THURSDAY, JULY 30, 2020
DC SHOWCASE - BATMAN: DEATH IN THE FAMILY
Warner Bros Home Entertainment has announced an Oct. 13 release on Blu-ray and digital for DC Showcase -- Batman: Death in the Family, a compilation of animated shorts.
To watch a trailer, CLICK HERE.
Anchoring the compilation is Batman: Death in the Family, WBHE's first-ever venture into interactive storytelling that allows fans to choose where the story goes through an innovative navigation guided by the viewer's remote control. Central to the extended-length short is an adaptation of Batman: A Death in the Family, the 1988 DC event where fans voted by telephone to determine the story's ending.
Inspired by characters and stories from DC's portfolio, the 2019-2020 series of shorts -- which have been individually included on DC Universe Movies releases since Summer 2019 -- include: Sgt. Rock, Adam Strange, Death and The Phantom Stranger.
The Blu-ray features a disc with all of the shorts in hi-definition, including the fully-interactive, extended-length Batman: Death in the Family, plus a digital version of the four other 2019-2020 DC Showcase shorts.
The Digital distribution features the Batman: Death in the Family extended-length short in a non-interactive format (pre-assembled version of the story, entitled Under the Red Hood: Reloaded), along with the other four 2019-2020 DC Showcase shorts, and three other non-interactive versions of the Batman: Death in the Family (entitled Jason Todd's Rebellion, Robin's Revenge and Red Hood's Reckoning) as bonus features (Note: not all Digital retailers offer bonus features with purchase).
The Blu-ray also offers approximately five minutes of additional content within the Batman: Death in the Family story that is not included in the Digital version.
Produced, directed and written by Brandon Vietti, Batman: Death in the Family offers an inventive take. In the new animated presentation, the infamous murder of Batman protege Jason Todd will be undone, and the destinies of Batman, Robin and The Joker will play out in shocking new ways as viewers make multiple choices to control the story. And while Batman: Under the Red Hood provides a baseline, the story also branches in new directions and features several characters previously unseen in the original film.
Bruce Greenwood, Vincent Martella and John DiMaggio reprise their Batman: Under The Red Hood roles of Batman, young Jason Todd and The Joker, respectively. Other featured voices are Zehra Fazal as Talia al Ghul and Gary Cole as Two-Face and James Gordon.
"Batman: Death in the Family is essentially a comic book come to life," said Vietti, whose DC Universe Movies directing credits include Batman: Under the Red Hood and Superman: Doomsday, and he is co-creator and co-executive producer of the popular Young Justice animated television series.
"We've paid homage to the 1988 interactive experience of DC's A Death in the Family comics release by giving fans a unique opportunity to craft their own story through a branching tool that can lead in multiple directions. The viewer gets to choose these characters' paths, and each choice paves an alternate future for all of the characters and, ultimately, the story."
The interactive Blu-ray presentation offers many different ways for viewers to tell the Batman: Death in the Family story, with numerous twists and turns in the middle, and several possible endings. The choices along the way put greater weight on the viewers' decisions and result in stronger stories. Viewers can also choose to allow the story to tell itself, as there is an option to let the Blu-ray decide its own path.
"From the very first navigation card, we wanted to give the audience an impression of what they're getting into, but then also give them something unexpected -- maybe even something they'll regret, so they have to think twice about every future choice they make," Vietti said. "Branched storytelling has to be stronger than just the gimmick of the choices -- it has to be rewarding and offer new and worthwhile insights into the characters. It needs to involve you, and keep you searching for the next twist. So we sought to subvert expectations and do something very different."
MARVEL'S AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D.
ABC has released a description for "Brand New Day," the penultimate episode of Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. airing Wednesday, August 5.
Here's how the episode is described:
"With the help of Kora on the inside, Sibyl and Nathanial continue their fight to shape a dark new future for S.H.I.E.L.D., managing to stay one step ahead of the agents along the way. If the team is going to turn this one around, they'll have to get creative, and maybe even a little out of this world, on the penultimate episode."
"Brand New Day" was written by Chris Freyer and directed by Keith Potter.
The two-hour series finale will air on Wednesday, August 12.
DC'S STARGIRL: "STARS & S.T.R.I.P.E. PART 2"
The CW has released images and details from "Stars & S.T.R.I.P.E. Part 2," the season finale episode of Stargirl airing on Tuesday, August 11.
Here's how the network describes the episode:
"As the Injustice Society of America come one step closer to accomplishing their mission, Courtney (Brec Bassinger) and the JSA face off with Icicle and the villains of the ISA."
Greg Beeman directed the episode, written by Geoff Johns.
Click on the thumbnails for larger images.
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BRIEFLY
GREEN HORNET ANIMATED: WildBrain is teaming with Kevin Smith on a new Green Hornet animated series.
Here's how the show is described:
"The new animated series will target a family audience and feature classic Green Hornet elements that fans know and love, including his ultra high-tech car, the Black Beauty. Set in contemporary times, the series will deliver some exciting new elements as it follows the adventures of a re-imagined Green Hornet and Kato -- now the grown son of the original Green Hornet and the daughter of the original Kato -- as they partner to battle crime in Century City!"
Stephanie Betts, EVP content and current series at WildBrain, said: "We're thrilled to embark on a new animated Green Hornet series with Kevin, who has set up an incredibly rich world with a cast of amazing characters -- especially Kato, who is no longer just a sidekick, but is now a strong female partner to the Green Hornet. With his ingenious talent and passion for superheroes and classic franchises, Kevin is the perfect creator to update the Green Hornet. We're excited to share the new Green Hornet and Kato with audiences worldwide."
X-MEN TEASER: Marvel Comics has released a teaser image for X-Men #11, due in August from writer Jonathan Hickman and artist Leinil Francis Yu.
The image came with the tagline, "The Cotati Invasion of Krakoa. The Summoner of Arakko."
NEW WYNONNA EARP: Here's how Syfy describes "Afraid," the episode of Wynonna Earp premiering on Sunday, August 16:
"Wynonna faces down an ancient enemy as Waverly and Nicole search for help."
OCTOBER 2020 SOLICITATIONS
Below are solicitations posted for October. Click on the publisher's name for the full listings and check back soon for additional solicitations.
* AFTERSHOCK COMICS.
* AHOY COMICS.
* ARCHIE COMICS.
* DARK HORSE COMICS.
* DC COMICS.
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