by clicking the link above.

Bits & Bobs - 2nd Edition

Bits & Bobs collects some of the cool things around the interwebs that I think are noteworthy and worth your time but don't necessarily fill up a full blog post or news item. On with the show...

Awesome Flux Capacitor MacBook Decal from Etsy

View fullsize

The people of etsy never fail to impress and come up big once again with this offering from Vinyl Smack: a flux capacitor from Doc Brown's famed DeLorean in Back to the Future. The decal sits over the Apple logo on your MacBook shell and utilizes the light to make the device appear like it's... fluxing. It's what makes time travel possible, and it's what makes you the super-cool geek who is the envy of all your friends the next time you bust out that laptop at a company meeting. Check out Vinyl Smack's shop on etsy for a video and to purchase one of your own. (Note: I'm pretty sure this doesn't mean that your MacBook will run off Mr. Fusion. Yet.)

Starlog Magazine Returns

I'm not sure how long it's been back, but one of the magazines that was responsible for so many of my insights into my favorite films throughout the 80s and 90s has made a resurgence. Starlog Magazine, which shuttered in April of 2009 appears to be back thanks to the magic of the internet. As of this past July it appears that a new Twitter feed as well as a web-based blog and article portal has popped back up feeding news items from around the web. The site also has interviews and reviews, plus an archival of some of the magazine's finest retro articles. As of now, it appears to be more akin to a SlashFilm or Collider rather than the in-depth source that it once was, but maybe it'll get back up to speed and mirror the glory days soon.

Nerdist Swag Shop Opens

View fullsize

Chris Hardwick continues his domination of all things pop culture and geek as his website expands to now include a merch store with Nerdist logos galore. I've been waiting to pick up a t-shirt and his awesome but extremely nerdy (fittingly) convention jacket and immediately picked up both. But if you're a fan of the amazing Nerdist podcasts, the website, or Hardwick himself it's definitely worth heading to the store to check out the wares that are currently available. There's also a limited-edition "fall exclusive" t-shirt up that incorporates the familiar Nerdist logo into a pumpkin for you autumn junkies.