Tagged: Star Trek

Whedon’s ‘Cabin’ Delayed a Year for 3-D Conversion

Whedon’s ‘Cabin’ Delayed a Year for 3-D Conversion

  • News
  • October 13, 2009

With 3-D all the rage, MGM announced over the weekend that Joss Whedon’s original thriller, The Cabin in the Woods, will be delayed from February 5 2010 to January 14 2011 to allow it to be upgraded to a three-dimensional chiller.

According to Shock Til You Drop, the film, co-written and directed by Drew Goddard (Cloverfield), will require six months for the conversion. The movie stars Bradley Whitford (The West Wing), Richard Jennings (Burn After Reading), Chris Hemsworth (Star Trek), and Whedon regulars Amy Acker (Angel, Dollhouse) and Tom Lenk (Buffy)

Tennant and Pegg Team Up

Tennant and Pegg Team Up

  • News
  • October 12, 2009

Two of Britain’s most popular actors have been cast in director John Landis’ Burke and Hare. According to Bloody Disgusting, Landis’ return to filmmaking will have him working with David Tennant, fresh off Doctor Who, and Simon Pegg, who gained acclaim in Star Trek.

The title characters are based on the famed 19th Century graverobbers who made a nice live providing corpses to an Edinburgh medical school. Piers Ashworth and Nick Moorcroft (St. Trinian’s) have written the script based on the real life incidents involving the hapless Burke (Pegg) and Hare (Tennant). Given demand, the pair would try and hasten along the end for borders at the lodging house run by Hare’s wife.

Landis last directed Susan’s Plan in 1998 while Tennant just completed shooting the sequel to St. Trinian’s, also written by Ashworth and Moorcroft. Pegg guest starred on Doctor Who, but played opposite Christopher Eccleston’s version of the Time Lord.

The Point Radio: Robert Carlyle On Life At The STARGATE

The Point Radio: Robert Carlyle On Life At The STARGATE

There’s more on STARGATE UNIVERSE including Robert Carlyle explaining why he took a dive intp series television, and Ming Nah on playing one of the few openly gay characters in SF TV. Plus ZOMBIELAND jumps to the top of the Box Office, while STAR TREK and WOLVERINE slip off the chart.

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Review: ‘Star Trek: TOS’ Season 2 on Blu-ray

Review: ‘Star Trek: TOS’ Season 2 on Blu-ray

After a rocky first season that ended with the letter writing campaign to save [[[Star Trek]]] from cancellation, the second season opened in a horrible Friday night time slot but was a stronger series. Creator Gene Roddenberry continued to oversee everything as an Executive Producer but John Meredith Lucas took over as the line producer, aided by Roddenberry’s former secretary, D.C. Fontana becoming the script consultant. These changes made for a strong start as witnessed on [[[Star Trek: The Original Series Season 2]]], now out on Blu-ray from Paramount Home Video.

Things had started to gel for the series as the characters became more sharply defined and the writers began to tailor the by-play accordingly. The backstory grew stronger so it was clear what the United Federation of Planets was all about and that the starship Enterprise was truly exploring space and fought only when necessary.

The season opened with “Amok Time”, written by SF great Theodore Sturgeon and explored Vulcan and Spock’s place among his people. It’s a great opening but also one that acknowledged the rising popularity of the character and Leonard Nimoy, placing him ahead of star William Shatner.

Roddenberry and Lucas began exploring more of Spock’s backstory, starting with “Amok Time” but later in “Journey to Babel” which memorably introduced his parents. Fortunately, attention was paid to others, as well. Bowing to criticism from Pravda, the Russian navigator Pavel Chekov joined the crew, ending the rotating supernumerary opposite Helmsman Sulu. With George Takei’s work on [[[The Green Berets]] prolonged, Chekov got plenty of screen time, much to Takei’s regret and Walter Koenig’s delight.
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Review: Tom Baker Returns As The Doctor

Author Thomas Wolfe told us you can’t go home again. That certainly hasn’t stopped a lot of folks from trying.

After an absence of nearly 30 years, Tom Baker finally returned to the role of the Doctor in the five-part, six-hour BBC full-cast [[[Doctor Who]]] audio play, Hornet’s Nest. The first part, [[[The Stuff of Nightmares]]], was released in Britain earlier this month
and is available from www.audible.com and www.emusic.com.

Of course, Doctor Who fans are so hard to please they make
Star Trek fans look like they’ve had a Vulcan neck pinch. So how does the most long-lived and long-scarfed Doctor hold up after such a long layoff?

First, I should point out that the story, like Baker himself, is witty, charming, horrific, and over-the-top. If you don’t like that, you probably don’t like Baker. Here’s the high concept: taxidermied animals are reanimated with the implanting of origami-like brains infested with
malevolent hornets. Actually, it’s quite an effective horror story.

The Doctor recruits his old UNIT friend Mike Yates, reprising Richard Franklin’s role, by planting an ad in the local paper that
reads “Wanted: retired army Captain for light household duties and fireside
companionship. Must tolerate mild eccentricity and strong scientific advice.
Knowledge of Giant Maggots, Super Intelligent Spiders and Prehistoric Monsters a positive boon.” Both the Doctor and Captain Yates are obviously a lot older than they were when last seen, and the story takes place in contemporary time – Baker even notes it’s the 21st century. That makes Yates a pensioner, and the Doctor, well, a time-traveler.

It takes a lot of fine writing and even better acting to
pull off such a concept, but that’s what Doctor Who does at its best and that’s what happens here. My wife and I listened to the CD while driving from Connecticut to JFK airport in New York City, which is generally interminable but, this time, entertaining.

It turns out Tom Baker can indeed go home again. 

Happy 88th birthday, Gene Roddenberry!

Happy 88th birthday, Gene Roddenberry!

  • News
  • August 19, 2009

On this day in 1921 the Great Bird Of The Galaxy, Eugene Wesley Roddenberry, was born in El Paso, Texas. Gene was known as a writer for Dragnet, Naked City, Have Gun, Will Travel, The Lieutenant, The Questor Tapes, Genesis II, Planet Earth, and Strange New World.

Oh, all right, Star Trek, Earth: Final Conflict, and Andromeda. And even a few comics series– don’t tell me you don’t remember Gene Roddenberry’s Lost Universe from Tekno Comics?

He died in 1991 and his ashes are in orbit now, so when we say the Great Bird Of The Galaxy watches over us, we aren’t kidding. Thanks again for letting us all play in your world.

Crazy Sexy Geeks: A New Weekly Web-Series

  • News
  • August 6, 2009

So your parents loved Robert Downey, Jr. in Iron Man but don’t think comics themselves have anything to offer? Your friends loved V for Vendetta and The Dark Knight and are curious to read comics now but aren’t sure where to start? This is the show to help them all out.

Starring yours truly and New York actor Jose Ramos, “Crazy Sexy Geeks: The Series” is meant to help new people get into comics and other geeky entertainment while also being fun for those already initiated. Each week we will discuss topics such as openly gay super-heroes, why there don’t seem to be many women super-heroes outside of comics, whether remakes are better than sequels, the challenges of film adaptations, and other fun topics that anyone with a smidgeon of pop culture knowledge can enjoy.

This is not your typical comic book video blog where two or three guys sit in a basement or at a friend’s house and just review what came out this week. This is a show where we go out on the street, asking mainstream America what they think about super-heroes, sci-fi films, etc. Likewise, there are professional interviews with folks such as Rob Zombie, Edward James Olmos, novelist David Mack (Star Trek: Destiny, The Calling), and others still to come.

For our first episode, watch us chat with Amber Benson (Tara from “Buffy the Vampire Slayer”) about female super-heroes, her new novel Death’s Daughter, and what she thinks about the Twilight series.

Ready? Great! WATCH OUR FIRST EPISODE!

ComicMix.com and Midtown Comics are not responsible nor necessarily share the views expressed on Crazy Sexy Geeks. If you love Twilight, get mad at Jose and Alan, not anyone else.

Alan Kistler is a freelance online journalist who has been recognized by media outlets as a comic book historian. His additional works can be found at http://KistlerUniverse.com.

#SDCC: The Scribe Awards for Media Tie-in Writers

#SDCC: The Scribe Awards for Media Tie-in Writers

  • News
  • July 25, 2009

The third annual presentation of the International Association of Media-Tie-in Writers (IAMTW) “Scribe” awards just went down at San Diego Comic-Con, honoring the best and the brightest in the world of property tie-ins. Awards are voted on by members of the organization.

“These writers, highly prized by fans, receive few reviews and
little acclaim, and the Scribe Awards are designed as a step toward
properly honoring them,” said Max Allan Collins, president of IAMTW, in a press release.

 I know this is what you’re waiting for, so here’s the list of winners:

Best General Fiction
Original – CSI: Headhunter
by Greg Cox 

Best General Fiction
Adapted – Indiana Jones and
the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull by James Rollins 

Best Speculative Fiction
Original – Star Trek Terok Nor:
Day of the Vipers by James Swallow 

Best Speculative Fiction
Adapted – Hellboy II: The Golden
Army by Robert Greenberger 

Best Young Adult Original – Primeval: Shadow of
the Jaguar by Steven Savile 

Best Young Adult Adapted – Journey to the Center
of the Earth 3D by Tracey West 

The Grandmaster Award – Keith R.A. DeCandido

DeCandido, the recipient of the Grandmaster Award, is the writer of several Star Trek, CSI, and Supernatural books, just to name a few.

“Things like this make all the difference, there are plenty of days when I don’t feel up to my job and my belief in my own words is shaky at best, but now, when I’m down there, I will just have to look at the shelf and see this incredible gift from the guys in the trenches, and I’ll be able to shut up the doubting devils and get back to work,” said Steven Savile in an e-mail to the IAMTW mailing list after finding out about his win.

“This means a lot to me, coming as does from my fellow laborers in the tie-in trenches,” wrote Greg Cox to that same list. “But, boy, now I really wish I could have swung a trip to San Diego somehow…”

Congratulations to all the winners– and to ComicMix contributor Robert Greenberger, happy birthday!

#SDCC: Wonder Women: Sigourney Weaver, Elizabeth Mitchell, Zoe Saldana, Eliza Dushku

#SDCC: Wonder Women: Sigourney Weaver, Elizabeth Mitchell, Zoe Saldana, Eliza Dushku

  • News
  • July 23, 2009

Sigourney Weaver received a standing ovation at the Comic-Con 2009 panel “Wonder Women: Female Power Icons in Pop Culture,” moderated by Entertainment Weekly.  The “ass-kicking” icon shared the dais with Elizabeth Mitchell (Juliette on Lost), Zoe Saldana (Uhura in the new Star Trek film) and, in an unannounced appearance, Eliza Dushku (Echo on Dollhouse.)

Weaver said “MTV called Ripley the second biggest badass after Clint Eastwood, but I think she could take him.” Apparently, the part of Ripley had originally been intended for a man, then Weaver came “and she was better,” said Saldana, who expressed her excitement about appearing with her.  Said Weaver of the part of Ripley, “I never thought about playing it as a woman, I thought about playing it as a person.”

With regard to the evolution of women’s roles, Weaver said, “I think that society is changing much faster than Hollywood understands.” She also said, “Hollywood gets really wrapped up in what women should wear and I was lucky when I did my action role that I got to wear real clothes.”

The other panelists also discussed their recent empowering roles. Saldana said, with regard to playing a new incarnation of Uhura, that it was “humbling” to continue the role of an original character that “everyone admired.”

Dushku talked about working on Dollhouse with Joss Whedon, known for creating strong female characters in his other TV series. “There was a reason I went back to Joss when I wanted to find my next role. My role in Buffy was so amazing. When I went back to him, I had such trust that he is the reason why I have all these opportunities. I asked Joss to make me the most multi-dimensional, deep character he’d ever done and he delivered.”

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#SDCC: IDW Publishing panel – digital comics, Bob Schreck, Danger Girl and Bat Boy!

#SDCC: IDW Publishing panel – digital comics, Bob Schreck, Danger Girl and Bat Boy!

  • News
  • July 23, 2009

Through the lens of IDW’s tenth anniversary, founder Ted Adams and IDW editors and creators addressed a packed room about a wide variety of new projects. Adam Schlesinger liveblogged it, and we also got other info (funny about that)– here are the highlights:

  • Jeff Webber talked about the iPhone comics. IDW already has 80 titles available on iTunes now, with much more on the way. Webber talked about the power of the iPhone as a distribution
    system to capture non-comics fans, which is natural, given the changing
    nature of comics distribution out of comic book shops and into
    bookstores and the internet.
    Apparently, non-typical comic readers enjoy slideshows, rather than a
    zoomed in page, because it’s easier to read. Also, the swiping from
    panel to panel increases the interactivity of the medium, which draws
    non-typical comic fans in. Chris Ryall concluded that 20% of top 100% of book sales on iTunes have been from IDW.
  • Bob Schreck has just been announced as part of the IDW editorial team. They announced a book called Black Roads, written by Bill Willingham
    (of Fables fame) and illustrated by Gene Ha (Top 10).
  • J. Scott Campbell brought Danger Girl from Wildstorm to
    IDW, following long time editor Scott Dunbier.

Upcoming projects:

  • Hammer Of The Gods by Mark Wheatley and Mike Oeming will be collected– first the Image series, and then the sequel that debuted on ComicMix.
  • Also from ComicMix: miniseries of GrimJack and Jon Sable Freelance.
  • A hardcover version of Winter World
    by Chuck Dixon and Jorge Zaffin (original never-collected miniseries
    and unreleased sequel).
  • Dave Stevens’ Rocketeer “Deluxe” collections
    with all new coloring, and to celebrate they gave away vintage 1980’s
    Dave Stevens prints to everyone in the panel (pictures to come).
  • A new
    Star Trek series about Nero, the villian in the movie.
  • Seduth by Clive
    Barker, with art by Gabriel Rodriguez with 3D effects.
  • New comics from Jennifer Love Hewitt (Ghost Whisperer), Brea Grant (Heroes), and Billy
    Martin, the guitarist from Good Charlotte.
  • A Weekly World News book,
    including Bat Boy, Ed Anger, Manigator, PhD Ape (simian
    psychologist to the stars), and lots of other Weekly World
    News-inspired stories.
  • An adaptation of Peter S. Beagle’s The Last Unicorn.
  • A Harlan
    Ellison project called “Phoenix Without Ashes.” Ellison fans will remember that as the original title of the pilot episode of The Starlost, a series that Hollywood mucked up beyond all sorts of recognition in the 70s.

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