Mashable

Valentine's Day remains a divisive topic. Some criticize it as a capitalistic subsumption of love and religion, while others dislike it for personal reasons, like being single at a time when you're "expected" to be in love.

Despite some cynical opinions, the holiday results in a flurry of dating app activity. Tinder cites its "Peak Season" as the time between New Year's Day and February 14. Internal Tinder data reveals over 298 million more Likes are exchanged, and over 2.1 million more daily messages are sent during this time than the rest of the year. 

SEE ALSO: 30 Valentine's Day gifts for all the sweethearts in your life

Hinge revealed to Mashable that in the two weeks leading to Valentine's Day 2024, Likes sent grew by 28 percent, and matches increased by 17 percent compared to the same period in 2023.

On Bumble, matches increased in the U.S. in January 2026 compared to December 2025, the app told Mashable, hinting that singles want a V-Day date.

Even if you are in the spirit, many feel the effect of price gouging in restaurants and generally increased costs, limiting and impacting how celebrations take place and sending us to search other avenues.

As we increasingly rely on the digital world, it's only logical that we integrate our offline holidays into our digital existence. And if we take romance online, what will our Valentine's Day begin to look like?

Romance through the screen

With so much of our dating lives influenced by the internet, as dating apps move courtship online and COVID restrictions caused multiple remote Valentine's Day celebrations, our relationship with Valentine's Day has been impacted.

"We did a virtual dinner and he sent me some LEGO flowers through the post, as he wasn't sure if real flowers would keep for very long!" says Emily, 25, York, on celebrating Valentine's Day away from her long-distance partner before moving in together.  

"For our dinner, we each bought steaks and made our virtual backgrounds look like a fancy restaurant. Definitely one of our most memorable. We laugh about it a lot," she says.

"Sometimes distance can actually make couples more intentional about how they express their love, which can be a beautiful silver lining," according to Amber Robinson, relationship therapist and owner of A Road Through Practice.

Regarding long-distance relationships, Robinson sees couples utilising various apps to maintain their connection. "They're sending good morning selfies, sharing Spotify playlists, [and] watching movies in sync on FaceTime."

Sometimes distance can actually make couples more intentional about how they express their love, which can be a beautiful silver lining. - relationship therapist Amber Robinson

With Valentine's Day, she's seen an interesting blend of physical and digital realities: "Some couples coordinate to open their gifts together on a video call, others sync up a movie night and order in, and I even had one creative pair who set up identical romantic settings in their homes — same candles, same music, same everything! It was like they were both in the same space despite being thousands of miles apart."

"It still takes an emotional investment, creativity, and intention to make a day like Valentine's Day special," Robinson believes.

A new frontier of digital intimacy

Digital romance and intimacy aren't just for those unable to spend time together due to location, nor limited to Valentine's Day. Couples can invite the digital world into their relationship in various ways.

"In many ways, the distinction between digital intimacy and physical, in-person intimacy has become blurred thanks to the ubiquity of technology use in relationships," according to Dr. Ellen Kaufman, senior research associate at the Kinsey Institute.

"We are also seeing a significant increase in use and interest in emerging forms of sex tech — sexual technologies — that promote emotional connection in addition to (remote) physical closeness. Our research demonstrates that people who use erotic webcam modeling sites, for example, want to feel close to the models both physically and emotionally. The underlying technology of these sites — including the integration of WiFi- and Bluetooth-enabled sex toys, which are also helping couples reclaim physical intimacy when they're not in the same place — are increasingly helping people meet those needs," Kaufman continues.

Engagement with sex tech has risen among American adults, suggesting a noticeable shift in our views on intimacy, as well as weakening stigmatisation of digital intimacy. 

"You can buy your loved one a touch bracelet, have a date night together in the VR world, or FaceTime each other. You can watch a movie together on Netflix or play video games together to help deepen your bond," says relationship and break-up expert at LGBTQ dating app Taimi, Angelika Koch.

Managing expectations and exposure

For those celebrating Valentine's Day, the digital experience in the lead-up can be intense. There's a looming awareness of social media posts showcasing couples, their relationship, and any Valentine's Day celebration plans. This, amongst a barrage of e-mails and notifications, can impact people both single and in relationships. 

"The internet in February makes it worse as couples tend to feel like they need to measure up to unrealistic standards set by those people," says Sean O'Neill, licensed marriage and family therapist at Maple Moon Recovery. He recommends couples avoid comparison and "focus on and [define] what connection means to them." 

For those not in relationships, the online world can still revolutionise Valentine's Day. 

SEE ALSO: How one tweet led me to meet my partner

"I switched off dating and started using [the internet] to meet new people and strike up new friendships," says Jennifer, 32, London, founder and community manager of Ladies in London Official, a recently founded social club for women.

Initially, she connected with women via Bumble for Friends and MeetUp, creating a space for women to build friendships on and offline. Jennifer now uses WhatsApp to connect the group and encourage sign-ups for events. Both digital and physical ones are planned for February, including a Galentine's Day event (brought into existence by the sitcom Parks and Recreation in 2010).

Valentine's Day, whether you'll be spending it online, offline, single, or happily in a relationship, can be what you make of it. It can offer an opportunity to bring us closer together with those we love, to connect with ourselves, or to explore new frontiers of intimacy unencumbered.

There's a great deal of the internet to explore for those avoiding any reminders of Valentine's Day, and a lot of digital experiences waiting for those planning to celebrate. 

This article was first published in 2025 and republished in 2026.

Directed and co-written by Good Luck to You, Leo Grande’s Sophie Hyde, Jimpa is a tale of wish fulfillment on multiple levels — often to its detriment. The first level is its plot, which follows an Australian filmmaker, Hannah (Olivia Colman), taking her nonbinary teenager Frances (Aud Mason-Hyde) to visit her idiosyncratic gay father, Jim (John Lithgow), in Amsterdam, as she begins work on a movie that idealizes her family's past.

The second level is the film's own making. Hannah is a stand-in for Hyde, whose own child, Mason-Hyde, makes their onscreen debut in what amounts to a semi-autobiographical retelling of Hyde's family history, with some poetic license to depict conversations the family could never have before Hyde’s real father passed. These two meta-textual layers imbue Jimpa with intrigue. However, their interplay is informed by a third level, which ultimately kneecaps the movie both visually and thematically. Its desire to present a kind of utopian queer acceptance, while commendable as a real-world end goal, yields flattened characters who speak in grating proclamations, and whose pasts are rendered mere flashes, which the movie fails to emotionally anchor.

Jimpa turns queerness — as identity, history, and lived experience — into texture, but texture alone. Of course, it's hard to dismiss the film outright, because it's incredibly well-meaning, and because it draws on a painful real-world story. But the way it expresses its intent, and its message about queer acceptance, ends up grasping at authenticity. The film never finds its truth, resulting in a painfully languid work that merely gestures toward real drama.

What is Jimpa about? Credit: Kino Lorber

Jim — lovingly called "Jimpa" by his grandchild — left his wife and daughters several decades ago. Hannah was 13 at the time, and she tells us in the movie's opening voiceover that her parents' split was amicable and mutually supportive. Jim was a gay rights activist who felt constrained in Adelaide, Australia. He abandoned his family for life in the Netherlands at a time of burgeoning metropolitan queer culture and community challenges like the AIDS crisis.

Jim, perpetually single and nonmonogamous, also had a stroke a few years ago, and although he's mostly recovered, Hannah wants to take the opportunity for Frances to get to know him better while they still have time. Frances is 16, nonbinary, and quite sure of their identity, but unbeknownst to Hannah and their easygoing father, Harry (Daniel Henshall), they plan to stay on in Amsterdam with Jim instead of returning to Adelaide for their penultimate school year. They only reveal this to their parents while en route to Europe, setting up a clear dramatic throughline involving them getting to know Jim better (while he guides them towards discovering their own sexuality and interest in polyamory). However, the film's oblique relationship to conflict muddles this picture.

At numerous points in the film, Hannah pitches a conflict-free drama about her father to various producers and actors over Zoom, stemming from her rosy view of the past. Jimpa is not exactly that version of events — Hannah's movie speaks to her avoidance of confrontation — but the real and fictitious films are spiritually aligned. In Jimpa, drama is too easily resolved or hand-waved away; people disagree at first, but come to an understanding without much struggle. Even when the film presents emotional challenges (like the question of Frances staying in Amsterdam, or how to proceed when Jim's health inevitably declines), it also provides clear conclusions, and few possible deviations stemming from emotional impulse.

The resultant performances, however, are largely worthwhile.

Jimpa constrains its impeccable cast. Credit: Kino Lorber

The ever-reliable Colman and Lithgow create a shared history where the movie fails to do so (narratively and aesthetically), owing to their dialed-in wit peppered with hidden vulnerabilities. Mason-Hyde, while unfortunately unremarkable in more demanding scenes, carries themselves with an adolescent mix of hesitance and eagerness. This is especially true in Frances' scenes of sexual discovery with one of Jim's bisexual students (Zoë Love Smith), though the movie is equally hesitant to capture the character's experience, and the flood of complicated feelings in its aftermath. It's all too content with having characters tell us about these emotions, rather than showing us how they might work through them in real time.

Jimpa's dramatic highlight, however, happens to be Australian actress Kate Box. She appears in only a couple of scenes as Hannah's sister, Emily, but her troubled, rankled character provides illuminating contrast to Hannah's non-confrontational nature. Her prickliness is refreshing (and refreshingly human), because no other character seems to have a negative bone in their body. Even Jim, who jests and jabs at Frances' identity (gender-neutral pronouns are a novelty to his generation), is a loving grandfather who's said to be provocative for provocation's sake, albeit without much thought from the movie as to why he might be this way, or if he feels conflicted about it (or how he feels about it at all).  

In addition to being a loving grandparent, Jim also fulfills the role of a queer elder passing down knowledge and experience to Frances who, though they're the president of their school’s LGBTQ club, doesn't have much of a queer community to speak of. This is where Jimpa at least finds some semblance of academic value; Jim is, after all, a university professor, and he collects pins and buttons from various historical queer movements. However, the movie frames even its arguably vital intergenerational conversations as a superficial string of buzzwords — for instance, about gender and sexuality being spectrums, without observing what those spectrums might entail — woven between fleeting historical imagery.

Jimpa is a blinkered tale of queer history.

Some of the most animated scenes in Jimpa come courtesy of Jim’s middle-aged and elderly gay friends. Like Emily, this group — comprising actors Erle De Lanooi, Hans Kesting, and Frank Sanders — appear only in a handful of scenes, but have a lively enough presence to add a sense of queer history to Amsterdam. As a combination of Amsterdam natives and transplants who came up with Jim and lived through communal tumult, they're all part of his story, and thus, they pique Frances' curiosity. 

However, the way the characters' lives and pasts are portrayed robs this friend group of three-dimensional personhood. The film's use of flashback involves quick glimpses of moments while they’re discussed in dialogue, including bittersweet memories during harrowing times, like weaving AIDS memorial quilts. But every high and low of these characters' lives — including Jim's — takes on a Ford car commercial sensibility, with hazy, high-contrast shots (usually of people dancing to no music) that feel disconnected from one another. The same approach applies to Hannah and Frances' flashbacks, with swift bursts of characters catching the camera's gaze (in brief, head-on close ups), but never meeting it for long enough to create a connection.

This glancing visual approach is technically in tune with how Hyde approaches her story, wherein characters don't so much exchange ideas as they narrate pre-ordained talking points from the latest round of social media discourse on queerness (for instance, a brief, directionless clash over how the word "queer" has been reclaimed by LGBTQ youth, but still holds painful memories for older gay men). That Jimpa lampshades these conversations as familiar is a meaningless gesture if they’re still the movie’s lingua franca and lead to no real self-reflection. 

Jimpa, in this way, ends up talking through its broad ideas on queer culture without ever making them felt. The characters have a sense of history, but it never feels fully lived-in, or painful, or joyous. It so rarely feels human the way, say, Andrew Haigh's All of Us Strangers does, a work whose generational queer gaps are filled by wistful and painful drama. Moments of Jim handing down advice to Frances are reminiscent of Luca Guadagnino's Call My by Your Name, in which a father doles out life lessons to his queer son, but Jimpa's version of these swap emotional subtext for verbose soap-boxing destined to never click — to never stir the soul.

Like so much of the movie, these exchanges are all text and no subtext — all words and no feelings — which is, ironically, a facet of modern queerness and label-centric queer culture that Jim jokingly decries. Rather than finding complexity or nuance through differing viewpoints and lived experiences, Jimpa simply ends up highlighting its biggest missteps, via meta-textual moments that almost try to justify them.

Queer art deserves to be joyful and multifaceted, whether it's highlighting oppression or simply portraying the existence of queer people in ordinary circumstances. However, Jimpa tries and fails to split the difference, as a film with smoothed edges that portrays self-discovery on autopilot. 

The result is a dramatic void. Jimpa's confrontation of history becomes a sanitized experience worth only a nod of acknowledgement, instead of one that might instill affirmation in the face of prejudice or self-doubt. Rarely has there been a queer movie that, on paper, seems so tender and politically necessary, but ends up so eye roll-inducing in execution, fulfilling the most anti-art demands for representational drama sans conflict or rigor.  

Jimpa opens in limited release Feb. 6.

UPDATE: Feb. 4, 2026, 2:28 p.m. This review was first published on Jan. 28, 2025, as part of Mashable's Sundance Film Festival coverage. It has been updated in anticipation of its theatrical premiere.

Sure, any everyday product that comes in pink or red technically counts as a Valentine's Day gift. But not every pink or red item is automatically a good Valentine's Day gift. When looking for a memorable Valentine's Day gift for your girlfriend, that's rule number one: Don't force the pink, red, or heart-shaped gift just because it's on theme.

But if you are dating a sucker for all things cutesy, corny, and heart-covered, rule number two applies: Don't skip the lovey-dovey gifts in the name of not being cliché. At the end of the day, a truly thoughtful Valentine's Day gift for your girlfriend is really just one that she can tell you put thought into: a gift inspired by a hobby, a daily struggle, or a little joy that she's mentioned in passing.

To kickstart your brainstorm, we gathered intel from the internet and our own personal lives to curate a list of 25+ unique gift ideas for girlfriends this year. Whether it's your first year of dating, your last Valentine's Day before engagement, or somewhere in between, here are our top Valentine's Day gift ideas for your girlfriend in 2026.

Need more inspiration? We have even more spot-on recommendations in our guides of the best Valentine's Day gifts for her and the best Valentine's Day gifts for your wife.

Another Game of Thrones show means another Targaryen family tree to memorize, and HBO's A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is no exception.

The prequel series primarily centers on lowborn knight Ser Duncan "Dunk" the Tall (Peter Claffey) and his young squire Egg (Dexter Sol Ansell), following their time at a tournament at Ashford Meadow. However, despite A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms' focus on Westeros' smallfolk, it's not long before the Targaryens show up to bring drama (and tons of "ae" names) to the tourney.

SEE ALSO: Every time 'A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms' hinted at that big Egg reveal

If you're wondering how all these new members of the House of the Dragon are related to one another, you've come to the right place. Below, we've laid out the Targaryen family tree as it stands heading into A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Season 1. For simplicity's sake, we've pruned some of the branches to show how these family members tie back to House of the Dragon and Game of Thrones, and we've focused on the major Targaryen players you'll meet early on. Read on to meet your newest crop of Targaryens — and see how they all connect.

Behold, the Targaryen family tree. Credit: Ian Moore / Mashable King Daeron II Targaryen

The current head honcho of Westeros is King Daeron II Targaryen, the great-grandson of House of the Dragon's Rhaenyra and Daemon Targaryen. You won't actually meet him in A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, but his reign has molded the Westeros you'll see in the series.

By this point, almost 80 years after the events of House of the Dragon, Westeros is experiencing a period of peace, and it's all thanks to King Daeron II. He put an end to the Blackfyre Rebellion, a bloody coup attempt by legitimized Targaryen bastards, and he also managed to bring Dorne peacefully into the Seven Kingdoms. They don't call him "Daeron the Good" for nothing!

SEE ALSO: 'A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms' review: 'Game of Thrones' prequel is a surprising comfort watch Daeron II's sons: Baelor and Maekar Targaryen Bertie Carvel and Sam Spruell in "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms." Credit: Composite: Mashable / Images: Steffon Hill / HBO

King Daeron II has four sons with his wife, Dornish Princess Myriah Martell: Baelor, Aerys, Rhaegal, and Maekar. For the purposes of this show, you really only need to care about the first and fourth sons, Baelor and Maekar.

Prince Baelor "Breakspear" Targaryen (Bertie Carvel) is the eldest of Daeron II's sons. Not only is he heir to the Iron Throne, he's also Hand of the King. Like his father, he's deeply respected and viewed as wise and just. He has two sons with his wife Jena Dondarrion: Prince Valarr (Oscar Morgan) and Prince Matarys, but only Valarr appears in A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms. Notably, Baelor doesn't have the Targaryens' silver hair, but instead favors his Dornish side with darker hair.

Harsher than his brother (but with much more silver hair), Maekar (Sam Spruell) is the Prince of Summerhall. He also has six children compared to Baelor's two, and several of them will play a larger role in A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms.

Maekar's children: Daeron, Aerion, Aemon, Daella, Aegon, and Rhae Finn Bennett in "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms." Credit: Steffon Hill / HBO

Maekar and his wife Dyanna Dayne have six children together: Daeron, Aerion, Aemon, Daella, Aegon, and Rhae. A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms primarily focuses on his sons, leaving Daella and Rhae out of the story.

His first son, Daeron (Henry Ashton), is also known as Daeron the Drunken, a quality audiences get to know firsthand in episode 1, when Dunk meets him in the tavern. We don't officially learn the tavern man's identity until episode 4, though, when Daeron arrives at the tourney in Ashford Meadow. Daeron also has the dragon dreaming gift of select Targaryens, which gives him prophetic visions. House of the Dragon's Helaena Targaryen is similarly gifted.

Maekar's second son, Aerion (Finn Bennett), fits the bill of the classic "mad" Targaryen. Thinking he's a dragon in human form, he dubs himself "Aerion Brightflame" and wears a fiery helmet that is, admittedly, pretty sick. Still, his fashion choices can't make up for his cruelty and sadism.

Game of Thrones fans have already met Maekar's third son Aemon: He's none other than Maester Aemon from Castle Black. Don't expect to see him in Season 1 of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, though, as he's currently studying to be get his maester chain in Oldtown. However, his existence in the world of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms serves as a reminder of how the show connects to Game of Thrones, whose events are a little under a century away.

Dexter Sol Ansell in "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms." Credit: Steffon Hill / HBO

As episode 3 of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms reveals, Maekar's fourth son, Aegon, is none other than Egg himself. He's been journeying with Dunk this whole time, and he's shaved his head bald to hide his trademark Targaryen hair. Based on the show so far, Aegon has missed out on the sadistic streak of his brother Aerion, or of many of his Targaryen ancestors. Instead, he's curious, loyal, and protective of the smallfolk he and Dunk meet at Ashford Meadow. Yes, he's young, and there's certainly time for the world to harden him, but for now, he's a good Egg.

New episodes of Knight of the Seven Kingdoms premiere Sundays at 10 p.m. ET on HBO and HBO Max.

UPDATE: Feb. 6, 2026, 5:18 a.m. EST This story was originally published on Jan. 18. It has been updated to reflect the further information about Daeron Targaryen.

UPDATE: Feb. 1, 2026, 10:47 p.m. EST This story was originally published on Jan. 18. It has been updated to reflect the reveal of Egg's true identity as Aegon Targaryen.

If the first five minutes of Scarlet had been the entire movie, I would have been happy.

In these opening moments, director Mamoru Hosoda (Belle) transports viewers to a fantastic realm, one where the past and future intertwine. Here, a red-haired young woman wanders a desert wasteland filled with discarded armor and slow-creeping magma flows. The clouds in the sky above ripple like ocean waves. A gargantuan dragon swims through the air, leaving crackles of lightning in its wake.

SEE ALSO: NYFF 2025 preview: 14 films you'll want to see for yourself (and how)

The scene is disorienting and dazzling in equal measure, especially as Hosoda toggles between the desert and a glowing, liminal space where the young woman wears not the cloaked garb of a hardened wasteland survivor, but the brilliant white gown of a princess. It's while wearing this gown that the young woman remembers who she is and why she's in the desert. At that point, Scarlet goes from fascinating fantasy to an absolutely gonzo epic.

That's because the woman's memories reveal that Scarlet isn't solely a surreal fantasy tale. It's also an adaptation of Hamlet. And while a high-concept, animated adaptation of Hamlet can be great — look no further than The Lion King for proof — Scarlet mostly chafes strangely against its source material. The result is a film that's confounding in its adaptation ambitions, yet still manages to be showstopping.

How does Scarlet tie to Hamlet? Credit: Studio Chizu

The young woman we first meet in the wasteland is Scarlet (voiced by Mana Ashida), the princess of Denmark. As a young child, she witnessed her Uncle Claudius (voiced by Kôji Yakusho) commit a violent coup against her father (voiced by Masachika Ichimura), executing him right in front of her. (A far cry from Hamlet's Claudius stealthily slipping poison in the king's ear.)

That Scarlet's take on Claudius has him so obviously and visibly responsible for her father's murder means that Scarlet doesn't have to pull from Hamlet's bag of tricks to assess her uncle's guilt. No pretending to be mad or putting on calculated plays for her! Instead, she jumps straight into battle training to take Claudius down. Unfortunately for her, Claudius is two steps ahead and simply has her killed.

SEE ALSO: 'Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere' review: Jeremy Allen White can't escape 'The Bear' in Bruce Springsteen biopic

But death is not the end for Scarlet like it is for Hamlet. She awakens in the Otherworld, the strange afterlife on display in Scarlet's first scenes. Since the past and future are one in the Otherworld, every dead soul winds up here — including Claudius'. Now, Scarlet has one more chance at vengeance, but even the afterlife comes with peril. Die here, and you vanish into nothingness. And with armies of dead soldiers and Claudius' henchmen standing between her and her goal, Scarlet will have to accomplish the impossible if she is to see her goal through to the end.

Why is Scarlet even an adaptation of Hamlet in the first place? Credit: Studio Chizu

From here, Scarlet essentially becomes several different movies. It's partly a fantasy adventure in which Scarlet must fight hordes of soldiers from various time periods. The action sequences are riveting: just the right amount of brutal, while pushing Scarlet's considerable prowess to its limits.

Scarlet is also partly an anti-war treatise, with heaps of pro-immigration and pro-refugee messaging. The former manifests itself in the arrival of Hijiri (voiced by Masaki Okada), a present-day nurse who wants nothing more than to heal the suffering citizens of the Otherworld. He's staunchly anti-conflict, a counterpoint to Scarlet's bloodthirsty nature.

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Scarlet's nature is echoed in the rest of the war-torn Otherworld, which runs rampant with bandits preying on caravans of innocent souls simply trying to make it to Eternity. That promised heaven lies at the top of a mountain range, but Claudius has set up shop in a nearby fortress and walled off the path to Eternity from the Otherworld's masses. The wall imagery draws a clear parallel to current anti-immigration and anti-refugee policies, echoing Trumpian philosophies of exclusion. Subtlety, thy name isn't Hosoda.

SEE ALSO: 'A House of Dynamite' review: Idris Elba leads an all-star ensemble nuclear-war thriller

The pairing of these big, if simplistic, ideas with Scarlet's Otherworld odyssey is already a lot to take in, and that's without the Hamlet adaptation element. Following Scarlet's death, the story ceases to become the Hamlet you know. Yet Hosoda still puts twists on familiar Hamlet elements. Scarlet must face down minor Hamlet characters like Cornelius (voiced by Yutaka Matsushige) and Voltemand (voiced by Kôtarô Yoshida), with Hosoda turning these bit parts into video game mini-bosses. (Shakespeare's major female characters get far less to do: Ophelia is entirely absent, and Queen Gertrude steals the show in one scene only to disappear otherwise.) Characters regularly speak in lines from the play, prompting me to jolt up and gasp at the screen like a Marvel fan spotting a key Easter egg in an MCU movie.

Then of course, there's the death of it all. As a character, Hamlet is fascinated by death, hence his classic query of "to be, or not to be." Scarlet strands its Hamlet stand-in in death, causing her to fight past the bounds of her own mortality. It's an interesting juxtaposition, yet one Scarlet rarely ponders. Instead, it focuses on Scarlet's choice between vengeance or breaking the cycle of violence. At that point, all the Hamlet references begin to feel more like window dressing than story elements with deeper thematic resonance, and Scarlet's cohesion suffers wildly as a result.

Scarlet is still a gorgeous, unforgettable ride. Credit: Studio Chizu

With all these moving pieces, there's no doubt that Scarlet is as maximalist as can be. And that level of boldness, of throwing everything at the wall and hoping it sticks, makes even Scarlet's most bizarre moments exciting. Sure, "Hamlet, but make it warrior princess" doesn't completely hold together over the course of Scarlet's two-hour runtime, but it is undeniably thrilling to watch something so unexpected play out.

Where Scarlet excels the most is the world-building of the Otherworld, which Hosoda renders in an intriguing blend of 3D and 2D animation. At times, the mixture of 2D facial expressions against a more photorealistic 3D landscape can be jarring, yet the effect only adds to the strangeness of the Otherworld.

The Otherworld offers up a rich background where Scarlet and Hijiri's quest can unfold. Its inhabitants come from a blend of cultures and time periods, creating a wonderful aesthetic clash. Elsewhere, small details in the landscape, like a quarry full of cairns, speak to the many, many dead souls who've passed through.

However, the true standout of the Otherworld is its dragon, a massive beast whose hide is peppered with the weapons of those who have tried to slay it. It roars into view during scenes of carnage, bringing earth-shattering lightning and thunder along with it. The dragon's fearsome appearance, combined with composer Taisei Iwasaki's thrumming score, makes for an unforgettable theatrical viewing experience. Truly, I felt like I was levitating out of my seat.

Now, does Scarlet ever dive deeper into the lore around the dragon, or its role in the Otherworld? Not really. But did I care? Not that much!

That mentality sums up the best way to approach Scarlet as a whole. There's no doubting it's messy, but there's also no doubting its capacity to astonish.

Scarlet begins an exclusive IMAX engagement starting Feb. 6th before opening nationwide on Feb. 13.

UPDATE: Feb. 4, 2026, 3:24 p.m. EST This review was first published on Oct. 7, 2025, out of film's U.S. premiere at the New York Film Festival. It has been updated to reflect viewing options.

TL;DR: Live stream the 2026 Winter Olympics ice hockey for free on CBC Gem. Access this free streaming platform from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.

The Winter Olympics showcases so many sports that you wouldn't usually get the opportunity to watch. Of course we're making time to watch speed skating, bobsleigh, figure skating, ski mountaineering, and more from Milano Cortina 2026.

It's not like we don't get regular opportunities to watch ice hockey. Ever heard of the NHL? But ice hockey at the Winter Olympics is a different animal.

We get to see the best of the best from the NHL plus a bunch of athletes we've never heard of compete for their countries. There's something uniquely fun about international ice hockey. You get an amplified version of the game we all love, as teams do everything and anything to secure a medal.

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If you want to watch the 2026 Winter Olympics ice hockey for free from anywhere in the world, we have all the information you need.

When is the 2026 Winter Olympics ice hockey?

The women's ice hockey schedule runs from Feb. 5-19. The men's ice hockey competition takes place from Feb. 11-22.

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Ice hockey at the 2026 Winter Olympics is available to live stream for free on CBC Gem.

CBC Gem is geo-restricted to Canada, but anyone can access this free streaming platform with a VPN. These handy tools can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to a secure server in Canada, meaning you can access free live streams of the 2026 Winter Olympics ice hockey from anywhere in the world.

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The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but leading VPNs do tend to offer free-trial periods or money-back guarantees. By leveraging these offers, you can gain access to free live streams without committing with your cash. This is obviously not a long-term solution, but it does give you time to watch the ice hockey plus the rest of the 2026 Winter Olympics before recovering your investment.

What is the best VPN for the 2026 Winter Olympics?

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• Up to 10 simultaneous connections

• 30-day money-back guarantee

A two-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $68.40 and includes an extra four months for free — 81% off for a limited time. This plan includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a generous 30-day money-back guarantee. Alternatively, you can get a one-month plan for just $12.99 (with money-back guarantee).

Live stream the 2026 Winter Olympics ice hockey for free with ExpressVPN.

TL;DR: Live stream the 2026 Winter Olympics curling for free from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.

The 2026 Winter Olympics is showcasing so many incredible sports that we wouldn't usually get the opportunity to watch. We're circling our calendar for the Alpine Skiing, Figure Skating, Ice Hockey, and Luge. In fact, we're making time to watch it all.

The busy schedule starts with curling. You know, that strategic sport where players gracefully slide granite stones towards a circular target. The battle for medals is going to be intense in this competition. In the men's event, Sweden are defending champions but Great Britain and Canada will be confident of taking gold. In the women's event, Great Britain will be looking to defend their crown against the likes of Canada, Sweden, Switzerland, and South Korea.

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If you want to watch the 2026 Winter Olympics curling for free from anywhere in the world, we have all the information you need.

When is the 2026 Winter Olympics curling?

Curling at the 2026 Winter Olympics is scheduled for every day of the games, from Feb. 4-22. Curling is held at the Cortina Olympic Stadium in Cortina D’Ampezzo.

How to watch 2026 Winter Olympics curling for free

Curling at the 2026 Winter Olympics is available to live stream for free on a number of services:

• Australia — 9Now

• Austria — ORF

• Canada — CBC Gem

• France — France TV

• Germany — ARD

• Ireland — RTÉ Player

• Italy — RAI

• Spain — RTVE

• UK — BBC iPlayer

These free live streams are geo-restricted, but anyone can bypass these restrictions with a VPN. These handy tools can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to a secure server in another location, meaning you can access free live streams of the 2026 Winter Olympics curling from anywhere in the world.

Live stream the 2026 Winter Olympics curling by following these simple steps:

1. Subscribe to a streaming-friendly VPN (like ExpressVPN)

2. Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)

3. Open up the app and connect to a server in a location with free access

4. Watch the 2026 Winter Olympics curling for free from anywhere in the world

Opens in a new window Credit: ExpressVPN ExpressVPN (1-Month Plan) $12.99 only at ExpressVPN (with money-back guarantee) Get Deal

The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but leading VPNs do tend to offer free-trial periods or money-back guarantees. By leveraging these offers, you can gain access to free live streams without committing with your cash. This is obviously not a long-term solution, but it does give you time to watch the curling plus the rest of the 2026 Winter Olympics before recovering your investment.

What is the best VPN for the 2026 Winter Olympics?

ExpressVPN is the best service for bypassing geo-restrictions to stream live sport, for a number of reasons:

• Servers in 105 countries

• Easy-to-use app available on all major devices including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more

• Strict no-logging policy so your data is always secure

• Fast connection speeds

• Up to 10 simultaneous connections

• 30-day money-back guarantee

A two-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $68.40 and includes an extra four months for free — 81% off for a limited time. This plan includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a generous 30-day money-back guarantee. Alternatively, you can get a one-month plan for just $12.99 (with money-back guarantee).

Live stream the 2026 Winter Olympics curling for free with ExpressVPN.

TL;DR: Live stream the 2026 Winter Olympics figure skating for free from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.

Has Heated Rivalry got you all worked up? Do not fear, because the 2026 Winter Olympics has got you covered with a figure skating fix.

We've already seen some incredible action from the curling, alpine skiing, and ice hockey, but fans of the Canadian romance will only have eyes for the Forum di Milano as USA, Japan, Italy, Canada, Georgia, France, Great Britain, Republic of Korea, People's Republic of China, and Poland battle it out for the medals. Expect the likes of Ilia Malinin, Madison Chock, Evan Bates, Kaori Sakamoto, and Alysa Liu to steal the spotlight.

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If you want to watch the 2026 Winter Olympics figure skating for free from anywhere in the world, we have all the information you need.

When is the 2026 Winter Olympics figure skating?

Figure skating at the 2026 Winter Olympics takes place from Feb. 6-19 at the Forum di Milano. Here's the full schedule of events:

• Team Event Ice Dance (Rhythm Dance) — 3:55 a.m. ET on Feb. 6

• Team Event Pair Skating (Short Program) — 5:35 a.m. ET on Feb. 6

• Team Event Women Single Skating (Short Program) — 7:35 a.m. ET on Feb. 6

• Team Event Men Single Skating (Short Program) — 1:45 p.m. ET on Feb. 7

• Team Event Ice Dance (Free Dance) — 4:05 p.m. ET on Feb. 7

• Team Event Pair Skating (Free Skating) — 1:30 p.m. ET on Feb. 8

• Team Event Women Single Skating (Free Skating) — 2:45 p.m. ET on Feb. 8

• Team Event Men Single Skating (Free Skating) — 3:55 p.m. ET on Feb. 8

• Ice Dance (Rhythm Dance) — 1:20 p.m. ET on Feb. 9

• Men Single Skating (Short Program) — 12:30 p.m. ET on Feb. 10

• Ice Dance (Free Dance) — 1:30 p.m. ET on Feb. 11

• Men Single Skating (Free Skating) — 1 p.m. ET on Feb. 13

• Pair Skating (Short Program) — 1:45 p.m. ET on Feb. 15

• Pair Skating (Free Skating) — 2 p.m. ET on Feb. 16

• Women Single Skating (Short Program) — 12:45 p.m. ET on Feb. 17

• Women Single Skating (Free Skating) — 1 p.m. ET on Feb. 19

You can follow figure skating at the 2026 Winter Olympics without spending anything.

How to watch 2026 Winter Olympics figure skating for free

Figure skating at the 2026 Winter Olympics is available to live stream for free on a number of services:

• Australia — 9Now

• Austria — ORF

• Canada — CBC Gem

• France — France TV

• Germany — ARD

• Ireland — RTÉ Player

• Italy — RAI

• Spain — RTVE

• UK — BBC iPlayer

These free live streams are geo-restricted, but anyone can bypass these restrictions with a VPN. These handy tools can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to a secure server in another location, meaning you can access free live streams of the 2026 Winter Olympics figure skating from anywhere in the world.

Live stream the 2026 Winter Olympics figure skating by following these simple steps:

1. Subscribe to a streaming-friendly VPN (like ExpressVPN)

2. Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)

3. Open up the app and connect to a server in a location with free access

4. Watch the 2026 Winter Olympics figure skating for free from anywhere in the world

Opens in a new window Credit: ExpressVPN ExpressVPN (1-Month Plan) $12.99 only at ExpressVPN (with money-back guarantee) Get Deal

The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but leading VPNs do tend to offer free-trial periods or money-back guarantees. By leveraging these offers, you can gain access to free live streams without committing with your cash. This is obviously not a long-term solution, but it does give you time to watch the figure skating plus the rest of the 2026 Winter Olympics before recovering your investment.

What is the best VPN for the 2026 Winter Olympics?

ExpressVPN is the best service for bypassing geo-restrictions to stream live sport, for a number of reasons:

• Servers in 105 countries

• Easy-to-use app available on all major devices including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more

• Strict no-logging policy so your data is always secure

• Fast connection speeds

• Up to 10 simultaneous connections

• 30-day money-back guarantee

A two-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $68.40 and includes an extra four months for free — 81% off for a limited time. This plan includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a generous 30-day money-back guarantee. Alternatively, you can get a one-month plan for just $12.99 (with money-back guarantee).

Live stream the 2026 Winter Olympics figure skating for free with ExpressVPN.

If you like playing daily word games like Wordle, then Hurdle is a great game to add to your routine.

There are five rounds to the game. The first round sees you trying to guess the word, with correct, misplaced, and incorrect letters shown in each guess. If you guess the correct answer, it'll take you to the next hurdle, providing the answer to the last hurdle as your first guess. This can give you several clues or none, depending on the words. For the final hurdle, every correct answer from previous hurdles is shown, with correct and misplaced letters clearly shown.

An important note is that the number of times a letter is highlighted from previous guesses does necessarily indicate the number of times that letter appears in the final hurdle.

If you find yourself stuck at any step of today's Hurdle, don't worry! We have you covered.

SEE ALSO: Hurdle: Everything you need to know to find the answers Hurdle Word 1 hint

Tools tighten these.

SEE ALSO: Apple’s new M3 MacBook Air is $300 off at Amazon. And yes, I’m tempted. Hurdle Word 1 answer

SCREW

Hurdle Word 2 hint

Intended.

SEE ALSO: Wordle today: Answer, hints for February 6, 2026 Hurdle Word 2 Answer

MEANT

Hurdle Word 3 hint

Feathery.

SEE ALSO: NYT Connections Sports Edition today: Hints and answers for February 6 SEE ALSO: NYT Connections hints today: Clues, answers for February 6, 2026 Hurdle Word 3 answer

WISPY

Hurdle Word 4 hint

Used to reach the dead.

Hurdle Word 4 answer

OUIJA

Final Hurdle hint

A record.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Games available on Mashable Hurdle Word 5 answer

INDEX

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Welcome to your guide to Pips, the latest game in the New York Times catalogue.

Released in August 2025, the Pips puts a unique spin on dominoes, creating a fun single-player experience that could become your next daily gaming habit.

Currently, if you're stuck, the game only offers to reveal the entire puzzle, forcing you to move onto the next difficulty level and start over. However, we have you covered! Below are piecemeal answers that will serve as hints so that you can find your way through each difficulty level.

How to play Pips

If you've ever played dominoes, you'll have a passing familiarity for how Pips is played. As we've shared in our previous hints stories for Pips, the tiles, like dominoes, are placed vertically or horizontally and connect with each other. The main difference between a traditional game of dominoes and Pips is the color-coded conditions you have to address. The touching tiles don't necessarily have to match.

SEE ALSO: Wordle today: Answer, hints for February 6, 2026

The conditions you have to meet are specific to the color-coded spaces. For example, if it provides a single number, every side of a tile in that space must add up to the number provided. It is possible – and common – for only half a tile to be within a color-coded space.

Here are common examples you'll run into across the difficulty levels:

• Number: All the pips in this space must add up to the number.

• Equal: Every domino half in this space must be the same number of pips.

• Not Equal: Every domino half in this space must have a completely different number of pips.

• Less than: Every domino half in this space must add up to less than the number.

• Greater than: Every domino half in this space must add up to more than the number.

If an area does not have any color coding, it means there are no conditions on the portions of dominoes within those spaces.

SEE ALSO: NYT Strands hints, answers for February 5, 2026 Easy difficulty hints, answers for Feb. 6 Pips

Number (5): Everything in this space must add up to 5. The answer is 2-5, placed horizontally.

Equal (2): Everything in this green space must be equal to 2. The answer is 2-5, placed horizontally; 2-2, placed vertically.

Less Than (1): Everything in this space must be less than 1. The answer is 1-0, placed vertically.

Equal (6): Everything in this green space must be equal to 6. The answer is 6-6, placed horizontally.

Greater Than (5): Everything in this space must be greater than 5. The answer is 5-6, placed horizontally.

Number (10): Everything in this space must add up to 10. The answer is 5-6, placed horizontally; 3-5, placed horizontally.

Medium difficulty hints, answers for Feb. 6 Pips

Greater Than (3): Everything in this space must be greater than 3. The answer is 4-3, placed vertically.

Number (4): Everything in this space must add up to 4. The answer is 4-3, placed vertically; 2-2, placed vertically; 5-1, placed vertically.

Number (16): Everything in this space must add up to 16. The answer is 5-1, placed vertically; 6-5, placed vertically.

Equal (5): Everything in this green space must be equal to 5. The answer is 5-5, placed vertically.

Number (1): Everything in this space must add up to 1. The answer is 1-3, placed vertically.

Number (21): Everything in this space must add up to 21. The answer is 6-6, placed horizontally; 5-4, placed vertically.

Hard difficulty hints, answers for Feb. 6 Pips

Number (8): Everything in this space must add up to 8. The answer is 4-0, placed vertically; 4-5, placed horizontally.

Number (10): Everything in this space must add up to 10. The answer is 4-5, placed horizontally; 5-1, placed horizontally.

Number (1): Everything in this space must add up to 1. The answer is 5-1, placed horizontally.

Number (4): Everything in this space must add up to 4. The answer is 2-4, placed horizontally.

Number (10): Everything in this space must add up to 10. The answer is 4-3, placed vertically; 6-6, placed vertically.

Equal (0): Everything in this space must be equal to 0. The answer is 4-0, placed vertically; 0-5, placed vertically.

Number (4): Everything in this space must add up to 4. The answer is 2-4, placed horizontally; 2-5, placed vertically.

Number (10): Everything in this space must add up to 10. The answer is 0-5, placed vertically; 2-5, placed vertically.

Greater Than (9): Everything in this space must be greater than 9. The answer is 6-6, placed vertically; 6-0, placed vertically.

Equal (1): Everything in this light blue space must be equal to 1. The answer is 1-1, placed horizontally.

Equal (3): Everything in this light blue space must be equal to 3. The answer is 4-3, placed vertically; 3-3, placed horizontally; 3-0, placed horizontally.

Equal (0): Everything in this space must be equal to 0. The answer is 3-0, placed horizontally; 6-0, placed vertically.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

TL;DR: Get six powerful Microsoft apps for life for just $49.97 with this Microsoft Office Home and Business for Mac 2021 lifetime license, on sale now through Feb. 22.

Opens in a new window Credit: Microsoft Microsoft Office Home & Business for Mac 2021: Lifetime License $49.97
$219 Save $169.03   Get Deal

Want a major productivity boost? Then give your powerful Mac the best of Microsoft’s tools with this Microsoft Office Home and Business for Mac 2021 license. It’s an easy way to upgrade your workflow, and right now you can get all six apps for only $49.97 — less than $9 each — until Feb. 22.

From side hustles to schoolwork, Microsoft Office has apps to help you handle whatever life throws your way. And while it used to be reserved for PC users, nowadays Mac lovers can take advantage of these tools too.

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This Microsoft Office Home and Business for Mac 2021 license equips your Apple device with six of the brand’s most powerful tools for life. There are no subscription fees — once you buy them, you own them — and you’ll be able to work offline as needed, since cloud connectivity isn’t required.

Tackle all your document creation needs with Word, build a budget and handle spreadsheets in Excel, and create powerful presentations with PowerPoint. Outlook helps you manage your email correspondence, OneNote elevates your note-taking skills, and Teams makes it easy to connect with your friends, family, and coworkers.

After purchase, you’ll receive an instant delivery and download. Just note that your Mac needs to be running macOS 14 or later.

Get this Microsoft Office Home and Business for Mac 2021 lifetime license, on sale now through Feb. 22.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

TL;DR: Make AI even more efficient with this lifetime subscription to the ChatPlayground AI Unlimited Plan, on sale now for just $79.

Opens in a new window Credit: ChatPlayground AI ChatPlayground AI: Lifetime Subscription (Unlimited Plan) $79
$619 Save $540   Get Deal

AI is supposed to make our lives easier, but it can be hard to keep up with all the different models and their individual strengths. If you want to simplify the way you’re working with AI on a daily basis, it’s time to check out ChatPlayground AI. This handy tool lets you see results from over 25 AI models in one single window, so you can stop wasting time.

Right now, you can get a lifetime subscription to the ChatPlayground AI Unlimited Plan for only $79.

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Work smarter with AI, not harder, thanks to ChatPlayground AI. This tool changes the way you use this powerful technology, letting you access over 25 models in one place — from ChatGPT to Gemini and Llama. It displays the results from the different models side by side, so you can pick the one that works best.

ChatPlayground AI works as a Chrome extension, so it’s easy to access whenever you need it. If you need help with your prompt, there’s prompt engineering available to help you get the best response, and you can also upload PDFs or images to get context-aware answers.

Not only is there no more tab-hopping, but you won’t have to pay multiple subscription fees either. ChatPlayground AI saves all your chat history, too, so it’s easy to reference past conversations.

This lifetime subscription gives you access to unlimited monthly messages and priority access to new features and future models. If you run into any issues, you’ll also receive faster assistance from our priority customer support team.

Get this lifetime subscription to the ChatPlayground AI Unlimited Plan for only $79.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

OpenAI released a new coding model today, GPT-5.3-Codex. The company said the new model has improved "reasoning and professional knowledge capabilities" and will operate 25 percent faster than its predecessor.

Anthropic, one of OpenAI's chief rivals, also released a new coding model today, Claude Opus 4.6. Earlier this week, OpenAI also launched the Codex app for macOS, a new app interface for managing multiple AI agents at once.

Crucially, OpenAI says that the new GPT-5.3-Codex model is its "first model that was instrumental in creating itself." Anthropic said something similar about Clade Cowork recently, and engineers at OpenAI and Anthropic say almost all their coding is now done by AI.

In a blog post announcing GPT-5.3-Codex, OpenAI wrote, "The Codex team used early versions to debug its own training, manage its own deployment, and diagnose test results and evaluations — our team was blown away by how much Codex was able to accelerate its own development."

SEE ALSO: Anthropic Super Bowl LX ads mock ChatGPT

Why does it matter if an AI model helped create itself?

People who believe in the technological singularity, or "the singularity," talk about a tipping point at which technology becomes self-improving, leading to an uncontrolled explosion of technological advancement. And now we have some real-world examples of AI improving itself. (At least, according to the AI companies behind the announcements.)

We don't know exactly how much GPT-5.3-Codex was involved in its own development, but the news does reveal just how advanced frontier AI models have become, particularly in writing code.

"With GPT‑5.3-Codex, Codex goes from an agent that can write and review code to an agent that can do nearly anything developers and professionals can do on a computer," the OpenAI blog post reads.

SEE ALSO: Sam Altman's outrageous 'Singularity' blog perfectly sums up AI in 2025

GPT-5.3-Codex is available now in the Codex app.

Disclosure: Ziff Davis, Mashable’s parent company, in April 2025 filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.

Google just randomly dropped a Pixel 10a reveal on YouTube, and there's at least one noticeable change to the phone's design.

The video itself is very brief, just showing the phone from a few different angles in a sort of light blue color. No new features or software of any kind are shown, though that's to be expected with a budget version of last year's Pixel 10. The one really noteworthy thing we can glean from this video is that the rear camera now appears to be totally flush with the body of the device, rather then protruding in any way.

SEE ALSO: Google Maps adds Gemini to a major feature in new test

That's a mild divergence from last year's Pixel 9a. That phone ditched the signature Pixel horizontal camera bar, but the lens itself still stuck out a bit when viewed from the side. Aside from that, again, we really can't divine anything from this video about the phone itself. Its specs and features will have to wait until Google feels like sharing more.

An announcement will probably be soon, given that the pre-order date is set for Feb. 18.

TL;DR: Live stream France vs. Ireland in the 2026 Six Nations for free on ITVX. Access this free live stream from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.

The Six Nations is all about unpredictable games between huge rivals. Any team could win any game — that's the beauty of this famous competition. That being said, the opening game between France and Ireland feels like a final. You expect these sides to be battling it out at the top of the standings come the final round, so the winner here will put themselves in a very strong position.

The likes of Antoine Dupont and Louis Bielle-Biarrey will lead the way for the hosts. Ireland will need to rely on the talents of Tadhg Beirne, Dan Sheehan, and Jamison Gibson-Park if they want to secure a massive win under the lights in Paris. It's going to be tough for Andy Farrell's side, but they possess the quality to beat anyone.

If you want to watch France vs. Ireland in the 2026 Six Nations for free from anywhere in the world, we have all the information you need.

When is France vs. Ireland?

France vs. Ireland in the 2026 Six Nations starts at 8:10 p.m. GMT on Feb. 5. This fixture takes place at the Stade de France.

How to watch France vs. Ireland for free

France vs. Ireland in the 2026 Six Nations is available to live stream for free on ITVX.

ITVX is geo-restricted to the UK, but anyone can access this free streaming platform with a VPN. These handy tools can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to a secure server in the UK, meaning you can unblock ITVX from anywhere in the world.

Live stream France vs. Ireland from anywhere in the world by following these simple steps:

1. Subscribe to a streaming-friendly VPN (like ExpressVPN)

2. Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)

3. Open up the app and connect to a server in the UK

4. Visit ITVX

5. Live stream France vs. Ireland for free from anywhere in the world

Opens in a new window Credit: ExpressVPN ExpressVPN (1-Month Plan) $12.99 only at ExpressVPN (with money-back guarantee) Get Deal

The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but most do offer free-trials or money-back guarantees. By leveraging these offers, you can watch France vs. Ireland without committing with your cash. This isn't a long-term solution, but it does give you enough time to stream most of the 2026 Six Nations before recovering your investment.

If you want to retain permanent access to free streaming services to watch the Winter Olympics, the T20 World Cup, and more from anywhere in the world, you'll need a subscription. Fortunately, the best VPN for streaming live sport is on sale for a limited time.

What is the best VPN for the 2026 Six Nations?

ExpressVPN is the best choice for bypassing geo-restrictions to stream live sport, for a number of reasons:

• Servers in 105 countries including the UK

• Easy-to-use app available on all major devices including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more

• Strict no-logging policy so your data is secure

• Fast connection speeds free from throttling

• Up to 10 simultaneous connections

• 30-day money-back guarantee

A two-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $68.40 and includes an extra four months for free — 81% off for a limited time. This plan includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a generous 30-day money-back guarantee. Alternatively, you can get a one-month plan for just $12.99 (with money-back guarantee).

Live stream France vs. Ireland in the 2026 Six Nations for free with ExpressVPN.

A new lawsuit has shed a terrifying light on a Tesla driver's death in October 2025.

Bloomberg reported on the wrongful death lawsuit, which is centered around 20-year-old Samuel Tremblett, a driver who passed away after a collision involving a Tesla Model Y SUV in October of last year.

According to the lawsuit, Tremblett was driving a 2021 Tesla Model Y outside Boston when he left the road and struck a tree. He survived the initial impact but was apparently unable to exit the vehicle due to an alleged failure of Tesla's signature electric door system. He eventually died as a result of smoke inhalation and thermal injuries. Before he died, Tremblett called 911, but first responders were not able to rescue him in time.

SEE ALSO: End of an era: Tesla discontinues Model S and Model X

The most chilling part of this whole story comes from 911 call transcripts found in the lawsuit.

"It's on fire. Please help," Tremblett said, according to the transcript. "I am going to die."

The lawsuit states that police officers arrived quickly to the scene, but were unable to put out the fire or remove Tremblett in time. The lawsuit says it ultimately took firefighters four hours to extinguish the crashed Model Y.

As the fire burned, Tremblett stayed on the phone with the 911 dispatcher:

I’m stuck in a car crash… I can’t get out, please help me… I can’t breathe… It’s on fire, it’s on fire. Help please… I am going to die… I’m dying. Help. I’m dying… Help… Help.

Last year, a Bloomberg report found 15 deaths related to Tesla's electronic door system, part of a wider investigation into the safety of Tesla doors. According to Bloomberg, there is a low-voltage battery in each Tesla vehicle that governs components such as doors, while a higher voltage battery is responsible for propelling the car forward. If the low-voltage battery is disabled for any reason, the doors will not open in their normal fashion.

There is a mechanical release for the doors, but per Bloomberg, many drivers are not aware of this or how to operate it. In addition, panicked drivers in a life-or-death situation may struggle to recall the proper opening procedure.

The lawsuit accuses Tesla of selling vehicles with a “defective and unreasonably dangerous automated door handles.” It further states that “Tesla owed a duty to provide adequate warnings, instructions, and information with the Subject Vehicle before placing it into the stream of commerce” and that “Tesla knew or should have known of the defective and unreasonably dangerous condition of the 2021 Model Y.”

For its part, Tesla said last year that it would update its vehicles so that doors would automatically unlock after a "serious collision." However, the company only reached that conclusion after multiple deaths allegedly involving door failures.

JLab, the California audio brand behind some of our favorite budget headphones, is launching a new pair of oversized headphones with a secret. They're actually Bluetooth speakers you can wear — but around your neck, not on your dome.

The limited-edition JLab Blue XL Speaker Headphones aren't just a bit tied to this weekend's Bad Bunny concert big game. They're a real product you can buy. As of Feb. 4, JLab is selling them on its website for just $99.99 a pair while supplies last.

Opens in a new window Credit: JLab JLab Blue XL Speaker Headphones $99.99 at JLab.com
  Shop Now

JLab gave out shiny golden versions of these headphones to playmakers during the 2025 Birmingham Bowl between Georgia Southern and Appalachian State, of which it was the title sponsor. All Georgia Southern Eagles players received a pair of the Blue XLs for winning the game. They come in an aqua colorway, hence their name.

View this post on Instagram

The Blue XLs are equipped with faux leather ear cushions and dual 2.5-inch drivers, and they offer up to 20 hours of playtime with a full three-hour charge. They're compatible with Bluetooth 5.4. And like the regular-sized JLab JBuds Lux ANC headphones, our top value pick, you can customize their sound settings using the JLab app.

View this post on Instagram

A JLab rep tells me that the Blue XLs weigh in at 3.3 pounds and that there's a cushion on their band. If your upper traps can't handle the strain, or if you're too shy to wear the Blue XLs in public, the company says you can also prop them up on a table for listening.

Phone, keys, speaker that looks like giant headphones... good to go. Credit: JLab

JLab's release of the Blue XLs comes hot on the heels of the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), where the Mashable team encountered a much more practical take on the speaker headphones concept. With a simple twist, TDM.’s Neo Hybrids transform from headphones that play audio from their cups into a compact portable speaker with external audio. Senior Tech Reporter Matt Binder called them "one of the most impressive things I found" at CES. They'll soon launch on Kickstarter for $249.

SAVE $50.01: As of Feb. 5, get the Nothing Ear (a) wireless earbuds for $58.99, down from their usual price of $109. That's a discount of 46% and the lowest price we've seen.

Opens in a new window Credit: Amazon Nothing Ear (a) wireless earbuds $58.99 at Amazon
$109 Save $50.01   Get Deal

If you're looking to shop for a new pair of earbuds, you've got plenty of options. You don't have to stick to the familiar, like Apple's AirPods, for example. If you're willing to try something else, there's a great pick right now at Amazon, and it's back at its lowest price yet.

As of Feb. 5, get the Nothing Ear (a) wireless earbuds for $58.99, down from their usual price of $109. That's a discount of 46% and the lowest price we've seen.

SEE ALSO: The 8 best earbuds of 2026, tested by audio experts

These earbuds are unique from the top down, from their transparent, square charging case to their budget pricing. They integrate ChatGPT in addition to offering great audio, which means you can use the voice portion of the chat assistant to handle search questions while out in the world. This optional addition makes them a solid choice that you'd be paying far more from another manufacturer for.

Of course, they're also excellent for listening to your favorite songs and podcasts or hanging on calls. They have compact 11mm drivers for great bass as wll as active noise cancellation that can help you block out the world when you don't want to hear it.

While they come with these intriguing additional features for a low price, they're jut an overall all-around good pair of headphones that you'll actually enjoy using -- and others might ask where you got them due to their unique look. Grab yours while they're back at this extremely palatable price.

SAVE $30: As of Feb. 5, the Shokz OpenDots One open earbuds are on sale for $169.95 at Amazon. That's $30 or 15% off their typical list price.

Opens in a new window Credit: Shokz Shokz OpenDots One open earbuds $169.95 at Amazon
$199.95 Save $30   Get Deal

If you're ready to jump on the open earbuds bandwagon, but aren't sure which pair to grab, we highly recommend the Shokz OpenDots One clip-on buds. They're the best pair we've tested and they're on sale for $30 cheaper than usual.

As of Feb. 5, the Shokz OpenDots One open earbuds are on sale for $169.95 at Amazon. That's 15% off the typical list price of $199.95. While that's not the cheapest we've ever seen them, it's the best price we've seen so far in 2026.

Mashable's reviewer Alex Bracetti called the OpenDots One "a trustworthy running companion that keeps you entertained and fully aware of the world around you." If you plan on using open earbuds mostly for workouts, but also want a solid pair of earbuds for everyday life, we think these offer the most bang for your buck. They have an unobtrusive and modern clip-on design, surprisingly solid sound quality with Dolby Audio support, 10 hours of battery life (40 with the case), full environmental transparency, and intuitive touch controls that actually work. They're not super feature-heavy and can get uncomfortable after hours of wear, but otherwise we think they're the best choice for most people — especially when they're on sale.

It's official: Bitcoin, as well as other cryptocurrency markets, are crashing.

On Thursday, Bitcoin plummeted below $68,000, blowing past a key level that crypto investors were hoping to hold. Bitcoin is now trading at its lowest prices since November 2024, essentially erasing all gains made in more than a year.

Other popular cryptocurrencies like Ether and Solana are also down. Solana, for example, has currently hit a two-year low.

Bitcoin and other altcoins began experiencing a noticeable downturn in the market late last week. Crypto analysts provided key market levels for Bitcoin to hold in order to avoid the worst. Some analysts said holding at $80,000 would be key while others said $70,000. Falling below those levels, analysts said, could drive further decline as investors look to sell off their holdings. 

Bitcoin has now fallen below both key levels. Now, some analysts are saying that Bitcoin could land in the $60,000 to $65,000 range while others are forecasting potential further drops landing the cryptocurrency at $40,000.

The downturn isn't unique to crypto, as stocks especially in the tech sector are currently dropping, but cryptocurrency is experiencing the worst of it. As a highly volatile and still largely unproven asset class, crypto is among the first investments to go in a sell-off from institutional investors.

According to a report from CryptoQuant, institutional firms that were buying up tens of thousands of Bitcoin just last year are now net sellers this year.

Social media users are noticing that other whales are also selling off, which further tanks the price of Bitcoin. World Liberty Financial, the crypto company owned by the Trump family, liquidated more than $5 million of its Bitcoin holdings on Thursday.