Links and Updates

Well, Christmas Comic Con has come and gone, and my goodness did it leave a bonanza of interviews, previews and trailers in its wake. It's like all my birthdays came at once! Let's look at some of the highlights.

Okay, first of all there's some news that didn't emerge from Comic Con, and that's that Angel Coulby is signed onto another project on the heels of The Tunnel II. Called Undercover, it also stars Adrian Lester and Sophie Okonedo, and if the ranking of cast members in this press release is any indication of their importance to the story, Angel will be playing a fairly significant role. So it looks as though we'll be seeing a lot of her in 2016!

And here she is on the set of The Tunnel (though this is a rather awful picture):

In other Merlin related news, Colin Morgan is currently starring in Humans (I'm gradually accumulating episodes; I'll probably binge-watch when it's completed) and Bradley James did the Comic Con circuits promoting Damien, which is a sequel series to The Omen (though honestly, I'm not a big horror-fan so I'll probably give it a miss).

And in a case of ... well, I'm not sure what exactly you'd describe it as, but Katie McGrath has been cast in Guy Ritchie's Knights of the Round Table – though not as Morgana. Apparently she's playing a character called Elsa, who is clearly not someone who figures into the source material, but what are the odds that she would be involved with another Arthuriana project so soon after the conclusion of Merlin?

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Speaking of Merlin, it came to my attention that Once Upon a Time is tackling Arthurian legend. I haven't watched the show since season three, and I wasn't particularly interested in getting roped back in, but then I saw the casting for Merlin, Guinevere and Arthur (and Lancelot, though we already knew he was played by Sinqua Walls back in season two).

The next Guinevere and Merlin

Well, dang it. I've just recently finished watching (and reviewing) Sinbad, so I'm familiar with Elliot Knight, and their choice of Guinevere also looks intriguing. That said, I certainly didn't miss Once Upon a Time after dropping it, and I'm not really sure if I want to pick it up again. It wasn't just a matter of them writing out all my favourite characters (Ruby, Mulan, Aurora) and showcasing all my least favourites (Henry, Belle, Robin Hood) but the show's truly messed up understanding of right and wrong, in which a little girl being manipulated into spilling a secret is treated as exactly the same sort of crime as a grown woman murdering dozens of people. And that's just scratching the surface of how messed-up the moral implications of this show could get.

Plus, I couldn't help but hear about some of the latest plot developments which made me extremely thankful that I'd left the show behind, including the painful attempt to capitalize on Frozen, the horrible twist involving Maid Marian, and the jettisoning of the Will/Anastasia ship from the spin-off (which was the best thing about that show). And as ever, the fandom is one of the most toxic I've come across. Worse than Merlin even, because at least that fanbase didn't have the ability to relentlessly harass the actors and writers on Twitter.

So all things considered, I probably won't watch season five – just reblog a lot of GIFs and possibly watch a few clips on YouTube. Still, I haven't been this tempted in a long time...

(Oh, and guess who else is turning up? Merida from Brave. Which is especially hilarious considering she's played by Amy Manson, who – like Elliot Knight on Sinbad – I've very recently watched on Atlantis as Medea. Her Scottish accent is going to make a lot more sense in this role).

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So what else did Comic Con promise us? Well, there's certainly not going to be any shortage of superhero films in the near future, with previews for the upcoming Superman versus Batman, Suicide Squad, Fantastic Four, Deadpool and X-Men Apocalypse – not to mention new seasons of Gotham, Daredevil, Arrow, The Flash, Supergirl, Agent Carter, Agents of SHIELD and Legends of Tomorrow. I mean, sheesh! How is a person expected to keep up with ALL of them?

At this point, I'm beginning to feel a little over saturated by the genre, but I will keep plodding away with Arrow and make an exception for Vixen, a six-episode animated web-series that centres on Mari McCabe, a young woman granted the strength, speed and agility of animals with the help of a magical totem. I'll admit I'm not hugely familiar with the character outside her appearance on the animated Justice League Unlimited, but I loved her design and powers – not to mention her voice actress Gina Torres.

So I'm all here for Vixen, and if it does well there's the possibility that the character will get her own live-action series – or at the very least, earn a guest appearance on Arrow. Make it happen, people!

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Just as excitingly, a panel featuring Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko promised that we would get brand new The Legend of Korra comics that (at least in part) focus on Korra and Asami's relationship! And check out the cover art:

I can't even articulate how excited I am for this! Korrasami in the spirit world!!! This is everything I wanted!!!!!!

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A big surprise was the unveiling of a trailer for The Chronicles of Shannara, which I had heard was in the pipeline ages ago, but had entirely forgotten about by the time this presentation was made.

And... it looks a bit crap. But crap in the same vein as The Legend of the Seeker was a bit crap – and I loved that show! My father was a huge fan of these books when he was a teenager, and I've been fond of them ever since he introduced them to me when I hit those teen-years. Heck, I even interviewed author Terry Brooks a few years ago.

Unsurprisingly, they've decided to adapt The Elfstones of Shannara rather than The Sword of Shannara, since that latter title is pretty much a play-by-play rewrite of The Lord of the Rings. That said, the book series branched out a lot after its first instalment, and there are two notable features that may well may ensure this adaptation becomes a long-runner: the first is that each set of books (divided into trilogies or quartets) are set several generations apart from each other, allowing for a revolving cast season-to-season, each one partaking in a fresh adventure. The second is that unlike other fantasy worlds, the Four Lands are actually a post-apocalyptic version of our own world, which (if promoted properly) could draw in audiences from the YA dystopian market.

I'll wait upon events...

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There was also some news from the Sherlock/Doctor Who corner, including some promotional pictures for the former and a new trailer for the latter. Unlike Sleepy Hollow and Once Upon a Time, I'm still going to tune in to Doctor Who – though I've decided not to review it this time around. I'm tired of Moffat's tricks, and between the resurrection of Moriarty on Sherlock and the return of Osgood on Doctor Who, it seems that he's totally incapable of letting dead characters stay dead. It's just laughable at this stage.

Still, I'm intrigued by the appearance of Maisie Williams at the conclusion of the trailer. I'd like to believe she's playing the long-departed Susan, but surely that's too obvious a conclusion.

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In other assorted goodies...

I LOVE this Mockingjay Part II poster. I didn't see Part I in protest of it unnecessarily being divided into two parts (stop it Hollywood, just stop) but I'm looking forward to seeing them together as soon as the second one is released.

This Penny Dreadful interview with John Logan holds some interesting insights into the second season and what to expect from the third. Of particular note, in no particular order: Logan deliberately wanted to "scorch the earth" when it came to the season finale (what with all the characters separating), the theme of "normality" is one worth paying attention to, the scene of the scorpion sinking into Vanessa's palm was symbolic of her accepting the dark part of herself, season three will feature another iconic character from Gothic literature (my money is on Doctor Jekyll and Mr Hyde), and everything in the past two seasons has been leading up to the scene in which Vanessa destroys her crucifix.

Finally, the third season will encompass nine episodes – one more than the first season, and one less than the second – and Logan states that this is because his planned story-arc naturally breaks down into nine parts. Personally I think this is great news – if this is the organic way his story has fallen, then I'd say the third season is in good hands. No padding and no prolonging.

While we're in the Gothic Horror genre, I have to say that I'm getting more and more intrigued by Guillermo del Toro's upcoming Crimson Peak. He's always been a dependable deliverer of interesting female characters (shout out to my darling Ofelia!) and he had plenty to say about his ideas for the film, describing it as a "female-centric Gothic Romance" – to the point where he asked the audience to ignore Tom Hiddleston! (At least I think that was his implication).

Joss Whedon's new comic Twist sounds interesting...

I have mixed feelings about the promotional pictures from X-Men Apocalypse. I love Storm's Mohawk and it's good to see Quicksilver again – but Apocalypse himself? Let's hope he looks better on the big screen than he does on the page.

I saw Inside Out and it was glorious. This is a great article on some of its creative decisions.

And of course Star Wars. Just... Star Wars.

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The best time to be on Tumblr is during Comic Con, as it felt like every day there was something new and interesting to discover or get excited about. And although there are some that feel the convention has gotten too commercialized in recent years, ultimately it's about celebrating storytelling in all its forms – whatever the genre, whatever the medium. There's a lot to look forward to...

(Oh, and for those who are waiting patiently, my review for The Borgias is coming, I promise. As ever, it got longer than I thought it would).