What does someone do when they’ve just finished principal photography on one of the most anticipated films of next summer and you have a month off?  Well, if you’re (insane, a workaholic, a demigod) like Joss Whedon, you shoot a whole other movie.

Whedon shot Shakespeare’s “Much Ado About Nothing” in 12 days at his home starring a cast of Whedon regulars. The story revolves around a group of friends returning home from battle and celebrating the love young Claudio finds with a beautiful girl by the name of Hero. But Don John (their bastard cousin) seeks to destroy Hero’s reputation and stop the marriage and all hell breaks loose. It’s kind of the original “rom com” except classier.  Because it’s Shakespeare.

Whedon will face some challenges, though. This is an independent film and does not yet have a distributor. (emphasis on yet) He hopes he can get it into film festivals early next year. (Hey Joss, SXSW is a GREAT place to premiere a film. And Austin is way nice in March. And their deadline for film submission is in a couple weeks. . . . . Just saying.)  Another challenge will be the invited comparisons to Kenneth Branaugh’s film version, who also had an amazing cast and director. As much as I love the various citizens of the Whedonverse, they’re not the Royal Shakespeare Company and don’t have the gravitas of some of the actors in that version.  Then again, I’ve seen high school productions of Shakespeare that were better than some professional versions. Regardless, I have high hopes because Joss Whedon has never let me down before.

Whedon’s cast is top notch. The key characters of Beatrice and Benedick, who I can best compare to the original Sam and Diane (Cheers) or Maddie Hayes and David Addison (Moonlighting), will be played by Alexis Denisof (Wesley from Buffy/Angel) and Amy Acker (Fred from Angel, Dr. Saunders/Whiskey from Dollhouse). As quick as this production was done, Denisof and Acker had actually previously done readings of key Beatrice and Benedick scenes at Whedon’s home.

The real key to this production, however, will be the inclusion of Nathan Fillion. He gets to play the key role of Dogberry, the inept local constable who bumbles his way through the investigation but nonetheless (spoiler alert?) helps uncover Don John’s treachery. Dogberry is one of, if not the greatest, comic roles Shakespeare ever wrote. And Fillion will be perfect for it.

The part of Don John will be played by Sean Maher (Serenity/Firefly), who I also think is a great choice. As the villain, he’ll be playing against type, which will be a nice change of pace.  And, he’ll be the only one NOT compared to his counterpart in the Branaugh version, Keanu Reeves.

Another great decision by Whedon was to not only set this in the modern day with modern dress, but to film it entirely in black and white. This sort of deconstructed approach is also going to be an interesting touch to a very well-known play, and will also set it apart from the very colorful and sunshiny Branaugh version.

I personally can’t wait. The simple fact that this was done as a passion project right AFTER doing the Avengers has got to say something about how Whedon feels about this. So I have nothing but the best hopes, and especially hope to get to see this soon.

I only recently finished the Hunger Games series a few months ago, but like so many people I fell in love with the story and the characters. Like the rest of the fan base of this series, I have high hopes for the films – the first of which comes out on March 23, 2012. Hopefully these films will capture these novels in an exceptional way.

In the mean time however, Lionsgate has released eight simple character posters highlighting the main characters from the film! You can check them all out below!

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Source: First Showing

Bruce Timm has been a prominent animator for DC comics for many years, designing characters for Batman: The Animated Series, Batman Beyond, Justice League, and Justice League Unlimited, to name a few. You might have seen him when he drew Conan O’Brien’s character, “The Flaming C.” At New York Comic Con 2011, Bicentennial Dan and Ticelli Bot got to sit down with them at a roundtable discussion about his latest work in Batman:Year One and Justice League: Doom.

Unfortunately, Timm’s interview was cut shorter due to time constraints.

Q: Last year you were mentioning something that you were working on that was big and secret that you weren’t really able to talk about.

BRUCE TIMM: Oh, that was probably The Dark Knight Returns. That’s probably what I was alluding to, it was nothing beyond that.

Q: Are you able to reveal any secret projects now?

TIMM: No, afraid not. I think everything’s been announced that I’m allowed to talk about, up to Dark Knight 1 and 2.

Q: How involved were you in getting Lauren Faust for Super Best Friends Forever and the Aardman Batman shorts?

TIMM: Oh, not at all.

Q: Are you going to be working with them at all?

TIMM: We’ve been talking with the producers on the DC Nation doing maybe possibly some stuff for them, but I’ve got to figure out a way to squeeze it into my schedule.

Q: When you’re looking for new projects that are within the DC Universe, is it difficult to deal with that wealth of riches that you have to choose from in the source material, or do you have a mental list of things that you say, “I’d really like to go back and do this if they gave me the opportunity.”

TIMM: It is kind of a broad question, and hopefully I can answer it in a way without insulting tons and tons of people, but…I wish there was more really strong source material like All-Star Superman or Batman: Year One for us to adapt into movies. There really aren’t. There’s a lot of good comics over the entire course of history, but in terms of finding a really well-known comic like Batman: Year One or Dark Knight Returns that’s not only a great comic but also famous and has its own name-recognition value, there aren’t that many of them out there. Is there a Dark Knight equivalent for Aquaman or for Green Arrow? No, there really isn’t. So there may be good stories out there, but they’re not on that same level. It definitely makes it easier when there’s a story like Batman: Year One or Dark Knight or All-Star Superman or The New Frontier. Something that’s really that strong and you can read the comic and go, “OK, I can totally see how that would work as an animated film.” There aren’t really that many properties out there that are like that.

Q: So it could work as a very successful story, but it might not translate into your area.

TIMM: Well, as a good example is Justice League: Doom. I read the Tower of Babel storyline when it first came out, and there were things about it that I really really liked, but for years everyone kept asking, “Oh, when are you going to do Tower of Babel? when are you going to do Tower of Babel?” and it doesn’t really work as an animated movie because there’s things that get up that don’t really pay off, it doesn’t have a movie structure to it, and it doesn’t really have a super larger-than-life quality to it. But then we were talking about it again just a couple of years ago, and going back and rethinking about the book because it’s a really, really strong idea for a movie: the idea that Batman has these contingency plans on how to take down the Justice League if they’d ever gone bad, and then those plans fall into the wrong hands and the villain actually puts those plans into action. It’s a really good, strong story motivator, so we felt like we could do something of our own with it. We’re always adapting ideas and things from the comics, but it may not always be a literal adaptation.

Q: Does DC’s relaunch do anything to you guys, or is it completely separate?

TIMM: It doesn’t really have anything to do with us. They’ve told us, “Don’t even worry about trying to make all the changes that they’ve made in the comics true in the animation.” At least not yet.

Q: This might be a silly question, but since Superman’s been in the animated universe, he never has the shield on the back of the cape. Is that just for aesthetics, or is that an animation issue?

TIMM: It’s just an animation issue. The shield is hard enough to draw on a flat surface. You try to draw it on a wrinkly surface….you know, a lot of people…(laughs) to me, I think it is kind of a silly question, because a lot of people are like, “I can’t believe they never put the shield on his cape!” and it’s just like, “Who’s looking at the back of his cape?” He’s got it on the front. It’s fine.

Q: It’s just something that I’ve noticed, but it doesn’t take away…

Q: I never noticed it before.

TIMM: Yeah, it’s just…I always forget that he even has it on his cape. I don’t think of him that way. To me, it’s just a red cape. He doesn’t…I don’t know. It’s funny.

BICENTENNIAL DAN: The DC Animated Universe has been going for 20 years. How does it feel to be the person behind the iconic versions of characters to an entire generation?

TIMM: Good. (laughs) I guess. That was a short answer.

BigShinyRobot would like to thank Bruce Timm for taking time to participate in this roundtable interview, as well as all the other members of the press and the coordinators. Batman: Year One is on the shelves and Justice League: Doom comes out next year. Don’t forget to check them  out!

Andrea Romano has been casting director on at least a dozen cartoons that you watched growing up. Casting such classics as Batman: The Animated Series, Animaniacs, and Tiny Toon Adventures, she has won 7 Emmy Awards and has proven herself to be a staple in the entertainment community. At New York Comic Con 2011, Bicentennial Dan and Ticelli Bot got to sit down with Andrea at a roundtable discussion about her latest work in Batman:Year One and Justice League: Doom.

Q: Kevin was saying something about the use of actors who were not voice actors per se, but people you thought of as being good actors for the job. Could you talk a bit about how that informs your casting choices?

ANDREA ROMANO: We have the opportunity with all the different television shows and cable shows and movies that are out there to see so many actors work, so you can gauge someone’s acting by that. It’s not like I have to go out and do auditions to say, “Jeez, is Nathan Fillion a good actor?” I can actually watch some of his work and say, “Yes, he’s a good actor.” Now, the next question is, “Do they have voice over experience?” If they don’t, I don’t shy away from them. It just means that I have to teach them maybe the technique to working on microphone. For instance, if they’re strictly a film actor, they tend to work very small because the camera’s right in their face and they have to work very small. We have to goose the energy a bit to get the right voice tracks to be animated.

You can cast a very wide net when you look at the entire entertainment industry. Firefly is a great show because there were so many talented actors in that. I think for one project or another, I’ve pretty much hired every single actor in that show at this point. But you basically look for good acting. Microphone technique and animation acting, you can teach in a very short time. I can’t teach acting in a four-hour recording session. Acting is something that they’ve got to bring to the table themselves. You think, “Here’s what the character looks like, here’s what the character is. Does that actor’s voice sound like what the character looks like? Do I think he’s got the acting ability?” Say, for Batman: Year One, I watched Ben McKenzie do Southland, and I thought, “Absolutely, he can handle what happens in Batman: Year One.” So I’m never afraid to take a shot with someone who’s never done it before because we don’t ever want to repeat ourselves.

However, for Justice League: Doom, it was a joy to get the response from the employers when they said that I could bring back the cast that I had cast some twelve years ago from the Justice League series. Some people who hadn’t worked together since we did the last Justice League a decade ago got to work together again. I said it’s like going to a family reunion where you’ve hand-picked your family (laughs). It’s really nice.

Q: Do you ever take a leap of faith where something tells you that this person is going to be perfect for the part?

ROMANO: Absolutely. A perfect example of that was when I was working on Teen Titans many years ago, there was a brand new actor in town named Greg Cipes, and he auditioned with 150 people for Beast Boy. I sat with the producer, Glen Murakami, and we listened to all the auditions and I said, “I’m convinced this kid is Beast Boy. I’m absolutely convinced he’s the right actor.” I kind of had to convince my bosses that this is the right guy, and sure enough, he was a wonderful Beast Boy. Then he went off and has begun this ridiculously huge voice-over career. But yeah, you do have to take that leap of faith and say, “It feels right to me. I think it’s right.” And I’ve been doing this now long enough that I should have some sense of it.

I can be wrong. I’m the first one to say, “You know, I brought this guy in and he wasn’t perfect, and I apologize,” but you gotta take a chance. You can’t just play it safe. You gotta go for something new and take a chance.

Q: One thing I’ve noticed in some of the newer movies is more natural sounding dialogue.

ROMANO: Good! We did that deliberately. That was a conscious decision.
Q: Does that affect the way you cast, or the way you will drive a session as a result of that?

ROMANO: Yeah, both of those things. There are some…for lack of a better term, “cartoon voice actors” who are always going to be broad. That’s what they do, and they can do multiple voices and have remarkable skill, but ideally, when you know that you want a very realistic style and you want it to be a live-action feature, you kind of look at the casting a little bit differently. Certainly the sessions you direct differently because you want that more intimate, quieter, more subtle performance.

BICENTENNIAL DAN: How does it feel to be the person who chooses all these voices that then go on to become the voices that people hear in their heads when they read these comics?

ROMANO: It’s an awesome responsibility. It’s huge. Hopefully I make the right decision, but I don’t have the ultimate say. My job as a casting director, when I’m casting something is to present options to the people who do have the ultimate say, which is essentially the money people, the publicity people, a bunch of people who have say. Any casting director’s job is to present options: “Here’s these five people. Tell me who you like and in what order.” If they’re celebrities, “I want this guy first, go to this guy next, go to this guy next.” If there are auditions, you just present the auditions to them and say, “I like these five guys. These are my favorites. Who do you guys like?” And then they say, “Go to this guy, and then this one.” Certainly it’s the producers and not myself that makes the decisions.

Q: You’ve been working with Kevin Conroy & Tim Daly for so long. When they come back after not doing it for a while, is there a little bit of a learning curve?

ROMANO: No, ]because they did the characters for so many years, it’s just like breathing. It’s like riding a bike. You don’t really have to think about how to ride a bike any more. You learn how to do it and you do it, which is why whenever I’m given a project like Justice League: Doom, my first question to my employers is, “May I go back to the original cast?” because I know it’ll make my job easier. First of all, I’m not going to have to re-cast all over again, and the actors will remember. Even though Kevin Conroy and Tim Daly aren’t acting in the same room together, they’re going to remember each other’s performances and what their performances are going to sound like, so they’ll have a better, fuller world that they can then act and react to.

Q: When an actor is auditioning for something like a Batman role or a Superman role, do you ever mention anything from Kevin Conroy’s performance or Tim Daly’s performance?

ROMANO: No, because actors want to create something themselves. They don’t want to emulate somebody else. They want it to be their performance. If they came in just to do an impression of Kevin, I would just get Kevin (laughs). Everybody wants to create it themselves, and that’s interesting too. I like all the new different incarnations. I think it was in San Diego, or one of you guys told me how many times I’ve cast Batman. I think I’m up to 12 now. I didn’t even know, but I like all of them. If for some reason I don’t like them, I’ll probably replace them. I mean, Batman is such a huge property. You can’t do a mediocre job. It has to be good.

Q: Do the short films give you an opportunity to add a bit of fun in terms of the casting because you’re maybe going to go out on a limb a bit further?

ROMANO: You know, for all the shorts that have been added to the DVDs in the DC Universe, “Catwoman” is the only one I cast. All the rest were done by other people, only because I was too busy. I had 10 projects simultaneously and I just couldn’t do them all, and I don’t ever want to sign up for something where I can’t give it a very good job. So “Catwoman was the only one I did.”

Q: Where did Eliza Dushku come from?

ROMANO: She had done Batman: Year One, and that piece came up short. We needed to do a little piece with it to make it a full-length feature, and there was a Paul Dini script that happened to be a Catwoman piece. We were like, “Eliza is available, she wants to do it, we’ve wanted to work with her for years, she’s on board for the long piece, let’s have her do both of them.” So it just worked out.

Q: You’ve been doing the DC heroes for so long, but how is it different from doing something like The Boondocks, which is not exactly “politically correct”, or…

ROMANO: (laughs) What do you mean? (laughter) It’s great because I don’t get stuck in a rut, then. I found that there was a period of time when I was doing almost exclusively action shows and I felt myself yearning to do something silly and fun. Years ago, when I was doing Animaniacs and Pinky and the Brain and all those musical comedy shows, then I was doing BTAS and Superman, that was a nice combination of different kinds of cartoons. Then, it just happened that it was a bunch of action shows, and I really started longing for the sillier ones. So when The Boondocks came along, I just jumped at that. We’re making more of those, by the way.

Q: Are you ever uncomfortable with some of the material?

ROMANO: Always! Always uncomfortable! And the funny thing is because the artists record separately very often on that…I’ve worked with a bunch of rappers and I’ve worked with Quincy Jones, and a bunch of different people, and I have to read them in. And so I have to say the lines that the other actor had to say (laughter) which is sometimes…and I’ll say the “n-word,” and the actor will just freeze in front of me. And I’ll say, “It’s because I said the n-word, isn’t it?” (laughs)

Q: Of the non-traditional voice people, who was your greatest get? And of voices of any actors, politicians, whoever, who do you think a great voice for voiceover?

ROMANO: Wow…good question. You know who was my biggest get? Steven Spielberg. I directed Steven Spielberg in a Tiny Toons episode. That was crazy. I actually do remember sitting there as I slated the show, I turned around to the crew and went, “I’m Directing Steven Spielberg!” Because lots of people can say, “I’ve been directed by..” but very few can say, “I directed him.”

There’s all kinds of people that I would love to come and work with me. I want any actor who’s ever worked to come and play with me at some point. There’s so many…you know, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, I love his voice, there’s so much texture to it, it’s really nice.

Q: Any women?

ROMANO: There were a couple of people we tried to get recently, but…you know, the thing is that I don’t want to say because I may be able to get them, you know? There’s so many people.

BigShinyRobot would like to thank Andrea Romano for taking time to participate in this roundtable interview, as well as all the other members of the press and the coordinators. Batman: Year One is on the shelves and Justice League: Doom comes out next year. Don’t forget to check them  out!

Well, tonight marks the end of the 2011 Austin Film Festival, and for those still interested in all the hoopla, there will be a red carpet premiere of “Union Station” at The Paramount featuring actress Mira Sorvino and writer/director Nancy Savoca. The red carpet festivities begin at 7pm and the film will begin at 8, with a Q&A afterwards.

So let me just give incredible props to everyone involved with AFF this year. We’ve had an amazing slate of films– a slate that would make Sundance, Toronto, Telluride, and SXSW proud– and staff and volunteers have been amazing. Thanks for bringing this festival to our city.

And now, onto the films! First up is Alexander Payne’s (Sideways, About Schmidt, Election) “The Descendants” starring George Clooney. There is already Oscar buzz around this movie and it is incredibly well-deserved. Payne’s writing and directing are so crisp and so flawless. This is everything we would have expected from him. And Clooney delivers, in my opinion, the best performance of his career. Clooney plays the head of a family descended from Hawaiian royalty who own one of the largest undeveloped expanses in the islands. While deciding how to develop and sell the land, he is hit by tragedy as his wife is involved in a boating accident and slips into a coma. As a self-described “back-up parent”, he now must raise his two daughters and deal with some family secrets that come to light because of his wife’s condition, meanwhile making a very public decision about his family’s trust lands that appease his numerous cousins and the rest of islands’ residents.

The film is bittersweetly funny and also heartbreaking. Payne coaxes the performance of his career not only out of Clooney but of most of his other castmembers, including young, relatively unknown talent playing Clooney’s two daughters and the elder daughter’s boyfriend Syd. Payne smartly cast a lot of comedic actors to play some of these roles so that they could correctly hit the funny points as well as the dramatic. Judy Greer (Arrested Development, 13 Going on 30), Rob Huebel (Childrens Hospital, Party Down), and Matthew Lillard (the Scooby Doo movies) all do an amazing job. Beau Bridges also shows up as one of Clooney’s cousins and almost seems to channel his brother Jeff’s performance as The Dude from “The Big Lebowski”. Maybe he was The Dude’s more successful Hawaiin brother. And then there’s Robert Forster, who plays Clooney’s father-in-law, who also gives a pitch perfect performance, balancing both curmudgeonly angst with a tinge of appropriate humor.

This film is amazing. It was absolutely the best film I saw at this year’s festival, and may even be the best film I’ve seen all year.

Next up was “Coriolanus,” Shakespeare’s tragedy of a Roman general who would be Consul of Rome except for his inability to deal with the common people. Ralph Fiennes both directs and stars in this modern update of the lesser known Shakespearean work. And let me say, there is a reason it is lesser known. It’s terrible to say about Shakespeare, but this film was full of amazing perfomances by actors at the top of their craft, but the source material is just too dull and non-relatable, or perhaps it was just the adaptation that made it that way. Unfortunately, they try to spice it up by including several action scenes, further muddling what the filmmakers were trying to do Ostensibly, when we update Shakespeare to modern times it is often that were are trying to make a point about our times as much as the original meaning of the play. But the message is muddled: are we to be wary of mob rule and democracy? Should we welcome rule by the elite? Or is it just tragedy? It seemed unclear. . .or it could have just been the end of a very long week of seeing a lot of great films and I’m not thinking straight.

However, the lackluster approach to theme and deeper meaning is far overshadowed by great performances, specifically from the supporting cast. Brian Cox and Vanessa Redgrave both do amazing work– the type of work we expect from actors as amazing as the two of them. Fiennes is also amazing as the title character, and he owns nearly every scene he is in. And when he faces off with his mortal enemy Aufidius, played by Gerard Butler. . . .well, let’s just say that it’s apparent why most of their scenes were filmed outdoors. Because it was fairly obvious the two of them had chewed down all of the scenery around them. Incredibly enjoyable, though I wish they could’ve gotten Butler to tone down the Scottish accent a bit.

As great as the performances were, I still found myself bored with much of this. In fact, part way through the film I began imagining that this was actually another Harry Potter film where Voldemort had triumphed and was trying to be elected Consul of Rome, meanwhile Gerard Butler played a scraggly Harry Potter, hiding in the hills of Antium for a chance at revenge. . . . while that kept me entertained during the more boring parts, seeing modern-day Shakespeare did make me even more excited for the just-announced Much Ado About Nothing that has been announced by Joss “King of the Geeks” Whedon.

And finally, a quick shout out to a great sports documentary (I’m a sucker for an inspirational sports documentary) called “Push: Madison vs. Madison“. It tells the story of an inner-city Boston public school basketball team and all of the challenges they face and the coach who gets them to overcome those obstacles. Kids wouldn’t pass the ball to others because they wanted to hog the spotlight, or because they ran with a rival gang. Great work here, and continued with the theme of a few other great documentaries at AFF about just all of the challenges that our schools face today– even in sports.

There are a few other encore screenings today if you can make it to some of my favorite films from the festival:

DeadHeads at 3pm at the Arbor Regal

Austin High at 7pm at the Texas Spirit Theater

Ecstasy of Order: The Tetris Masters at 8:30pm at The Hideout

Once again, thanks to the Austin Film Festival and we look forward to seeing you outdo yourself again next year.

I came across Joe Quinones’ post on his blog about drawing Green Lando at a con and I really think the idea of mashing up Star Wars and DC is pretty funny. Especially since these two drawings are dynamite.

If anyone else has a bead on any more, let me know. A Google image search brought up next to nothing.

Here’s Joe Quinones’ Green Lando:

You might recognize Joe as the cover artist for Knight Errant.

And this was in response to Ming Doyle’s Flashbacca:

I’d love to see more of these. If you come across them, drop the info in the comments.

Disney is finally bringing us the official English Dub of Miyazaki’s “The Secret World of Arrietty.” The new trailer launched Tuesday on Youtube and iTunes, and sets the North American release date at February 17th, 2012.

“The Secret World of Arrietty” is Miyazaki’s faithful adaptation of the classic book “The Borrowers,” a 1952 children’s novel by Mary Norton. It follows the adventures of the Clock family, who believe they are the last of their kind and must live in a world surrounded by giants. Dangers and the unknown are ever present, and make for a fantastic tale!

Not only is Miyazaki’s adaptation much closer than that of the prior Borrower’s film and miniseries –  it also breathes that very special magic and whimsy that so many Studio Ghibli films possess.

Starring Will Arnett, Luke Allen-Gale, Carol Burnett, Amy Poehler, and Saoirse Ronan – this film is definitely another must-see from Miyazaki and his talented crew. I have always been extremely impressed with Disney’s English dub-work, and they have done a fantastic job marketing and distributing Studio Ghibli’s films in the U.S. – “The Secret World of Arrietty” is sure to be another hit.

In 1984 Carl Macek teamed with production company Harmony Gold to release the animated series Robotech. I was 8 years old and in love with anything that featured spaceships, lasers and explosions. Robotech was unlike anything I had seen previously. Voltron debuted around the same time and Transformers would appear a year later but there was something about Robotech that made it an essential part of my weekdays. I think what really captured my attention was that I had no idea what Protoculture was or why Zentraedi, the Robotech Masters or the Invid wanted it. Which put me in the same position of the human characters featured throughout the series. I’m not sure that I even understood that the Zentraedi, the Robotech Masters and the Invid were separate races (a space trinity of sorts). I certainly didn’t pick up on the fact that the series was made up of three unrelated Japanese series that had been spliced together to fill a year’s worth of programming. What I did know was that giant spaceships that could transform into giant robots were extremely cool.

Before sitting down with Robotech: The Complete Series I hadn’t watched the show in over 20 years and I was nervous that all the nostalgia in the world couldn’t save Robotech from being a convoluted mess. I most certainly didn’t intend on watching all 85 episodes along with the additional ten hours of bonus features. But, that’s exactly what I did. 17 discs and 40-something hours later I’m contemplating tracking down a copy of Robotech: The Shadow Chronicles to complete my journey.

The Robotech series begins with The Macross Saga, a 35-episode arc that tells the story of  SDF-1, a giant alien spaceship that crashed on Macross Island a decade earlier, and the arrival of an alien race known as the Zentraedi that have come to take the fallen ship. Humanity, rallied together under the banner of the United Earth Government, attempts to fight off the invading forces while attempting to understand the secrets of the alien technology that the Zentraedi are devoted to recovering.

The Macross Saga is an undeniably brilliant story that somehow manages to comment on the emotional impact of war on the human spirit while also examining the importance of art and the role it plays in inspiring humanity through its darkest days. Pretty heady stuff for a children’s cartoon.

The second chapter, or war, in the Robotech series is the 24-episode arc known as The Masters Saga. The Robotech Masters, creators of the Zentraedi race, come to Earth in search of the mysterious Protoculture. Convinced that the approaching spaceships are signs of an impending full-scale invasion the United Earth Government strikes first setting up a war with the Robotech Masters that could spell the end of humanity.

For the first 10 or so episodes The Masters Saga is more of a soap opera than intellectually stimulating science fiction. It isn’t until the tone of the material shifts from romantic jealousy to the investigation of free will, the use of propaganda to justify conflict and the reoccurring impact of war on society that Robotech embraces what made it truly great in the first place.

The third war, 25 episodes known as The New Generation, finds Earth being occupied by an alien race known as the Invid. Having overwhelmed Earth’s forces following the conflict with the Robotech Masters the Invid have enslaved humanity. Tired of their captivity a small group of humans rally together to take on their Invid oppressors.

The New Generation is more even than The Masters Saga but it fails to capture the brilliance of The Macross Saga. It does however echo many of the themes from the previous series as it looks at the cost of war and the sacrifices that are necessary to ensure the freedom of humankind.

Included in the bonus features are extended cuts of various episodes along with 29 minutes that were used in Robotech: The Movie (which Carl Macek disowned) as well as a re-edited version of Robotech: The Sentinels, a series that was intended to extend The Macross Saga narrative but only three of the planned 65 episodes were completed. There are also numerous featurettes that range from international clips, video game adaptations and toy commercials. The set is highlighted by a newly created documentary Carl Macek’s Robotech Universe that tells the story of how Robotech came to be through interviews with the various voice actors and producers of the show. Unfortunately Carl Macek is not included due to his untimely death. There are also numerous still galleries that include pre-production art, character bios, comic book covers and merchandise.

It’s a shame that Macek wasn’t able to provide an audio commentary or contribute to the new documentary. Robotech was his vision and its hard to consider this box set complete without his participation.

Purists can continue to complain that Robotech is a bastardized version of the Japanese original series The Super Dimension Fortress Macross, Super Dimension Cavalry Southern Cross and Genesis Climber MOSPEADA but the history of anime in America would be quite different if it wasn’t for Robotech. Besides, their complaints seem rather hollow considering how good Robotech actually is. Put Robotech: The Complete Series on your Christmas lists because this box set is absolutely essential.

Or you could always just enter to win a copy here.

Wait, there hasn’t been a formal “Anime Update” for like 30 days?!? Sorry about that folks! I got into New York Comic Con / New York Anime Fest mode and it’s taken me this long to get back to the usual. If you haven’t seen it yet, check out our NYCC/NYAF interview with Chris Sabat, Justin Cook and Sean Schemmel from Dragon Ball Z – it was a blast meeting them!

On to this week’s update: We’ve got some great announcements from Viz Media! (And for those of you still following my “Videos from Japan” at the bottom of the Update – I’ve got a new Uncharted 3 commercial with Harrison Ford!)

Press Release: October 21, 2011

VIZ MEDIA ADDS NARUTO SHIPPUDEN THE MOVIE: BONDS TO NARUTO MOVIE MARATHON ON VIZANIME.COM AND HULU

Limited Time Marathon Celebrates Upcoming DVD and Blu-ray Release of Latest Movie, And Includes All Five NARUTO Movies

To celebrate the upcoming DVD and Blu-ray release of NARUTO SHIPPUDEN THE MOVIE: BONDS (in stores October 25^th), and the birth month of the Naruto character, VIZ Media has just announced the addition of the NARUTO SHIPPUDEN THE MOVIE: BONDS (dubbed) to the special NARUTO movie marathon on VIZAnime.com, the company’s own website for free anime, as well as on the streaming content provider HULU (www.Hulu.com).

A total of 5 feature films featuring the spunky ninja are now available to stream from both sites thru October 23^rd. The marathon includes NARUTO THE MOVIE: NINJA CLASH IN THE LAND OF SNOW, NARUTO THE MOVIE 2: LEGEND OF THE STONE OF GELEL, NARUTO THE MOVIE 3: GUARDIANS OF THE CRESCENT MOON KINGDOM (all movies rated TV-14), available with either subtitled or English dubbed dialogue tracks. NARUTO SHIPPUDEN:THE MOVIE is also available dubbed on both streaming sites.

In NARUTO SHIPPUDEN THE MOVIE: BONDS (rated TV-14), a group of mysterious flying ninja have arrived from overseas to launch a sudden attack against the Hidden Leaf Village, leaving behind a wake of destruction. The group is revealed to be the “Sky Ninja” from the Land of Sky, a nation thought to have been destroyed by the Hidden Leaf Village long ago. To save their village, Naruto and his friends set out to stop this new threat. During the course of the mission, Naruto crosses paths with Sasuke, his friend who has parted ways from the Leaf Village.

The NARUTO movie marathon may be accessed from the dedicated site at www.VIZAnime.com/naruto-movie-marathon/. More information on NARUTO SHIPPUDEN THE MOVIE: BONDS is available at www.Naruto.com and www.VIZ.com/naruto-shippuden-movie-video.

Press Release: October 24, 2011

VIZ MEDIA PARTNERS WITH JAPAN’S ANIMATE AND LIBRE PUBLISHING TO LAUNCH

SuBLime, A NEW YAOI MANGA LINE

North American Manga Publishing Powerhouse Launches A Bold New Initiative To Deliver Acclaimed Boys’ Love Titles Digitally And In Print To An Eager Fan Base

San Francisco, CA, October 24, 2011 – VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), the largest distributor and licensor of anime and manga in North America, has announced the launch of its highly anticipated new yaoi manga (graphic novel) line – SuBLime – which represents an innovative new partnership between VIZ Media and Japan’s Animate, Ltd. (Animate) and Libre Publishing Co., Ltd. (Libre Publishing).

This bold, global publishing initiative will present English-speaking fans everywhere with a broad selection of high quality titles. SuBLime will offer titles digitally worldwide on its dedicated web site at SuBLimeManga.com, with many available in Download-to-Own format, and selections in print also available in English-language editions worldwide. From the supernatural men of Naono Bohra’s tales of fantasy to the sexy actors portrayed in some of Youka Nitta’s best works, SuBLime will offer something for even the most discerning yaoi manga fan.

“The yaoi manga genre enjoys a sizeable and very passionate following, and the launch of SuBLime will give fans around the world an entirely new outlet that will deliver an exciting range of titles,” says Leyla Aker, Vice President of Publishing, VIZ Media. “We invite fans to join us as we prepare to bring some of the best new boys’ love manga titles to North America and beyond!”

“I’m very excited to open the way to providing boys’ love manga to fans all over the world,” says Shingo Kunieda, Director of Animate’s Overseas Division. “There are many wonderful yaoi manga titles released every month in Japan, and we know that fans want to read them as soon as possible. We are always moving forward to find new ways of doing business, and by partnering with VIZ Media, we can make yaoi fans happy and release boys’ love titles as quickly as possible!”

Toshiko Ohta, President of Libre Publishing, concurs, saying, “Libre’s dream is to bring our content to yaoi fans around the world. In partnership with VIZ Media, this is now a reality. We look forward to readers’ support for SuBLime!”

SuBLime’s first round of digital manga titles are scheduled to launch this December, and will feature LOVE PISTOLS Vol. 1, by Tarako Kotobuki, and the North American debut of DANNASAMA TO MITSUGETSUCHU Vol. 1, by Haruka Minami. January 2012 sees the debut of OUSAMA NO BED, by Sakae Kusama, and in February, SWEET POOL Vol. 1, by Nitro+CHiRAL. Additional new titles slated for 2012 include SHIZUKU HANABIRA RINGO NO KAORI Vols. 1 and 2 by Toko Kawai, DEVIL’S HONEY by Isaku Natsume, KEKKON ZENYA by Kou Fujisaki, ADULT TEACHER WA OSUKI? by Kiu Aion, and YOKUBOU NO SHIZUKU by You Higashino.

SuBLime’s first print titles are scheduled to be THREE WOLVES MOUNTAIN, by Naono Bohra, and HACHIMITSU DARLING, by Norikazu Akira, which will both be released in Spring 2012, followed by PUNCH UP Vol. 1, by Shiuko Kano, and AITSU NO DAIHONMEI Vol. 1, by Suzuki Tanaka, to be released in the Summer of 2012.

For up-to-date news and release information, please visit the SuBLime website at www.SuBLimeManga.com, or follow SuBLime on Twitter at @SuBLimeManga and Facebook at facebook.com/SuBLimeManga.

Finally: Here is the new Japanese Uncharted 3 commercial starring Harrison Ford, in which he says “Sugei” (the Japanese explanation for “WOW! It’s awesome!”). Enjoy!

This week we have the Star-Spangled Avenger finally making his way home on Blu-ray! Captain America: The First Avenger hits DVD and Blu-ray today and is our Blu-ray Pick of the Week!

Synopsis:

“Captain America leads the fight for freedom in the action-packed blockbuster starring Chris Evans as the ultimate weapon against evil! When a terrifying force threatens everyone across the globe, the world’s greatest soldier wages war on the evil HYDRA organization, led by the villainous Red Skull (Hugo Weaving, ‘The Matrix’).”

Film Review:

For the last several years Marvel has been knocking their film properties out of the park. Iron Man, The Hulk, Thor – they have all received fantastic movie treatment. Captain America is the last fim in the interlinking string of movies before they all join up in The Avengers next year, and in typical Marvel fashion his solo film more than pleased the masses.

I was a little skeptical of Chris Evan being Cap, but upon seeing the film I couldn’t imagine anyone else taking on that role as well as he did. The supporting cast was also superb and throughout the film I grew quite fond of Tommy Lee Jones’ Colonel Chester Phillips – who arguably had the funniest one-liners in the film. Captain America is full of great actors who fleshed out the supporting characters extremely well including Hayley Atwell, Sebastian Stan, Hugo Weaving, Dominic Cooper, and Stanley Tucci to just name a few.

Captain America: The First Avenger strikes that perfect balance between heart and action. Not only does Cap and the Howling Commandos kick a lot of ass throughout the film, but you actually care about the outcome and are concerned for their well-being. Especially for those versed in comic book lore that know that Bucky Barnes’ fate has already been written, and the film handles his fate very well – it happens unexpectedly and has a profound impact on the rest of the film. A good action film isn’t just all explosions and throwing punches (or shields), but it’s also a good solid story and Captain America excels in this department. Evans’ portrayal of Steve Rogers both before and after his transformation is fantastic. Even once he becomes the bulked up Captain America you can still see that frail young man underneath all that muscle that wants to do right by his country and friends.

I honestly can’t recommend Captain America: The First Avenger enough. It’s another prime example of Marvel handling their movie properties extremely well – something we got a double dose of this year with both, this film and Thor. For those of you that have already seen Captain America, I doubt I need to tell you this is worthy of adding to your Blu-ray collection. For those of you that somehow missed this in theaters, buy this film and watch it immediately.

The Extras:

Captain America: The First Avenger of course comes in a Blu-ray/DVD combo pack and has a lot of special features. My favorite was the Marvel One Shot, “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Thor’s Hammer”, in which we get to see Agent Coulson finally be a badass. There are of course some deleted scenes, including a few new action sequences that are worth a look. You’ll also find a few “making of” featurettes that cover how Cap’s costume was made, the work that was put into making “Skinny Steve” and Red Skull, a focus on the Howling Commandos and co-creator Joe Simon discussing the creation of Captain America. We also get a look at the upcoming Avengers movies, and while it’s once again more of a tease than really showing anything substantial, it’s different than what was included in the Thor Blu-ray – so it’s nice that they aren’t just rehashing a special feature we’ve already seen.

Captain America: The First Avenger is a fantastic film that stays true to the character and is a great movie no matter how well versed you are in the comic book history of the character. This may be an obvious pick for our Blu-ray Pick of the Week, but I assure you this film will make a great addition to your home entertainment library!

Captain America The First Avenger is available on Blu-ray 3D, Blu-ray, and DVD today at Amazon.com!

Honerable Mention:
I would be remiss if I didn’t also note that the Jurassic Park trilogy is also out today on Blu-ray, which comes with hours of special features including all new interviews with Steven Spielberg and Joe Johnston! You can pick this up over at Amazon as well!