I’m starting this week off with a video. Why? Because one of our awesome readers (thanks Matt!) sent me this Gundam Rap album preview and I can’t get the song “White Reflection” out of my head! This was recently featured on TOKYOPOP but if you didn’t catch it you need to watch now:

Richie Branson, keep up the good work. You’ve made my week! You can find more about Branson’s album here.

And now for to the update:

This week we’ve got Hetalia: Axis Powers – the Complete Series out on DVD. What will become of my favorite characters: Japan, Germany and Italy? I suppose I’ll have to pick up the collection and find out! This is one of those series that just has to be seen to be believed, and I highly recommend the English version for the terrible accents and ridiculous translations for U.S. distribution. The release should also hopefully mean that we’ll soon see World Series on the Netflix instant streaming service, too! You can pick up the whole series now for list price $44.98 or the Amazon price at $34.99.

Dragon Ball Z: Level 1.1 hits stores this Tuesday, November 8th. Since this is the first time the original Dragon Ball Z is launching on Blu-ray, Funimation painstakingly restored the series frame by frame (and the results are stunning). Check out my review of Level 1.1 here.

Episodes: Level 1.1 contains episodes 1 – 17 of the original edit of the series (please note that this includes the original edit only, not the Kai version that has already been released on Blu-ray). Given all the audio options you can watch through the episodes at least three different ways. This release does not include the Next Episode previews, but honestly I prefer my anime without these previews so this choice was fine with me.

Audio: You can opt to watch in English or Japanese. If you watched the series on Cartoon Network, then I highly suggest going back and watching it in English again (Let’s face it, Dragon Ball Z’s awesome voice actors are the ones that took dubbing in North America to the next level!). Your options are:

DOLBY TRUE HD: English Dialogue with Japanese Music 5.1

DOLBY TRUE HD: U.S. English Broadcast Version 2.0

Original Japanese Mono: (With or without English subtitles.)

If you want, you can change the audio and subtitles at any time during the episode and check out the differences between the Japanese and English versions. It’s really neat for fans like me who enjoy both the Japanese and English versions of the series! My recommendation: put the English Dialogue with Japanese Music 5.1 on your surround sound system and blast it so your neighbors can hear every epic “Kamehameha!” as if you were with our heroes on the battlefield (they’ll love you for it, I promise.).

Picture: Clear, crisp, and beautifully restored. You can see the grain detail in the color and that’s exactly how it’s supposed to look (if you don’t believe me, try pulling out any anime VHS you’ve got sitting in your closet, this remastered version is so much sharper!). The transfer of 16mm film to 1080p HD has not only preserved the original, director-approved color and classic 4:3 aspect ratio – it has also created a picture that looks much better than when we first saw the series on television in the 1990’s (for anyone who’s curious, Dragon Ball Z first aired in Japan on April 26th, 1989).

For me, it was great to watch this in the classic 4:3 aspect ratio – and it looks fine on today’s HD Televisions (I still have my tube TV for classic console gaming, so I actually tested this theory by playing the disks on both units with my PS3). Your HD TV will automatically letterbox to the proper size and it looks great.

The Bonus/Disk Features include:

The Marathon Feature: Watch all the episodes on each disk seamlessly with just one click! This connects all the episodes together so you can power through each of the two disks. Personally, I recommend this feature be viewed with a group of friends and your favorite beverages and snacks. I had a blast watching disk one in Marathon Mode – I hadn’t sat down and watched the original series from the beginning since it was on Cartoon Network, so this was a pretty epic occasion for me! You still might want to click through each intro/ outro sequence – but this is easily done on a PS3 (or your Blu-Ray player of choice). During Marathon Playback, you can summon up a small menu bar in the left corner of the screen and switch between episodes, audio, and subtitles at any time without having to return to the main menu.

Textless Openings and Closings – a great way to enjoy the art and editing in the intro and outro.

The Remastering Featurette is a neat way to see the painstaking process that these episodes had to undergo in order to be restored to HD quality. The side-by-side comparison of un-restored and re-mastered footage is pretty amazing! Check out this short clip from the Featurette:

Given the to-be-continued style that the Featurette ends in on the blu-ray, it looks like we’ll get a peek at more behind the scenes goodies with each upcoming Level.

Character Profile Card: Each release comes with a collectible character profile card. Level 1.1 comes packaged with Vegeta, and it’s printed with Chris Sabat’s signature and profile as well. It’s a very cool collector’s bonus!

All in all, this set is going to be a must-have for anime collectors out there who will enjoy seeing the series beautifully remastered to HD. I definitely recommend it to fans of the series and to those who need to watch it for the first time – set the disk to Marathon Mode and enjoy!

For more Dragon Ball Z goodness, check out Big Shiny Robot’s recent NYCC 2011 Interview with Chris Sabat, Justin Cook and Sean Schemmel about the Blu-ray, Kai, and more! You can also check out the trailer for the upcoming 1.1 Blu-Ray release on Funimation’s website.

Cartoon Network and Adult Swim will host nine panels, two screenings and three autograph signings for fan-favorite series at New York Comic Con at the Jacob K. Javits Center, Friday, October 14 through Sunday October 16, 2011. (The lineup includes some seriously awesome panels for my personal favorites – The Venture Bros, Robot Chicken, and Adventure Time!)

Big Shiny Robot will be at New York Comic Con this October! Will you? Be sure to log on to Big Shiny Robot for all your upcoming New York Comic Con 2011 news!

See the full lineup for both networks below; please note all times, dates and locations are subject to change.

CARTOON NETWORK & ADULT SWIM PANELS

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 14

ADULT SWIM: The Venture Bros

4:15 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Location: IGN Theater

Talent: Jackson Publick (co-creator) and Doc Hammer (co-creator)

The Venture Bros show creators Jackson Publick and Doc Hammer, perennial Comic-Con favorites, will discuss their original series and answer questions that have been submitted by fans on AdultSwimPresents.com/NYCC.  Launched on Adult Swim in August 2004, The Venture Bros. is an inspired spoof of 1960s action cartoon shows such as “Johnny Quest.” The animated series follows the bizarre misadventures of the Venture family, which includes world-renowned Dr. Venture, his dimwitted sons Hank and Dean as well as Brock Samson, their bodyguard assigned by the government to keep an eye on the family who is then promptly forgotten by the Feds.

ADULT SWIM: Robot Chicken

5:15 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.

Location: IGN Theater

Talent: Seth Green (co-creator), Matt Senreich (co-creator), Zeb Wells (writer) and Doug Goldstein (head writer and co-producer)

Seth Green (co-creator), Matthew Senreich (co-creator), Zeb Wells (writer), and Doug Goldstein (head writer and co-producer) discuss their incredibly-popular and award-winning series Robot Chicken and provide a sneak peek of season 5.5, premiering Oct. 23^rd at 11:30 p.m. (ET/PT) on Adult Swim. Created by Seth Green and Matthew Senreich, the Emmy Award-winning Robot Chicken uses stop-motion animation to bring pop-culture parodies to life in a modern take on the variety/sketch show format.

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 15

ADULT SWIM: Superjail!

4:00 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.

Location:  Room 1A06

Talent: Christy Karacas (creator and executive producer) , Stephen Warbrick (creator and executive producer), Jackson Publick, Janine DiTullio

Join creators and executive producers Christy Karacas and Stephen Warbrick with Jackson Publick and Janine DiTullio as they discuss their Adult Swim series Superjail! and preview never-before-seen footage! Fast-paced animation, flying guts, creepy underlings, and plenty of prison fights dominate the Warden’s chaotic prison in Superjail!. The blood flows like wine and the line between criminal and keeper gets blurrier by the minute.  Picture a kaleidoscope of entrails meets Jon Waters meets Shawshank damnation plus a sweaty muscle woman minus primetime sensibility. You are hereby guilty of being given what you asked for.

ADULT SWIM: Eagleheart

4:45 p.m. – 5:15 p.m.

Location:  Room 1A06

Talent: Chris Elliot, Jason Woliner, Andrew Weinberg, Michael Koman, Maria Thayer

Join series star Chris Elliott with Jason Woliner, Andrew Weinberg, Michael Koman, Maria Thayer as they discuss the live-action comedyEagleheart and show exclusive footage from the upcoming new season.  Produced by Conan O’Brien’s Conaco Productions and Dakota Pictures, the series premiered in February and recently wrapped production of its second season, which is slated to premiere in the spring of 2012. Every episode ofEagleheart promises violence, suspense, intrigue and copious amounts of needless bloodshed as Marshal Chris Monsanto (Elliott) blindly kicks, punches and shoots his way to what may or may not be a legitimate solution to his case.

ADULT SWIM: The Heart, She Holler

5:30 p.m. – 6:15 p.m.

Location:  Room 1A06

Talent: Patton Oswalt, Kristen Schaal, Heather Lawless, Leo Fitzpatrick, Joe Sikora, John Lee (executive producer), Alyson Levy (executive producer)

Adult Swim presents The Heart, She Holler, an original live-action series that explores the dramatic lives of a small community living in a hillbilly town.  Series stars Patton Oswalt (United States of Tara), Kristen Schaal (The Flight of the Conchords), Heather Lawless (Be Kind Rewind), Leo Fitzpatrick (El Camino), and Joe Sikora (Shutter Island) join co-executive producers John Lee and Alyson Levy to show never-before-seen footage of this new original live-action series that will premiere on Adult Swim this fall.

ADULT SWIM: Delocated!

6:30 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.

Location:  Room 1A06

Talent: Jon Glaser (creator and executive producer), Steve Cirbus, Janeane Garofalo, Jacob Kogan, Yung-I Chang, Ali Farahnakian

Delocated! creator/executive producer and star Jon Glaser is on hand along with Steve Cirbus, Janeane Garofalo, Jacob Kogan, Yung-I Chang and Ali Farahnakian to reveal exclusive footage from the upcoming third season of the show premiering on Adult Swim this fall as well as answer questions about the series.  Delocated! is a live-action series about “Jon,” who after testifying against the Russian Mafia has to live undercover through the witness protection program.  After existing quietly in an anonymous suburb, “Jon” accepts an offer to participate in a reality show based on his life.  In order to protect his identity with television audiences—and more importantly, the Russian mob family the Mirminsky’s—he wears a ski mask and has his voice surgically disguised.

ADULT SWIM: China, IL Exclusive Screening and Q&A

7:15 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.

Location:  Room 1A06

Talent: Brad Neely (creator) and Daniel Weidenfeld (executive producer)

Adult Swim presents an exclusive screening of a never-before-aired episode of their newest animated comedy China, IL.  Frank and Steve Smith are brothers who teach in the history department of a state university in China, IL.  They also happen to be legends in their own minds who will often sacrifice facts, lessons and syllabi for the sake of being awesome.  Created by Brad Neely and produced by Titmouse, Inc., China, IL is a reverseAnimal House where the teachers are crazy and the students just want to learn.  Creator Brad Neely and executive producer Daniel Weidenfeld will be on hand for a lively Q&A.

ADULT SWIM: Black Dynamite

8:15 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.

Location:  Room 1A06

Talent: Michael Jai White, Byron Minns, Kym Whitley, Carl Jones (executive producer), and Scott Sanders (producer)

Black Dynamite is an exciting new animated series coming to Adult Swim in 2012 and is based on 2009’s critically-acclaimed feature film. The series further chronicles the exploits of Black Dynamite and his crew.  Cast members Michael Jai White (Black Dynamite), Byron Minns (Bullhorn), Kym Whitley (Honeybee), executive producer Carl Jones, and producer Scott Sanders will host a Q&A and show never-before-seen footage! Room

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 16

CARTOON NETWORK: Adventure Time / Regular Show Panel and Q&A

11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Location: 1A06

Talent: Adventure Time – Pendleton Ward (Creator/ Lumpy Space Princess), Jeremy Shada (Finn) and Tom Kenny (Ice King); Regular Show talent includes creator J.G. Quintel (Creator/ Mordecai), Bill Salyers (Rigby) and Sam Marin (Pops, Benson, Muscle Man).

Cartoon Network is dominating Monday nights with the FUNNIEST night on television, and we’re bringing the inside scoop to Comic Con!  Join creators and talent from Adventure Time and Regular Show as they talk about how these two comedy hits came to life, screen upcoming episodes, share what’s in store for your favorite characters this season, answer questions and more!

The panel features Adventure Time creator Pendleton Ward (Lumpy Space Princess), Jeremy Shada (Finn) and Tom Kenny (Ice King); Regular Showtalent includes creator J.G. Quintel (Mordecai), Bill Salyers (Rigby) and Sam Marin (Pops, Benson, Muscle Man).

Adventure Time introduces viewers to unlikely heroes Finn and Jake, buddies who traverse the mystical Land of Ooo and encounter its colorful inhabitants. The best of friends, our heroes always find themselves in the middle of heart-pounding escapades.   Regular Showfeatures Mordecai, a six-foot-tall blue jay, and Rigby, a hyperactive raccoon, great friends and groundskeepers at a park whose attempts to escape their everyday boredom take them to fantastical extremes.

CARTOON NETWORK: Ben 10 / Generator Rex: Heroes United Screening and Q&A

12:30 p.m. – 1:45 p.m.

Location: 1A22

Cartoon Network’s top animated action heroes – Ben 10 and Generator Rex – team up for an exciting panel at New York Comic Con…and for an out-of-this-world adventure! In the middle of a battle, Ben Tennyson is drawn into a vortex and lands in an alternate world infected by nanites! Ben must team up with Rex to defeat a common enemy who covets the Omnitrix and Omega Nanite! ) and I said if it was for press than it was fine but if it was consumer driven we would prefer to keep it simple because most people don’t care or even know anything about omega nanites.  So including that descriptive language is fine, but let’s keep it simple: In the midst of battle, Ben Tennyson is drawn into a vortex and lands in an alternate world infected by nanites…the world of Generator Rex!  Ben and Rex will face off before realizing they must unite to battle a common enemy who threatens both of their worlds!

CARTOON NETWORK: Level Up World Premiere Screening

2:00 p.m.  – 3:30 p.m

Location: 1A22

It’s time to “Level Up” your Comic Con experience with the WORLD PREMIERE SCREENING of Cartoon Network’s funniest original movie for the video game age!  Level Up introduces three high school gamers who unwittingly open a portal from an online game, allowing the in-game creatures and mayhem to escape into the real world!  The trio must put aside their differences and join forces to play the game for real in order to save their neighborhood (and the world!) from ultimate evil! Be among the first to see Level Up before it premieres on Cartoon Network in November, with an explosive TV series to follow in 2012.

ADULT SWIM AUTOGRAPH SIGNINGS

Friday, October 14

1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.                             Venture Bros Signing
Location: Room 1E07
Talent: Jackson Publick, Doc Hammer

2:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.                             Robot Chicken Signing

Location: Room 1E07

Talent: Seth Green (co-creator), Matt Senreich (co-creator),

Zeb Wells (writer) and Doug Goldstein (head writer and co-producer)

Saturday, October 15

2:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.                             Black Dynamite Signing
Location: Room 1E07
Talent: Michael Jai White, Byron Minns, Kym Whitley,

Carl Jones (executive producer), and Scott Sanders (producer)

CARTOON NETWORK – LOUNGE INFORMATION

Cartoon Network and Adventure Time will take over the registration lobby of the Jacob Javits Center at New York Comic Con from October 13 – 16, with the CARTOON NETWORK LOUNGE.  A fully-immersive experience, the CARTOON NETWORK LOUNGE will be a must-see destination for fans of the network, as they can catch up on their favorite Adventure Time episodes, grab some exclusive giveaways, play their favorite video games and so much more.  In addition to other giveaways, Adventure Time fans should stop by to get their free New York Comic Con exclusive 2″ Finn figure, while supplies last.  The toy is a limited-edition update to one of the figures from Jazwares toy line, which is currently available for sale at Toys”R”Us retailers nationwide.  Additionally, at the CARTOON NETWORK LOUNGE, fans can try their hand at three all-new video games that will be released this fall:  Ben 10 Galactic Racing, Cartoon Network Punch Time Explosion XL and Generator Rex: Agent of Providence.

Yes, the Venture Brothers are back. BUT, before you go into histrionics of joy,  it is only for a 15 minute music special, but it is so much better than that. Sunday’s episode is “From the Ladle to the Grave” and is basically a “Behind the Music” style special about Hank, Dermit, and H.E.L.P.eR. and their band “Shallow Gravy,” who we’ve seen in bits in pieces throughout the past few seasons. There are callbacks to the Christmas special, “Operation PROM”, and several other important storylines, all narrated in that ridiculous overdramatice fashion that these roc docs always are. In fact, in one of my favorite moments of the episode (minor spoiler), the narrator (ably played by Bill Hader of SNL and current voice of Dr. Impossible) actually stops and tells Hank and Dermit he won’t read what they’ve written for him.

This episode is the perfect little snack that we’ll need to tide us over until the next season. We get callbacks, but also some important plot developments (make sure you pay attention to Dr. Venture’s interview near the end of the episode). I sat down with Doc Hammer and Jackson Publick while I was at Comic-Con and tried to needle out of them what we could expect in upcoming episodes: well, they don’t exactly know, as they haven’t written them yet. Jackson said he’d like to refocus the show back on its main characters, especially Dr. Venture and Hank and Dean. He said we can expect to see more of the “continued growth of Hank and Dean and their kind of divergence.  They’re growing up and they’re becoming their own men.”  As for Doc Hammer, he told us, “My interest on the next season are to fulfill the things we’ve set in place.  Not to forget the things… that were clearly rolling forward already.”

Given some of the important plot points in recent episode and where we can really see the changes the no-longer-so-fresh-faced Venture Bros, that sounds like a recipe for greatness. But, like always, they have to be careful not to get too sidetracked into their wonderful and growing menagerie of compelling side-characters. (But come on! Who doesn’t want to see more of Dr. Mrs. The Monarch or Shore Leave?) But even given that, Publick felt there were some characters and areas left unexplored last season that he may bring back for more: The Action Man and the rest of the original Team Venture, Jonas Jr, The Revenge Society, and, if at all possible, depending on H. John Benjamin’s increasingly busy schedule, Orpheus’s Master. But you know what? If it’s called The Venture Brothers, I’ll watch it, and am assured that I will see one of the best shows on TV.

I previously pointed out that you could download the music from the episode from itunes or your favorite electronic outlet. After watching the episode, I’m sure you’ll want to, especially since it comes with a free music video of Jacket.

Check your DVRs and make sure they’re set for midnight Sunday (technically 12am Monday?) for East and West Coast. If you’re in a different time zone, adjust accordingly. Or check it out along with all sorts of other [adult swim] goodness at adultswim.com

Childrens Hospital is one of the funniest shows on TV, and really something you should not be missing. For the uninformed, Childrens Hospital is the brainchild of Rob Cordry, and sends up all of the major tropes of medical tv shows, and even itself. A killer cast with some of the funniest people around makes this something you should not miss as it airs Thursdays at  midnight (ET/PT)  on [adult swim].

They’ve been so successful, they’ve spawned a spin-off: NTSF:SD:SUV::   (National Terrorism Strike Force: San Diego: Sport Utility Vehicle::  And yes, I was told those final colons are very important).  I’ve got a review of that pilot here, and you should watch both of these shows back to back.

I got a chance to sit down with the cast of Childrens Hospital and it was the most filthy and enjoyable interview of Comic-Con.

First of all, the cast could not stop talking about masturbation. It started with Ken Marino, and then when Erinn Hayes, Lake Bell, and Malin Ackerman sat down with us, they just kept the self-pleasuring train rolling. Lake made the point that masturbation jokes, just like the act, was not just for guys.

So, after riffing about self-gratification and commentary on the variety of recording devices we were all using (Ken mentioned that my iphone 3 was not as up to date as the guy with the iphone 4.  Thanks, dude. J/K- you’re a mensch), we actually got down to some real questions.

The basics? We’re going to get 14 episodes of season 2, 6 of which have aired.  They’re thinking now about season 3, and have several ideas. Cordry has an idea for how to get Lady GaGa in an episode, if they could get her to do it.  (PS- she should)  But he doesn’t want to take it too far: “I don’t want to be one of those guest star centric shows because we have such a great cast.”

What should be in future episodes? Well, there will be another Newscasters theme episode, and I hope everyone caught the “Our Town” episode that aired tonight.  Cordry implied that this episode might become the basis for a full-blown tour, featuring not only a live performance like this, but also some live music and other comedy.  So, more like the Conan O’Brien tour from last summer.  Mulally also gave up a major spoiler in that there will be an episode featuring lots of porn stars which takes place on the night shift, during which time Chief is supposed to “run” in slow motion.  So, we can look forward to that hilarity and sexiness.

As for the location, which Cordry referred to as “kind of Scrubs-y”, it was recently demolished, so they’re not quite sure where they’ll film next season. “I think we’re going to do it in the rubble of that hospital. And when they build condos there, we’ll film it there,” said Cordry, who also revealed that he had actually never watched Scrubs until after they had filmed several seasons there, and only then seen how noticeably similar the two shows were. “It’s the same thing, just a different coat of paint.”

Erinn Hayes could care less where the show is filming. “Rob is an insanely talented person, I would do a show with him in his apartment… or streetmosphere.”

As for the boundaries put on the show, there really are none. While they specifically state they do not care about things like continuity, rather just focusing on what Cordry calls “the incessant joke barrage” format, “I’ll do anything as long as it’s cool. I don’t care what it is. . . Everything in the show is just an engine for jokes, so I don’t care about continuity or character, but that shouldn’t necessarily be canon.”  So, as long as it would be funny to start caring about continuity or have a long character arc, then we’ll see them.

We’ll also hopefully be seeing more of Nick Offerman on Childrens Hospital and also Megan Mulally on Parks and Recreation- the real-life couple has been doing amazing work guest-starring on each others shows, and Megan was overwhelmed at the fan support for Nick as folk hero Ron Swanson on Parks and Rec.

There are a couple of things we might not see. In early episodes Megan Mulally’s “Chief” character had a mole which would move locations. She recounted that during filming, someone ran in out of breath saying that the travelling mole gag had been used in Robin Hood : Men in Tights and they had to stop it. “Well, to be fair, I had just been masturbating,” said Ken Marino. “Don’t you ever masturbate and jog at the same time?” See? The self-pleasure schtick never ended.

As for Comic-Con itself, the cast was in love. Malin was excited to hear that there were people dressed up as Silk Spectre at the con. But the geekery doesn’t end there. If the cast could be superheroes, Malin says she would be Wonder Woman, Erinn would be Evie from Out of this World, and Lake would be her mom. No, seriously, she has a love of Quantum Leap, but rather than being Scott Bakula, she would just want that power to leap in and out of people. And masturbate.

Par for the course. If you’re not watching Childrens Hospital, you need to get your priorities straight.

I cover The Clone Wars a lot.  Many, many people come here to read news about the show, interviews with the creators and voices, and my opinions about the episodes.  And by far and away, the question I get asked most often is “What website can I watch The Clone Wars on?”

I don’t like that question because I know that what they’re really asking is: “Where can I download it, I can’t find a torrent.”

I always politely tell them that it’s available the next morning on iTunes for a small fee in glorious HD and that’s far and away the best place to watch it.  After that, the two most recent episodes are available on StarWars.com for free.  And then I remind them (with links to Amazon!) that the first two seasons are available on DVD and Blu-ray.

To my mind, piracy is wrong.  I want to watch this show through legitimate means to support it as best I can and I want others to do the same.

Sometimes, there’s nothing that can be done about it, though, as wrong as it is.  Take for instance the Season Finale of The Clone Wars.  The first half of it has already aired in the UK.  Can you imagine how many links that have been sent to me to download this episode?  It’s everywhere.  And can you blame people for wanting to see it as soon as possible?  This is hands down the best show on television and we’re teased over and over again with it.  And it’s not like the presentation suffers from downloading all that much.  I’ve been offered HD quality video and my cable isn’t even HD.

But it begs the question, why aren’t they coordinating the air dates around the world to be the same day?  That single thing will prevent piracy more than anything.

But that’s not exactly what I wanted to talk about.  I wanted to talk about the disparity in timezones in our modern Internet culture and why I’m canceling my Comcast (Xfinity?) cable subscription.

First of all, for some reason cable providers in Salt Lake City have Cartoon Network (and Comedy Central) set far later than anywhere else in the country.  The Clone Wars doesn’t air until 9:30 pm Mountain Standard Time in Salt Lake City (and the rest of Utah.)  That’s a full 3 hours after it airs on the East Coast.  And because we all live online and timezones mean much less unless you’re dealing with business hours I have to completely shut off Twitter and Facebook and everything else because I don’t want to know about the episode.  (New episodes of The Daily Show and the Colbert Report don’t even start until midnight.  Same with Robot Chicken and Adult Swim.)

Thanks to DVRs and Instant Streaming timezones are now completely irrelevant in broadcast programming.

So if I were Lucasfilm, I’d work hard with the UK distributor of The Clone Wars to make sure that they aren’t airing anything too much before the US.  And if I’m Cartoon Network, I would insist that the airing of the show at the very least match the timezone disparity, but in the best case scenario have it playing simultaneously around the country.

And while this is incredibly annoying, this isn’t why I’m canceling my cable subscription either.  The truth is I pay well over $60 a month for the most basic cable package a from Comcast that will afford me Cartoon Network.  And it’s far too much to pay PER MONTH for one show.  I have my internet.  I have Netflix.  I have Amazon.  I have a Blu-ray player.  I have an iTunes account.  Though it will force me to write my reviews of The Clone Wars the next morning instead of the night of, I have no need for basic cable and I can’t afford $60 a month to watch just the one show.

Perhaps I’d consider keeping basic cable if it were a’la carte.  Where I could pick up my local stations, Cartoon Network, BBC, Comedy Central, and Disney for…say…  $9.99 per month?  That would make it just about worth it for me to keep.  But until then, all they’ll get from me is my Internet subscription.

And after next week’s Season Finale of The Clone Wars, unless iTunes gets simultaneous releases with the show, you’ll just have to wait for my reviews of The Clone Wars until Saturday morning.

Cable providers and cable stations need to better understand the consumption habits and desires of their consumers, otherwise we’re all going to be canceling our subscriptions.