9/1/08 Cartoons, Dammit! | Forum
• Crew Additions: Cartoons, Dammit! welcomes long-time TZ member and animator Temple Fugate to the fold.8/28/08 CD! - SuperBlog - Launch!
• James reviews KNIGHTS: VOL 1 (TPB) from Digital Manga Publishing.08/28/08 Marvel Animation Age
• "Next Avengers" Heroes of Tomorrow" Feature and Blu-ray Release Reviewed (Click Here)
• Exclusive "Next Avengers: Heroes of Tomorrow" Interview Added08/27/08 The Valentine Chronicles
• Cartoons, Dammit! is pleased to welcome The Valentine Chronicles and
its crew to the line-up! In keeping with our shared vision of bringing
you quality writing and art, we know you'll thoroughly enjoy following
the plight Tatiana and Katrina Valentine through a series of stories
and illustrations!
Marge Dean, producer of Back at the Barnyard and What's New Scooby Doo, has ben hired by entertainment company W!LDBRAIN as general manager of W!LDBRAIN Animation Studios. She is replacing the previous general manager, Andrea Mansour.
Elsewhere, W!LDBRAIN announced a pact with Danny Antonucci, creator of Cartoon Network's Ed, Edd n Eddy, to develop TV series, feature films, and new media...[read more]
The Wall Street Journal has taken a look at Seth MacFarlane's growing influence in the world of animation, from the success of Family Guy to the upcoming Cleveland Show and the new joint effort with Google to deploy Seth MacFarlane's Cavalcade of Cartoon Comedy, which will debut next Wednesday on a variety of web sites. The article notes...[read more]
* Diego Mauricio Alvarez's film The Butcher and the Wolf has one a prize under the "Get Animated" category at Australia's Portable Film Festival. [AWN]
Agent Aika is the king of the panty shot, turning their reveal into an art form. Name a shot, and there's probably a panty somewhere in it. This is no exaggeration. The director and storyboard artists deliberately chose as many low angles and situations (not to mention skimpy outfits) as they could so panties would be exposed frequently, often getting right up to the camera. In a way, this overload, over-the-top approach is almost comical, and to count the number of upskirt shots is practically impossible. It may be the very definition of camp. Not that that's a bad thing.
Aika has a plot, yes, but it's merely a background for the nonstop fanservice and action. The titular character is an ocean excavator in the flooded near future who ventures to an underwater base to retrieve an expensive artifact which will help her business stay afloat (sorry). Her business partner, the bespectacled comic relief Rion, joins her. Of course, there are villains who are also after the artifact, and both Aika and Rion are captured and put in life-threatening and near-sexual situations a few times during their mission. Luckily, Aika has the ability to transform into an ultra powerful being with deadly liquid metal appendages and lightning fast reflexes. That certainly helps in those intense gunfights. However, Aika tries not to rely on this power too much, as it's slowly engulfing her, much like the later Witchblade.
In the last three episodes, the enemy forces try to plot revenge on Aika and company in various locales such as fancy hotels and mountains, which gives us more visual variety than the first four, as they were mostly relegated to the underground facility. Unfortunately, a new unamusing male sidekick, Michikusa Shuntaro, tags along and adds nothing to the show, other than to be the punching bag for comical beatings from annoyed Rion. So the last three are a mixed bag.
Yes, many of the concepts in Aika are ridiculous. Like a female adversary who perpetually dresses in nothing but lingerie (what? All the other laundry was in the wash that day?). And as par for the course in these types of shows, the enemy soldiers are incredibly bad shots while the heroes are experts. Reminds me of Star Wars, now that I think about it. And isn't it silly that everyone in the show has white panties? I guess they all shop at the same store, and buy the same color. Finally, perhaps most obviously, all the females wear mini skirts. Now I'm sure it gets warm down in that subterranean base, but were shorts not available for the uniform selection? For that matter, was air conditioning too expensive to install?
But to try to find logic in this is missing the point. Aika is entertaining, and not meant to be taken seriously. And part of what aids Aika is its presentation. Animation was done by Studio Fantasia (who also did Rumbling Hearts, Stratos 4, Labyrinth of Flames, and the similarly-themed Najica), and it's definitely a step above TV quality. This is especially true, predictably, during the action scenes, when there are a lot of inbetweens. It's not Akira quality or anything, but you can tell more effort was put into it. There's some impact to the various blows and explosions, too. SF also do a good job at the physical comedy and funny poses, like when Rion sneaks around the base trying to avoid being spotted by enemies, or when she argues with "rival" spy Maypia.
The music's fantastic, too. Jun'ichi Kanezaki has always been one of my favorite anime composers, with his jazzy scores that emphasize peppy trumpets and saxophones to give this (and some of his other shows) a very cool, secret agent-esque feel. The guitar opening and ending themes are solid, too, and get your blood pumping (not in that way, silly). I wish the OSTs were available in America, because I would purchase them in an instant.
Finally, I have to defend the fanservice in this particular anime. In some shows, this sort of thing feels tacked on and unnecessary. But take away the panty shots and nudity, and you don't have Aika. It's this show's identity, and it turns what would've otherwise been pretty typical action fare into something memorable. Not to mention, it's pretty funny to see all the various ways that the characters' panties are exposed, like in fight scenes when enemies are knocked down into a variety of unconscious poses.
Agent Aika is one of many re-releases in the DVD world. Unlike a lot of double dipping culprits, however, Aika wasn't released by the same company the second time. Originally released by Central Park Media back in 2001, the licensed was rescued by Bandai Entertainment last year, and a brand new 2-disc DVD containing all seven OAV episodes was released in April 2008.
Is it worth the buy back? I'd say so. Besides putting both discs in one collection (Central Park had two separate releases, which was pretty typical for the time but rather annoying), Bandai used the new transfers which were created for Aika's 10th anniversary in Japan, which means crisper picture, less muted and washed out colors, and far less jitter between cuts. In short, it looks great, and breathes new life into a decade-old series.
As for the DVD's contents, besides the seven episodes, we get a few interstitials concerning Aika moving into a new apartment, textless openings/endings, art galleries, a smorgasbord of TV ads, and perhaps the most interesting feature, a ten minute live action Aika short made to commemorate the OAV's anniversary. They don't have the visual energy of the animated version, and the panty reveals seem strangely lifeless as well, but it's worth a watch for the novelty value. Plus the music's still...[read more]
Dr. Ed Catmull, co-founder and president of Pixar Animation Studios, has written a lengthy article for the Harvard Business Review detailing his views on what makes Pixar a successful company. Titled "How Pixar Fosters Collective Creativity," the article begins with a meeting between Catmull and the head of a major motion picture studio who claimed that his central problem was not in finding good people, but finding good ideas.
In countering this executive's opinion, Catmull details how his formative years in academia and Lucasfilm led to the founding of Pixar, how the risk-averse nature of executives is antithetical to creativity, and how the difficult production of Toy Story...[read more]
IDW has announced the debut of the Transformers Animated comic book mini-series, which shipped on August 13, 2008 and should be available at comic book retailers now. Transformers Animated: The Arrival #1 is the first of a five-issue mini-series that will fill in holes and providing alternate viewpoints of the arrival of the Autobots and the Decepticons on Earth, as Ultra Magnus, Sentinel Prime, Starscream, and Blackarachnia narrate events from the premiere movie from their perspectives. In addition, the formerly toy-only character Oilslick will debut in the comics as well.
The first issue is written by head writer...[read more]
4KIDS Entertainment has issued a press release detailing their 2008-2009 Saturday morning television lineup, which will be split between FOX and the CW Network. FOX will pick up the new series Biker Mice from Mars and Chaotic: M'arrillian Invasion, while the CW4Kids will pick up Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Back to the Sewer and Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's. It is also expected that the CW4Kids will pick up the new comedy series GOGORIKI after September 27, 2008.
A special sneak preview of the new CW4Kids programs will be aired on the network on Friday, September 12, from 4:30 - 5:00 PM (Eastern).
The full programming listings are as follows:
TheCW4Kids Fall Lineup (The CW Network) - Effective September 13, 2008
7:00AM - Will & Dewitt 7:30AM - Magi Nation 8:00AM - Skunk Fu! 8:30AM - Viva Pinata 9:00AM - The Spectacular Spider-Man 9:30AM - Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Back to the Sewer (NEW SERIES) 10:00AM - Dinosaur King 10:30AM - Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's (NEW SERIES) 11:00AM - Chaotic 11:30AM - Chaotic
TheCW4Kids Fall Lineup (The CW Network) - Effective September 27, 2008
7:00AM - Will & Dewitt 7:30AM - Skunk Fu! 8:00AM - Viva Pinata 8:30AM - GOGORIKI (NEW SERIES) 9:00AM - The Spectacular Spider-Man 9:30AM -...[read more]
* Hong Kong Disneyland has opened an exhibit called Art of Animation, which will educate park visitors on how animation is made. Exhibits will include a history of Disney cartoons and a life-size zoetrope. [Variety]
* The New York Anime Festival will host a Death Note day at New York City's Kinokuniya bookstore on September 14, 2008, for the release of the live-action adaptation of the movie....[read more]
The Post Chronicle reports that rapper David Banner is developing a new series for Cartoon Network. Titled The Crook'd Sipp, the show "follows the fortunes of a white family stuck in the 1800s, while living in present day Mississippi." Banner will play a restaurant owner named Virgil. He is the latest music star...[read more]
Tvshowsondvd.com reports that the upcoming Popeye the Sailor - Volume 3: 1941-1943 has been pushed back from its original date of September 30th to a new release date on November 4th.
Bill Melendez, best known for his work on various animated incarnations of Peanuts, died yesterday morning aged 91.
Melendez's distinguished career took him from Disney to Warner Brothers and to UPA, amongst other studios. His directorial credits range from 1965's A Charlie Brown Christmas to 2006's He's a Bully, Charlie Brown.
He was also the voice of Snoopy, and provided the vocal sound effects for both Woodstock and Spike in many...[read more]
Director Brett Morgen has stated in interviews that he didn't want his film Chicago 10 to just be another movie that worshipped how awesome the 60's were. He wanted his movie about the anti-war marches at the 1968 Democratic National Convention and the ensuing trial of eight men to appeal more to people in their twenties. If this is true, then apparently Morgen has little respect for people in their twenties, because Chicago 10 (now available on DVD) does little more than take an event with genuine relevance to the modern political climate and present it solely for entertainment value. It is stated a few times during the movie that the protests were meant less as protest and more as theater, and this seems to be the only lesson that Morgen took to heart. Sadly, this probably also makes it a perfect reflection of the current state of political discourse.
According to Chicago 10's version of history, Abbie Hoffman and Jerry Rubin of the Yippies, and five other less talkative and less camera-friendly guys from the National Mobilization Committee to End the War in Vietnam (MOBE) banded together to stick it to the man at the 1968 Democratic National Convention. Chicago 10 is remarkably uncritical of this band of hippies, seeming to accept their version of history without question or challenge. Ostensibly, their cause was to protest President Lyndon Johnson's escalation of the Vietnam War. However, after a certain point, it seems like their actions were less about the anti-war movement and more about ensuring all the cameras trained on them could communicate to the world how much more clever and hipper-than-thou they were than all the squares in the audience. Unfortunately, their antics in the movie don't make Hoffman or Rubin look particularly counter-cultural as much as it makes them look like world-class jerks aiming for maximum shock value that often came at the expense of their ostensible message. It doesn't help that the only thing they might have accomplished was to taint the nomination of Hubert Humphrey, assisting in the election of Richard Nixon. (And I've just given you more historical information than the movie does.) Thanks a bunch, guys. It also doesn't help that half of what they say and do comes off as pretentious nonsense, as when Rubin includes their "love vectors" in a list of contributing factors to their expected success. In the end, they come off like a bunch of kids in high school who managed to convince all the other kids to lob spitballs at the principal en masse.
Of course, the response of that metaphorical principal was to haul the kids into the office for a sustained horsewhipping followed by several weeks of starvation in the office oubliette. Chicago's mayor Richard Daley mobilized the police force and the National Guard, ostensibly for crowd control and security during the convention, but nothing that the protesters did during that summer of 1968 justifies the astonishingly brutal response of the city, or the utterly ludicrous trial that followed. The "Chicago 7" were arrested along with Black Panther Bobby Seale, and subjected to a kangaroo court which Rubin described as "a cartoon show" (the movie adds their two lawyers to derive its title). Mayor Daley, Judge Julius Hoffman, and the entire Establishment represented in Chicago 10 apparently believed that the best way to defend national security and law and order was to trample the plain text of the highest law of the land as forcefully and as thoroughly as possible. If there is any real message of value in Chicago 10, it is that having such people in power is not a recent phenomenon. However, Chicago 10's presentation just makes us choose sides between the jackasses and the jack-booted thugs. If we do end up choosing the jackasses, it's despite their antics, not because of them.
What makes this movie relevant to Toon Zone is that a third of the movie is made up of animated sequences, since there were tape recorders but no cameras present during the actual trial of the Chicago 8. Morgen has stated that Rubin's description of the trial inspired him to dramatize the trial in animation, and he opted to use the same digital rotoscoping techniques that Richard Linklater used in Waking Life or A Scanner Darkly. While it's an interesting idea, the execution falls far short of its potential. The animation seems at least one or two generations behind A Scanner Darkly, as the characters move stiffly and with visible wireframes occasionally peeking out. The end result is less the cartoon show Rubin referred to and more of a political commentary done as a bad video game cutscene. Like many digitally rotoscoped movies, the characters end up as animation without being animated. They move very realistically and make for intriguing still photos, but they lack any sense of spark or life. They're robotic mannequins repeating pre-recorded content. If they manage to move us at all, it's because of the performances of the top-flight actors who give them voice, including Hank Azaria as Hoffman and Allan Ginsburg, Roy Scheider as Judge Hoffman, and Jeffrey Wright as Bobby Seale. Venture Bros. fans may also pick out James Urbaniak as one of the government lawyers; it is possible that Morgen deliberately cast Rusty Venture to make the government look even less competent, but that would suggest subtlety that just isn't evident in the rest of the movie. It's also a shame that these animated sequences are so ineffective, because there are a few hand-drawn sequences in the middle of the movie that are far more successful than their digital counterparts. Digital rotoscoping has been little more than a gimmick up to now, and Chicago 10 will do little to change that.
The DVD of Chicago 10 is minimal. The movie is presented in anamorphic widescreen, with a 5.1 Dolby Digital soundtrack and English subtitles. Since much of the movie is archival footage, it reproduces film grain and TV static with in perfect digital clarity, but the animated sequences look clear and colorful. The only extra is a remix video created by Gine Telaroli, which is just a fancy trailer. I suppose it would have badly undermined the movie to have included a better, more informative documentary on the marches and the ensuing trial, but just such a movie that managed to communicate more information and context would have been welcome.
Chicago 10 is history and political commentary done as a reality show, with all the absent depth, nuance, and intelligence that implies. This makes it a perfect documentary for current-day political discourse,...[read more]
Brad Meltzer is leading a coalition of comic book creators to raise money to preserve Superman co-creator Jerry Siegel's childhood home in Cleveland, OH. Meltzer discovered the shoddy state of Siegel's childhood home while doing research for his latest novel The Book of Lies, and is organizing the OrdinaryPeopleChangeTheWorld.com website, which will sell one-of-a-kind art and memorabilia (as well as more mundane items like T-shirts), aiming first to raise the $50,000 needed to repair the outside of the house.
Some of the prizes to be auctioned off for the charity include a walk-on role in an upcoming episode of NBC's Heroes or comic books by Brian Michael Bendis, Greg Rucka, or Ed Brubaker; a VIP visit to the set of The Colbert Report; and one of six Superman T-shirts signed by...[read more]
Independent animator Don Hertzfeldt has kicked off a tour of North America, which will screen several of his most famous short films and debut his latest short film "I am so proud of you." The tour will travel to the following locations:
September 26, 2008: Santa Barbara, CA October 3: Eugene, OR October 4: Portland, OR October 6: Seattle, WA October 7: Bellingham, WA October 18: Austin, TX October 22: Columbia, MO October 24: Chicago, IL October 28: Omaha, NE November 7: Calgary, AB November 11: Atlanta, GA November 13: Allentown, PA November 15:...[read more]
Directory Hayao Miyazaki was interviewed at the Venice Film Festival at the screening for his latest movie, Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea (Gake no ue no Ponyo). Miyazaki commented on his insistence on hand-drawn animation vs. the CGI used by his friends at Pixar Animation Studios, how the film was inspired by Hans Christian Anderson's "The Little Mermaid" and his son Goro Miyazaki, and recruiting a new generation of cartoonists for future movies, saying, "When I do my next work I'll be more than 70, so I think I'll probably have to get help from...[read more]
In a world of movie trailers and TV promos, Don LaFontaine was the king. Sadly, the king has passed on.
Fox News reports that Don LaFontaine, the legendary king of movie voiceovers, passed away on Monday at Cedars-Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles of complications of a collapsed lung.
LaFontaine did voiceover work for countless TV shows, commercials and movies. LaFontaine also appeared in a commercial for Geico insurance as "the announcer guy from the movies."
In addition to movie trailer voiceovers, Don also did voice work for the holiday classic Santa Vs. The Snowman (both the 2D and 3D versions). He was also the announcer on Disney's Fillmore!, and made guest appearances on Family Guy and American Dad!, LaFontaine has also been providing voice work for the FOX network announcing promos like The Simpsons,...[read more]
MyToons.com has partnered with Vuze to deliver animated content to Vuze's 30 million members on-line worldwide. The first channel to be offered via Vuze's BitTorrent environment is MyToons Cartoon Classics, which will present classic cartoons like Popeye and Betty Boop. MyToons Cartoon Classics will also be available at MyToons.com, which will also feature exclusive animated content. Future offerings will include the best of international independent animation and high-definition animation.
The fifth annual benefit dinner for San Francisco's Cartoon Art Museum will be held at Pixar Animation Studios on Saturday, October 11, 2008. Attendees will get access to a gallery of pre-production artwork from WALL-E, as well as admission to a presentation hosted by Dr. Michael B. Johnson, lead, Moving Pictures Group at Pixar. Members of the Cartoon Art Museum may purchase tickets for $150 each; non-member admission is $200 and tickets in a...[read more]
The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Beginning is the third installment of Walt Disney's The Little Mermaid movies. That's not to say it is the final chapter in some sort of sequential trilogy. Quite the opposite: It's a prequel to the original Little Mermaid movie from 1989, which spawned a direct-to-video sequel The LittleMemaid II: Return to the Sea in 2003, which, in sort of a neat way, matches up to real time, as it takes place about 12 years after the first movie. Ariel's Beginning takes a step back into the water and takes place a year or so before the original movie. Got all that?
Believe it or not, this isn't Disney's first attempt to give viewers a still-a-mermaid Ariel by taking a trip to the past. There was a three-season Little Mermaid animated series that ran from 1992 until 1994. It wasn't a bad show, and it still airs on the Disney Channel, but ultimately, it has no relevance to Ariel's Beginning (and is probably best forgotten while watching the DTV, as it depicts the first meeting between Ariel and Flounder differently). It's understandable that Disney would want to go back to the world of the Little Mermaid, but at the end of the first movie, Ariel became human. How can we still see fun deep sea characters living in an ocean setting if the main character can't breathe underwater anymore? The second movie solved that problem by reversing the plot of the original movie and giving Ariel a human daughter who longs to live under the sea. Ariel's Beginning turns back the clock to a time before Ariel even wondered what was up there. You can't have a Little Mermaid movie be without mermaids, and thankfully, there's enough new material to explore. I have to give the movie credit for not treading upon any of the ground touched upon by the original movie or the sequel. The two previous movies were about longing for an escape to a different world, this one's about feeling unhappy in one's own world and the attempt to fix it. And at the heart of it is Ariel's discovery of music.
Ariel's Beginning answers a few questions that may be lingering in the minds of those who've enjoyed the movies, particularly the fate of a certain parental figure. I don't care to try and remember how many Disney characters have at least one suspiciously absent parent, but I know it's a lot. Ariel's blustering but caring father, King Triton, plays an important role in the movies, but her mother has never been mentioned. Ariel's Beginning starts off with a six-year-old Ariel who had both her parents and was living in a simpler time when the whole family was happy. What happens to Ariel's mother, Queen Athena, turns Triton into a cold and distant monarch who ends up banning music from his kingdom. Ten years later, Ariel is unhappy about all the dreariness in her life and tries to bring joy to Atlantica. The movie explains how Ariel first discovered music and why singing is so important to her. It is a pretty good theme to rest the movie on.
Familiar faces pop up in the movie, as Sebastian, Flounder, King Triton, and Ariel's sisters all have their roles. Sadly, the only returning cast members are Jodi Benson as Ariel and Samuel E. Wright as Sebastian. I guess when the first movie is twenty years old, this kind of thing is bound to happen. The new voices aren't particularly distracting, though, and the animation is pretty impressive for a DTV. There are a couple exploration and chase scenes that show the ocean's depths quite well.
The movie has its fun moments, and it's good to see Ariel's sisters get some development. Why seven princesses who live in an undersea palace have to share the same room is beyond me, but hey, it helps the comedy. It's also probably easier for kids watching this to relate to siblings that get in each other's space rather than half man/half fish royalty anyway. Ariel's sisters are well used as foils to Ariel herself, who is more curious than they are and less complacent about the status quo. The Catfish Club Band, which features a manta, a turtle, an octopus, and some fish, also plays a significant role. They've been around since the first movie, mostly as background decoration, but they're a funny bunch. The movie isn't loaded with laughs, but the sisters and the band are amusing.
The antagonist of the film is a mermaid named Marina Del Rey, voiced by Sally Field. She looks after Triton's daughters and vies for Sebastian's job. She's no powerful sea witch, but then again, how many times can you use that in a story? She has a pale-green sidekick named Benjamin; I assume he is meant to be a manatee, but he looks more like a hippopotamus or some kind of dinosaur. Benjamin had some funny lines, but Marina didn't have a lot going for her. She is more Sebastian's nemesis than Ariel's and only comes to oppose Ariel because of her association with Sebastian. Ariel's real struggle is against her father as she tries to warm his heart, but since the climax is driven by Marina's scheme, neither conflict comes across as very important. At least Marina gets some pets who are pretty cool and menacing.
I'm not ashamed to admit that I love the first Little Mermaid movie. By now, Disney fans should be used to having direct-to-video sequels that don't come close to living up to the quality of the original movie. I found that the real problem with this film isn't the lackluster climax; the real problem is the unmemorable music. The music in the original movie was amazing. The songs ranged from fun to energetic to eerie to romantic to hopeful and everything in between. Ariel's Beginning suffers from a severe lack of original music that highlights the story and is a waste of the singing talents of Benson, Wright, and the rest of the cast. It's bad enough they played the overused "Jump In Line" song (their first mistake was using a song made popular by Beetlejuice), but it's sung on two separate occasions. Opportunities to use original songs presented themselves, but they weren't taken advantage of. I wasn't expecting songs on par with the original movie, but at least Return to the Sea had a few solid tunes that tied into the plot. Not that Ariel's Beginning is completely devoid of good music. "I Remember" in particular gets good mileage, but, to quote a lyric from a song more memorable than any in this movie, I want more.
The DVD itself is an okay package. The special features are light, particularly the deleted scenes, which are so sparse that the "Play All" option should really read "Play Both". At least the deleted scenes are given introductions. You can also play the movie's songs by themselves with the added option of having the lyrics on.
I didn't have high expectations for this movie going in, so I'm not going to...[read more]
More news tidbits on [adult swim] programming, direct to you from Atlanta's Dragon*Con 2008. (Truthfully, I'm typing this direct from my house which is 45 minutes from the con, but anyway...)
And again I must caution that there be some minor dragon spoilers so please read at your own risk.
The Aqua Teen Hunger Force / Squidbillies Panel
Many Venture Bros fans found themselves displaced and disappointed when Dragon*Con organizers changed times and locations for these two panels. I hope in hindsight they were grateful because they never would've been able to fit the massive throng of fandom in the smaller room where the Venture Bros panel was originally scheduled.
The ATHF/Squidbillies panel included Ned Hastings (producer, editor, and voice talent), Dave Willis (creator, writer, producer, director, and voice talent), Jim Fortier (creator, writer, producer, director, and voice talent), Daniel McDevit (voice of Russell "Rusty" Cuyler), Jay Edwards (editor, producer, and wearer of cowboy hats), and Dana Snyder (Master Shake and Granny) reprising his role as dragon persona Lyle Knightbreath (and if you're asking yourself just what the hell that means, please read Saturday's D*C [as] report). And when asked about his dragon hat, Snyder answered, "It's not a costume, it's a lifestyle."
And my apologies in advance if certain show details are unclear. Since they were covering two shows and kept switching discussion between them, it was at times difficult to tell what went with which show. (I also actually fell asleep in my office desk chair at 4am typing this panel reporttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt tttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt ttttttttttttttt, so I accept full responsibility for any errors made as a result which will be corrected as soon as possible.)
+ On ATHF's upcoming Volume 6 DVD, the remaining unaired episodes that will debut on the DVD won't actually air until Spring '09. Other bonus materials previously unannounced include:
"All Carl's sports blogs (to date)."
15-minute "short" Terrorphone starring Dana Snyder and Carey Means.
All comedy bits/outtakes from the ATHF video game will be included, says Dana Snyder, "So you don't have to play through the sh*itty video game to see them."
"Weird" 3D video game cinematics from Russia.
And for any fans wondering, there are no plans to release ATHF on Blu-Ray because, Snyder quipped, "the colors would be so intense people's eyes would explode."
+ New ATHF episodes will begin airing early 2009.
+ Willis says that Death Fighter, a sequel to Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theaters is "tentatively" planned for release in 2011. And he added again for emphasis, "tentatively."
+ Guest stars for upcoming ATHF episodes include music producer Matt Wallace, Scott Adsit (30 Rock, Moral Orel), and "a wrestler" although attendees were asked not to reveal the wrestler's name (prematurely revealed by Willis) due to potential legal problems. Willis asked that we forget he ever mentioned it, and for some reason I can't remember what the hell I was just talking about. Another name--Bill-Something--was mentioned but the last name was unclear [Hayten? Hayden? Hater?], and I wouldn't mention it at all (because it makes me look like a slack reporter) except that the character he's voicing is named "Inflatable Hitler."
+ MC Chris will probably not return as MC Pee Pants, although Willis added that Chris provided a voice for his new pilot, Cheyenne Cinnamon and the Fantabulous Unicorn of Sugar Town Candy Fudge.
+ Another upcoming ATHF episode is a sequel to "Dickesode" called "Creature From The Plaque Lagoon" and has something to do with teeth. I'll leave the rest to your imagination.
+ And yet another upcoming episode to air, possibly in late 2008, will be an all live-action episode. [as] will be announcing a Carl Lookalike contest "in about a month" and the contest winner will be featured in this episode. Contest winner must be willing to have the top of his hairdo shaved off, provided he isn't bald already.
+ ATHF is doing a "Star Wars Spectacular" episode to air in 2009, "without the permission of George Lucas or Lucasfilm," added Willis.
+ Squidbillies has been renewed for 20 new episodes, 4-5 of them already in production. And look for the next DVD volume to be released in Spring 2009 that will include two unaired episodes and outtakes from Georgia Bulldogs' announcer Larry Munson from his guest appearance as the voice of God.
+ They also previewed three exclusive show clips:
The first was for ATHF, titled "Genie" which features a pint-sized character who wears nothing more than tightie-whities and pointy shoes, and has a rather unique way of granting wishes by turning people invisible.
The 2nd clip also for ATHF, titled "Shake Like Me" involves Shake being bitten by a radioactive black widow spider which turns him into Black-Man: a 'fro-sportin', bling-blingin', freestyle rapper. "We're keepin' the taste level right up there," said one panelist. "Standards and practices be damned."
The 3rd clip was, according to Willis, a pilot episode spin-off of Squidbillies and a convention exclusive. It turned out to be a prank -- the clip featured the show's entire cast as dragons, in honor of the convention, naturally. However, it did draw the biggest laughs from the audience for the entire panel. So, [as] crew: if you're reading this, PLEASE consider making this available on adultswim.com and/or on a future DVD release. Even if you've never been to Dragon*Con, it's still hilarious to watch.
Venture Bros Panel
The room for this event was filled to capacity with an extremely large audience. Just a rough estimate would be about 25 million people, give or take a few thousand.
Unfortunately, practically nothing new was revealed about Season 4. The entire panel consisted of fan Q&A hosted by Doc Hammer and Jackson Publick, which was nevertheless entertaining and many fans came dressed in full Venture Bros-themed regalia. And we promise pictures are forthcoming for all you fanboys wanting to see Molotov and Doctor Girlfriend lookalikes. (Dude! I am SO getting my wife one of those Doctor Mrs. The Monarch costumes!)
And now for the more noteworthy Q&A topics:
Q: Who is Dean and Hank's mother?
A: "If we decide to get into answering that question, we will."
Q: What is the fate of Henchman 24?
A: "25 is going to be the exact same guy with a voice that's easier to do." But in short, Doc Hammer stated quite emphatically, "24 is not coming back."
Q: What does Dr. Girlfriend have her doctorate in?
A: Whatever the hell we decide it's in, if we ever decide it. All you need know is that she's a @#$%ing doctor, but Hammer did point out that she seems to have a lot of knowledge of science.
Q: When are Pete White and Master Billy Quizboy going to get girlfriends?
A: "We thought you were going to ask the more obvious question, like when are they going to 'get it on'!"
Q: With the T-Shirt of the Week Club continue for Season 4?
A: Probably not, but there will be "much more merchandise" by then.
Q: Will Molotov's chastity belt ever be removed? (asked by a curvy female fan dressed as Molotov)
A: There are plenty of guys at this convention who would be thrilled to help you out with that.
Q: Will we be seeing more of Phantom Limb?
A: Phantom Limb will be appearing in the first two episodes of Season 4
Q: Where do you get the ideas for the villains?
A: We buy them from The Villain Hut. Seriously, though, most of them are puns we thought were funny. For example, Herr Trigger was actually supposed to have actually had a hairy finger. Get it? "Hair" Trigger?...[read more]Discuss this news in Adult Swim.
Gunota Headlines, the fan maintained Gundam information blog, announced today that it is closing down. Over the last few years the site has been a top source of news for all things Gundam, helping English speaking fans stay in the loop. Beyond that, the site has even be translated into further languages such as French and Thai. The final update consists of a farewell message from co-creators 'RGZ' and 'Neo-Era'. The site closes after...[read more]
