Sci-Fi Storm

Pursuant to our previous article on Warner Bros developing a Dungeons & Dragons movie, it appears that Hasbro is prepared to take the case to court – but not against Warner Bros.

The defendant appears to be Courtney Solomon’s Sweetpea Entertainment, who produced the 2000 Dungeons & Dragons, as well as the 2005 sequel Dungeons & Dragons: Wrath of the Dragon God. The quoted article has a number of problems that make it hard to make sense of what they are saying, but the 2005 sequel would appear to have qualified, but the 2012 Dungeons & Dragons: The Book of Vile Darkness might, as Hasbro claims, not qualify, since it was more than 5 years after the previous effort and retained no characters or situations from either. But I also don’t see Courtney Solomon or Sweetpea in the credits list on IMDb.

Here is another trailer from the ABC Upfronts…this time for the Once Upon A Time spinoff limited series, Once Upon A Time In Wonderland…

Here is a promo video just released today for the just-picked-up series Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. – already looks interesting…

Update: Here is an even longer trailer…

So, I think it’s time for that cut-the-cord vacation. Another cruise, maybe. If only I didn’t have to work.

It appears that due to some mixup, BBC America’s online shop shipped the “Season 7 Part 2” Blu-ray disks to pre-orders early – before the final episode has aired on the channel. This means that a lot of people can (and have) watched the season finale episode, “The Name of the Doctor” – and at least several seem to have no problems spoiling it for others. And given that the episode is likely going to answer some long-standing questions, as well as set up for the 50th Anniversary episode later this year, if you don’t want to be spoiled, you may want to be EXTREMELY careful around the Internet this week…

On Monday’s Warehouse 13, Pete and Myka get sucked into a 1940s detective noir novel in search of an artifact. Meanwhile, Artie, Steve and Claudia chase down a phantom car thief. “The Big Snag” features guest stars Enrico Colantoni and Missi Pyle, who previously starred together as the aliens Mathesar and Laliari in the movie Galaxy Quest.

Tune in at 10/9c on Syfy after Defiance!
(continue reading…)

We’re now just one week away from the season ending episode, “The Name of the Doctor”, and it appears a number of questions will be answered…at least, according to this prequel video, called “She Said, He Said”:

Another pilot pickup, although no surprise here – Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., to be executive produced by the current master of Marvel Joss Whedon, is the first Marvel TV series since Disney took over. ABC picked up the series today during the pilot pickup madness.

Clark Gregg will return as a somehow resurrected Agent Coulson (THAT should be an interesting story) to lead the team, which investigates “the new, the strange, and the unknown across the globe, protecting the ordinary from the extraordinary.” Joining him are: Agent Grant Ward (Brett Dalton), highly trained in combat and espionage; Agent Melinda May (Ming-Na Wen) expert pilot and martial artist; Agent Leo Fitz (Iain De Caestecker), brilliant engineer; Agent Jemma Simmons (Elizabeth Henstridge) genius bio-chemist; and new recruit and computer hacker Skye (Chloe Bennet).

Also executive producing are pilot writers Jed Whedon & Maurissa Tancharoen (Dollhouse, Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog), Jeffrey Bell (Angel, Alias); and Jeph Loeb (Smallville)

In Monday’s Defiance, Amanda and Nolan take a transport across the badlands to transport a prisoner and join forces with a band of outlaws. See the preview below and tune at 9/8c on Syfy…an also check out a few other bonus clips, including the latest “Shooting the Shtako”, with Mia Kirshner.
(continue reading…)

Hot off the presses: Syfy has Renewed Defiance for a second season!

From the press release:

SYFY RENEWS HIT SERIES DEFIANCE, PROMISING MORE ACTION AND INTRIGUE IN SEASON TWO

New York, NY – May 10, 2013 – Syfy has renewed its groundbreaking series Defiance, giving a 13-episode second season order to the critically acclaimed hit that has catapulted Syfy to the top cable drama spot in the time period among adults 18-49, adults 25-54 and total viewers for three consecutive Mondays. Season two of Defiance, produced by Universal Cable Productions, will begin production in Toronto in August for a 2014 premiere, returning as the anchor of Syfy’s Powerful Monday’s block of primetime original series.

Redefining the transmedia experience, Defiance has distinguished itself with an unprecedented partnership between Syfy and Trion Worlds, by creating the first-ever true convergence of television and online gaming. To date, the game has garnered more than 1 million registered accounts while making gaming history as the first online open world shooter to launch on three platforms simultaneously. As the collaboration between show and game continue into a second season, players will have the opportunity to further influence the world of Defiance.

Kevin Murphy (Desperate Housewives, Caprica, Hellcats) resumes his role as executive producer and showrunner. Smallville’s Darren Swimmer and Todd Slavkin return as executive producers for season two and Michael Taylor serves as consulting producer.

“Bringing the rich world of Defiance to life has been in incredible team effort. We couldn’t ask for better partners than Kevin Murphy, his amazing cast and crew, and Trion Worlds,” said Mark Stern, President of Original Content for Syfy and Co-Head of Original Content for UCP. “We can’t wait to see where they take us in the second season.”

Set in the near future, Defiance features an exotically transformed planet Earth, its landscapes permanently altered following the sudden – and tumultuous – arrival of seven unique alien races. In this somewhat unknown and unpredictable landscape, the richly diverse, newly-formed civilization of humans and aliens must learn to co-exist peacefully. Each week, viewers follow an immersive character drama set in the boom-town of Defiance, which sits atop the ruins of St. Louis, Missouri, while in the game, players will experience the new frontier of the San Francisco Bay area.

The audience for its April 15 premiere was the second largest series premiere in the network’s history among adults 18-49, making it the biggest in nearly nine years in that coveted demographic, based on Live +7 Data. The premiere also delivered almost 4 million viewers (3,834,000) and has quickly become Syfy’s highest-rated original series this year in adults 18-49, adults 25-54 and total viewers. It has also received unprecedented attention as a transmedia event in partnership with Trion Worlds’ MMO game. Airing Mondays at 9pm, Defiance stars Grant Bowler, Julie Benz, Stephanie Leonidas, Tony Curran, Jaime Murray, Graham Greene and Mia Kirshner.

Among the various pilot yeas-and-nays going around today, one pickup we were following was the remake of 1970s BBC SF show The Tomorrow People.

From Warner Bros TV, Berlanti TV and FremantleMedia, The Tomorrow People is the story of several young people from around the world who represent the next stage in human evolution, possessing special powers, including the ability to teleport and communicate with each other telepathically. Together they work to defeat the forces of evil. Based upon the original UK series created by Roger Price in the vein of X-Men and Heroes. Robbie Amell, Madeleine Mantock, Peyton List, Luke Mitchell, Mark Pellegrino, and Aaron Yoo star. Phil Klemmer is the writer and executive producer with Julie Plec, Greg Berlanti and Danny Cannon, who also directed the pilot. Melissa Kellner Berman is co-exec producer.