‘Stranger Things: Tales From ’85’ review: This baffling prequel won’t cure the Season 5 hatred Stranger Things: Tales From ’85 might be the most bizarre step Stranger Things could have taken.Take the release date, for starters. Tales From ’85 airs just four months after the Stranger Things series finale. That gives fans barely any breathing room between the end of the flagship series and the beginning of this animated spin-off, proof of Netflix’s ambitious, nonstop designs to turn one of its most original shows into a massive franchise. (It’s already got a stage play, books, and games to its name.) SEE ALSO: ‘Stranger Things’ fans are furious about the finale. Here’s why. There’s just one big wrinkle in that plan: Stranger Things‘ final season was so controversial, it left distraught fans theorizing about a secret surprise episode and accusing the Duffer Brothers of writing Season 5 with ChatGPT. The outrage is still too fresh for another TV trip to Hawkins, Indiana, to go the way Netflix hoped. That trip back to Hawkins doesn’t actually move the story of Stranger Things forward. Instead, Tales From ’85 returns to the past, sandwiching itself between Seasons 2 and 3 and raising tons of questions about the series. Namely, why?Stranger Things: Tales From ’85 is a bewildering trip to the past. Credit: Netflix Tales From ’85 is set during the winter of 1985, many months before the Hawkins kids ever set foot in Starcourt Mall. It’s winter break, and Mike (voiced by Luca Diaz), Eleven (voiced by Brooklyn Davey Norstedt), Dustin (voiced by Braxton Quinney), Lucas (voiced by Elisha Williams), Will (voiced by Ben Plessala), and Max (voiced by Jolie Hoang-Rappaport) are excited to enjoy the snow, the Hawkins winter festival, and of course, some Dungeons & Dragons.But the Upside Down has other plans, as a strange new wave of creatures descends on Hawkins. A “snow shark” burrows through snowdrifts, its relentless motion reminiscent of the Graboids from Tremors. “Jerk-O-Lanterns” plague the pumpkin patch that proved pivotal to Season 2. Encounters with these beasts range from frightening to full-on fun, thanks to dynamic, vivid animation from Flying Bark Productions. The painterly style is reminiscent of Netflix’s smash hit Arcane, and while that series certainly isn’t the first to pioneer that look, there is a sense that Netflix is trying to recreate that same magic in what could be a blockbuster new animated series. Mashable Top Stories SEE ALSO: Gaten Matarazzo hoped ‘Stranger Things’ fans would be conflicted about Dustin in Season 5 However, as inventive as each creature or fight gets, there’s a larger issue hanging over Tales From ’85. None of this has any bearing on future seasons of Stranger Things itself. In Season 3 and beyond, no one brings up the perilous winter of ’85, or discusses how the strategies they used while solving this mystery could help them in their current investigations. Dustin even makes a full-on push to start a Hawkins Investigators’ Club, something that would definitely come up in later seasons were Tales From ’85 more than an afterthought.Plus, not to be too much of a stickler for canon, but Eleven is pushing her psychic abilities here to almost Season 5 levels of superhero-dom, all without breaking a sweat. (Nosebleeds are still included, of course.) That comes down to the magic of animation, which allows Tales From ’85 to go wild with its portrayal of Eleven’s powers. As epic as it is, it’s also divorced from the reality of the main series. For something that’s meant to fit into Stranger Things, Tales From ’85 winds up feeling woefully disjointed. Nowhere is that clearer than when it introduces a new key character whom we know has to disappear from Hawkins before Season 3.Nikki is the heart of Stranger Things: Tales From ’85… and its biggest problem. Credit: Netflix That new character is Nikki Baxter (voiced by Odessa A’zion). A brawny punk accustomed to moving towns with her scientist mother Anna (Janeane Garofalo), Nikki’s not used to putting down roots. But when she gets caught up in a snow shark attack and witnesses Eleven’s powers firsthand, she’s welcomed into the Hawkins party and quickly becomes fast friends with them.Despite her intimidating appearance, Nikki proves to have a heart of gold (as well as a keen ability for tinkering that makes her indispensable to the party’s investigation). While she often serves as the friend group therapist, mediating arguments with ease, she also bonds with Will over their outsider status, encouraging him to embrace what makes him different. Tales From ’85 overtly ties Will’s “difference” to his supernatural troubles in Seasons 1 and 2, although given his coming out as gay in Season 5, Nikki’s advice takes on new meaning here. Does Tales From ’85 act further on that subtext, or do anything in its power to reflect more meaningfully onto the show’s next seasons? No.In rewinding us to the time period between Seasons 2 and 3, Tales From ’85 traps its characters in an odd arrested development. We know where their character arcs lead them, but here, we’ve taken several leaps back in their journeys. That none of the original actors lend their voices to the series doesn’t help either. While the voice cast does a solid job, even nailing several of their live-action counterparts’ mannerisms, there’s no denying how important the original cast was in establishing these characters. Without them, the Tales From ’85 versions of the Hawkins party wind up as uncanny simulacra of the real thing. That’s why Nikki is so important to Tales From ’85. As an original character, she’s a breath of fresh air in an ensemble we’ve spent a decade with. It’s exciting to shake up the Hawkins party with a new face, even if her worries about moving away or not fitting in are fairly cliché.Given that Nikki doesn’t appear or even get mentioned in future Stranger Things seasons, audiences will know she eventually exits the narrative. Does she continue Stranger Things‘ proud tradition of introducing a beloved side character only to kill them off? (See: Barb, Bob, Alexei, and Eddie.) Does she move away as she’s always feared? Does she get wiped from everyone’s memories somehow?I tried to banish these questions from my mind as I watched Tales From ’85, hoping to meet the show more on its level. But when its level is awkwardly shoehorning itself into a broader show in order to keep a franchise chugging, how can I not be thinking of how it will all eventually connect, and why this exists in the first place?Of course, we already know why it exists: franchising. More than that, though, it’s an attempt to stir up easy nostalgia for earlier Stranger Things seasons, which fans might be more willing to digest following their reaction to Season 5. But a franchise needs more than nostalgia to survive, and it’s clear from Tales From ’85 that Stranger Things still needs to learn that lesson.Stranger Things: Tales From ’85 is now streaming on Netflix. Topics Netflix Stranger Things #Stranger #Tales #review #baffling #prequel #wont #cure #Season #hatred

‘Stranger Things: Tales From ’85’ review: This baffling prequel won’t cure the Season 5 hatred

Stranger Things: Tales From ’85 might be the most bizarre step Stranger Things could have taken.
Take the release date, for starters. Tales From ’85 airs just four months after the Stranger Things series finale. That gives fans barely any breathing room between the end of the flagship series and the beginning of this animated spin-off, proof of Netflix’s ambitious, nonstop designs to turn one of its most original shows into a massive franchise. (It’s already got a stage play, books, and games to its name.)
SEE ALSO: ‘Stranger Things’ fans are furious about the finale. Here’s why.

There’s just one big wrinkle in that plan: Stranger Things‘ final season was so controversial, it left distraught fans theorizing about a secret surprise episode and accusing the Duffer Brothers of writing Season 5 with ChatGPT. The outrage is still too fresh for another TV trip to Hawkins, Indiana, to go the way Netflix hoped.

That trip back to Hawkins doesn’t actually move the story of Stranger Things forward. Instead, Tales From ’85 returns to the past, sandwiching itself between Seasons 2 and 3 and raising tons of questions about the series. Namely, why?
Stranger Things: Tales From ’85 is a bewildering trip to the past.

Credit: Netflix

Tales From ’85 is set during the winter of 1985, many months before the Hawkins kids ever set foot in Starcourt Mall. It’s winter break, and Mike (voiced by Luca Diaz), Eleven (voiced by Brooklyn Davey Norstedt), Dustin (voiced by Braxton Quinney), Lucas (voiced by Elisha Williams), Will (voiced by Ben Plessala), and Max (voiced by Jolie Hoang-Rappaport) are excited to enjoy the snow, the Hawkins winter festival, and of course, some Dungeons & Dragons.
But the Upside Down has other plans, as a strange new wave of creatures descends on Hawkins. A “snow shark” burrows through snowdrifts, its relentless motion reminiscent of the Graboids from Tremors. “Jerk-O-Lanterns” plague the pumpkin patch that proved pivotal to Season 2.
Encounters with these beasts range from frightening to full-on fun, thanks to dynamic, vivid animation from Flying Bark Productions. The painterly style is reminiscent of Netflix’s smash hit Arcane, and while that series certainly isn’t the first to pioneer that look, there is a sense that Netflix is trying to recreate that same magic in what could be a blockbuster new animated series.

Mashable Top Stories

SEE ALSO: Gaten Matarazzo hoped ‘Stranger Things’ fans would be conflicted about Dustin in Season 5

However, as inventive as each creature or fight gets, there’s a larger issue hanging over Tales From ’85. None of this has any bearing on future seasons of Stranger Things itself. In Season 3 and beyond, no one brings up the perilous winter of ’85, or discusses how the strategies they used while solving this mystery could help them in their current investigations. Dustin even makes a full-on push to start a Hawkins Investigators’ Club, something that would definitely come up in later seasons were Tales From ’85 more than an afterthought.
Plus, not to be too much of a stickler for canon, but Eleven is pushing her psychic abilities here to almost Season 5 levels of superhero-dom, all without breaking a sweat. (Nosebleeds are still included, of course.) That comes down to the magic of animation, which allows Tales From ’85 to go wild with its portrayal of Eleven’s powers. As epic as it is, it’s also divorced from the reality of the main series. For something that’s meant to fit into Stranger Things, Tales From ’85 winds up feeling woefully disjointed. Nowhere is that clearer than when it introduces a new key character whom we know has to disappear from Hawkins before Season 3.
Nikki is the heart of Stranger Things: Tales From ’85… and its biggest problem.

Credit: Netflix

That new character is Nikki Baxter (voiced by Odessa A’zion). A brawny punk accustomed to moving towns with her scientist mother Anna (Janeane Garofalo), Nikki’s not used to putting down roots. But when she gets caught up in a snow shark attack and witnesses Eleven’s powers firsthand, she’s welcomed into the Hawkins party and quickly becomes fast friends with them.
Despite her intimidating appearance, Nikki proves to have a heart of gold (as well as a keen ability for tinkering that makes her indispensable to the party’s investigation). While she often serves as the friend group therapist, mediating arguments with ease, she also bonds with Will over their outsider status, encouraging him to embrace what makes him different. Tales From ’85 overtly ties Will’s “difference” to his supernatural troubles in Seasons 1 and 2, although given his coming out as gay in Season 5, Nikki’s advice takes on new meaning here. Does Tales From ’85 act further on that subtext, or do anything in its power to reflect more meaningfully onto the show’s next seasons? No.
In rewinding us to the time period between Seasons 2 and 3, Tales From ’85 traps its characters in an odd arrested development. We know where their character arcs lead them, but here, we’ve taken several leaps back in their journeys. That none of the original actors lend their voices to the series doesn’t help either. While the voice cast does a solid job, even nailing several of their live-action counterparts’ mannerisms, there’s no denying how important the original cast was in establishing these characters. Without them, the Tales From ’85 versions of the Hawkins party wind up as uncanny simulacra of the real thing.

That’s why Nikki is so important to Tales From ’85. As an original character, she’s a breath of fresh air in an ensemble we’ve spent a decade with. It’s exciting to shake up the Hawkins party with a new face, even if her worries about moving away or not fitting in are fairly cliché.
Given that Nikki doesn’t appear or even get mentioned in future Stranger Things seasons, audiences will know she eventually exits the narrative. Does she continue Stranger Things‘ proud tradition of introducing a beloved side character only to kill them off? (See: Barb, Bob, Alexei, and Eddie.) Does she move away as she’s always feared? Does she get wiped from everyone’s memories somehow?
I tried to banish these questions from my mind as I watched Tales From ’85, hoping to meet the show more on its level. But when its level is awkwardly shoehorning itself into a broader show in order to keep a franchise chugging, how can I not be thinking of how it will all eventually connect, and why this exists in the first place?
Of course, we already know why it exists: franchising. More than that, though, it’s an attempt to stir up easy nostalgia for earlier Stranger Things seasons, which fans might be more willing to digest following their reaction to Season 5. But a franchise needs more than nostalgia to survive, and it’s clear from Tales From ’85 that Stranger Things still needs to learn that lesson.
Stranger Things: Tales From ’85 is now streaming on Netflix.

Topics Netflix Stranger Things

#Stranger #Tales #review #baffling #prequel #wont #cure #Season #hatred

Tech-news April 23, 2026

Stranger Things: Tales From ’85 might be the most bizarre step Stranger Things could have taken.

Take the release date, for starters. Tales From ’85 airs just four months after the Stranger Things series finale. That gives fans barely any breathing room between the end of the flagship series and the beginning of this animated spin-off, proof of Netflix’s ambitious, nonstop designs to turn one of its most original shows into a massive franchise. (It’s already got a stage play, books, and games to its name.)

Stranger Things: Tales From ’85 is a bewildering trip to the past.

Credit: Netflix

Tales From ’85 is set during the winter of 1985, many months before the Hawkins kids ever set foot in Starcourt Mall. It’s winter break, and Mike (voiced by Luca Diaz), Eleven (voiced by Brooklyn Davey Norstedt), Dustin (voiced by Braxton Quinney), Lucas (voiced by Elisha Williams), Will (voiced by Ben Plessala), and Max (voiced by Jolie Hoang-Rappaport) are excited to enjoy the snow, the Hawkins winter festival, and of course, some Dungeons & Dragons.

But the Upside Down has other plans, as a strange new wave of creatures descends on Hawkins. A “snow shark” burrows through snowdrifts, its relentless motion reminiscent of the Graboids from Tremors. “Jerk-O-Lanterns” plague the pumpkin patch that proved pivotal to Season 2.

Encounters with these beasts range from frightening to full-on fun, thanks to dynamic, vivid animation from Flying Bark Productions. The painterly style is reminiscent of Netflix’s smash hit Arcane, and while that series certainly isn’t the first to pioneer that look, there is a sense that Netflix is trying to recreate that same magic in what could be a blockbuster new animated series.

Mashable Top Stories

Nikki is the heart of Stranger Things: Tales From ’85… and its biggest problem.

Nikki greets the Hawkins party in "Stranger Things: Tales From '85."

Credit: Netflix

That new character is Nikki Baxter (voiced by Odessa A’zion). A brawny punk accustomed to moving towns with her scientist mother Anna (Janeane Garofalo), Nikki’s not used to putting down roots. But when she gets caught up in a snow shark attack and witnesses Eleven’s powers firsthand, she’s welcomed into the Hawkins party and quickly becomes fast friends with them.

Despite her intimidating appearance, Nikki proves to have a heart of gold (as well as a keen ability for tinkering that makes her indispensable to the party’s investigation). While she often serves as the friend group therapist, mediating arguments with ease, she also bonds with Will over their outsider status, encouraging him to embrace what makes him different. Tales From ’85 overtly ties Will’s “difference” to his supernatural troubles in Seasons 1 and 2, although given his coming out as gay in Season 5, Nikki’s advice takes on new meaning here. Does Tales From ’85 act further on that subtext, or do anything in its power to reflect more meaningfully onto the show’s next seasons? No.

In rewinding us to the time period between Seasons 2 and 3, Tales From ’85 traps its characters in an odd arrested development. We know where their character arcs lead them, but here, we’ve taken several leaps back in their journeys. That none of the original actors lend their voices to the series doesn’t help either. While the voice cast does a solid job, even nailing several of their live-action counterparts’ mannerisms, there’s no denying how important the original cast was in establishing these characters. Without them, the Tales From ’85 versions of the Hawkins party wind up as uncanny simulacra of the real thing.

That’s why Nikki is so important to Tales From ’85. As an original character, she’s a breath of fresh air in an ensemble we’ve spent a decade with. It’s exciting to shake up the Hawkins party with a new face, even if her worries about moving away or not fitting in are fairly cliché.

Given that Nikki doesn’t appear or even get mentioned in future Stranger Things seasons, audiences will know she eventually exits the narrative. Does she continue Stranger Things‘ proud tradition of introducing a beloved side character only to kill them off? (See: Barb, Bob, Alexei, and Eddie.) Does she move away as she’s always feared? Does she get wiped from everyone’s memories somehow?

I tried to banish these questions from my mind as I watched Tales From ’85, hoping to meet the show more on its level. But when its level is awkwardly shoehorning itself into a broader show in order to keep a franchise chugging, how can I not be thinking of how it will all eventually connect, and why this exists in the first place?

Of course, we already know why it exists: franchising. More than that, though, it’s an attempt to stir up easy nostalgia for earlier Stranger Things seasons, which fans might be more willing to digest following their reaction to Season 5. But a franchise needs more than nostalgia to survive, and it’s clear from Tales From ’85 that Stranger Things still needs to learn that lesson.

Stranger Things: Tales From ’85 is now streaming on Netflix.

Topics
Netflix
Stranger Things

Source link
#Stranger #Tales #review #baffling #prequel #wont #cure #Season #hatred

Off-side: Indian sport needs institutions, not just teams <div id="content-body-70895850" itemprop="articleBody"><p>In my last column, I wrote that the soaring valuations of Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Rajasthan Royals were less a triumph of Indian sport and more a triumph of one sport. But perhaps, the larger question lies beyond valuation: what comes after the franchise boom?</p><p>Because while India has spent the last decade trying to replicate the IPL, many of the world’s mature sporting cultures have spent the last century building something more durable.</p><p>A franchise can win titles, sell sponsorships and command television ratings. But sporting institutions shape a city, develop generations of athletes and survive cycles of victory and defeat. India has many of the former, but it needs more of the latter.</p><p>If you are ever in Barcelona, you will quickly understand that FC Barcelona is not merely a football club. It is a cultural identity. The same crest lives across basketball, women’s football, handball, futsal and youth sport. Real Madrid, for all its global glamour, follows a similar pattern. Olympiacos in Greece, Fenerbahce in Turkey and Sporting CP in Portugal are not simply clubs but social organisms of their cities.</p><p>They live by a simple maxim: one badge, many sports; one fan base, many emotional entry points.</p><p>The model compounds powerfully. A child may enter through basketball and stay for football. A sponsor may buy one property and inherit five. A city remains engaged across the calendar, not merely during a single league window.</p><p>Despite the astronomical success of the IPL, and the more modest gains made by the Pro Kabaddi League, Women’s Premier League, Hockey India League and the Indian Super League, much of Indian sport remains event-led rather than institution-driven.</p><p>Every year, IPL teams appear, compete, market themselves for a few months and then recede from public consciousness. Fan engagement is intense but episodic. Sponsorship is sold season by season. Youth pathways remain peripheral, and cities host teams without fully owning them.</p><p>If the first wave of sports investment in India was about buying a franchise and entering a league, the next wave should focus on building permanent sporting institutions that are deeply integrated into cities.</p><p>Imagine a Bengaluru sporting institution operating cricket, football, women’s cricket, volleyball and academies under one umbrella. Imagine Kolkata reviving its historic club culture into a modern multi-sport platform. Imagine Chennai, Ahmedabad or Lucknow building year-round city brands rather than seasonal, cricket-centric assets.</p><p>Sponsors would buy into annual ecosystems. Fans would engage for 12 months. Academies would become both a pipeline and a business, while merchandise, memberships and content would generate recurring revenue.</p><p>This future is not theoretical. JSW already owns teams across cricket, football and kabaddi while investing in Olympic sports. Reliance has built beyond teams into pathways and infrastructure. RPSG spans cricket and football. But many such investments remain scattered rather than rooted in one geography.</p><p>Seven IPL franchise owners have already expanded overseas, buying teams in South Africa, the UAE, the Caribbean and elsewhere. Profits generated in India are being exported to acquire cricketing assets abroad. But when one sport already commands more than 80 per cent of the domestic sports economy, there is a legitimate question: should some of that capital instead be reinvested into the underfunded Indian sports ecosystem? Should governments remain passive, or design smart incentives through tax rebates, infrastructure credits, co-investment schemes and grassroots grants as cross-sport ownership benefits for franchise groups that invest meaningfully in city-based multi-sport development?</p><p>The opportunity now is to build across sports within India: an RCB football team in Bengaluru, a CSK women’s cricket team in Chennai, an LSG hockey team in Lucknow, a Gujarat Titans volleyball team in Ahmedabad, all tied to a city crest.</p><p>To make these teams not just tenants of the city, but part of its psyche and consciousness.</p><p>The next phase of Indian sport should not be global acquisition but local permanence. Franchises must become sporting institutions embedded in the heartbeat of their cities.</p><p class="publish-time" id="end-of-article">Published on Apr 23, 2026</p></div> #Offside #Indian #sport #institutions #teams

Deadspin | Minnesota United hold off FC Dallas attack in narrow win <div id=""><section id="0" class=" w-full"><div class="xl:container mx-0 !px-4 py-0 pb-4 !mx-0 !px-0"><img src="https://images.deadspin.com/tr:w-900/28788176.jpg" srcset="https://images.deadspin.com/tr:w-900/28788176.jpg" alt="MLS: Minnesota United at FC Dallas" class="w-full" fetchpriority="high" loading="eager"/><span class="text-0.8 leading-tight">Apr 22, 2026; Frisco, Texas, USA; Minnesota United FC defender Anthony Markanich (13) celebrates after he scores a goal against FC Dallas goalkeeper Michael Collodi (30) during the first half at Toyota Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images  </span></div></section><section id="section-1"> <p>Anthony Markanich scored in the 32nd minute Wednesday night and visiting Minnesota United shut down FC Dallas for a 1-0 victory to extend its winning streak to four matches.</p> </section><section id="section-2"> <p>Minnesota (5-2-2, 17 points) maintained a tight defensive shell against one of the best offenses in MLS. While Dallas (3-2-4, 13 points) owned a 16-5 advantage in shots, it got just three shots on target.</p> </section><section id="section-3"> <p>Meanwhile, Minnesota compensated with a slight edge in possession and took advantage of one of its few quality chances. Markanich collected the ball off Owen Gene’s crossing pass and tried a shot that Michael Collodi denied. But the rebound bounced right back to Markanich and he poked it between Collodi and the left post.</p> </section><section id="section-4"> <p>Dallas’ attack intensified down the stretch, even with MLS goal-scoring leader Petar Musa departing in the 70th minute after appearing to come down with leg cramps. Musa scored nine goals in the first eight fixtures but was limited to two shots, none on net, as Minnesota marked him tightly.</p> </section><br/><section id="section-5"> <p>Drake Callender logged a clean sheet for Minnesota. He came up with two first-half stops when he deflected Sebastian Ibeagha’s header just over the crossbar in the 6th minute, then tipped Shaq Moore’s lefty shot off the post and back towards the right flank in the 25th minute.</p> </section> <section id="section-6"> <p>Logan Farrington created a couple of dangerous chances after entering the pitch in the 62nd minute for Dallas. His bid for an equalizer in the 79th minute was stopped by Callender and his 88th-minute attempt was flagged for offside.</p> </section><section id="section-7"> <p>Near the end of stoppage time in the second half, Dallas created a corner kick and ran Collodi into the middle of the field to help tilt the odds in its favor. But Callender came off his line aggressively and gloved the ball just before time expired.</p> </section><section id="section-8"> <p>The result improved Minnesota to 4-0-1 in its last matches and ended Dallas’ five-match unbeaten streak. It was also Dallas’ first loss at home, where it’s now 2-1-4.</p> </section><section id="section-9"> <p>–Field Level Media</p> </section></div> #Deadspin #Minnesota #United #hold #Dallas #attack #narrow #win

TL;DR: Amazon has the Pokémon TCG Mega Evolution Perfect Order Booster Display Box listed for $229, down from its usual $279.99 list price. That saves you $50.99 on a full 36-pack Booster Display Box, working out to about $6.36 per booster pack.

Credit: The Pokémon Company

$229 at Amazon
$279 Save $50

The Perfect Order range has continued to be one of the Pokémon TCG’s most affordable modern expansions, more so now that you can score its display boxes of a few dozen packs for even less.

As of April 27, the Pokémon TCG Mega Evolution Perfect Order Booster Display Box is listed for $229 at Amazon, down from its $279.99 list price. That makes it 18% off overall, or $50 cheaper than buying at full retail. Since the box includes 36 booster packs, you’re paying roughly $6.36 per pack before tax.

Mashable Trend Report

Mashable Deals

By signing up, you agree to receive recurring automated SMS marketing messages from Mashable Deals at the number provided. Msg and data rates may apply. Up to 2 messages/day. Reply STOP to opt out, HELP for help. Consent is not a condition of purchase. See our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.

This is a solid Amazon price for anyone who prefers buying their boxes through the major retailer. The boxes at these lower price points have been selling quickly, but the next-lowest listing is sitting at $239.95 — which is an also-respectable $40 off.

The Mega Evolution set’s Perfect Order expansion puts Pokémon that appeared in the Pokémon Legends: Z-A game, like (Mega Zygarde ex), front and center, with more than 120 cards to collect across the set. These also include Mega Clefable ex, Mega Starmie ex, and Meowth ex, alongside more new Mega Evolution Pokémon ex cards for collectors and players to chase.

Each Booster Display Box comes with 36 booster packs, and each pack includes 10 random cards. That makes this the clear pick over single-sleeved packs if you’re planning to rip a larger number of Perfect Order at once, build out a set binder, or just give yourself more chances at the expansion’s bigger pulls.

You can also grab the Pokémon TCG Perfect Order Elite Trainer Booster Box for around $70. As for the latest upcoming expansion, you can preorder the Pokémon TCG Chaos Rising Booster Box for just under $240.

Topics Pokemon Trading Cards

#Pokémon #TCG #deal #36pack #Perfect #Order #Booster #Box">

mwasimuddin125 0

TL;DR: Amazon has the Pokémon TCG Mega Evolution Perfect Order Booster Display Box listed for $229, down from its usual $279.99 list price. That saves you $50.99 on a full 36-pack Booster Display Box, working out to about $6.36 per booster pack.

Credit: The Pokémon Company

$229 at Amazon
$279 Save $50

The Perfect Order range has continued to be one of the Pokémon TCG’s most affordable modern expansions, more so now that you can score its display boxes of a few dozen packs for even less.
As of April 27, the Pokémon TCG Mega Evolution Perfect Order Booster Display Box is listed for $229 at Amazon, down from its $279.99 list price. That makes it 18% off overall, or $50 cheaper than buying at full retail. Since the box includes 36 booster packs, you’re paying roughly $6.36 per pack before tax.

Mashable Trend Report

Mashable Deals

By signing up, you agree to receive recurring automated SMS marketing messages from Mashable Deals at the number provided. Msg and data rates may apply. Up to 2 messages/day. Reply STOP to opt out, HELP for help. Consent is not a condition of purchase. See our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.

This is a solid Amazon price for anyone who prefers buying their boxes through the major retailer. The boxes at these lower price points have been selling quickly, but the next-lowest listing is sitting at $239.95 — which is an also-respectable $40 off.
The Mega Evolution set’s Perfect Order expansion puts Pokémon that appeared in the Pokémon Legends: Z-A game, like (Mega Zygarde ex), front and center, with more than 120 cards to collect across the set. These also include Mega Clefable ex, Mega Starmie ex, and Meowth ex, alongside more new Mega Evolution Pokémon ex cards for collectors and players to chase.
Each Booster Display Box comes with 36 booster packs, and each pack includes 10 random cards. That makes this the clear pick over single-sleeved packs if you’re planning to rip a larger number of Perfect Order at once, build out a set binder, or just give yourself more chances at the expansion’s bigger pulls.
You can also grab the Pokémon TCG Perfect Order Elite Trainer Booster Box for around $70. As for the latest upcoming expansion, you can preorder the Pokémon TCG Chaos Rising Booster Box for just under $240.

Topics Pokemon Trading Cards

#Pokémon #TCG #deal #36pack #Perfect #Order #Booster #Box">Best Pokémon TCG deal: 36-pack Perfect Order Booster Box nearly 20% off

Credit: The Pokémon Company

$229 at Amazon
$279 Save $50

The Perfect Order range has continued to be one of the Pokémon TCG’s most affordable modern expansions, more so now that you can score its display boxes of a few dozen packs for even less.

Mashable Trend Report

Mashable Deals

Topics Pokemon Trading Cards

#Pokémon #TCG #deal #36pack #Perfect #Order #Booster #Box

In late 2025, Google started rolling out new icons with a gradient design. Now it seems the new look is coming to the rest of Google’s apps. 9to5Google got its hands on images of the new icons that ditch the uniform circle design that tries to cram in every color of the Google logo.

In general, the looks are softer. Corners are rounder, the gradients gently transition from almost pastel to the more saturated Google primary colors. We’ve already seen this new design language show in updated versions of the Google G logo, as well as Gemini, Photos, and Maps. According to 9to5, this represents the presence of AI-powered features.

The new icons are more playful, vibrant, and varied, reflecting recent design trends that have moved away from the flat looks of the late 2010s and early 2020s. Google Sheets, Slides, Forms, Sites, and Keep all ditch the portrait-oriented sheet of paper look. Many of them shift to landscape layout, which is much more appropriate — when is the last time you saw a vertical PowerPoint presentation?

Most of the icons feel like an improvement. They’re more visually distinct and often embrace a single color, like Chat, which trades the four-color speech bubble outline for a green blob with a smile inside it that feels reminiscent of Google Hangouts icon. The one exception is the Keep icon which, personal opinion, looks like hot trash.

It’s not clear when the new look icons will start rolling out, but it will probably be sooner than later.

#Googles #gradient #icon #design #coming #appsDesign,Google,News,Tech">

mwasimuddin125 0

In late 2025, Google started rolling out new icons with a gradient design. Now it seems the new look is coming to the rest of Google’s apps. 9to5Google got its hands on images of the new icons that ditch the uniform circle design that tries to cram in every color of the Google logo.

It’s not clear when the new look icons will start rolling out, but it will probably be sooner than later.

#Googles #gradient #icon #design #coming #appsDesign,Google,News,Tech">Google’s new gradient icon design is coming to more apps

It’s not clear when the new look icons will start rolling out, but it will probably be sooner than later.

#Googles #gradient #icon #design #coming #appsDesign,Google,News,Tech

Truecaller faces mounting pressures as its growth matures | TechCrunch
Truecaller is one of the world’s most widely used caller identification platforms, with more than 500 million users. Now it’s entering a more challenging phase as growth slows in its largest market and competition intensifies across telecom networks and smartphone platforms.

Much of Truecaller’s growth has been driven by India, which accounts for over 350 million users, or about 70% of its global base. The volume of spam and unwanted calls has turned the app from a simple caller ID service into a more embedded layer of everyday communication.

That position is now shaping its next phase. The company has introduced features such as AI Assistant and Family Protection to drive monetization, alongside tools like Community Suggestions to stay relevant as competition intensifies. This comes as telecom-led solutions such as Calling Name Presentation (CNAP), dedicated number series for verified business calls, and AI-based spam protection gain traction in India. Meanwhile, smartphone makers including Apple and Google continue to build caller identification and spam-blocking capabilities into their operating systems.

As competition increases, Truecaller’s growth is starting to slow. Data shared with TechCrunch from Sensor Tower shows downloads from India fell 16% year-over-year in 2025, while global downloads declined 5%, marking a reversal after several years of growth. Separate data from Appfigures shows downloads peaked at 175 million in 2021, dropped sharply in 2022 and have since hovered around 120 million annually.

Image Credits:Jagmeet Singh / TechCrunch

India remains Truecaller’s largest market, but its share of downloads has declined from over 70% at its peak to the mid-50s in recent years, pointing to a gradual shift in new user growth toward other markets.

Truecaller’s shift in growth dynamics is being closely watched by investors. The company’s shares have fallen about 78% since its 2021 IPO and are down around 37% so far this year, underscoring investor concerns about its growth outlook and business model. Chief Executive Rishit Jhunjhunwala told TechCrunch that one of the key questions from investors has been around the impact of CNAP in India. He also acknowledged recent headwinds in parts of the business, without elaborating further.

CNAP, an initiative pushed by India’s telecom regulator and is being implemented by telecom operators, displays caller names based on KYC records at the network level without requiring third-party apps. This overlaps with part of Truecaller’s core offering, but is more limited in scope.

Techcrunch event

San Francisco, CA
|
October 13-15, 2026

Truecaller’s Jhunjhunwala said the company does not see CNAP as a disruption but as validation of the problem.

“Truecaller operates as a global platform with a much richer and dynamic intelligence layer — spanning spam detection, fraud prevention, business identity, and user context across calls and messages,” he said. “This allows us to go significantly beyond basic caller ID.”

Truecaller’s Community Suggestions show user-generated context about incoming callersImage Credits:Truecaller

Bharath Nagaraj, director of equity research at Cantor Fitzgerald, said CNAP could slow user growth but is unlikely to materially disrupt Truecaller’s core business in the near term. Instead, he pointed to pressure in the company’s advertising segment — driven in part by changes from Google — as the more immediate challenge.

“If you look at the earnings for the company, 65%–70% of it now comes from ad revenue. And that impacted recently,” Nagaraj told TechCrunch.

In its last earnings call (PDF), Truecaller said that it lost roughly one-third of ad traffic from its largest partner in August 2025 — a partner analysts on the call identified as Google. Jhunjhunwala attributed the drop to an unresolved “algorithm issue,” while CFO Odd Bolin said the partner still accounts for more than a third of total revenue. The company is now adding new partners and building its own ad exchange to reduce dependence on any single platform.

But even moving to an in-house ad exchange may not fully address the challenge. Advertising remains highly competitive, with brands able to spend across multiple digital platforms, said Nagaraj. “You can show your ads on Truecaller, but you can also show them on Facebook,” he said.

In-app revenue continues to grow

The pressure on advertising comes even as other parts of Truecaller’s business are on a different trajectory. Data from Appfigures shows that while downloads have plateaued in recent years, gross in-app revenue has risen sharply — from 0,000 in 2017 to .3 million in 2025. It has already reached .4 million this year as of April 20.

Monthly revenue generated by in-app purchases on Truecaller is now consistently above million and still climbing, per Appfigures.

Image Credits:Jagmeet Singh / TechCrunch

Truecaller’s presence on iOS has also grown from less than 5% of its total downloads in 2020–2021 to around 11–12% in recent years, per Appfigures, highlighting a shift toward higher-value markets. The company has stepped up efforts on Apple’s platform, including launching real-time caller ID for iPhone in early 2025 and rolling out feature updates to improve parity with its Android app.

Nonetheless, Apple recently expanded its call-screening capabilities, which could reduce the need for third-party apps among iPhone users.

Another key pillar of Truecaller’s monetization strategy is its enterprise offering, Truecaller for Business, which enables companies to verify their identities and communicate with customers via calls and messaging. The segment has been growing steadily, with revenue rising 39% in constant currency in 2025. Truecaller’s Jhunjhunwala said the company is expanding the platform globally by opening its chat services to partners and offering tools such as verified business caller ID to help enterprises verify identity and reach customers.

Alongside its enterprise push, Truecaller has also been expanding its consumer subscription business, which has over 4 million paid subscribers globally, as more users opt for features such as advanced spam protection, AI-based call screening, and an ad-free experience.

In the past, Truecaller has been criticized over how it builds and maintains its vast database of phone identities. An investigation by The Caravan raised questions about consent and data collection practices, particularly in India, where data protection laws have so far been less stringent. Truecaller has denied wrongdoing and maintains that it complies with applicable regulations, but the debate underlines the broader challenge of balancing utility, scale, and user privacy.

Despite all these challenges, Truecaller sees significant room for growth. The company is focused on addressing the rising complexity of communication, Jhunjhunwala said, as spam and scam calls become more sophisticated with advances in AI. Similarly, it plans to expand across all three revenue streams — advertising, enterprise services, and premium subscriptions — as it looks to sustain growth across markets. Whether that will be enough, however, may depend on how quickly it can adapt as caller identification shifts from standalone apps to the network, and to the phone itself.
When you purchase through links in our articles, we may earn a small commission. This doesn’t affect our editorial independence.#Truecaller #faces #mounting #pressures #growth #matures #TechCrunchcaller id,Truecaller — **Image Credits:**Jagmeet Singh / TechCrunch

**Image Credits:**Jagmeet Singh / TechCrunch

When you purchase through links in our articles, we may earn a small commission. This doesn’t affect our editorial independence.

#Truecaller #faces #mounting #pressures #growth #matures #TechCrunchcaller id,Truecaller">

mwasimuddin125 0

Truecaller is one of the world’s most widely used caller identification platforms, with more than 500 million users. Now it’s entering a more challenging phase as growth slows in its largest market and competition intensifies across telecom networks and smartphone platforms.

Much of Truecaller’s growth has been driven by India, which accounts for over 350 million users, or about 70% of its global base. The volume of spam and unwanted calls has turned the app from a simple caller ID service into a more embedded layer of everyday communication.

That position is now shaping its next phase. The company has introduced features such as AI Assistant and Family Protection to drive monetization, alongside tools like Community Suggestions to stay relevant as competition intensifies. This comes as telecom-led solutions such as Calling Name Presentation (CNAP), dedicated number series for verified business calls, and AI-based spam protection gain traction in India. Meanwhile, smartphone makers including Apple and Google continue to build caller identification and spam-blocking capabilities into their operating systems.

As competition increases, Truecaller’s growth is starting to slow. Data shared with TechCrunch from Sensor Tower shows downloads from India fell 16% year-over-year in 2025, while global downloads declined 5%, marking a reversal after several years of growth. Separate data from Appfigures shows downloads peaked at 175 million in 2021, dropped sharply in 2022 and have since hovered around 120 million annually.

Image Credits:Jagmeet Singh / TechCrunch

India remains Truecaller’s largest market, but its share of downloads has declined from over 70% at its peak to the mid-50s in recent years, pointing to a gradual shift in new user growth toward other markets.

Truecaller’s shift in growth dynamics is being closely watched by investors. The company’s shares have fallen about 78% since its 2021 IPO and are down around 37% so far this year, underscoring investor concerns about its growth outlook and business model. Chief Executive Rishit Jhunjhunwala told TechCrunch that one of the key questions from investors has been around the impact of CNAP in India. He also acknowledged recent headwinds in parts of the business, without elaborating further.

CNAP, an initiative pushed by India’s telecom regulator and is being implemented by telecom operators, displays caller names based on KYC records at the network level without requiring third-party apps. This overlaps with part of Truecaller’s core offering, but is more limited in scope.

Techcrunch event

San Francisco, CA | October 13-15, 2026

Truecaller’s Jhunjhunwala said the company does not see CNAP as a disruption but as validation of the problem.

“Truecaller operates as a global platform with a much richer and dynamic intelligence layer — spanning spam detection, fraud prevention, business identity, and user context across calls and messages,” he said. “This allows us to go significantly beyond basic caller ID.”

Truecaller’s Community Suggestions show user-generated context about incoming callersImage Credits:Truecaller

Bharath Nagaraj, director of equity research at Cantor Fitzgerald, said CNAP could slow user growth but is unlikely to materially disrupt Truecaller’s core business in the near term. Instead, he pointed to pressure in the company’s advertising segment — driven in part by changes from Google — as the more immediate challenge.

“If you look at the earnings for the company, 65%–70% of it now comes from ad revenue. And that impacted recently,” Nagaraj told TechCrunch.

In its last earnings call (PDF), Truecaller said that it lost roughly one-third of ad traffic from its largest partner in August 2025 — a partner analysts on the call identified as Google. Jhunjhunwala attributed the drop to an unresolved “algorithm issue,” while CFO Odd Bolin said the partner still accounts for more than a third of total revenue. The company is now adding new partners and building its own ad exchange to reduce dependence on any single platform.

But even moving to an in-house ad exchange may not fully address the challenge. Advertising remains highly competitive, with brands able to spend across multiple digital platforms, said Nagaraj. “You can show your ads on Truecaller, but you can also show them on Facebook,” he said.

In-app revenue continues to grow

The pressure on advertising comes even as other parts of Truecaller’s business are on a different trajectory. Data from Appfigures shows that while downloads have plateaued in recent years, gross in-app revenue has risen sharply — from $600,000 in 2017 to $39.3 million in 2025. It has already reached $13.4 million this year as of April 20.

Monthly revenue generated by in-app purchases on Truecaller is now consistently above $2 million and still climbing, per Appfigures.

Image Credits:Jagmeet Singh / TechCrunch

Truecaller’s presence on iOS has also grown from less than 5% of its total downloads in 2020–2021 to around 11–12% in recent years, per Appfigures, highlighting a shift toward higher-value markets. The company has stepped up efforts on Apple’s platform, including launching real-time caller ID for iPhone in early 2025 and rolling out feature updates to improve parity with its Android app.

Nonetheless, Apple recently expanded its call-screening capabilities, which could reduce the need for third-party apps among iPhone users.

Another key pillar of Truecaller’s monetization strategy is its enterprise offering, Truecaller for Business, which enables companies to verify their identities and communicate with customers via calls and messaging. The segment has been growing steadily, with revenue rising 39% in constant currency in 2025. Truecaller’s Jhunjhunwala said the company is expanding the platform globally by opening its chat services to partners and offering tools such as verified business caller ID to help enterprises verify identity and reach customers.

Alongside its enterprise push, Truecaller has also been expanding its consumer subscription business, which has over 4 million paid subscribers globally, as more users opt for features such as advanced spam protection, AI-based call screening, and an ad-free experience.

In the past, Truecaller has been criticized over how it builds and maintains its vast database of phone identities. An investigation by The Caravan raised questions about consent and data collection practices, particularly in India, where data protection laws have so far been less stringent. Truecaller has denied wrongdoing and maintains that it complies with applicable regulations, but the debate underlines the broader challenge of balancing utility, scale, and user privacy.

Despite all these challenges, Truecaller sees significant room for growth. The company is focused on addressing the rising complexity of communication, Jhunjhunwala said, as spam and scam calls become more sophisticated with advances in AI. Similarly, it plans to expand across all three revenue streams — advertising, enterprise services, and premium subscriptions — as it looks to sustain growth across markets. Whether that will be enough, however, may depend on how quickly it can adapt as caller identification shifts from standalone apps to the network, and to the phone itself.

When you purchase through links in our articles, we may earn a small commission. This doesn’t affect our editorial independence.

#Truecaller #faces #mounting #pressures #growth #matures #TechCrunchcaller id,Truecaller">Truecaller faces mounting pressures as its growth matures | TechCrunch

Truecaller is one of the world’s most widely used caller identification platforms, with more than 500 million users. Now it’s entering a more challenging phase as growth slows in its largest market and competition intensifies across telecom networks and smartphone platforms.

Much of Truecaller’s growth has been driven by India, which accounts for over 350 million users, or about 70% of its global base. The volume of spam and unwanted calls has turned the app from a simple caller ID service into a more embedded layer of everyday communication.

That position is now shaping its next phase. The company has introduced features such as AI Assistant and Family Protection to drive monetization, alongside tools like Community Suggestions to stay relevant as competition intensifies. This comes as telecom-led solutions such as Calling Name Presentation (CNAP), dedicated number series for verified business calls, and AI-based spam protection gain traction in India. Meanwhile, smartphone makers including Apple and Google continue to build caller identification and spam-blocking capabilities into their operating systems.

As competition increases, Truecaller’s growth is starting to slow. Data shared with TechCrunch from Sensor Tower shows downloads from India fell 16% year-over-year in 2025, while global downloads declined 5%, marking a reversal after several years of growth. Separate data from Appfigures shows downloads peaked at 175 million in 2021, dropped sharply in 2022 and have since hovered around 120 million annually.

India remains Truecaller’s largest market, but its share of downloads has declined from over 70% at its peak to the mid-50s in recent years, pointing to a gradual shift in new user growth toward other markets.

Truecaller’s shift in growth dynamics is being closely watched by investors. The company’s shares have fallen about 78% since its 2021 IPO and are down around 37% so far this year, underscoring investor concerns about its growth outlook and business model. Chief Executive Rishit Jhunjhunwala told TechCrunch that one of the key questions from investors has been around the impact of CNAP in India. He also acknowledged recent headwinds in parts of the business, without elaborating further.

CNAP, an initiative pushed by India’s telecom regulator and is being implemented by telecom operators, displays caller names based on KYC records at the network level without requiring third-party apps. This overlaps with part of Truecaller’s core offering, but is more limited in scope.

Techcrunch event

San Francisco, CA | October 13-15, 2026

Truecaller’s Jhunjhunwala said the company does not see CNAP as a disruption but as validation of the problem.

“Truecaller operates as a global platform with a much richer and dynamic intelligence layer — spanning spam detection, fraud prevention, business identity, and user context across calls and messages,” he said. “This allows us to go significantly beyond basic caller ID.”

Truecaller’s Community Suggestions show user-generated context about incoming callersImage Credits:Truecaller

Bharath Nagaraj, director of equity research at Cantor Fitzgerald, said CNAP could slow user growth but is unlikely to materially disrupt Truecaller’s core business in the near term. Instead, he pointed to pressure in the company’s advertising segment — driven in part by changes from Google — as the more immediate challenge.

“If you look at the earnings for the company, 65%–70% of it now comes from ad revenue. And that impacted recently,” Nagaraj told TechCrunch.

In its last earnings call (PDF), Truecaller said that it lost roughly one-third of ad traffic from its largest partner in August 2025 — a partner analysts on the call identified as Google. Jhunjhunwala attributed the drop to an unresolved “algorithm issue,” while CFO Odd Bolin said the partner still accounts for more than a third of total revenue. The company is now adding new partners and building its own ad exchange to reduce dependence on any single platform.

But even moving to an in-house ad exchange may not fully address the challenge. Advertising remains highly competitive, with brands able to spend across multiple digital platforms, said Nagaraj. “You can show your ads on Truecaller, but you can also show them on Facebook,” he said.

In-app revenue continues to grow

Monthly revenue generated by in-app purchases on Truecaller is now consistently above $2 million and still climbing, per Appfigures.

Nonetheless, Apple recently expanded its call-screening capabilities, which could reduce the need for third-party apps among iPhone users.

When you purchase through links in our articles, we may earn a small commission. This doesn’t affect our editorial independence.

#Truecaller #faces #mounting #pressures #growth #matures #TechCrunchcaller id,Truecaller

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