Plenty of cool animated news came out of Comic Con this year, but it's all too much for one post to handle, so I'm splitting it into two parts: Television and Movies. First up: Television! Please keep in mind that I'm only covering the stuff in depth that I'm really interested in, so there won't be any great discussion on some panels, such as Adventure Time or Gravity Falls (I don't watch either of those shows, so I don't really have anything to comment on!).
I've already discussed Star Wars Rebels in depth in another post, so be sure to check that out for some great clips and interviews. With that, let's get to the other stuff!
First up: The Legend of Korra Book 3: Change! I'm discussing this first because of some major developments that actually came a few days before Comic Con. Starting with episodes 8 and 9, released last night, Nickelodeon has decided that Korra will no longer air on television but will be digital only from here on out. This includes the future Book 4 in addition to the rest of Book 3. All episodes will now be available for viewing on Nickelodeon's main website.
This is all a result of the episodes that were accidentally leaked. In order to try and get ahead of the leak, Nickelodeon decided to just air the episodes instead of waiting for the fall. As a result, many people didn't even know the show was airing (thanks to minimal advertising) and of course as a result of that the ratings were a disappointment. I'm happy that the episodes are getting a digital distribution, but not like this. The show is suffering as a result of it. Check out what was said at the panel by reading the recap from Screen Crush (beware of some minor spoilers if you haven't seen episodes 8 or 9, nothing huge) or by watching a video of the panel below:
With that major news out of the way, next up is Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles! No, not the Michael Bay movie (that's a rant for another day), but the very awesome, very successful Nickelodeon show, which recently announced that Season 4 has been green lit! (no pun intended)
A great article on IGN.com recaps the highlights of the panel, which discusses what's in store for the rest of Season 2 in addition to the upcoming Season 3. Be sure to watch the videos in the article; the first video is an interview with some of the cast, including Paul Reuben, who voiced Raphael in the original '80's animated series. The second video is the trailer for the last four episodes of Season 2. This show has kind of an odd schedule; the show seems to go all year round rather than September through May like other shows and has 26 episodes per season instead of the standard 22. Just in case you have problems with IGN's video player, I also found the trailer on YouTube:
The trailer looks awesome, but the only thing that bothers me is that it takes place during the daytime. I would prefer it all to take place during the night time, but it's probably a case of the situation being so desperate that they have to go out during the day to save the world. I'm particularly excited to see another Splinter vs. Shredder showdown!
I was also able to find a video of the panel! Sounds like there's some really cool stuff in store for us for the rest of Season 2 and the upcoming Season 3.
There's no Pixar film this year, but there was a panel on the upcoming Toy Story Christmas Special "Toy Story That Time Forgot" and all attendees were given this really cool poster created by comic artist Mike Mignola of Hellboy fame.
The synopsis for the story courtesy of The Pixar Times is as follows:
"During a post-Christmas play date, the gang find themselves in uncharted territory when the coolest set of action figures ever turn out to be dangerously delusional. It's all up to Trixie, the triceratops, if the gang hopes to return to Bonnie's room in this Toy Story That Time Forgot."
I'm really liking the angle they're going for this. It's the exact opposite of what we've seen in the movies. With Buzz Lightyear, the delusional toy thing was done mostly for laughs, with the exception of one brief part of Toy Story 3. It's easy to see how a delusional toy could be extremely dangerous, and I like how this seems to be taking that a step further. It's kind of odd for a Christmas special, which is great because it's something totally different! And I like how the special stars one of the more minor characters of the core group, similar to how the Toy Story shorts starred minor characters or new characters.
Sadly, I was unable to find video of the panel, but The Rotoscopers put up a great article that summarizes the panel and includes pictures of concept art that was revealed to the public. There's also an article on IGN.com that recaps the panel.
And last but not least, Marvel announced a new animated series for Guardians of the Galaxy! This is a really smart move, considering the opening day success of the film and the announcement of a Guardians of the Galaxy 2 at the Marvel panel at Comic Con. Check out this article on Crave Online and this article on IGN.com for more details.
Man, this could be so awesome! But odds are, it probably won't be. I haven't been impressed with Marvel animation in the post-Disney buyout. I couldn't get past the first ten minutes of Ultimate Spiderman, and Avengers Assemble just wasn't interesting enough or good enough for me to watch past the first episode. Here's hoping the show will follow in the footsteps of great Marvel animation like Spectacular Spiderman and Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes, but I'm not holding my breath.
If you want to do some Google searching on news from other panels at the convention, check out this article on Animation Scoop that lists other panels that I didn't talk about here. Next up, we're talking news for animated films!
Comic Con News Part 2: Animated Features
Rebels Report from Comic Con
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