Warner Bros Animation’s Greg Miereanu, Wonder Woman animated writer Michael Jelenicis and the legendary Bruce Timm were all on hand at the New York Comic Con to discuss the upcoming home video projects, Superman/Shazam!: The Return of Black Adam which will be released on November 9th and the upcoming adaptation of All Star Superman.
Screened were approximately five minutes of the finished Superman/Shazam! film, which involves a team up between The Man of Steel and Captain Marvel. The animation was very impressive and the style was reminscent of the previous Batman: Under The Red Hood film, which has become a personal favorite of mine. The story written by Michael Jelenicis features an origin tale and in the footage we saw, Billy Batson is being pursued by the evil Black Adam (voiced by the creepy Arnold Vosloo, best known for The Mummy films) who has returned to Earth to seek revenge for his banishment. Billy has still not received his gift from the legendary wizard Shazam, voiced by James Garner (which was a pleasant surprise).
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The iconic imagery of Shazam’s Rock of Eternity is there in all its glory and it will be a treat for fans of the classic comics. Black Adam though had his work cut out for him as he is opposed by Superman (George Newbern, reprising the role from the Justice League series). Once he speaks the wizard’s name, Billy is transformed into The World’s Mightiest Marvel, Captain Marvel (Jerry O’Connell also reprising his role).
Based on what was screened, this 22 minute short seems to be a knock out, drag out fight between two of DC’s most powerful heroes against one of the most sinister villains in comic book history.
The animation is very detailed and the action scenes will satisfy even the most hardcore animation fan. Jelenic who penned the film informed us that he had been ordered not to follow the clichés of the two heroes fighting against one another but rather to go down a new path. Captain Marvel is full of innocence as he has the power of gods that could destroy whole cities but has the innocence and good spirit to use his powers for the benefit of mankind.
As a Captain Marvel fan, I cant wait for the full short to be released for all to see.
The disc will also include the previously released DC Showcase shorts featuring Green Arrow, Jonah Hex and The Spectre.
We were then treated to five minutes of a film based on one of my favorite Superman stories of all time, All Star Superman.
I have to say from what I saw anyone who was worried about deviations from the comic series can put those fears to rest. They are incredibly faithful to the source material not only capturing the great Frank Quitely’s art style but also Grant Morrison’s engrossing tale of DC’s classic Man of Steel. Bruce Timm admitted that the biggest hurdle they faced was being faithful to Quitely’s unique vision of these classic characters. “If done incorrectly everyone would wind up looking like mash potatoes” Timm stated. “Quitely’s artwork is so unique and European, it’s like nothing ever done in American animation, so this was the hardest film we have ever done but also one of the most rewarding.”
The clips we were treated too showed Superman rescuing Dr. Quintum from the infamous super genius Lex Luthor played excellently by Anthony LaPaglia, who has sabotaged a expedition to Earth’s sun in order to kill Superman. It’s a great scene, incredibly faithful to the original source material and captures Grant Morrison’s wit perfectly.
We also were treated to one of the most memorable moments of the comic, Superman and Lois kissing on the moon. I don’t say this lightly, but it was stunning how detailed the animation was. Voice work by Christina Hendricks as Lois and James Denton as Superman/Clark is really great. Denton successfully captures not only the character’s power, but also his gentleness and compassion.
We also got to see another scene ripped from the pages of the original miniseries.
When one of Superman’s classic foes, The Parasite goes berserk when he accidentally comes in feeding distance of a quadrupled super powered Kryptonian crusader. The sequence is simply awesome, as we witness The Parasite out of control with a insatiable hunger just tearing into the helpless guards, growing more and more powerful. It was very reminiscent of a lot of Japanese anime and I cant wait to see the finished scene.
All Star Superman will be released sometime in early 2011 (we couldn’t be told the exact date since it hadn’t been locked down.)
The floor was then opened to fan questions and some interesting tidbits were revealed.
Next on the schedule of 2011, will be Frank Miller and David Mazzucchelli’s Batman: Year One. There will also be a Green Lantern anthology film featuring different styles of animation and spotlighting Corps members such as Kilowog and Abin Sur. We were told that we can give up on the hopes of Kingdom Come ever being adapted since it would be practically impossible to replicate Alex Ross’s art style and any attempt to do any other style would be an insult to the most beloved mini series in DC Comics history.
Crisis on Infinite Earths is another adaptation that most likely never occur, since the storyline and number of characters is so intricate, it would be impossible to sum up in an animated film. It was also revealed that the previously announced adaptation of the Marv Wolfman and George Perez inspired The New Teen Titans: The Judas Contract was very close to being produced but was killed by the investors for a worry that it would not recoup or make a profit.
Also, the Wonder Woman film that was released a few years ago was heavily cut due to some intense violence. Timm hopes to someday release a new version if possible. Plans are in works to revisit the Batman Beyond universe which inspired an uproar of cheers from the audience.
The presentation came far too quickly to a close, but thanks to Bruce Timm, it’s nice to know that the future of the animated DC Universe couldn’t be in better hands.
