It seems Joss Whedon already has some ideas of what to do with his time since Dollhouse got cancelled.

The Buffy, the Vampire Slayer season 8 comic books have been running for quite some time now, and it appears that they will be brought to life in a manner of speaking.  It seems that a casting call has gone out for voices to turn the season 8 comic books into motion comics online.

According to an article on Sci-Fi Wire, it sounds a bit like we will see a mix of events from the comic as well as some events that happened “off screen”.  Some of the characters they are casting for are not included in the comic book, such as the “Slug Queen”.

Friday, Nov. 13, 2009, 3:15 PM Pacific BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER (MOTION COMIC) Webisodes NON-UNION

Casting Director: Jeff Shuter
Interview Dates: Next week (w/o 11/16)
Shoot/Start Date: TBD
Pay Rate: Pay Provided (various for each character)
Location: Los Angeles

SUBMIT ELECTRONICALLY IMMEDIATELY

PLEASE SEND VOICE OVER LINKS/ REELS (IF POSSIBLE)

NOTE: ALSO INCLUDE PERFORMANCE VIDEOS OR ACTOR SLATES IF AVAILABLE. DO NOT SEND DEMO TAPES.

[ FAITH (V.O.) ]
Co-Star / Female / Caucasian / 20 – 25 years
Description: MAXX INITIATIVE is now casting voice over talent for the Buffy the Vampire Motion Comic, upcoming web series. Seeking the role of FAITH – female, early 20’s, a slayer, displays a much darker, dangerously, fun-seeking, approach to both slaying and murder, she is the dark side of a slayer’s personality. Voice to match Eliza Dushku. Send voiceover links/ reels (if possible). Pay provided. Nonunion.

[ KENNEDY (V.O.) ]
Supporting / Female / Caucasian / 20 – 25 years
Description: MAXX INITIATIVE is now casting voice over talent for the Buffy the Vampire Motion Comic, upcoming web series. Seeking the role of KENNEDY – Female, caucasian, early 20s. A newly made slayer, Kennedy is also Willow’s girlfriend. She’s an out lesbian with an assertive personality. Voice to match Lyari Limon. Send voiceover links/ reels (if possible) Pay provided. Nonunion.

[ LIEUTENANT MOLTER (V.O.) ]
Supporting / Female / African American / 30 – 35 years
Description: MAXX INITIATIVE is now casting voice over talent for the Buffy the Vampire Motion Comic, upcoming web series. Seeking the role of LIEUTENANT MOLTER – Female, African American, early 30s. A lieutenant in the US Air Force – ally of the villain Twilight. Send voiceover links/ reels (if possible) Pay provided. Nonunion.

[ DANIEL CRAIG (V.O.) ]
Guest-Star / Male / Caucasian / 30 – 40 years
Description: MAXX INITIATIVE is now casting voice over talent for the Buffy the Vampire Motion Comic, upcoming web series. Seeking the role of actor DANIEL CRAIG – Male, caucasian, mid 30s. Voice to match actor Daniel Craig. Send voiceover links/ reels (if possible) Pay provided. Nonunion.

[ RODEN (V.O.) ]
Supporting / Male / Caucasian / 30 – 40 years
Description: MAXX INITIATIVE is now casting voice over talent for the Buffy the Vampire Motion Comic, upcoming web series. Seeking the role of RODEN – Male, caucasian, 30s. An Irish human warlock and the tutor of Lady Genevieve Savidge, one of the new slayers, manipulating her into becoming an assassin of slayers. He was also a servant of Twilight, who convinced Roden to serve him in exchange for surviving the coming purge. However, Roden ignored that Twilight did not intend them to survive, but that they would merely thin out the number of Twilight’s enemies. Send voiceover links/ reels (if possible) Pay provided. Nonunion.

[ LADY GENEVIEVE (V.O.) ]
Supporting / Female / Caucasian / 25 – 30 years
Description: MAXX INITIATIVE is now casting voice over talent for the Buffy the Vampire Motion Comic, upcoming web series. Seeking the role of LADY GENEVIEVE – Female, caucasian, British, late 20s. With Roden, she hunts and kills other slayers as part of his ‘Training’ her. However, she and faith find they share a lot in common; both as slayers and as troubled young women enticed by evil, despite their drastically different background. Send voiceover links/ reels (if possible) Pay provided. Nonunion.

[ ROBIN WOOD (V.O.) ]
Supporting / Male / African American / 30 – 35 years
Description: MAXX INITIATIVE is now casting voice over talent for the Buffy the Vampire Motion Comic, upcoming web series. Seeking the role of ROBIN WOOD – Male, African American, early 30s. Robin is in charge of a squad of slayers, and is shown to be working at the Hellmouth in Cleveland. In his one-panel appearance he calls Faith to tell her of a family that was recently attacked by vamps. Faith refers to him as ‘The ex’ implying the couple has ended their relationship since ‘Chosen.’ Voice match to D.B. Woodside. Send voiceover links/ reels (if possible) Pay provided. Nonunion.

[ SEPHRILLIAN (V.O.) ]
Supporting / Male / All Ethnicities / 30 – 40 years
Description: MAXX INITIATIVE is now casting voice over talent for the Buffy the Vampire Motion Comic, upcoming web series. Seeking the role of SEPHRILLIAN – Male, demon. A demon who walked in the realities of humans and the old ones, making him ‘Tichajt: – one of the demon elite. He resides in a domain between realities kept in stasis by Robin, a minder. Send voiceover links/ reels (if possible) Pay provided. Nonunion.

[ FAERIE (V.O.) ]
Supporting / Female / All Ethnicities / 20 – 30 years
Description: MAXX INITIATIVE is now casting voice over talent for the Buffy the Vampire Motion Comic, upcoming web series. Seeking the role of FAERIE – Female, faerie creature. She is a pixie fairy, helping one of the Buffy decoys. Send voiceover links/ reels (if possible) Pay provided. Nonunion.

[ ROBIN (V.O.) ]
Supporting / Female / Caucasian / 20 – 25 years
Description: MAXX INITIATIVE is now casting voice over talent for the Buffy the Vampire Motion Comic, upcoming web series. Seeking the role of ROBIN – Female, caucasian, early 20s. The minder of Sephrillian’s reality field, chosen to watch over a small house which serves as a mask to Sephrillian’s domain. Send voiceover links/ reels (if possible) Pay provided. Nonunion.

[ RONA (V.O.) ]
Supporting / Female / African American / 20 – 25 years
Description: MAXX INITIATIVE is now casting voice over talent for the Buffy the Vampire Motion Comic, upcoming web series. Seeking the role of RONA – Female, African American, early 20s. Rona is a new slayer, working as a squad leader. Send voiceover links/ reels (if possible) Pay provided. Nonunion.

[ SLUG QUEEN (V.O.) ]
Supporting / Female / Caucasian / 40 – 50 years
Description: MAXX INITIATIVE is now casting voice over talent for the Buffy the Vampire Motion Comic, upcoming web series. Seeking the role of SLUG QUEEN – Female, slug queen, 40-50s. The oldest survivor of the Slug Clan, the Slug Queen rules the underground Slug resistance against the force of Yamanh. Send voiceover links/ reels (if possible) Pay provided. Nonunion.

[ TWILIGHT (V.O.) ]
Supporting / Male / Caucasian / 30 – 40 years
Description: MAXX INITIATIVE is now casting voice over talent for the Buffy the Vampire Motion Comic, upcoming web series. Seeking the role of TWILIGHT – Male, a villain with superhuman strengths, such as flying. Twilight is the leader of an Initiative-like group that shares his name. He views the expanded ranks of Slayers as a threat to humanity no better than an army of demons, and plans to bring about an end of magic, both good and evil. Send voiceover links/ reels (if possible) and Pay provided. Nonunion

One of the most interesting things is the speed with which this appears to be coming together. This casting call went out on Friday the 13th and it indicates recording is to begin this week, minus the 16th.  There is no indication of when these will hit the Web, but if they are moving this fast, I would imagine it isn’t too far off in the future.

Lets all keep an eye out for the project.

***MAJOR SPOILERS***

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The Walt Disney Company has agreed to purchase Marvel Entertainment for $4 billion in cash and stock.

Wow… just… wow.  This is huge news in the entertainment industry, and just business in general.  Here is the official announcement:

August 31, 2009
DISNEY TO ACQUIRE MARVEL ENTERTAINMENT

Burbank, CA and New York, NY, August 31, 2009 —Building on its strategy of delivering quality branded content to people around the world, The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) has agreed to acquire Marvel Entertainment, Inc. (NYSE:MVL) in a stock and cash transaction, the companies announced today.

Under the terms of the agreement and based on the closing price of Disney on August 28, 2009, Marvel shareholders would receive a total of $30 per share in cash plus approximately 0.745 Disney shares for each Marvel share they own. At closing, the amount of cash and stock will be adjusted if necessary so that the total value of the Disney stock issued as merger consideration based on its trading value at that time is not less than 40% of the total merger consideration.

Based on the closing price of Disney stock on Friday, August 28, the transaction value is $50 per Marvel share or approximately $4 billion.

“This transaction combines Marvel’s strong global brand and world-renowned library of characters including Iron Man, Spider-Man, X-Men, Captain America, Fantastic Four and Thor with Disney’s creative skills, unparalleled global portfolio of entertainment properties, and a business structure that maximizes the value of creative properties across multiple platforms and territories,” said Robert A. Iger, President and Chief Executive Officer of The Walt Disney Company. “Ike Perlmutter and his team have done an impressive job of nurturing these properties and have created significant value. We are pleased to bring this talent and these great assets to Disney.”

“We believe that adding Marvel to Disney’s unique portfolio of brands provides significant opportunities for long-term growth and value creation,” Iger said.

“Disney is the perfect home for Marvel’s fantastic library of characters given its proven ability to expand content creation and licensing businesses,” said Ike Perlmutter, Marvel’s Chief Executive Officer. “This is an unparalleled opportunity for Marvel to build upon its vibrant brand and character properties by accessing Disney’s tremendous global organization and infrastructure around the world.”

Under the deal, Disney will acquire ownership of Marvel including its more than 5,000 Marvel characters. Mr. Perlmutter will oversee the Marvel properties, and will work directly with Disney’s global lines of business to build and further integrate Marvel’s properties.

The Boards of Directors of Disney and Marvel have each approved the transaction, which is subject to clearance under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act, certain non-United States merger control regulations, effectiveness of a registration statement with respect to Disney shares issued in the transaction and other customary closing conditions. The agreement will require the approval of Marvel shareholders. Marvel was advised on the transaction by BofA Merrill Lynch.

This just blows me away as someone who has been in and around the comic book industry for decades now. I remember when Marvel was trading below a dollar a share and it looked like the company was going to completely collapse. If anyone had ever told me this was coming, I would have laughed my behind off.  (If I also had bought shares like I considered at one point, I would be dancing a jig right now…)

Marvel was truly on its last legs there for a while, and then thanks to some new owners coming in, the company turned around and started to grow like crazy.  The core business is no longer the comic books, but that is still the base upon how all of the other properties grow.  It is no exageration that Marvel has a stable of 5,000 characters, and what Disney can do with them could be massive.  You thought the Marvel movies were doing well before?  Just wait until you see what happens with them now that the Disney marketing machine will be behind them.

After the initial dust settles here, it will be interesting to see how things shake out.

• Will we see Marvel properties on TV?  Disney owns a slew of television property, they could fill time slots until our eyes bleed.
• How will the theme parks settle out?  Universal Studios currently features Marvel characters, so will they have to relinquish those licensing agreements, or will they now be paying a license fee to Disney?  (something I am sure they will hate doing)
• Will all current movie plans stand as-is for now?  I.E. will we still see the mondo Avengers movie that is being planned?

This is absolutely huge, and honestly somewhat difficult to wrap your brain around.  The deal prett much came out of nowhere, and everyone seems to be going “wha…?”  The concept of Disney owning characters like Wolverine and the Punisher IS highly amusing though…

I am sure this won’t be the last post you see on this.

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If you’ve never heard of Batman Beyond, don’t worry, you aren’t alone.

Back in February I talked about having just completed watching all of Batman: The Animated Series, and commented how nice it was to see some form of media outside of the comic books get the Batman formula correct. Well, after completing that series I moved on to the next animated Batman project, Batman Beyond.

Running from January 10, 1999 to December 18, 2001, Batman Beyond took place approxiamtely 20 years in the future (um… yeah… flying cars, impossibly large buildings, completely AI robots, all of that’s only 20 years from now… uh-huh) after an ailing Bruce Wayne has had to retire the mantle of the Batman.  Gotham City has been without a Batman for several years now, and crime is again on the rise: random crimes, teenagers who worship the deceased Joker run gangs called The Jokers, corporate crimes and a whole lot more.

Terry McGinnis is a 16-year-old that has a troubled past, but after his father is killed for discovering wrong doings at the Wayne-Powers corporation, he becomes obsessed with discovering why his father was killed.  While trying to figure out what happened to his father, he questions Bruce Wayne and stumbles across his long buried secret.  Terry decides to take up the idenity of the Batman against Wayne’s wishes, but he begrudgingly accepts him for training and they form a partnership where Bruce stays in the Bat Cave and directs him via video and audio feeds.  (Much, much later, it was revealed in an episode of Justice League Unlimited that Bruce was actually Terry’s biological father via DNA manipulation, but even Bruce was unaware of this early on)

Having watched all three seasons I have to say it wasn’t nearly as bad as some people have made it out to be.  The villians weren’t quite as strong as Batman’s original Rogue’s Gallery which leads to some moments where you feel no real challenge to Terry’s Batman.  The series did seem to spend a lot more time on actual character development than Batman: The Animated Series, which as fine with me as I prefer seeing characters develop over time as opposed to just never ending fight after fight.  Considering some of the views online, I appear to be pretty much alone in this opinion, but oh well, I liked it.

Apparently Comcast subscribers can check out the first season on the Kids WB on Demand service, beyond that you can pick it up fairly cheap on DVD and it’s worth a look if you missed it when it aired and are desperate for something to watch.  Would I go out of my way to see it?  Doubtful, but it was entertaining while I was lifting weights.  Next up: The Batman (which I am already in season 2 of, just didn’t have time to write this up before)

Have you ever woken up one morning and thought to yourself, “Man, I want to walk into a biker bar and get my ass kicked! What is the shortest path to getting that done?!?”… look to the right.

Gizmodo found this little gem being produced by Universal Designs.  While there is no price announced yet, I’m imagining it won’t be cheap.  Just take a look a gander at some of the information about it:

• Strong Cordura Mesh Base with Heavy-duty 4 way stretch Spandex inserts.
• Removable CE Approved Body Armor in both Jacket and Pants
• Highly detailed, removable lightweight interior lining.
• Form Molded Leather and Kevlar Armor Sectons.
• Made from Quality Tanned Cow Hides

Who in the world is the target demographic for this thing?  Somehow I don’t see many comic book geeks being bikers, and I don’t see a whole lot of bikers wanting a bat emblem on their chest and the hooks coming off of the gauntlets.  This one is really a head scratcher, and I’ve seen some wacky product tie-ins in my day, but this one ranks pretty high on the list for sure.

Now… if I could just have a Bat Pod to drive while wearing it..

Well, I finally got my wish of someone being cast as Hal Jordan/Green Lantern in the upcoming Green Lantern movie. Now if I could just say I was happy with the choice.

Ryan Reynolds, known for movies such as Deadpool in X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Smokin’ Aces, Waiting, Van Wilder and so on has been cast as Hal Jordan, the Green Lantern of Sector 2814, in the upcoming Warner Brothers Green Lantern movie.  This ends all of the speculation that has been circulating for ages now as to who would play the arguably deepest comic book role to come to come to the silver screen yet.

Yes, you heard me right, this is a lot deeper role than most people would suspect.  While I would still probably give the crown to Batman/Bruce Wayne as the deepest character, Hal Jordan is a very, very close second.  Hal is a flawed man from long before Abin Sur, the previous Green Lantern for the sector, gives him the ring.  Sure a Green Lantern is to be a person without fear and a strong will, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t flawed in other ways.  Hal’s biggest problem is his sense of self-righteousness that, while it serves the purposes of the Green Lantern Corps at times, can also lead to many conflicts between himself and the Guardians of the Universe (the creators of the Green Lantern Corps).

While the character of Hal has always has a strong sense of humor, something Reynolds is best known for playing, I am completely unsold on his ability to bring the depth to this character that it needs.  The only time I have seen him play something close to a serious role was in Smokin’ Aces, and that was really only the closing scene of the film.  I haven’t seen his version of The Amityville Horror, and perhaps that would sell me more, but I’m doubting it.

Martin Campbell (Casino Royale, The Mask of Zorro) has been chosen as the director, so the film is finally beginning to take shape.  The big questions we are left with now is how much of the film will cover of Hal’s origin.  Will the Corps even be mentioned, or will it be saved for a possible sequel?  Who will be the villain?  Will they wait to introduce Sinestro?  Will Carol Ferris, Hal’s long time love, be factored in?  Will Hal utter his famous oath to recharge his ring?

In Brightest Day, In Blackest Night
No Evil Shall Escape My Sight
Let Those Who Worship Evil’s Might
Beware My Power, Green Lantern’s Light

… that had better be in the film or I may scream.  And they had better not change one word of it either!

If the studio plays its cards correctly, they have the beginnings of a whole new franchise series on its hands, and that is another part of Mr. Reynolds casting that worries me.  He has been the lead in comedies for the most part, and I am concerned that they really are going the comedy route with this role than the drama it could be.  They have to find the right balance between the funny side of Hal Jordan, and the angst ridden man who reluctantly accepts the mantle of a galactic cop.

I wish every one involved with the film the best of luck, but I also hope that you don’t mess this up… please, don’t mess this up…

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The first image of Mickey Rourke as the villain Whiplash in Iron Man 2 has been released (click the image to the right for a much larger & complete image) and it is an… interesting look?

As with almost every comic book character that makes it to the big screen, numerous changes have been made to Whiplash.  You can read the rather lengthy official bio over at the Marvel Comics website, but essentially he was an American that went to work for Stark Industries (as in Tony Stark’s company), fell in with a bad crowd, became a supper villain… you know how that goes.  Well, somehow in the moie he is now Russian, and reportedly just escaped from prison (check the orange outfit on his lower half in the large picture).

When it was first reported that Rourke was playing a Russian villain in the film, the natural conclusions where that he was either playing Titanium Man or The Crimson Dynamo, but instead they have to mess around with another character for no good reason.  Luckily I have a lot of trust in Jon Favreau as a director and storyteller, so I won’t totally scratch my head at this one yet, but it does seem like a totally unnecessary change.

If you’re wondering about the lighted piece on his chest looking so much like Iron Man’s, Mr. Favreau said to USA Today that is intentional and somehow figures into the plot of the film.  I have my suspicions of how, but I won’t spoil it for those who aren’t familiar with the overall driving forces of the Iron Man series.

Iron Man 2 is due for release May 7th, 2010 with Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Sam Rockwell (playing Justin Hammer), Scarlett Johansson (playing Black Widow), Don Cheadle and Samuel L. Jackson.

I don’t normally get all that excited about fan made stuff.  I have nothing against it as a hobby, I just don’t ever see much point to watching them.  Well, seeing as I am suffering a bout of writer’s block on the article I’m working on, and someone Tweeted about a fan made Green Lantern trailer, and I thought, “Oh, what the heck”, so I checked it out.

Wow.

This is one of the best fan made videos I’ve seen, and yes, I know that the majority of the footage comes from other films, but it works, and it works well.  And, I have to say, seeing Nathan Fillion in connection with Hal Jordan, he would be excellent in the role,but I don’t expect him to get it.

I would say for those of you unfamiliar with the mythos of the Green Lanterns, this covers it pretty well.  I’m not sure how much the movie will deal with the other members of the Green Lantern Corps, it was a cool concept seeing so many of the recognizable members in there. (Kilowog and Tomar-Re to name a couple)

Good job to whomever made this, lets hope Warner Brothers treats the property with as much reverence as you did.