Saturday, October 13, 2012

NYCC: THE WALKING DEAD PANEL


One of the most anticipated season premieres of the Fall TV season, AMC’s adaptation of Robert Kirkman’s beloved comic book series The Walking Dead was showcased in a panel on Saturday at New York Comic-Con at the Jacob Javits Center. The third season debuts tonight at 9pm, and for fans of the apocalyptic zombies at large program, it is sure to be worth the wait and then some. Attendees of the panel at the packed IGN Theater got a sneak peak of the first few minutes of Season 3 Episode 1, which you can read about at the end of this article.

Moderated by the always witty Chris Hardwick, who hosts the Talking Deadshow on AMC, the cast and crew came out to earth-shattering applause and a standing ovation after the wild and intense clip from the season premiere was shown. The panel consisted of producer Gale Anne Hurd and Robert Kirkman (producer and creator of the comic book series), along with actorsAndrew Lincoln, Chandler Riggs, Danai Gurira, David Morrissey, Michael Rooker, and Norman Reedus.

Michael Rooker, who plays the badass redneck Merle, got the loudest applause. Hardwick said it best, when he told Rooker “the crowd is bathing you in their love.” “I’m a tough asshole,” Rooker said of Merle. The crowd seemed eager to see Merle back on the series and their passion for this show is unprecedented. His on-screen brother Norman Reedus received an overabundance of love from the audience (and no wonder – he along with Lincoln stayed at the end to sign autographs for the frenzied crowd).

Kirkman spoke about picking up where they left off in the second season, keeping the non-stop momentum fully intact. A tidbit revealed about this first episode of season 3 was that there are more zombie kills in this one episode than there were in all of season 1. The footage debuted, which finds the group many months after the end of Season 2, showed that Carl has grown up a lot since we last saw him. One of the running jokes among fans of the series is to ask “Where’s Carl?,” alluding to the fact that the boy’s parents never seem to know where he is and are always asking this question. (During the audience Q&A, a fan was wearing a shirt that read “Where’s Carl?” and Chandler Riggs, who plays Carl, laughed that he hated that shirt, even though he’s actually worn one himself!) Hurd says now when people ask “Where’s Carl?”, you can say “He’s in the house, shooting zombies.”

The child actor Chandler Riggs, who’s been making appearances at conventions for the series since it began in 2010, has truly come into his own and dominated the panel, not only with this commentary, but also with his maturity. Riggs had said last year that his character Carl would eventually have to grow up fast and become a man well before he was meant to thanks to the harsh zombie-infested world he now lives in. But this time around, Riggs had a confidence and swagger not often seen in child actors, and even teased that he might get a love interest after an audience member asked him if Sophia on the show had been his girlfriend. The audience let out a loud collective “woo” when Riggs said, “Beth is 17, so you might see a little bit of that… maybe.”

Speaking of children, snother noteworthy aspect of this panel was the large amount of children – little children actually – who came up to the mic to ask a question during the audience Q&A session. As moderator Hardwick pointed out, each child that came up was younger than the last (he then jokingly asked if there were any fetuses or embryos in the audience who wanted to ask a question). After answering one of the children’s questions about whether there would be a raid at the prison like in the comic and “will all the crazy stuff happen?” (Kirkman says a lot of crazy stuff will happen), Kirkman added, “Also, you shouldn’t be watching this show.”

An even younger child asked the cast what would be there second weapon of choice: Lincoln said a flamethrower; Riggs said a lancer, a machine gun with chainsaw from the Gears of War video games; Reedus said a bazooka, something loud, or Lucy Liu; Guirira said she can’t think of a better one than what she already has (a katana sword); Rooker said an apparatus that goes on the arm like a World War II bazooka or a rocket launcher.

The cast talked about where the new season would be going and the evolution of the young Chandler Riggs, who spoke about how much fun and what amazing actors he works with, and promised that this season would be the best yet. The crowd then serenaded Norman Reedus’ son Mingus, who turned 13 years old that day and was seated in the front of the room, with a rousing Happy Birthday. Of his character Darryl and why he hasn’t really hooked up with any of the ladies on the show, Reedus – who was constantly being complimented by female audience members – said, “Darryl has no game, at all.” He also said that while Darryl and Merle “love each other in a messed up way,” to Darryl Rick is becoming the brother he lost. Also, Darryl, who comes from a background of abuse and neglect, finally feels like he has a purpose, that he is of value to the group, as he’s a protector to them.

Danai Gurira, who plays new cast member, the alpha female Michonne, talked about joining the cast and what a “thrill ride” it was and brutal joy to be part of the show. Of her character, the actress said, “She’s an intense chick” and how smart and badass Michonne since she found a way to use the zombies to her advantage by essentially turning them into pack mules.
Every shot of an actor from the show, every word uttered by them, was met with applause and cheers typically seen done by overzealous fans at soccer matches. Flashbulbs from digital cameras went off like shooting stars throughout the tenure of the panel. The cast really pumped everyone up for tonight’s season premiere, which is sure to be a good one.

Season 3 Episode 1 Footage Description

The footage opens on a close up of a zombie’s infected eye. As the camera pulls away, we see two zombies in a house when the familiar faces of Rick Grimes and his group barge into through the door and kill the walkers. Each member of the group walks in – Rick, Darryl, T-Dog, Glen, Maggie, Carol, Beth, a very pregnant Laurie, a gun-toting Carl wearing his father Rick’s sheriff hat, and a bearded Hershel. Several members of the group, including Carl, go through through the house, weapons in hand, searching for more walkers. Carl finds one and shoots it in the head. Darryl happens upon an owl upstairs and shoots it, while Carl discovers two cans of dog food in the kitchen. When all seems clear, the obviously exhausted group settles in to rest. Carl brandishes a can opener, seemingly ready to divy up his find for the obviously starving group, but a frustrated Rick grabs the can and tosses it, as if he’s not yet ready to let his people consume dog food. Near by, Darryl quickly defeathers his kill for what he surely thinks will be a meal. Looking quite defeated, the group sits in silence until they see out of the window walkers approaching the house, so they run out to their vehicles, escaping their undead attackers.

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

NYCC 2012: GUILLERMO DEL TORO




Guillermo del Toro is heading to New York Comic Con 2012! This Director, Producer, Screenwriter, Novelist and Designer will be speaking on the Legendary Comics panel on Friday, October 12 presenting a behind-the-scenes look at the group’s upcoming projects! With credits including Pan’s LabyrinthThe Devil’s BackboneHellboy and Hellboy II and Blade II Del Toro’s appearance at NYCC will be one for the record books!

Thursday, September 13, 2012

NYCC 2012: WALKING DEAD PANEL


Well gang, it's that time AGAIN!
New York Comic Con (NYCC) officials have confirmed that a high profile panel focusing on season three of AMC’s hit television series The Walking Dead will take place at this year’s pop culture extravaganza. Cast members including Andrew Lincoln will be joined by showrunner and executive producer Glenn Mazzara as well as executive producers Robert Kirkman and Gale Anne Hurd. Moderated by Talking Dead host Chris Hardwick, The Walking Dead panel, which will take place in the IGN Theater on Saturday, October 13, 5:00pm - 6:00pm, will include an exclusive clip from the premiere episode of season three.
In addition to Andrew Lincoln, additional cast members participating in the panel include Norman Reedus, Chandler Riggs, Danai Gurira, David Morrissey and Michael Rooker. There will also be a limited signing for 50 fans and tickets for the signing will be given away on a first served basis on Saturday morning (10/13). Further details about the signing will be announced soon. The Walking Dead, which returns to AMC on October 14 at 9:00pm (EST)/8:00pm (CST), was originally a comic book series created by writer Robert Kirkman in 2003. It won the 2010 Eisner Award for Best Continuing Series and the television series premiered to enormous attention and acclaim on October 31, 2010.

New York Comic Con, which will take place October 11 - 14, 2012 at NYC's Javits Center, is one of New York’s largest annual events, last year attracting over 100,000 attendees. The pop culture convention draws a wide cross section of fans eager to meet and greet the creators, actors, writers, musicians and artists. The show includes top talent from the worlds of comics, film, television, music, books and gaming.
“The Walking Dead is a huge attraction for our fans and I am enormously grateful to AMC for making this possible,” notes Lance Fensterman Show Manager for NYCC and Group Vice President for ReedPOP. “This is a star-studded line up of panelists and I know that we will have thousands of fans who will want to be on hand to hear these creators, producers and stars talk about their contribution to this incredible show. I can’t thank these guests enough for giving their time and talent to New York Comic Con.”

Friday, August 31, 2012

NYCC 2012: IAN MCDIARMID


Ian McDiarmid, known to millions as Senator, Chancellor and eventually Emperor Palpatine –and alternately Darth Sidious – in Star Wars Episodes I, II, III, and VI (he was later added in to Episode V to replace the original Emperor). Now he’s heading to the New York Comic Con, which will be held October 11-14, 2012 at the Jacob Javits Center in New York City.



McDiarmid also has been known for a wide range of movie projects including Dirty Rotten Scoundrels and appearances in the British TV series Touching Evil and City of Vice and the American series The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles.

Friday, July 13, 2012

Comic Con 2012 - Tim Burton's 'Frankenweenie'

Frankenweenie centers on Victor (Charlie Tahan) and his pet dog Sparky. When his beloved pooch is killed, Victor is heartbroken but decides to bring him back to life through science. Unfortunately for Victor, not everybody in the neighborhood is happy to see his dog back from the grave.





Comic-Con attendees can check out the sketches, merchandise and actual sets from Tim Burton’s latest stop-motion animated feature. 


Frankenweenie is out in theaters everywhere on October 5th. 



























Thursday, July 12, 2012

Comic Con - CW's 'Beauty & The Beast'


The screening and panel will take on Thursday, July 12 at 3:30-4:35 PM in Ballroom 20.
Kristin Kreuk ("Smallville") and Jay Ryan ("Terra Nova") along with Executive Producers Jennifer Levin ("Without a Trace"), Sherri Cooper ("Brothers & Sisters"), Brian Peterson ("Smallville") and Kelly Souders ("Smallville") discuss the new CW fall series, a modern adaptation of a beloved fairy tale. Centering on Catherine Chandler (Kreuk), a tough-minded NYPD homicide detective who is haunted by witnessing her mother's murder nine years ago - as well as the murderer's quick demise at what she perceived to be the hands of a beast. After years of searching, Catherine finally discovers the beast is Vincent Keller (Ryan), a survivor of a military experiment that went disastrously wrong and left him to lead a secret life in hiding. Join the cast and producers for an exclusive viewing of the first episode, followed by a panel discussion moderated by Dalton Ross (Assistant Managing Editor, Entertainment Weekly).
Kreuk, Ryan and the show executive producers will participate in an exclusive autograph signing following the panel at the CW/CBS Booth at 5:00-6:15 PM on the convention floor.
More in-depth summary: 

Detective Catherine Chandler is a smart, no-nonsense homicide detective. When she was a teenager, Catherine witnessed the murder of her mother at the hands of two gunmen. Catherine would have been killed too, but someone – or something – saved her. No one has ever believed her, but she knows it wasn't an animal that attacked the assassins…it was human. Years have passed, and Catherine is a strong, confident, capable police officer, working alongside her equally talented partner, Tess. 

While investigating a murder, Catherine discovers a clue that leads her to a handsome doctor named Vincent Keller, who was reportedly killed by enemy fire while serving in Afghanistan in 2002. Catherine learns that Vincent is actually still alive and that it was he who saved her many years before. For mysterious reasons that have forced him to live outside of traditional society, Vincent has been in hiding for the past 10 years to guard his secret – when he is enraged, he becomes a terrifying beast, unable to control his super-strength and heightened senses. Catherine agrees to protect his identity in return for any insight he may have into her mother's murder. Thus begins a complex relationship between Catherine and Vincent, who are powerfully drawn to each other yet understand that their connection is extremely dangerous for both of them.
The series stars Kristin Kreuk ("Smallville," "Chuck") as Catherine, Jay Ryan ("Terra Nova") as Vincent, Max Brown ("The Tudors," "MI-5") as Evan, Nina Lisandrello ("Nurse Jackie") as Tess, Nicole Gale Anderson ("Make It or Break It") as Heather, Austin Basis ("Life Unexpected") as J.T., and Brian White ("The Shield," "The Cabin in the Woods") as Joe.

BEAUTY AND THE BEAST is from CBS Television Studios with executive producers Jennifer Levin ("Without A Trace," "Felicity"), Sherri Cooper ("Brothers and Sisters"), Bill Haber ("Rizzoli & Isles," "Thurgood"), Paul J. Witt ("A Better Life") & Tony Thomas ("A Better Life"), Ron Koslow ("Moonlight") and Gary Fleder ("Life Unexpected").

Comic Con - Reviews are in CW's 'Arrow'



So what did the Comic-Con masses think of The CW’s Arrow?
Based on DC Comic’s Green Arrow, the new fall action-drama’s pilot seems ready-made for the fan event. The pilot just screened in Ballroom 20 and fans…
Pretty much loved it. The crowd not only applauded at the end of the episode, they applauded following a particularly intense fight scene. “It was fantastic,” says Gabi, 35, visiting from England. Gabi enthused about star Stephen Amell despite having also loved Smallville‘s Green Arrow played by Justin Hartley. “[Amell's] really physical and his acting is great.”
“I really liked it; it had really good production values,” says Jamie, 45, who watched the pilot along with Gabriel, 12, who added: “It was really cool; it really kept you into it.”
“I don’t watch much TV, but I would watch this,” says Carissa, 22, from Paso Robles, California.
Starring Amell as billionaire playboy Oliver Queen, the fast-paced origin story plays a bit like a TV-sized Batman Begins. Unlike The Dark Knight, however, this hero uses lethal force (a good thing — aiming arrows at bad guys’ legs every week would get silly pretty quick). The pilot also manages to tell a pretty ambitious story on a small-screen budget (some CGI-aided scenes involving a yacht at sea look a million times better than last year’s infamous Ringer pilot boat scene).


“It feels like a continuation of Smallville, only darker, it was really good,” says Alex, 22, from San Diego.
A joke about the ending of ABC’s Lost went over particularly well in the room. So did this exchange where Queen — newly rescued after spending years isolated on an island — is told that a potential dating prospect “looks like the girl from Twilight.”
“What’s Twilight?” Queen asks.
“You’re so better off not knowing,” his friend replies.
Shelby, 25, from Arkansas, says she really enjoyed Arrow, though had a slight criticism. “It was action packed, but if I’m being honest, it was just a tiny bit cheesy,” she says. Sounding just like an industry insider, Shelby then added: “I’m pretty sure it was just the pilot working the kinks out.”

Comic Con - Reviews are in '666 Park'




Joining ABC's solid looking line-up of dramas on Sunday nights this fall is 666 Park Avenue, a series based on Gabriella Pierce's series of books. 666 Park Avenue puts Lost's Terry O'Quinn back at ABC in a starring role as the mysterious owner of a New York City building with a supernatural-twist. 
666 Park is not the lightest pilot fare being offered up by networks this fall — in fact, it’s downright spooky. But that seemed to please most of Comic-Con goers who attended the pilot screening this evening in San Diego as part of the annual convention.
The show, starring Lost alum Terry O’Quinn, Rachel Taylor, and Vanessa Williams, centers on a young couple (Taylor and Dave Annable) that takes a job as managers of a historic (and totally haunted) apartment building. Quinn and Williams play the mysterious owners of the building.
Positive as the buzz has been around the eerie ABC show, the reaction from the crowd tonight was mixed. Here’s what some of the audience members had to say:
“It’s a little slow for me. I’m not really engaged with the mysteries at all or the people. I kinda don’t care. [The acting] was fine. I mostly saw it for Terry O’ Quinn; he did okay. [The character] is no Locke, though.” — Thad, 35
“It was actually pretty good. It was pretty interesting and pretty well done. It was well shot for a pilot…[and] suspenseful.” — Gustavo, 24
“This was a good concept. The cinematography looked cool and the play on history [with] the occult was cool. I’d recommend it [to fellow Lost fans] because [O'Quinn] still has that same style of acting.” — April, 26 and Lost fan
“I’ll watch it. I’m a Vanessa Williams fan. It looks like it’s well written, and there were definitely moments where I didn’t expect [certain things] to happen. I had a couple of shocking moments…I’m definitely going to watch it when it hits the TV.” — Mari, 57
“I liked Terry O’Quinn. It wasn’t really that frightening, [but] there were definitely things [in the pilot] that I want to find out more about, and hopefully I’ll watch the rest of it.” – Ritchie, 24


Friday, February 3, 2012

The Fray - Scars & Stories due out 2/7/12


Piano rock giants The Fray are dropping their long-awaited third full-length 2/7 on Epic Records. Now we're releasing some exclusive work we've done with the group chronicling "A Day in the Life" of the band. We also had the chance to interview lead singer Isaac Slade who graciously answered our questions on everything from the pitfalls of working in the mainstream music industry to the self-doubt that plagued him while working on his first two albums to the frustrations of often being singled out as a "Christian" artist. Laid back and easy going, Slade showed that the sincerity and genuineness that shines through in the Fray's music crosses over into his real-world persona as well.

Debuting with as much success as the Fray would cause even the most confident performer to fret about future releases. The Fray's debut album, How to Save a Life, peaked at #14 on the Billboard 200 and went double platinum. It spawned two massively successful singles, and the "How to Save a Life" single is tied for the sixth longest charting single on Billboard's Hot 100. Their self-titled follow up debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200 and went gold. Yet, despite such impressive feats to live up to, Slade seems more confident in the band's music than ever before.

"The first record was full of fear" Slade explained and the band was worried that this was the only chance they were going to have to get their music out. By the time The Fray LP was released, their new concern was hitting a "sophomore slump." Slade was quick to state that now the band is just concerned about "releasing a bad-ass third record." The first two albums were built out of Slade's need for "everybody to like me" and a "nice guy shell" he says he had growing up. He's able to say, "I trust my instincts a lot more now". Rather than trying to please everyone else, Isaac Slade and the rest of the Fray are simply making music for themselves now.

Much of the Fray's carefully driven piano rock/pop sound has been compared to the British piano acts like Keane and the mega-successful Coldplay, and while Isaac Slade says he enjoys those bands and that there are "much worse comparisons to have," he also offered up some surprising insights into the bands he felt had the most influence on himself and the other members of the Fray. Slade talked about heavily being into "late '90s college rock" and acts like Counting Crows, Better than Ezra, Pearl Jam, Tori Amos, Wilco, and Bush. Modern experimental rocker Gotye also got a mention from Slade as a more current act that he has been listening to.

Although the Fray don't make any overtly religious music, the band's past heavy involvement with churches in their local Denver has often led to the Fray being pegged as a "Christian" band. While Slade says the mainstream music industry has never tried to force him and his bandmates into a particular niche market, "the Christian market does. They try to sink their teeth into us." but since the band doesn't "sing about Jesus," they've managed to avoid that label. Slade was frustrated that the press seem to only be obsessed with rock acts that are Christian. Slade knows artists that are Christian, Buddhist, and Muslim but only the Christian artists seems to get pegged and specifically talks about how no one talks about the Killers' religion (Brandon Flowers is Mormon). Slade simply wants "to be loved or hated based on our music", not the band's religion.

Scars and Stories features a darker and more aggressive feel than the Fray's previous two albums, as well as more prominent guitar pieces. Discussing some of the real-world inspirations for this new record, Slade regaled us with tales of getting lost by about 500 miles with his wife and simply not caring ("48 to Go") as well as more heady subject matter such as a philosophical connection between reading about the Large Hadron Collider while in Germany and how this search for the God particle (Higg's Boson) and its ability to hold everything in the universe together is related to his inability to sufficiently explain his attraction to his wife ("Munich"). The steady rejection process and the toll it took on Isaac (as well as the way it made him toughter) also led to this more mature and introspective sound.

During his time touring, Slade has had chances to interact with one of the biggest names in the music world (U2 who they toured with) and one of the biggest names in American politics (President Bill Clinton). While touring with U2, the Fray was taught an important lesson by U2's spiritual advisor who talked about how despite being one of the most successful bands in the history of popular music, U2 "never talks about being bigger. They talk about being better." That has become Isaac Slade's outlook on the future success of the Fray. They don't want "to get more vanilla" or "stop trying." Slade said "if bigger comes, I'll take it," but the band's focus is simply on being better, not making more money or playing bigger venues.

With the last-minute cancellation of Bryan McKnight, the Fray also had the chance to play at Hillary Clinton's birthday party, where Isaac Slade managed to embarrass himself in front of the former POTUS. Noticing that President Clinton was wearing an old and worn-out friendship bracelet on his hand, Slade made a friendly, jesting comment to the President about the bracelet. After the President smirked and walked away, Slade was pulled aside by Chelsea Clinton who explained that it was a bracelet given to the President by a survivor of the Serbian wars in Sarajevo and that President Clinton had refused to take it off even when going in for his open heart surgery.

Perhaps the most surprising aspect of the interview was Slade's advice for all of the aspiring musicians. "If at all humanly possible, don't do music for a living," Slade warned. "I love it. So glad I do it," Slade continued but he contends that playing music for fun rather than professionally keeps you "pure," "innocent," and "awesome." Doing it for a living exposes you to the "very, very murky waters of the entertainment industry." Though if you insist on pursuing it for a career, Slade says to just keep at it and keep working.

Once again, the Fray's new album drops 2/7.