| Comics:
A
Title Whose Time Has Come…
Somehow,
I think we deserve this one. From CrossGen, Code 6 Comics
is launching the new monthly comedy adventure series titled
The Crossovers by veteran comics writer and novelist Robert
Rodi and artist Mauricet in January 2003. The Crossovers is
the second scheduled title from the new Code 6 line.
The Crossovers
is the story of what appears on the outside to be a normal,
suburban family, but on the inside is something completely
different. Set in a world reminiscent of a TV sit-com, the
Crossovers family is made up of father Carter, mother Calista,
daughter Cristina, and son Clifford. All appears normal with
them until they each head off on their own and the real action
begins. Carter's secret identity is that of Archetype, his
city's costumed defender. Calista goes from soccer mom to
slayer of vampires. Cris travels through a dimensional portal
that transfers her onto the field of battle as Eradika the
warrior woman. And conspiracy theories and aliens follow Clifford
wherever he goes.
"This
book is going to be a blast," said Ian M. Feller, Director
of Business Development for Code 6 Comics. "From the moment
I read that the concept was a satiric spoof of all genre entertainment,
including superheroes, I knew this one was a winner. Then
when Rob Rodi began sending in his plots and Mauricet began
sending in his character designs, it sealed it for me. The
Crossovers has everything readers want from a comic: action,
adventure, intrigue and it's darn funny."
If Rodi's
name sounds familiar, it's because he's been doing Codename:
Knockout for Vertigo, a highly energetic and oversexed
send-up of the spy genre. Or is that redundant?
As
a movie title, Hush sucked…as a Batman storyline, on the other
hand…
DC proudly
announced last week that for the first time in for-freaking-ever
(okay, my words, not theirs), an issue of Batman had
shouldered its way into the number one slot on Diamond's sales
chart. Yes, not even a robot in disguise could beat The Bat.
What
makes this issue so special? Batman #608 marks the
beginning of the long-awaited collaboration between Jeph Loeb
and Jim Lee, a year-long arc entitled "Hush." Giving Lee a
crack at some of the best of Batman's rogues (and some new
ones), this obviously has a lot of fanticipation, with retailers
having smelled the blood in the water. Assuming all goes according
to plan, the book will be available on October 30.
Stupid,
Stupid Advanced Worm Creatures…
How the
heck did I miss this at Comic-Con? While perusing other webpages,
I stumbled across an excited column by long-time pro Tony
Isabella claiming that DC had announced landing a pretty
big creator for a pretty big project.
After
Jeff Smith wraps up his amazing book Bone, he'll rest
up and then tell a tale of the World's Mightiest Mortal. No
date has been set in stone (perhaps because the schedule maker
who tried announcing DK2 dates has been strung up by
angry fans), but DC has committed to 2003. Or 2004, barring
any eye injuries to Smith.
Shazam:
The Monster Society of Evil will be a four issue mini-series,
done in prestige format. It may not be a pairing of creator
and hero that immediately snaps to mind, but having heard
it, it sure sounds cool.
When
Do We Get Plastic Man: The 10 Cent Adventure?
I'm a
sad dreamer.
Be that
as it may, DC has announced a follow-up to last year's successful
Batman:
The 10 Cent Adventure. The cleverly titled Superman:
The 10 Cent Adventure will debut in January, kicking off
a huge storyline in which hopefully Lois Lane will not be
found dead on the floor of the Fortress of Solitude, with
Steel, Supergirl, and Krypto all wondering if The Last Son
of Krypton is guilty of her murder.
Actually,
the cool thing is that DC announced today that retailers have
the option of getting special editions printed with their
store information on a special inlay, at "…less than the cost
of a measly colored flyer," according to Robert Scott, owner
of Comickaze. As always, it's good to see a publisher trying
to do a little something extra for the retailers.
Movies:
Universal
Lands A Beautiful Killer
To those
weeping for the demise of Dark Angel: pull yourself
together, man! Universal Studios and Strike Entertainment
have bought the rights to Black Bull Comics' Beautiful
Killer and already cast Jessica Alba as the pale superspy.
Written
by Jimmy Palmiotti and drawn by Phil Noto, the book has only
released two issues (of an originally planned three), but
obviously garnered a lot of attention. We can also live with
the choice of Alba, even though Noto draws the character looking
a lot more like Courtney Cox. Anyway, you can read the in-depth
review of the
title here.
No start
date has been set, as the producers await Alba's actual availability.
Rumor also has it that they will be changing the title, for
reasons that remain unclear.
Beautiful
Owchie-Giver, anyone?
We
Can Live With This, Too…
Ain't
It Cool News continues its legendary scoopage. Last night,
someone sent them the first picture of Alan Cumming all decked
out as Nightcrawler. And since there's no honor among web
pages, we picked it up for your enjoyment here.
Rob Worley
over at Comics2Film
has confirmed that this is the real deal. And it definitely
fits the overall look of Bryan Singer's X-Men film universe.
(Is there enough of a resemblance to Mystique? They're probably
not related on celluloid.)
Cumming
himself commented to E!Online last week. "(Nightcrawler's)
blue. He's got pointy ears. He's got yellow eyes. He's got
hooves. And a tail," Cumming said. "The only thing that is
different is that he doesn't have the same pecs or the washboard
stomach like he has the comic. He has my stomach."
Kryptonite
and Fava Beans
A lot
of rumors and facts have swirled around the net in the past
couple of weeks concerning the upcoming fast-tracked Superman
movie. Enough that really we should run a separate piece on
the whole thing, except that nobody really seems to know what
the whole thing is.
We can
tell you, though, that not only has director Brett Ratner
publicly expressed his interest in casting Anthony Hopkins
as Jor-El, Hopkins confirmed that he will do it on The Howard
Stern Show yesterday. Hopefully he will not be as difficult
as Marlon Brando.
Television:
Just
To See That Titans Tower…
We'd
had rumors of this for months, and yesterday, Warner finally
confirmed it. Straight from DC's press machine:
Cartoon
Network and Kids' WB! will follow a new young breed of superheroes
as famed Boy Wonder Robin leads fellow young teens Cyborg,
Beast Boy, Starfire and Raven in the all-new high-adventure
series Teen Titans. Slated to debut on Cartoon Network in
2003, followed by broadcast on Kids' WB!, this half-hour animated
action series is being produced by Warner Bros. Animation
under the guidance of Emmy Award-winner Glen Murakami. Teen
Titans is based on the popular DC Comics comic book characters.
Teen
Titans, set in a future of intergalactic strife and interplanetary
battles, features five teen superheroes each with special
powers, led by the Boy Wonder Robin. This group unites to
form a defensive force to protect the Earth from a new generation
of villains. An eclectic group, their powers complement each
other so that when they band together, they become a superb
fighting force. Their personalities, on the other hand, often
clash. Discovering how to control their powers, these Teen
Titans must learn to work and grow as a team while dealing
with the trials and tribulations of being teenagers.
"Cartoon
Network has experienced great success with Justice League,
so we know we have a loyal audience ready to embrace this
exciting new show," said Jim Samples, General Manager and
Executive Vice President, Cartoon Network. "These DC Comics
characters have incredible powers, but struggle with how to
use them. Teen Titans will mesh perfectly with our other action-adventure
programming and thrill our viewers."
"Teaming
up with Warner Bros. Animation and Cartoon Network once again
gives us an excellent opportunity to bring our core audience
the newest high-adventure series, Teen Titans," said Donna
Friedman, Executive Vice President, Kids' WB! "This series
will be a perfect addition to our #1 line-up, as it features
superhero action-packed adventures, comedy and kid-relatable
characters and stories in this exciting new saga."
"The
talented individuals producing this series are truly superheroes
in the world of animation," said Sander Schwartz, President,
Warner Bros. Animation. "Glen and his team will bring Teen
Titans to life with all of the excitement and breathtaking
quality that our audience has come to expect from Warner Bros.
Animation."
"The
New Teen Titans was a groundbreaking comic book as Marv Wolfman
and George Perez delved into the extraordinary challenges
of living as a superhero teenager," said Paul Levitz, DC Comics
President and Publisher. "With the animated series being brought
to life by Glen Murakami's great team, we look forward to
new worlds of creative magic."
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