DC Entertainment Lives Up To It's Name?
After last month's news, DC Entertainment comes one step closer to realizing the potential of the huge library of DC Comics characters. For those who haven't heard, DC Entertainment has moved it's main offices to LA. I'm hoping this expedites the process of getting DC superheroes into other mediums. To be specific: I Want More Cartoons. The actual plans for what they intend to do with these characters won't be revealed until later this year, but for now, I thought I might get into what I want to see. I sort of did that with my I Can Has Captain Marvel Cartoon? series, but I found myself just picking out whatever was a big story for the character, saying: "You should adapt this!", and calling it an article.
That's a bit ridiculous, even for this site. Knowing that, we'll be doing something a little different this time.
By now, everyone is aware of the new Young Justice cartoon DC has debuting about two months from now. What you may not know, is DC's current cartoon, Batman: Brave and the Bold, a genius modern take on DC's Silver Age, has been scheduled for cancellation upon reaching 65 episodes.
...And is being immediately replaced by another Batman cartoon. I was not happy about this (check out the podcast!), but I thought of a way to make another Batman cartoon interesting. (I'll bring it up shortly.) I was slowly beginning to grow excited again--if I can think of one take, surely there must be more--and then I learned the new Batman cartoon would likely be CGI. Fantastic.
In any case, I started thinking about the other DC Comics characters that could use some cartoons. The truth is, Cartoon Network could use some more action cartoons. As a kid, this would be the part where Toonami stepped in with three strong hours of action cartoons, airing daily. Unfortunately, Cartoon Network botched that up. But DC Entertainment could step in, and create their OWN block of action cartoons. Think about it for just a moment, my fellow comic geeks:
It's 5PM EST. You turn on the television, and Cartoon Network is on. You're just about to turn away because That Show* is on again. Then out of nowhere--it happens. A brand-new promo, on the same level of the ones we used to see for Toonami and Adult Swim, but this one contains DC heroes. And I mean stuffed with them--sending people to Youtube to spend hours trying to recognize them all. It features the core team: Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Arrow, Flash, Green Lantern, Martian Manhunter, Aquaman, and Black Canary--but it also shows us Booster Gold, Blue Beetle, Supergirl, Nightwing, Robin and Spoiler, the Justice Society, and much more. You're overwhelmed by the awesomeness of it all, and then suddenly, a logo appears on the screen, telling you the name of this brilliant block: Welcome to the DC Universe.
That's right: Three hours of some of the greatest heroes in comics, having some of their biggest adventures ever. ("Only on Cartoon Network.")
This block would be one of the most massive undertakings in animated television since Williams Street did Toonami back in 1996. The block would open with the Big Five, all given their own cartoons:
Superman: It's been far too long since Big Blue graced the small screen in animation. (Over ten years, actually.) It's past time to bring him back--perhaps this time with a bigger focus on his job as a reporter, the various articles he works on tying into his job as Superman. ("What's the mysterious monster draining the life out of Metropolis?" Stuff like that.)
Batman: This guy, however, has had a cartoon since 1992. Sure, there were some years he went without...but he's had four since 1992. We've seen experienced Batman, inexperienced Batman, future Batman, friendly Batman who teams up with people...what's left, you ask? I wondered that too, for a while. And then, someone suggested an idea that fit perfectly: the Bat-Family. Or rather, Batman: Gotham Knights. TNBA had that as an unofficial title, but screw that. Nightwing appeared...what, once? Yeah. See, this time? You go all out. Batman, Robin, Spoiler, Batgirl, Nightwing, and Huntress, with Oracle on tactics. This team can handle bigger threats than Batman can, but it's still street-level.
Wonder Woman: Here's someone who's NEVER had a cartoon, who's time has long come. Focus on her initial arrival to man's world, her alienation as she tries to adapt to this world's ways. Give her the job she had in the recent comics, and she has not only a supporting cast (Steve Trevor, Etta Candy, and Tom Tresser), but a way into missions as well.
(This one may not happen though, given writer David E. Kelley's push to get Wonder Woman on screen in live-action again.)
Green Lantern: Personally, I'd make this completely different from the Green Lantern Corps idea. I hate CGI for one, but also because Green Lantern Corps will focus on the alien members--this would focus specifically on the four human Lanterns. Set it out of Guy Gardner's Warriors bar, perhaps with the focus of the first season on the four Lanterns meeting each other and learning to get along. Boom.
Flash: Another character who's time has come to have a cartoon. The only thing is working your way around his super-speed, but if Brave and the Bold did it, it CAN be done. I'd center this one more around legacy, with Wally West learning from Barry Allen who's still taking lessons from Jay Garrick. No need to drag it down in that though--this show should be as fast-paced as possible, and loads of fun.
Young Justice: Round the show out with the one confirmed series we know of, and a team cartoon.
There's a lot you could do with this block. One fanboy-ish thing I'd like to see are two special "movies": Trinity and "Brave and the Bold". Trinity would cover Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman, while Brave and the Bold would (obviously) take up Flash and Green Lantern's slots. Air them a couple months apart so it doesn't seem like you're whacking fans over the head with it.
Post-season one, I would slightly disjoint the new seasons for each series, that way when one finishes its 65 episode run, you could replace it with a new series.
...Did I say new series? Yep. That's the OTHER thing about this DC Universe block. As series finish their runs (or after they've been in syndication for a decent period of time), you could replace them with different characters. Swap Green Lantern for Starman, to keep the space feel. Swap Wonder Woman for Zatara. (DC. You need more female superheroes.) Swap Flash for Firestorm. Superman for Booster Gold, and Batman for Birds of Prey. Eventually, swap out Young Justice for Justice League of America.
If you wanted, all of these cartoons can be set at different point in Earth-16's history, but that's not strictly necessary. What DOES matter is using each cartoon to sort of lead into the next one. It shouldn't be a major deal, but at least introduce the concept of the next one in the last episodes of the previous series.
Theoretically, something like this could allow DC to develop dozens of characters on the silver screen--it's probably the best chance some characters have of getting on-screen in their own series. In the safeness of a block like this, you could probably get away with a cartoon like Green Arrow.
Hopefully DCE is thinking along these same lines.
(*You know the one.)
That's a bit ridiculous, even for this site. Knowing that, we'll be doing something a little different this time.
By now, everyone is aware of the new Young Justice cartoon DC has debuting about two months from now. What you may not know, is DC's current cartoon, Batman: Brave and the Bold, a genius modern take on DC's Silver Age, has been scheduled for cancellation upon reaching 65 episodes.
...And is being immediately replaced by another Batman cartoon. I was not happy about this (check out the podcast!), but I thought of a way to make another Batman cartoon interesting. (I'll bring it up shortly.) I was slowly beginning to grow excited again--if I can think of one take, surely there must be more--and then I learned the new Batman cartoon would likely be CGI. Fantastic.
In any case, I started thinking about the other DC Comics characters that could use some cartoons. The truth is, Cartoon Network could use some more action cartoons. As a kid, this would be the part where Toonami stepped in with three strong hours of action cartoons, airing daily. Unfortunately, Cartoon Network botched that up. But DC Entertainment could step in, and create their OWN block of action cartoons. Think about it for just a moment, my fellow comic geeks:
It's 5PM EST. You turn on the television, and Cartoon Network is on. You're just about to turn away because That Show* is on again. Then out of nowhere--it happens. A brand-new promo, on the same level of the ones we used to see for Toonami and Adult Swim, but this one contains DC heroes. And I mean stuffed with them--sending people to Youtube to spend hours trying to recognize them all. It features the core team: Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Arrow, Flash, Green Lantern, Martian Manhunter, Aquaman, and Black Canary--but it also shows us Booster Gold, Blue Beetle, Supergirl, Nightwing, Robin and Spoiler, the Justice Society, and much more. You're overwhelmed by the awesomeness of it all, and then suddenly, a logo appears on the screen, telling you the name of this brilliant block: Welcome to the DC Universe.
That's right: Three hours of some of the greatest heroes in comics, having some of their biggest adventures ever. ("Only on Cartoon Network.")
This block would be one of the most massive undertakings in animated television since Williams Street did Toonami back in 1996. The block would open with the Big Five, all given their own cartoons:
Superman: It's been far too long since Big Blue graced the small screen in animation. (Over ten years, actually.) It's past time to bring him back--perhaps this time with a bigger focus on his job as a reporter, the various articles he works on tying into his job as Superman. ("What's the mysterious monster draining the life out of Metropolis?" Stuff like that.)
Batman: This guy, however, has had a cartoon since 1992. Sure, there were some years he went without...but he's had four since 1992. We've seen experienced Batman, inexperienced Batman, future Batman, friendly Batman who teams up with people...what's left, you ask? I wondered that too, for a while. And then, someone suggested an idea that fit perfectly: the Bat-Family. Or rather, Batman: Gotham Knights. TNBA had that as an unofficial title, but screw that. Nightwing appeared...what, once? Yeah. See, this time? You go all out. Batman, Robin, Spoiler, Batgirl, Nightwing, and Huntress, with Oracle on tactics. This team can handle bigger threats than Batman can, but it's still street-level.
Wonder Woman: Here's someone who's NEVER had a cartoon, who's time has long come. Focus on her initial arrival to man's world, her alienation as she tries to adapt to this world's ways. Give her the job she had in the recent comics, and she has not only a supporting cast (Steve Trevor, Etta Candy, and Tom Tresser), but a way into missions as well.
(This one may not happen though, given writer David E. Kelley's push to get Wonder Woman on screen in live-action again.)
Green Lantern: Personally, I'd make this completely different from the Green Lantern Corps idea. I hate CGI for one, but also because Green Lantern Corps will focus on the alien members--this would focus specifically on the four human Lanterns. Set it out of Guy Gardner's Warriors bar, perhaps with the focus of the first season on the four Lanterns meeting each other and learning to get along. Boom.
Flash: Another character who's time has come to have a cartoon. The only thing is working your way around his super-speed, but if Brave and the Bold did it, it CAN be done. I'd center this one more around legacy, with Wally West learning from Barry Allen who's still taking lessons from Jay Garrick. No need to drag it down in that though--this show should be as fast-paced as possible, and loads of fun.
Young Justice: Round the show out with the one confirmed series we know of, and a team cartoon.
There's a lot you could do with this block. One fanboy-ish thing I'd like to see are two special "movies": Trinity and "Brave and the Bold". Trinity would cover Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman, while Brave and the Bold would (obviously) take up Flash and Green Lantern's slots. Air them a couple months apart so it doesn't seem like you're whacking fans over the head with it.
Post-season one, I would slightly disjoint the new seasons for each series, that way when one finishes its 65 episode run, you could replace it with a new series.
...Did I say new series? Yep. That's the OTHER thing about this DC Universe block. As series finish their runs (or after they've been in syndication for a decent period of time), you could replace them with different characters. Swap Green Lantern for Starman, to keep the space feel. Swap Wonder Woman for Zatara. (DC. You need more female superheroes.) Swap Flash for Firestorm. Superman for Booster Gold, and Batman for Birds of Prey. Eventually, swap out Young Justice for Justice League of America.
If you wanted, all of these cartoons can be set at different point in Earth-16's history, but that's not strictly necessary. What DOES matter is using each cartoon to sort of lead into the next one. It shouldn't be a major deal, but at least introduce the concept of the next one in the last episodes of the previous series.
Theoretically, something like this could allow DC to develop dozens of characters on the silver screen--it's probably the best chance some characters have of getting on-screen in their own series. In the safeness of a block like this, you could probably get away with a cartoon like Green Arrow.
Hopefully DCE is thinking along these same lines.
(*You know the one.)
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