Monday, November 22, 2004
FANTASTIC FOUR MOVIE UPDATE
Kurt Williams, visual effects supervisor, said that Doctor Doom will have a practical appearance in the upcoming Fantastic Four movie.
"We left Doom primarily to prosthetics, except for his electrical bolts," Williams said during The Continuum's recent visit to the Fantastic Four sets in Vancouver, British Columbia.
20th Century Fox on Monday provided The Continuum with a first look at Doom in his armor. Click on the thumbnail for a larger and fuller image.
Asked if Doom's body will be metal or if he'll be wearing a metal suit, Williams said, "A little bit of both. By the end, our Doom will be prominently prosthetic, but you'll see enough of the transition that you'll understand how it's happening."
Giant Killer Robots is providing Doom's special effects, which Williams said are vital to the film's final act.
Williams said he expects 800 to 1,000 effects shots in the film.
"It wouldn't have been the same movie five years ago," Williams said. "We're able to go places with Johnny and Stretch and all the characters literally, that we couldn't have gone to five years ago. That's what makes now a better time for the movie."
Look for more on Fantastic Four soon here in The Continuum.
JUSTICE LEAGUE UNLIMITED UPDATE
C.C.H. Pounder is providing the voice of Amanda Waller and Tim Matheson is providing the voice of Maxwell Lord in the upcoming "Ultimatum" episode of Cartoon Network's Justice League Unlimited.
Pounder, 51, has dozens of television roles to her credit. She has supplied voices to such shows as Batman Beyond, Aladdin and Biker Mice from Mars.
Matheson, 56, is probably best known as Otter from National Lampoon's Animal House and has more than 100 film and TV credits. His voice roles date back to the original Jonny Quest series. Recently, he has appeared on The West Wing.
Other guest voices include Scott Rummell as Aquaman, James Sie as Wind Dragon, Greg Rainwater as Long Shadow, Grey Delisle and Downpour and Shifter, Jennifer Hale as Giganta and Robert Foxworth as Professor Hamilton.
The "Ultimatum" episode will premiere on Cartoon Network on Saturday, Dec. 4. The episode has a story by Dwayne McDuffie and a teleplay by J.M. DeMatteis. It was directed by Juaquim Dos Santo.
Look for more Justice League Unlimited news soon here in The Continuum.
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FIRST LOOKS
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For covers and four- to six-page previews of upcoming comics titles, CLICK HERE.
Titles include Misplaced #4 from Devil's Due Publishing, Samurai: Heaven and Earth #1 and B.P.R.D.: The Dead #2 from Dark Horse Comics and Runners: Bad Goods #5 from Serve Man Press.
W.I.T.C.H. ANIMATED SERIES
W.I.T.C.H., a new animated series based on the stories told in the global comic magazine and U.S. chapter books from Hyperion Books for Children, will have a one-hour preview presentation on Saturday, Dec. 19 at noon ET/11 a.m. PT on ABC and on Sunday during the JETIX programming block on Sunday, Dec. 19 on ABC Family (9:30 a.m. ET/PT) and Toon Disney (8 p.m.ET/PT).
The series will first be previewed with four sequential one-minute W.I.T.C.H. short stories airing during November on JETIX.
W.I.T.C.H. premieres in its regular timeslots Saturday, Jan. 15 during JETIX on ABC Family (9:30-10:00 a.m., ET/PT) and Monday, Jan. 17 on Toon Disney (8:30-9:00 p.m., ET/PT).
W.I.T.C.H will also premiere in three languages in Spring 2005 on JETIX Europe and Latin America.
Herešs how the series is described:
"Five diverse middle school girls, Will, Irma, Taranee, Cornelia and Hay Lin, learn their amazing fate -- they are the new generation of an ancient and honorable group, The Guardians, and each has latent powers over one of five elements: energy, water, fire, earth and air. Although the girls can now transform into magical guardians, they must lead a double life as ordinary teens while mastering their newfound skills, all while facing their first challenge -- preventing infiltration of Earth by the evil Prince Phobos of the Kingdom of Meridian, a parallel universe filled with enchantment and mythological creatures.
W.I.T.C.H is produced in a two-dimensional animation style that resembles Japanese anime. Geared towards boys and girls age 6-11, the story begins in the town of Heatherfield, on Earth. W.I.T.C.H. (an acronym of the heroine's names) introduces 13-year-old Will Vandom, the new student at Sheffield Institute as she befriends Irma Lair, Taranee Cook, Cornelia Hale and Hay Lin Lin.
"It's Hay Lin's grandmother who reveals to the girls that they're the next generation of The Guardians and she and a group of women like her will now pass knowledge, power and responsibility to them. The girls also receive The Heart of Candracar, an amulet that most astonishingly, amplifies their powers and physically transforms them -- whenever they want -- into grown-up creatures with powers unlike any human, and a duty to uphold what's right. The Heart itself selects Will as the group's leader and before long, the girls receive a magical map that helps them in their quest to protect the world from evil.
"When they're at home and school, Will, Irma, Taranee, Cornelia and Hay Lin face universal teen issues including self-confidence, trendy clothing and friendship, notably with the one other best friend who cannot know their secret, the brilliant artist and popular cheerleader Elyon. When they transform into The Guardians and cross The Veil into Meridian, the girls embark on adventures filled with action, suspense, mythology and responsibilities of greater proportion.
"Meanwhile, in Meridian, the oppressive Prince Phobos is desperate to find his sister, the rightful heir to the throne. She was spirited away from Meridian while still an infant and is now living safely on Earth. The prince is beset at every turn by The Rebellion, a group tired of his tyranny and determined to thwart him. One of the young rebels is Caleb who the girls meet in the first suspenseful story arc that sets off the battle for the universe, to find the missing sister before Prince Phobos does and to learn the intricate secrets of Meridian. It will be up to The Guardians to fend off Phobos, his lieutenant -- a morphing humanoid/lizard named Cedric -- and his guards, menacing creatures known as Lurdens."
The voice cast include: Kelly Stables as Will; Candi Milo as Irma; Kittie as Taranee; Christil Khalil as Cornelia; Liza Del Mundo as Hay Lin; Dee Bradley Baker as Cedric; Greg Cipes as Caleb; Steve Blum as Blunk, Mitchell Whitfield as Phobos; Lauren Tom as Grandma and Serena Berman as Elyon.
BRIEFLY
Here's how Image describes the book:
"The ever-sensational She-Dragon fights for survival in a deadly dimension where monsters dwell and creatures are on the loose! She-Dragon has a quest: to get across Dimension-X to Mr. Glumšs planet in hopes of finding her way back to Earth. A thousand dangers stand between her and goal, and surprising allies come to her aid. Featuring the malevolent menace of Killmore the Cruel! The return of Savage Dragon's son, Malcolm Eugene Jackson Dragon!"
The first issue will be 48 pages and will cost $5.95.
"Marge runs into her former high school pal Chloe Talbot (Cattrall), who is now a famous newscaster. Chloe is cultured, sharp-dressed and has a successful career on television. While Lisa has become enamored with Chloe's worldliness, Marge becomes jealous and wonders if she made the right decision by choosing family over a career ."
COMICS CONTINUUM BACK ISSUES
In case you missed The Continuum's recent coverage, here are some links:
* For Tuesday, Nov. 16, including Blade: Trinity news, CLICK HERE.
* For Monday, Nov. 15, including DC Comics' solicitations for February, CLICK HERE.
* For Saturday, Nov. 13, including Blade: Trinity news, CLICK HERE.
* For Friday, Nov. 12, including Marvel news, CLICK HERE.
* For Thursday, Nov. 11, including Elektra movie news, CLICK HERE.
* For Wednesday, Nov. 10, including Elektra movie news and Dark Horse Comics' solicitations for February, CLICK HERE.
* For Tuesday, Nov. 9, including an interview with Smallville's Erica Durance, CLICK HERE.
* For Monday, Nov. 8, including Batman Begins news, CLICK HERE.
* For Sunday, Nov. 7, including Marvel, DC and Blade: Trinity panels from Wizard World Texas, CLICK HERE.
* For Saturday, Nov. 6, including the WildStorm/Vertigo and Aspen panels from Wizard World Texas, CLICK HERE.
* For Friday, Nov. 5, including Marvel news, CLICK HERE.
* For Thursday, Nov. 4, including Marvel and DC first looks, CLICK HERE.
* For Tuesday, Nov. 2, including The Incredibles news, CLICK HERE.
* For Monday, Nov. 1, including Fantastic Four movie news, CLICK HERE.
Copyright © 2004, The Comics Continuum