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Planet Buzz 12-18-01
Comics:They'd better not just be old copies of NFL Superpro…
On May 4, you may be able to save a little money. That's the day that Dark Horse, DC, Image and Marvel have all agreed will be Free Comic Day.
Timed to follow the release of Spider-Man on May 3, each publisher will give retailers books that they think feature the best of what they have to offer. Hoping that the Spidermovie will bring new readers into stores, the retailers will have copies of these books to give away to the curious, and show them what the artform of comics can be.
"I'm confident that this industry-wide initiative will meet with amazing results," said Marvel Editor In Chief Joe Quesada. "It's great to see our industry coming together for this incredible push forward into the mainstream!"
For more information, check out the website.
The advertising got left behind
Over at Silver Bullet Comics, the always interesting Rich Johnston reports that DC's highest seller may not actually be DK2.
It seems that Wildstorm has been producing comic book adaptations of the popular Christian book series Left Behind, about believers battling Satan after The Rapture occurs. Though the comics are not published under the official DC or Wildstorm imprints, they have been selling over 150,000 copies per month, which puts even New X-Men to shame.
Has anyone actually seen these books? Until Johnston mentioned it I did not even know they existed. At least we know that God is still bigger than Batman.
Johnston cheekily suggests that they should do some cross-promotion and try to get some fundamentalists into Preacher.
Movies:
By curious, we really just mean impish, okay?
Universal Studios has decided to move forward with their film adaptation of Curious George. Once slated to be a live-action movie with Arnold Schwarzenegger as The Man In The Yellow Hat (nope, not kidding, not high), Universal will now make this their first all-CGI film.
To achieve this end, the studio has tapped David Silverman, co-director of Monsters, Inc., to work his magic.
In studio think, all children's movies must be computer animated since those keep making money. It couldn't actually be luck or grace that two studios have delivered two great movies this year that just happened to be computer animated. 'Cuz Dinosaur totally rocked, right? Right? Anyone?
We can rebuild him…but we'll use our Discover Card for cash back…
It's been a busy week for Universal. They also announced this week that they will team with Dimension Films (actually a division of Disney) to attempt a re-make of The Six Million Dollar Man.
Showing their commitment to the franchise, the studios have locked up the rights to Martin Caiden's four novels in the series (didn't know it was actually a book first?): Cyborg, Operation Nuke, High Crystal, and Cyborg IV.
No screenwriter has been tapped yet, but earlier drafts have been done by Kevin Smith and the team of Millar and Gough (creators of Smallville). Let's also assume that the man will cost considerably more than $6 million this time around. Why, you can't even get Kurt Russell for that price anymore (though you could probably get 7 or 8 Lee Majors)
Simply Extraordinary
Variety reports that director Steve Norrington plans to take the reins on the film version of Alan Moore's League of Extraordinary Gentlemen at Twentieth Century Fox. If he accepts, production could start as soon as March.
Chronicling the adventures of a team of established 19th century literary heroes (including Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde), the report describes the title as a 19th century X-Men. For those scratching their heads in disbelief, know that this is merely Hollywood in action. Nothing gets made unless it can be described as being like something else.
Norrington directed the first Blade, and had been working on Ghost Rider before that project fell apart, so he has a good feel for comic book adaptation.
Nowhere in Variety's article does it mention if he plans to use James Robinson's draft, but with so little time before filming, it seems likely.
X-Men 2 will open
In a press release last week, Twentieth Century Fox committed to an opening date for X2, the official title for the sequel to X-Men. Hopefully this means they've committed to a start date for production, too.
The press release mentions most of the original major players, including, of course, director Bryan Singer and writer David Hayter. Most notably not mentioned is producer Tom DeSanto, the man Singer credits with getting him interested in the X-Men in the first place. As of yet, DeSanto has not commented anywhere in the press, so whether or not this is an accidental omission is unknown. He may still be focusing his energies on the proposed Battlestar Galactica pilot.
And no, the film will not be completely computer animated.
Television:
Fear Factor…Meet Jiggle Factor.
For many, Superbowl Sunday is a time of unrelenting male bonding, as guys gather to savor the finest that football has to offer (in theory, anyway). Now we have an even better reason to crowd around the TV, and it needs a big screen.
During half-time and right after the Fox broadcast on February 4, NBC will show a two-part, 80-minute edition of Fear Factor. Eh, you've seen it, you say. But not like this.
The contestants?
Six Playboy Playmates.
I don't know if I really want to see a Playmate covered in live snakes, but I do know that I want to find out.
Marvel wants you to like Captain America in 2002
Not only will the Star-spangled Avenger be getting the Marvel Knights treatment in January, but that month he will also be the first non-mutant hero to make an appearance on the WB's X-Men: Evolution.
Though it bends the rules established that there are no acceptable costumed heroes in the show's universe, the writers have found a way to allow for Captain America. As you might expect, it involves Wolverine's past.
If you haven't seen it yet…
TNT will run the entire first season of Witchblade again, starting in January with the two-hour pilot on January 21. From there it will run Mondays at 9, repeating Tuesdays at 11.
If you miss it this time around, we warn you: they're only going to run it again. And again. Watch the fershlugginer thing, please.
