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Guillermo del Toro Fills his Calendar

  • News
  • September 4, 2008

Director Guillermo del Toro has pacted with Universal Studios to helm four new films, three remakes — Frankenstein, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and Slaughterhouse-Five – plus an adaptation of Dan Simmons’ novel Drood.  The director has also discussed his desires to make a film based on H.P. Lovecraft’s "At the Mountains of Madness” and there’s also the matter of Hellboy III.

These will all follow del Toro’s four year commitment to live and work in New Zealand as he mounts the two-film adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit. Script work on that project has already begun with del Toro working alongside producer Peter Jackson, and writers Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens.

Drood, which was released by Little Brown in February, is likely to be the first of four Universal films, according to Variety. The novel posits a train accident altered author Charles Dickens’ mind, turning him into a killer which inspired his The Mystery of Edwin Drood.

Del Toro has made it clear for some time now his desire to remake Frankenstein, the 1931 film that began Universal’s journey into movie monsters that became its hallmark.  "To me, Frankenstein represents the essential human question: ‘Why did my creator throw me here, unprotected, unguided, unaided and lost?’ “del Toro said.”With that one, they will have to pry it from my cold dead hands to prevent me from directing it."

He has also indicated a desire for Jekyll and Slaughterhouse to both be more faithful to the source material than previous incarnations.

"I think they’ll decide when the last euro hits the piggybank," del Toro said of Universal hedging their bets on letting him complete the Hellboy trilogy he envisioned. "We laid the groundwork to have a magnificent third act. I’d like to return to an action franchise with 60-year-old actor Ron Perlman, because he’ll be scratching at that age when I get to it."  Universal indicated they may take a viral marketing approach to better prepare audiences for the final film if the decision to go forward is made.

As a producer, del Toro is already committed to working with Mark Johnson on Hater, based on David Moody’s novel plus Crimson Peak, a gothic romance del Toro and Matthew Robbins (Mimic) cowrote.

"No one expected The Hobbit to come about; it was the most marvelous monkey wrench tossed into my life," del Toro told the trade. "I consider (the new deals) the renewal of my marital vows with Universal."

Universal production president Donna Langley said,” We came out the other side of some tough conversations with a stronger bond and sense of long-term commitment," Langley said. "Guillermo is in the most prolific time of his life … Joe Johnston on The Wolf Man showed us the importance of entrusting the Universal franchise monsters to experienced filmmakers with voices. That was a big impetus for our decision to go with Guillermo to put his creative stamp on these properties."
 

Review: ‘American Widow’ by Alissa Torres and Sungyoon Choi

  • Uncategorized
  • September 4, 2008

American Widow
By Alissa Torres; Illustrated by Sungyoon Choi
Villard, September 2008, $22.00

Luis Eduardo (“Eddie”) Torres started a new job as a foreign exchange trader at Cantor Fitzgerald on September 10th, 2001. He was thrilled to get it – he’d been out of work for a few months, his wife, Alissa, was then seven months pregnant, and he was a Columbian national, so his immigration status could have been compromised by staying out of work too long.

Seven years later, we all remember what happened on September 11th, but perhaps only New Yorkers remember Cantor Fitzgerald as clearly. Their headquarters was at the very top of One World Trade Center: floors 101 to 105. That was directly above the impact site of the first plane; no one in Cantor Fitzgerald’s offices survived. Of the dead at the World Trade Center, nearly a quarter were Cantor Fitzgerald. Eddie Torres was one of them.

Alissa Torres quickly found herself a widow: one of the smallest of mercies was that her husband jumped, and so was identified quickly. And then she found herself a “9/11 widow” – alternately helped and hindered by charities, sought by the media, torn completely from her previous life. The fact that her husband had just started work – at a site whose records were utterly destroyed – only made things more difficult.

[[[American Widow]]] is Alissa Torres’s story, in her own words and presumably her own comics-panel layouts. The art is by Sungyoon Choi, a very young graduate of the School of Visual Arts; this appears to be her first major work. It’s also Torres’s first work in comics; before 9/11 she was an instructional designer for the New York City Department for the Aging and afterward she seems to have only written about herself and her late husband, with several essays on [[[Salon]]] and one in [[[Redbook]]]. (A search at Salon didn’t bring up those essays; nor does the Redbook essay seem to be online.)

(more…)

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Kevin Eastman Promises New Origin for ‘TMNT’

  • News
  • September 4, 2008

tmnt-1-6348161Kevin Eastman told Heavy Metal that there will be one more Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles film and this will be a fresh look at their origin story.

“Yes, it is true,” Eastman told the site, which he owns. “Although the CGI film did well enough to warrant a sequel, there has been much talk between Imagi and Warners to do a better ‘re-invention’ (newest Hollywood buzzword) of the TMNT’s, in a live action film — like what was done with Batman. Back to basics, back to the origin and the intro of the Shredder, etc…there have been talks, trips to Northampton to talk to Mr. Laird, and discussions with the original ‘first’ TMNT film director Steve Barron to come back and do it right — but no official word yet…will keep you posted.”

Barron directed that first film back in 1990.  It was followed in 1991 with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze. Then 1993’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III. The film series took a break and was brought back, using CGI in 2007’s TMNT.

Additionally, the comic book spawned three television series and countless merchandise items.
 

Bill Melendez: 1916-2008

  • News
  • September 4, 2008

AP reports that Bill Melendez, the animator behind the great Peanuts cartoons and the voice of Snoopy and Woodstock, died of natural causes Tuesday in Santa Monica at the age of 91.

Besides Peanuts, Melendez also worked on Mickey Mouse cartoons and classic animated features such as Pinocchio and Fantasia for Disney, Bugs Bunny,Porky Pig and Daffy Duck shorts for Warner Bros., and "Gerald McBoing-Boing" for UPA, which won the 1951 Academy Award for best cartoon short.

Melendez was the only person Charles Schulz authorized to animate his characters.

And if you have to ask what it’s all about… well, here:

Mark Evanier, to no one’s surprise, has more about Bill Melendez.

Catnapped, by John Ostrander

  • News
  • September 4, 2008

I love dogs. Most of my life, I’ve had at least one dog and often times two. Some have been wonderful, smart creatures and some were just thick as a brick. All were good companions and I have specific stories relating to each and they are bright in my memory.

All that said, dogs are a lot of work. It’s not simply the feeding – you have to walk them, no matter the weather, no matter whether they want to go out in that weather. They should be played with and exercised and they live for your attention.

I’m finding that, as I grow older, that I’m becoming more of a cat person. No, not like “Curse of the Cat-People” cat person. After our last French bulldog, Mojo, passed away, I’ve declined to get another dog. Maybe I need more exercise myself but I just wasn’t into walking a dog that much anymore. It was becoming work and that’s not fair to any dog.

So we now have two cats instead – Windermere, aka Windy, and Micah the Wonder Kitten. Very different in temperament and Micah has a story that I should tell you about some time; he really shouldn’t be alive. They suit me right now. They can be fun, affectionate, a little crazy, but there are also times when they go off and sleep somewhere and don’t seem to care what I’m doing.

Mind you, they also prompt me to do some of the most useless things that I do with my life. There are times when I have caught myself trying to explain the rules of the house to our two felines. It assumes that a) they know English, or b) they know what a rule is, or c) that they would care. I have patiently explained to them why they are not allowed up on the kitchen counters or why they should not dash right under my feet when I’m walking down the stairs. I’ve done this many times. They seem to be paying attention but I’ve discovered it’s only in hopes that I’m going to feed them. I’ve explained to them when mealtimes are but they don’t care about that, either. Like small human children, they have no concept of “later”. It is either “now” or “never.” Very binary.

Cats may understand “Don’t get up on counters” if they get wet when they do it. This can be done by the sink sprayer or with squirt guns that we have sequestered around the house. Windermere hates it although it doesn’t prevent her from trying to get up on the counters if she thinks I’m not paying attention. It simply means a sharp word will make her run for the hills. Micah, on the other hand, can get pretty wet and doesn’t seem to care. He just gives me a look as if I’m the one who is demented and appears to be asking, “And you did that – why?” (more…)

Superman Timeline

  • News
  • September 4, 2008

As most of us know, this year marked Superman’s 70th anniversary. And as if that weren’t enough to engender conversation about the Man of Steel, Brad Meltzer’s new novel Book of Lies  has prompted quite a bit of discussion concerning Martin Siegel, who died during an armed robbery and whose son Jerome "Jerry" Siegel subsequently wrote the story of a bullet-proof alien who was invulnerable to all frailties.

So with all this talk going around about Superman’s beginnings, we here at ComicMix thought it was time to put together a small Superman time line. Please note, this time line is focused solely on Supermans’ adventures in the comics and not with his stories in other media.

1933 – Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster publish their story “Reign of the Super-Man." In the story, the title character is a bald homeless man named Bill Dunn who gains telepathic powers from a mad scientist’s experiment and intends to take over Earth. After this, Siegel writes up a new version of Superman who is secreatly named Clark Kent and is, in fact, an alien named Kal-L, son of Jor-L and last survivor of the dead planet Krypton. Shuster does artwork for the comic strip and they begin to submit it. The story is rejected by 17 different publishers over the next five years.

1938 – Superman/Clark Kent is finally introduced in Action Comics #1. Although Siegel has plotted out the name of Superman’s parents and planet, none of these are actually named in this issue’s origin story. Superman is said to have great strength, resistance to conventional injury, and is able to leap 1/8th of a mile.

1939 – In Superman #1, the planet Krypton is finally named in the comics. It is also mentioned that Clark Kent was raised by a kindly, elderly couple. His adopted mother is named “Mary Kent” and it’s said that she and her husband died soon before Clark moved to Metropolis.

1940 – In Action Comics #23, Clark’s newspaper The Daily Star is officially renamed as The Daily Planet and Superman has his first fight with “Luthor, the mad scientist.”

1941 – Superman #10 features our hero actually defying gravity for the first time by hovering in the air. Previous to this, it was always stated in the comics that he could only leap over great distances. Superman #11 confirms that Superman can now fly, just like in the cartoons and radio shows.

1942 – Superman #17 reveals that the Man of Tomorrow has a hidden base known as the Secret Citadel, located inside a mountain range nearby Metropolis.

1945 – The character of Superboy (an adolescent version of Superman) and his hometown of Smallville are introduced in More Fun Comics #101. Initially, this is treated as a separate continuity from the mainstream Superman stories.

1948 – Superman #53 names Clark’s adopted parents as “John and Mary Kent.”

1949 – Kryptonite makes its first comic book appearance in comics in Superman #61 (originally, it was only used in the radio plays). In this story, Kryponite is colored red but in all subsequent stories it is colored green (other forms of Kryptonite with different colors will appear later on). In this same story, Superman finally learns the name and history of his home planet Krypton, even though readers have known such facts for years already. (more…)

Mark Millar Wants to Write Superman Movie

  • News
  • September 3, 2008

Mark Millar is heating up in the eyes of Hollywood in the wake of Wanted‘s success so it’s no surprise to see him interviewed all over the place, including, most recently, G4. Mark is also given to shameless self-promotion and has discussed his business dealings so the news media has repeatedly pick up on his claims and treat them us news.  As is often the case, it’s Mark shilling for himself and making noise. Such may be the case with his latest interview where he spitballed his ideas for a Superman film. 

Now, Mark has clearly indicated his desire to write a Superman movie for several years now and he’s trying to stake his claim now that Warner Bros. has essentially apologized for Superman Returns by going in a different direction, without Bryan Singer attached.

He told Blair Butler, "I’ve had this plan for like 10 years for a big three-picture Superman thing, like a Lord of the Rings epic, starting over from scratch again with a seven-hour Superman story. One to be released each year."

Until Warner Bros. issues a confirming press release, take Mark’s comments with a grain of salt.

 

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Review: Invincible the Series

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During the 2008 San Diego Comic Con, MTV New Media debuted their new animated series based on Robert Kirkman and Cory Walker’s Invincible comic. Published by Image Comics, [[[Invincible]]] tells the story of Mark Grayson, a young man who inherits his father’s superpowers. It’s been released through various outlets: iTunes, Xbox, Amazon, MTV2, MTV.com, and MTV Mobile.

Instead of creating brand new animation, the series has decided to use the latest editing techniques to “animate” Cory Walker’s actual comic book art. Just use existing comic art and let the camera to give the illusion of movement. To younger viewers this may seem innovative, but it’s been done as far back as the Marvel Comics based cartoons from the 1960’s. It was used again, very artistically by MTV, when they brought [[[The Maxx]]] to television. Even more recently [[[The Watchmen]]] has been done in this style.

While the story and art deserve all the critical praise that the Invincible comic has received over the years, [[[Invincible the Series]]]’ biggest stumbling block is its editing. The MTV produced show has the same pacing as MTV’s promo spots, wildly kinetic with lots of flashing graphics and texts. Never let the eye settle for minute. This is fine for 15-second ad, but watching a full show like that is taxing.

In a one step forward, two steps back move, the show decided to include the actual word balloons from the comic. But instead of letting people read it, the text has a subtle shake to it. To emphasize energy, I guess. While nothing sits still on the screen, you would expect the parts you want people to read to be motionless.

A good way to judge an animated show’s sound is to close your eyes and listen. Does the soundtrack still create images of the action? In Invincible’s case, the answer is yes, but barely. The voice acting and sound effects are serviceable. They don’t do anything cringe worthy, but neither do they stand out. No Kevin Conroy or John Di Maggio here.

If the production calmed down, this could’ve been a great show that brought quality comic books to video formats. But as it is, I couldn’t stand watching this for more than a few episodes. And like I said, I’m a fan. Imagine the effect to someone who’s browsing MTV2 late at night.

Watch the first episode for yourself below. Let me know if you think I’m right or wrong in the comments section.

 

‘Clone Wars’ Debuts on Cable October 3

  • News
  • September 3, 2008

The Cartoon Network has announced that the animated Star Wars: The Clone Wars will debut on Friday, October 3 at 9 p.m. The first night will feature a one-hour special, kicking off the cable network’s Friday night block of new programming. The first hour that night will be offering a sneak peek at their new Secret Saturdays. The following week will be the new schedule with The Secret Saturdays (premiere episodes); Star Wars: The Clone Wars; Star Wars: The Clone Wars (premiere episodes); Ben 10: Alien Force (premiere episodes).

Lucasfilm kicked off audience anticipation for the new television series by releasing a feature film version in August. As of September 1, the film has earned a disappointing $30,672,432 along with lackluster reviews from professionals and kids alike.  The movie hasn’t wowed them overseas either, taking in just $22,500,000.

Set during the Clone Wars between Episode II and Episode III, Lucas guarantees at least 100 thirty-minute episodes will be produced. Anakin and Obi-Wan will be featured prominently in the series, and Yoda, Count Dooku, Mace Windu, Palpatine, Padme, and General Grievous are also expected to appear.  An entirely different voice cast came on board since the movie stars couldn’t necessarily commit to 100 episodes each. The series exposes the front lines of the intergalactic struggle between good and evil, The Grand Army of the Republic led by Yoda and the New Droid Army of the Separatists, respectively. (more…)

Free Multiplayer Expansion for ‘The Incredible Hulk’ Videogame

  • News
  • September 3, 2008

Remember The Incredible Hulk videogame? Based on this summer’s movie, the game received solid reviews but the bulk of its sales happened around the movie’s release. Hulk smashed New York City, but we’ve forgotten about him since then. But what if Hulk was fighting another Hulk?

Maybe it was a feature that didn’t make it in time for the street date. Maybe it’s hype for the game as we near The Incredible Hulk movie’s DVD release. But Sega has released a Hulk Multiplayer Expansion Pack. For free!

This multiplayer expansion pack for The Incredible Hulk adds additional online, two-player missions that will test the speed, strength, and skill of even the biggest Super Hero fan. The missions take place in one of 5 large arenas, each one a dynamic and fully destructible environment packed with non-stop action and ruthless enemies.

Hulk can fight Hulk, or grey Hulk, or Maestro, or even Hulkbuster Iron Man. The PlayStation 3 version has an exclusive Green Scar version, while the Xbox 360 has Hulk’s Mr. Fixit persona. Now we can really find out who is the strongest there is.

 

 

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