Tagged: Black Canary

#SDCC: ‘Batman: The Brave and the Bold’ with… Dr. Horrible?

News
July 24, 2009

This is the worst part about covering SDCC while not actually being there: you can get a pretty good sense of what a panel was like from a liveblog, but there’s just no replacement for seeing a singing, dancing Dark Knight, especially when Neil Patrick Harris is involved.

Diedrich Bader, the voice of Batman, returned to Comic-Con alongside John DiMaggio (Futurama), the voice of Aquaman, and executive producer Sam Register (Teen Titans), producer James Tucker (Justice League Unlimited), producer and story editor Michael Jelenic (The Batman) and voice director Andrea Romano (everything DC has animated in the last twenty years), to screen the upcoming “Mayhem of the Music Meister” episode‚ featuring the voice of Neil Patrick Harris (Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog) as the Music Meister, and take questions afterwards. ComicVine gets props for managing to stop watching the spectacle long enough to liveblog. Some highlights from the panel:

Bat-Mite Masks were distributed to attendees before the panel started.
G.I. Robot, Detective Chimp, Vixen, Captain Marvel (plus the Marvel Family), Firestorm, the Metal Men, the Doom Patrol, and Starro are all making appearances in upcoming episodes.
“Outrageous!” came about as Aquaman’s catchphrase accidentally–John DiMaggio just channels his inner outrageousness.
“Black Manta, Clock King and Gorilla Grodd appear. There’s Aquaman!
Along with Green Arrow and Black Canary. Why is Black Manta suddenly
singing? Now Aquaman is. They can’t help themselves! Gorilla Grodd
singing and dancing? You HAVE to see this!” – from the liveblog
Twitter user @the_real_winson says that when NPH’s character first appears, the crowd couldn’t stop cheering.
The episode got a standing ovation!
During the Q&A afterwards, the child who asked about the Batmobile at last year’s SDCC asked today what Batman’s favorite gadget was–and got an answer in Batman’s voice. It’s the Batarang, by the way.
Crisis on Infinite Earths, BatB-style? “Only if we get to do it as a musical,” DiMaggio said.

More reactions (and possible spoilers) at ComicVine.

‘Firefly’ stars reunite for ‘V’; Sheen joins ‘Twilight Saga: New Moon’

News
April 15, 2009

Spring is in the air… and lots of actors are finding work.

Frost/Nixon’s Michael Sheen has joined the cast of The Twilight Saga: New Moon. The now-filming sequel has added Sheen as Aro, the head vampire of the Italian Volturi vampire clan. Summit Entertainment will release the eagerly awaited adaptation of the Stephenie Meyer best-seller on November 20.

Elisabeth Shue takes a detour from her usual dramatic fare to appear in Alexandre Aja’s remake of Piranha 3D. The actress will play "Sheriff Julie Forester, a take-charge authority figure in the community of Lake Victoria" according to Moviehole, and the mother of one of the lead characters. Look for this in March 2010

While we weren’t looking, the cast for the revamp of V has filled out with some very familiar names which improve our hopes for the ABC pilot. The formal network announcement will be May 19 but we’re crossing our fingers. The proposed series, based on Kenneth Johnson’s original concepts, now features Elizabeth Mitchell (Lost), Morena Baccarin (Firefly), Joel Gretsch (The 4400), Morris Chestnut (Ladder 49), Alan Tudyk (Firefly), Scott Wolf (Party of Five) David Richmond-Peck (The Day The Earth Stood Still), Laura Vandervoort (Smallville), Lourdes Benedicto (The Nine), and Christopher Shyer (The Day).

Finally, the seaons finale for Smallville will guest star Impulse (Kyle Gallner) and Black Canary (Alaina Huffman).

DC Comics Names ‘Origins and Omens’ Line-up

News
December 10, 2008

This February, nineteen core titles from the DC Universe will feature “Origins and Omens” backup stories. “Origins and Omens” lays the groundwork for the upcoming Green Lantern: Blackest Night miniseries and more in 2009.

These “Origins and Omens” issues are solicited in the December Previews and are scheduled to arrive in stores in February. DC Comics will announce the full lineup of writers and artists contributing to these stories soon.

Watch for “Origins and Omens” stories in these issues:

•           ACTION COMICS #874
•           ADVENTURE COMICS #0 — Specially priced at just $1.00!
•           BIRDS OF PREY #127
•           BOOSTER GOLD #17
•           GREEN ARROW/BLACK CANARY #17
•           GREEN LANTERN #38
•           GREEN LANTERN CORPS #33
•           JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #30
•           JUSTICE SOCIETY OF AMERICA #24
•           NIGHTWING #153
•           OUTSIDERS #15
•           ROBIN #183
•           SECRET SIX #6
•           SUPERGIRL #38
•           SUPERMAN #685
•           TEEN TITANS #68
•           TITANS #10
•           VIGILANTE #3
•           WONDER WOMAN #29

Also this month, watch for Adventure Comics #0, reprinting one of the cornerstone stories of the DCU with a special price of just $1.00 and featuring its own all-new “Origins and Omens” tale! To celebrate the upcoming Adventure Comics #1, this issue reprints a Silver Age classic from the title’s prior volume — Adventure Comics #247, the first appearance of the Legion of Super-Heroes! Adventure Comics #0 also features a new cover by Aaron Lopresti that’s an homage to the original.

The story also serves as the inspiration for Geoff Johns’ episode of Smallville, scheduled to air on January 15.

‘Smallville’ Update

News
December 5, 2008

The CW’s Smallville is now in its eighth season and the producers have been making noises as to whether or not they think there’s enough creative juice left for a ninth season. TV Guide is speculating that retaining he cast, led by Tom Welling, may be the biggest stumbling block. They would need new contracts with raises and Welling has been eyeing a big screen career for some time now.

Meantime, the series is on hiatus until January 15 and the much awaited Legion of Super-Heroes episode. Their oppojnent appears to be the Fatal Five’s Persuader.

Meantime, the fourteenth episode will introduce the television series’ version of the Toyman and Tori Spelling will return as gossip reporter Linda Lake.

Speaking of gossip, apparently Clark will reveal his alien nature this season. Entertainment Weekly’s Michael Ausiello writes, “I can confirm that Clark does, in fact, come out as an E.T. during an interview with Lois. I can also confirm that said revelation causes mass chaos.”

Meantime, the combined heroes, unofficially dubbed the Justice League, will be back before the season ends and Alaina Huffman, who plays Black Canary, hinted in an interview her romance with Green Arrow (Justin Hartley) will heat up.

Now that “The Bride” episode has revealed that Lex Luthor is alive, rumors are swirling that Michael Rosenbaum will be enticed back to the series to wrap up his character’s storyline.

Robin, Nightwing, Birds of Prey Cancelled

News
November 5, 2008

Batman #681 won’t be out until November 19, but its effects are already being felt as DC Comics has confirmed that three of the satellite titles, Robin, Nightwing, and Birds of Prey will be cancelled in February. Another related title, Catwoman, was cancelled earlier this year.

All three titles were launched in the 1990s as the Batman line rapidly expanded under editor Denny O’Neil and the supporting cast grew by leaps and bounds. Given their middling monthly sales and decreased trade collection volume, the cancellations were not a surprise.

The timing was also carefully planned; something confirmed by Robin writer Fabian Nicieza who told ComicMix, "I knew the plans for Robin since I was first offered the assignment. Part of my enthusiasm all along was knowing the responsibility I had to get the character to a very interesting new phase of his life. It’s only the start of very exciting things for Tim Drake."

The next phase of Bat-continuity kicks off with the two-issue Battle for the Cowl to be written by Judd Winick. What follows remains a closely guarded secret. By then, the Bat-family of titles will be reduced to Batman, Detective Comics, Batman and the Outsiders, Superman/Batman and a cycle of The Brave and the Bold. The latter series will be featuring Bruce Wayne in the cowl so as not to distract readers drawn to the issues which will introduce Archie’s Red Circle super-heroes to the DC Universe.

Robin finally gained his own solo ongoing series in 1994 after three well-received miniseries from Chuck Dixon and Tom Lyle. Dixon returned last year to handle the character in the wake of One Year Later but was summarily removed and Nicieza replaced him.

Nightwing was awarded his own ongoing in 1996 after just one tryout miniseries by O’Neil and newcomer Greg Land. Again, Dixon wrote the project for its first seven years before ceding to Devin Grayson. Currently being produced by Peter Tomasi and Don Kramer, the character is also seen in Titans and across the DCU as a popular guest star.

Birds of Prey was originally a one-shot featuring Oracle and Black Canary from Dixon but it spawned one-shots and a miniseries before gaining its own monthly in 1999 with Dixon and Land at the outset. Its popularity and creative success led to the one-season WB television series. Gail Simone succeeded Dixon and at Dixonverse, she noted that since her departure followed by Black Canary being switched from BOP to JLA, “It’s just that the emotional core was removed and that’s always a bad idea. It wasn’t my idea, but it was a bit of a trade-off because her popularity in bop meant she could do things like lead the JLA and have a book with her name on the cover. And since I loved the character that seemed a fair trade to make, to help move her up the ladder of importance.” Currently written by Tony Bedard, it’s been much more of a team series far removed from Gotham.

The final issues will be Robin #183, Nightwing #153 and Birds of Prey #127.

DC at the Movies

News
November 1, 2008

In keeping up with the comings and goings of DC’s comic book franchises that have plans to segue to the silver screen, here we have put together Warner Bros. more recent plans on making that adaptation for some of our favorite heroes, as well as some other characters and how close we are to seeing them in theaters.

Wonder Woman

In January 2001, producer Joel Silver approached Todd Alcott to write a Wonder Woman screenplay, with Silver Pictures backing the project. Early gossip linked actresses such as Mariah Carey, Sandra Bullock, Rachel Bilson, and Catherine Zeta-Jones to the role of Wonder Woman. Leonard Goldberg, speaking in a May 2001 interview, named Bullock as a strong candidate for the project. Bullock claimed that she was approached for the role, while Lucy Lawless and professional wrestler Chyna both expressed interest. Lawless indicated that she would be more interested if Wonder Woman was portrayed as a "flawed hero." The screenplay then went through various drafts written by Alcott, Jon Cohen, Becky Johnston, and Philip Levens. By August 2003, Levens was replaced by screenwriter Laeta Kalogridis (Birds of Prey).

In March 2005, Warner Bros. and Silver Pictures announced that Joss Whedon would write and direct the film adaptation of Wonder Woman. Since Whedon was directing Serenity at the time, and required time to research Wonder Woman’s background, he did not begin the screenplay until late 2005. According to Joel Silver, the script would cover Wonder Woman’s origin and include Steve Trevor: "Trevor crashes on the island and they go back to Man’s World." Silver wanted to film Wonder Woman in Australia once the script was completed. While Whedon stated in May 2005 that he would not cast Wonder Woman until he finished the script, Charisma Carpenter (Angel) and Morena Baccarin (Firefly) expressed interest in the role.

Despite telling people, "It was in an outline, and not in a draft, and they [studio executives] didn’t like it. So I never got to write a draft where I got to work out exactly what I wanted to do." Whedon is known to have actually finished a screenplay that was not met favorably by Warner Bros. or DC.

In February 2007, Whedon departed from the project, citing script differences with the studio. Whedon reiterated: "I never had an actress picked out, or even a consistent front-runner. I didn’t have time to waste on casting when I was so busy air-balling on the script." Whedon stated that with the Wonder Woman project left behind, he would focus on making his film Goners.

A day before Whedon’s departure from Wonder Woman, Warner Bros. and Silver Pictures purchased a script written by Matthew Jennison and Brent Strickland. Set during World War II, the script impressed executives at Silver Pictures. However, Silver has made clear that he purchased the script because he didn’t want it floating around in the industry; although it has good ideas, he doesn’t wish for the Wonder Woman film to be a period piece. By April 2008, Silver hired Jennison and Strickland to write a new (modern day) script that would not depict Wonder Woman’s origin, but explore Paradise Island’s history.

According to an August 2008 article in The Wall Street Journal, featuring Warner Bros. president Jeff Robinov speaking about their DC property films, a Wonder Woman film is among other super-hero films currently in "active development."

(more…)

‘Smallville’ Producers Talk ‘Graysons’

News
October 3, 2008

News broke earlier this week that the CW was developing a new series based around the first Robin titled The Graysons. The show, set to focus on Dick "DJ" Grayson in his pre-Robin years, has been reported as a possible replacement for Smallville should Clark Kent’s pre-Superman adventures conclude at the end of this season.

Not so, say Brian Peterson and Kelly Souders, executive producers on Smallville and now hard at work behind the scenes on The Graysons. They issued a statement over at KryptonSite that clears the air of their intentions on developing the new series.

Says the pair:

"As news and rumors swirl around the development of The Graysons for the CW, we have every intention of letting you, our fans, be the first to know the reality. Never have we been so committed to the continuing success of Smallville as we are to seasons 8 and 9. While we are extremely excited to be working hand-in-hand with Wonderland, Warner Bros. and the CW to create the origin story of Dick Grayson, it has never been intended as a replacement for Smallville, as is speculated in some media. The cast, crew, writers and producers are all working full-steam ahead on a story-line for Clark that allows for seasons of further trials and adventures for our favorite hero. As always, we all have you to thank for achieving eight years of this amazing show that Al and Miles created, and we’re looking far beyond!"

This upcoming season of Smallville is sure to have plenty of DC heavy cameos to put any Superman lover into a fangasmic fit. Justin Hartley, who plays Oliver Queen (Green Arrow), has returned to the series as a regular this season, and will be joined once again by Justice League members Aquaman, The Flash, Black Canary, Cyborg and the Martian Manhunter. The Legion of Super-Heroes are set to join the fray this year, along with Plastique, introduced just last night. Most widely reported is the arrival of Doomsday, played by Sam Witwer (Battlestar Galactica). Doomsday famously killed Superman in the best-selling Death of Superman arc back in the nineties, leading to the creation of Superman replacements Steel, Superboy, Cyborg Superman and the Eradicator.

With Peterson and Souders stating they have plans for Smallville beyond season eight, might they be setting up a junior version of the Death of Superman and Reign of the Supermen stories? Holy kryptonite, that would be suh-weeeet.

‘The Graysons’ Fly to the CW

News
October 1, 2008

Inspired by Clark Kent’s Smallville roots, the CW is launching a new DC hero-turned-angsty teen television series called The Graysons. According to Variety, the show follows the early years of Dick "DJ" Grayson before he becomes Robin. Smallville executive producers Kelly Souders and Brian Peterson are behind the series, as is Supernatural executive producer McG. The CW has committed to a pilot episode.

Variety is calling the show a potential replacement for Smallville should that series end this season as anticipated. The Graysons would also be a solid companion to Smallville should it return next year. Further, the move to bring another DC property onto the CW shows a sign of good faith from Warner Bros., who has a 50% investment in the network.

Fans of the character are familiar with Robin’s origin. Dick, a young acrobat, is orphaned when his parents are murdered by gangsters during their trapeze act. He’s taken in by Bruce Wayne and becomes Batman’s protege. The Graysons takes place before these events. Set in modern times, the hour-long drama will focus on young "DJ" as he faces tasks fit only for a hero of Robin’s caliber: first loves, young rivals and family. Ahem. Guess you can’t say Dick on TV?

Smallville grew out of the oroiginal producers’ desire to tell the story of yourn Bruce Wayne. When Warner Bros. refused to let television have access to their movie franchise, they shifted gears and set their sights on Clark Kent growing up and discovering his powers.

Since then the eight seasons have seen a variety of DC heroes and villains appear, some with spin-off potential. Among the characters already seen have been Oliver Queen (Green Arrow), A.C. Curry (Aquaman), Bart Allen (the Flash), Dinah Lance (Black Canary), Cyborg, and the Martian Manhunter. Coming this season will be Plastique and the Legion of Super-Heroes.

In 2006, a pilot was produced for an Aquaman series much in the same vein as Smallville and the proposed The Graysons, but the CW decided not to air the program. Smart money says that even if The Graysons sees the light of day, the series won’t survive long. Part of Smallville‘s appeal is its unique spin on a superpowered adventure. Considering The Graysons is pre-Robin, it’s hard to imagine little Di–… sorry, "DJ" sharing in Clark’s success. Makes one wonder why they didn’t just go for a Bruce Wayne show. Maybe then Armie Hammer would actually have a job.

Review: Smallville Season 8 Premiere

Reviews
September 19, 2008

Get ready, Superman fans: this first episode back for Smallville certainly made a believer out of anybody who was sick of the constant relationship melodrama and relentless barn-scenes-with-a-bad-soft-contemporary-soundtrack of the past seven seasons, but before we get too far ahead of ourselves, let’s take a step back.

You can get an in-depth look at what exactly went down over the past seven years here, but for our purposes, all we need to know is this: Lex found out Clark is an alien, went to the Fortress of Solitude to control him, ended up destroying the place with both of them in it. Jimmy Olsen, originally agreeing to be Lex’s spy, betrayed him, which then forced Luthor to call the Department of Domestic Security (dumb name) and have Chloe hauled away, who now has the ability to heal and the brain smarter than a super computer. Lois Lane is currently on the hunt for her cousin, Chloe, and the Justice League (consisting of Green Arrow, Black Canary, and Aquaman) is on the quest for Clark. All caught up? Good.

This season kicks off with LuthorCorp’s newest CEO, Tress Mercer (possibly a hybrid of Lex’s comic bodyguard Mercy and movie girlfriend Ms. Tessmacher) stepping in as the new (evil) face of the company, now that Luthor is missing, and Michael Rosenbaum is only slated for a few guest appearances this season. The Justice League, along with their poor costume choices, are closing in on finding Clark in the Antarctic, who is actually in a prison camp in the heart of Russia (Red Son reference?), both human, and unshaven!! Chloe is under guard at the supposed D.D.S. (dumb initials) base, where scientists are running tests on her to find out the extent of her “super computer brain”.

The episode marks the feel of this season, which is finally branching outside the walls of Smallville, and going global. Lana’s dead (to us), so we don’t have anymore agonizing drama on that front. There is a moment of dread about 45 minutes into the episode where Clark goes back to his bedroom in the barn, but thankfully its only for him to “finally say goodbye to Smallville”. We get a great cameo from Martain Manhunter and even a nice little nod to former cast members John Schneider and Anette O’Toole. No sign of the “daddy issues with Jor-El” storyline either, which was a big letdown in the past.

This season is said to be more of a throwback to Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, having the duo work together at the Daily Planet, with Clark finding out that he needs to keep his identity secret from those around him, all the while falling slowly for Ms. Lane. This will hopefully end with him donning some sort of costume, instead of the blue shirt/red jacket that has unfortunately become his trademark (when I can buy the same thing at Old Navy, it shouldn’t be considered a superhero costume). We’re also expected to get a Doomsday storyline this season, which could prove promising, given the new writing direction.

This brings us to the biggest improvement by far from the past, which is the writing. Both in dialogue and storylines, there seems to be a newfound enthusiasm from the writer’s room, and it most definitely translates onto the screen. They also seem to have the chemistry between Clark and Lois down to a tee. The nods to comics are still there, including a possible Red Son reference, and even a throw to fans of Green Arrow (I won’t ruin that). They may fall back into their “freak of the week” slump again, but this episode has made the show as a whole worth getting back into, and I recommend it to any true Superman fan. RATING: 9/10

‘Smallville’ So Far

News
September 18, 2008

So this week we shall see the season premiere of Smallville. This is not only the eighth season of the series that depicts a young Clark Kent learning the lessons that will make him Superman, it is also likely the last — unless the CW decides at the last minute to change their minds.

Matt "Two-Fisted" Raub is going to regale you folks with a review of the season premiere soon enough. It is my job to recap what has brought us to this point. I’ll summarize what’s happened in the show’s major storyline so far, not bothering to go into detail of individual episodes or sub-plots that are never mentioned again. If you only want to be caught up on the latest season, just scroll down until you see the words "Seventh Season" in bold. Also, this isn’t wikipedia, so I’m going to be explaining things in the way that I think makes it easiest to understand, not just listing events in exact chronological order.

THE STORY SO FAR . . .

The series begins with business mogul Lionel Luthor (John Glover) arriving in Smallville, Kansas with his young son Lex. A meteor shower suddenly hits, causing hundreds of strange, glowing, green rocks to hail from the sky and create devastation across the town and its surrounding farms. Lex receives close contact with one of the meteor rocks and loses his hair as a result. Young Lana Lang loses her parents in the chaos. Meanwhile, elsewhere in Smallville, Jonathan Kent (John Schneider) and his wife Martha (Annette O’Toole, who portrayed Lana Lang in Superman III) find a rocketship in their field that has arrived along with the meteors. And inside, there is a baby.

Fast forward several years and we are introduced to teenage Clark Kent (Tom Welling), the adopted son of Martha and Jonathan. Clark is a good kid with a kind heart. He is best friends with Pete Ross (Sam Jones III) and Chloe Sullivan (Allison Mack), who has a deep-seated crush on him. He is also head over heels for his friend, cheerleader Lana Lang (Kristin Kreuk). Clark is interested in astronomy and often has his head in the clouds. He also has great speed, strength and resiliency to injury. Now a freshman in high school, Clark wonders about why he has these abilities and his father finally reveals to him that he was found in a rocketship that came with the meteors and thus is possibly an alien. Clark wonders about who he is and why he was sent away.

As Clark begins high school, Lex Luthor (Michael Rosenbaum, voice of the Flash from Justice League), now an adult, arrives in Smallville to take over his father’s LuthorCorp plant there. It’s supposed to be a test of responsibility and he hates it. Soon after his arrival, Luthor suffers a car accident and his life is saved by Clark Kent. The near-death experience makes Luthor decide that he must stop listening to his father and pursue his own destiny. He also declares that he and Clark are now friends, since Clark saved his life. Clark is glad to have a friend and is overwhelmed by Lex’s money and power and insistence on helping to make Clark’s life easier. Jonathan Kent is concerned that his son is spending so much time with Lex, especially when the Luthor boy continually espouses a belief that one should side-step rules of politeness and moral boundaries to get what you want sometimes.

As the seasons pass, Jonathan and Martha do their best to help Clark cope with his increasing abilities and his identity issues. The Kent boy discovers that the glowing green meteor rocks that are scattered in different parts of Smallville are somehow lethal to him and that their radiation has caused mutation in certain other people. As Smallville begins to be plagued by mutated super-villains (called "meteor freaks"), Clark secretly works to stop them and as the years pass on he discovers his powers increasing, gaining super-human hearing, telescopic/microscopic vision, heat-vision and X-ray vision. He even has dreams that he can fly. When solar flares later cause his powers to go haywire, Clark realizes that his superhuman abilities stem from his body’s absorbtion and processing of solar radiation.