Links and Updates

The last time I did one of these posts, it ended with news of Nicholas Brendon’s death. Now this one begins with news of Anthony Stewart Head’s passing, and – damn. This one hurts. That we’ve lost Dawn, Xander and Giles in such a relatively short space of time is unsettling, especially when everyone was getting excited about the (now cancelled) continuation of the show that made them famous. Hopefully I can kick my Buffy the Vampire Slayer rewatch into gear again soon.

But Anthony Stewart Head wasn’t only known for Buffy – perhaps his second greatest genre show was as King Uther on Merlin, in which he infused downright terrible writing with his gravitas, and never lost sight of a cruel tyrant’s humanity (which made the character all the more disturbing). That specific brand of dickishness was also used to good effect in Ted Lasso, in which Rupert Mannion was clearly a vindictive prick, but with enough charisma to let you understand how he got away with it.

He did the rounds on shows like Doctor Who, Spooks, Bridgerton, Harlan Coban’s The Stranger, Still Star-Crossed, Galavant, Manchild, Little Britain, Dancing on the Edge… that at least, is the material I’ve seen him in. People are talking enthusiastically about something called Repo! The Genetic Opera, though I’ve not had a chance to find out more about it.

In any case, he’ll be remembered best as Rupert Giles, who started as a befuddled and rather nebbish librarian, secretly moonlighting as Buffy’s Watcher, only to almost immediately start demonstrating hidden depths: his softer side with Jenny Calendar, his fatherly instincts to Buffy and her friends, his sarcasm and wit, the glimpses of his younger years as “Ripper,” his expansive intelligence – not only in the arcane arts, but emotionally as well. One never forgets his talk with Buffy at the end of “Lie To Me.” And every now and then, whenever he was pushed to anger, he would become more frightening than any demon or vampire.

Offscreen, there was never any indication that he wasn’t exactly who he presented himself as: a very chill, kind, personable and down-to-earth man. He was a stalwart presence throughout my adolescence, and in a way (and with the full understanding that he actually has real daughters) it feels like I’ve lost a dad.

So, a very sad start to the weekend. Behind the cut you’ll find a heck-load of trailers, and plenty more projects to look forward to…

After two more behind-the-scenes videos about the making of Laika’s Wildwood, we finally – FINALLY! – have a proper trailer!

I have only vague memories of the book, though a few scenes jostle my memory, and they’ve nailed the aesthetic of that world: half cozy anthropomorphic talking animals, and half dark and creepy fairy tale. I hope against hope that this film will do well; it’s such a rebuttal against A.I. slop and franchise slop and artless slop, and all other kinds of slop that’s inflicting itself upon us. This trailer alone demonstrates more beauty and soul than anything a mindless computer could spew out.

I’m almost afraid to watch it; it’s something I want to put in a vault somewhere and bring forth when the world needs it most. Truly, seeing the words: “from the hands that created…” got me a little choked up. Here’s a video on how the studio chose to promote Wildwood – with slow and careful reveals.

And because the universe has decided to bestow good things upon me, I discover out of nowhere that my other favourite animation studio, Cartoon Saloon, has released a new series called My Brother the Minotaur:

A mashup of Celtic and Greek mythology? That distinctive Cartoon Saloon style? The beautiful animation? Hook it up to my veins!

Let’s not forget The Sisters Grimm, also airing on Apple TV. I haven’t read these books, and unfortunately we no longer have them stocked at the library (though the audiobooks are still out there) but it would appear that stars are aligning when it comes to getting things that are very pertinent to my interests.

Speaking of animation, some bad news on the Avatar: The Last Airbender front. Somehow the entire movie has been leaked online, and of course people are watching it. I’ve been avoiding as much as I can, and apparently the culprit has been arrested – but what a shitty thing to happen. And this is after Paramount decided to pull the film from theatres, though I’ve given up on Paramount doing anything right. It hasn’t even bothered to promote this project in any meaningful way.

Because I’ve had to avoid the whole project (and because Paramount isn’t promoting anyway) I haven’t been able to get excited about seeing these characters again. And I want to get excited about seeing them again! Those kids weren’t exactly formative (I was in my twenties when Avatar first aired) but I have very fond memories of that show and am looking forward to my nephew being old enough to share it with.

In the meantime, here’s a trailer for X-Men 97! Time-travelling mutants? Hell yes. 

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Against all the odds, MGM’s Robin Hood was renewed for a season two, and a description for the direction they plan to take the story has been released:

Season two of Robin Hood expands the world beyond Sherwood and Nottingham into the treacherous courts of England, France, and Rome, transforming the outlaw rebellion into a high-stakes battle for the soul of a kingdom. As the Angevin empire threatens to tear itself apart, Rob and Marian are drawn into the orbit of kings and queens, forced to wield the very instruments of Norman power — politics, gold, and betrayal — to secure a future for the Saxons. What begins as a fight for survival becomes a reckoning with power itself. Sweeping in scope yet intimate in emotion, season two deepens the romance, sharpens the rivalries, and reimagines the legend as a prestige drama about love, legacy, and the price of becoming history.

These press releases obviously have to describe what’s going on in the most eloquent and exciting way possible, but expanding the story beyond the boundaries of England could be interesting (Will Scarlett is on his way to Rome, as I recall) and making Robin and Marian “wield the instruments of Norman power” sounds intriguing as well. I don’t think it’s ever going to be a great show, but I enjoyed myself with the first season, and was beyond astonished that it was picked up for another.

Let’s hope they take advantage of the opportunity and get greenlit for a third as well. Three seasons forms a neat beginning, middle and end, and should be the goal that all showrunners set for themselves. (That is, the goal they should set these days. Already a second season feels like a miracle, so between shortened episode-counts, years-long hiatuses, bloated budgets and cast turnovers, aiming for “only” three seasons sets some realistic expectations).

Speaking of Robin Hood, there’s a second trailer out for The Death of Robin Hood:

It’s looking pretty grim, but I’ll get to it eventually. I have a vague idea that I’m going to commit a month of viewing to adaptations of some of our most famous fictional characters: Sherlock Holmes, Robin Hood, King Arthur, Dracula, Hamlet, The Musketeers, James Bond and so on. This would work nicely there.

Oh, and on the related subject of literary characters and “deaths of,” yet another Sherlock Holmes adaptation is in production, titled The Death of Sherlock Holmes. It proposes to cover the length of time in which Sherlock was presumed dead after his plummet from the Reichenbach Falls, and the adventures he had while journeying incognito. That’s… not a bad premise, though it reminds me a lot of The Last Voyage of the Demeter in that it fills in narrative gaps left in the original work. And yah know, sometimes those gaps are left for a reason…

And staying on the subject of Sherlock (I’m doing amazing with the segues in this post) we’ve finally got a trailer and some promotional pictures for Enola Holmes 3:

This is my comfort food, though we don’t get a heck of a lot plot-wise beyond the fact Sherlock has gone missing – not even a glimpse of Moriarty! And you’ll be unsurprised to hear I don’t particularly care about Enola and Tewkesbury’s love story (it’s not even in the book, so can people stop complaining that romance no longer exists?) so hopefully they’re just pushing it for the trailers. Either way, it looks like a warm homecooked meal, and will kick off in July – which I’ve decided will be Sherlock Month. 

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The Dune 3 trailer has been released, which completely flummoxed me. I’d no idea it went into production so quickly! There’s not a lot to glean from this, save that they’ve immediately backpedalled on Chani’s decision to abandoned Paul, Anya Taylor-Joy will have a much bigger role as Alia, and that war chant is pretty catchy. 

Also back are the Defenders; specifically Mike Colter and Finn Jones (Krysten Ritter’s Jessica Jones has already appeared in the latest season of Daredevil: Born Again). And yes, I am pleased that Danny Rand is back. In a perfect world we would have had Lewis Tan in the role from the get-go, but I do enjoy a meta-redemption arc for an unpopular character, and I hope they pull it off here. Does anyone else remember that no one liked Ahsoka to begin with? Or that Chloe O’Brien on 24 was derisively known as Potato-Face when she started out?

That said, I never watched the third season of Netflix’s Daredevil, yet alone the second of Iron Fist or second and third of Jessica Jones, so it might be a while before I get to this. Also, are Claire and Misty and Colleen coming back??

The theme of last October was folk horror, but with the release of Widow’s Bay, I may just have to revisit the subject… even though I’ve already considered witches and dark fantasy for the spooky season. I suppose it doesn’t have to be in October…

Speaking of, my YouTube recommendations led me to something called Westcountry Tales which aired back in the eighties, and were based on real stories that viewers sent into the BBC. To quote:

Unlike scripted dramas, the first series of Westcountry Tales was born from a direct appeal to the public. The BBC asked viewers to write in with their real-life experiences of the weird and supernatural. From hundreds of letters, thirteen stories were adapted into television scripts, giving the show a grounding in genuine local legend and reported phenomena.

Now I’m going to have to carve out some time for this, along with the rest of the A Ghost Story for Christmas anthology.

Two low-budget horror films, Backrooms and Obsession, have just blitzed Star Wars at the box office. I’ve mixed feelings on that: mostly joy since it’s always fun when the underdog (not to mention quality) wins out, but it’s not like I want Star Wars to fail. Just make better stuff! Let creatives be creative! Base the work on innovation and vision, not Twitter trends!

On that note, Nobody is Watching the Star Wars Sequel Trilogy.

England is Not Inevitable. A great essay on Black Sails and its underlying message. Here’s another one: Know No Shame.

Of all things, Animorphs is coming back – though I suppose that’s not too surprising given the amount of nineties material that’s finding a second life via graphic novel adaptations. It was a short-lived television show back in the day; let’s hope this time around they do the sensible thing and make it animated. All the shapeshifting and animal activity practically requires it to be animated. Having Ryan Coogler attached is certainly a good sign…

Lupita Nyong’o has officially been confirmed as Helen of Troy in Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey, and though I don’t want to give the predictable reaction too much attention, I AM glad that a dark-skinned woman is playing the Face That Launched a Thousand Ships. I just am.

Not just because she’s a talented actress, but because beauty is too often limited to whiteness and blondeness. For the simple fact that I want the definition of beauty to expand, and because the usual cry babies are raging impotently, and because there have already been far too many white-skinned, yellow-tressed Helens (which is not at all how the Ancient Greeks would have imagined her) in our retellings, I’m glad we’re getting a Black Helen. If that makes me woke, so be it.

I’m mostly interested in the news that Nyong’o will also be playing Clytemnestra… Helen’s twin sister. How the same woman is going to play the most beautiful woman on earth and her somehow-less attractive sister will be worth seeing.

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It’s nice that the last Toy Story 5 trailer focuses mainly on Jessie, though I was at the bookstore the other day and saw the novelization of the film, which clearly spoiled the entire plot. I only flicked through it, but was astounded that it was available. Could it have been put out on the shelves by mistake? In any case, I’ve got to get back to reviewing these films, as I only ever got up to Toy Story 3. I'm a little leery about the subject matter of this (old toys versus new tech) and yikes... some of those voices are definitely sounding old. Maybe that’s the point, but it’s another reminder of the onslaught of time. 

I love the cavalry charge of the toys though, and that visual of Jessie on the horse’s head.

Another Supergirl trailer! It looks like a lot of fun, though it’ll probably be a while before I sit down to watch it (I want to accumulate more of the material that’ll exist in this continuity).

And of course, the Practical Magic 2 trailer. I guess Aiden Quinn’s character has been jettisoned? Because Sally and Gillian are still talking about their love-lives being cursed, even though they were meant to have gotten rid of that at the end of the previous movie? And no Evan Rachel Wood, even though she states she would have made herself available? Boo. At least we get to see that amazing house again.

I don’t watch a lot of YouTube essays, but this one is good: When Franchise Becomes Story Again.