Kevin Smith is going to be building the TV show version of The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the Eighth Dimension, all because he did such a good job directing some recent episodes of The Flash. Some people at MGM saw those episodes and offered him a shot at creating a TV show for them, and that is what they decided on. As he said on a podcast at the Kevin Smith Blog: Basically you just do the entire movie for season one, then season two you finally do the sequel we’ve all dreamed about, Buckaroo Banzai Against the World Crime League. I can’t wait! No guesses who might carry it yet, but this is one TV show I have been waiting a few decades for them to make. Thanks to pretty much everyone for the heads up on this, but the first one I saw was from Cheryl Eddy at IO9, which is part of Gizmodo these days.
Starting this week, Marvel has its own in-house news/promotion show, THWIP! The Big Marvel Show. They will put out new episodes every Wednesday both on their web site and on YouTube. The first episode runs about 15 minutes, I don’t know if that is going to be the standard or if it will fluctuate depending on the material available each week. This could be fun, or it could get really old fast; there is no way to know based on a sample set of 1 how it will work out, but we will find out. Thanks to THR for the heads up on this one.
The must-have title for this week is Deadpool, absolutely the funniest Marvel film made to date. It is also R rated, so it is no surprise it wasn’t made by Disney, but the folks over at 20th Century Fox. With a sequel already in the works, we might see Deadpool 2 as early as January 2018. Synchronicity is a twisted little time travel story everyone should see; if you missed it in the theaters, now is your chance to catch up with it. Lego Scooby: Haunted Hollywood also deserves a mention.
Killjoys: Season 1 is very much a cross between Firefly and Blade Runner, and one of my 3 favorite shows currently running on Syfy. I am happy to report Season 2 will be along on July 1st. Beauty and the Beast (2012): Season 3 is out just in time to be binged before the next season kicks off on June 2nd. While I am not a horror fan, I should include Scream: The Tv Series Season 1 on this list.
For a change their are fewer Anime titles than the other categories, with Fruit of Grisaia being a school for bad apples as the only actual entry this time. It isn’t exactly genre, but it is strange enough to come close.
Movies has The 5th Wave, a tale of alien invasion based on the first book of a Rick Yancey trilogy. 400 Days has astronauts flying a simulated mission to another planet that isn’t as simulated as they think it is in this movie from Syfy. While it isn’t genre, it is worth mentioning that A Royal Night Out is also being released on disc this week, based on a true story. If there is any genre TV this week I managed to miss it.
In Anime RWBY 3 is the third volume in the series of high powered combat with monsters and other humans. While hidden political agendas and secret plans fight to determine the fate of the world, we slowly learn that their own history has been hidden from our 4 heroes and their various allies. Gundam Evolve is an interesting release because it contains 15 short pieces that were originally aired at conventions and/or packaged with kits, and is now compiled onto DVD for the first time. They are outtakes or side stories from a range of Gundam series done using a number of different animation techniques.
In Movies we get IP Man 3, which completes the story of the man who became a legend in the Martial Arts community for much more than training Bruce Lee. Drunk Stoned Brilliant Dead: The Story of the National Lampoon is a documentary you have to see if you appreciate comedy, covering them from the 70s through the 90s. The animated feature film Norm of the North is also being released on disc this week.
In Anime, ALDNOAH.ZERO: Set 4 brings the conclusion of the war between terrestrial humanity and the VERS, and sets the stage for mankind’s next venture to the stars. It is a smart series which doesn’t mind breaking some standard Anime tropes. Black Butler: Book of Circus is season 3 of the adventures of the demonic Butler and the woman he serves. This time they go undercover in a Circus to learn what is happening to the children who disappear when it comes to town. Finally Yamishibai: Japanese Ghost Stories brings season 1 and 2 together in a single boxed set, with all 3 seasons currently streaming.
Season 2 of the Asterisk War is now streaming, with the competition at the Festas heating up. Combat as spectacle, pitting the schools against each other, with the prize going to the last team standing. Our protagonists are facing ever deadlier opponents with each new round, and already within the first few episodes we are introduced to a new school and the mastermind behind them. This one has new episodes each Saturday morning; tomorrow morning we will get episode 3.