#that Neil Gaiman produced adaptations of Neil Gaiman classics are a good thing

[thedreadvampy]

btw obviously talking pure shite about the Corinthian thing but among the many things that makes me not want to watch the show. why ISN'T it a 90s period piece?

like honestly it's the same as with Good Omens being modernised for TV. Good Omens is EXTREMELY rooted in the specific cultural context of the end of the millennium. I just don't think it made sense to set it in the 2020s.

but so much of the plot and aesthetic of Sandman is so very of its time. the experience and ideologies of the feminist characters, the queer characters, the alt characters. the aesthetic of wealth and power. honestly the entirety of Rose and her brother's storyline is so rooted in the serial killer and stranger danger and suburban terror of crime in the 90s and I know that the serial killer obsession has come back around but it's a very 90s flavour of paranoia. like obviously a lot of the series is timeless but at the same time the main plot IS very rooted in time, especially Dolls House and A Game Of You, and it definitely can be modernised more readily than Good Omens but like. why would you. when the aesthetic of the comics is a) deeply rooted in the alt culture of the early 90s and b) fucking iconic. like the original run of Sandman finished the year I was born and despite not having been a goth in the 80s or 90s on account of being an Infant, the 80s-90sness of my style is so so so part of how I put my adult self together and What's Wrong With That?

and there's a lot of sticking points tbh. mostly again I'm thinking of the comic's handling of transphobia and homophobia. which I am concerned that this adaptation is going to address by "modernising" it out of the picture, instead of talking about it. which like. this is a different reservation I guess bc it's true whether it's a period piece or a modernisation. but. I am very concerned that under the guise of modernising it this is going to lose an awfully lot of its crunch.

and ymmv bc I know a lot of people take very deep issue with how the comics handle queer themes and I think a lot of that criticism is fair. but I also think that as a queer and traumatised kid the thing that made Sandman so deeply resonant and meaningful for me was that it was ok with getting messy. like it had a lot to say about homophobia, abuse of all kinds, lateral aggression, and it spends I would say almost all its Real World Main Plot Timeline being very interested in the nuance and moral greys and self- and laterally-inflicted harms among queer people. like it involves a lot of stories about abusive or unbalanced queer relationships whether it's with Alex Burgess or Judy and Foxglove (then Foxglove and Hazel) or the Corinthian. and it also wants to spend a lot of its time tangling with the support but also the spite and ignorance of specifically small queer communities (I think that Doll's House is more interested in depicting queer community as an oasis in the dangerous world of heteronormativity covering up violence. whereas A Game Of You is much more about lateral harm - everybody in that book except possibly Barbie is some flavour of queer, and maliciously (Thessaly) or through ignorance (Hazel and Barbie) or through anger (Foxglove) they are frequently spiteful, bigoted and unpleasant to each other, but Barbie, Wanda, Hazel and Foxglove still draw strength from each other's presence and care. and that rings very true to me of queer communities.

(for the record. my (cis) reading of A Game Of You has always been that it's a fairly direct condemnation of people like Thessaly. she's posed as being cruel and self-serving and ready to throw other women under the bus for her own benefit, and I always assumed we were meant to read her calling Wanda a man as part of that, and that that was the point. that Thessaly is in the book to make a point about TERF/separatist thinking. idk whether that's the intended reading or whether it's an appropriate thing for Neil Gaiman as a cishet man to be cracking into, but it's how it read to me as a 11 year old in 2004 who hadn't yet heard of TERFs or really had any idea about trans women, and i find it hard to take away a reading where we're meant to agree with Thessaly given the way Wanda is framed and the way Thessaly is framed throughout the story. I think there's more complicated stuff to unpick around like. whether Wanda's in the story to suffer and die for the Nice Cis Lady but I really have not ever got why depicting transphobia in this context has been so frequently read as endorsing it.)

like. The thing that makes Sandman deeply important to so many people is that it's messy and uncomfortable. it is. mostly interested in painful questions without answers. it's interested in power, rape, abuse (parental, familial, intimate partner, social, sexual, physical and emotional), homophobia and transphobia, CSA, bigotry, grief, trauma, madness, suicidality, addiction, etc. like. Almost everything in Sandman is focused around people and experiences that are hard to talk about and treated as scary or invisible and that's the point.

and to me again as a queer kid going through trauma and violence and abuse. that's what drew me to it. it's a really visceral read for me bc I think while I don't always agree with how it approaches every topic, it doesn't shy away from engaging with the actual messiness and complexity and no-right-answerness of those marginal experiences. it would not work as well if it was too afraid to say things that might have bad interpretations. and that was what made it matter for me, especially when it comes to queerness and disability and survivorhood (ie things I've experienced) - like it always felt like it had enough trust in its characters and audiences to let marginalised characters be fully fucked up and flawed and experience and inflict unjustifiable things. queer and marginalised characters in Sandman are, in my opinion, relatively unusual in that a) they're everywhere in the text and very internally diverse, there isn't a sense of Here's Our Gay Character Who Represents Gays, and b) they're neither utter villains Because They're Gay (/addicts/mentally ill/disabled/whatever) or Sad Objects Of Pity. they're given space to be extremely flawed and extremely sympathetic Whole People Who Fuck Up.

and my worry is. especially given how a lot of mainstream discourse is around representation and Problematic Media. but also tbh given how increasingly anodyne and pandery I think a lot of Neil Gaiman's output has been getting in this ourouboros stage of his career. I am almost certain that the Netflix Sandman series is going to sand a lot of the crunchy sharp edges off the story. I do not think we're going to see the willingness to make the audience uncomfortable and uneasy (and I'm not talking about the horror elements, but the human ones) and I think that's. honestly totally understandable from a production standpoint bc I think there are things in Sandman that would cause huge backlash if you screen them today. I also. think. that the story would be worse without them.

(none of this matters bc I'm not going to watch the show. why would I do that to myself I KNOW I will not enjoy it even if it's great, bc the comics are embedded somewhere 2 inches from my heart and I'm not. interested in What If That But TV. I can just read the comics again.)

[thegoodomensdumpster]

ALL THE OMENS

I keep seeing people confused / discovering one or several iterations of Good Omens, so here is a masterpost of everything Good Omens that officially exists (and that I could gather, so there might be mistakes):

WILLIAM THE ANTICHRIST (1987)

The original draft of what would later become Good Omens, written by Neil Gaiman before he teamed up with Terry Pratchett. It notably features a demon called Crawleigh who would then be split into Crowley and Aziraphale.  The draft exists in a book form included in the Ineffable Edition of the illustrated Good Omens.

LINK TO A WTA RECAP (by @fuckyeahgoodomens)

BOOK (1990)

The core material of Good Omens, written by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett. Exists also as an audiobook read by Stephen Briggs (for the English speaking crowd of course). There is also some audio of David Tennant reading part of the book during the recording of Playing in the Dark: Neil Gaiman and the BBC Symphony Orchestra in November 2019. LINK TO DAVID TENNANT’S READING (by @merinathropp) @good-omens-covers is a blog where you can have a look at book covers from accross the world

MOVIE SCRIPT (1992)

The script for an aborted movie project. Attempts to write a movie script were made by both Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett, but this is the one Gaiman ended up tackling on his own after Pratchett wisely decided to step away. The conflicted requests from the producers lead the way to a story that was related to Good Omens only in name. The movie script is only available in few numbers on specialized websites for a very high price.

THEATRE PLAY (2013)

An adaptation by Amy Hoff made with the permission of Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett, that was played by the Cult Classic Theatre for the Glasgow International Comedy Festival. As far as I know, no footage or script is available anywhere. I know nothing about this play besides the fact that Crowley looks wild. Amy Hoff’s website mentions that GO is currently unavailable for stage production or adaptation. LINK TO THE (BROKEN) PAGE OF THE THEATRE PLAY LINK TO A PHOTO GALLERY OF THE PLAY

RADIO DRAMA (2014)

An audio adaptation originally broadcasted on BBC4 in 6 episodes, adapted by Dirk Maggs and directed by Dirk Maggs and Heather Larmour. It is however available in an 8 episodes longer format (including bloopers) on CDs and such. The cast includes, notably, Peter Serafinowicz as Crowley, Mark Heap as Aziraphale, Josie Lawrence as Agnes Nutter, and a cameo from Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett.

LINK TO THE BBC4 PAGE FOR THE GOOD OMENS RADIO DRAMA LINK TO AN IMAGES GALLERY

TV SERIES (2019)

A six episodes long TV series, produced by the BBC and Amazon, that premiered on Amazon Prime in June 2019. Directed by Douglas Mackinnon. The script was written entirely by Neil Gaiman as the whole project was the achievement of years of struggle trying to get a video adaptation of GO, and as promised by Neil Gaimand to the late Terry Pratchett that this would get done. 

The cast still includes Josie Lawrence as Agnes Nutter, David Tennant as Crowley, Michael Sheen as Aziraphale, and many other talented actors and actresses that would be too long to list here but are worth watching. 

As derivative products coming out of the making of the TV series, the script book of the entire show (including cut scenes that were never shot) is available, as well as some storyboards that depict, without a doubt, the least expected looks for Crowley and Aziraphale. The TV series is available for streaming on Amazon Prime, in DVD and in BluRay. The soundtrack composed by David Arnold can be found in CDs, vinyls and mp3 sets.  Additionally, there is a TV Companion book for behind the scenes and interviews that can be purchased, and very few official goodies such as enamel pins, and, of course, the very necessary Good Omens Nail Polish. A Q and A with Neil Gaiman and David Tennant is also available on Amazon Prime, broadcasted live and recorded in May 2020. In 2017, Neil Gaiman made a reading of cutscenes in Austin, Texas, for the Long Center event.

LINK TO THE DVDs / BLURAYs MASTERPOST (by @fuckyeahgoodomens) LINK TO THE SCRIPT BOOK MASTERPOST (by @fuckyeahgoodomens ) LINK TO SOME STORYBOARDS VISUALS: PART 1 and PART 2 LINK TO NEIL GAIMAN’S READING OF CUTSCENES

THE LOCKDOWN VIDEO (2020)

As a direct result of the TV series (and a direct result of a worldwide pandemic and a several months long lockdown...), Neil Gaiman wrote a little script for a short video that is, actually, mainly audio, in which David Tennant and Michael Sheen reprised their roles as Crowley and Aziraphale.

LINK TO THE LOCKDOWN VIDEO ON YOUTUBE LINK TO THE LOCKDOWN VIDEO TRANSCRIPT

MUSICAL (still in developpement as far as I know on this date in June 2020)

An Australia based project that has been years in the making, developped by Vicki Larnach and Jim Hare. So far, what has been officially released on the internet are a few videos of a reading by the actors, a sizzle reel with footage and audio of several moments from the show, as well as promotional pictures. The musical has been played on stage in front of an audience a few times these past two years in a version that is probably rather close to what the end product will be, and hopefully, once the final version exists, it will be made available for the widest audience possible.

LINK TO THE MUSICAL WEBSITE LINK TO THE MUSICAL SIZZLE REEL LINK TO THE MUSICAL INSTAGRAM LINK TO A REVIEW OF THE MUSICAL (by @seraphofshadows) LINK TO A GALLERY OF PICS FROM THE SIZZLE (by @crunchy-goblin)

OTHERS THINGS THAT ARE (AND THINGS THAT AREN’T)

668—The Neighbour of the Beast AKA the sequel that doesn’t exist. Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett talked about writing a sequel to Good Omens, came up with a few things (the most infamous being Aziraphale watching a porno in a hotel room, but only catching glimpses of it and trying to figure out the plot by writting it down in a notebook), but it was never written. LINK TO AN INTERVIEW GIVEN TO THE LOCUS IN 1991 MENTIONING THIS SEQUEL LINK TO A POST ON GAIMAN’S BLOG MENTIONING THE PORNOGRAPHY BIT LINK TO A RECAP OF THE SEQUEL + COTTAGE THING The movie directed by Terry Gilliam Before GO became a TV series, it got stuck for years as a movie project meant to be directed by Terry Gilliam. For various reasons it never happened, and the rumors about Robin Williams being cast as Aziraphale and Johnny Depp as Crowley seem to have started from there. The cottage “canon” The widespread concept of Crowley and Aziraphale sharing a cottage originated from a blog post made by Neil Gaiman, reporting a conversation between him and Terry Pratchett regarding the whereabouts of their characters. Gaiman has since offered the precision that this cottage sharing thing would happen way after the events of the sequel that was never written, so years after Armageddon, and that the location would be Devil’s Dyke in the South Downs. LINK TO THE ORIGINAL POST ON GAIMAN’S BLOG LINK TO A COMPREHENSIVE EXPLANATION (by @irisbleufic) LINK TO A TUMBLR ASK FOR GAIMAN ABOUT THE SOUTH DOWNS LINK TO A SCREENSHOT OF A TWEET BY GAIMAN The New Year Resolutions List (made for Harper Collins, now taken down from their website) A list of resolutions written by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett on request of the publisher in 2005, one list for Crowley, one list for Aziraphale. LINK TO THE LIST ( by @ladylier )

LINK TO AN INTERVIEW WHERE NEIL GAIMAN TALKS ABOUT A FEW OF THE THINGS MENTIONNED IN THIS POST And as an ultimate bonus, as I was gathering all the informations for this masterpost, I found back Michael Sheen’s Spotify Good Omens Playlist. EDIT (02/08/2020): Someone mentionned (in a post I can’t find anymore ?) that on the list of existing merch that was absolutely unexpected, there was a whole collection of Good Omens perfume oils. It was made around 2007 with the approval of Pratchett and Gaiman and was apparently updated when the series came out in 2019. The profits of the oils go to different charities.

I was also reminded of the Chattering Order of Saint Beryl, a group of singers promoting the TV series before its release in 2019.  Their Youtube Channel has a playlist that was last updated in June 2020. There is one video clip of the song Brand New Baby Smell that features a cameo by Neil Gaiman. And I found back @fuckyeahgoodomens‘s masterpost about the merch, even though I mentionned most of these in this masterpost, I’ll include the link for convenience sake.

[terryballs]

My favourite Doctor Who writers

10. Neil Gaiman

Neil Gaiman is one of the most talented people to ever write for Doctor Who. Of course, talent alone is not enough - Douglas Adams, Alan Moore, and Naomi Alderman all miss out on this list. What makes Gaiman special is his fairytale, fantasy approach to the show. He has big ideas, full of heart, and I am always delighted by them.

Why isn’t Mr Gaiman higher up on the list? Simply because he has only done four stories. One of them, “The Doctor’s Wife”, is an all-time classic, while the others are at least good. With a couple more stories, Mr Gaiman would surely be higher.

9. Paul Magrs

Coming in at #9 is one of the most important writers of non-televised Who. Paul Magrs has written nine Big Finish Main Range stories (most notably “The Peterloo Massacre”), three Companion Chronicles, and two Eighth Doctor Adventures, including the exceptional “The Zygon Who Fell To Earth”, as well as a huge number of spin-off adventures.

It’s in print where Magrs really flourishes, though. It’s quite hard to get across just how influential Paul Magrs has been. Firstly, his three books in the Eighth Doctor Adventures range - The Scarlet Empress, The Blue Angel, and Mad Dogs and Englishmen - are hugely ambitious metatextual delights. These stories introduce Iris Wildthyme and the Smudgelings to the Whoniverse, and have each inspired their own spin-off series, collectively called the “Magrsverse”. Iris’s parody of the Doctor is a rip-roaring delight whenever she appears - and as you know, she’s famous for it - and will prove a lasting legacy for Mr Magrs.

I suppose, at this junction, I should mention Lawrence Miles, who has had a similar influence, but I just don’t find to be quite as good a storyteller as Magrs.

8. Rob Shearman

You probably know Rob Shearman for “Dalek”, the first good New Who story. What if I told you that “Dalek” is Shearman’s worst DW story?

The titles of Shearman’s audio plays are enough to send shivers up the spines of those who have heard them. There’s “Jubilee”, the loose inspiration for “Dalek”, which explores the Daleks as fascist iconography. There’s “The Holy Terror”, where the Doctor and Frobisher the Penguin Shape-Shifter have a similarly horrifying experience with a religious cult. There’s “The Chimes of Midnight”, possibly the definitive Eighth Doctor story, and “Scherzo”, itself perhaps the most experimental story in Doctor Who history, and “Deadline”, in which the villain is Doctor Who itself.

Like many of the writers on this list, Shearman has an eclectic back catalogue full of obscure oddities. But few people have quite his capacity for knocking it out of the park.

7. Chris Chibnall

It’s true that Chris Chibnall’s work before becoming showrunner is inconsistent at best. “42″ is bad and “The Hungry Earth” is uninspired. “Dinosaurs on a Spaceship” is a fun romp, while “The Power of Three” is a great story that is let down by the ending which had to be re-written hastily due to unforeseen production issues. And Chibnall’s contributions to Series 11 range from “fine” (”The Woman Who Fell To Earth”) to “bad” (”The Battle of Ranskor Av Kolos”). But in “Pond Life” and “P.S.”, Chibnall shows that he knows how to write affecting character beats.

It’s in Series 12 that Chibnall really takes things up a step. His stories become sprawling and ambitious: globe-trotting thrillers crammed full of ideas. He’s still occasionally guilty of trying to throw too many ideas in, but his love for the story really shines through. There’s barely a weak moment in Series 12, and that’s largely because Chibnall himself steps up to write or co-write hit after hit after hit. It all culminates in the epic three-part finale, “The Haunting of Villa Diodati”/”Ascension of the Cybermen”/”The Timeless Children”, a hugely ambitious story that crosses space and time and pulls together disparate elements from the history of Who. It’s a million miles from “The Battle of Ranskor Av Kolos”: a fan-pleasing story that is truly epic.

6. Vinay Patel

Why is Vinay so high? Good question. Thinking about it, I can’t really justify this placement. Patel reliably produces great stories - “Demons of the Punjab” alone marks Patel out as a great, and to follow it up with “Fugitive of the Judoon” shows that it wasn’t a fluke. But Mr Patel has only got four stories to his name - the aforementioned TV stories plus “Letters from the Front” and “The Tourist” - so for similar reasons to Mr Gaiman, a high position is difficult to justify.

So instead, let’s give this position to Terrance Dicks. Mr Dicks has a bit of a reputation as more of a “jobbing” writer than someone like Chibnall or Shearman, Terrance Dicks was, first and foremost, a script editor. Yes, he co-wrote “The War Games” and was the sole writer for “Horror of Fang Rock”, but he’s best remembered for script editing the Third Doctor era (and part of the Second Doctor era), as well as producing an absolute mass of Target novelisations. But that’s not all - Mr Dicks has written original novels (VNAs, EDAs, and PDAs alike), Quick Reads, audio stories, two stage plays, and even the Destiny of the Doctor video game.

Sure, Mr Dicks didn’t burn as bright as Mr Patel. But his contribution to the Whoniverse is unparalleled.

5. Nev Fountain

Comedy writer Nev Fountain has written several of the very best Doctor Who stories. For some reason, these stories tend to centre around Peri (Fountain is married to Nicola Bryant). “Peri and the Piscon Paradox” is the best Companion Chronicle by far, due to a combination of great acting by Bryant and Colin Baker and Fountain’s sizzling script. “The Kingmaker” is an outrageously funny historical with incredible dialogue and multiple ideas clever enough to carry a whole story.

Frankly, those two alone should be enough to convince anyone of Fountain’s brilliance. But there is so much more - “The Widow’s Assassin”, “The Curious Incident of the Doctor In the Night-time”, “The Blood on Santa’s Claw”, “Omega“... if you like Doctor Who, make yourself familiar with Nev Fountain.

4. Robert Holmes

More than anyone else, Robert Holmes is responsible for the esteem which the Fourth Doctor is held in.

Holmes first wrote for the show all the way back in Series 6, with “The Krotons”. He wrote the very first Third Doctor story, “Spearhead From Space”, in which he also introduced the Autons. They reappeared a year later in “Terror of the Autons”, which introduced Jo Grant and the Master. In “The Time Warrior”, Holmes introduced the Sontarans, a pastiche of imperialism.

It was in the Fourth Doctor era that Mr Holmes really made his mark. He took over from Mr Dicks as script editor. In his own right, he wrote “The Deadly Assassin” and “Talons of Weng-Chiang”, but he also turned “The Ark In Space”, “Pyramids of Mars”, and “The Brain of Morbius” into usable stories, even appearing in “The Brain of Morbius” as the Doctor.

After stepping back from script editing, Holmes returned as a hack to write stories like “The Caves of Androzani” (probably the most popular story in Classic Who) and “The Two Doctors”, before dying shortly after his 60th birthday.

3. Jamie Mathieson

Putting Mr Mathieson above Mr Holmes really shows my bias towards New Who, but honestly, I’d rather re-watch “Mummy on the Orient Express”, “Flatline”, or “Oxygen” than any of Holmes’ stories. Mathieson is very inventive and extremely good at maintaining pace and tension. I’m sure we’ll get more stories from him in the future, but the ones we have so far should be used as inspiration by anyone wanting to writing exciting Who.

2. John Dorney

It is hard to exaggerate Mr Dorney’s contributions to audio Who. He may lack the external fanbase of Mr Gaiman, the influence of Mr Magrs, or the legendary status of Messrs Dicks, Chibnall, and Holmes, but make no mistake, Dorney is exceptional. In almost every range he tries his hand at - Lost Stories, Novel Adaptations, Third Doctor Adventures, Fourth Doctor Adventures, Fifth Doctor Adventures, Dark Eyes, Doom Coalition, Ravenous, Time War, Companion Chronicles, Short Trips, Jago and Litefoot, Missy, UNIT, Diary of River Song... Dorney reliably writes the best story in the set.

In particular, Dorney’s stories are notable for the way they focus on character drama. Look at stories like “A Life In A Day” or “Absent Friends” for particular examples of stories that use sci-fi concepts to draw emotion out of characters, particularly the stoic Liv Chenka. Other highlights of Dorney’s include “The Red Lady” and the “Better Watch Out”/”Fairytale of Salzburg” two-parter.

1. Steven Moffat

What more is there to say? Moffat is truly exceptional, reliably writing the best stories in TV Who for several consecutive years. The classics are too numerous to list, but the stand outs amongst the stand outs are “Blink” and “Heaven Sent”/”Hell Bent”.

Some of Moffat’s best work comes away from TV. The minisodes “The Inforarium” and “Night of the Doctor”, the novelisation of “Day of the Doctor”, the short stories “Continuity Errors” and “the Corner of the Eye”, and lockdown stories like “Terror of the Umpty Ums” are Moffat deep cuts which deserve to be held in the same regard as his great TV stories.

Moffat’s imagination lead to him creating multiple iconic monsters - foremost amongst them, the Weeping Angels and the Silence. Moffat emphasised the use of time travel within the stories themselves; other themes in his work include memory, perception, paradoxes, identity, sexuality, and responsibility. He is, without a doubt, the greatest Doctor Who writer, and I am so lucky to have lived through the period where he was active.

[fuckyeahgoodomens]

Moving Heaven And Hell

Gaiman’s TV adaptation of his and Terry Prachett’s Good Omens is coming to UK terrestrial TV this January and here’s its director and executive producer Douglas Mackinnon talking about it…

This has clearly been a splendid partnership between you and Neil. What have you most enjoyed about working with him?

It’s been a fantastic experience. It’s been a complete collaboration. He’s very generous in that way. We work very well together. Rather than getting stuck on a problem, we turn it to our advantage. We have a really unified vision. My task as a director is to dig into the brain of Neil and the brain of the book. I see my role as an enabler. If someone says to me: “We can’t afford to do the Kraken,” it’s my job to find a way of doing it that fits with our budget.

We managed to secure Shakespeare’s Globe as a location, but we couldn’t afford to populate it with a large crowd. In the book, the scene is the first week of Hamlet. It’s a great success, and the Globe is very crowded. So I said to Neil: “How about doing the same scene, but Hamlet is a disaster and no one is coming to see it, so we don’t need a big crowd?” In the scene, Crowley and Aziraphale turn up at an empty Globe and have a conversation about their relationship. Crowley says a line, and Shakespeare steals it!

We shot an 11-person scene set in a church during the Second World War with all the principal actors, Mark Gatiss and Steve Pemberton – all in one day. We also shot Atlantis, a Kraken and a flying saucer. Those things would be the centrepiece of an episode of Doctor Who, but we threw them away in two minutes. Also, the bookshop needs to look like it’s in the heart of Soho. But it needs to go on fire at the end, too. That was a very expensive set to burn!

Tell us how you have paid respect to the late Terry Pratchett…

In Good Omens, Neil has been carrying out a personal mission to represent Terry everywhere. One of the things I said to Neil very early on was to repeat the rule I had with Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss on Sherlock – I never needed to know who wrote what line. I think that’s more respectful to Neil and to Terry. Sometimes Neil would say: “That’s a really important scene to me.” One example was the sushi scene. He and Terry had made a pact with each other to be there for the filming of that scene – perhaps because they wanted free sushi. Neil passed on that sentiment to me. We have also dropped in some tributes to Terry. For example, it is Terry’s real hat that hangs in the bookshop.

You famously have the most thumbed copy of Good Omens in the world. Was that book very useful on set?

Definitely. The book is the solution to everything. Our respect for the book was the beginning and the end of it all. Even in the cutting room, Neil would say to me: “There is something not quite right about this scene. I wish there was another line we could add here.” I would reply: “There is a line we can add here. You wrote it 30 years ago in the book!” When we were editing, the structure of the book really helped us. Five million people have read Good Omens. Maybe there is something in Neil’s storytelling!

What music have you chosen for Good Omens?

We’ve got 15 Queen tracks, which is a great coup, especially considering the success of Bohemian Rhapsody. In the book, Bohemian Rhapsody plays when Crowley gets his instructions about what to do with the Antichrist. We even have a Freddie Mercury impersonator. When I was hoping to get this project, I wandering around Vancouver – where I was filming Dirk Gently – listening to Queen and reading the book. I’m a lifelong Queen fan, so I wasn’t such an idiot when I was listening to them when I was 14!

Why is Frances McDormand such good casting as God?

She has this amazing voice. She helps the audience through this very complex story, so she is our guide as well as God. She’s Terry and Neil’s representative in heaven.

How would you characterise the tone of Good Omens?

Before we started, I played all departments two David Bowie songs. First of all, I played them Life On Mars with Rick Wakeman’s marvellous, pure piano accompaniment. I told the departments: “That’s not Good Omens. It’s too perfect.” Then I played them Aladdin Sane where Mike Garson plays this wonderful cracked piano solo. I said to the departments: “That’s Good Omens.” It’s not something pure. It’s something that shouldn’t be beautiful, but is. It’s like when the Japanese break pots – they paint over the cracks with gold. You celebrate the scar.

What message do you hope that people take away from Good Omens?

I hope it doesn’t sound pompous, but it shows that peace can win over war. You can talk most problems out. You don’t have to fight them out. But for me, the biggest element in all drama is relationships. As EM Forster said, drama is about displaying relationships. Seeing Crowley and Aziraphale – the ultimate representations of good and evil – get on so well is the most beautiful thing. It’s like Butch and Sundance or Thelma and Louise. It all depends on the very special chemistry between David and Michael. That’s the core of it. From the moment they meet in the Garden of Eden, there are classic couple. They bicker, but love each other and find a way through their differences, which are pretty extreme.

Why does the partnership between David and Michael work so well in Good Omens?

The success of the show lies in their chemistry, which comes from them enjoying doing something different from their previous projects. Michael has described their scenes together as like a little dance. It’s a very high-powered version of Strictly Come Dancing. Does that mean I am Bruce Forsyth?

[96thdayofrage]

Neil Gaiman's Anansi Boys to become Amazon series separate from canceled American Gods

A six-episode limited series will start filming in Scotland later this year and isn't considered a spin-off.

While the world of American Gods focuses on a war between the deities of classical mythologies (Odin, Thoth, Queen of Sheba, etc.) and the New Gods of modernity (technology, media, and the like), Anansi Boys centers on the family of Mr. Nancy, the African trickster god Anansi, who appears in both books. It's a story about Charlie Nancy, who learns that his recently deceased father is none other than Anansi. On top of that, he has a brother he never knew about who's entering his life and making it more dangerous.

Starz aired three seasons of its American Gods TV series before it was canceled unceremoniously with a cliffhanger ending. Gaiman and the producers at Fremantle are trying to keep the adaptation alive in some capacity, potentially with a movie to cap things off, but so far the project is still in limbo.

As for Anansi Boys, the show will be separate from American Gods. According to Gaiman in a post shared on his blog, the books are also symbiotic but also separate. "I borrowed Mr Nancy from the story I had not yet told and I put him, or a version of him, into American Gods," he wrote.

Mr. Nancy appeared on Starz's series for two seasons, but Orlando Jones, the actor who played him and helped write for the fantasy drama, said he was fired ahead of season 3 because American Gods' latest showrunner Chic Eglee felt "Mr. Nancy's angry, get sh– done is the wrong message for Black America."

"Don't let these motherf–ers tell you they love Mr. Nancy. They don't," Jones had said in a video message to fans. He later went into greater detail about the experience in an interview with EW, saying, "It was a blindside."

Representatives for Starz, Fremantle, and Eglee refuted Jones' claims at the time and stated characters, including Mr. Nancy, weren't a part of the chapters in the original book that were informing the season 3 arc.

All that is to say, it's not surprising that Anansi Boys isn't connected to American Gods.

The idea for the original book stemmed from conversations between Gaiman and Sir Lenny Henry, who now returns as an executive producer on the adaptation.

"We are trying to make a new kind of show with Anansi Boys, and to break ground with it to make something that celebrates and rejoices in diversity both in front of and behind the camera," Gaiman added. "I'm so thrilled it's happening and that people will be meeting Mr. Nancy, Charlie, and Spider, the Bird Woman and the rest of them."

Gaiman will coshowrun the series with Mackinnon, and he's also writing the episodes with Henry, Arvind Ethan David, Kara Smith, and Racheal Ofori.

Culpepper (Star Trek: Picard, Memories of Ptolemy Grey) will direct the pilot, while Jermain Julien (Grantchester) and Azhur Saleem (Doctor Who) will helm other episodes.

This news comes after Amazon greenlit a second season of Gaiman's other big show, an adaptation of Good Omens.

[fremulon]

curtaincall fic masterpost

some faith (the slow show fandom remix) (T, 7k)

This collab with @areyougonnabe is a metafictional retelling of the excellent Slow Show from the perspective of a fictional fandom.

You’ve Got Kudos (M, 3.9k)

The other metafictional work. This one is slightly more of a mindfuck, as it’s based on the premise that Aziraphale and Crowley both write Good Omens fanfic. Told mostly in AO3 comments.

i’ve found a way (a way to make you smile) (T, 40k)

AU based on The Office: Crowley is a salesman at the Celestial Paper Company, Aziraphale is the disorganized receptionist, they spend most of their workday flirting via Slack message and plotting pranks on Hastur and Sandalphon. I am reliably informed that you do not need to be familiar with The Office to enjoy this.

It’s More Likely Than You Think (M, 1.7k)

In which it turns out that you can believe everything you read on the Internet, if you’re an angel with reality-warping powers. 

when the reckoning arrives (M, 7k)

Instead of swapping bodies, Aziraphale and Crowley fake their deaths to avoid the wrath of Heaven and Hell. This goes exactly as well as you’d think.

A Truth Less Acknowledged (G, >1k)

Aziraphale discovers that Crowley has some very wrong opinions about Jane Austen adaptations.

so happy together (T, 2k)

Aziraphale and Crowley are trapped in an elevator while “Happy Together” by the Turtles plays on repeat. (Apologies to John Mulaney and the Salt and Pepper Diner.)

except you enthrall me, never shall be free (T, 8.5k)

It's a classic story: Angel meets knight. Angel volunteers to get beheaded by knight. Knight turns out to be angel's demon frenemy. Somehow, there is kissing. (Based on the Middle English ballad Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.)

muddle through somehow (T, 27k)

Aziraphale’s a food blogger who tells charming stories about his husband and son--his completely fictional husband and son. So when he needs to produce a real family for his publishers, it’s a good thing his neighbor Crowley is willing to help. (Based loosely on Christmas in Connecticut.)

Technicalities (M, 1.6k)

They’re not having sex. Technically. (Also Bill Clinton shows up.)

Mount Olympus Also Rises (M, 1k)

Aziraphale and Crowley discuss their romantic pasts and discover a surprising commonality.

May Cause Swelling (M, 3k)

Sex venom, but it’s very stupid. (Sex Sent Me To The ER: Celestial Edition.)

that i should love a bright particular star (T, 19k)

Neil Gaiman said Aziraphale has Georgette Heyer novels memorized and I went feral.

Hypothetical (G, 1k)

The classic philosophical conundrum of the trolley problem.

the many-venomed earth (T, 37k)

Mystery author Anthony Crowley’s accused of the murder of his former lover--and it’s up to amateur detective Lord Aziraphale Eastgate to prove his innocence. (Based on Strong Poison by Dorothy Sayers.)

how can i resist you? (M, 4k)

After watching Lysistrata, Aziraphale and Crowley mount a series of increasingly elaborate seductions to see who’ll crack first.

Legible Arrangements (T, 4k)

A collection of ficlets originally posted to Tumblr or written for Discord challenges.

it had to be you (M, 22K)

A canon-divergent AU based on When Harry Met Sally.

The Fine Print (T, WIP)

Aziraphale reads the terms and conditions. Crowley, it turns out, is very into this.

[grigori77]

2019 In TV - My Top 10 Shows

This past year may have sucked balls in a lot of ways, but we certainly never got short-changed when it came to our TV.  There was an absolute WEALTH of truly cracking TV around, both on regular networks and on the various on-demand platforms, and so here is my pick of the best, my absolute favourites of 2019.

10.  WATCHMEN

Lost co-creator Damon Lindelof brings us a blinding sequel to comic book legend Alan Moore’s legendary graphic novel with a delightfully trippy, ruthlessly efficient rug-puller that seems pretty tailor-made for HBO.  Old faces return in interesting ways, while there are some cracking new “masks” on offer, particularly Regina King’s Sister Night and the always-brilliant Tim Blake Nelson as morally complex antihero Looking Glass (in some ways very much the show’s own answer to Rorschach).  It never goes where you expect it to go, and refuses to give easy answers to the questions it raises, effortlessly paving the way for more next year ...

9.  THE BOYS

Amazon offers up its own edgy, thoroughly adult superhero property with this darkly funny antiheroic gem based on the cult Garth Ennis comic, expertly adapted by Supernatural creator Eric Kripke.  Karl Urban dominates as Billy Butcher, the foul-mouthed, morally bankrupt “leader” of a makeshift crew of mercenaries, hitmen and psycho killers devoted to “taking care of” superheroes when they inevitably go bad.  Season 1 ultimately serves as an origin story, showing how the team come together, laying quality groundwork for the incoming sophomore tour that promises to open the already fascinating world out significantly.

8.  PREACHER (SEASON 4)

More Garth Ennis, namely this blinder of a closing season for AMC’s consistently impressive adaptation of his best known series for Vertigo comics.  Surprisingly epic, deliciously subversive and constantly, darkly hilarious, this thoroughly non-PC series from showrunners Sam Catlin, Evan Goldberg and Seth Rogen (yes! I Know!) certainly went out on a high note, providing its loyal followers with perfectly-pitched bow-outs and sometimes heartbreaking goodbyes for all its players, especially its dynamite leads, Dominic Cooper, Ruth Negga and, in particular, Joe Gilgun as unapologetic bad boy vampire Cassidy.  A worthy end to one of my all-time favourite TV shows.

7.  THE WITCHER

While it’s clearly taken its look from the wildly successful video games, Netflix’s second most ambitious long-form offering of the year takes its lead from the fantasy book series by Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski that started it all.  With its somewhat episodic set-up and decidedly twisted narrative timelines, it take a few chapters to get the hang of it, but there’s plenty to draw you in, from the exotic world-building to the frenetic action and compelling collection of richly crafted characters.  Henry Cavill is the titular hero, lovably grouchy mutant monster-hunter Geralt of Rivia, but the real scene-stealer is co-star Anya Chalotra as roguishly self-serving mage Yennefer of Vengenberg.

6.  CARNIVAL ROW

One of the year’s two big sleeper hit TV surprises for me was this inventively offbeat allegorical Amazon fantasy series from The 4400 creator René Echevarria and screenwriter Travis Beacham. Orlando Bloom and Cara Delevigne are the star-crossed lovers at the heart of this intriguingly dark and dirty murder mystery thriller set in Victorian London-esque city-state the Burgue, in which humans struggle to co-exist alongside a struggling disenfranchised underclass of fae (fairies, fawns, centaurs and the like).  The racial turmoil undertones are writ large throughout, but this is far more well-written and lavishly appointed than you might expect on first glance, and almost ridiculously addictive viewing.

5.  LOVE, DEATH + ROBOTS

My other big TV surprise was this wonderfully bizarre sci-fi anthology series of animated shorts from Netflix, mostly adapted from an eclectic selection of short stories from a wide range of top-notch literary talent including Peter F. Hamilton, John Scalzi, Marko Kloos and Alastair Reynolds (a particular favourite of mine).  As you’d expect from the brainchild of Deadpool director Tim Miller and producer David Fincher, this is edgy, leftfield stuff, frequently ultra-violent and decidedly adult, and the wildly varied nature of the material on offer makes for a decidedly uneven tone, but there are some absolute gems on offer here, my favourite being Suits, an enjoyably simple tale of salt-of-the-earth farmers on an alien world utilising clunky mech suits to protect their settlement from rampaging giant xeno-bugs.

4.  THE DARK CRYSTAL: AGE OF RESISTANCE

The show with the biggest cinematic wow factor in 2019 had to be this long-awaited prequel series to Jim Henson’s classic fantasy movie masterpiece, created for Netflix by, of all people, Louis Leterrier (yes, the director of The Transporter, Now You See Me and Clash of the Titans, if you can believe it). The technology may have evolved in leaps and bounds, but there’s a wonderfully old school vibe in the delightfully physical puppet effects used to bring the fantastical world of Thra and its denizens to life, so that it truly does feel like it’s based in the same world as the film.  This was EASILY the most visually arresting show of 2019, packed with exquisite character, creature and set design that perfectly complements the awesome work done by Henson and Brian Froud on the original, while the writers have created a darkly rich narrative tapestry that makes Thra seem a more dangerous place than ever.

3.  THE UMBRELLA ACADEMY

I was a HUGE fan of My Chemical Romance frontman Gerard Way’s magnificently oddball alternative superhero comic, so when I learned that Netflix were adapting it I was a little wary because I knew how spectacularly hard it would be for ANY showrunners to get right.  Thankfully Steve Blackman (Fargo season 2) and Jeremy Slater (The Exorcist TV series) were the right choice, because this perfectly captured the outsider nature of the characters and their endearingly dysfunctional family dynamic. Ellen Page, Tom Hopper (Black Sails, Merlin), David Castañeda and Emmy Raver-Lampman are all excellent as the more “functional” Hargreeves siblings, but the show is roundly stolen by Misfits star Robert Sheehan and Nicky, Ricky, Dicky & Dawn’s Aidan Gallagher as nihilistic clairvoyant Klaus and the old-man-in-a-child’s-body sociopath known only as Number Five. Consistently surprising and brilliantly bonkers, this was definitely the year’s most wonderfully WEIRD show.

2.  STRANGER THINGS (SEASON 3)

Writer-director duo the Duffer Brothers’ ultra-nostalgic 80s-set coming-of-age sci-fi horror series remains the undisputed jewel in Netflix’s long-form crown with this consistently top-drawer third season expertly maintaining the blockbuster-level standards we’ve come to expect.  This year the cross-dimensional shenanigans have largely been jettisoned, replaced by a gleefully nasty through-line of icky body horror that would make major influences like David Cronenberg and Stuart Gordon proud, as perennial teenage bad boy Billy Hargrove (the fantastically menacing Dacre Montgomery) becomes the leader of an army of psychic slaves under the control of the Upside Down’s monstrous Mind Flayer.  The kids are all brilliant as always, Winona Ryder and David Harbour really get to build on their strong-yet-spiky chemistry, and the show is almost effortlessly stolen by Joe Keery as one-time golden boy Steve Harrington and series-newcomer Maya Hawke as his nerdy new foil Robin Buckley, who were very nearly the cutest couple on TV in 2019.  Another gold standard season for a true gold standard show.

1.  GOOD OMENS

Sadly, legendary author Terry Pratchett died before he could see the adaptation of one of his most beloved novels (and one of my all-time literary favourites too) see the light of day, but at least his co-author Neil Gaiman was around to bring it to fruition with the aid of seasoned TV director David Mckinnon (Jekyll, Doctor Who, Sherlock), and the end result sure did him proud, perfectly capturing the deeply satirical voice and winningly anarchic, gleefully offbeat and gently subversive humour of the original novel.  David Tennant and Michael Sheen could both have been born to play Crowley and Aziraphale, the angel and demon nominally charged with watching over the young Antichrist in preparation for his role in the End Times, even though they would both much rather the world just went on quite happily the way it is, thanks very much. This is about as perfect an adaptation as you can get, the six hour-long episodes giving the surprisingly complex story time to breathe and grow organically, and the result is the most fun I spent in front of my TV this year.

[aion-rsa]

Neil Gaiman: How The Sandman Reinvents the Audiobook Format

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

“For years, I’ve said that I would rather have no adaptation of Sandman than a bad adaptation,” says Neil Gaiman – and for years we’ve had no Sandman adaptation. But perhaps surprisingly, given the very visual nature of a graphic novel, the first one to make it past the finish line is an audiobook – more than an audiobook, a scripted audio drama, something akin to a radio play or perhaps an ‘audio movie’ of the first three volumes of Gaiman’s The Sandman graphic novel series. It might not be the adaptation audiences were clamoring for but it works surprisingly well and might just set a path for a whole new way of consuming classic storytelling during a time when traditional screen productions are stymied.

Directed by Dirk Maggs who is well known in radio for producing complex, immersive and cinematic audio productions, the new Sandman adaptation has a Hollywood cast and an epic feel, spanning almost eleven hours in total. It’s a project which almost certainly couldn’t have worked as anything other than an audio production and retained the scope and scale, especially right in the middle of lockdown.

“When we made Coraline, on a good day, you would get seven usable seconds,” Gaiman explains. “Shooting a movie, on a good day, you get four minutes. Shooting Good Omens, on a really good day, we would get six minutes done. The amazing thing about audio is because we are just using voice and sound and because you’re relying on the listener to work with you as a co-creator and to imagine and to build, themselves, things are relatively – and I’m using the word ‘relatively’ here just because I do not, in any way, want to diminish the magnitude of what Dirk Maggs and his collaborators have done here – but it’s ‘relatively’ simple.”

Simple compared to a full on 11 hour screen version but, still with a ferocious number of moving parts and a massive cast spread across different countries, there were still major factors to take into consideration. Talking separately to Maggs we start to get a sense of the magnitude of the production. Sound was, unsurprisingly, the key to making the series work.

Maggs explains that they first recorded the ensemble cast, a group of around 60 actors who between them formed all the smaller supporting roles – some who are A-listers in their own right. These parts were recorded in London.

Neil Gaiman and Dirk Maggs

“I shoot on shotgun microphones, the same mics that you use on film sets to pick up actors’ voices, because I’m trying to carry this cinematic feel through everything,” he says. “So my first question to the other studios we were using is ‘what mic have you got?’ and then we work from that. Then it’s just a case of me carrying in my head how the recording is shaping up now. The director’s job for me is to make sure that as an audience, the listener isn’t suddenly thinking ‘hang on a minute, that sounds like it was recorded 3000 miles away, a month later.’” 

The layering of sounds effects is a complicated business too and something that Maggs has been perfecting for much of his career. From directing Superman radio plays back in the ’90s he’s no stranger to translating comic books to audio.

“The movie feel we strive for is a case of taking the voices and then basically mixing it as if it were a movie and not a radio play. It’s not the sort of polite teacups rattling, ‘more tea, vicar?’ BBC thing. This is where we add pretty much everything to the audio mix down to footsteps, clothing, rustles. If you listen to episode eight where Dream is feeding the pigeons and chatting to Death you can hear their movements as they turn to each other and throw and catch basketballs and so on. So it’s a very complex business and it’s very labor intensive, but the end result is something where if you close your eyes, you’ll see it play out on a screen in your head.”

It helps that the production managed to round up a cast that any blockbuster movie would be proud of. Front and center is James McAvoy as Morpheus – he was easy casting as far as Maggs was concerned.

“I knew that James had everything we needed to deliver Morpheus,” Maggs says. “We’d worked with him on Neil’s Neverwhere for the BBC. The thing about James is that he brings an energy. The tricky part with Morpheus is that he’s not a passive character, but he doesn’t actually do a lot of decisive action. A lot of the time he is reflective. I needed an actor who even in the reflective moments would get the sense of action and that’s what James brings.”

McAvoy was set to record his part last of all. “What none of us then knew was the day that he was due to go into the studio was the day that we went into lockdown…” Gaiman says, telling us that in the end they had to ship McAvoy “a studio” and he had to learn to work it. “He had to become his own sound engineer while Dirk Maggs directed him and talked him through, at the other end of a screen,” he explains. Gaiman says he’s started to do the same from his place in Scotland and shows us the very professional looking microphone he’s using for this Zoom call.

The result is surprisingly seamless. McAvoy and Gaiman himself are the two main constants throughout the series. Morpheus’ arcs in Preludes and Nocturnes sees the lord of the Dreaming captured by mortals and held prisoner for decades until he is able to free himself and go on a mission to win back his three stolen tools. The Doll’s House which is the second Sandman book adapted sees him on the hunt for errant dreams who have escaped from The Dreaming. While the third book, Dream Country tells standalone stories, not always featuring Morpheus at all, like the Element Girl tale, which stars Samantha Morton as a faded and long forgotten DC superhero who is severely depressed and longs for the freedom of death she is unable to attain. Morton is brilliant and the whole episode is just terribly sad.

“Dirk mentioned that, when he taped her performance, she wanted the lights down,” Gaiman explains. “He recorded her in the half dark. And then he had to go and find Kat Dennings in Atlanta. She’d been doing an all-night shoot, and she was exhausted. She still gave us her all, which is so wonderful.” The episode includes Kat Dennings as Death gently handing a tissue to Morton’s Element Girl in reality from across the Atlantic as if the two were sat together talking quietly in a dark room.

Kat Dennings voices Death

One element of the series that may provide an extra thrill to fans of the book is Gaiman’s appearance as the Narrator. By necessity, the adaptation adds extra levels of description to make up for the lack of panels to really paint pictures of The Endless and more in listeners’ heads. 

“The entire experience was very strange. I would very happily not have been the narrator,” Gaiman smiles. “Dirk wanted me, and this was Dirk’s project. My attitude was that I wanted whoever played Morpheus to be the focus and the voice that you were going to hear the most of.”

It’s a lovely bit of meta-casting which sees the creator of Dream of The Endless as the overlord, weaver of his own stories. And the extra description needed added no problems for Maggs or Gaiman since the original directions Gaiman gave to the artists on the series still existed.

“If you go into my hard disk, and you go into ancient photocopies of ancient drives on computers that have long since been forgotten and junked and abandoned…,” Gaiman says, taking us on another journey of undiscovered hidden treasures, “and you follow down ancient, DOS branchings, you eventually get to files with names like Sandman and Sandman Archives, in which all of the files are in WordPerfect 4.1 format. And they are the original Sandman scripts.”

Gaiman dug out the scripts of old and sent them to Maggs to work from.

“Everything in Sandman has been described by me at some point or another,” Gaiman says. “So Dirk would then go and find the lines that he wanted to use, which were my original descriptions to an artist of what a place looked like, what a person looked like, and slide that in and give me, as the Narrator, that line that I’d already written long, long ago, as a line of description. So, that was kind of weird. It’s almost like asking everybody who’s listening to this to become the artist for their own comic.”

It’s a rather lovely element to the adaptation which means it works just as well for people completely new to the comic as those who have images of the Endless already burned into their subconscious minds.

There’s another advantage to this approach too.

“I love the idea that blind and partially sighted people, people whose brains do not process comics, people who just can’t pick up the comics for whatever reason, now have a way of accessing those stories. That, for me, is huge,” Gaiman explains.

The Sandman brings in other well loved DC characters too with similar quality casting. Taron Egerton plays John Constantine in an arc from Preludes and Nocturnes which sees the occult detective visiting an old girlfriend to help Morpheus in his quest for his lost artefacts. Egerton plays Constantine as a convincing Scouser (Egerton’s parents are both from Liverpool) and Maggs says the Golden Globe winning actor gave him the most trouble in the edit. 

“Taron’s was the hardest because he gave me so many great choices on each line that it actually made it quite quite a challenge to make any set of decisions,” he says. “He’s like James, he comes in with ideas.”

Michael Sheen who played an angel in Good Omens, which Gaiman scripted, plays Lucifer Morningstar, “I’m not sure if it’s a promotion or a demotion,” laughs Maggs. He’s something of a favourite in the world of The Sandman who we are likely to see more from if the show gets a second series. “Michael came in and he ran with the idea of Lucifer being based slightly on David Bowie which was really nice,” says Maggs. “It worked really well with James’s Morpheus.”

With Miriam Margolyes as Despair, Riz Ahmed as The Corinithian, Arthur Darvill as Shakespeare, and Matthew Horne as Hob Gadling, among many favourites rounding out the cast, this is an all-star production that transports listeners to hell and back via the world of The Dreaming in a beautiful, sleepy way. 

There’s also the chance that this adaptation might reinvent people’s expectations and perceptions of what an audiobook can do, at the very time when many on screen productions have had to be shut down due to Covid.

“This was the chance to take a modern classic like The Sandman and realise it so convincingly in audio that people who think audiobooks consist exclusively of single voices reading against a silent background will have their expectations massively opened up by the breadth and power of the acting of our superb cast, the cinematic atmospheres, settings and sound effects, and the beautiful full score especially composed for The Sandman by James Hannigan,” explains Maggs.

“I’d love this production to open some doors for people who feel the only epic entertainment worth their attention has pictures already attached. Hopefully they’ll find the pictures in their head can match anything Hollywood can produce!”

There’s still so much material to adapt, too, with the rest of the series of graphic novels as well as The Sandman: Overture, the prequel, to work with. Gaiman is hopeful for more.  “Put it this way. This is currently number one in all categories in the UK and around much of the world on Audible and only number two in the US, because the thing about President Trump from Trump’s niece, about how awful he is, is just sitting there at number one,” says Gaiman. “Everybody’s very happy at Audible with how well this has done in terms of reach and listening and people enjoying it and everybody’s loving it. So, I cannot imagine a world in which we don’t now go on and do Season of Mists and keep going. I want the whole thing.”

The post Neil Gaiman: How The Sandman Reinvents the Audiobook Format appeared first on Den of Geek.

from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/3jr8iiw

[leahloox]

TV Shows People MUST Checkout (Including Google Overviews.)

It’s just facts 🤷‍♀️

WARNINGS! Please note that some of these shows involve nudity, sexual scenes, violence and other mature themes that aren’t for everybody! (Red text)

-Downton Abbey (I love this series, every character, plot, and scene is always a masterpiece.) This historical drama follows the lives of the Crawley family and their servants in the family's Edwardian country house. The programme begins with the 1912 sinking of the Titanic, which leaves Downton Abbey's future in jeopardy, as Lord Grantham's presumptive heir -- his cousin James -- and his son, Patrick, die aboard the ship, leaving him without a male offspring to take over the throne upon his death. As a result, Lord Grantham must search for a new heir. As the programme progresses through the decade, other historical events happen leading up to Lord Grantham declaring in 1914 that Britain is at war with Germany, marking the beginning of World War I, which becomes a major plot on the programme. Does deal with difficult topics!

-Outlander (I actually just started this one but I’m really enjoying it.) After serving as a British Army nurse in World War II, Claire Randall is enjoying a second honeymoon in Scotland with husband Frank, an MI6 officer looking forward to a new career as an Oxford historian. Suddenly, Claire is transported to 1743 and into a mysterious world where her freedom and life are threatened. To survive, she marries Jamie Fraser, a strapping Scots warrior with a complicated past and a disarming sense of humour. A passionate relationship ensues, and Claire is caught between two vastly different men in two inharmonious lives. `Outlander' is adapted from the best-selling books by Diana Gabaldon. Maturity Warning! This show contains vivid violence and sexual scenes! GRAPHIC!

-Game Of Thrones (Lets be real everybody and their mother knows the existence of this series but just in case you hadn’t here it is. This series is my personal favorite regardless of the disaster that was the last season. Honestly everything until that point I loved, I watched it all in a month) George R.R. Martin's best-selling book series "A Song of Ice and Fire" is brought to the screen as HBO sinks its considerable storytelling teeth into the medieval fantasy epic. It's the depiction of two powerful families -- kings and queens, knights and renegades, liars and honest men -- playing a deadly game for control of the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros, and to sit atop the Iron Throne. Martin is credited as a co-executive producer and one of the writers for the series, whose shooting locations include Northern Ireland, Malta, Croatia and Spain. (Way more families are involved, but okay google.) Maturity Warning! This show contains vivid violence and sexual scenes! GRAPHIC!

-Anne with an E (SO underrated! Very good though!) This reimagining of the classic book and film is a coming-of-age story about a young orphan who is seeking love, acceptance and her place in the world. Amybeth McNulty stars as Anne, a 13-year-old who has endured an abusive childhood in orphanages and the homes of strangers. In the late 1890s, Anne is mistakenly sent to live with aging siblings, Marilla and Matthew Cuthbert, who live on Prince Edward Island. Anne, who proves to be uniquely spirited, imaginative and smart, transforms the lives of Marilla, Matthew and everyone else in their small town.

-Glee (It’s just good folks, a very enjoyable show up until season 5 personally.) Optimistic teacher Will Schuester heads up McKinley High School's glee club -- New Directions -- a place where ambitious and talented students can find strength, acceptance and their voice. As the students find themselves, they also enjoy a respite from the harsh realities of life. Mr. Schuester hopes to help the kids in every way he can, and also dreams of taking the group to nationals. As Schuester and the glee club pursue their goal, they face opposition from a conniving cheerleading coach, Sue Sylvester, who tries to sabotage the group at every turn.

-Stranger Things (At this point if you haven’t seen it I’m shocked. I will say I wasn’t a huge fan of season 1, and questioned if I should continue, but I assure you the next two seasons were great. If you were kinda like me and not into the first season, I’d highly recommend to keep going as I loved it. Season 1 had to world build. I won’t insert a overview because the overview is for season 2, so I’d just head to Netflix and read what season 1 is all about.)

-Jane the Virgin (I haven’t completed it but the story is overall compelling and I’m sure you’ll enjoy it.) The daughter of a teen mother, Jane Villanueva grew up determined not to repeat her mom's mistakes. At 23, her life is on track; Jane is studying to be a teacher and engaged to a handsome detective who supports her decision to remain a virgin until marriage. Then a routine clinic visit flips her life upside down. Inseminated by a specimen meant for a patient in the next room, now-pregnant Jane is in a situation made only more insane when she learns that the sperm donor is her boss, Rafael. As her meticulously planned life gets more like the telenovelas she loves, she faces a lot of complicated decisions about where to go from here.

-Lucifer (If none of these peak your interest, please atleast check this one out. It’s just. So good. It’s something that anyone can get enjoyment out of. ) Based on characters created by Neil Gaiman, Sam Kieth and Mike Dringenberg, this series follows Lucifer, the original fallen angel, who has become dissatisfied with his life in hell. After abandoning his throne and retiring to Los Angeles, Lucifer indulges in his favorite things (women, wine and song) -- until a murder takes place outside of his upscale nightclub. For the first time in billions of years, the murder awakens something unfamiliar in Lucifer's soul that is eerily similar to compassion and sympathy. Lucifer is faced with another surprise when he meets an intriguing homicide detective named Chloe, who appears to possess an inherent goodness -- unlike the worst of humanity, to which he is accustomed. Suddenly, Lucifer starts to wonder if there is hope for his soul.

[vintage1der]

What separates these works from the Harry Potter fanfiction you find online may come down to snobbery. There is an undercurrent of misogyny in mainstream criticism of fanfiction, which is widely accepted to be dominated by women; one census of 10,500 AO3 users found that 80% of the users identified as female, with more users identified as genderqueer (6%) than male (4%). Novik has spent a good deal of time fighting against fanfiction’s stigma because she feels it is “an attack on women’s writing, specifically an attack on young women’s writing and the kind of stories that young women like to tell”. Which is not to say that young women only want to write about romance: “I think,” Novik says, “that [the popularity of fanfiction amongst women is] not unconnected to the lack of young women protagonists who are not romantic interests.” Devotees of fanfiction will sometimes tell you that it’s one of the oldest writing forms in the world. Seen with this generous eye, the art of writing stories using other people’s creations hails from long before our awareness of Twilight-fanfic-turned-BDSM romance Fifty Shades of Grey: perhaps Virgil, when he picked up where Homer left off with the story of Aeneas, or Shakespeare’s retelling of Arthur Brookes’s 1562 The Tragical History of Romeus and Juliet. What most of us would recognise as fanfiction began in the 1960s, when Star Trek fans started creating zines about Spock and Captain Kirk’s adventures. Thirty years later, the internet arrived, which made sharing stories set in other people’s worlds – be they Harry Potter, Spider-Man, or anything and everything in between – easier. Fanfiction has always been out there, if you knew where to look. Now, it’s almost impossible to miss.

In the last few years, fanfiction has enjoyed something of a rebrand. Big-name authors such as EL James, author of the Fifty Shades books, and Cassandra Clare, who has always been open about writing Harry Potter fanfiction before her bestselling Mortal Instruments series, have helped bring it into the mainstream. These days, it’s fairly common knowledge that some people just really like writing about Captain America and Bucky Barnes falling in love, or Doctor Who fighting demons with Buffy. The general image of fanfiction has brightened somewhat: less creepy, more sweetly nerdy.

But the divide between fanfiction and original writing holds strong. It’s assumed that if people write fanfiction, it’s because they can’t produce their own. At best, it functions as training wheels, preparing a writer to commit to a real book. When they don’t – as in the famous case of Fifty Shades, which one plagiarism checker found had an 89% similarity rate with James’s original Twilight fanfiction – they are ridiculed. A real author, the logic goes, having moved on to writing their own books, doesn’t look back.

“Here’s the thing,” Naomi Novik explains over the phone from New York. She is the bestselling author of the Temeraire books, a fantasy series that adds dragons to the Napoleonic Wars, and Spinning Silver, which riffs on Rumpelstiltskin. “I don’t actually draw any line between my fanfiction work and my professional work – except that I only write the fanfiction stuff for love.”

In between writing her novels – or indeed during, as she admits that fanfiction is one of her favourite procrastination techniques – Novik is an active member of the fanfiction community. She is a co-founder of the Archive of Our Own (AO3), one of the most popular hosting websites, and a prolific writer in the universes of Harry Potter, Game of Thrones, Merlin and many more.

And she’s not the only professional at work. Rainbow Rowell, the bestselling author of Eleanor and Park and other novels, once told the Bookseller that between two novels, she wrote a 30,000-word Harry Potter fanfiction. “It’s Harry and Draco as a couple who have been married for many years, and they’re raising Harry’s kids,” she said. “It’s them dealing with attachment parenting and step-parents and all these middle-aged issues.”

The divide between a fanfiction writer and an original fiction writer can look very arbitrary when looking at authors such as Michael Chabon, who once described his own novel Moonglow as “a Gravity’s Rainbow fanfic”. Or Madeline Miller, whose Orange-prize winning The Song of Achilles detailed the romantic relationship between Achilles and Patroclus, and whose latest novel Circe picks up on the witch who seduces Odysseus in the Odyssey. Miller said she was initially worried when one ex-boyfriend described her work as “Homeric fanfiction” but has since embraced her love of adapting and playing with Greek mythology. The tag could also be applied to classics such as Jean Rhys’s Wide Sargasso Sea, reworkings of Shakespeare by the likes of Margaret Atwood and Edward St Aubyn in the Hogarth series, and a spate of parodies: Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, or Android Karenina.

What separates these works from the Harry Potter fanfiction you find online may come down to snobbery. There is an undercurrent of misogyny in mainstream criticism of fanfiction, which is widely accepted to be dominated by women; one census of 10,500 AO3 users found that 80% of the users identified as female, with more users identified as genderqueer (6%) than male (4%). Novik has spent a good deal of time fighting against fanfiction’s stigma because she feels it is “an attack on women’s writing, specifically an attack on young women’s writing and the kind of stories that young women like to tell”. Which is not to say that young women only want to write about romance: “I think,” Novik says, “that [the popularity of fanfiction amongst women is] not unconnected to the lack of young women protagonists who are not romantic interests.”

Others may find it odd that published authors would bother writing fanfiction alongside or between their professional work. But it’s all too simple to draw lines between two forms of writing that, in their separate ways, can be both productive and joyful. Neil Gaiman once wrote that the most important question an author can ask is: “What if?” Fanfiction takes this to the next level. What if King Arthur was gay? What if Voldemort won? What if Ned Stark escaped?

“I believe that all art, if it’s any good, is in dialogue with other art,” Novik says. “Fanfiction feels to me like a more intimate conversation. It’s a conversation where you need the reader to really have a lot of detail at their fingertips.”

For writers still wobbling on training wheels, fanfiction offers benefits: the immediate gratification of sharing writing without navigating publishers; passionate readers who are already interested in the characters, and a collegial stream of feedback from fellow writers.

“There was an audience of people who wanted to read my writing,” says young adult author Sarah Rees Brennan, who wrote Harry Potter fanfiction in her teens and twenties before she published her own novels, the latest of which, In Other Lands, was a Hugo award finalist. “Here were all these people online who wanted stories about familiar characters. Audiences were pre-invested and waiting.”

For writers, whether already published or on the path to being published, this instantaneous readership functions as a writer’s workshop: Novik calls it a “community of your peers”. Spending hours thrashing out the details of Draco Malfoy’s inner life can’t help but function as a crash course in character motivation. And the limits and constraints of working within a pre-existing world, with its own characters and settings, is a unique challenge.

“Fanfiction is a great incubator for writers,” Novik says. “The more constraints you have on you at the beginning, the better. It’s why people do writing exercises, or play scales. That kind of constraint forces you to practice certain skills, and then at a certain point you have the control to bring out the whole toolbox.”

Once some writers get those tools, they never look back. Rees Brennan no longer writes fanfiction. “I had a friend say it’s like the difference between babysitting kids and having children of your own,” she says. “With a world you built yourself, and characters you built, there’s this sense of deep, overwhelming love.”

But Rees Brennan is still a fan of collaborative writing and shared universes, as in the short stories she writes with Cassandra Clare about characters from Clare’s Mortal Instruments universe. “It’s amazing to gather around a kitchen table and yell at each other excitedly about what’s going to happen to mutually beloved characters,” she says. “I want that for every creative person – a chance to find their imaginative family, wherever it may be.”

Novik scorns the idea that published authors should turn their back on fanfiction. She recalls being on a panel where one member said he couldn’t understand why someone would waste their time writing it over an original work: “I said, ‘Have you ever played an instrument?’ He was like, ‘Yeah, I play piano’. I said, ‘So, do you compose all your own music?’”

“When I was first published, I deliberately went to my editors and said, ‘Yes, I’ve been writing fanfiction for 10 years. I love it.’ It was non-negotiable for me. As soon as you do that, by the way, it turns out that like half of the publishing industry has read or been involved in fanfiction,” she laughs. “Shockingly! It’s amazing how all these women who like storytelling have some connection to the community.”

For Novik and many other writers, fanfiction is a fundamental a way of expressing oneself, of teasing out new ideas and finding a joyous way to engage with writing again after the hard slog of editing a novel. The journey to become a published writer isn’t a straight line; it’s a spiral, as we grow older and continue to explore the characters and tropes we love. There’s so many stories waiting to be told – perhaps one or two of them could involve getting Captain America laid. God knows he needs it.

[recentanimenews]

The Complicated Licensing History of Princess Mononoke

  It’s hard to not know of the impact of Studio Ghibli. Founded in 1985 by Hayao Miyazaki, Isao Takahata, and Toshio Suzuki, it has grown to be one of the most well-known film studios in the world, producing animated films that spark wonder and curiosity in all that watch them. One of its most well-known titles comes in the more mature Princess Mononoke, an animated epic about the environment, conflict, and humanity during the Muromachi period. That there is no clear line of good and evil makes the story all the more compelling and it garnered a lot of praise upon its initial release in 1997, even making it the first animated film to win the Japan Academy Prize for Picture of the Year. Many are fond of the original, but the history of its release in the United States is a surprisingly complicated one. Today is the anniversary of the Japanese release, so let's take a look at the wild history of how this classic got to the US! 

  Image via GKIDS Films 

  Although Studio Ghibli is well known now, it was taken much less seriously by distributors in the beginning. The studio had a rough initial start with Nausicaa’s release in the United States by New World Pictures, where the film underwent a significant overhaul. Retitled Warriors of the Wind, nearly a quarter of the movie was cut, resulting in many of the environmental themes being lost. Miyazaki was notoriously horrified by this treatment and disavowed this version. As such, when Disney approached Studio Ghibli in 1997 for worldwide theatrical and home video distribution rights (excluding Asia), Ghibli was clear in their contract of two things: Disney wasn’t allowed creative control or merchandising rights. 

  Disney looked at Princess Mononoke with a bit of concern, and not without reason. Ghibli films are different than the usual fare of Disney media, and Disney feared that it might not be marketable to American audiences. Some portions, such as the violence and the lack of overt romance concerned some of the higher-ups, so it ended up being released under Miramax, a Disney subsidiary at the time.

  Steve Alpert, the head of international sales of Ghibli at the time, mentions that there was a fear that Disney would want to change too much of the movie, as the concept of what was considered a good dub in Disney consisted of mostly localization rather than direct translation. In a recent AMA, Alpert said that "trying hard not to adapt the film and harder to get the American distributors to recognize and feature the film's existing appeal," is one of the hardest parts of adapting a Ghibli film. While author Neil Gaiman was hired to pen the English script, Ghibli still sent Alpert in with a specific set of instructions, some of which included: not adding in slang, keeping the culture of Ashitaka and the class of Lady Eboshi distinct, and not changing the title.

  According to Alpert’s memoir, Sharing a House With the Neverending Man: 15 Years at Studio Ghibli, Miramax executives seemed to have a lot of trouble, specifically in trying to delineate good and evil in a story where the lines are blurred. Of course, there is the rumor of when dealing with Harvey Weinstein — head of Miramax at the time — and his demand to cut the movie’s content by a significant amount, Miyazaki’s producer (Suzuki) gave him a sword in the middle of a meeting with Miramax employees, and declared, "Princess Mononoke, no cuts!" Indeed, there were no cuts to the movie, but it didn’t garner as much attention compared to Spirited Away years later, only grossing about $2.3 million in its limited release. 

   Image via GKIDS Films

The differences didn’t end there. While the VHS release only had the dubbed audio, the DVD was originally set to be released only with English and French audio, which confused the anime community. Wanting the original Japanese audio to be included, fans organized petitions asking Disney to reconsider the DVD selection, which garnered a few thousand signatures. In the summer of 2000, Buena Vista "delayed" the DVD to allow for the Japanese track, and the full DVD was released in December 2000, which had the complete English, Japanese, and French audio.

  In September 2011, film distribution company GKIDS acquired the American rights to distribution of 13 of Studio Ghibli films from Disney, including that of Princess Mononoke. GKIDS also put out their own DVD release of the Studio Ghibli collection in 2017, which had some differences from the Disney/Miramax release. The GKIDS release of Mononoke included the original English dub and the same or similar transfer as the Disney version, but issued a set of new English subtitles based off the original Japanese instead of the dub script issued by Miramax. GKIDS’ release also included hosting a yearly limited screening event of Studio Ghibli films, which Mononoke became part of in 2018. Most of the Ghibli collection remains with GKIDS up to the present day.

Image via GKIDS Films

  The only copy of Princess Mononoke I have is my worn VHS from the Ghibli ga Ippai Collection, well-watched, well-loved. While my copy is from the Japanese side, my friends have a different story to tell. Their first encounter with the movie is on their old Miramax VHS, sometimes on the DVD if they had a DVD player back then. Still, as we all watched in awe when we were young, there was a complicated backstory behind the movie we all loved, one none of us could have expected. 

      What was your first encounter with Princess Mononoke, and what do you most remember about it? Let us know in the comments!

  Noelle Ogawa is a contributor to Bubbleblabber and Cup of Moe. She can be found on Twitter @noelleogawa.

  Do you love writing? Do you love anime? If you have an idea for a features story, pitch it to Crunchyroll Features!

By: news+feed@crunchyroll.com

[headlinermanila]

A celebration of TOYCON's 18th year in the Asian Pop Culture Scene

The Philippine Toys, Hobbies and Collectibles Convention, better known as TOYCON PH, is celebrating 18 years of serving pop culture enjoyment to its fans both local and international. It is, simply put, the longest-running and premiere pop culture event in Asia.  

Early this year, TOYCON PH presented a fresh visual identity, through a new logo, to cater to the growing millennial crowd, and also attract visitors from all over the world with a global perspective to promote the Philippines as the leading pop culture playground in Asia, that showcases Filipino creativity, innovativeness and talent through toys, games, entertainment and digital content.

TOYCON PH – Where Asia Comes to Play!

TOYCON’s new tagline indicates the direction of where it is going.

It is now an International event that will flex its muscle to further increase the international visitors that are coming.

This all means that a better and grander line-up of activities is expected for this year. These activities are guaranteed to give its enthusiastic followers and the casual fans more to enjoy in TOYCON.

TOYCON has had 17 years of excellent experience in making the Philippine pop culture scene the most dynamic and the most fan-centric experience in the region!  It started the pop culture revolution in the country. And now it is capturing the heart of pop culture enthusiasts in the whole Asia Pacific region.

This year is the 18th year of the event, and through the years it has been adding value and uniting the different toy and pop culture communities in the Philippines.

TOYCON’s Exclusive Toys and merchandise

One of the things to anticipate this year are the exclusive toys, collectibles and merchandise that will come out of the event.

This year, there will be more exclusive toys that will come out in TOYCON. And if you are a toy collector, it will be one of those events that you can call heaven sent.

Headlining as the marquee TOYCON exclusive is the Zeta Manila Killa PH Colorway designed and created by Quiccs Maiquez, who was awarded Toy Designer of the Year and Toy of the Year in the recently held Designer Toy Awards in New York City.

In addition, the much-anticipated Jollibee Flocked variant Funko Pop will also exclusively be distributed by the Funko Funatics Philippines during the event this year.  We also have Filipino-inspired toy exclusives of Tiny Ghost by Bim Toy, Dino by Ziqi Toys and the first release of the Batman Imperial Palace warrior vinyl toy by Mindstyle.

TOYCON’s Toy Designer Line-up Gets Bigger

When there are exclusive toys, not far behind are the big toy brands and toy designers. There will be more local and international brands and toy designers that will grace this year’s event.

Brands like Lego, Funko, Bandai, Good Smile, Hot Toys and XM Studios, along with internationally renowned toy designers: Ron English (the legendary godfather of street art), Quiccs, Wetworks, Anatoy, Yoii, Hariken, Creon Chkn Head, Happy Garaje, Jessica Emmett, Daniel Yu, Fanny Kao, Mumbot, Rusho Toys, Jwon, Kaze Studio, Messymaru, Mupa, Non World, Siam Ruf, Tangent and Too Natthapong will line up the event with their distinct brand of collectibles. These designers from all over the globe certainly get the art toy enthusiasts excited in all the international toy shows and certainly, art toy aficionados will get spoiled in this year’s event!

 TOYCON’s International Influencers and Celebrity Guests

The era of the digital influencers is here. TOYCON, with our partner Pop Life Global, is giving the community a taste of the future and beyond.  First up are influencers from the Pop Life’s Pro-Am Studios, which is in the business of making movies out of their studio and post-production facilities in China. They are slated to release five movies this year and next.    

One highlight of this year’s FanXperience event will be the Battle Dance Champions featured in the Pop Life produced movie, No Dance, No Life.  World-class dance will take over the FanXperience stage featuring talents such as Former Bboy of the Year: Bboy Morris, World of Dance 2019 Champions: The Kings, World of Dance Team of the Year: Academy of Villains, and The Creator of the dance style, Krumping, Tight Eyez.

The international artists are a staple of TOYCON. Through our partner, Pop Life Global, we have had guests from Game of Thrones, Pirates of the Caribbean, Power Rangers, Superman and X-Men, and other great franchises.

This year two guests confirmed to arrive are from the hit AMC series The Walking Dead. These are actors Michael Cudlitz, who played Sergeant Abraham Ford, and Steven Ogg, who played Simon and also plays Trevor in the hit video game Grand Theft Auto V.

TOYCON’s Sound Arena

We love music, who doesn’t? This year, fresh new talent will hit the stage of TOYCON with band performances and idol groups joining the fray. This TOYCON, you will cheer your heart out, guaranteed!

Up and coming bands Souldrift, Lila, The Lock Pickers, The Glass O, Project:Materia, Kanjiru, Asterysk, Lunar Rhythm, as well as fan favorites Aidoru Sozai, CH4U, and Pastel∞Mix will be performing at the TOYCON stage for its Music Festival.

TOYCON’s Comics and Gaming Exhibition!

TOYCON is also our country’s undisputed Comic Con with top-caliber comic book artists gracing the event.

The line-up this year includes:

Berlin Manalaysay: Creator of the well-loved cyborg, ‘Combatron’, one of the most well received characters in Funny Komics in 1992.

Ed Tadeo: A prolific Filipino comic book artist, colorist and inker for Marvel, DC, and Image Comics. Titles of his works in coloring and inking include: Wolverine, Silver Surfer, High Roads and District X.

Heubert Khan Michael: Former guidance councilor turned legendary comic book artist. Judged by Neil Gaiman himself, Hubert won 3rd place in the Philippine Graphic Fiction Awards back in 2010 and has been inking since then! Some of his awesome works include: Vampirella, Unstoppable, and The Owl.

Miguel Mercado: Miguel is a Cosplayer and Illustrator. Miguel has is known within the Comic Book community for his epic cover art for Back to the Future (2015), Buffy The Vampire Slayer (2019) and Over The Garden Wall (2017).

Harvey Tolibao: Harvey first got involved in the comics industry in late 2006 when he penciled and inked the twelfth issue of Dark Horse Comics' Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. He also did the art for Iron Man: Director of S.H.I.E.L.D., Psylocke, the Avengers and has also done some work for Top Cow and for DC.  

Pol Medina Jr: Pol is a Filipino cartoonist best known for creating Pugad Baboy, a comic strip about a community of fatsos and a dog named Polgas, highlighting domestic life and the characters’ commentary on relevant societal issues and pop culture. Pol is the 2018 recipient of the TOYCON Pinoy Pop Culture Icon Award.

Raymund Bermudez: Filipino Comic Book Artist, Penciler and Cover Artist for DC Comics. Some of his notable works include: Justice League, Pathfinders and Lex Luthor.

Raymund Lee: Professional Digital Comic Book Colorist who is known for his painterly style and classic renditions of superheroes.

And finally, Steve Gan: One of the most accomplished Chinese-Filipino Comic Book Artists to date. Best known for co-creating the legendary comic book “Ang Panday” as well as Marvel’s “Star-Lord” and “Skull the Slayer”.

Another exciting comics-related news is that ABS-CBN will launch the Ravelo Komiks Universe in TOYCON 2019, the first ever unified comics universe in the Philippines,

with a legacy display of new merchandise for its prominent stable of heroes, Darna, Captain Barbell and Lastikman.  Watch out for life-size statues of these character on display!

Other TOYCON 2019 Highlights

Exhibits from epic movies coming soon will make the TOYCON scene more engaging. Headlined by movies from Sony Pictures, Spider-Man: Far from Home, and Warner Brothers’ line-up of movie icons from the horror genre, the Annabelle doll from Warner Brothers upcoming Anabelle Comes Home, Pennywise the Clown from IT: Chapter 2 and Chucky from Reality Pictures’ 2019 adaptation of Child’s Play. Meet them up close, but don’t blink!

This year’s TOYCON will also feature a new fun zone, the Play Hub!

This is where fans of comics and gaming will find the young and upstart artists in the design, graphic and digital spheres come together to exhibit their craft and talents! The Game Developers Association of the Philippines (GDAP) will host TOYCON’s Gaming Conference, while the Animation Council of the Philippines will showcase more than 50 short films in the Theater Room.

TOYCON POPLIFE FANXPERIENCE will also be the stage for the unveiling of the biggest Batman statue in Asia, the 22-foot tall Imperial Palace Batman which is a likeness of the Dark Knight never seen before until now. Celebrating the 80th Anniversary of Batman, DC Collectibles has announced a collaboration with Pop Life Global and China’s Imperial Palace for a special series of figures featuring DC Comics characters in costumes themed after ancient Chinese warriors and soldier armors. This Batman statue is going to be one for the history books!

This year’s World Cosplay Summit Philippines (WCSPH) National Finals will also be held at TOYCON 2019, with Japanese Cosplayer Reika and WCSPH Alumni Ming Miho and 2018 Philippine Representative Team Sekai (Sergio Sta. Ana and Kai Raito) headlining this activity. Five  cosplay pairs selected from parts of the country will compete for the right  to represent the Philippines at the 2019 World Cosplay Summit in Japan.

Aside from these, TOYCON 2019 will host a number of activities such as a Mobile Legends gaming Tournament in partnership with InFlux TV, The TOYCON Cosplay KO Competition and bestow the Pinoy Pop Culture Icon Award, which honors the icons that made our Filipino pop culture heritage truly distinct and long-lasting.

TOYCON’s line-up of vendors and exhibitors also gets bigger and better every year with more than 300 merchandise booths of toys, pop culture memorabilia, apparel, collectibles and more, with more international brands coming to town.

TOYCON Pop Life FanXperience 2019 – It’s a Whole New Playground!

TOYCON PH and Pop Life FanXperience is proving indeed that it is the leading pop culture playground in the Philippines and in Southeast Asia. There will be more sights to share for your various channels and social media, engaging activities, shows and panel discussions, interactive brand activations, collectibles and merchandise, and YOU are definitely going to be a part of what will make TOYCON great this year!

TOYCON POPLIFE FANXPERIENCE happens on June 28-30, 2019 at the SMX Convention Center, Pasay City.

[The event is made possible by PLDT Home Fibr, MaxiCollector, Big Boys Toy Store, Filbars, Great Toys Online, Ano Toys, Arigatoys, Hobbiestock Collectibles, De La Salle College of St. Benilde, Kramer Toy Warden and main media partner, ABS-CBN. With thanks to our official residence partner, Tryp by Wyndham Mall of Asia Manila.]  

So cheers for TOYCON’s 18th year and we hope you join us in this ground-breaking international event. Always check out the TOYCON website, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts for more updates:

www.toyconph.com www.Facebook.com/ToyconPH www.twitter.com/PHToycon www.instagram.com/PHToycon

[niamsuggitt]

The Ides Of May 2017

Hi guys! It’s that time of the month again, time for me to write a ‘lil bit about all of the various media I’ve stuffed into my gaping eye and ear-holes over the past 30 days. I would have included mouth-holes there too, but Nintendo deliberately made Switch cartridges taste horrible so unfortunately I haven’t been able to eat one. Oh well.

This month includes the return of some Sitcom favourites, more of me slowly, ever-so-slowly playing Zelda, a Booker Prize winner and a nice heap of Marvel Cinematic Universe fun.

Let’s do it!

—

Movies

Once again there’s only 2 movies this month, and whilst they are both very different, both provide quite a bit to think and talk about. Up first is Anomalisa (Charlie Kaufman and Duke Johnson 2015). This may be surprising given the types of films I normally like, but before watching Anomalisa I have to admit to not liking Charlie Kaufman as a writer. I’ve seen Eternal Sunshine, Being John Malkovich and Adaptation, and none of them resonated with me like they do for so many others. I just find him a bit… pretentious? Like he tries too hard to do different things and in the end it just obscures what he’s actually trying to say? I dunno. But much to my surprise and pleasure, I really enjoyed Anomalisa, which is different from Kaufman’s other work in that it’s animated. This stop-motion story follows a man (voiced by David Thewlis) who is on a business trip to Cincinnati. This man, Michael, sees everyone else in the world, including his wife, a former girlfriend, as the same person. They have the same face, and the same voice (Tom Noonan). That is until he stumbles across one other person who looks different, Lisa, (Jennifer Jason Leigh). It’s a complicated, dare I say, pretentious set-up, but for me it works. The animation is fantastic, incredibly detailed, and it’s used to go to places other animated films wouldn’t. This is a truly adult film, so if after Team America you wanted to see more puppet nudity and sex… I’ve got you covered. The way the technique of having everyone except Michael and Lisa be the same person works is incredibly effective and disorientating. It took about 10 minutes for me to twig it, the unease sort of snuck up on me. I said earlier that I think Kaufman’s gimmickry gets in the way of what he is actually trying to say, but that is not the case here, I think I pretty much got what the film was saying about solipsism, and how so many other films feature a ‘manic pixie dream girl’ who shakes a depressed male protagonist out of their funk. Anomalisa flips your expectations here. Lisa is not Michael’s soulmate, she’s just a blip in his mental illness. If it even is that, he might just be an asshole. That’s not to say that Lisa isn’t a well-drawn character, because she is, and Leigh’s voice acting makes her come to life. Then again, maybe this isn’t what Kaufman and Johnson are saying at all and I’m an idiot. Either way, Anomalisa is a fascinating film that has been rotating in my head since I watched it. It’s unlike anything else I’ve seen lately, and has me reconsidering my position on Charlie Kaufman. I certainly plan on watching the other film he directed, rather than just wrote, Synecdoche New York, and maybe I’ll go back to those other, older films.

Up next, I took a step away from the esoteric puppet show towards the mainstream blockbuster and into the cinema, as I went to see Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2 (James Gunn 2017) which is of course (of course) the third film in the third phase of the monolithic Marvel Cinematic Universe. As is par for the course when writing about these films (and some, most, of the TV projects) I feel like I have to fully lay out a bit of bias. I love these films and just seeing these characters on screen and being done justice like this takes away a lot of my critical faculties. Problems I have with other, similar movies, I can brush aside because, hey, it’s the MCU, I trust these people. But that aside, I thoroughly enjoyed Guardians 2, and whilst I don’t think it’s quite as good as the first one, I really appreciate it’s weirdness and how much crazy Marvel Universe lore it puts out there, if only just to hint at. The film of course sees all of our favourites from the first film, Star-Lord, Gamara, Drax, Rocket and Groot return for another adventure, but this time, the stakes are far more personal, as Star-Lord meets his father, Ego, who is brilliantly portrayed by Kurt Russell. Firstly, it was just awesome to be back with these characters again, they are just so much fun. The Guardians are perhaps the MCU versions that are the most different from the originals (of course, the comics have in turn, begun to reflect the movies far more) and as such I have a different emotional attachment to them. I’m not constantly comparing Gamora to the 500 Gamora comics I’ve read in my life, I’m just invested in her relationship with Nebula, and with Star-Lord. As I mentioned, the main plot here is Peter and his father, but the script makes sure that every Guardian (except maybe Baby Groot, but he’s adorable enough that you don’t mind) has their own story. Drax forms a bond with the newcomer Mantis (who is great!), Gamora fights her sister again, but even more personally, and Rocket deals with his anger driving people away. I found myself invested in all of these storylines, and it mean that, whilst the overall plot did sag a bit in the middle of the film, I didn’t mind. I will say that I am a bit sick of people dismissing Star-Lord’s story as ‘just more daddy issues’ or something like that. I think that’s reductive, and to me, the real plotline is how much Peter Quill still cares about his mother. His love for her is what snaps him out of cosmic brainwashing, and let’s not forget that, as awesome as the classic soundtracks are, they do serve an emotional purpose, as they are his only link to Earth, and to his mum. Maybe it’s just because my mother died of cancer as well (although hers wasn’t put there by an evil Celestial, at least I don’t think it was), but if anything, this is far more of a ‘mommy issues’ movie than a daddy issues one. I mentioned the soundtrack earlier, and I will say that this particular ‘awesome mix’ was a bit of step down, with the songs either being too mainstream (Fleetwood Mac, ELO) or way too obscure. Maybe I’m asking too much, but the first movie’s track selection was just perfect, hard for lightning to strike twice I suppose. The other character I want to specially highlight is Michael Rooker as Yondu, who is just amazing here. He has real pathos behind him and makes a character I never really knew into an absolute favourite. His storyline also sees the film do something I really didn’t expect and bring in more of the ‘original’ Guardians, the ones who, in the comics, were in the future. This movie has Sylvester Goddamn Stallone in it as Starhawk and I went in without knowing! I love that Gunn hasn’t forgotten the likes of Charlie-27 and Martinex, and that a major movie can feature characters as weird as them. That’s what sets this film apart from me, it’s not afraid to get a bit odd, and to use weird elements from the source material to their full potential. A few years ago, Ego The Living Planet would be considered way too goofy for a film, but not here, here he’s Kurt Russell! Some of this is pure fan-service, but as mentioned, when it comes to these films, I don’t mind that at all. The Stan Lee cameo was amazing, the teaser in the credits for Adam Warlock blew my mind (it took me an embarrassingly long time to connect Ayesha and her golden skin to that classic cosmic character). This film’s links to the wider universe are like that, more hints. I did expect some big Thanos developments, but ultimately, I don’t mind spending 2 hours just inside these goofball’s messed-up heads. I can’t wait for Vol.3, and I hope that, when the Guardians appear in Avengers: Infinity War, they don’t lose what makes them special. This film was just a blast, it delivers more of what you want, as well as surprising you with where it goes, the best kind of sequel.

Television

There’s one new TV show for me to talk about this time out, in the form of American Gods (Starz), the long-awaited adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s 2001 novel. This is an interesting series for me adaptation-wise because, whilst I have read the book, it was a long time ago and I don’t really remember a lot of what happened. Just the basic gist really. This isn’t like Game Of Thrones or The Expanse where the source material is fresh as a daisy in my mind and I’m constantly comparing the show to what I already know. Here, I’m kind of hazy on the details and it’s a lot of fun being surprised both by what I didn’t know, and what I forgot I knew! The basic plot has barely begun, but basically, Gods are real, they live in America, they are at war, and a man named Shadow Moon (as far as I can call this dumb-ass name does have a good explanation) is drawn into their world after the death of his wife and his release from prison (on the same day). Not only is that, to me, a great intriguing premise, but it’s really elevated by some fantastic performances and amazing visual flair. One of the show’s main producers is Bryan Fuller, from Hannibal, and the opening 2 episodes where directed by David Slade, who directed a fair few episodes of that show too, so you can really tell that there’s a link in how the series looks and feels. The dream sequences and trippier moments are straight out of Hannibal, they are brilliant. There’s a sex montage in Episode 2 with Bilquis that is just insane. The performances so far have been great as well, Ian Fucking McShane is of course stealing the show as Mr Wednesday, but Ricky Whittle is really doing well as Shadow, which must be a hard role to play as he’s kind of intentionally inscrutable and a bit blank. And, if you watch nothing else, watch Orlando Jones’ monologue as Anansi that opens Episode 2. It is one of the best single scene performances I’ve ever seen, it knocked me for a loop. It’s only been 2 episodes, but this is already a fantastic, ambitious series that’s unlike anything else on TV. I can’t wait to see where it goes, and what else I can remember.

This month also saw the return of 2 of my favourite US Comedies. Silicon Valley (HBO) is back for a 4th season of tech-based misadventures. So far this season has managed to somehow feel like more of the same, but also change things up in a lot of interesting ways, as the characters move about into new situations. At the end of Season 3 it felt like we were right back to the beginning, but that wasn’t the case, as we’ve seen multiple characters leave companies, join new ones, sell companies, and all sorts of other manoeuvring. The prospect of Richard actually working with Gavin Belson is very exciting. In amongst all of these shake-ups, the characters have continued to be as funny as ever. I love how Big Head continues to fail upwards, he’s now a Professor at Stanford! And seeing Dinesh get a girlfriend is something we haven’t seen before. I’m also enjoying the increased role for Jian-Yang. Jimmy O. Yang has always been very funny in his brief scenes, but now he’s getting actual stories, which is cool. And man, Zach Woods is still killing it as Jared. He had one moment of madness in Episode 4 that had me wetting itself. At times it does feel like Silicon Valley is in a groove, but it’s such an enjoyable groove!

One series that hasn’t been afraid to get out of it’s groove is Veep (HBO), which is now in Season 6, and is a very different show this season. Of course it changed when Armando Iannucci left, but now that Selina Meyer is out of office, it’s even more different. With the character scattered all over the place, I did feel like the first one or two episodes were a bit lacking, but after that, it’s really found it’s feet and become just as funny and scathing as ever. In the wake of Trump it was going to be difficult for Veep to be the same show as it was before, so wisely it’s pivoted, it still has a lot to say about America and politics, but really, it’s become more about seeing who these characters are in new situations. I’m particularly enjoying Dan working as a TV News Anchor and Jonah as a Congressman has just been brutally brilliant, especially with Mary Holland joining the cast as his new ‘girlfriend’. It’s also interesting that the series has started to delve deeper into Selina as a character, and her backstory. She may be a bit ridiculous, but in the world of the show, she is the first ever female Vice President and the President, she is interesting. So yes, Veep has changed, but it’s still intelligent and funny and well worth watching. When real politics is as scary as it is these days, we need this magnificent bastards to laugh at.

Now for quick hits! We’ll start with comedies. LOL! LOL indeed.

The final episode ever of Girls (HBO) was a bit of an odd one, it jumped ahead to the birth of Hannah’s baby (the horrifically named Grover, and that’s a ‘Niam’ saying that) and only featured Hannah and Marnie from the main cast, out in the middle of nowhere. In a lot of ways, it was a typical Girls way for the series to end, Lena Dunham has never really done the conventional thing. I enjoyed it, particularly Becky Ann Baker’s performance. She’s always been excellent and underrated as Hannah’s mother. I will miss Girls, it was funny, different and always provoked debate, and I can’t wait to see what projects Dunham does next. As infuriating as she can be, she is very talented. How about a Dunham/Max Landis collaboration? That could destroy the internet.

I reached the end of BoJack Horseman (Netflix) Season 3, and holy shit, that was brutal. What happened to Sarah-Lynn just fucked me up. And then it’s followed up by the sublime ridiculousness of Mr. Peanutbutter’s spaghetti strainers actually being useful! That sums up BoJack for me, it can be gloriously silly and funny, but at it’s core it’s a dark series about depression and the sadness at the core of humanity (or animality, whatever). It’s one of my favourite shows ever at this point, and I am very excited for Season 4, and just where BoJack is going to go now. It’ll be bad… but also so, so good.

The Last Man On Earth (FOX) also wrapped up its 3rd season very well. Jasper has been a fun addition to the cast, and the 2-part finale in particular was a great, as the series once again upended it’s cast. Erica gave birth to her baby, but then Nuclear Reactors started going off and they had to flee. This series continues to be brilliant at balancing comedy and real dark drama, as the consequences of a post-apocalyptic world are actually thought out. The very last moment also brought Kristen Wiig in contact with the main cast, and what a way to do it.

Brooklyn Nine-Nine (FOX) has continued to be very funny and strong, and one episode in particular really surprised me, as ‘Moo Moo’ became a serious examination of racial profiling in the Police Force. It’s rare that Brooklyn Nine-Nine addresses real issues, but it did it very well here, I think it should actually do more, especially in this era where the Police, in America especially, are not so popular. I don’t want it to become propaganda for the cops, but it can certainly shine a light on some real issues. As well as being dumb and funny with great actors of course.

The ‘Dreamland’ arc of Archer (FXX) is still going strong. It’s just a lot of fun to see these characters in this setting, and the storyline by itself has actually been rather arresting, with a lot of fun twists and turns. I’ve particularly liked Eugene Mirman’s performance as Cheryl’s brother. He’s delightfully creepy. Also, is Pam just a man in dreamland? Her character isn’t meant to be a woman in drag, here, she’s just a man? I kind of love that.

Oh, and I watched one more episode of Inside No. 9 (BBC Two), ‘Tom & Gerri’. It was very good, and actually managed to surprised me with the twist at the end. It was fun to see Lord Varys himself, Conleth Hill play an actually nice person, and Gemma Arterton was good too. That’s the strength of an anthology show, they can bring in really big names for just one episode.

Bridging the gap from comedy to drama is Better Call Saul (AMC) which is having an excellent third season, as it gets closer and closer to Breaking Bad territory. Not only has Gus finally appeared (with Giancarlo Esposito just as good as ever) but the whole tone of those scenes is straight out of the parent show. Episode 4, ‘Sabrosito’ barely seemed to feature Odenkirk at all. But that doesn’t mean that the series has just become Breaking Bad-lite, as the following episode ‘Chicanery’ was all courtroom stuff, and really did a fascinating job at delving into the central Jimmy/Chuck relationship. It really needs to be said again, but both Odenkirk and Michael McKean are amazing in this show, tour-de-force performances. This stretch of episodes has been a great microcosm of what makes Better Call Saul so good and basically the perfect prequel. It has plenty of links to what came before, including themes and cameos (Huell!) and camera work, but it’s also very capable of being it’s own, separate thing. So good.

The Season 2 finale of The Expanse (Sy Fy) was another strong episode in an exceptionally strong season. It was an incredibly tense episode that brought a lot of things to a head. The central plot of the Protomolecule monster being on the Rocinante tied everything together and, perhaps most importantly, brought the central crew of characters onto the same page. It’s interesting that the show isn’t precisely following a ‘1 season = 1 book’ model, and I like that, it’s allowing for things to unfold at a different pace.

The Americans (FX) is having an… interesting season. It’s still very good and all of the performances and episodes have been good, but, maybe it’s just me, but it doesn’t seem as focused as it used to, which is odd, because the writers know they only have this and next year to wrap things up. Maybe that’s actually the reason, they know they have a guaranteed 26 episodes, so can pace things differently? Either way, there doesn’t seem to be any particular driving plot, missions and side characters come and go, and whilst each individual hour has been strong, it’s not a satisfying whole. Yet. I think maybe something big is going to happen (Pacha’s suicide? Something with Pastor Tim?) that will lead to a major event in the finale. Or at least I hope so. This is a fantastic series so maybe I just have too high expectations.

Now it’s time for everybody’s favourite corner… superhero corner!

So far in iZombie (The CW) Season 3, the biggest pleasure for me has been the classic thing, seeing Rose McIver play Liv on various different types of brain. Hippie Yoga Liv, gossipy bitch Liv, Dominatrix Liv and Hot Mess Liv have all been hilarious. I really think McIver is underrated by how she manages to play so many different shades of the same person. Some of the individual cases of the week have been a bit weak, but her performance, along with the new development of Clive knowing she’s a Zombie have made it work. As for the over-arching plots, I liked the way the show revealed that Blaine had been faking his memory loss, and what that means for Major and Liv going forward. The Fillmore Graves plot has been on the back burner a bit, but you just know it’s going to explode later.

Gotham (FOX) has returned with some really great episodes and has become a show that really embraces it’s ridiculousness, and is all the better for it. Corey Michael Smith in full on Riddler mode, green suit and all, is so much fun, as is Penguin and Poison Ivy gathering an ‘Army Of Freaks’ and a goddamn clone of Bruce Wayne. I’m also really enjoying this take on the Court Of Owls, I’ve said this before, but I get an extra kick out of seeing more recent concepts like this used in other media, and so it’s awesome to see something Scott Snyder invented on TV. Gotham is dumb, but it’s the good dumb.

The Flash (The CW) revealed who Savitar was, and it was… actually satisfying. The fact that Barry (or at least a Time Remnant of him) becomes his own worst enemy is interesting, and it’s a perfect expression of the consequences of too much time-travel meddling. What I found cool was that the show followed this big, tragic reveal with a somewhat broad comedy episode where Barry lost his memories. Not only was this funny, but it showed why the show needs a bit more levity. When Barry gets too Emo, things get bad (as shown by the trip to the future, where Barry literally was Emo). I’m also really enjoying Anne Dudek’s guest role as Tracy Brand. Her chemistry with Tom Cavanaugh is a lot of fun. 2 episodes left, and I hope they continue to get the balance between drama and fun right. The Flash is one of those characters who needs to stay optimistic.

Marvel’s Agents Of S.H.I.E.LD. (ABC) has continued it’s hot-streak with more really fantastic episodes. This Hydra alternate reality arc really has been excellent. It’s allowed us to learn more about the characters, had a real impact, and also allowed the show to comment somewhat on real world political elements. It was cheap, but referring to Hydra’s ‘alternative facts’ and ‘fake news’ was great. The performances have also gone up a gear, Henry Simmons choosing to stay in the Framework was a great, although I do think that somehow they’ll use that machine to bring his daughter into the ‘real world’. Although they might be saving that for Face Turn Grant Ward. I also want to praise Iain De Caestecker, who has taken Fitz from somewhat of a comic relief character into probably the most complex person on the show. He played the ‘evil’ Fitz so well I almost feared he would still be bad once he was back. Mallory Jansen has also been very good, whether as Aida, Agnes or now Ophelia, she has played the same person in 3 very interesting ways. I can’t wait to see how this finale ends things, and to see what Season 4 brings. It feels weird to say this after the slow start, but Agents Of SHIELD is one of the better adventure shows on the air.

And finally, I finished watching Marvel’s Iron Fist (Netflix), and whilst it does have it’s share of problems and is probably the least of the ‘Defenders’ shows, I still very much enjoyed it and am excited to see more of this version of Danny Rand, particularly alongside Luke Cage. Heroes For Hire! I’m not going to re-tread the race conversation as we discussed that last time, so instead I’ll say that, as is customary, some of the episodes did drag a bit in the middle before an exciting ending, and I do think the show’s budget was a bit too low. I think that really hurt things as we never go to actually see K’un Lun or the Dragon Shou-Lou. I wanted a goddamn dragon getting it’s heart ripped out of it, is that too much to ask? I don’t think so. I also think it took way too long for Danny to realise that Howard Meachum was a bad dude, but that naïveté is intentional, and a great character bit. The performances only improved as it went on. Finn Jones is actually very convincing, and both Jessica Henwick and Tom Pelphrey were brilliant. I actually think Pelphrey’s Ward Meachum might be one of the best performances in the MCU, as he manages to make some pretty dumb plot developments work just through his performance. I did like how, by the end, things had been twisted and it was Ward who was working alongside Danny, and Joy who had become his enemy. That was unexpected and fun. Her working alongside Gao and Davos should be interesting in a second season. I did like Davos’ role later on too, Sacha Dhawan was very good, although why does someone from K’un Lun sound so Mancunian? I admit it, I am an MCU mark, but Iron Fist really isn’t that bad, if you give it a chance, it is well worth it, and can only improve. Look, it took Agents Of SHIELD 3 years to get good, I think sometimes we need to appreciate that.

Music

There’s only one album this time out, but it’s kind of a big deal, as Gorillaz are back with their first album in 7 years, Humanz (Parlophone/Warner Bros. 2017). Now the Gorillaz are pretty significant band for me, their eponymous debut was one of the first CDs I bought from myself and I must have played that and Demon Days hundreds of times. Plastic Beach had less of an impact, and I don’t think I’ve actually listened to The Fall. So I’m kind of a lapsed fan, however this particular hype train, and the idea that this was some kind of politically vital and contemporary record brought me back in, and I bought the album, hell, I got the deluxe edition! After listening to it a few times, it’s pretty good, but a lot of that hype is way over-blown. There’s nothing here that’s particularly timely, it’s just the usual Gorillaz mix of interesting backing beats, fantastic guest contributors and Damon Albarn getting to experiment. That’s not a bad thing, but I think I went into it expecting something truly game-changing. That’s probably more on me than Gorillaz though. As I said, the guest stars on here are fantastic, I particularly like Vince Staples on ‘Ascension’, Grace Jones on ‘Charger’ and Benjamin Clementine on ‘Hallelujah Money’, those are great tracks. It’s also a lot of fun to try and spot Noel Gallagher on ‘We Got The Power’. How crazy is it that Albarn and Gallagher are on the same song? Britpop Hell has frozen over. So yeah, this album is decent, but as is probably par for the course with Gorillaz, the ideas and concepts around it are more interesting. The idea of all of these artists reacting to Trump (or not Trump, an un-specified huge event) is great, but the end result isn’t that amazing. I say par for the course, because what’s always appealed most about Gorillaz isn’t just the music, but the whole package, the artwork from Jamie Hewlett, which is fantastic. I think I like the artwork in the leaflet more than the album! Gorillaz are a unique project, and I’ll always appreciate them, but I think I want more than just cool artwork and weird samples from my music at this stage.

Books

2 books this month. I think my reading pace has slowed down a bit, not sure why. Hmm, anyway, I started the month with the last 100 pages or so of Jonathan Wilson’s Angels With Dirty Faces (2016). The history of Argentinian Football got pretty much up to date, as Wilson gets up to the current era of Messi, Aguero, Tevez, Higuain etc. It was pretty much I thought it would be, as the Argentinian domestic game has been basically ruined by all of the best players moving to Europe. What I didn’t know was the state of hooliganism and fan violence in Argentina, which was surprising, and also the continued political links in the game. The fact that the Argentinian government owns the broadcasting rights to league football and uses it for propaganda purposes is very unique, and I would have liked more exploration of that. Imagine if Theresa May was on Match Of The Day or something, At least we know Corbyn is an Arsenal fan. Overall, the end of the book lived up to the rest of it, this was a very readable, informative history of a fascinating subject and culture. Argentina’s national identity is inextricably linked with it’s football, and now, I feel like i understand that country so much more.

After this, I got my fancy literature on, as I read the winner of the 2016 Man Booker Prize, The Sellout (2015) by Paul Beatty. Only this isn’t the kind of novel you’d really expect to win such a lofty, some would say wanky, prize. It’s an incredibly dark satire of American Race relations, and it’s actually very funny. The plot sees an unnamed African-American man (he’s only referred to as ‘Me’, which I think is his surname (So his name is like ‘Dave Me’ or ‘Tom Me’ or something) who somewhat accidentally brings back both segregation and slavery to the LA suburb he lives in. It’s an insane premise, but it works, and Beatty’s witty writing carries it through even the largest logic leaps. Much like with last month and ‘Get Out’, I don’t feel like I can fully parse a lot of the more caustic racial elements, being a white non-American, but it was shocking at times, and certainly made me look at certain things differently. I would be interested in reading some of Beatty’s other books, he has a unique sense of humour. I will say that I didn’t really laugh out loud at reading this, like many of the blurbs did, but then I’m struggling to think of many books that did make me LOL. I just don’t do it, even with comics. I think seeing something written down elicits a different reaction in me. More of a wry smile, or an ‘oh, that’s funny, I get that’ than actually laughing. The Sellout comes close though! Maybe literary prizes aren’t so bad…

Games

As mentioned in the intro, I’m still making my way rather slowly through The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild (Nintendo Switch 2017). I need to carve more time out to play it, but video games, even ones as good as this, are still bottom of my entertainment list. I only really play it when  I have nothing else to watch, read or listen to. As of now, I’ve finally got off the Great Plateau and am in the wider world of Hyrule, and man, it is intimidatingly big. That sense of freedom to do what you want can be both very freeing, but also kind of freezing. I can’t decide where to go, so in the end I don’t really go anywhere. Does that make sense? I’ve just been wandering around and not really advancing the plot. But still, this is an incredibly good game, the look of it is so beautiful, and it’s even more so after the Plateau. I think that is what’s holding me back from playing more, because it looks so good on the big TV, I’m not putting the Switch’s handheld mode to use to play when someone else is using it. The controls are just that level of intuitive that, for me, only Nintendo can reach. The Joycons on the Switch are bit flimsy, but after while, I’m used to it. I’m of two minds on what to do next video-game wise. I really want to pick up Mario Kart 8, especially because my girlfriend wants to do multiplayer,  but can I justify it when I’ve barely scratched the surface of Zelda?

—

That’s it! Just an addendum for you, after writing that last bit about the Switch and whether I should by Mario Kart… I went and ordered it on Amazon. So expect something about that next week. I also bought La La Land, so you’ll get to read my lukewarm take on that film on or near June 15th. I’ll probably be lame and quite like it, that’s the kind of person I am, I can never bring myself to truly hate things like the rest of the internet. Anyway, I’ll see you then! Hopefully we’ll be living under a Labour Government by then.

[bookloversnevergotobedalone-blog]

Good Books, Small Screen

These days every time you turn around another great book is being adapted to the screen. With all the new streaming services getting into the business of  producing their own TV series the options for viewing have grown immensely and with all of that competition we, the viewing public, benefit by the way of some great entertainment.

Whether you've read the book and didn't know it had been adapted to the screen or watched it and didn't know it was a book first, here are some great stories to check out in both mediums.

(To get the book or watch the show click on the pictures)

 The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot

Now on HBO, the feature length film stars Oprah Winfrey in the role of Henrietta's daughter, Deborah, and Rose Byrne as the author, Rebecca Skloot. Winfrey is also a producer on the project. The book has had great reviews, 4.6 out of 5 stars on amazon.com. The film has received mixed reviews, a 60% on Rotten Tomatoes. 

The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

Now a series on Hulu staring Elizabeth Moss as Offred, Joseph Fiennes as Commander Fred Waterford, and Alexis Bledel as Ofglen. The book is hailed as a classic, 4.1 out of 5 stars on Amazon.com. The series has received rave reviews, a 98% on Rotten Tomatoes. This is an important book and an important series, especially in our current political climate.

American Gods by Neil Gaiman

Now a series on Starz starring Ricky Whittle as Shadow Moon, Crispin Glover as Mr. World, and Ian McShane as Mr. Wednesday, also many great recurring roles by Cloris Leachman, Gillian Anderson, Dane Cook, Kristin Chenoweth, and many more. The book, considered Neil Gaiman's best and most ambitious novel to date, has gotten great reviews, 4.3 out of 5 stars on Amazon.com. The series has received fantastic reviews with a 91% on Rotten Tomatoes. 

The Man in the High Castle by Philip K. Dick

A continuing series on Amazon starring Alexa Davalos as Juliana Crain, Luke Kleintank as Joe Blake, and Rupert Evans as Frank Frink. The book, a Hugo award winning alternative history, has received good reviews, 3.5 out of 5 stars on Amazon.com. The series has received good reviews, 78% on Rotten Tomatoes.

Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin

Coming up on it's seventh season on HBO, starring Peter Dinklage as Tyrion Lannister, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau as Jaime Lannister, Lena Headey as Cersei Lannister, Emilia Clarke as Daenerys Targaryen, and Kit Harington as Jon Snow. The book, or should I say books, have received rave reviews, an average of 4.5 out of 5 stars for all the books in the series. The series also gets rave reviews, 95% on Rotten Tomatoes.

Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty

This seven episode miniseries just finished airing in April (so now you can binge watch the whole thing) on HBO. It stars Reese Witherspoon as Madeline Martha Mackenzie, Nicole Kidman as Celeste Wright, Shailene Woodley as Jane Chapman, Alexander Skarsgård as Perry Wright, and Adam Scott as Ed Mackenzie. the book, like anything by Liane Moriarty, had rave reviews, 4.5 out of 5 stars on Amazon.com. The miniseries also had rave reviews, 92% on Rotten Tomatoes. 

The Leftovers by Tom Perrotta

Now in it's third season on HBO, it's ensemble cast stars Justin Theroux as Kevin Garvey, Jr., Amy Brenneman as Laurie Garvey, Christopher Eccleston as Matt Jamison, Liv Tyler as Megan "Meg" Abbott, Chris Zylka as Tommy Garvey, Margaret Qualley as Jill Garvey, Carrie Coon as Nora Durst, Ann Dowd as Patti Levin and Regina King as Erika Murphy. The book received good reviews on it's release in 2011, 3.3 stars out of 5 on Amazon.com. The series seems to have gotten a much better reception, 90% on Rotten Tomatoes.

The Son by Philipp Meyer

Now a series on AMC, starring Pierce Brosnan as Eli McCullough, Henry Garrett as Pete McCullough, Zahn McClarnon as Toshaway, Jess Weixler as Sally McCullough and Paola Núñez as María García. The book received good reviews and critical acclaim, 4 stars out of 5 on Amazon.com. The series, not as good, 54% on Rotten Tomatoes.

Orange is the New Black by Piper Kerman

Heading into it's fifth season on Netflix, starring Taylor Schilling as Piper Chapman, Laura Prepon as Alex Vause, Kate Mulgrew as Galina "Red" Reznikov, Jason Biggs as Larry Bloom, Uzo Aduba as Suzanne "Crazy Eyes" Warren, Danielle Brooks as Tasha "Taystee" Jefferson, Natasha Lyonne as Nicky Nichols, and Taryn Manning as Tiffany "Pennsatucky" Doggett, to name a few. The book received very good reviews, 4 out of 5 stars on Amazon.com. The series has gotten great reviews, 95% on Rotten Tomatoes.

If you don't have some of these services

check below for a free trial.

happy reading (or viewing)!

[aion-rsa]

Neil Gaiman's The Sandman Explained: What to Expect from the Netflix Show

https://ift.tt/2LfGXBT

Ahead of the forthcoming Netflix adaptation, here's our guide to Neil Gaiman's classic comic series and what you can expect from the show...

facebook

twitter

tumblr

This article comes from Den of Geek UK. 

A Netflix adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s breakout hit The Sandman is on the way to the delight of goths and geeks alike. But what is The Sandman, and why is this comic book series such a big deal? If you’re new to the DC Universe’s most miserable cosmic entity, we’ll try and get you up to speed below...

What is The Sandman?

We’ll start with the easy one. The Sandman was an ongoing comic series written by superstar author Neil Gaiman, when he was merely British comic book writer Neil Gaiman, and drawn by legendary artists such as Sam Keith, Kelley Jones, Dave McKean, Matt Wagner, Jill Thompson, Marc Hempel, Mike Allred, and many more.

This horror/fantasy epic stars Morpheus, the anthropomorphic embodiment of dreams. Coincidentally, he is also known as Dream, a member of the Endless, the dysfunctional family that also includes Death, Desire, Delirium, Destiny, Despair...and one other...  The series shows how all of these forces interact with humanity in a variety of ways throughout the life of the universe. And if that sounds grandiose, that’s because it is, in an “encompasses all of human (and often non-human) experience” way.

Further Reading: Why The Sandman Is the Essential Horror Comic of the '90s

From the immortal who meets with Dream once every hundred years to Death harvesting souls with an impeccable bedside manner, from a war for control of a Hell abandoned by Lucifer to a tragedy at a serial killer convention, there’s a lot going on in The Sandman's 75-issue original run. But don't worry, the series is a mesmerizing ride through the world of dreams and every realm in between that you won't be able to put down. Once you're hooked, you're absolutely hooked.

The Sandman wasn’t just a good story – it changed the medium. If you’re the sort of person who picks up comics and reads them in collections, well, that’s probably The Sandman’s influence too. As one of the formative comics of the Karen Berger-headed Vertigo line, this series pioneered the idea that ongoing comics series would live longer in the bookstores as six-eight issue collections than as monthlies on the newsstands.

In short, it’s kind of a big deal.

What is happening with the TV version?

After years of false starts and a number of unproduced TV shows and movies, The Sandman has finally landed at Netflix. Gaiman – who refers to himself as “a retired showrunner” following the completion of Good Omens – will be co-writing the pilot, but no scripts have been produced yet. We can only hope that his influence on the script does justice to what is arguably his finest contribution to literary culture.

Previous versions of Sandman that never happened - which may or may not inform the upcoming one - include a 1990s movie version by Roger Avary and Jon Peters, a 2010 TV version for HBO by James Mangold, a 2011 TV version by Supernatural creator Eric Kripke, and a long-stalled 2013 film project produced by David Goyer and Joseph Gordon-Levitt with a script originally by Jack Thorne.

Further Reading: Upcoming Neil Gaiman Adaptations

Like Dream himself, the list of canceled adaptations seems endless. Fortunately, the popularity of Gaiman’s other creations such as American Gods and Good Omens has clearly left Netflix hungry for a piece of the action. And if you’re going to pick anything to adapt, Sandman is undoubtedly the one with the most potential. Allan Heinberg (Wonder Woman) will be showrunning, so fingers crossed it gets more than a Netflix two-seasons-and-out.

What will we see?

As a story collected in 10 volumes, the first season of The Sandman won't be able to adapt the whole thing in one go – which will probably be a relief to most fans of the comic series. One of the beautiful things about Sandman is that the concept works both as a long-running epic about Dream’s adventures and the consequences of his actions, and as simple, one-off stories about the members of the Endless touching the lives of humans and other DC characters. Gaiman confirmed that the initial season arc will adapt the first volume of the comics – Preludes and Nocturnes – plus “a little bit more.”

Expect to see the main story of Dream escaping mystical imprisonment after a century or so and going on a quest to recover his totems of power – a pouch of sand, a helm, and a ruby – as well as visiting a former lover he damned to hell, engaging in a battle of wits with Lucifer, and visiting his sister, Death.

Further Reading: Neil Gaiman Wants to Write a New Doctor Who Episode

But on a smaller scale, we might also see adaptations of "Thermidor," in which Morpheus influences the French Revolution; or "A Dream of a Thousand Cats," in which we learn what our feline friends imagine when they sleep (spoilers: it’s not very nice for us); and perhaps even "A Midsummer Night’s Dream," the story in which Dream (first) encounters Shakespeare that won Gaiman & Co. a World Fantasy Award. If any single issue is guaranteed to get an adaptation in season 1, it’ll be The Sandman #8, a story titled The Sound of Her Wings, in which Dream’s sister, Death, is first introduced.

Is this a DC Universe thing?

The answer here is: sort of. Technically, yes, the characters and events of Sandman take place in the DC Universe, although you don't need to know any DC continuity to follow Gaiman's comic. It's unlikely you'll see many recognizable DC characters on the show, though it could result in some fun cameos if the rights line up. John Constantine was a recurring figure in Sandman’s mythos, and a newly-announced Constantine comic series is even branded as a Sandman spin-off, so maybe that's a possibility.

Further Reading: How Stardust Became a Modern Fantasy Classic

Perhaps more interestingly, Lucifer – a TV show currently owned by Netflix – is based on the comic version of Lucifer that originally spun out of The Sandman and into his own comic series, having abandoned Hell. It’s hard to do Sandman without including Lucifer in some capacity, so one question hangs in the air: will Tom Ellis reprise his role on Sandman? It’s far, far too early to say. But if you’re a fan of Lucifer, cross your fingers…

How can I read Sandman?

If you’re interested in reading Sandman – and you absolutely should be because it’s one of those series that absolutely lives up to the hyperbole – there are a number of ways to do so. The main series is collected in ten trade paperbacks, numbered Volumes 1 to 10. Frustratingly, Volume 1 is the ropiest of them all, but once you get halfway through, it gets really good. It’s worth persevering.

A “Volume 0”, Sandman: Overture, forms a prequel to these ten volumes, while the original graphic novel Sandman: Endless Nights presents stand-alone tales of The Endless, best read after the main series. Sandman: Dream Hunters is a stand-alone prose story which has been adapted into a comic, while Death got two series of her own, now available as collections: The High Cost of Living and The Time of Your Life.

If you’re only going to read ONE book, Fables and Reflections (Vol. 6) is the one to try – it’s a collection of several standalone stories that don’t rely on the ongoing story to make sense.

So, fingers crossed the TV show does this justice. And even if it doesn’t, well, let’s not worry too much. The comic still exists, after all, and that’s more than good enough.

facebook

twitter

tumblr

Feature

TV

James Hunt

Jul 12, 2019

Netflix

The Sandman

Neil Gaiman

from Books https://ift.tt/2xKIqY5

[mindthump]

10 epic sci-fi novels you should read before they become blockbusters http://ift.tt/2jM2N1D

It’s a good time to be a fan of science-fiction movies. Whether your tastes favor explosive, big-budget spectacles or subtle, thought-provoking stories that explore life’s biggest questions, the last few years have offered up something for everyone — and the same can be said for what’s headed to the big screen down the road.

Sci-fi literature has long been fertile ground for Hollywood, and with some of the cinema’s most popular projects beginning as novels or short stories that made the leap from page to screen, it’s easy to get ahead of the curve when it comes to sci-fi movies. In that vein, we’ve compiled a list of some of the sci-fi stories that currently have big-screen adaptations in various stages of development, so you can get an early peek at the next big things hitting theaters. We’ll periodically update this article as time goes on, too, so feel free to leave a comment with any projects you’d like to see added to the list.

Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer

This award-winning 2014 novel followed a group of four female scientists — including a biologist, an anthropologist, a psychologist, and a surveyor — who set out to explore a mysterious region known as “Area X” after the previous 11 attempts to survey the area resulted in strange, terrifying results for everyone involved with the expeditions. The first book in a trilogy, Annihilation won the 2014 Nebula Award for the year’s best sci-fi novel.

Written and directed by Ex Machina filmmaker Alex Garland, the big-screen adaptation of Annihilation has an all-star cast that features Academy Award winner Natalie Portman (Black Swan) as the biologist and Jennifer Jason Leigh (The Hateful Eight) as the psychologist, as well as Gina Rodriguez (Jane the Virgin), Tessa Thompson (Creed), Oscar Isaac (Ex Machina), and David Gyasi (Containment). The film is expected to arrive in theaters sometime during 2017.

Buy on Amazon

The Forever War by Joe Haldeman

Another Nebula Award winner, The Forever War tells the story of a soldier recruited to battle an aggressive alien species light-years from Earth in a two-year conflict, only to discover that traveling to and from the battlefield has actually caused several decades to pass on Earth. Coming home to an Earth very different from the one he left, he’s uncertain whether this new world was indeed worth fighting for.

Ridley Scott first announced he was adapting The Forever War in 2008, but the project eventually fell into development limbo until Warner Bros. Pictures picked up the rights to the story again in 2015. Prometheus and Passengers writer Jon Spaihts is currently penning the script for the film, and Channing Tatum is attached to star in it. There’s no release date set for the film at this point.

Buy on Amazon

Fortunately, The Milk by Neil Gaiman

Acclaimed storyteller Neil Gaiman and comic book artist Skottie Young collaborated on this 2013 story about a father who goes out to get some milk, only to get caught up in a wild adventure involving time travel, a stegosaurus piloting a balloon, and a volcano god, among other unexpected obstacles.

Back in 2015, it was reported that Shaun of the Dead and Scott Pilgrim vs the World filmmaker Edgar Wright was attached to direct Johnny Depp in an adaptation of the story, with Bret McKenzie of Flight of the Conchords penning the script. That combination had 20th Century Fox in early talks for the rights to the film, but it almost seems too good to be true — which is probably why we haven’t heard anything about the project since that initial announcement.

Buy on Amazon

Logan’s Run by William F. Nolan and George Clayton Johnson

This 1967 novel is set in a dystopian future with scarce resources for the human population, leading society to implement a rule that requires everyone over the age of 21 to voluntarily end their lives. When one of the agents tasked with killing citizens who “run” from the rule decides to run himself as his time comes due, it sets off a chain of events that shakes the very foundation of this dark new human civilization.

The novel was adapted into a 1976 film starring Michael York which was nominated for three Academy Awards and won one for its visual effects. A remake was first announced back in the 1990s, and an update in July 2015 had X-Men franchise screenwriter Simon Kinberg penning yet another draft of the script. The studio is also reported to be considering a female lead for the adaptation.

Buy on Amazon

The Moon is a Harsh Mistress by Robert A. Heinlein

The winner of the Hugo Award in 1967, Heinlein’s celebrated novel chronicles a Lunar city’s revolution after years of serving as a penal colony for Earth. The story follows the revolt from its earliest stages to its final outcome, and explores a future in which humanity must contend with the ramifications of extending its reach beyond Earth.

In March 2015, X-Men franchise director Bryan Singer announced plans to adapt Heinlein’s story for 20th Century Fox from a script by Arrow series producer Marc Guggenheim. The title of the film will be changed to Uprising. There’s no official release date set for the film at this point.

Buy on Amazon

Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

Ernest Cline’s debut novel is set in a dystopian future in which the majority of the population escapes from their bleak reality in a virtual universe known as OASIS. When the creator of OASIS dies, it sets off a wild treasure hunt that will give the winner control of the virtual universe and the creator’s immense fortune. The story follows a treasure hunter named Wade Watts who must use his encyclopedic knowledge of the ’80s — the OASIS creator’s favorite era in pop culture — to navigate the hunt and stop a sinister corporation from gaining control of OASIS.

The movie based on Ready Player One began filming in June 2016 with Steven Spielberg directing the adaptation from a script by The Avengers and Alphas screenwriter Zak Penn. The film is currently scheduled to hit theaters March 30, 2018.

Buy on Amazon

Robopocalypse by Daniel H. Wilson

Robopocalypse describes the origins, evolution, and culmination of mankind’s devastating, global battle with an artificial intelligence that takes over automated services and machines. Much in the same way World War Z chronicled humanity’s war with zombies through a collection of fictional accounts from the front lines, the story unfolds from the perspective of several characters in different locations around the world as they watch the world change dramatically — and often horrifically — in front of their eyes. The character eventually find themselves playing integral roles in the war that will decide humanity’s fate.

The book was optioned by Steven Spielberg in 2011 with the filmmaker planning to direct the adaptation himself from a script by The Cabin in the Woods screenwriter and director Drew Goddard, but the project was put on hold in 2013 in order to further develop the script and make it a more manageable production.

Buy on Amazon

Sleeping Giants by Sylvain Neuvel

This debut novel tells the story of a young girl who falls through a weak spot in the ground one day and lands in the palm of a giant, mysterious metal hand. Years later, that girl is a physicist still trying to unravel the mystery of the metal hand, and her quest for answers sends her around the globe as the mystery deepens.

Neuvel’s self-published novel was optioned almost as soon as it was published. Spider-Man franchise producer Matt Tolmach is overseeing the adaptation and Jurassic Park, witgh War of the Worlds screenwriter David Koepp penning the screenplay. The big-screen version of the story was retitled The Themis Files and is envisioned as the first chapter of a trilogy.

Buy on Amazon

The Tempest by Julie Cross

Another story envisioned as the first chapter in a trilogy, Julie Cross’ 2012 novel is a time-travel adventure that has its teenage protagonist accidentally discovering his ability to move through time after he witnesses the murder of his girlfriend. That discovery puts him in the crosshairs of a shadowy government agency and in the middle of a time-spanning war as he struggles to save the life of the girl he loves without ripping apart the fabric of time.

The rights to the novel were picked up by producing partners (and brothers) Scott and Sean Cross — who aren’t related to Julie Cross — as well as Mimi Polk Gitlin, a former producing partner of Ridley Scott who teamed with Scott to co-produce the 1991 classic Thelma and Louise. There’s no official development timeline or release date announced for the film.

Buy on Amazon

Time Salvager by Wesley Chu

Wesley Chu’s 2015 novel unfolds in a future that has seen mankind depart Earth to colonize the stars, leaving behind a bleak, toxic planet. The protagonist is a convicted criminal whose psychological profile makes him the ideal candidate for an agency that sends people back in time to recover valuable resources and treasures from mankind’s history on Earth in order to prolong the species’ future. On his final mission he saves a female scientist destined to die, turning them both into fugitives in the future timeline.

Paramount Pictures picked up the rights to Chu’s novel before it even hit shelves, and Michael Bay is attached to direct the adaptation. There’s no word on when the project will go into production or what sort of timeline (pun totally intended) the studio is envisioning for it at this point.

Buy on Amazon

Time to kill? These are the 101 best movies on Netflix

Our 13 favorite Christmas specials range from heart-warming to hilarious

Five shows to stream this week: ‘The Night Manager,’ ‘The Crown,’ and more