Monday, May 14, 2001

JUSTICE LEAGUE ANIMATED UPDATE

Shaun McLaughlin, associate producer of the upcoming Justice League animated series on Cartoon Network, told The Continuum that Superman will be "a little more mature" than he was in his own Kids' WB! show.

"He's the center of the group, I believe," McLaughlin said. "He's the one that everyone else can connect with because he's Superman.

"He's the first hero, the greatest of them, for want of a better phrase and not to get too fanboy."

In other Justice League news:

* McLaughlin said that the voice that Phil LaMarr uses for Green Lantern is vastly different than the one he uses as the lead character in Static Shock.

"It's deeper, it's more authoritative," McLaughlin said. "If you didn't know it was Phil, you wouldn't guess it was Phil. I hesitate to call him a man of a thousand voices, because it takes away from how good an actor he is. He's stunningly talented."

John Stewart will not wear a mask as Green Lantern.

* Rich Fogel and Stan Berkowitz are heading up the writers for the show. Others contributing scripts are Paul Dini, Kevin Hopps and Joseph Kuhr.

* McLaughlin said the look of Aquaman for his guest spot in Justice League will be different than he looked in the Superman episode. "It's closer to his current look in the comics," said McLaughlin, a former Aquaman comics writer.

* Don't look for lots of guest heroes in the first season of Justice League. "One of the things Rich is aiming for is that he wants each one of the seven has their moment before bringing anybody else in - with the exception being Aquaman," McLaughlin said.

* Michael Rosenbaum, who provides the voice of Flash, is also playing Lex Luthor in the Smallville live-action series that is expected to be part of WB's lineup next season. He is currently filming Dog Catcher, a movie from Disney.

Look for more Justice League news soon here in The Continuum.

BATMAN BEYOND WINS EMMY AWARDS

Batman Beyond scored two Emmy Awards Saturday night at the Daytime Emmys Creative Arts Presentation in Los Angeles.

The Kids' WB! series won Outstanding Special Class Animated program and Outstanding Achievement in Music Direction and Composition.

"It was a pretty awesome night," Batman Beyond producer Paul Dini told The Continuum.

The Daytime Emmy show will be Friday on NBC at 9 p.m.

BUFFY'S WB FINALE

The final new episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer to air on The WB is scheduled for Tuesday, May 22.

The episode, "The Gift," is the 100th of the show, which moves to UPN next season.

Here's how the network describes the episode:

"The WB's series finale ends with another imminent apocalypse upon our heroine, as Buffy must square off against a true god when Glory prepares to use Dawn to break down the walls between the dimensions and all Hell will be released on Earth."

Series creator Joss Whedon wrote and directed the episode

DEVIN GRAYSON TALKS GHOST RIDER

Devin Grayson said she is going with a "back-to-basics approach" for the Ghost Rider: The Hammer Lane mini-series that starts next month.

"The Ghost Rider continuity is really dense and complicated," Grayson said, appearing at a Ghost Rider panel at the recent WonderCon. "My history with comics is that I didn't read them until I was 22. I came in really late. And in general what I try to do is try to do the non-comics person's perspective of things to these projects.

"So my thoughts are: Spirit of Vengeance, what else do you need to explain? I mean, he's the Spirit of frickin' Vengeance. That's pretty clear. So I don't get into is that Zarathos and all of that.

"For the six issues, it's pretty pure: a lot of motorcycles, a lot of people getting their heads torn off, chains going, a lot of fun."

Grayson said the mini-series, drawn by Trent Kaniuga, focuses on Johnny Blaze; there is no Dan Ketch involved.

"We won't have room to do more in six issues," she said. "If it goes into a monthly, which we're hoping it will, we'll jump right on that."

FIRST LOOK: NEW X-MEN #114

New X-Men #114 will arrive in stores on Wednesday from Marvel Comics. The issue is written by Grant Morrison, with art by Frank Quitely and Tim Townsend and a cover by Quitely.

Here's how Marvel describes the issue, which is part one of the "E Is For Extinction" arc:

"Part 1. Humankind's time on Earth is nearly at its end. Within a half decade, they will be extinct, replaced by their genetically gifted cousins: mutants. With this discovery, the very fabric of society begins to fray. And as fear and paranoia grows by the day, it will soon tear. Charles Xavier has been forced to evolve his X-Men. But in the shadows, something beckons to him. A mutant more powerful - and more depraved - than he ever could have foreseen. And very soon, that mutant will threaten his people, his world and his every perception."

New X-Men #114 will be 32 pages and will cost $2.25.

GIVE'EM A CLICK

FIRST LOOK: ULTIMATE X-MEN #6

Ultimate X-Men #6 will arrive in stores on Wednesday from Marvel Comics. The issue is written by Mark Millar, with art by Adam Kubert and Art Thibert and a cover by Kubert.

Here's how Marvel describes the issue:

"The conclusion of the Ultimate X-Men's first adventure. Magneto takes his war to the very steps of the White House as the Sentinels attack Washington D.C. As mass hysteria explodes in the streets of the nation's capital, the X-Men must somehow defeat an army of the Master of Magnetism's zealots - one of whom, until very recently, was on their side."

Ultimate X-Men #6 will be 32 pages and will cost $2.25.

GIVE'EM A CLICK

FIRST LOOK: PETER PARKER: SPIDER-MAN #31

Peter Parker: Spider-Man will arrive in stores on Wednesday from Marvel Comics. The issue is written by Paul Jenkins, with art by Mark Buckingham and Wayne Faucher and a cover by Humberto Ramos.

Here's how Marvel describes the issue:

"The new villain named Fusion - who has the ability to absorb any hero's power - also has a deep burning hatred for Spider-Man. If Spidey wants to survive, he must find the kink in Fusion's formidable armor - that is, if he even has one."

Peter Parker: Spider-Man #31 will be 32 pages and will cost $2.25.

GIVE'EM A CLICK

FIRST LOOK: SIGIL #12

Sigil #12 will arrive in stores on Wednesday from CrossGen Comics. The issue is written by Mark Waid, penciled by Scot Eaton, inked by Andrew Hennessy and colored by Wil Quintana.

Here's how CrossGen describes the issue:

"Sam's eyes are on the wrong prize. Busy chasing Zanni's assassins across Delassia, Sam is unaware that he's made a bitter enemy of one of the craftiest men in the galaxy -- one who today will take from Sam, with a cold and calculating precision, something very dear to his heart."

Sigil #12 will be 32 pages and will cost $2.95.

GIVE'EM A CLICK

FIRST LOOK: CRUX #2

Crux #2 will arrive in stores on Wednesday from CrossGen Comics. The issue is written by Mark Waid, penciled by Steve Epting and inked by Rick Magyar.

Here's how CrossGen describes the issue:

"The human race has disappeared, leaving behind an Earth weirdly littered with jigsaw pieces of times past. How can 21st century Times Square, 13th century Beijing, the land of the Norse Vikings, and Ancient Greece exist side-by-side? Are Capricia and her teammates caught in a time vortex, a dimensional fracture...or is there an even more startling explanation?"

Crux #2 will be 32 pages and will cost $2.95.

GIVE'EM A CLICK

BRIEFLY